Nexus: A Brief History of Information Networks from the Stone Age to AI: Summary & Key Insights

Throughout history, many traditions have believed that a fatal flaw in our nature tempts us to pursue powers we do not know how to handle. The Greek myth of Phaethon and Goethe's poem "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" both tell cautionary tales of individuals who summon powers they cannot control, leading to disaster. In these stories, the problem is framed as individual hubris or incompetence. However, this analysis misses the crucial point that human power is never the outcome of individual initiative alone. Power stems from cooperation between large numbers of humans.

Our tendency to summon powers we cannot control stems from the unique way our species cooperates. We build massive networks held together by information. But information is not necessarily truth. Sapiens have built large networks by spreading fictions and fantasies—about gods, nations, and money. These fictions allow us to cooperate, but they also predispose us to use our power unwisely. The Nazi and Stalinist regimes were exceptionally powerful networks held together by exceptionally deluded ideas. Their strength proves that delusional networks are not doomed to immediate failure; ignorance can indeed be strength in the short term.

The naive view of information argues that big networks achieve wisdom by processing vast amounts of data, leading to truth. It assumes that more information leads to greater accuracy and that in a free market of ideas, truth will prevail. This view has been the ideology of the computer age, championed by figures like Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama, and corporations like Google. While more information has helped in areas like reducing child mortality, it has not solved our biggest existential threats. In fact, despite our hoard of data, we are destroying our ecological foundations and stockpiling doomsday weapons.

Now, we face the rise of AI, a technology that some believe will solve all our problems. Yet, AI poses the risk of creating a "Silicon Curtain" that could divide humanity or separate us from our new AI overlords. AI is the first technology that can make decisions and create ideas independently. It is not a tool; it is an agent. Trusting algorithms to make wise decisions is a gamble far greater than trusting an enchanted broom. We must move beyond the naive view and understand that information networks are built to maintain order, often at the expense of truth.

To understand our predicament, we must ask: What is information? It is difficult to define. In everyday usage, we associate it with symbols like words or numbers. Consider the story of Cher Ami, the carrier pigeon who saved the Lost Battalion in World War I by carrying a message. The pigeon conveyed information that saved lives. But information can also be a rainbow, a star, or a window shutter used by spies. Any object can be information in the right context.

The naive view defines information as an attempt to represent reality. If it succeeds, it is truth; if it fails, it is misinformation. This view assumes the main role of information is to represent a preexisting reality. However, most information does not attempt to represent reality at all. Music, for example, connects people and synchronizes emotions without representing anything external. DNA does not represent a lion or a zebra; it initiates chemical processes that create a functioning organism. Similarly, information in human history is primarily about connection, not representation. Information connects different points into a network. It puts things "in formation."

This definition explains the power of things like astrology or the Bible. The Bible makes many errors about biology and history, yet it has been incredibly effective in connecting billions of people into religious networks. If the main job of information were to represent reality accurately, the Bible would be a failure. But as a tool for connection, it is a resounding success. Information creates new realities—intersubjective realities like laws, gods, and nations—by tying disparate things together. Therefore, when we look at the history of information networks, we see a rise in connectivity, but not necessarily a rise in truthfulness or wisdom. We Sapiens rule the world because we are talented at using information to connect large numbers of individuals, often by relying on fictions and fantasies.