Power in the Age of Intelligence

McCormick reframes the “software moats in AI” debate, arguing the real question is not how software companies protect themselves from abundant code but which companies will benefit most from newly abundant inputs. Subtitled “strategy for those who plan to benefit from abundance.”

Core Argument

The winners of the AI era will not be point solutions or vibe-coders but tech-native category leaders who can absorb abundant AI capabilities into vertically integrated operations. Companies with proprietary data loops, real-world feedback, and the ability to act on AI outputs (not just generate them) will capture disproportionate market share. McCormick argues for thinking about “Power” (Hamilton Helmer’s framework) in the context of intelligence abundance rather than scarcity.

RDCO Relevance

Highly relevant strategic framing. RDCO’s thesis — that data engineering expertise combined with AI agent capabilities creates durable competitive advantage — maps directly to McCormick’s argument about tech-native operators benefiting from abundance. The vertical integration emphasis validates RDCO’s full-stack approach (content + data + automation) over point solutions.