The Unbearable Blandness of the 2020s

TL;DR

Modern culture looks and sounds identical because universal optimization tools and metrics force everything — faces, cars, logos, ideas — toward the same bland average.

Key Points

• 1.Convergent optimization is the root cause of cultural homogenization. When everyone uses the same platforms, metrics, and tools, they reach the same solutions — just as sharks and dolphins independently evolved similar shapes because water imposes the same physical constraints on fast swimmers.
• 2.AI large language models are accelerating the blandness problem. LLMs are trained on the statistical middle of human writing, making them convergence engines by design; the more we use AI for content, the more everything looks and sounds alike.
• 3.Scientific monoculture mirrors the broader trend. Researchers optimizing for citations and high-impact journal publications favor incremental, predictable work; a recent Nature paper explicitly warned this is exactly what science does not need.
• 4.The Cybertruck illustrates the paradox of niche design. By deliberately not optimizing for the broadest market, it becomes instantly recognizable — unlike 'rounded blob' mainstream cars — showing that designing for the average produces products that please no one, because the average person doesn't exist.
• 5.The solution is consumer-side diversity of thought, not producer-side rebellion. Creators can't afford to ignore metrics without losing their jobs, so the real fix is audiences actively choosing unknown authors, unpopular channels, and ideas off the beaten path.