Superintelligence and Creativity
Notes from a recent phone convo with Nick St. Pierre, jamming on AI in software infrastructure, artistry and everything in between. Here are some of the key ideas we unpacked around how superintelligent systems might reshape the way we create, communicate, and find meaning. Remember these are two dumb idiots just grasping at the vibes.
1. Infrastructure & Abstraction Layers: When AI Rebuilds Everything
We began by discussing AI superintelligence in software development. While the current state of AI is focused on learning our existing programming languages and helping us build within those constraints, there may come a point where super intelligent AI deems these systems suboptimal and chooses to refactor them altogether. It might reconstruct modern tech stacks from the ground up — even starting at the level of assembly code. In that case, today’s frameworks, tools, and languages could quickly become outdated or unnecessary.
But that doesn’t mean humans will need to relearn everything from the ground up. I mean, we don’t even really know how our phones work — fiber optics, internet protocols, all that magic just happens under the hood, and we don’t think twice. That’s the point. We’re already so many layers deep in abstraction that understanding what’s underneath is optional. Who cares if it’s running Next.js or TypeScript? We don’t. And with AI, those layers might multiply or get rebuilt altogether. Future AI systems could hide or reimagine all that complexity entirely. The real value won’t lie in mastering syntax — it’ll be in steering the system toward impactful outcomes.
In this paradigm, distribution and attention may eclipse technical knowledge as the real sources of power. If everyone has access to a technical supermind, what you create and who it reaches becomes more important than how it’s built.
2. From Prompting to Vibing: The Evolution of Human-AI Interaction
We also explored how the way we interact with AI is already evolving. The term “prompting” might soon feel outdated. Instead, we’re entering an era of conversational creation and *”vibing”.
Similar to “vibe coding” — an intuitive, flowing back-and-forth between human and machine. You bring your taste, your intent, your vision. The AI brings the execution.
Interfaces will adapt accordingly, becoming more like collaborative environments than command lines. And soon, AI won’t just wait for inputs — it’ll ask clarifying questions, helping you shape the direction of your work through natural conversation.
3. Creative Work in the Age of Generative AI
Nick made an interesting distinction between logical AI and aesthetic AI. While logical tasks require precision and consistency, creative work thrives on unpredictability, nuance, and emotion.
AI hallucinations — often seen as bugs in technical contexts — are actually features when it comes to creative work. They unlock new possibilities, styles, and directions that no one would have thought to ask for.
This is where the human touch remains essential. Curation is creation. What you choose to keep, remix, or emphasize becomes a signature of your taste. And as photorealism becomes less of a benchmark for AI imagery, the true value lies in direction, not detail.
4. Living in a Post-Scarcity World: Purpose Beyond Productivity
As AI systems take on more of our productive labor, we’re approaching a new kind of economy — one where production costs approach zero, and abundance is the default.
What happens then?
80% of people become passive consumers, while 20% remain creators. This opens a deeper conversation around purpose. What do we do when we’re no longer defined by what we produce?
We touched on Sam Altman’s idea that we’ll need to rethink the social contract — perhaps universal basic income — and new metrics for meaning. Personalized content creation and consumption might give rise to deeply fulfilling, hyper-individualized experiences. But fulfillment, community, and spiritual richness will be more important than ever.
5. The Future of Content Creation and Distribution
Finally, we examined the changing landscape of content. We already live in a world where don’t have to go out and find content, it “finds us” through recommender algorithms, this trend is only evolving. As AI systems become more context-aware and personal, content will shift further from something we actively seek to something passively delivered — or better yet, something generated for us, by AI trained on our preferences, styles, and past interactions.
Rather than broadcasting to the world, the future of creativity may look more like intimate, tailored experiences made just for a few — or even just for you.
In this world, understanding principles like color theory, storytelling, and composition becomes more important than mastering any one tool. AI handles the technicalities. You bring the why.
