The Age of Suspicion: Why AI Made Authenticity Expensive
The article argues that the rise of generative AI has created a "suspicion economy" where digital content is inherently untrustworthy, making authentic, human-verified proof of existence increasingly rare and costly.
Background
Ben Northmore's newsletter post argues that AI-generated content has made trust scarce, creating a "Suspicion Economy" where authenticity is a premium signal. The piece draws on ideas from economics (Akerlof's "market for lemons" — when buyers can't distinguish quality, bad drives out good) and media theory (Baudrillard's "hyperreality" — images that no longer refer to anything real). Northmore, a New Zealand-based designer and writer, suggests that the internet is shifting from an era of abundant, cheap content to one where proven provenance and human origin become the most valuable currency.