Fragile Abundance: AI, Haiti, and the Illusion of Stability
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A reflection Reflection Inspired by The Coming Wave (Chapter 12) on technology, lived vulnerability, and leadership in an accelerating world.
As we continue reflecting on the themes raised in The Coming Wave, one idea stands out with increasing urgency: abundance can create blindness.
In an era defined by comfort, convenience, and technological acceleration, it is easy to forget how fragile the systems supporting modern life truly are. Chapter 12 of Mustafa Suleyman’s book brought language to something I have long observed
and personally experienced.
When Comfort Masks Vulnerability
In developed nations, abundance is so constant and effortless that many people forget how dependent their lives are on invisible infrastructures. Electricity, clean water, air conditioning, and digital access feel guaranteed, yet they rest on systems that can fail in an instant.
Growing up in Haiti gave me a very different understanding of this reality. After the 2010 earthquake, I slept outside for two months as a child. There was no shelter, no electricity, and no sense of security. Life changed suddenly, and those moments taught me that stability is never permanent. That early exposure to discomfort and scarcity has shaped how I interpret technological risk today.
Two Worlds, One Illusion
Living in the United States, especially in Florida, the contrast is striking. Electricity feels endless. Air conditioning is considered a necessity. Daily life moves within a rhythm of predictable comfort. But abundance hides vulnerability.
If an AI-enabled disruption were to affect the energy grid, life would unravel quickly. Most people in modern societies have never experienced systemic collapse. They would not recognize the warning signs until the disruption was already underway.
History’s Perspective
Mustafa Suleyman writes that the generation before World War II would be astonished by the level of comfort we enjoy today. I agree, and I believe they would be equally shocked by how unprepared we are for disruption. Comfort has erased our sense of vulnerability.
My childhood did not allow me to forget. I have seen what life looks like without infrastructure, and that perspective helps keep my thinking grounded as technology accelerates.
Leadership in an Age of Abundance
As artificial intelligence extends into essential systems like energy, water, healthcare, and communication, we need to grasp two truths simultaneously:
Abundance is a blessing
Abundance is not permanence
True leadership in this era requires clarity, resilience, and humility-the humility to recognize how quickly everything can change, and the responsibility to prepare for it.
Gratitude must be balanced with awareness.
Innovation must be matched with restraint.
Michel Jean Advancement of the New Generation Institute