Still Playing Catch-Up: The Gap Remains

Still Playing Catch-Up: The Gap Remains

April 18, 2026

When I first read that piece about whether AI’s leading men could ever amass the kind of power once held by industrial titans like Ford or Rockefeller, my initial reaction was skepticism. Sure, the names dominating headlines today—Altman, Musk, Huang—carry weight, but comparing them to men who literally built nationwide empires from steel, oil, and assembly lines felt like comparing a smartphone to a steam locomotive. Both are transformative, sure, but the scale and nature of their influence operate in entirely different epochs. Yet as I sat here in my home office overlooking the Chicago River, watching barges ply the same waters that once carried Rockefeller’s refined kerosene to markets nationwide, it struck me: the question isn’t really about whether AI leaders will replicate 20th-century industrial barons. It’s about how their influence is reshaping power itself—and what that means for a city like ours, where finance, manufacturing, and now tech converge in ways that would create both Ford and Rockefeller nod in grim recognition.

Chicago has always been a city of layers. Beneath the gleaming towers of the Loop, where Citadel Securities now executes trades at speeds Rockefeller could only dream of, lies a deeper current of industrial grit. The same streets where Ford’s Model Ts once rolled off assembly lines in Cicero now see autonomous vehicle prototypes navigating the Dan Ryan Expressway. This isn’t just historical nostalgia; it’s a living ecosystem where classic and new power structures constantly negotiate. When the Economist piece questioned whether AI leaders could match the social and political clout of those industrial giants, it missed a crucial nuance: power today isn’t seized through vertical monopolies over physical resources alone. It’s exercised through control of data flows, algorithmic decision-making, and the invisible infrastructure that underpins modern life—from the traffic systems managing Lake Shore Drive to the energy grids keeping the lights on in Pilsen.

Consider how this plays out locally. The Chicago Quantum Exchange, housed in the Hyde Park campus of the University of Chicago, isn’t just advancing theoretical physics—it’s training the next generation of engineers who will build the quantum-resistant cryptography that might one day secure everything from CTA Ventra cards to municipal water systems. Meanwhile, just miles away in the West Loop, companies like Tempus are using AI to analyze vast datasets from Northwestern Memorial Hospital’s cancer trials, seeking patterns that could accelerate pancreatic cancer treatments—a direct echo of the City of Hope’s recent progress report, but applied through a distinctly Midwestern lens of collaboration between private innovation and public health institutions. These aren’t isolated tech experiments; they represent a diffusion of influence that Rockefeller himself would recognize: power exercised not through ownership, but through enabling others to solve problems previously deemed intractable.

This shift has second-order effects that ripple through our communities in unexpected ways. Grab housing, for instance. As AI-driven firms establish footholds in Fulton Market and the Near North Side, demand for housing near transit hubs like the Clinton Green Line station has intensified—not just for engineers, but for the entire ecosystem of services that support them: childcare centers in Logan Square, specialty coffee roasters in Ravenswood, bilingual legal aid providers in Albany Park. The wealth generated doesn’t pool at the top in the same way it did during the Gilded Age; instead, it creates concentric circles of opportunity and pressure, displacing long-time residents while simultaneously funding new community land trusts in Englewood aimed at preserving affordability. It’s a dynamic Ford never faced—his workers lived in company towns he controlled; today’s tech economy creates value through networks that no single entity can fully command.

Given my background in urban economics and decades of observing how technological shifts reshape metropolitan landscapes, if this trend impacts you in Chicago, here are the three types of local professionals you need to understand:

  • **Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Specialists**: Look for professionals working with groups like the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) Chicago or the Chicago Community Trust who understand how to leverage New Markets Tax Credits and other federal tools to ensure AI-driven development includes enforceable community benefits agreements—particularly around local hiring, affordable housing set-asides, and STEM pipeline investments in neighborhood schools.
  • **Algorithmic Accountability Auditors**: Seek out experts affiliated with institutions like the MacArthur Foundation or AI Now Institute partners who specialize in auditing predictive systems used by local government—whether it’s CPD’s ShotSpotter technology, CTA’s predictive maintenance algorithms, or the Department of Family and Support Services’ risk-assessment tools—ensuring they don’t inadvertently encode bias against vulnerable communities.
  • **Industrial Transition Strategists**: Find consultants with deep roots in organizations like the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce or the Manufacturing Renaissance who help traditional manufacturers on the Southwest Side integrate AI-assisted predictive maintenance or supply chain optimization without sacrificing union jobs or institutional knowledge—focusing on upskilling pathways through City Colleges of Chicago and apprenticeship programs tied to firms like Siemens or Caterpillar.

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