Max Erik Tegmark (born 5 May 1967) is a Swedish-American physicist,

machine learning Machine learning (ML) is a field of study in artificial intelligence concerned with the development and study of Computational statistics, statistical algorithms that can learn from data and generalise to unseen data, and thus perform Task ( ...

researcher and author. He is best known for his book '' Life 3.0'' about what the world might look like as

artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is the capability of computer, computational systems to perform tasks typically associated with human intelligence, such as learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and decision-making. It is a field of re ...

continues to improve. Tegmark is a professor at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

and the president of the Future of Life Institute.

Early life

Tegmark was born in Sweden to Karin Tegmark and American-born professor of mathematics Harold S. Shapiro. While in high school, he and a friend created and sold a word processor written in pure machine code for the Swedish eight-bit computer ABC 80, and a 3D Tetris-like game called Frac. Tegmark left Sweden in 1990 after receiving his M.S.E in

engineering physics Engineering physics (EP), sometimes engineering science, is the field of study combining pure science disciplines (such as physics, mathematics, chemistry or biology) and engineering disciplines (computer, nuclear, electrical, aerospace, medic ...

from the KTH Royal Institute of Technology and a B.A. in economics the previous year at the Stockholm School of Economics. His first academic venture beyond Scandinavia brought him to California, where he studied physics at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

, earning his M.A. in 1992, and Ph.D. in 1994 under the supervision of Joseph Silk. Tegmark was an assistant professor at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

, receiving tenure in 2003. In 2004, he joined the

's department of physics.

Career

His research focuses on machine learning after an earlier phase focused on cosmology, combining theoretical work with new measurements to place constraints on cosmological models and their free parameters, often in collaboration with experimentalists. He has over 300 publications, of which nine have been cited over 500 times. He has developed data analysis tools based on information theory and applied them to

cosmic microwave background The cosmic microwave background (CMB, CMBR), or relic radiation, is microwave radiation that fills all space in the observable universe. With a standard optical telescope, the background space between stars and galaxies is almost completely dar ...

experiments such as COBE, QMAP, and WMAP, and to galaxy redshift surveys such as the Las Campanas Redshift Survey, the 2dF Survey and the

Sloan Digital Sky Survey The Sloan Digital Sky Survey or SDSS is a major multi-spectral imaging and spectroscopic redshift survey using a dedicated 2.5-m wide-angle optical telescope at Apache Point Observatory in New Mexico, United States. The project began in 2000 a ...

. With Daniel Eisenstein and Wayne Hu, he introduced the idea of using baryon acoustic oscillations as a standard ruler. With Angelica de Oliveira-Costa and Andrew Hamilton, he discovered the anomalous multipole alignment in the WMAP data sometimes referred to as the " axis of evil". With Anthony Aguirre, he developed the cosmological interpretation of quantum mechanics. His 2000 paper on quantum decoherence of neurons concluded that decoherence seems too rapid for

Roger Penrose Sir Roger Penrose (born 8 August 1931) is an English mathematician, mathematical physicist, Philosophy of science, philosopher of science and Nobel Prize in Physics, Nobel Laureate in Physics. He is Emeritus Rouse Ball Professor of Mathematics i ...

's "quantum microtubule" model of consciousness to be viable. Tegmark has also formulated the " mathematical universe hypothesis", whose only postulate is that "all structures that exist mathematically exist also physically". In 2014, Tegmark published the book '' Our Mathematical Universe'', which presents his idea at greater length. Tegmark suggests that the theory is simple in having no free parameters at all, and that in those structures complex enough to contain self-aware substructures (SASs), these SASs will subjectively perceive themselves as existing in a physically "real" world. The "mathematical universe" hypothesis has been criticized by some other scientists as being both overly speculative and unscientific in nature. For example, mathematical physicist Edward Frenkel characterized it as closer to "science fiction and mysticism" than "the realm of science." Tegmark was elected Fellow of the

American Physical Society The American Physical Society (APS) is a not-for-profit membership organization of professionals in physics and related disciplines, comprising nearly fifty divisions, sections, and other units. Its mission is the advancement and diffusion of ...

in 2012 for, according to the citation, "his contributions to

cosmology Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe, the cosmos. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', with the meaning of "a speaking of the wo ...

, including precision measurements from

and galaxy clustering data, tests of

inflation In economics, inflation is an increase in the average price of goods and services in terms of money. This increase is measured using a price index, typically a consumer price index (CPI). When the general price level rises, each unit of curre ...

and gravitation theories, and the development of a new technology for low-frequency radio interferometry". He was awarded the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Science's Gold Medal in 2019 for, according to the citation, "his contributions to our understanding of humanity’s place in the cosmos and the opportunities and risks associated with artificial intelligence. He has courageously tackled these existential questions in his research and, in a commendable way, succeeded in communicating the issues to a wider public." Tegmark is interviewed in the 2018 documentary on artificial intelligence '' Do You Trust This Computer?'' From 2020 onward, Tegmark led a research team-turned-nonprofit at MIT that developed an AI-driven

news aggregator In computing, a news aggregator, also termed a feed aggregator, content aggregator, feed reader, news reader, or simply an aggregator, is client software or a web application that aggregates digital Content (media), content such as online newsp ...

known as "Improving the News". "Improve the News" was rebranded to "Verity News" in 2023.

Personal life

He married astrophysicist Angelica de Oliveira-Costa in 1997, and divorced in 2009. They have two sons. On August 5, 2012, Tegmark married Meia Chita.

In the media

* In 2006, Tegmark was one of fifty scientists interviewed by ''

New Scientist ''New Scientist'' is a popular science magazine covering all aspects of science and technology. Based in London, it publishes weekly English-language editions in the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. An editorially separate organ ...

'' about their predictions for the future. His prediction: "In 50 years, you may be able to buy T-shirts on which are printed equations describing the unified laws of our universes." * Tegmark appears in the 2007 documentary ''

Parallel Worlds, Parallel Lives ''Parallel Worlds, Parallel Lives'' is a British Academy of Film and Television Arts, BAFTA-winning television documentary broadcast in 2007 on BBC Scotland and BBC Four, in which American rock musician Mark Oliver Everett talks with physicists a ...

'' in which he is interviewed by

Mark Oliver Everett Mark Oliver Everett, also known by his stage name E (born April 10, 1963) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and the frontman of the rock band Eels (band), Eels. He is known for writing songs tackling subjects such as dea ...

, son of the founder of the

many-worlds interpretation The many-worlds interpretation (MWI) is an interpretation of quantum mechanics that asserts that the universal wavefunction is Philosophical realism, objectively real, and that there is no wave function collapse. This implies that all Possible ...

of quantum mechanics, Hugh Everett. * Tegmark also appears in "Who's Afraid of a Big Black Hole?", "What Time is It?", "To Infinity and Beyond", "Is Everything We Know About The Universe Wrong?", "What is Reality?" and "Which Universe Are We In?", all part of the BBC's ''

Horizon The horizon is the apparent curve that separates the surface of a celestial body from its sky when viewed from the perspective of an observer on or near the surface of the relevant body. This curve divides all viewing directions based on whethe ...

'' scientific series of programmes. * He appears in several episodes of ''Sci Fi Science: Physics of the Impossible'', an American documentary television series on science which first aired in the United States on December 1, 2009. The series is hosted by theoretical physicist

Michio Kaku Michio Kaku (; ; born January 24, 1947) is an American theoretical physicist, Science communication, science communicator, futurologist, and writer of popular-science. He is a professor of theoretical physics at the City College of New York and ...

. * Tegmark was interviewed by Morgan Freeman in seasons 2 and 3 of ''

Through the Wormhole ''Through the Wormhole'' is an American science Documentary film, documentary television series narrated and hosted by American actor Morgan Freeman. It began airing on Science Channel in the United States on June 9, 2010. The series concluded i ...

'' in 2011–2012. * Tegmark participated in the episode "Zooming Out" of BBC World Service's '' The Forum'', which first aired on

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. The station replaced the BBC Home Service on 30 September 1967 and broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes from the BBC's headquarters at Broadcasti ...

on 26 April 2014. * In 2014, Tegmark co-authored an op-ed in ''

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...

'' with

Stephen Hawking Stephen William Hawking (8January 194214March 2018) was an English theoretical physics, theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author who was director of research at the Centre for Theoretical Cosmology at the University of Cambridge. Between ...

Frank Wilczek Frank Anthony Wilczek ( or ; born May 15, 1951) is an American theoretical physicist, mathematician and Nobel laureate. He is the Herman Feshbach Professor of Physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Founding Director ...

and Stuart Russell on the movie '' Transcendence''. * In 2014, "The Perpetual Earth Program," a play based on Tegmark's book '' Our Mathematical Universe'', was mounted in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

as part of the Planet Connections Theatre Festival. * In 2014, he featured in '' The Principle'', a documentary examining the Copernican Principle. * In 2015, Tegmark participated in an episode of

Sam Harris Samuel Benjamin Harris (born April 9, 1967) is an American philosopher, neuroscientist, author, and podcast host. His work touches on a range of topics, including rationality, religion, ethics, free will, determinism, neuroscience, meditation ...

' the Waking Up podcast entitled "The Multiverse & You (& You & You & You...)" where they discussed topics such as

and the mathematical universe hypothesis. * In 2017, Tegmark gave a talk entitled "Effective altruism, existential risk & existential hope" at the world's largest annual conference of the effective altruism movement.Archived a
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and th
Wayback Machine
* In 2017, Tegmark participated in an episode of

' the Waking Up podcast entitled "The Future of Intelligence" where they discussed topics such as

and definitions of life. * In 2018, Tegmark took part in a conversation with AI researcher Lex Fridman about

Artificial General Intelligence Artificial general intelligence (AGI)—sometimes called human‑level intelligence AI—is a type of artificial intelligence that would match or surpass human capabilities across virtually all cognitive tasks. Some researchers argue that sta ...

as part of a MIT course on AGI. He was the first guest on the Lex Fridman podcast. He was interviewed again on the Lex Fridman podcast in 2021 and in 2023. * In 2023, Tegmark drew controversy in the media when reports surfaced that he had signed off on behalf of the Future of Life Institute on a $100,000 grant to far-right media outlet Nya Dagbladet. He later said that the Future of Life Institute "ultimately decided to reject it because of what our subsequent due diligence uncovered", that they rejected it long before the media became involved, and that the institute "finds Nazi, neo-Nazi or pro-Nazi groups or ideologies despicable and would never knowingly support them". An official statement from the Future of Life Institute further expands on this: "FLI finds groups or ideologies espousing antisemitism, white supremacy, or racism despicable and would never knowingly support any such group". * In 2023, ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' named Tegmark one of the 100 most influential people in AI.

Selected books

* '' Our Mathematical Universe'' (2014) * '' Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence'' (2017)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tegmark, Max 1967 births 21st-century American astronomers Swedish expatriates in the United States Swedish cosmologists Living people Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Science faculty KTH Royal Institute of Technology alumni Stockholm School of Economics alumni 20th-century Swedish astronomers Swedish people of Jewish descent 20th-century American physicists MIT Center for Theoretical Physics faculty Quantum mind People associated with effective altruism Fellows of the American Physical Society AI safety scientists People from Stockholm