Summary of "A post-American, enshittification-resistant internet (a speech at 39C3 in Hamburg on Dec 28, 2025)"
Summary of “A post-American, enshittification-resistant internet (a speech at 39C3 in Hamburg on Dec 28, 2025)”
Key Technological Concepts and Analysis
1. War on General Purpose Computing & Anti-Circumvention Laws
- The speaker, an Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) activist, outlines a 25-year struggle against anti-circumvention laws originating from the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), Section 1201.
- These laws criminalize modifying digital products or revealing methods to bypass digital restrictions, effectively locking down devices and software.
- Consequences include preventing repair, interoperability, and security research.
- Anti-circumvention laws have been globally propagated through US trade agreements, compelling many countries (EU, Canada, Mexico, Australia, Chile, Central America) to adopt similar restrictive laws.
- This facilitates US tech companies’ control over foreign markets and data.
2. Impact of Anti-Circumvention Laws on Technology and Economy
- Examples:
- John Deere tractors require expensive official service codes to operate new parts.
- Medical devices like Medtronic ventilators are locked down to force costly authorized repairs.
- Automakers rent software features (e.g., Mercedes accelerator, BMW high beams).
- These laws create monopolistic “digital tax” regimes, extracting billions from users worldwide.
- They stifle competition and innovation.
- The speaker calls this “felony contempt of business model” and a key driver of “enshittification” — the intentional degradation of technology and platforms.
3. Post-American Internet Opportunity
- The Trump administration’s trade wars and tariffs have unintentionally weakened the US-led global tech trade regime.
- This disruption breaks the lock-in of anti-circumvention laws and opens a “door” to a post-American internet.
- This new internet would enable technological self-determination, interoperability, and user control, free from US corporate and political dominance.
- Repealing anti-circumvention laws (e.g., EU’s Article 6 of the Copyright Directive, Canada’s Bill C11) would:
- Allow companies and technologists to create jailbreak tools and interoperable alternatives.
- Unlock trillions in value.
- Enable competitive markets (e.g., alternative app stores to Apple’s 30% cut).
- Such moves would also enhance digital sovereignty and national security by reducing dependence on US cloud services and platforms vulnerable to political pressure (e.g., Microsoft’s control over ICC email, John Deere tractors bricked remotely).
4. Digital Sovereignty and Open Source Infrastructure
- Projects like Euro Stack aim to replicate US big tech silos with open-source, locally hosted, auditable services in the EU.
- True sovereignty requires adversarial interoperability tools (scrapers, headless browsers) to migrate data away from US clouds without their cooperation.
- The speaker emphasizes the need to “seize the means of computation” by breaking bootloaders, running virtual devices, and enabling firmware modifications.
5. Critique of AI and Tech Industry Trends
- AI is framed as a tool that produces tech debt at scale.
- It replaces skilled workers with defective automation and enables bosses to control without real social interaction or expertise.
- The speaker critiques tech CEOs’ obsession with AI as a fantasy of a world without workers.
- Highlights economic losses and poor quality of AI-generated code.
- Contrasts this with the vision of a post-American internet that reduces tech debt, distributes value more fairly, and builds resilient, user-controlled systems.
6. Economic and Political Context
- The US economy is described as a “K-shaped recovery,” where wealth concentrates at the top while most Americans struggle with debt and high costs.
- Anti-worker policies and weakened enforcement have increased inequality and reduced US consumer spending power.
- This weakens America’s role as a global consumer market.
- The speaker argues countries no longer need to fear US retaliation for breaking anti-circumvention laws due to erosion of US geopolitical leverage under Trump.
- The post-American internet would also benefit Americans, who are mostly victims rather than beneficiaries of US tech monopolies.
7. Call to Action: Repeal Anti-Circumvention Laws and Build Alternatives
- The speaker urges countries to repeal anti-circumvention laws to enable the creation and sale of jailbreak tools and interoperable technology worldwide.
- This would target big tech’s high-margin revenue streams rather than indiscriminate tariffs that harm ordinary consumers.
- The repeal would also undermine abusive practices by European companies (e.g., Volkswagen’s dieselgate, Medtronic ventilator lockdowns, Polish train company Nuvog’s train-bricking and extortion).
- Building open, free, and auditable software commons is presented as a way to reduce software’s liability and fragility.
8. Coalitions and Allies
- The new coalition includes:
- Digital rights activists.
- Entrepreneurs seeking economic opportunities.
- National security hawks concerned about dependence on US tech platforms.
- The post-American internet is also framed as post-Chinese, emphasizing user control and security against authoritarian backdoors.
- The speaker is cautiously hopeful (hope, not optimism) that the door to this new internet is now open.
- Global political momentum, including antitrust actions worldwide, supports this shift.
Product Features, Guides, or Tutorials Mentioned
Jailbreaking Technology
- Jailbreaking iOS devices (e.g., Checkmate exploits) and John Deere tractors to bypass manufacturer-imposed restrictions.
- Concept of a jailbreak supply chain involving companies that maintain and distribute jailbreaks with consumer support and insurance.
- Potential for hardware dongles and infrastructure to enable alternative app stores and payment processors (e.g., to compete with Apple’s App Store).
- Emphasis on creating regulated, trustworthy jailbreak services to support non-technical users.
Open Source Alternatives and Tools
- Euro Stack project to build EU-based open-source cloud infrastructure replicating US big tech functionality.
- Need for adversarial interoperability tools (scrapers, headless browsers) for data migration from US-controlled platforms.
Reviews and Critical Analysis
Critique of Anti-Circumvention Laws
- Identified as a major cause of technology decay and monopoly power.
- Harm users, repairers, and innovators.
- Real-world harm and economic exploitation demonstrated in agriculture, automotive, medical, and software sectors.
Critique of AI Hype
- AI portrayed as hype-driven.
- Produces low-quality code.
- Increases tech debt.
- Facilitates job losses rather than genuine productivity gains.
Critique of US Trade and Tech Policy
- US trade agreements enforced anti-circumvention globally.
- Enabled US tech dominance at the expense of other countries.
- Trump’s trade wars and tariffs unintentionally opened opportunities to break this system.
Critique of EU and Other Governments
- EU enforcement against Apple’s App Store has been ineffective due to Apple’s legal tactics and threats.
- EU’s Article 6 copyright directive supports anti-circumvention and should be repealed.
Main Speakers and Sources
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Corey Doctorow (Primary Speaker) Longtime Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) activist and digital rights advocate. Delivered the keynote speech at 39C3 in Hamburg, Dec 28, 2025.
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Joey Davilla (Quoted) Provided a humorous analogy about making the best of bad situations.
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Other Mentioned Entities
- John Deere (tractor manufacturer)
- Apple (App Store policies)
- Microsoft (Cloud Act and ICC incident)
- Medtronic (medical devices)
- Nuvog (Polish train company)
- Euro Stack (EU open-source cloud project)
- Various digital rights organizations (Nets Politique, Irish Council for Civil Liberties, Open Rights Group, etc.)
Overall, the speech is a comprehensive call to dismantle anti-circumvention laws, promote technological sovereignty, foster open interoperable platforms, and build a post-American internet that resists enshittification and corporate monopolization, leveraging new political and economic realities to achieve this vision.
Category
Technology
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