Technological Involution
The article argues that modern technology has shifted from revolutionary innovation to "involution"—increasing complexity without proportional gains in productivity or well-being. It criticizes software bloat, planned obsolescence, and over-engineering, calling for a reorientation toward simplicity and genuine utility.
Background
- The author, Rohan, is an Indian software engineer who critiques tech culture from within.
- "Involution" (from anthropologist Clifford Geertz, later Chinese *neijuan* / 内卷) means a system growing more complex without genuine progress — running in place.
- The essay argues tech is involuting: ever more elaborate JS frameworks, AI features, and productivity tools consume huge energy but yield diminishing returns, rather than transformative breakthroughs.
- Key referents: "FAANG" (Meta, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, Google — dominant US tech firms); "Y Combinator" (top Silicon Valley startup accelerator); "Hacker News" (its tech-news site where these debates play out).
- The piece joins a long-running tech-world debate about stagnation disguised as optimization — Peter Thiel's "We wanted flying cars, instead we got 140 characters" is a touchstone.