Are the LLM Wars the Database Wars?
TLDR Dev
Large language models may follow the trajectory of databases, shifting from revolutionary technology to invisible infrastructure used everywhere but rarely discussed or chosen deliberately. PostgreSQL and SQLite, not the dominant products of the 1990s like Oracle and Sybase, ultimately became the infrastructure that powered most applications, with SQLite running in roughly a trillion devices. If LLMs follow this pattern, the winners may be obscure open-source or embedded models that win by default rather than the heavily marketed systems currently dominating headlines.
Why it matters
LLMs may become ubiquitous infrastructure similar to how databases transitioned from technology to unnoticed components, with the most successful systems today not having been part of the initial race.
