J. Craig Wheeler: The Path to Singularity

We’re excited to welcome Craig Wheeler to the podcast. Craig is an astrophysicist and Professor at the University of Texas at Austin. Over his career, he has made significant contributions to our understanding of supernovae, black holes, and the nature of the universe itself.

Craig’s new book, The Path to Singularity: How Technology Will Challenge the Future of Humanity, offers an exploration of how exponential technological change could upend life as we know it. Drawing on his background as an astrophysicist, Craig examines how humanity’s current trajectory is shaped by forces like AI, robotics, neuroscience, and space exploration—all of which are advancing at speeds that may outpace our ability to adapt.

The book is an extension of a course Craig taught at UT Austin, where he challenged students to project humanity’s future over the next 100, 1,000, and even 100,000 years. His students explored ideas about AI, consciousness, and human evolution, ultimately shaping the themes that inspired the book. We found it fascinating, as he says in the interview, that the majority of the scenarios projected into the future were not positive for humanity.

We wonder: Who wants to live in a dystopian future? And, for those of us who don’t: What can we do about it? This led to our interest in talking with Craig.

We hope you enjoy our conversation with Craig Wheeler.

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Thanks to Jonathan Coulton for our music