“Technology is the glory of human ambition and achievement, the spearhead of progress, and the realization of our potential.” -Marc Andreessen
Welcome to “The Ben & Marc Show”, featuring a16z co-founders Ben Horowitz and Marc Andreessen.
This past week, Marc released his new vision for the future - “The Techno-Optimist Manifesto” (a16z.com/the-techno-optimist-.... In an article that has sparked widespread conversation across traditional and social media, Marc challenges the pessimistic narrative surrounding technology today, and instead celebrates it as a liberating force that can lead to growth, progress and abundance for all.
In this one-on-one conversation based on YOUR questions from X (formerly Twitter), Ben and Marc discuss how technological advancements can improve the quality of human life, uplift marginalized communities, and even encourage us to answer the bigger questions of the universe.
We hope you’ll be inspired to join us in this Techno-Optimist movement. Enjoy!
Topics Covered:
00:00:01 Teaser
00:00:34 Ben's favorite reaction to the Manifesto
00:02:11 Rob Henderson and "luxury beliefs"
00:04:35 "Techno optimism" vs. "effective pessimism"
00:10:32 Bringing Techno Optimism to marginalized communities
00:17:09 The Digital Divide and what we should really be worried about
00:19:32 How technology allows us to answer the big questions of life
00:22:59 Technology increases resilience to natural disaster
00:25:31 Economic systems to prevent human corruption
00:28:34 Pro Business vs. Pro Market
00:33:33 Love, Money and Force
00:39:09 Private capital vs. public research
00:43:51 Being anti-statist while supporting American dynamism
00:46:43 "Ideas reproduce" / Law of Accelerating Returns
00:48:28 Economist Julian Simon
00:52:57 What keeps us from the "insane gains" of nuclear fission
00:57:15 Consequences of not having to work
01:03:08 Chinese vs. American education / "Education is not market-based."
01:10:25 Can we predict the consequences of technology?
01:15:35 Super high IQ people and radicalization
01:17:02 Predicting the most controversial part of the Manifesto
01:21:03 Sign off
#technology #tech #ai #economics #business
Listen to Us!
- Apple Podcast: bit.ly/3SdsfNt
- Spotify: spoti.fi/3SclPOr
Resources:
Marc on X: / pmarca
Marc’s Substack: pmarca.substack.com/
Ben on X: / bhorowitz
Books mentioned on this podcast:
- “When Reason Goes on Holiday: Philosophers in Politics” by Neven Sesardic amzn.to/455zYRv
- “The Ultimate Resource” by Julian Lincoln Simon amzn.to/3Ft2MIi
Stay Updated:
Find us on X: / a16z
Find us on LinkedIn: / a16z
The views expressed here are those of the individual personnel quoted and are not the views of a16z or its affiliates. This content is provided for informational purposes only, and should not be relied upon as legal, business, investment, or tax advice. Furthermore, this content is not directed at nor intended for use by any investors or prospective investors and may not under any circumstances be relied upon when making a decision to invest in any a16z funds. PLEASE SEE MORE HERE: a16z.com/disclosures/