SparkUp: Addressing the Metacrisis
Misaligned AI, Nuclear War, Pandemics, Climate Change, Dystopia, and more... humanity's future hangs in the balance.
The Metacrisis is the idea that humanity is currently trending towards one of two negative attractors states of either existential catastrophe (wiping out all humans) or dystopia – both surely undesirable outcomes.
This SparkUp will dive into the deep complexities of the Metacrisis and how to navigate away from these potential catastrophes and dystopia and instead towards a more hopeful, benevolent and sustainable future.
Discussion Points:
- Identifying the existential risks that most concern and are most likely to affect our future.
- Examining the changes in the perceived probability of these risks over recent times.
- Debating the concept of humanity trending towards either existential catastrophe or dystopia.
- Understanding the challenges of large-scale global coordination and the tendency of centralized institutions to fail.
- Exploring the role of emerging technologies like blockchain and AI in fostering a positive third attractor state.
- Crafting strategies to overcome the coordination challenges ('Slaying Moloch') that stand in the way of global cooperation.
- Developing a tactical plan that could realistically be implemented to address the metacrisis, considering potential reforms or replacements of existing systems.
- Discussing initial practical steps that can be taken to start making a positive impact.
Preparation for Participants:
- Reflect on the existential threats that you believe are most critical and why.
- Think about how technologies and current global systems might either mitigate or exacerbate these threats.
- Consider what a realistic plan to address these challenges might look like and the obstacles it would face.
Event Goals:
- To engage in a deep and meaningful discussion on the nature of existential risks and our societal responses.
- To empower participants with a clearer understanding of the dynamics at play in global crises and coordination failures.
- To inspire actionable ideas and strategies that contribute to a viable pathway towards a sustainable and thriving future.
Reserve your spot now for a dynamic exploration into perhaps the most important challenges humanity has ever faced, and help pioneer the strategies that will steer us towards a more hopeful future.
(NOTE: To be eligible to participate in a Third Brain SparkUp, you must first email to brian@bethirdbrain.com your certificate of completion for agreeing to the Rules of Civil Conversation: https://therulesofcivilconversation.org/. This only needs to be done once.)
SparkUps are intimate, intellectually honest Socratic Dialogues hosted by Third Brain between 4-6 growth-minded individuals seeking objective truth.