William Stanley Jevons
Coverage of William Stanley Jevons in the Nexus archive.
- AI prices are plunging. That feels bad, but something else is happening.
OpenAI slashed prices for its GPT-5.6 Luna and Terra models, but despite the price cuts, usage dramatically increased. This led to significant revenue gains, with Luna's revenue increasing about 34% and Terra's revenue rising about 45%. This pattern suggests an instance of Jevons Paradox, where making a resource cheaper encourages much higher consumption.
- The most reassuring argument about AI and jobs quietly explains why Gen Z can’t get one
Wolters Kluwer, a Dutch software company, argues AI won't eliminate jobs due to the 'lump of labor fallacy' and Jevons Paradox, explaining AI shifts tasks rather than replaces jobs. Legal teams now seek AI-trained junior professionals to validate AI outputs and manage workflows, as efficiency gains increase client expectations rather than reduce demand for services.