What happens when everyone sells shovels and no one mines?

Why this matters today

In the 1840s, the most consistent wealth wasn’t found in the gold mines, but in the pockets of those selling the picks and shovels. Today, we see a mirror image in the tech industry:

• The “Shovels”: AI wrappers, “prompt engineering” courses, and generic SaaS templates.
• The “Mining”: The difficult, specialized work of building or developing unique solutions that actually solve a problem.