Attention is Currency
The Economics of Attention
Real-time data revealing how our collective attention is measured, monetized, and manipulated across digital platforms
Daily Screen Time Evolution
Average hours per user (2015-2024)
Platform Ad Revenue
Annual spending in billions (2024)
Attention Value Index
Peak engagement throughout the day
Essential Reading on the Attention Economy
Curated articles, papers, and analyses exploring how attention became the internet's most valuable commodity
The Attention Economy and the Net
If the Web and the Net can be viewed as spaces in which we will increasingly live our lives, the economic laws we will live under have to be natural to this new space. These laws turn out to be quite different from what the old economics would suggest.
Standing Out of the Crowd: Emotional Arousal as a Primary Attention Signal
How did the media and advertising industries evolve to constantly compete for our attention? This comprehensive look at attention capture explores the history and ethics of the attention economy.
Attention is All You Need
While this paper introduces the transformer architecture for AI, its title captures a fundamental truth: attention mechanisms—both human and artificial—are the cornerstone of information processing in the digital age.
How Technology is Hijacking Your Mind
A former Google design ethicist reveals how tech companies engineer apps to capture and hold our attention, often at the expense of our wellbeing and autonomy.
The Age of Surveillance Capitalism
An analysis of how tech giants commodify personal experience and behavioral data, transforming attention into a tradeable asset within a new form of capitalism.
Deep Work in a Distracted World
Newport argues that the ability to focus without distraction is becoming increasingly valuable and rare. In an economy where attention is currency, deep work is the key to thriving.
Watch & Learn About the Attention Crisis
Expert talks, documentaries, and analyses exploring how technology companies compete for your most precious resource
The Social Dilemma: How Tech Exploits Our Attention
Former Google Design Ethicist explains how social media platforms are designed to capture and monetize human attention.
Evolution of the Attention Economy
From academic theory to global crisis - tracking the key moments that shaped how technology captures and monetizes human attention