Systemic Enshittification

The pervasive, structural tendency of systems under late capitalism to degrade over time, embedded in the normal functioning of markets, platforms, and institutions. Systemic enshittification describes how quality decay has become the default trajectory—not because anyone chooses it, but because the system rewards extraction over investment, short-term profit over long-term value, and monopoly power over competition. Under systemic enshittification, everything tends toward worse: jobs, products, services, cities, relationships, life itself. Not because anyone wills it, but because the system's logic inevitably produces degradation.

Systemic Enshittification Example: "Everything seemed to get worse every year—jobs paid less, products broke faster, services cut corners, cities became harder to afford—not conspiracy, but Systemic Enshittification, the default trajectory of a system optimized for extraction rather than flourishing."

Systemic Enshittification by Dumu The Void March 12, 2026