Palmer Luckey: Build the future you want instead of arguing with luddites “In general, it’s bad when a society turns luddite and starts to demonize new things . . . There are always people who have fought in the moment, and very few who fight to go back after the fact.” For those who are worried that AI will ruin everything and eliminate jobs, Palmer asks: “How many people said the same thing about automated manufacturing? The reality was that it took cars from a plaything for the rich into something that anybody could use.” Palmer gives several other examples to emphasize this point. People were very against recorded music because they believed it “cheapens a performance” if you can replicate it for free. There were artists who believed photography would kill painting and art. “We’re in one of those swings where everyone is questioning whether technology will make our future better, and I think it’s unfortunate because we’re on the precipice of so many things that have been scarce becoming unscarce. Things that have been unobtainable for many will become mass-market commodities.” How do we convince people? Palmer replies: “The thing you have to do is not talk about it really good. You have to do it really good until it becomes inarguable. Imagine if instead of making photography into art, they just argued about it on podcasts with painters? It would never work. You have to just do it and then eventually everyone will realize you were right all along.” One of Palmer’s favorite examples is the Wright Brothers. In 1903, the New York Times predicted manned flight would take between 1 and 10 million years to achieve, in an article titled “Flying Machines Which Do Not Fly.” Only nine weeks later, the Wright Brothers achieved manned flight. “Imagine if the Wright Brothers, instead of building their flying machine, had gone to argue with this guy,” Palmer jokes. “At some point you have to say they’re wrong about our future and we just need to build that future.” Video source: @OffTopicJP (2025)