I was fourteen years old when I discovered my fascination with computers. My father and I were both tinkerers, I would play with motherboards and central processing units while he would take apart vehicle engines. He was dedicated to extending the longevity of a 1999 Ford Ranger, and I was determined to extract as much performance as possible from my computer parts.
Those moments of shared tinkering shaped my passion for technology.
I remember one particular day vividly. I had assembled my first computer and was eager to see how much power I could squeeze out of my components by overclocking my CPU. But there was one crucial detail that I had overlooked: the importance of keeping a CPU cool. In my excitement, I ignored applying thermal paste during the installation of my CPU and didn’t bother purchasing case fans. I naively thought that leaving the side panel open and pointing a desk fan at the components would be sufficient. As I booted up my system and started running demanding applications, I distraughtly watched as my CPU temperature skyrocketed. Moments later, the computer shut down abruptly, and I learned a hard lesson about hardware maintenance.
Soon after, I began learning Java and became enchanted with the capabilities of software. Growing up in a working-class family in rural America, podcasts became my gateway to intellectual life. The concept of artificial intelligence was introduced to me through the Lex Fridman Podcast, originally titled The Artificial Intelligence Podcast. This podcast, in its early years, served as a treasure trove of insights from leading minds in AI, featuring names like Max Tegmark, Peter Norvig, Steven Pinker, Stuart Russell, and Yann LeCun.
However, it was the profound influence of figures such as Ben Goertzel and Joscha Bach that truly ignited my interest in AI. Bach’s musings on cognition, consciousness, and artificial general intelligence, along with Goertzel’s emphasis on the importance of decentralization in AI R&D, lit a fire of curiosity within me.
This summer, I will be interacting with some of my early influences at Edge Esmeralda, an event running from June 2nd to June 30th, 2024, in California. This month-long gathering is designed for innovators dedicated to pioneering future-forward technologies and ways of living. Edge Esmeralda is envisioned as a prototype for a permanent new town, Esmeralda, and it’s set to be a hub of innovation and collaboration. I’ll be sharing daily updates and insights from the event on my Substack and X.
Embracing Tomorrow’s Technologies with Optimism
Edge Esmeralda will bring together a diverse group of founders, scientists, researchers, and investors, all united by a common goal: to explore and develop cutting-edge technologies that will create a better future. The event will focus on a variety of themes, including human organization, AI, crypto applications, health, and hard tech. We will have the unique opportunity to collaborate in a productive and healthy environment, potentially incubating some of the most impactful founders and emerging technologies of tomorrow.
Highlights of My Participation
From June 7th to June 8th, I will be involved in Edge Esmeralda’s Hard Tech Weekend. This weekend-long unconference will be hosted by Abundance Institute's own Eli Dourado of the Abundance Institute and Ben Reinhardt of Speculative Technologies. The Hard Tech Weekend will feature a series of discussions and workshops aimed at pushing the boundaries of what is possible in areas of energy, aerospace, defense, manufacturing, and more.
Following this, from June 10th to June 16th, I will be attending LabWeek, sponsored by Protocol Labs. LabWeek will delve into a wide range of topics, including:
Neurotech, Whole Brain Emulation, and Brain-Computer Interfaces
Human-AI Cooperation
Biotech and Longevity
Extended Reality
From June 17th to June 21st, the focus will shift to governance applications of game theory and new institutional funding structures. These discussions will explore innovative ways to enhance governance and funding mechanisms.
In between these sessions I will be interacting with everyone in this intentional community of creators and thinkers, soaking in the collaborative spirit and sharing my organization’s aspiration for fostering abundance.
Edge Esmeralda promises to be intellectually stimulating and will provide a platform for deep dives into some of the most exciting and transformative areas of technology today. Additionally this opportunity is deeply personal to me – I will be contributing to the conversations that are foundational to some of my early influences. If you’re interested in engaging with the ideas shaping emerging technologies and/or the innovators bringing them to life, follow me on X and stay in tune with my Substack.