PodcastsPirate WiresBalaji & Beff Jezos Respond To Forbes Doxxing The e/acc Leader | Pirate Wires Podcast #26 🏴☠️

Balaji & Beff Jezos Respond To Forbes Doxxing The e/acc Leader | Pirate Wires Podcast #26 🏴☠️
Pirate WiresFri Dec 08 2023
Balaji and Beff Jezos Doxxing Incident:
- Beff Jezos was doxxed by Forbes, revealing his real identity against his will.
- The incident led to a discussion about the lack of ethics in media and the violation of privacy rights.
- They discussed the potential impact on their movement, emphasizing its focus on free speech, freedom of compute, and AI.
Ethical Considerations in Media:
- The conversation highlighted ethical concerns regarding journalists' tactics and the need for protection against unethical practices.
- It emphasized that revealing someone's identity without consent is not only unethical but also an attempt to chill speech.
Media's Role in Information Warfare:
- The podcast delved into the concept of information warfare between tech and media as different subgraphs within society.
- It shed light on how journalists, regulators, and bureaucrats form a densely connected subgraph at war with tech companies like an opposing tribe.
Shift in Tech Industry Dynamics:
- There was a discussion about the evolving dynamics between tech and media over time, particularly after 2008 when tech revenues surged while traditional print media suffered.
- The speakers pointed out a shift in attitudes among prominent figures such as Elon Musk, Palmer Luckey, and Alex Karp who have become more outspoken and unapologetic.
Tech's Influence on Politics:
- The initial alignment of tech companies like Facebook, Twitter, and Google with the Democratic Party was based on their origins in blue zones, creating the perception that technology was inherently progressive.
- The Arab Spring initially reinforced the belief that tech's impact on politics would be positive, but subsequent events revealed significant negative consequences such as disasters and loss of life.
Shift in Political Landscape:
- From 2012 to 2016, there was a noticeable shift in political alignment online, with conservatives becoming more active on platforms like Twitter. This led to a rightward shift in the tone and content of discussions.
- Media coverage also underwent a transformation during this period, marked by increasing negativity towards tech figures and an overall change in attitude following Obama's reelection.
Media-Tech Alliance Shift:
- Following Obama's reelection in 2012, media outlets turned against tech companies, signaling the breakdown of their previous alliance. The media realized that tech companies posed a threat beyond being mere gadget suppliers or vote banks.
- The strained relationship between tech and media intensified after Trump's election victory. Negative coverage of tech started as early as 2013, reflecting a pattern where friendly coverage is reserved for those aligned with specific ideological tribes.
The Accelerationist Cultural Framework (IAC):
- IAC represents a cultural framework aimed at understanding civilization's trajectory from first principles and physics-based AI perspectives.
- It promotes viral optimism focused on accelerating technological growth for the benefit of civilization while challenging pervasive doomerism and pessimism prevalent in tech circles.
Challenges Faced by Traditional Media:
- Traditional media has lost control over the network despite its continued financial support from established entities. Its diminishing influence contrasts sharply with its historical dominance over public discourse.
Tech Journalism and Media Influence:
- Founders have significantly more followers than most tech journalists, highlighting a power shift in influence.
- Journalists' effectiveness is based on collaboration behind brand names to target standout individuals, rather than individual charisma or following.
AI Concerns and Decentralization:
- There are concerns about centralized AI being susceptible to authoritarian control and shaping cultural values.
- The push for decentralized AI aims to safeguard freedom of speech, thought, and compute while preventing monopolistic control over Large Language Models (LLMs).
Future of Artificial Intelligence:
- Discussions revolve around the potential creation of community-specific AI or "AI Gods" aligned with different subcultures, religions, or ideologies.
- Open sourcing AI models erodes power from big centralized players and empowers startups and smaller entities in the field of artificial intelligence.
Decentralized AI Models vs. Centralized Control:
- Open source models have the potential to erode the market advantage of centralized AI models over time.
- Decentralized approach in AI allows for a more diversified search over the space of models, leading to variance winning over centralized control.
Challenges and Potential Solutions for Decentralization:
- The need to protect players involved in creating a more decentralized future is essential.
- Tribe formation could be a step towards guidance from tribal elders and establishing admission mechanisms.
Impact of Media Ethics on Speech and Expression:
- Centralized models are increasingly limited by prompt engineering and reinforcement learning, affecting their usefulness.
- Concerns about media ethics include lack of freedom due to fear of saying anything "cancelable" and the impact on speech and expression.
The Fight for Freedom in Tech and Society:
- Collaboration among different libertarian camps is crucial in fighting against authoritarian control.
- The alignment with pro-freedom values includes advocating for freedom of press, speech, exchange, denomination, and compute.