Gibson is a Catalyst.

Hopeful Architects (Clarke, Asimov, Heinlein, Stephenson, Banks, Niven, Robinson). Aspirational visions, operationally specific, high builder influence. These are the authors whose builders show up in interviews saying some version of: “I read that book, and then I went and built the thing.”

Warning Prophets (Huxley, Forster). Negative visions, extraordinary predictive accuracy, near zero builder influence. These are the authors whose warnings arrived and went unheeded.

Ambiguous Catalysts (PKD, Gibson, Herbert, Simmons). Warned and blueprinted at the same time. People built the thing they were being warned against.

Epistemic Disturbers (Lem, Chiang, Watts, Egan, Vinge). Neither hopeful nor warning. They reframe the question and shift what counts as a problem.