The Core Problem
The Capability-Mastery Gap explains the "Disappointing Revolution" phenomenon: models are statistically miraculous but practically marginal because workflows have not yet adapted to harness them. This is not a technical problem; it is a cultural and organizational problem.
The Diminishing Returns Paradox
Counter-intuitively, as models become more capable, this gap widens. A simple tool is easy to master; a god-like intelligence with infinite context requires sophistication that takes years to develop:
- Prompt Engineering as discipline, not trick collection
- Integration Architecture designing systems that use AI effectively
- Workflow Restructuring reorganizing human labor around AI capabilities
- Quality Evaluation developing judgment about AI output reliability
Why Organizations Cannot Close the Gap
Individual users achieve breakthroughs—discovering powerful workflows, developing sophisticated prompts, generating insights that transform their work. But these achievements remain isolated. The organization cannot systematically reproduce them, cannot transfer them to other employees, cannot build on them to develop deeper institutional capability.
This is the Cathedral/Bazaar problem: innovation stays in the Bazaar (informal, ad hoc, individual) rather than moving to the Cathedral (systematic, structured, institutional).
The Confucian Solution: Li as Ritual Structure
The organization that treats AI mastery as collection of individual techniques—"here are 50 prompts that work well"—remains stuck in the Bazaar. The organization that develops li (禮) around AI collaboration—structured forms for engagement, disciplined practice cultivation, formal knowledge transmission—builds Cathedral capability that compounds over time.
The Two Clocks
Cathedral Clock: New model releases every 18-30 months, each with expanded capabilities. This is the timeline of potential.
Bazaar Clock: Collective mastery developing over 18+ months after each release. This is the timeline of realization.
The gap exists because organizations operate on the Cathedral Clock ("We just upgraded to the latest model!") while actual productivity gains require the Bazaar Clock ("We are still learning to use last year's capabilities effectively").
Field Notes & Ephemera
Field Note: Giving a Ferrari to a person who only knows how to ride a bicycle does not result in a faster commute. It results in a very expensive crash.
Confucian Principle: Cook Ding's blade never dulls because he cuts along the grain, not against it. The knife lasts nineteen years because mastery means following natural structure, not forcing through resistance.