A Cultural Anthropology Workbench: Hype, Moral Panics, & the "World-Destroyer" Rollout Flop
Throughout technological history—from Montgolfier balloonists claiming humans would soon hold moon picnics (oblivious to the space vacuum) to Bell's telephone accused of channeling demonic spirits—inventors have acted as religious prophets. Their playbook was simple: promise unbounded utopia to ignite venture capital and social intrigue.
However, modern Artificial Intelligence represents an unprecedented marketing catastrophe: its own primary evangelists framed their creation as a potential "world-destroyer" and existential extinction hazard to inflate perceived technological potency. Instead of inducing awe, this framing triggered immediate public anxiety, artist revolts, academic disillusionment, and sovereign regulatory pushback. By ignoring mundane utility in favor of divine dread, creators engineered their own trust deficit.