Context, Not Control

Biological Parallel

Migrating bird flocks don't follow a leader's commands—instead, each bird follows simple local rules (maintain distance, match velocity, avoid collisions) informed by shared environmental context (wind direction, landmarks, magnetic fields). The flock achieves coordinated movement through distributed individuals making intelligent decisions based on common context, not through centralized control. Netflix's principle mirrors murmuration physics: give people rich context (strategy, constraints, goals) and simple rules, then let distributed intelligence navigate complexity that no central controller could manage.