For decades, operating systems have managed our devices—but they’ve never generated value for their owners.

In this episode, we explore a different future.

What if your phone wasn’t just a tool you paid for, but an asset that could participate in the AI economy?

We discuss idle computing power, distributed AI, edge inference, hybrid intelligence, and why SELF OS is being designed around a simple idea:

Your operating system shouldn’t just work for your device—it should work for you.

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Modern smartphones contain powerful CPUs, GPUs, and AI accelerators, yet most of that computing power sits idle throughout the day.

As artificial intelligence continues to reshape computing, we believe operating systems need to evolve beyond launching applications and managing files.

SELF OS explores a future where intelligent devices become active participants in a decentralized AI infrastructure.

Rather than relying exclusively on massive cloud data centers, billions of capable devices could contribute compute when appropriate, helping power the next generation of artificial intelligence.

It’s a different way to think about ownership.

Not just owning hardware.

Owning participation in the intelligence economy.

This episode explores why the operating system of the future may become far more than software—it may become infrastructure.

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For nearly two decades, apps have organized our digital lives.

Need a ride? Open an app.

Need to send money? Open another app.

Need to book a flight, schedule a meeting, edit a document, order food, or manage a project? Find the right icon, open the right interface, and complete the task step by step.

We have become the orchestration layer between dozens of disconnected systems.

I believe AI changes that.

In this episode, I explore why the next major shift in computing may move us away from app-first experiences and toward intent-first computing.

Instead of asking which app to open, you simply describe what you want accomplished.

Your Agent Avatar becomes the primary interface.

SELF OS interprets the request, gathers the right context, chooses the appropriate intelligence, connects to the necessary tools, and coordinates the task across applications and services.

The apps may still exist.

But they increasingly become infrastructure used behind the scenes.

In this episode, I break down:

* Why app switching creates unnecessary friction

* How Agent Avatars could become the next interface after touchscreens

* The difference between a chatbot and an operating-system-level AI

* How Aura gives your Agent Avatar persistent memory and context

* How Role Model AI coordinates specialized agents behind one interface

* How APIs, MCPs, ACPs, and browser automation allow AI to take action

* How SELF OS routes tasks between local SLMs, larger models, and Resonatia

* Why developers may eventually build capabilities for agents instead of standalone apps

* What the “death of apps” actually means for users and software companies

The death of apps does not mean software disappears.

It means people stop spending so much time operating software manually.

The future interface may not be a grid of icons.

It may be a personal intelligence that already knows your tools, understands your context, and can act across your digital life on your behalf.

The next operating system may not ask:

“Which app do you want to open?”

It may ask:

“What do you want to accomplish?”

Get full access to In the Lab by SELF Labs at selflabs.substack.com/subscribe

What if your phone, laptop, or gaming PC could earn value while it sits idle?

In this episode, I break down one of the core ideas behind SELF OS: transforming unused personal computing power into part of a distributed AI network.

Instead of relying entirely on centralized data centers, SELF OS is designed to route workloads across local devices, trusted nodes, Resonatia’s distributed infrastructure, and the cloud based on privacy, performance, availability, and cost.

Users who choose to contribute their available compute could participate as node operators and receive rewards through the SELF ecosystem.

We explore:

* How SELF OS routes tasks between local SLMs, larger models, Resonatia, and the cloud

* Why billions of idle devices represent an overlooked computing resource

* How node operators could earn by contributing unused compute

* The role of Essence in rewards and machine-to-machine payments

* Why the future of AI infrastructure may be shared rather than fully centralized

* How personal devices could evolve from passive consumers into productive digital assets

This is not about promising effortless money or replacing cloud infrastructure. It is about building a system where people can voluntarily contribute resources, understand how they are being used, and participate in the value their hardware helps create.

The future of AI should not only be powered by people’s devices.

People should have the opportunity to benefit from powering it.

Get full access to In the Lab by SELF Labs at selflabs.substack.com/subscribe