Oligarchic escapes

{{technav}}
'''Oligarchic escapes''',{{efn|The term "oligarchic escapes" is used here as the primary term simply for its conciseness and clarity.}} also known by the overlapping terms '''TESCREAL''' or the '''ideology of technological salvation''', are a collection of hypothetical distant-future problems that are promoted by wealthy people. The hypothetical problems are promoted by funding [[think tank]]s and with endless verbiage as a distraction from their opposition to solving the immediate-term problems from which they profit ([[climate change]], [[pollution]], [[biodiversity]] loss, [[poverty]] and [[war]]). Some of the wealthy may even be sincere in their far-fetched beliefs to the point of self-[[delusion]], but their corporations tell another story, making current problems worse: [[fossil fuels]], non-renewable resource extraction, war profiteering, income inequality, and [[libertarian]] [[ideology]] against [[government]] regulations.

==TESCREAL==
{{cquote|These are [[Technology|technologies]] [specifically [[OpenAI]] and [[Twitter|Twitter/X]]] that are supposed to be so [[Democracy|democratized]] and universal, but they’re so heavily influenced by one person. Everything they do is [framed as] a step toward much larger greatness and the transformation of society. But these are just [[Personality cult|cults of personality]]. They sell a product.|||Noah Giansiracusa, a professor at Bentley University in Massachusetts who researches AI<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/11/23/x-musk-openai-altman-big-tech OpenAI and X: Promises of populist technology, shaped by a single man] by Drew Harwell (November 23, 2023 at 6:00 a.m. EST) ''The Washington Post''.</ref>}}
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In 2023, [[philosopher]]/[[historian]] {{wpl|Émile P. Torres}} with computer scientist and [[artificial intelligence]] (AI) expert {{wpl|Timnit Gebru|Timnit Gebru's}} proposed the concept of [[Futurism#TESCREAL|TESCREAL]] concept ([[Transhumanism|'''T'''ranshumanism]], '''E'''xtropianism, [[Singularity|'''S'''ingularitarianism]], '''C'''osmism, [[LessWrong|'''R'''ationalism]], [[Effective altruism|'''E'''ffective '''A'''ltruism]], and '''L'''ongtermism.<ref name=torres1>[https://www.truthdig.com/articles/the-acronym-behind-our-wildest-ai-dreams-and-nightmares/ The Acronym Behind Our Wildest AI Dreams and Nightmares: To understand the deepening divide between AI boosters and doomers, it’s necessary to unpack their common origins in a bundle of ideologies known as TESCREAL.] by Émile P. Torres (Jun 15, 2023) ''Truth Dig''.</ref><BR><BR>
Extropianism according to Torres is largely defunct, but its ideals (perpetual progress, self-transformation, [[Rationality|rational thinking]] and intelligent technology) have merged into other ideologies.<ref name=torres1/>

Cosmism "is a set of ideologies advanced by [[Russian]] scientists and philosophers such as" {{wpl|Nikolai Fyodorov (philosopher)|Nikolai Fyodorov}} {{lived|1829|1903}}, {{wpl|Konstantin Tsiolkovsky}} {{lived|1857|1935}}, and {{wpl|Vladimir Vernadsky}} {{lived|1863|1945}}. The ideologies include maximal space exploration and colonization, and [[resurrection]] of the dead. Cosmism is closely associated with [[Russian]] nationalism.<ref name=troy>[https://washingtonspectator.org/understanding-tescreal-silicon-valleys-rightward-turn/ The Wide Angle: Understanding TESCREAL — the Weird Ideologies Behind Silicon Valley’s Rightward Turn] by Dave Troy (May 1, 2023) ''The Washington Spectator''.</ref> Cosmist Ben Goertzel first described the concept of [[artificial general intelligence]] (AGI) in his book, ''A Cosmist Manifesto''.<ref name=torres1/><ref>''A Cosmist Manifesto: Practical Philosophy for the Posthuman Age'' by Ben Goertzel (2010) Humanity+. ISBN 0984609709.</ref> 

[[Rationalism]] in TESCREAL is specifically the [[Eliezer Yudkowsky]]'s [[LessWrong]] variety, not the more general form of rationalism.<ref name=torres1/>

Torres has argued that TESCREAL is central to the rationale for OpenAI, and the believed consequent creation of AGI.<ref name=torres1/>

People who have embraced TESCREAL as an ideology (essentially by embracing at least two of its sub-ideologies) include:<ref name=torres1/>
{{collist|2|
*{{wpl|Sam Altman}} of [[OpenAI]]: AGI, [[longtermism]] ("[[Galaxy|galaxies]] are indeed at risk"),<ref>[https://archive.ph/d21mC i think agi safety is a great thing to care an immense about and future galaxies are indeed at risk; what i don’t really get is why a movement that seems to be almost entirely focused on agi risk feels the need to justify it with some other name/make it part of a broader cause] by Sam Altman (7:56 PM · Aug 14, 2022) ''Twitter'' (23 Nov 2023 02:55:35 UTC).</ref> [[mind uploading]]
*{{wpl|Marc Andreessen}} (software engineer/techbro): embracing the full TESCREAL
*[[Sam Bankman-Fried]]: effective altruism (EA){{efn|Two, if one includes [[cryptocurrency]]}}
*{{wpl|Nick Bostrom||:}} [[Alcor]] (cryonics), EA, extropianism
*{{wpl|Vitalik Buterin||,}} funder of the {{wpl|Future of Life Institute}}
*{{wpl|William MacAskill||:}} EA, longtermism, transhumanism
*[[Elon Musk]]: AGI, cosmism (e.g., wanting to colonize [[Mars]] with a million people by 2050<ref>[https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-plans-1-million-people-to-mars-by-2050-2020-1 Elon Musk says he plans to send 1 million people to Mars by 2050 by launching 3 Starship rockets every day and creating 'a lot of jobs' on the red planet] by Morgan McFall-Johnsen & Dave Mosher (Jan 17, 2020, 2:12 PM PST) ''Business Insider''.</ref>), EA, longtermism
*{{wpl|Jaan Tallinn||,}} creator of co-founder of the {{wpl|Centre for the Study of Existential Risk}} and the Future of Life Institute
*[[Peter Thiel]]: cryonics,<ref>[https://futurism.com/the-byte/peter-thiel-cryonics Billionaire Peter Thiel Says He's Freezing His Body After Death Just in Case] by Maggie Harrison (May 8, 2023) ''Futurism''.</ref> MIRI/LessWrong<ref>[https://aeon.co/essays/why-longtermism-is-the-worlds-most-dangerous-secular-credo Against longtermism: It started as a fringe philosophical theory about humanity’s future. It’s now richly funded and increasingly dangerous] by Émile P. Torres (October 19, 2021) ''Aeon''.</ref>
*[[Eliezer Yudkowsky]] of LessWrong: AGI phobia, cryonics, transhumanism
}}

It has been claimed that because TESCREAL attracts disaffected young men, and that it co-occurs with the [[manosphere]].<ref name=troy/>

The danger then of TESCREAL ideologies is that they are naively [[Consequentialism|consequentialist]], with the hypothetical ends justifying the practical means.<ref name=torres1/> They prioritize hypothetical distant visions by a few wealthy individuals of a future technological [[utopia]] over addressing real-world present, near-term and mid-term human problems.

TESCREAL as a concept has been criticized by the [[utilitarian]]/effective altruism ''Bentham's Newsletter'', authored by an anonymous [[philosophy]] undergraduate.<ref name=benthams>[https://benthams.substack.com/p/against-tescrealism Against TESCREALISM: The term TESCREAL is a cheap smear; also, dissecting a very dumb Washington spectator article] (May 11, 2023) 'Bentham's Newsletter''.</ref><ref>[https://benthams.substack.com/about About] ''Bentham's Newsletter''.</ref>

{{wpl|James J. Hughes}} of the "technoprogressive" (i.e., technological utopian) [[think tank]] Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies (IEET) elaborated on the ''Bentham's Newsletter'' criticisms,<ref name=hughes>[https://medium.com/institute-for-ethics-and-emerging-technologies/conspiracy-theories-left-futurism-and-the-attack-on-tescreal-456972fe02aa Conspiracy Theories, Left Futurism, and the Attack on TESCREAL] by James J. Hughes (June 12, 2023) ''Medium''.</ref> IEET was founded by Hughes (a transhumanist) and Nick Bostrom (noted above as being within the TESCREAL constellation). The main criticism against TESCREAL by Hughes is that it is [[conspiracy theory|conspiracist]] thinking, that there is a secret cabal is trying to suppress the truth.<ref name=hughes/> The problems with this criticism are threefold:
#Torres and Gebru have not claimed that there is a secret cabal, all the claimed actors in this are making their activities known in public and in think tanks supporting their causes.
#Torres and Gebru were well-acquainted with some of the actors in TESCREAL: Torres participated in the TESCREAL movement for several years (EA, transhumanism, longtermerism),<ref name=torres1/><ref>[https://www.xriskology.com/me Short bio, Dr. Émile P. Torres] ''xriskology''.</ref> Gebru had high-level positions at [[Microsoft]], [[Google]] and [[Apple]] (the first two have been funders of OpenAI).
#There are two non-contrived connections between the different ideologies of TESCREAL: futurism and longtermerism.

A second criticism of TESCREAL by Hughes is his claim that Torres and Gebru have inappropriately attributed [[eugenics]], [[racism]] and [[neoreactionary]] ideology to the ideologies.<ref name=hughes/> The problem with the eugenics criticism is that both EA and longtermerism are obsessed with the importance of high [[IQ]], and hence eugenics.<ref>[https://forum.effectivealtruism.org/posts/DxfpGi9hwvwLCf5iQ/objections-to-value-alignment-between-effective-altruists Objections to Value-Alignment between Effective Altruists] by CarlaZoeC (Jul 15 2020) ''Effective Altruism Forum''.</ref><ref name=torres2>[https://www.truthdig.com/articles/nick-bostrom-longtermism-and-the-eternal-return-of-eugenics-2/ Nick Bostrom, Longtermism, and the Eternal Return of Eugenics: The techno-utopian ideology gets its fuel, in part, from scientific racism.] by Émile P. Torres (Jan 23, 2023) ''Truth Dig''.</ref> Bostrom himself drew the path from IQ to racism and eugenics both in a disgusting email he wrote as an Oxford University student in 1996 (later "apologizing" for using [[N-word]] but not retracting his claim that "Blacks are more stupid than whites.", and by his co-editing a book in support of eugenics, ''Human Enhancement''.<ref name=torres2/><ref>''Human Enhancement'', edited by Julian Savulescu & Nick Bostrom (2011) Oxford University Press. ISBN 0199594961.</ref>

==Oligarchic escapes==
[[File:Timothy Snyder, 2016 (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|165px|Timothy Snyder in 2016]]
In the 2024 book ''On Freedom'', historian {{wpl|Timothy Snyder}} discusses at length the self-deluding fantasies of escaping the problems of [[Earth]] that [[Oligarchy|oligarchs]] use to assuage their feelings of [[Death|mortality]] while eliminating the [[freedom]]s of non-oligarchs.<ref name=snyder/>{{rp|203-208}}
{{cquote|Escapism is the absolutely predictable oligarchic posture during catastrophic times. The rest of us have to endure the oligarchs' moronic fantasies&nbsp;— [[Irredentism|Ukraine is Russia]], [[immortality]] is possible, space travel will save us, [[Simulated reality|life might be a simulation]]&nbsp;— as time runs out on our hopes for dignity and survival as a [[species]]. A poignant element of our tragedy is its profound stupidity. There are things so idiotic that you need $10 billion to believe them.|||Timothy Snyder<ref name=snyder>''On Freedom'' by Timothy Snyder (2024) Crown. ISBN 9780593728727.</ref>{{rp|204}}}}

Besides the aforementioned escapes ([[irredentism]], immortality, space travel as salvation), Snyder suggests distractions that oligarchs create to deceive non-oligarchs:<ref name=snyder/>{{rp|206-208}}
*[[Elon Musk]]'s cockamamie focus on colonizing [[Mars]] while ignoring [[Venus]], Earth's most similar planet in the Solar System, which looks more similar to Earth following a runaway [[greenhouse effect]].
*Various [[hype]]d [[scam]]my technologies: [[cryptocurrency]], [[self-driving cars]], [[Mark Zuckerberg]]'s "metaverse", the gig economy, and Musk's anti-[[evidence]]/pro-[[conspiracy theory]] version of [[Twitter]].

==Ideology of technological salvation==
In the 2025 book ''More Everything Forever'', [[astrophysicist]] and [[Philosophy of science|philosopher of science]] {{wpl|Adam Becker}} approached these ideas from a different perspective, labeling them the "ideology of technological salvation" based on three driving factors:<ref name=becker>''More Everything Forever: AI Overlords, Space Empires, and Silicon Valley's Crusade to Control the Fate of Humanity'' by Adam Becker (2025) Basic Books. ISBN 1541619595.</ref>{{rp|26-27,175}}
#Technological [[reductionism]], that all problems can be solved by technology, something that alludes to [[technocracy]]
#Self-serving profit motive, that most of the people who promote these ideas stand to profit from them
#Transcendence, that adherents to the ideas will be able to ignore limitations

Becker places several people within this ideology, including:<ref name=becker/>{{rp|1,14-21,27,44-47,153-156,166-167,205-210,222-223,228-232}}
*Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI (technological reductionism: AI will solve everything)
*Marc Andreessen (technological reductionism, pronatalism combined with space colonization)
*[[Jeff Bezos]] (longermism, space colonization, and refusal to accept responsibility for his actions)
*Nick Bostrom (longtermist Future of Humanity Institute)
*Ray Kurzweil (law of accelerating returns, transhumanism, immortality)
*William MacAskill (effective altruism, dismissal of climate change as a serious threat)
*Elon Musk (longermism, Mars colonization, and refusal to accept responsibility for his actions)
*Eliezer Yudkowsky (longtermerism)
In the book, he considers the following groups to be within this ideology: LessWrong (which refers to as rationalists), effective altruism, pursuers of artificial general intelligence, and of space colonization.

With regard to these proposals space colonization, Becker notes its connections to eugenics, the history of exclusionary selection of astronauts (primarily white males who are not disabled), and the terminology of ''[[colonization]]'' itself, which previously almost exclusively applied in the sense of subjugation of peoples of non-European descent as part of [[empire]]s. Andreessen even indirectly referenced Filippo Tommaso's ''The Futurist Manifesto'' (Filippo was a major figure in Italian futurism, a fascist and [[Mussolini]] supporter) in his own manifesto.<ref name=becker/>{{rp|245-249}}<ref>[https://a16z.com/the-techno-optimist-manifesto/ The Techno-Optimist Manifesto] by Marc Andreessen (October 16, 2023) ''Andreessen Horowitz''.</ref>

Becker acknowledged that Torres and Gebru's TESCREAL concept overlaps with the ideology of technological salvation.<ref name=becker/>{{rp|265}}

==Putting it all together==
It was claimed that disparate ideas together makes no sense and therefore cannot be coherently argued against was put forth shortly after the TESCREAL concept was published.<ref name=benthams/> Becker, however puts it all together coherently, quoting his interview with [[astronomer]] {{wpl|Lucianne Walkowicz||:}}<ref name=becker/>{{rp|243-244}}
{{cquote|A lot of times when you hear the narrative about creating a backup plan for humanity, it's actually not climate change that most of those people bring up. What they often bring up is asteroid strikes. … Because think about what an asteroid strike is. It's something that comes out of the blue, that you have absolutely no way of preventing, that you didn't know was going to happen. And I think the reason that you don't hear climate change in the mouths of people who [say] we need to create a backup for humanity … is because climate change implies human responsibility. Climate change implies actions that they are responsible for. I absolutely despise this idea of backing up humanity [Billionaires] have essentially the most means and the most power to do something about the problems that we actually face, whether they be climate change or income inequality. This idea of backing up humanity is about getting out of responsibility by making it seem that we have this Get Out of Jail Free card.|||Walkowicz}}

Becker then quotes Upton [[Sinclair's Law]] that summarizes this succinctly:<ref name=becker/>{{rp|244}}<ref>[https://quoteinvestigator.com/2017/11/30/salary/ Quote Origin: It Is Difficult to Get a Man to Understand Something When His Salary Depends Upon His Not Understanding It] (November 30, 2017) ''Quote Investigator''.</ref>
{{cquote|It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends upon his not understanding it!|||Sinclair}}
Billionaires do not want to take responsibility for the current problems on [[Earth]], many of which they are responsible for, so they dream up cockamamie futurist ideas to deflect criticism.

The lumping together of predictive and generative AI models, such as [[large language model]]s, under the under the umbrella of "AI" has served as a useful corporate tool for obscuring the harm caused by the the intensive energy use of generative AI regarding climate change.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/feb/17/tech-companies-traditional-ai-generative-climate-breakdown-report Claims that AI can help fix climate dismissed as greenwashing. Industry using ‘diversionary’ tactics, says analyst, as energy-hungry complex functions such as video generation and deep research proliferate] by Ajit Niranjan (17 Feb 2026 00.00 EST) ''The Guardian''.</ref>

==Great man vs. multiple discovery==
{{main|1=Great man theory|3=Coincidence}}
[[Ironically]], there were three  multiple discoveries by four people (above) of the tech leaders' behaviors and belief systems, tech leaders undoubtedly subscribe to the [[ahistorical]] or at best unfalsifiable "great man theory" that is contradicted by the many historical instances of multiple discovery. Some evidence the tech leaders' belief that they are 'great men in history' comes from biographies of Musk<ref>''Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future'' by Ashlee Vance (2017) Ecco. ISBN 006230125X.</ref> and Bezos.<ref>''Amazon Unbound: Jeff Bezos and the Invention of a Global Empire '' by Brad Stone (2021) Simon & Schuster. ISBN 1982132612.</ref><ref>[https://www.jack-chong.com/blog/the-great-founder-theory-musk-bezos-and-instagram/ From The Great Man to The Great Founder Theory: Bezos, Musk, and Systrom] by Jack Chong (Sep 29, 2021).</ref> Other evidence comes more directly from their various fanboys.<ref>[https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-whats-wrong-with-america-84838580/episode/jeff-bezos-is-a-great-man-85153653/ Jeff Bezos Is a Great Man: A Critique of the Haters Hating on Bezos, Amazon, Blue Origin, Billionaire Astronauts, and Private Space Travel] by Daniell D (July 24, 2021) ''iHeartMedia''.</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGc0H4ZI6NY Elon Musk Singlehandedly Proves The Great Man Theory of History - Blake Hall, CEO of ID.me] by Miguel Armaza (Jun 10, 2024) ''YouTube''.</ref>

==See also==
*[[Enshittification]]
*[[Multiple discovery]]

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

[[Category:Futurism]]
[[Category:Oligarchic escapes| ]]
[[Category:Technology]]

Categories: Futurism, Oligarchic escapes, Technology