Thanks so much for your work, Will! I think this is the right decision given the circumstances and that will help EV move in a good direction. I know some mistakes were made but I still want to recognize your positive influence.
I’m eternally grateful for getting me to focus on the question of “how to do the most good with our limited resources?”.
I remember how I first heard about EA.
The unassuming flyer taped to the philosophy building wall first caught my eye: “How to do the most good with your career?”
It was October 2013, midterms week at Tufts University, and I was hustling between classes, focused on nothing but grades and graduation. But that disarmingly simple question gave me pause. It felt like an invitation to think bigger.
Curiosity drew me to the talk advertised on the flyer by some Oxford professor named Will MacAskill. I arrived to find just two other students in the room. None of us knew that Will would become so influential.
What followed was no ordinary lecture, but rather a life-changing conversation that has stayed with me for the past decade. Will challenged us to zoom out and consider how we could best use our limited time and talents to positively impact the world. With humility and nuance, he focused not on prescribing answers, but on asking the right questions.
Each of us left that classroom determined to orient our lives around doing the most good. His talk sent me on a winding career journey guided by this question. I dabbled in climate change policy before finding my path in AI safety thanks to 80K’s coaching.
Ten years later, I’m still asking myself that question Will posed back in 2013: How can I use my career to do the most good? It shapes every decision I make. (I’m arguably a bit too obsessed with it!). I know countless others can say the same.
So thank you, Will, for inspiring generations of people with your catalytic question. The ripples from that day continue to spread. Excited for what you’ll do next!
Thanks so much for your work, Will! I think this is the right decision given the circumstances and that will help EV move in a good direction. I know some mistakes were made but I still want to recognize your positive influence.
I’m eternally grateful for getting me to focus on the question of “how to do the most good with our limited resources?”.
I remember how I first heard about EA.
The unassuming flyer taped to the philosophy building wall first caught my eye: “How to do the most good with your career?”
It was October 2013, midterms week at Tufts University, and I was hustling between classes, focused on nothing but grades and graduation. But that disarmingly simple question gave me pause. It felt like an invitation to think bigger.
Curiosity drew me to the talk advertised on the flyer by some Oxford professor named Will MacAskill. I arrived to find just two other students in the room. None of us knew that Will would become so influential.
What followed was no ordinary lecture, but rather a life-changing conversation that has stayed with me for the past decade. Will challenged us to zoom out and consider how we could best use our limited time and talents to positively impact the world. With humility and nuance, he focused not on prescribing answers, but on asking the right questions.
Each of us left that classroom determined to orient our lives around doing the most good. His talk sent me on a winding career journey guided by this question. I dabbled in climate change policy before finding my path in AI safety thanks to 80K’s coaching.
Ten years later, I’m still asking myself that question Will posed back in 2013: How can I use my career to do the most good? It shapes every decision I make. (I’m arguably a bit too obsessed with it!). I know countless others can say the same.
So thank you, Will, for inspiring generations of people with your catalytic question. The ripples from that day continue to spread. Excited for what you’ll do next!