Billionaires are funding the creation of life-extending pills that will eventually be on the market for people to buy, according to one CEO – and he says it will turn the rich into “privileged zombies”.
The dire warning comes amid fears that AI and biotechnology are evolving at such a rapid pace that anti-aging pills could be just years away.
Amazon boss Jeff Bezos, PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel and ChatGPT’s Sam Altman are among the latest in a long line of American tycoons to throw their fortunes behind regenerative medicine.
Their goal is to increase lifespan with drugs and other technologies that make the body’s cells stay younger and disease-free longer.
“At the rate technology is evolving, it will only be a matter of time before life-prolonging drugs become free for those who can afford them,” said Phil Cleary, founder of the SmartWater Group.
But Cleary said Silicon Valley moguls must “stop playing God” in their race to defeat death, calling the search for medicine’s holy grail “ego-driven” and charging it risks creating a planet “privileged zombies”.
Instead, he said, they should use their vast wealth to help the world’s poorest children survive at least to adulthood. Instead of extending the lives of the wealthy elite, their money would be better spent on the 5 million children in the world who die of starvation and other preventable and treatable causes every year.
“Silicon Valley’s continued pursuit of the fountain of youth is a folly driven by fear and ego that comes at a terrible humanitarian cost to the planet and its most vulnerable inhabitants,” said Cleary, author of the novel Elixir. which explores the harmful consequences of life-prolonging drugs on society.
“A pill that keeps people alive, even for decades, would create an unjust, unequal world filled with privileged zombies, mostly white, middle-class people who could afford to buy drugs in first order.
“The billionaires behind this dangerous research need to stop playing God and reevaluate what ‘life’ really means.
“Keeping children alive until at least their 18th birthday is arguably more important to humanity than prolonging the lives of those privileged few who have already had the opportunity to see the world, have children of their own, and realize their particular ambitions. “
About 100,000 people die of age-related diseases every day, according to the World Health Organization, yet scientists have long been divided about what causes aging and what, if anything, can be done about it.
While aging itself does not directly kill people, the elderly are at risk of many deadly diseases such as Alzheimer’s, heart disease and cancer.
Some believe that mitochondria – the cells’ batteries – may be responsible. Over time, these are thought to produce unstable compounds that damage or age important molecules and proteins.
Others believe that aging may be caused by “senescent” or old cells that are not cleared by the body’s waste system as they become dormant.
But antiaging research is advancing rapidly as scientists seek to discover and control the molecular processes of aging.
In July, researchers at the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences at Imperial College London and Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore announced the discovery of a new drug that increased the lifespan of laboratory mice by nearly 25%.
Dozens of high-profile businessmen have thrown their weight and money behind biotech start-ups that are specifically focused on extending the human lifespan.
Jeff Bezos is reported to have invested $3 billion – the largest biotech company launch of all time – in Altos Labs, while PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel invested in the Methuselah Foundation, which aims to make the “new 90 50”.
And in April last year, ChatGPT founder Sam Altman was revealed to have funded biotech startup Retro BioScience to the tune of $180 million.
According to its website, Retro BioScience focuses on “cellular reprogramming” and is less than four years away from developing a clinical trial of the concept.
Cleary, whose SmartWater technology is used by more than two million people in over 20 countries worldwide, acknowledged that the life-extending medication would benefit many people whose lives would otherwise be cut short by terminal illness.
But he warned that drugs with such power would only sell at a high price, meaning most of the world’s population could never afford them.
“Before extending the lives of the privileged few, surely humanity should first focus on extending the lives, if only by a few years, of the millions of starving children,” he said.
Theologian Dr Niamh Middleton of the University of Dublin agreed and said humanity “could be lost forever” if Silicon Valley achieved its goal.
“Besides the many religious arguments, God’s divine plan among them, I think it’s safe to say that humanity as we know it could be lost forever if life-prolonging drugs are brought to market by private companies for commercial gain,” she said. .
“In our quest to extend life, let us first turn our attention to the most vulnerable among us. Instead of focusing on costly measures for personal longevity, let us channel our resources and efforts toward eradicating the scar of childhood hunger, reflecting the true Christian call for compassion and justice.
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