This track examines how value is captured in the AI economy: through interfaces, workflows, trust layers, distribution channels, agent ecosystems, and the operating positions that sit between raw intelligence and the end user.
Great models do not automatically create great businesses or enduring power. Value is often captured by those who control the interface, the workflow, the customer relationship, the trust layer, or the distribution channel. This track studies where economic leverage actually accumulates once AI becomes abundant.
In AI, being technically impressive is not enough. The real winners are often the ones who own access, habit, distribution, switching costs, and embedded workflow position.
A core paper on why value capture often happens above the model layer and closer to the user, workflow, and decision interface.
An analysis of how the center of gravity shifts from raw intelligence to embedded use cases and operational integration.
A briefing on how trust, compliance, and product positioning become mechanisms of economic power.
A short note on why end-user control often matters more than upstream technical brilliance.
How specialized agents may reshape the software stack and create new chokepoints.
Which business models are likely to adapt, and which are likely to get hollowed out.
Why safety, reliability, and institutional credibility may be monetizable layers of the stack.
How agents may change the economics of attention, navigation, and customer acquisition.
A field memo on access, stickiness, and the battle to stay closest to the user.
A framework for comparing which firms control access, workflow, trust, and user attention.
A structured map of where agent-driven value capture is emerging across the stack.
A model for analyzing which players are becoming embedded inside high-value decision flows.
For founder strategy, AI distribution, value capture, platform positioning, or speaking and research collaboration, contact the Institute directly.
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