AI seems to be revealing a lot of people get into industries like software engineering or math for a base external validation of their intelligence through their pursuits. The author realizes this and kind of handwaves it away in the last paragraph with some spurious generalizations. If you're not someone who organizes their self-esteem around being "intellectually necessary", this and all the handwringing reads as nonsense. AI hasn't taken away understanding for its own sake, local usefulness, arbitrating taste, or pure play. It's not an existential threat to the human need for community - only to the temperaments of a certain, vocal, subset who will need to evolve.
Good takes but you say that like it's NBD. Western civilization most definitely derives meaning and purpose from work. That in itself is a problem yes. But feel like you're shrugging and saying "told you so". Probably not so helpful.
Maybe it is NBD - the concept of deriving your meaning and purpose from "what you do" instead of "who you are" has always seemed vulgar, so in some ways this turning is simply a necessary comeuppance for that status-seeking mentality. If these folks can muster some of their newly idle individual intellectual activity towards unbinding their self-worth from public recognition, they'll be alright!
> the concept of deriving your meaning and purpose from "what you do" instead of "who you are" has always seemed vulgar
Then not being "vulgar" is only a privilege of the idle rich. When you do something for 8 hours a day, it can't not be a part of who you are.