Undid revision 1214621032by50.221.225.231 (talk) I think this is a debatable point, but you were deleted before so please raise in on the talk page
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Undid revision 1214645668byWatkynBassett (talk) self-revert as you raised in on the talk page, sorry
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'''Effective accelerationism''', often abbreviated as "'''e/acc'''", is a 21st-century philosophical movement that advocates for an explicitly [[Technological utopianism|pro-technology]] stance. Its proponents believe that unrestricted [[Technological change|technological progress]] (especially driven by [[artificial intelligence]]) is a solution to universal human problems like poverty, war and climate change.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Soufi |first=Daniel |date=2024-01-06 |title='Accelerate or die,' the controversial ideology that proposes the unlimited advance of artificial intelligence |url=https://english.elpais.com/technology/2024-01-06/accelerate-or-die-the-controversial-ideology-that-proposes-the-unlimited-advance-of-artificial-intelligence.html |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=[[El País]] |language=en-us |archive-date=20 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120202224/https://english.elpais.com/technology/2024-01-06/accelerate-or-die-the-controversial-ideology-that-proposes-the-unlimited-advance-of-artificial-intelligence.html |url-status=live }}</ref> They see themselves as a counterweight to more cautious views on technological innovation, often giving their opponents the derogatory labels of "doomers" or "decels" (short for [[Degrowth|deceleration]]).<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=MacColl |first=Margaux |date=7 October 2023 |title=It's a Cult': Inside Effective Accelerationism, the Pro-AI Movement Taking Over Silicon Valley |url=https://www.theinformation.com/articles/its-a-cult-inside-effective-accelerationism-the-pro-ai-movement-taking-over-silicon-valley |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231120211028/https://www.theinformation.com/articles/its-a-cult-inside-effective-accelerationism-the-pro-ai-movement-taking-over-silicon-valley |archive-date=20 November 2023 |access-date=2023-11-20 |website=[[The Information (website)|The Information]]}}</ref> |
'''Effective accelerationism''', often abbreviated as "'''e/acc'''", is a 21st-century philosophical movement that advocates for an explicitly [[Technological utopianism|pro-technology]] stance. Its proponents believe that unrestricted [[Technological change|technological progress]] (especially driven by [[artificial intelligence]]) is a solution to universal human problems like poverty, war and climate change.<ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Soufi |first=Daniel |date=2024-01-06 |title='Accelerate or die,' the controversial ideology that proposes the unlimited advance of artificial intelligence |url=https://english.elpais.com/technology/2024-01-06/accelerate-or-die-the-controversial-ideology-that-proposes-the-unlimited-advance-of-artificial-intelligence.html |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=[[El País]] |language=en-us |archive-date=20 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240120202224/https://english.elpais.com/technology/2024-01-06/accelerate-or-die-the-controversial-ideology-that-proposes-the-unlimited-advance-of-artificial-intelligence.html |url-status=live }}</ref> They see themselves as a counterweight to more cautious views on technological innovation, often giving their opponents the derogatory labels of "doomers" or "decels" (short for [[Degrowth|deceleration]]).<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=MacColl |first=Margaux |date=7 October 2023 |title=It's a Cult': Inside Effective Accelerationism, the Pro-AI Movement Taking Over Silicon Valley |url=https://www.theinformation.com/articles/its-a-cult-inside-effective-accelerationism-the-pro-ai-movement-taking-over-silicon-valley |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231120211028/https://www.theinformation.com/articles/its-a-cult-inside-effective-accelerationism-the-pro-ai-movement-taking-over-silicon-valley |archive-date=20 November 2023 |access-date=2023-11-20 |website=[[The Information (website)|The Information]]}}</ref> |
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The movement carries [[utopia]]n undertones and argues that humans need to develop and build faster to ensure their survival and propagate [[consciousness]] throughout the universe.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Hurtz |first=Simon |date=2023-11-10 |title=Tech-Szene im Silicon Valley: Ihr Gott ist die KI |url=https://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/ki-silicon-valley-andreessen-effective-accelerationism-1.6301648 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20231110220123/https://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/ki-silicon-valley-andreessen-effective-accelerationism-1.6301648 |archive-date=10 November 2023 |access-date=2023-11-24 |website=[[Süddeutsche Zeitung]] |language=de |
The movement carries [[utopia]]n undertones and argues that humans need to develop and build faster to ensure their survival and propagate [[consciousness]] throughout the universe.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Hurtz |first=Simon |date=2023-11-10 |title=Tech-Szene im Silicon Valley: Ihr Gott ist die KI |url=https://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/ki-silicon-valley-andreessen-effective-accelerationism-1.6301648 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20231110220123/https://www.sueddeutsche.de/wirtschaft/ki-silicon-valley-andreessen-effective-accelerationism-1.6301648 |archive-date=10 November 2023 |access-date=2023-11-24 |website=[[Süddeutsche Zeitung]] |language=de}}</ref> Its founders [[Guillaume Verdon]] and the pseudonymous Bayeslord see it as a way to "usher in the next evolution of consciousness, creating unthinkable next-generation lifeforms."<ref name=":4">{{Cite news |last=Roose |first=Kevin |date=December 10, 2023 |title=This A.I. Subculture's Motto: Go, Go, Go |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/10/technology/ai-acceleration.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231211220106/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/10/technology/ai-acceleration.html |archive-date=11 December 2023 |access-date=December 10, 2023 |work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> |
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Although effective accelerationism has been described as a fringe movement, it has gained mainstream visibility in 2023.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Chowdhury |first=Hasan |date=28 July 2023 |title=Silicon Valley's favorite obscure theory about progress at all costs, which has been embraced by Marc Andreessen |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-tech-leaders-accelerationism-eacc-twitter-profiles-2023-7 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231120191620/https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-tech-leaders-accelerationism-eacc-twitter-profiles-2023-7 |archive-date=20 November 2023 |access-date=2023-11-20 |website=[[Business Insider]] |language=en-US}}</ref> A number of high-profile [[Silicon Valley]] figures, including investors [[Marc Andreessen]] and [[Garry Tan]], explicitly endorsed it by adding "e/acc" to their public social media profiles.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":1" /> |
Although effective accelerationism has been described as a fringe movement, it has gained mainstream visibility in 2023.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Chowdhury |first=Hasan |date=28 July 2023 |title=Silicon Valley's favorite obscure theory about progress at all costs, which has been embraced by Marc Andreessen |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-tech-leaders-accelerationism-eacc-twitter-profiles-2023-7 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231120191620/https://www.businessinsider.com/silicon-valley-tech-leaders-accelerationism-eacc-twitter-profiles-2023-7 |archive-date=20 November 2023 |access-date=2023-11-20 |website=[[Business Insider]] |language=en-US}}</ref> A number of high-profile [[Silicon Valley]] figures, including investors [[Marc Andreessen]] and [[Garry Tan]], explicitly endorsed it by adding "e/acc" to their public social media profiles.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":1" /> |
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== Reception == |
== Reception == |
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The "Techno-Optimist Manifesto",<ref name="ma">{{Cite web |last=Andreessen |first=Marc |author-link=Marc Andreessen |date=2023-10-16 |title=The Techno-Optimist Manifesto |url=https://a16z.com/the-techno-optimist-manifesto/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231123234238/https://a16z.com/the-techno-optimist-manifesto/ |archive-date=23 November 2023 |access-date=2023-11-24 |website=[[Andreessen Horowitz]] |language=en}}</ref> a 2023 essay by [[Marc Andreessen]], has been described by the [[Financial Times|''Financial Times'']] and the German [[Süddeutsche Zeitung|''Süddeutsche Zeitung'']] as espousing the views of effective accelerationism.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Kelly |first=Jemima |date=22 October 2023 |title=I read Andreessen's 'techno-optimist manifesto' so you don't have to |url=https://www.ft.com/content/7eeb105d-7d79-4a59-89be-e18cd47be68f |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=[[Financial Times]] |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114055702/https://www.ft.com/content/7eeb105d-7d79-4a59-89be-e18cd47be68f |url-status=live }}</ref |
The "Techno-Optimist Manifesto",<ref name="ma">{{Cite web |last=Andreessen |first=Marc |author-link=Marc Andreessen |date=2023-10-16 |title=The Techno-Optimist Manifesto |url=https://a16z.com/the-techno-optimist-manifesto/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231123234238/https://a16z.com/the-techno-optimist-manifesto/ |archive-date=23 November 2023 |access-date=2023-11-24 |website=[[Andreessen Horowitz]] |language=en}}</ref> a 2023 essay by [[Marc Andreessen]], has been described by the [[Financial Times|''Financial Times'']] and the German [[Süddeutsche Zeitung|''Süddeutsche Zeitung'']] as espousing the views of effective accelerationism.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Kelly |first=Jemima |date=22 October 2023 |title=I read Andreessen's 'techno-optimist manifesto' so you don't have to |url=https://www.ft.com/content/7eeb105d-7d79-4a59-89be-e18cd47be68f |access-date=2024-01-20 |website=[[Financial Times]] |archive-date=14 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240114055702/https://www.ft.com/content/7eeb105d-7d79-4a59-89be-e18cd47be68f |url-status=live }}</ref> |
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David Swan of the ''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]'' has criticized effective accelerationism due to its opposition to government and industry self-regulation. He argues that "innovations like AI needs thoughtful regulations and guardrails [...] to avoid the myriad mistakes Silicon Valley has already made".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Swan |first=David |date=2023-10-29 |title='We are conquerors': Why Silicon Valley's latest fad is its deadliest |url=https://www.smh.com.au/technology/we-are-conquerors-why-silicon-valley-s-latest-fad-is-its-deadliest-20231027-p5efho.html |access-date=2023-11-24 |website=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |archive-date=13 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231113124449/https://www.smh.com.au/technology/we-are-conquerors-why-silicon-valley-s-latest-fad-is-its-deadliest-20231027-p5efho.html |url-status=live }}</ref> During the 2023 [[Ronald Reagan Presidential Library|Reagan National Defense Forum]], [[United States Secretary of Commerce|U.S. Secretary of Commerce]] [[Gina Raimondo]] cautioned against embracing the "move fast and break things" mentality associated with "effective acceleration{{Sic}}". She emphasized the need to exercise caution in dealing with AI, stating "that's too dangerous. You can't break things when you are talking about AI".<ref name=":4" /><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZWJCMUd_yQ |title=Reagan National Defense Forum |date=2023-12-02 |language=en |publisher=[[Ronald Reagan Presidential Library|Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute]] |place=[[Simi Valley, California|Simi Valley]] |time=21:03 |via=[[YouTube]] |access-date=14 December 2023 |archive-date=12 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231212051956/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZWJCMUd_yQ |url-status=live }}</ref> In a similar vein, Ellen Huet argued on [[Bloomberg News|''Bloomberg News'']] that some of the ideas of the movement were "deeply unsettling", focusing especially on Guillaume Verdon's "post-humanism" and the view that "natural selection could lead AI to replace us [humans] as the dominant species."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Huet |first=Ellen |date=2023-12-06 |title=A Cultural Divide Over AI Forms in Silicon Valley |language=en |work=[[Bloomberg News]] |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2023-12-06/effective-accelerationism-and-beff-jezos-form-new-tech-tribe |access-date=2023-12-30 |archive-date=30 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231230195448/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2023-12-06/effective-accelerationism-and-beff-jezos-form-new-tech-tribe |url-status=live }}</ref> |
David Swan of the ''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]'' has criticized effective accelerationism due to its opposition to government and industry self-regulation. He argues that "innovations like AI needs thoughtful regulations and guardrails [...] to avoid the myriad mistakes Silicon Valley has already made".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Swan |first=David |date=2023-10-29 |title='We are conquerors': Why Silicon Valley's latest fad is its deadliest |url=https://www.smh.com.au/technology/we-are-conquerors-why-silicon-valley-s-latest-fad-is-its-deadliest-20231027-p5efho.html |access-date=2023-11-24 |website=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |archive-date=13 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231113124449/https://www.smh.com.au/technology/we-are-conquerors-why-silicon-valley-s-latest-fad-is-its-deadliest-20231027-p5efho.html |url-status=live }}</ref> During the 2023 [[Ronald Reagan Presidential Library|Reagan National Defense Forum]], [[United States Secretary of Commerce|U.S. Secretary of Commerce]] [[Gina Raimondo]] cautioned against embracing the "move fast and break things" mentality associated with "effective acceleration{{Sic}}". She emphasized the need to exercise caution in dealing with AI, stating "that's too dangerous. You can't break things when you are talking about AI".<ref name=":4" /><ref>{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZWJCMUd_yQ |title=Reagan National Defense Forum |date=2023-12-02 |language=en |publisher=[[Ronald Reagan Presidential Library|Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute]] |place=[[Simi Valley, California|Simi Valley]] |time=21:03 |via=[[YouTube]] |access-date=14 December 2023 |archive-date=12 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231212051956/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZWJCMUd_yQ |url-status=live }}</ref> In a similar vein, Ellen Huet argued on [[Bloomberg News|''Bloomberg News'']] that some of the ideas of the movement were "deeply unsettling", focusing especially on Guillaume Verdon's "post-humanism" and the view that "natural selection could lead AI to replace us [humans] as the dominant species."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Huet |first=Ellen |date=2023-12-06 |title=A Cultural Divide Over AI Forms in Silicon Valley |language=en |work=[[Bloomberg News]] |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2023-12-06/effective-accelerationism-and-beff-jezos-form-new-tech-tribe |access-date=2023-12-30 |archive-date=30 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231230195448/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2023-12-06/effective-accelerationism-and-beff-jezos-form-new-tech-tribe |url-status=live }}</ref> |
Effective accelerationism, often abbreviated as "e/acc", is a 21st-century philosophical movement that advocates for an explicitly pro-technology stance. Its proponents believe that unrestricted technological progress (especially driven by artificial intelligence) is a solution to universal human problems like poverty, war and climate change.[1] They see themselves as a counterweight to more cautious views on technological innovation, often giving their opponents the derogatory labels of "doomers" or "decels" (short for deceleration).[1][2]
The movement carries utopian undertones and argues that humans need to develop and build faster to ensure their survival and propagate consciousness throughout the universe.[3] Its founders Guillaume Verdon and the pseudonymous Bayeslord see it as a way to "usher in the next evolution of consciousness, creating unthinkable next-generation lifeforms."[4]
Although effective accelerationism has been described as a fringe movement, it has gained mainstream visibility in 2023.[4][5] A number of high-profile Silicon Valley figures, including investors Marc Andreessen and Garry Tan, explicitly endorsed it by adding "e/acc" to their public social media profiles.[4][5]
Effective accelerationism, a portmanteau of "effective altruism" and "accelerationism",[2] is a fundamentally techno-optimist movement.[6] According to Guillaume Verdon, one of the movement's founders, its aim is for human civilization to "clim[b] the Kardashev gradient", meaning its purpose is for human civilization to rise to next levels on the Kardashev scale by maximizing energy usage.[6]
To achieve this goal, effective accelerationism wants to accelerate technological progress. It is strongly focused on artificial general intelligence (AGI), because it sees AGI as fundamental for climbing the Kardashev scale.[6] The movement therefore advocates for unrestricted development and deployment of artificial intelligence.[7] Regulation of artificial intelligence and government intervention in markets more generally is met with opposition. Many of its proponents have libertarian views and think that AGI will be most aligned if many AGIs compete against each other on the marketplace.[6]
The founders of the movement see it as rooted in Jeremy England's theory on the origin of life, which is focused on entropy and thermodynamics.[6] According to them, the universe aims to increase entropy, and life is a way of increasing it. By spreading life throughout the universe and making life use up ever increasing amounts of energy, the universe's purpose would thus be fulfilled.[6]
While Nick Land is seen as the intellectual originator of contemporary accelerationism in general,[5][4] the precise origins of effective accelerationism remain unclear. The earliest known reference to the movement can be traced back to a May 2022 newsletter published by four pseudonymous authors known by their X (formerly Twitter) usernames @BasedBeffJezos, @bayeslord, @zestular and @creatine_cycle.[5]
Effective accelerationism incorporates elements of older Silicon Valley subcultures such as transhumanism and extropianism, which similarly emphasized the value of progress and resisted efforts to restrain the development of technology, as well as the work of the Cybernetic Culture Research Unit.[4][8][6]
Forbes disclosed in December 2023 that the @BasedBeffJezos persona is maintained by Guillaume Verdon, a Canadian former Google quantum computing engineer and theoretical physicist.[9] The revelation was supported by a voice analysis conducted by the National Center for Media Forensics of the University of Colorado Denver, which further confirmed the match between Jezos and Verdon. The magazine justified its decision to disclose Verdon's identity on the grounds of it being "in the public interest".[9]
On 29 December 2023 Guillaume Verdon was interviewed by Lex Fridman on the Lex Fridman Podcast and introduced as the "founder of [the] e/acc (effective accelerationism) movement".[10]
Traditional accelerationism, as developed by the British philosopher Nick Land, sees the acceleration of technological change as a way to bring about a fundamental transformation of current culture, society, and the political economy.[1] In his earlier writings he saw the acceleration of capitalism as a way to overcome this economic system itself.[1] In contrast, effective accelerationism does not seek to overcome capitalism or to introduce radical societal change but tries to maximize the probability of a technocapital singularity, triggering an intelligence explosion throughout the universe and maximizing energy usage.[5][6]
Effective accelerationism also diverges from the principles of effective altruism, which prioritizes using evidence and reasoning to identify the most effective ways to altruistically improve the world.[1] This divergence especially comes from one school of thought within effective altruism – longtermism. Under a longtermist view, a very cautious handling of AGI is necessary to secure a human-aligned AGI, because longtermists fear that any misaligned AGI could lead to human extinction in the end.[6]
In contrast, effective accelerationism emphasizes the transformative potential of technology and capitalism.[11][12] Its proponents consider that existential risks from AGI are negligible, and that even if it were not, decentralized free markets would much better mitigate this risk than centralized governmental regulation.[6]
Effective accelerationism also stands in stark contrast with the degrowth movement, sometimes described by it as "decelerationism". The degrowth movement advocates for reducing economic activity and consumption to address ecological and social issues. Effective accelerationism on the contrary embraces technological progress, energy consumption and the dynamics of capitalism, rather than advocating for a reduction in economic activity.[11]
The "Techno-Optimist Manifesto",[13] a 2023 essay by Marc Andreessen, has been described by the Financial Times and the German Süddeutsche Zeitung as espousing the views of effective accelerationism.[3][14]
David Swan of the The Sydney Morning Herald has criticized effective accelerationism due to its opposition to government and industry self-regulation. He argues that "innovations like AI needs thoughtful regulations and guardrails [...] to avoid the myriad mistakes Silicon Valley has already made".[15] During the 2023 Reagan National Defense Forum, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo cautioned against embracing the "move fast and break things" mentality associated with "effective acceleration [sic]". She emphasized the need to exercise caution in dealing with AI, stating "that's too dangerous. You can't break things when you are talking about AI".[4][16] In a similar vein, Ellen Huet argued on Bloomberg News that some of the ideas of the movement were "deeply unsettling", focusing especially on Guillaume Verdon's "post-humanism" and the view that "natural selection could lead AI to replace us [humans] as the dominant species."[17]