Bottlenecks

As JSON →

The machines, materials, power, permits and people that decide how fast AI, energy and robots can grow — each in one plain sentence, with how hard it binds, who makes it and how well that is sourced. Start with the tightest, or jump to a stage.

Mapped: How this is computedCount of rows in the bottleneck corpus: every material plus every non-material chokepoint.Method →Code →; across How this is computedBottlenecks on that stage of the loop, and how many of them have every producer row sourced.Method →Code → stages
Binding now: How this is computedCount of bottlenecks whose assessed horizon is "now".Method →Code →; judged to be the constraint today
Maker rows sourced: How this is computedProducer rows counted by verification state from the corpus: sourced (an accepted primary source is linked) or unverified (none yet). Unchecked pages: open rows in the producer-sourcing queue, counted live from the database.Method →Code →; How this is computedProducer rows counted by verification state from the corpus: sourced (an accepted primary source is linked) or unverified (none yet). Unchecked pages: open rows in the producer-sourcing queue, counted live from the database.Method →Code → still unverified
Countries: How this is computedNumber of distinct country codes on the rows being counted (makers, or rules).Method →Code →; where the mapped makers operate

Refine by technology, industry, stage or evidence · 17 matches

Bottleneck	Where	Makers	Severity	When it bites	Evidence
EnergyHow this is computedBottlenecks on that stage of the loop, and how many of them have every producer row sourced.Method →Code →takes Estimate, not a measurementOrder-of-magnitude time from a decision to relief at this stage of the loop. Illustrative: chosen by hand, not taken from a measured lead-time dataset.By Substrata, open to challenge · 2026-09-15 to loosen
Grain-oriented electrical steel (GOES) The specially grown steel inside a large power transformer. Few mills can make it, and a new mill takes years.	JP KR DE US CN PL	How this is computedCount of (bottleneck, producer) pairs across every material in the corpus.Method →Code →	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Now	Verified
High-voltage cable and switchgear The cables and switches that move power at high voltage. Cable order books run far ahead of output, and switchgear waits are long.	DE IT KR	How this is computedCount of (bottleneck, producer) pairs across every material in the corpus.Method →Code →	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Now	Verified
Large power transformer slots The big transformers a data centre needs to take grid power. Ordering one now means waiting more than two years.	KR DE JP US	How this is computedCount of (bottleneck, producer) pairs across every material in the corpus.Method →Code →	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Now	Verified
Uranium conversion and enrichment Turning mined uranium into the fuel a reactor can burn. Few states do this, and they do not do it quickly.	KZ CA AU NE FR US	Single node	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Within 2 years	Unverified
Heavy-duty gas turbine order books The fastest way to add firm power at scale. The largest maker’s order book runs years ahead of what it can build.	US DE	How this is computedCount of (bottleneck, producer) pairs across every material in the corpus.Method →Code →	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Now	Verified
Liquid helium (He-4) The only practical way to reach the temperatures superconducting magnets and some chip tools need. It cannot be manufactured.	QA US RU GB FR	How this is computedCount of (bottleneck, producer) pairs across every material in the corpus.Method →Code →	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Within 2 years	5 of 6 verified
REBCO superconducting tape, 12 mm A ceramic tape that carries current with no resistance when cold. It is the wire in modern fusion magnets.	JP US DE CN	How this is computedCount of (bottleneck, producer) pairs across every material in the corpus.Method →Code →	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Within 2 years	6 of 7 verified
Materials & toolsHow this is computedBottlenecks on that stage of the loop, and how many of them have every producer row sourced.Method →Code →takes Estimate, not a measurementOrder-of-magnitude time from a decision to relief at this stage of the loop. Illustrative: chosen by hand, not taken from a measured lead-time dataset.By Substrata, open to challenge · 2026-09-15 to loosen
Crucible-grade high-purity quartz sand An unusually pure sand used to line the crucibles that grow silicon crystals. Most of it comes from one place on earth.	NO US BE RU CN JP	How this is computedCount of (bottleneck, producer) pairs across every material in the corpus.Method →Code →	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Now	6 of 7 verified
Battery-grade lithium chemicals Lithium turned into the hydroxide or carbonate a battery plant will actually accept. A salt lake is not a chemical.	AR CL AU CN	Single node	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Now	Unverified
Electronic-grade polysilicon Silicon purified to eleven nines, the raw material every silicon wafer starts from.	DE US JP MY KR	How this is computedCount of (bottleneck, producer) pairs across every material in the corpus.Method →Code →	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Later	Verified
Gallium, refined A soft metal recovered from aluminium refining, used in fast power and radio chips. China refines almost all of it and licenses its export.	CN CA AU	How this is computedCount of (bottleneck, producer) pairs across every material in the corpus.Method →Code →	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Now	5 of 6 verified
Silicon carbide substrate, 200 mm semi-insulating A harder-than-silicon crystal used where power and heat are high, such as chargers, motors and radar.	US KR JP CN	How this is computedCount of (bottleneck, producer) pairs across every material in the corpus.Method →Code →	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Later	Verified
ActuationHow this is computedBottlenecks on that stage of the loop, and how many of them have every producer row sourced.Method →Code →takes Estimate, not a measurementOrder-of-magnitude time from a decision to relief at this stage of the loop. Illustrative: chosen by hand, not taken from a measured lead-time dataset.By Substrata, open to challenge · 2026-09-15 to loosen
Didymium (Nd-Pr) metal, magnet feed The rare-earth metal blend that makes strong permanent magnets, and therefore most electric motors.	CN AU MY US CA EE FR	How this is computedCount of (bottleneck, producer) pairs across every material in the corpus.Method →Code →	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Now	2 of 6 verified
Dysprosium metal A rare earth added to magnets so they keep their strength when hot. Almost entirely Chinese, and export-controlled.	CN AU MY CA EE GB	How this is computedCount of (bottleneck, producer) pairs across every material in the corpus.Method →Code →	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Now	Unverified
Rare-earth magnet sintering Turning rare-earth powder into a finished magnet. Even where the metal is mined elsewhere, this step is Chinese.	CN	Single node	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Now	Unverified
PermissionHow this is computedBottlenecks on that stage of the loop, and how many of them have every producer row sourced.Method →Code →takes Estimate, not a measurementOrder-of-magnitude time from a decision to relief at this stage of the loop. Illustrative: chosen by hand, not taken from a measured lead-time dataset.By Substrata, open to challenge · 2026-09-15 to loosen
Grid interconnection queues The administrative line to be connected to the electricity grid. In several markets it is the slowest step in building anything.	—	Single node	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Now	Unverified
SMR first-of-a-kind licensing Permission to build the first small nuclear reactor of a new design. The physics is known; the licence is the wait.	US GB FR CN KR	Single node	How this is computedSum of four judged scores, each 0–3: concentration + substitution + lead time + inelasticity.Method →Code →	Later	Unverified

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What these columns mean

Severity: Four questions, each scored 0 to 3: how few suppliers qualify, how hard it is to replace, how long new capacity takes, and whether the buyer can walk away. Higher is worse for progress. Judged by hand and dated on every page.
When it bites: A judgement about when this constraint is expected to be the one holding things up.
Evidence: Verified means a person opened a source that says so and the link is on the page. Source found means an automated search located a page that appears to say so and nobody has read it yet. Unverified means neither. Only verified rows are findings.
Makers: How many organisations are mapped as making this, and how much of that list is verified. A single node — a machine, a queue, a skill — has no maker list.