Historian Jill Lepore has put forward a theory about why technology companies frequently employ what she describes as “soaring language” when describing their products, according to TechCrunch AI. Lepore suggests this language makes it sound as if these companies are forming a new government.
According to the report, Lepore points to examples like Twitter’s former characterization as a “town hall in your pocket” and references to Anthropic. Her analysis focuses on what she characterizes as Silicon Valley leaders being “bad sci-fi readers,” suggesting they misinterpret or misapply themes from science fiction literature when developing and marketing their technologies.
The historian’s critique appears to center on the gap between the grand, civic-minded rhetoric tech companies use and the actual nature of their commercial products and services. TechCrunch AI reports on Lepore’s observations about the “Artificial State,” though the specific details of this concept as presented in the original source are limited in the provided excerpt.