# Software Cannot Replace a Missing Electrical System by Bryant McGill > “A civilization cannot software-optimize its way indefinitely around a missing electrical system. Efficiency changes the number of useful computations obtained per watt; it does not make watts cease to exist.” > **— Bryant McGill**, *The Gigawatt Is the New Measure of War, 2026* ## Sources and Context - **Original authored source:** [[articles/The Gigawatt Is the New Measure of War|The Gigawatt Is the New Measure of War]] (October 1, 2026). - **Exact marked source:** “A civilization cannot software-optimize its way indefinitely around a missing electrical system. Efficiency changes the number of useful computations obtained per watt; it does not make watts cease to exist.” - **Editorial treatment:** The Reminder reproduces the complete rendered extraction surface without alteration. - **Context:** The passage distinguishes efficiency from capacity. Better algorithms and hardware increase useful work per unit of energy, but they do not eliminate the grid, generation, transmission, substations, cooling and equipment required for industrial-scale computation. ## Related Articles and Collections - **Collection:** [[collections/Simple Reminders|Simple Reminders]] - **Collection:** [[collections/Machine Succession|Machine Succession]] - **Article:** [[articles/The Gigawatt Is the New Measure of War|The Gigawatt Is the New Measure of War]] - **Wiki map:** [[wiki/Energy-Compute Nexus|Energy-Compute Nexus]] ## Related Topics - [[wiki/Energy-Compute Nexus|Energy-Compute Nexus]] - [[wiki/Electrical Grid|Electrical Grid]] - [[wiki/Energetic Sovereignty|Energetic Sovereignty]] ## Share on Social Media ``` “A civilization cannot software-optimize its way indefinitely around a missing electrical system. Efficiency changes the number of useful computations obtained per watt; it does not make watts cease to exist.” — Bryant McGill, The Gigawatt Is the New Measure of War, 2026 https://bryantmcgill.com/simple-reminders-bryant-mcgill-software-cannot-replace-electrical-system ```