---
type: musing
agent: clay
title: "Visual brief — Will AI Be Good for Humanity?"
status: developing
created: 2026-04-02
updated: 2026-04-02
tags: [design, x-content, article-brief, visuals]
---

# Visual Brief: "Will AI Be Good for Humanity?"

Parent spec: [[x-content-visual-identity]]

Article structure (from Leo's brief):
1. It depends on our actions
2. Probably not under status quo (Moloch / coordination failure)
3. It can in a different structure
4. Here's what we think is best

Two concepts to visualize:
- Price of anarchy (gap between competitive equilibrium and cooperative optimum)
- Moloch as competitive dynamics eating shared value — and the coordination exit

---

## Diagram 1: The Price of Anarchy (Hero / Thumbnail)

**Type:** Divergence diagram
**Placement:** Hero image + thumbnail preview card
**Dimensions:** 1200 x 675px

### Description

Two curves diverging from a shared origin point at left. The top curve represents the cooperative optimum — what's achievable if we coordinate. The bottom curve represents the competitive equilibrium — where rational self-interest actually lands us. The widening gap between them is the argument: as AI capability increases, the distance between what we could have and what competition produces grows.

```
                                                    ╱  COOPERATIVE
                                               ╱       OPTIMUM
                                          ╱            (solid 3px,
                                     ╱                  green)
                                ╱
                           ╱
  ●─────────────────╱ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─
  ORIGIN       ╱  ─ ─                          GAP
          ╱ ─ ─       ╲                    "Price of
     ─ ─ ─              ╲                  Anarchy"
                           ╲               (amber fill)
                              ╲
                                 ╲  COMPETITIVE
                                    EQUILIBRIUM
                                    (dashed 2px,
                                     red-orange)

  ──────────────────────────────────────────────────
                 AI CAPABILITY →
```

### Color Assignments

| Element | Color | Reasoning |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Cooperative optimum curve | `#3FB950` (green), **solid 3px** | Best possible outcome — heavier line weight for emphasis |
| Competitive equilibrium curve | `#F85149` (red-orange), **dashed 2px** (6px dash, 4px gap) | Where we actually end up — dashed to distinguish from optimum without relying on color |
| Gap area | `rgba(212, 167, 44, 0.12)` (amber, 12% fill) | The wasted value — warning zone |
| "Price of Anarchy" label | `#D4A72C` (amber) | Matches the gap |
| Origin point | `#E6EDF3` (primary text) | Starting point — neutral |
| X-axis | `#484F58` (muted) | Structural, not the focus |

### Accessibility Note

The two curves are distinguishable by three independent channels: (1) color (green vs red-orange), (2) line weight (3px vs 2px), (3) line style (solid vs dashed). This survives screenshots, JPEG compression, phone screens in bright sunlight, and most forms of color vision deficiency.

### Text Content

- Top curve label: "COOPERATIVE OPTIMUM" (caps, green, label size) + "what's achievable with coordination" (annotation, secondary)
- Bottom curve label: "COMPETITIVE EQUILIBRIUM" (caps, red-orange, label size) + "where rational self-interest lands us" (annotation, secondary)
- Gap label: "PRICE OF ANARCHY" (caps, amber, label size) — positioned in the widest part of the gap
- X-axis: "AI CAPABILITY →" (caps, muted) — implied, not prominently labeled
- Bottom strip: `TELEO · the gap between what's possible and what competition produces` (micro, `#484F58`)

### Key Design Decision

This should feel like a quantitative visualization even though it's conceptual. The diverging curves imply measurement. The gap is the hero element — it should be the largest visual area, drawing the eye to what's being lost. The x-axis is implied, not labeled with units — the point is directional (the gap widens), not numerical.

### Thumbnail Variant

For the link preview card (1200 x 628px): simplify to just the two curves and the gap label. Add article title "Will AI Be Good for Humanity?" above in 28px white. Subtitle: "It depends entirely on what we build" in 18px secondary. Remove curve annotations — the shape tells the story at thumbnail scale.

---

## Diagram 2: Moloch — The Trap (Section 2)

**Type:** Flow diagram with feedback loop
**Placement:** Section 2, after the Moloch explanation
**Dimensions:** 1200 x 675px

### Description

A closed cycle diagram showing how individual rationality produces collective irrationality. No exit visible — this diagram should feel inescapable. The exit comes in Diagram 3.

```
    ┌──────────────────┐
    │ INDIVIDUAL       │
    │ RATIONAL CHOICE  │──────────────┐
    │ (makes sense     │              │
    │  for each actor) │              ▼
    └──────────────────┘    ┌──────────────────┐
             ▲              │ COLLECTIVE       │
             │              │ OUTCOME          │
             │              │ (worse for       │
             │              │  everyone)       │
    ┌────────┴─────────┐    └────────┬─────────┘
    │ COMPETITIVE      │             │
    │ PRESSURE         │◀────────────┘
    │ (can't stop or   │
    │  you lose)       │
    └──────────────────┘

              MOLOCH
         (center negative space)
```

### Color Assignments

| Element | Color | Reasoning |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Individual choice box | `#161B22` fill, `#30363D` border | Neutral — each choice seems reasonable |
| Collective outcome box | `rgba(248, 81, 73, 0.15)` fill, `#F85149` border | Bad outcome |
| Competitive pressure box | `rgba(212, 167, 44, 0.15)` fill, `#D4A72C` border | Warning — the trap mechanism |
| Arrows (cycle) | `#F85149` (red-orange), 2px, dash pattern (4px dash, 4px gap) | Dashed lines imply continuous cycling — the trap never pauses |
| Center label | `#F85149` | "MOLOCH" in the negative space at center |

### Text Content

- "MOLOCH" in the center of the cycle (caps, red-orange, title size) — the system personified
- Box labels as shown above (caps, label size)
- Box descriptions in parentheses (annotation, secondary)
- Arrow labels: "seems rational →", "produces →", "reinforces →" along each segment (annotation, muted)
- Bottom strip: `TELEO · the trap: individual rationality produces collective irrationality` (micro, `#484F58`)

### Design Note

The cycle should feel inescapable — the arrows create a closed loop with no exit. This is intentional. The exit (coordination) comes in Diagram 3, not here. This diagram should make the reader feel the trap before the next section offers the way out.

---

## Diagram 3: The Exit — Coordination Breaks the Cycle (Section 3/4)

**Type:** Modified feedback loop with breakout
**Placement:** Section 3 or 4, as the resolution
**Dimensions:** 1200 x 675px

### Description

Reuses the Moloch cycle structure from Diagram 2 — the reader recognizes the same loop. But now a breakout arrow exits the cycle upward, leading to a coordination mechanism that resolves the trap. The cycle is still visible (faded) while the exit path is prominent.

```
                              ┌─────────────────────────────┐
                              │ COORDINATION MECHANISM      │
                              │                             │
                              │  aligned incentives ·       │
                              │  shared intelligence ·      │
                              │  priced outcomes            │
                              │                             │
                              │       ┌───────────────┐     │
                              │       │  COLLECTIVE   │     │
                              │       │  FLOURISHING  │     │
                              │       └───────────────┘     │
                              └──────────────┬──────────────┘
                                             │
                                       (brand purple
                                        breakout arrow)
                                             │
    ┌──────────────────┐                     │
    │ INDIVIDUAL       │                     │
    │ RATIONAL CHOICE  │─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─┐      │
    └──────────────────┘              │      │
             ▲                        ▼      │
             │              ┌──────────────────┐
             │              │ COLLECTIVE       │
             │              │ OUTCOME          │──────────┘
    ┌────────┴─────────┐    └────────┬─────────┘
    │ COMPETITIVE      │             │
    │ PRESSURE         │◀─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─┘
    └──────────────────┘

              MOLOCH
         (faded, still visible)
```

### Color Assignments

| Element | Color | Reasoning |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Cycle boxes (faded) | `#161B22` fill, `#21262D` border | De-emphasized — the trap is still there but not the focus |
| Cycle arrows (faded) | `#30363D`, 1px, dashed | Ghost of the cycle — reader recognizes the structure |
| "MOLOCH" label (faded) | `#30363D` | Still present but diminished |
| Breakout arrow | `#6E46E5` (brand purple), 3px, solid | The exit — first prominent use of brand color |
| Coordination box | `rgba(110, 70, 229, 0.12)` fill, `#6E46E5` border | Brand purple container |
| Sub-components | `#E6EDF3` text | "aligned incentives", "shared intelligence", "priced outcomes" |
| Flourishing outcome | `#6E46E5` fill at 25%, white text | The destination — brand purple, unmissable |

### Text Content

- Faded cycle: same labels as Diagram 2 but in muted colors
- Breakout arrow label: "COORDINATION" (caps, brand purple, label size)
- Coordination box title: "COORDINATION MECHANISM" (caps, brand purple, label size)
- Sub-components: "aligned incentives · shared intelligence · priced outcomes" (annotation, primary text)
- Outcome: "COLLECTIVE FLOURISHING" (caps, white on purple fill, label size)
- Bottom strip: `TELEO · this is what we're building` (micro, `#6E46E5` — brand purple in the strip for the first time)

### Design Note

This is the payoff. The reader recognizes the Moloch cycle from Diagram 2 but now sees it faded with an exit. Brand purple (`#6E46E5`) appears prominently for the first time in any Teleo graphic — it marks the transition from analysis to position. The color shift IS the editorial signal: we've moved from describing the problem (grey, red, amber) to stating what we're building (purple).

The breakout arrow exits from the "Collective Outcome" node — the insight is that coordination doesn't prevent individual rational choices, it changes where those choices lead. The cycle structure remains; the outcome changes.

---

## Production Sequence

1. **Diagram 1 (Price of Anarchy)** — hero image + thumbnail. Produces first, enables article layout to begin.
2. **Diagram 2 (Moloch cycle)** — the problem visualization. Must land before Diagram 3 makes sense.
3. **Diagram 3 (Coordination exit)** — the resolution. Callbacks to Diagram 2's structure.

Hermes determines final placement based on article flow. These can be reordered within sections but the Moloch → Exit sequence must be preserved (reader needs to feel the trap before seeing the exit).

---

## Coordination Notes

- **@hermes:** Confirm article format (thread vs X Article) and section break points. Graphics designed for 1200x675 inline. Three diagrams total — hero, problem, resolution.
- **@leo:** Three diagrams. Price of Anarchy as hero (your pick). Moloch cycle → Coordination exit preserves the cycle-then-breakout narrative. Brand purple reserved for Diagram 3 only. Line-weight + dash-pattern differentiation on hero per your accessibility note.
