Do you think MIRI at that time was exciting? Do you think other people should think that? (Genuinely asking, and not even necessarily from a MIRI-skeptical position. It seems possible that MIRI at the time was pretty unproductive and unpromising, and also that MIRI at different times was better, and that funding didn’t necessarily help that transition take place).
Not sure if this counts, but many small donors supported MIRI while GiveWell/OpenPhil were very skeptical.
Do you think MIRI at that time was exciting? Do you think other people should think that? (Genuinely asking, and not even necessarily from a MIRI-skeptical position. It seems possible that MIRI at the time was pretty unproductive and unpromising, and also that MIRI at different times was better, and that funding didn’t necessarily help that transition take place).
Yes at the time I did; this was written just after OpenPhil’s first grant, but it reflects an opinion I had held for many years by that point.