Notices by Nathan Schneider (ntnsndr@social.coop)

@dckc You're right, that's definitely a risk. The whole model could be rendered illegal by a deft move from the dominant "labs."

@bwag thanks for your interest! Happy to chat more.

I would think of the co-op as basically just a particular legal container for yet another edtech provider, though in the end one designed to be more accountable to university needs. And since LLM access is basically a commodity, I think it is a relatively easy cross-campus collaboration.

Students and academics especially, I'd love your feedback on this proposal: "an inference cooperative for academic AI" https://nathanschneider.info/2026/06/an-inference-cooperative-for-academic-ai/

@adamgreenfield @namhenderson yeah apologies, I totally wasn't there for it

@namhenderson okay! Sorry to be jumpy:)

@beckett I know, right?

It would be nice, for instance, to have a federal loan program like they have, but for co-ops of any kind.

@namhenderson who are you calling a liberal? And what does this have to do with the future?

@netopwibby That would be so nice!

Some anarchy here too

Co-ops are normal at DCA airport, and they could be everywhere else, too.

Human dignity should not be premised on human superiority—whether to animals, plants, rocks, or machines.

@nemobis @JMarkOckerbloom yep, if the board is not chosen by members, definitely not a cooperative.

@JMarkOckerbloom fair enough! Any cautionary tales?

@natematias Absolutely. This would be a chance for an interface that more fully reflects academic values.

@arod like OCLC or credit unions in the US: the purpose is not to distribute dividends but the provide a service at cost.

Academics: would you feel better about a campus AI contract if it went to a nonprofit co-op, controlled by universities, that runs inference with diverse models on renewable energy and follows university-governed data protection? An OCLC for AI?

Always nice when a @hn_discussions suddenly breaks out into a debate about worker co-ops. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48467449

Isn't it sort of weird that there is practically no mainstream software for writing that is noncommercial? https://nathanschneider.info/2026/06/toward-a-durable-writing-stack/

Three questions on AI for you, from Pope Leo: https://nathanschneider.info/2026/06/three-questions-on-ai-for-you-from-pope-leo/

Wanted: @ollama, except a co-op