New Books in Economics David Morris, "Stealing The Future: Sam Bankman-Fried, Elite Fraud, and the Cult of Techno-Utopia" (Watkins Media, 2025)
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Jan 5, 2026 David Z. Morris, a journalist and author focused on cryptocurrency and fraud, delves into the notorious case of Sam Bankman-Fried. He explores the intertwining ideas of effective altruism and rationalism, revealing how they can justify immoral actions. The conversation highlights the influence of speculative culture in crypto and the dangers of short-term hype. Morris also shares red flags for spotting future frauds, emphasizing the importance of intuition alongside rational thinking. It's a thought-provoking insight into the world of tech elites and their perilous ideologies.
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Complex Tech Enables Convincing Frauds
- Complex frontier technologies create large opacity that enables fraud and hype.
- David Z. Morris argues crypto and AI are vulnerable because people can't meaningfully evaluate them.
History Of Tech Frauds Before FTX
- Morris recounts investigating tech frauds like Nikola and Trevor Milton before FTX.
- He says crypto itself isn't inherently fraudulent but creates opportunities for scams.
Predictive Certainty Fuels Dangerous Ethics
- Rationalism and effective altruism claim predictive certainty about long-term outcomes.
- Morris shows that believing you can calculate future impacts enables moral justifications for harm.
