Bryan JohnsonFounder of Blueprint and Don't Die

The mind has unquestioned authority, and, it is also at the root of all violence in society

21 May 2023 · 1 min

Watch on YouTube

0:38

In this brief monologue, Bryan Johnson zooms out to view humanity’s biggest challenges: the rapid, unprecedented progress of artificial intelligence; the precarious state of the planet’s biosphere; and escalating human conflict driven by mutual hostility. He argues that all three stem from the human mind’s unchecked authority—our eagerness, willingness, and near‑non‑negotiable habit of letting a self‑destructive mindset dictate actions. To illustrate a concrete, low‑stakes alternative, Johnson proposes starting with a change in diet as a first step toward a way of living where the mind does not hold unquestioned control.

Chapters

If you zoom out on planet Earth and you try to quiet all the noise going on and you say, what is really going on? I would say there's, there's three things. One, artificial intelligence is improving at a stunning pace. Two, the biosphere is in question. And three, is we humans are dangerously at each other's throats. And if you look at all three of those things, you can point to the mind on our eagerness, willingness and almost non negotiable disposition of letting our self destructive minds be in charge. I thought, how could I even create a base baby step of showing an alternate version of existence where the mind doesn't have unquestioned authority and it was diet.