Silicon Valley Pro-Extinctionism
This is, in my opinion, one of the most important issues that almost no one is talking about right now: the rise of pro-extinctionist sentiments in Silicon Valley. Below are the articles I've published so far on this topic. I hope this can serve as a useful resource for journalists and academics.
Overview of folks who advocate for what I call "Silicon Valley pro-extinctionism." This is perhaps a good place to start.
An introduction to the "digital eschatology" that's widespread in Silicon Valley. According to this eschatology, the future is digital rather than biological, and hence our biological species is destined to be sidelined, marginalized, disempowered, and ultimately eliminated.
This provides a (hopefully) useful typology of different kinds of Silicon Valley pro-extinctionist views. I argue that we will see, in the coming months and years, an increasingly public debate not about whether pro-extinctionism is good, but about which kind of pro-extinctionist view is best.
This begins with Peter Thiel's hesitation when asked whether the human species should survive. I go one to explore the growing influence of "digital eugenics" among Silicon Valley dwellers.
This article explores the "digital eugenics" -- a kind of pro-extinctionist view -- of Eliezer Yudkowsky.
This newsletter piece offers a trenchant critique of one version of Silicon Valley pro-extinctionism, namely, that advocated by Daniel Faggella.
I call this version of antinatalism: "replacement antinatalism." It holds that having biological babies is "fundamentally unethical" because, according to digital eschatology, the future will be digital rather than biological. A growing number of young people in Silicon Valley are embracing replacement antinatalism.
Another overview of Silicon Valley pro-extinctionism.
I also have two forthcoming academic articles on the topic. A draft of one can be found here. The other is still being written.
My article on the "TESCREAL" ideologies, forthcoming in the Oxford Research Encyclopedia, also contains a detailed discussion of Silicon Valley pro-extinctionism. (Ask me for a copy, if you'd like.)