When AI Becomes the Hunter: The “Dark Forest” of the Intellectual World and a Guide to Survival
Hello everyone, I’m your financial journalist and economist. Today, we’re not talking about some dry academic paper, but about a real-life “survival crisis” that affects everyone who makes a living with their brains.
This article draws on Liu Cixin’s theory of the “Dark Forest” from “The Three-Body Problem,” but this time, the hunters in the forest are not alien civilizations—they’re AI models, and what’s being hunted is your creativity, your research, and the moat that protects your career.
In simple terms, in the past, we believed that “open sharing” was a virtue that brought reputation and cooperation. But now, because AI is so powerful, as soon as you put your ideas down—maybe even before you finish writing them—AI might already have done the work for you, or even better than you could have. As a result, people are starting to shut up and reflect in solitude, with the production of knowledge moving from the “public square” back into the “secret chambers.”
Next, I’ll break down this long article into five key points to explain what’s happening, what the impact is, and what we can do about it.
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1. The Trigger: A Mathematical Controversy over Attribution Rights
The story begins with Tristan Buckmaster, a mathematician at New York University. He collaborated with Levent Alpöge (from Anthropic, OpenAI’s rival company) to use AI tools like Claude and Codex to study the Navier-Stokes equations in fluid dynamics, one of the Millennium Problems in mathematics. They made significant progress with the help of AI, but they hadn’t yet compiled it into a perfect paper. OpenAI heard about their efforts and quickly mobilized its resources—allegedly using 10,000 concurrent AI agents to solve the same problem in just 88 hours and even complete the formal verification.
A conflict arose when OpenAI wanted Buckmaster to write the paper about their findings, but they demanded that Alpöge, who worked for Anthropic, be excluded from the credits. Buckmaster refused. OpenAI even hinted that public debate could destroy his career.
[Journalist’s Analysis:
The core issue here isn’t mathematics; it’s the disparity in speed and resources:
- AI has compressed the traditional “first-mover advantage” period from a year to just a few days.
- The conflict highlights the conflict of interest: the AI tools (used by OpenAI) are both your assistant and your competitor. When you feed your draft to AI, are you giving your opponent information?
- In academia, the author’s name represents contribution. With AI generating results instantly, whoever controls the computing power and data holds the power to define who has made the contribution.
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2. The Core Dilemma: Why Has Open Sharing Become a Form of Suicide?
Scientists and creators used to like to discuss their work openly because:
- Feedback helped them improve their work.
- Reputation was built through early publication.
- Collaboration attracted like-minded people.
But now, the logic has changed. AI has greatly reduced the cost of building on others’ work:
- Previously: If you published a half-finished paper, others might spend months verifying and improving it, giving you time to complete your own work.
- Now: A powerful AI or competitor could generate a complete version based on your ideas and publish it first.
[Journalist’s Analysis:
This is the origin of the “Dark Forest” concept: Revealing your plans is deadly. Ideas can be shared, but the rewards are not automatically distributed. Knowledge is non-exclusive, but fame, copyright, and profits are. The temptation to remain silent is strong, so people discuss in small circles or wait until their work is perfect before sharing it.
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3. The Deeper Crisis: The Information Barrier and Learning Gap for Ordinary People
While scientists worry about attribution and competition, ordinary people (students, newcomers, and junior professionals) face a hidden crisis: a break in learning pathways. The article mentions the concept of a “dead forest” where elite groups form their own language, pace, and judgment criteria. Outside observers can see the finished products but not how they were created.
[Journalist’s Analysis:
- Only the answers are visible: You used to see experts’ blogs, drafts, and even failed attempts, which helped you learn their thought processes. Now, these are hidden in private forums.
- Consequences: You learn how to do things, but not why. You have notes but lack critical thinking skills.
- The information cocoon has evolved: Traditional cocoons show only agreed-upon views; the new barrier shows only results without the logic behind them. You receive many AI-generated conclusions but lose the opportunity for real feedback.
- Stagnation: Despite being diligent and using advanced tools, you’re still confused when making independent decisions because you lack experience in dealing with complexity.
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4. The Survival Anxiety: If AI Is Smarter Than You, Is Your Job Still Secure?
The article cites Elon Musk’s prediction that AI will surpass humans in digital tasks by the end of 2027. This means people who rely on mental work (coding, writing, analysis) are at risk of being replaced. Many wonder if keeping their ideas secret will protect them. The answer is no.
[Journalist’s Analysis:
- Secrecy buys time, not value: AI can come up with similar solutions. Efficiency increases may lead to a price war, reducing your bargaining power.
- Pricing power is more important than productivity: Simply being faster or better isn’t enough. You need to control the price by building direct relationships with users and creating unique assets.
- Be cautious of false security: AI can mimic judgment and empathy. True security comes from continuous action and relationships with real customers.
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5. The Way Out: Stop Being a “Solitary Thinker” and Become a “Connector”
The article ends with a pessimistic conclusion suggesting that people should become like the “solitary thinkers” in “The Three-Body Problem,” but the author believes this comes at a cost:
- Cognitive decline: Without external feedback, people may become less innovative.
- Stagnation of innovation: Great innovations often arise from interactions with strangers.
- Cultural regression: If all thinking is hidden, public knowledge will shrink, hindering new talent.
[Journalist’s Advice:
Don’t become a solitary thinker. Instead, be a connector:
- Distinguish between core secrets and public information: Keep your core strategies and product details private, but share your thought processes and insights.
- Build trust in private circles: Share half-finished work and admit mistakes to build a collaborative network.
- Be a storyteller and connector: Use AI to improve efficiency and share your story to build trust and connections. Your value lies in the trust you build and the problems you solve.
In the dark forest of AI, complete exposure leads to being hunted; complete isolation leads to death. The smart strategy is to be half-transparent. Use AI to boost efficiency, share openly to build reputation, and collaborate in private circles. Don’t be a lonely thinker; be a guide in the forest.