The Nerd Reich
I’ve written before about the dangers of corporatism so you won’t be surprised to learn that I’m not the only one; I’m simply the least famous. The following article discusses a theory about the Tech Bros – arguably the most powerful of the current crop of corporates – by tech journalist, Gil Duran:
‘…a growing number of Silicon Valley elites are pursuing a vision of power not rooted in the common good, but in profit, feudal hierarchy, and total control of the platforms that define daily life for hundreds of millions of people.
Duran dubs this emerging ideology the “Nerd Reich” — a slurry of right-wing ideas championed by ruthless tech overlords like Palantir founder Peter Thiel, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, and cryptocurrency titan Brian Armstrong, with some OpenAI CEO Sam Altman sprinkled in for good measure. Drawing on the reactionary writings of Curtis “Mencius Moldbug” Yarvin and the cryptolibertarianism of tech investor Balaji Srinivasan, this philosophy isn’t explicitly outlined by our billionaire overlords, but is nonetheless a useful framework that explains their increasingly undemocratic actions.’
The Futurism article ends with this:
“We have a bunch of CEOs telling us that AI is going to get rid of millions and millions of jobs,” Duran argues. “Well, what’s going to happen to those people who can no longer work? What is their future? What is the future of their children? What does democracy look like when you don’t get to eat unless someone like Elon Musk is approving of your existence?”
I strongly recommend reading the entire Futurism article because it’s a peek into a future that would do credit to a post-apocalyptic novel.
Meeks
