How technology has already changed the world in my lifetime
Noah Smith
· Noahpinion
· February 15, 2026 at 07:12
· ⏱ 15 min read
| Read on Substack ↗
Summary
=== SUMMARY ===
•The author's central thesis is that the information technology revolution (internet, smartphones, social media) has already caused a radical and fundamental transformation of human society over the past three decades, shifting life from the physical to the digital realm. This change is deeper than what is captured in productivity statistics.
•Key societal shifts highlighted include: the dominance of "screen time" in daily life, the rise of online platforms for core social functions like dating, the elimination of physical wayfinding challenges due to GPS, and the instant, ubiquitous access to information which has devalued rote knowledge and created a permanent digital record of our lives.
Summary
Noah Smith argues that the digital revolution—internet, social media, smartphones—has already radically transformed human life since the 1990s, contrary to economists who claim technological change has stalled. This matters for markets because the shift in social behavior and attention may have broader economic and political effects that are not captured by productivity statistics, but the article offers no actionable investment insights.
•American adults' daily social media time more than doubled between 2008 and 2018, to over 6 hours a day.
•About a third of the U.S. populace is online 'almost constantly' according to Pew data.
•Dating apps have overtaken friends and work as the main way couples meet, per Statista.
•GPS and Google Maps have eliminated the experience of getting lost, altering foundational human navigation skills.
•Knowledge previously stored in human heads is now accessible on demand via Google, Wikipedia, and YouTube.
•The internet gives the universe a permanent memory—past statements and images are preserved indefinitely, affecting cancel culture and personal reinvention.
•Smith argues technological change 'weirds the world' in ways not captured by total factor productivity (TFP) growth, citing economist Dietz Vollrath's explanation for the productivity slowdown.
•The article compares the pace of change between 1918–1957 (industrial/agricultural revolution) versus 1957–present (information revolution), arguing the latter has reshaped social life even if kitchens look similar.