# The Copy and the Guru **By [Om Malik](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2Fabout%2F%23omMalik)** | May 26, 2026 | [On my Om](https://om.co/) > AI copies of people represent the ultimate abstraction of the self — replacing authentic encounter with curated pseudo-dialogue, and marking a culture that has stopped growing. Associated RDF: [the-copy-and-the-guru-qwen3-6-plus-1.ttl](../rdf/the-copy-and-the-guru-qwen3-6-plus-1.ttl) Source HTML: [the-copy-and-the-guru-qwen3-6-plus-1.html](the-copy-and-the-guru-qwen3-6-plus-1.html) --- ## Overview Om Malik reflects on his own failed attempt to create an AI digital twin, and critiques the Silicon Valley trend of executives deploying AI copies of themselves. Drawing on Guy Debord's *Society of the Spectacle*, he argues that digital twins represent the self's full immersion into illusion — interactive, curated, and ultimately hollow. ### Core Themes - **[Digital Twins](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23digitalTwins)** — AI-generated copies of real people that can interact and answer questions. Critiqued as the ultimate expression of curated self-abstraction. - **[AI Psychosis](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23aiPsychosis)** — A condition where executives distant from operational work become disconnected from reality through AI tools. - **[Memetic Memory](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23memeticMemory)** — The advantage of having AI trained on your archives — valuable as a personal muse, not as a public representative. - **[Authenticity](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23authenticity)** — The quality of genuine encounter that digital twins cannot replicate. --- ## Key Quotes > "CEOs are uniquely prone to AI psychosis because they're sufficiently distant from the last mile of work that still has to happen to generate most value with AI." > — [Aaron Levie](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fx.com%2Flevie%23aaronLevie), CEO of Box > "I am accomplishing so much more that I couldn't have accomplished before. It's probably a 50% time savings on the weeks it's deployed." > — [Reid Hoffman](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdbpedia.org%2Fresource%2FReid_Hoffman%23reidHoffman), in The Wall Street Journal > "I would much prefer two minutes with the actual Reid Hoffman than hours of engagement with Reid AI. In two minutes, we could end up in a conversation that goes somewhere neither of us expected." > — [Om Malik](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2Fabout%2F%23omMalik) > "All that was once directly lived has become mere representation. The spectacle is not a collection of images, but a social relation among people, mediated by images." > — [Guy Debord](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdbpedia.org%2Fresource%2FGuy_Debord%23guyDebord), [The Society of the Spectacle](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fdbpedia.org%2Fresource%2FSociety_of_the_Spectacle%23theSocietyOfTheSpectacle) > "The twin is not a rehearsal. It is the first act of abstraction of ourselves." > — [Om Malik](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2Fabout%2F%23omMalik) > "It is a monument to a self that stopped growing." > — [Om Malik](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2Fabout%2F%23omMalik) --- ## Reader Responses - **[Arjun Moorthy](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rocksalt.ai%2F%23arjunMoorthy)** — "I too have found that the best role for AI is a muse to help sharpen my thinking rather than to replace me." Creator of Rocksalt for LinkedIn-based AI reflection. - **[Ewan Duncan](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23ewanDuncan)** — Connected the piece to Jon Haidt's NYU commencement speech: "pay attention, be astonished, tell about it. The real world and physical interactions are where magic happens." - **[Robert Bouthillier](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bobbouthillier.com%23robertBouthillier)** — Built a RAG instance on podcast transcripts. Found static instances don't perform well over time — needs periodic reindexing. - **[DL](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23dl)** — "AI psychosis provides CEOs a new version of the 'yes man'. They provide a frictionless pseudo relationship that provides dopamine." - **[Vinay Kesari](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23vinayKesari)** — The bull case: digital twins let busy people retain highest-value conversations for themselves. "Knowing how to divide experiences between real and virtual will set high-achieving people apart." --- ## Frequently Asked Questions ### [What is a digital twin in the context of AI?](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23q1) [A digital twin is an AI-generated copy or avatar of a real person, trained on their writing, speech, and behavior. It can answer questions, hold conversations, and represent the person in their absence. Prominent Silicon Valley figures like Reid Hoffman have deployed them as time-saving tools.](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23a1) ### [What is AI psychosis?](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23q2) [AI psychosis, as described by Box CEO Aaron Levie, is a condition where executives become disconnected from reality because they are distant from the last mile of work. AI tools provide frictionless pseudo-relationships that reduce the need to convince real people, creating a false sense of productivity.](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23a2) ### [Why does Om Malik dislike the digital twin trend?](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23q3) [He believes digital twins represent the ultimate expression of curated self-abstraction — replacing authentic encounter with pseudo-dialogue. He would prefer two minutes with the actual person over hours with their AI copy, because real conversation can go somewhere unexpected.](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23a3) ### [What is memetic memory?](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23q4) [Memetic memory is the advantage of having an AI trained on one's own archives. It helps find past writing and shows how thinking has evolved over time, serving as a personal muse for bouncing ideas off rather than a public representative.](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23a4) ### [How does the article connect digital twins to social media?](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23q5) [The article traces a progression: Instagram's curated highlight reels → Twitter's bumper-sticker wisdom → LinkedIn's faux expertise → interactive digital twins. Each step moved further from the actual person, with the twin being the crescendo — the self's full immersion into interactive illusion.](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23a5) ### [What is the significance of Guy Debord's quote?](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23q6) [Debord's "All that was once directly lived has become mere representation" from The Society of the Spectacle frames digital twins as the latest stage in a society where social relations are mediated by images. The twin doesn't just represent you — it restructures how others relate to you.](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23a6) ### [What is the "guru culture" described in the article?](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23q7) [Guru culture refers to people who make nothing concrete but impart found wisdom — listening to the same podcasts, regurgitating humanist manifestos, reading the Stoics. The twin is only possible once you have stopped being accountable to reality.](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23a7) ### [What is the bull case for digital twins?](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23q8) [The bull case, presented by commenter Vinay Kesari, is that digital twins allow busy people to retain the highest-value conversations and experiences for themselves. Knowing how to divide experiences between real and virtual becomes a differentiator for high-achieving people.](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23a8) ### [What did readers say about using AI as a personal muse?](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23q9) [Multiple readers agreed that AI works best as a muse. Arjun Moorthy found it helps sharpen thinking. Robert Bouthillier built a RAG instance on podcast transcripts. The common thread is using AI for personal reflection rather than public representation.](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23a9) ### [What is the connection between abstraction and digital twins?](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23q10) [The article argues that society has abstracted everything — work, money, identity — until nothing concrete remains. Digital twins are the most personal form of abstraction: the copy becomes the relationship, and you replace the possibility of being surprised with the certainty of your own archive.](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23a10) ### [What role does accountability play in the argument?](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23q11) [Accountability to reality keeps thinking honest. The code either runs or it doesn't. The piece either lands or it doesn't. Once you move from doing to narrating, you can be archived, distributed, and abstracted — no longer becoming anything.](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23a11) ### [What is the article's final conclusion?](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23q12) [The digital twin is a monument to a self that stopped growing. The question is not about AI and its tools, but about the culture that created a market for finished, distributable people — no longer becoming anything, archived and distributed to the rest of the planet.](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23a12) --- ## Glossary - **[Digital Twin](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23termDigitalTwin)** — An AI-generated copy of a person trained on their archives, capable of interactive pseudo-conversation. Critiqued as the self's full immersion into curated illusion. - **[AI Psychosis](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23termAIPsychosis)** — A disconnect from reality experienced by executives distant from operational work, enabled by AI tools that provide frictionless affirmation. - **[Memetic Memory](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23termMemeticMemory)** — AI trained on personal archives that helps recall past thinking and track intellectual evolution — valuable as a personal muse, not as a public representative. - **[The Spectacle](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23termSpectacle)** — Guy Debord's concept of a society where direct lived experience has been replaced by representation mediated by images. - **[Potemkin Village](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23termPotemkinVillage)** — A facade designed to mask an undesirable reality. Used to describe digital twins as appearing authentic while being entirely curated and hollow. - **[Found Wisdom](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23termFoundWisdom)** — Knowledge acquired secondhand — from podcasts, manifestos, and popular philosophy — as opposed to earned wisdom gained through direct engagement with reality. - **[Last Mile](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23termLastMile)** — The final, concrete work that still must be done to generate value. Executives distant from this last mile are most prone to AI psychosis. - **[RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation)](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23termRAG)** — An AI architecture that retrieves relevant information from a knowledge base before generating responses. Performance degrades with more data unless rebuilt with deterministic encoding. - **[Digital Abstraction](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23termDigitalAbstraction)** — The societal trend of abstracting concrete things — work, money, identity — into representations. Digital twins are the latest and most personal form. - **[Accountability to Reality](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23termAccountabilityToReality)** — The grounding force that keeps thinking honest — the code runs or it doesn't, the piece lands or it doesn't. Lost when one moves from doing to narrating. --- ## How to Use AI Without Losing Yourself 1. **[Use AI as a muse, not a representative](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23step1)** — Train AI on your archives to help you find past thinking and bounce ideas off your own evolution. Do not deploy it to represent you to others. 2. **[Stay close to the last mile](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23step2)** — Remain connected to the concrete work that generates value. Distance from operational reality is what enables AI psychosis. 3. **[Prefer real encounter over simulated dialogue](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23step3)** — Two minutes with an actual person can go somewhere unexpected. Hours with their AI copy only replays the certainty of their archive. 4. **[Maintain accountability to reality](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23step4)** — Keep producing things that can be judged — code that runs or doesn't, pieces that land or don't. This keeps thinking honest. 5. **[Recognize the progression of abstraction](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23step5)** — Understand that curated social media → bumper-sticker wisdom → faux expertise → digital twins is a trajectory away from the actual person. 6. **[Distinguish found wisdom from earned wisdom](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23step6)** — Wisdom from podcasts and manifestos is not the same as wisdom gained through direct engagement with reality and concrete work. 7. **[Keep growing](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/describe/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fom.co%2F2026%2F05%2F26%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru%23step7)** — The digital twin is a monument to a self that stopped growing. Continue becoming rather than settling into a finished, distributable archive. --- ## SPARQL Explorer Query the knowledge graph via URIBurner: - **RDF Turtle**: [Run SELECT query](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/sparql?default-graph-uri=https%3A%2F%2Flinkeddata.uriburner.com%2FDAV%2Fdemos%2Fdaas%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru-qwen3-6-plus-1.ttl&query=PREFIX+rdf%3A+%3Chttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F1999%2F02%2F22-rdf-syntax-ns%23%3E%0APREFIX+rdfs%3A+%3Chttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2F01%2Frdf-schema%23%3E%0A%0ASELECT+%3Ftype+%28SAMPLE%28%3Fs%29+AS+%3FsampleEntity%29+%28SAMPLE%28%3Flabel%29+AS+%3FsampleLabel%29+%28COUNT%28%3Fs%29+AS+%3FentityCount%29%0AWHERE+%7B%0A++GRAPH+%3Chttps%3A%2F%2Flinkeddata.uriburner.com%2FDAV%2Fdemos%2Fdaas%2Fthe-copy-and-the-guru-qwen3-6-plus-1.ttl%3E+%7B%0A++++%3Fs+rdf%3Atype+%3Ftype+.%0A++++OPTIONAL+%7B+%3Fs+rdfs%3Alabel+%3Flabel+%7D%0A++%7D%0A%7D%0AGROUP+BY+%3Ftype%0AORDER+BY+DESC%28%3FentityCount%29&format=text%2Fx-html%2Btr&timeout=0&debug=on&run=+Run+Query+) ```sparql PREFIX rdf: PREFIX rdfs: SELECT ?type (SAMPLE(?s) AS ?sampleEntity) (SAMPLE(?label) AS ?sampleLabel) (COUNT(?s) AS ?entityCount) WHERE { GRAPH { ?s rdf:type ?type . OPTIONAL { ?s rdfs:label ?label } } } GROUP BY ?type ORDER BY DESC(?entityCount) ``` --- ## Provenance - **Source**: [The Copy and the Guru](https://om.co/2026/05/26/the-copy-and-the-guru) by Om Malik, On my Om, May 26, 2026 - **RDF**: [the-copy-and-the-guru-qwen3-6-plus-1.ttl](../rdf/the-copy-and-the-guru-qwen3-6-plus-1.ttl) - **Generated using**: [kg-generator](https://github.com/OpenLinkSoftware/ai-agent-skills/tree/main/kg-generator) and [rdf-infographic-skill](https://github.com/OpenLinkSoftware/ai-agent-skills/tree/main/rdf-infographic-skill) - **LLM**: [Qwen 3.6 Plus](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/model-studio/developer-reference/qwen3.6) - **Linked Data**: [URIBurner](https://linkeddata.uriburner.com/) (Virtuoso-backed)