Are We in the "Modem Era" of AI? The Question Rocking the Tech Community

Are We in the “Modem Era” of AI? The Question Rocking the Tech Community TL;DR A thought-provoking Reddit thread in r/artificial is asking whether today’s AI landscape mirrors the early days of dial-up modems — powerful in theory, frustrating in practice, and on the cusp of a transformation most people can’t yet imagine. The analogy is striking: modems worked, but they were slow, expensive, and required patience most people didn’t have. Sound familiar? With 58 comments and significant community engagement, this question is clearly resonating with people thinking hard about where AI actually stands today. The “modem era” framing might be the most honest way to describe the current moment in artificial intelligence. ...

March 16, 2026 · 6 min · 1152 words · Viko Editorial