Conversations with Tyler

William MacAskill on Effective Altruism, Moral Progress, and Cultural Innovation

Aug 10, 2022

William MacAskill, a key advocate for effective altruism and philosopher, shares compelling insights into the movement's rise among younger generations. He challenges conventional charity approaches, revealing his favorite inefficient charity. The discussion dives into moral dilemmas, such as utilitarianism's implications for animal care and the ethics of procreation. MacAskill also reflects on societal progress and explores ideas for cultural innovation, including the possibility of starting a new university. His thoughts provoke deep questions about altruism, existence, and our responsibility to future generations.

50:44

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Episode guests

William MacAskill

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Episode notes

Intro

3min

Navigating Utilitarian Complexities

8min

Ethics of Existence: A Bet on Life

12min

Pro Bono Passion: Lawyers for Global Good

6min

Moral Decision-Making in a Simulated Reality

10min

The Allure of Effective Altruism

8min

Critiques of Quine and Future Educational Endeavors

4min

When Tyler is reviewing grants for Emergent Ventures, he is struck by how the ideas of effective altruism have so clearly influenced many of the smartest applicants, particularly the younger ones. And William MacAskill, whom Tyler considers one of the world’s most influential philosophers, is a leading light of the community.

William joined Tyler to discuss why the movement has gained so much traction and more, including his favorite inefficient charity, what form of utilitarianism should apply to the care of animals, the limits of expected value, whether effective altruists should be anti-abortion, whether he would side with aliens over humans, whether he should give up having kids, why donating to a university isn’t so bad, whether we are living in “hingey” times, why buildering is overrated, the sociology of the effective altruism movement, why cultural innovation matters, and whether starting a new university might be next on his slate.

Read a full transcript enhanced with helpful links, or watch the full video.

Recorded July 7th, 2022 Other ways to connect

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