The approximately $300 billion Dutch technology firm is the sole manufacturer of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines, $200 million contraptions considered by some to be “the most complicated in the world.” These irreplicable marvels of engineering are the result of decades of trial and error, scientific breakthroughs, byzantine supply chains, and billions of dollars. They are irreplicable and, as such, insanely valuable. Without ASML’s EUV technology, it would be impossible to manufacture the world’s most powerful silicon chips – the kinds powering the current artificial intelligence boom. In short, the trajectory of our computational advancement is concentrated in the hands of a provider with a 100% monopoly on a particular kind of magic.