---
title: "I've got nothing to predict for 2026"
subtitle: "But I've a few questions and would love to hear yours!"
author: "Lorenzo Ancona"
date: 2025-12-23
language: en
words: 1197
canonical: https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/ive-got-nothing-to-predict-for-2026
license: CC BY 4.0
cite_as: "I've got nothing to predict for 2026 by Lorenzo Ancona, Artifacts, 2025-12-23. https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/ive-got-nothing-to-predict-for-2026 (CC BY 4.0)"
---
# I've got nothing to predict for 2026

I’ve read a saying that goes, ***“It is difficult to make predictions, especially about the future.”***

Some attribute it to Danish tradition, others to baseball legend Yogi Berra. **The internet is a weird place.**

I won’t dig further into ownership of the quote, but it’s a helpful lens for all the 2026 prediction lists you may have seen.

[![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!lAaY!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fffed5016-f867-4611-9666-31a885e59188_1024x1024.png)](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!lAaY!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fffed5016-f867-4611-9666-31a885e59188_1024x1024.png)

what I will **NOT** do with my non prediction list :)

**I don’t want to add another list.** I’m not good at predicting, and I’d rather not use vague language I could brag about in a year if something vaguely similar happens.

**But I do have** ***questions*** **about what’s coming** - mostly based on what we’ve seen over the past few months.

So I’ve put them together below, **and I’d really like to get yours in the comments!**

I’ll try to use what you share to inspire, inform, and explore **new topics in 2026 for Artifacts!**

[Leave a comment](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/ive-got-nothing-to-predict-for-2026/comments)

> ### Artifacts has questions, not predictions

*It wasn’t easy to add and cut, but these are the questions that made it in coupled with pieces of Artifacts somehow related :)*

> **Will we find a (better) way to pay Wikipedia or newspapers when scraping them for AI?**

There is currently **no standard way to compensate Wikipedia** **or news outlets** when their content is crawled for AI training or inference, even though we know these sources are foundational to how AI systems “know” things. [Wikipedia has reported that 65% of its most expensive traffic](https://diff.wikimedia.org/2025/04/01/how-crawlers-impact-the-operations-of-the-wikimedia-projects/) comes from bots, meaning it is not only unpaid, but **actively bearing the cost of this extraction.**

[![Talking to the Internet](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!NVae!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4f44359c-35ea-4960-98f7-fb6191cda01a_1024x1024.webp)](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/talking-to-the-internet)

#### Talking to the Internet

[Lorenzo Ancona](https://substack.com/profile/142944754-lorenzo-ancona)·3 November 2024[Read full story](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/talking-to-the-internet)

> **Can we stop sentences like “Writing is thinking, not just putting together words”?**

Any stats around how much is synthetic content is around can’t help but being partial, **but we all now see a lot of horrible patterns of AI writing, like weird short sentences**, “this, not that”, those weird long dashes and “delve into”. [We know why it is the case](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/03/magazine/chatbot-writing-style.html), but **could we please get back to writing better?**

> **Do we really want AI for sexting or brain rots?**

AI was sold as a **tool to help tackle some of humanity’s hardest problems.** Instead, the race to adoption seems to be shrinking ambitions: [erotic chatbots](https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpd2qv58yl5o), parasocial companions, [endless content sludge](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/30/style/italian-brain-rot-ballerina-cappuccina.html). **Will we keep going down this slope?**

> **Will we get just fewer buttons on screens?**

With AI taking over computer use, [interfaces are shrinking and becoming simpler](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/no-one-click-that-button), with **most of the work happening behind the screens.** If this is the new frontier of design, one may wonder how users will keep control and dark patterns (or maybe a better word) won’t surface even more.

[![No one click that button!](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!yOrL!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F19c2e0e0-0265-45e6-aa8e-8295a84de213_1024x1024.png)](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/no-one-click-that-button)

#### No one click that button!

[Lorenzo Ancona](https://substack.com/profile/142944754-lorenzo-ancona)·10 June 2025[Read full story](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/no-one-click-that-button)

> **Will age verification become normal?**

Australia and UK have started already and Europe and the US are thinking of it. Despite age verification not being the silver bullet to make social media better, **maybe it will become a default when logging in?** To be seen also how much companies will want to bear this weight.

[![Shut that door](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!m6O6!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8b0fb261-d34a-45a8-a95e-77fc1d7f1b3d_1024x1024.png)](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/shut-that-door)

#### Shut that door

[Lorenzo Ancona](https://substack.com/profile/142944754-lorenzo-ancona)·13 December 2025[Read full story](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/shut-that-door)

> **Will we know more about how social media actually works?**

One path to making social media better is **how much we know about them**, and therefore how much we’re allowed to look into. Data access is still **far from being robust**, [regulators are going after platforms](https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_25_2934), but the journey is still long.

[![To better understand](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!oUKC!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fc74a28bf-aa68-45e6-a313-d86c67e3da49_1024x1024.jpeg)](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/to-better-understand)

#### To better understand

[Lorenzo Ancona](https://substack.com/profile/142944754-lorenzo-ancona)·18 November 2025[Read full story](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/to-better-understand)

> **Will we be able to make it clear what we want to see on social media ?**

It’s no mystery some users reclaim more ability to [steer what they get to see on social media](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/19/opinion/patreon-algorithms-social-media-internet.html) and some are [building platforms for better control.](https://kgi.georgetown.edu/research-and-commentary/better-feeds/) This may increase user satisfaction but **also clash with some retention practices**, which also means money. **What matters more, though?**

> **Or will it simply become cool to be off social media?**

Digital detox or [physical artifacts to use less phones are getting traction](https://www.theverge.com/column/717498/brick-phone-screen-time-apps), as well as with bans in schools. Maybe **the next cool kid** is the one who is not posting?

[![By default](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!zb3S!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F8c5d928c-d597-4526-b5db-3ea2051feb04_1024x1024.webp)](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/by-default)

#### By default

[Lorenzo Ancona](https://substack.com/profile/142944754-lorenzo-ancona)·5 August 2025[Read full story](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/by-default)

> **Will there be more space for new up and coming tech companies?**

We’ve seen some good antitrust and competition efforts across the US, especially in regard to Google, and some good wins of the EU through the Digital Markets Act. *If* this keeps going as hoped and planned, **it’ll be easier to see new players and innovation.**

[![Multiplayer](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!4HuE!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F214d02f3-8762-4cb3-9a63-d09cad4a90be_1536x1024.png)](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/multiplayer)

#### Multiplayer

[Lorenzo Ancona](https://substack.com/profile/142944754-lorenzo-ancona)·17 September 2025[Read full story](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/multiplayer)

> **Will we have an “Obama moment” for AI? And ow much synthetic content will flood politics & information?**

Or, more likely, a negative one.

Will a political candidate use AI so pervasively - in messaging, targeting, persuasion - that **the risks suddenly become obvious to everyone?**

> **Are Large Language Models already not enough?**

Yann LeCun, formerly VP and Chief AI Scientist at Meta, is among the most vocal skeptics of LLMs and [is now leading race to world model AIs](https://techcrunch.com/2025/12/19/yann-lecun-confirms-his-new-world-model-startup-reportedly-seeks-5b-valuation/), that should attempt to **understand the world and can simulate cause-and-effect and what-if scenarios to predict outcomes.** He’s not alone and these model may be **the alternative to LLMs hallucinations.**

[![Breaking the chains](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!tsdM!,w_140,h_140,c_fill,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep,g_auto/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F7211e686-5f64-4f1d-89d5-c1d8ce71c1e2_1024x1058.png)](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/breaking-the-chains)

#### Breaking the chains

[Lorenzo Ancona](https://substack.com/profile/142944754-lorenzo-ancona)·11 February 2025[Read full story](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/breaking-the-chains)

> ***Last but not least,*** **will the AI bubble finally blow up?**

This may come with *a few* implications.

*Thoughts, comments, other questions?* Or even reply to this email!

[Leave a comment](https://artifactstech.substack.com/p/ive-got-nothing-to-predict-for-2026/comments)

> ### **Save for Later**

Why friendship is just [different](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0165025413515404), now? And why design also is [getting different.](https://linear.app/now/design-is-more-than-code)

An LLM that [hasn’t seen the past 100 years.](https://github.com/DGoettlich/history-llms) And how the current ones exert [influence over what we think.](https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2025-12-11-study-reveals-how-conversational-ai-can-exert-influence-over-political-beliefs)

Well, they read [good books.](https://www.theverge.com/entertainment/837661/books-favorites-2025) And [they do too.](https://www.techpolicy.press/tech-policy-press-the-year-in-books-2025/) But poetry can actually [just be math](https://aeon.co/essays/why-poetry-is-a-variety-of-mathematical-experience).

He’s good at predicting, so you can read [what may lie ahead for 2026.](https://www.platformer.news/2026-tech-predictions-ai-bubble-openai-meta-google/)

How ChatGPT Is Weirdly Turning Into Facebook - this guy is so good

[\[Embedded media — view original\]](https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/C7Z11ghwevQ?rel=0&autoplay=0&showinfo=0&enablejsapi=0)

Another guy doing and writing cool stuff:

[![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!JjE_!,w_56,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F265facd7-15d2-417c-9da5-7d17ff6b0252_656x656.png)Ale's Newsletter30 Days of Building Against PolarizationIn my last article, I wrote about the problem I fell in love with: ideological polarization, and why I believe it’s one of the most important and underrated challenges of our time…Read more10 months ago · 12 likes · 3 comments · Alessandro Diano](https://alessandrodiano.substack.com/p/30-days-of-building-against-polarization?utm_source=substack&utm_campaign=post_embed&utm_medium=web)

> ### **The Bookshelf**

[![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!cDKV!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4d60839c-4142-48f4-80ec-7a6ba26424f0_1080x1080.png)](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!cDKV!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4d60839c-4142-48f4-80ec-7a6ba26424f0_1080x1080.png)

I’m not sure about how much science is in this one, but must say that ***“Mathematical Thinking”*** from Rutheford succeeds at putting together a few interesting thoughts on how we think and rules about it. It’s a quick read, but worthwhile.

📚 **All the books** I’ve read and recommended in Artifacts are [here.](https://airtable.com/appK7fMPX1DMkQYzL/shrRh8TgI7GtmgBxM)

> ### **Nerding**

[![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!NyqE!,w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd4e523b9-237c-4002-8170-923deb8b0e5a_1080x1080.png)](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!NyqE!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd4e523b9-237c-4002-8170-923deb8b0e5a_1080x1080.png)

Sometimes the problem about automations is you don’t know what to build. [Twin](https://twin.so/) makes it easier to brainstorm and think about it, so it’s cool to take a look and see what to tinker with.