Prediction Is the New Electricity: How Cheap AI Is Quietly Revolutionizing Everyday Life

How Cheap AI Is Quietly Revolutionizing Everyday Life

When the lightbulb made artificial light cheap, it transformed society in ways no one could predict: night shifts, skyscrapers, and global cities. Today, AI’s gift is prediction—filling in missing information—made so cheap and reliable that it’s becoming the invisible engine of modern life.

Consider the translation app that went from awkward to fluent overnight, thanks to a new prediction engine. Or the credit card company that detects fraud in real time, learning your habits and shielding you from risk. These aren’t the stuff of science fiction—they’re the daily miracles of cheap prediction, quietly reshaping our expectations and habits.

As prediction becomes abundant, its value shifts. Data, judgment, and action become the new frontiers for value creation. Companies are experimenting with 'anticipatory shipping,' sending goods before you order them, all because prediction is so cheap it flips business models on their head.

The economic principle is simple: when the price of something falls, we use more of it. As prediction becomes cheap, it’s being used in ways we never imagined—enabling new workflows, industries, and even social norms. The real revolution isn’t in the machines themselves, but in the creativity and opportunity they unleash for people and organizations willing to adapt.

Cheap prediction is the new electricity—quiet, ubiquitous, and profoundly transformative. Are you plugged in?