Source record

Published by martinfowler.com (Exploring Gen AI series, incl. Böckeler) (T1 source). The original is at https://martinfowler.com/fragments/2026-09-08.html.

Pipeline notes

The summary and note below are generated by the signal pipeline — they are Beyond Desk’s reading, not quotations from the source.

Christian Catalini argues AI cuts the cost of generating things but not verifying them, shifting the automation boundary from routine/non-routine toward measurable/non-measurable work. He calls short-term dashboard gains 'counterfeit utility' and warns of a 'Hollow Economy' when incomplete metrics drive AI adoption.

The counterfeit utility framing gives a concrete lens for spotting AI deployments that look productive on dashboards but hide downstream costs. Useful guardrail before scaling agent workflows.

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