"If you take all the factories in the world today, they could make all the parts necessary to build more factories like themselves. So, in a sense, we have a self-replicating industrial system today, but it would take a tremendous effort to copy what we already have"

This quote by K. Eric Drexler is referring to the idea of a self-replicating industrial system. He is recommending that if all the factories worldwide today were integrated, they would have the ability to produce all the parts necessary to develop more factories like themselves. This would produce a self-replicating industrial system, nevertheless, it would take a tremendous effort to replicate what we currently have. This quote is emphasizing the complexity of the existing industrial system and the amount of effort it would require to reproduce it. It is likewise highlighting the capacity of a self-replicating industrial system and the possibilities it might bring.