There’s no such thing as data

The essay argues that there is no such thing as "data" as a single, unified, valuable resource, and that its value lies in specific applications and the activity around it. Data sets are not interchangeable: Siemens' wind turbine telemetry and Transport for London's ticket swipes cannot be used for each other's purposes, and Meituan's 50 million daily restaurant orders would not support a missile guidance system. The author states that the value of personal data like likes and follows comes from its connections to other people's data, and cites Tim O'Reilly's view that "data isn't oil - it's sand," along with Meta's Q1 2022 free cashflow of 99 cents per daily active user per month. The essay compares current data and AI debates to 1980s discussions of databases, concluding that data is "not the new oil, just more software."