Nectome liked my earlier essay, and reached out to hire me to write more about their project, and about cryonics more broadly. This is the first such piece.
A friend of mine, just a few years older than me, was diagnosed with cancer a few weeks ago. It's only Stage 1 and in an area where it can probably be treated well with surgery. She was wise enough to seriously plan for the possibility, and that “just in case” really paid off. Still, her situation could get worse in the coming weeks. It's a sharp reminder of the specter of death, and the uncertainty we live with, even when relatively young.
Many years ago, I served as an official witness when this same friend signed up for cryonics. She and her husband joined the growing group of my friends and family who have plans to try and survive, in some way or another, to see a glorious future. More recently, I’ve been pleased to learn about how Nectome offers a substantial upgrade to that plan, and others in my community — my friends, my wife, my parents — have shared my (cautious) optimism there. But whether we take advantage [...]
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Outline:
(06:13) Path 1: AI Utopia
(09:32) Path 2: AI Apocalypse
(16:46) Path 3: AI Slowdown
(19:25) Path 4: Muddling Through
(22:43) Virtue and Sensibility
The original text contained 9 footnotes which were omitted from this narration.
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First published:
June 22nd, 2026
Source:
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/arAgLxohnPWRc2qHd/planning-for-preservation-in-the-age-of-ai
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Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO.
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