Term Limits for an Infinite Age: Esther Dyson & Unity Stoakes on Abundance, Power, and Staying Human in an Age of AI

In this special year-end episode, StartUp Health Co-founder Unity Stoakes has an intimate chat with Esther Dyson –  investor, thinker, and StartUp Health Impact Board member – about her upcoming book on term limits, the dangers of abundance, and how to protect our humanity in a world of superintelligent tools.

Esther draws on decades in tech, health, and philanthropy to ask uncomfortable questions about power, valuation, and why “too much” rarely serves us. Along the way, she shares stories from Wellville, her unconventional life adventures, and the teachers and caregivers who shaped her more than any Nobel Prize winner.

In this wide ranging conversation, they dig into:

• Why human finitude and term limits can be a source of comfort, not fear

• How ultra-processed food, content, and money distort our “fitness functions”

• What the current AI bubble reveals about power, inequality, and attention

• Why AI should augment doctors, and why nurses and caregivers are irreplaceable

• How to think about education, theory of mind, and “theory of business mind”

• Esther’s practical career advice: always make new mistakes, and never do work you would not do for free

This is a must listen for founders, investors, and curious humans who want to navigate the age of superintelligence with more wisdom, more agency, and a clearer sense of “enough.”

Join us at Apollo House at JPM Healthcare Week in January to continue the conversation.

---

Are you ready to tell YOUR story? Members of our Health Moonshot Communities are leading startups with breakthrough technology-driven solutions for the world’s biggest health challenges. Exposure in StartUp Health Media to our global audience of investors and partners – including our podcast, newsletters, magazine, and YouTube channel – is a benefit of our Health Moonshot PRO Membership. To schedule a call and see if you qualify to join and increase brand awareness through our multi-media storytelling efforts, submit our three-minute application. If you’re mission-driven, collaborative, and ready to contribute as much as you gain, you might be the perfect fit.
» Learn more and apply today.

Want more content like this? Sign up for StartUp Health Insider™ to get funding insights, news, and special updates delivered to your inbox.