A tool waits to be used
Last night I rewatched The Social Dilemma. Tristan Harris, co-founder of Center for Humane Technology, made a distinction of what a tool is that stood out to me this time.
“A tool waits to be used.”
I’ve been thinking more and more about the tools that are made and now in the age of AI the tools we can all make. So what separates an app from being an actual tool vs something that is disguised as a tool?
The financial incentive.
There are three reasons apps are created:
- Solve existing problems
- Combat inefficiencies
- Imagine the possibilities
But we’ve got to make money to keep making or stay in business. The financial incentive comes in play when the tool is marketed and designed in a way that maximizes growth vs the usefulness of the tool. All of a sudden the toolmaker is now just a businessman.
An actual tool can wait to be used because people willingly pay for something genuinely valuable—once or ongoing.
A businessman is always running the numbers whereas the toolmaker is okay with waiting while they keep making.
A tool waits to be used.
