Humans: The Next Platform

Editors note:Geoffrey Woo and Michael Brandt are cofounders of Nootrobox, an e-commercenootropics company.

Biohacking and transhumanist advances (including nootropics, extended longevity, cybernetic implants, better behavioral and genetic self-understanding) will materially advance our quality of life and productivity in the coming decade, but we need to be thoughtful about the potential social and ethical pitfalls as we transform. Google Trends shows a marked uptick in searches for nootropics and related biohacking fields, so now is the time to have the conversation about the direction were headed.

Digital products and companies are not just changing the way we live our lives, but also playing larger and more influential roles in public policy and governance. This trend of the technology industry driving broader social policy will perhaps be even greater with biohacking companies as their product innovations begin to alter and transform what it means to be human.

Biohacking is simply the next frontier in the drive to better ourselves. People will enhance themselves physically to have better bones, better eyesandbetter resilience to disease, as well asattain an overall better standard of living. More people will have access to their full potential.However from an ethics perspective, theres already worrying concerns about the widening socio-economic gap around the world today; theres an argument that when only the wealthy have access, it further separates the haves from the have-nots.

Bill McKibben, a prominent critic of a hyper-segregated, Gattaca-esque version of the future, cautions that biohacking technologies like genetic enhancement would take the gap in power, wealth, and education that currently divides both our society and the world at large, and write that division into our very biology.

From a technology perspective, this bifurcation story just hasnt played out. Over and over again, weve seen new technologies popularize and achieve economies of scale, and then quickly drop in price and diffuse across all levels of society. Increasing market demand leads to new research and production techniques that in the long run drive down the price of fundamentally useful new devices and technologies. 23andMe initially provided genetic reports for $299, and within several years were able to cut itsprice by two-thirds.

Research into nootropics and other biometric and bio-enhancement technologies requires significant R&D investment and innovative new methods of production and distribution. The cutting edge of any tech is expensive, but prices come down with time. Biohacking companies should follow the examples of Google Loonand Facebooks Internet.org, bringing basic technologies to the world as a service to society, democratizing access and encouraging participation in the commerce of the future.

If a tool or technology provides a positive return for society at large, government subsidy may be a viable option, similar to how national and local governments provide baseline health and vision care, free education, computers in libraries, and Internet access in public spaces.

New forms of functional ingestables, including meal replacement products like Soylentand nootropic stacks produced by Nootroboxand DIY resources like Longecity and Peak Nootropics, as well as quantified self-tracking tools like Fitbit, Android Wearand the Apple Watchare already enabling us to better quantify and manage the way we spend our 24 hours each day.

Technological advancement is expanding beyond our current digital sensors and interfaces, and as we apply the hacker ethos to our own bodies and minds to develop safe, cheap and accessible technologies, we will see this value-per-worker ratio continue to rise.

Link:
Humans: The Next Platform