Artificial intelligence is the new “big idea.”

Every generation has one — the transformational concept that promises to change everything. Ours is AI. The promise is intoxicating: automate thought, create at scale, eliminate inefficiency, augment and/or even replace humans, and unlock new levels of intelligence.

The scale of the rush is staggering. Trillions of dollars are flowing into AI — not only into software startups but also into chip manufacturers, hyperscale data centers, and the immense energy infrastructure needed to power them. Nvidia, whose processors drive most of the world’s AI models, now hovers near a $4 trillion valuation, briefly surpassing both Apple and Microsoft as the world’s most valuable company. OpenAI, valued around $500 billion, is the most valuable private company in history. The tech giants — Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta — are each pouring tens of billions annually into AI research, infrastructure, and integration. The stock market is riding this wave of enthusiasm; entire national economies are now tethered to expectations that AI will deliver exponential returns.

If you listen to the music, it’s all promise and acceleration.

But wait — stop the music. Haven’t we heard this before?