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I don't think that analogy holds up. Owning heavy equipment requires lots of capital, and only makes sense if you keep utilization high. Even large companies wi
by lantry 15d ago
I don't think that analogy holds up. Owning heavy equipment requires lots of capital, and only makes sense if you keep utilization high. Even large companies will rent or lease equipment if it's something they use infrequently.
A large company might own their equipment, but an individual operator probably won't. So it might make sense for some large software companies to own their LLM hardware, but it probably won't make economic sense for individuals.
Of course the economics are different in different industries. Trucking owner operators account for ~15% of truckers, but buying a rig is six figures against 5-6 figure income. Buying a mac mini is 4 figures against a 6 figure income, so maybe lots of people will do it even if it's not economically optimal.
- _heimdall 15d agoThis may be a difference in location or urban vs rural? I live in a more rural area and many people I've hired over the years own their equipment (well, if having a loan on it counts). That goes for tractors obviously, but similarly for wheel loaders, excavators, etc that they use for hired work.
- NewJazz 11d agoonly makes sense if you keep utilization high The first comment in this chain clearly stated: If I know I can't use a model regularly all month, my enthusiasm is limited.