Zoltan Istvan Gyurko,
professionally known as Zoltan Istvan (born March 30, 1973), is an American transhumanist,
journalist,
entrepreneur, political candidate, and futurist.
Formerly a reporter for the
National Geographic Channel
National Geographic (formerly National Geographic Channel; abbreviated and trademarked as Nat Geo or Nat Geo TV) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by the National Geographic Global Networks unit of Disney General ...
,
Istvan now writes
futurist
Futurists (also known as futurologists, prospectivists, foresight practitioners and horizon scanners) are people whose specialty or interest is futurology or the attempt to systematically explore predictions and possibilities abou ...
,
transhumanist,
secular
Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin ''saeculum'', "worldly" or "of a generation"), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. Anything that does not have an explicit reference to religion, either negativ ...
and political-themed articles for major media, including ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
''. He believes transhumanism will grow into a mainstream social movement in this decade.
Istvan is the author of ''
The Transhumanist Wager'', a
philosophical
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Som ...
science fiction novel.
In late 2014, Istvan announced he was running for
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal gove ...
in the
2016 election
The following elections occurred in the year 2016.
Africa
Benin Republic
*2016 Beninese presidential election 6 March 2016
Cape Verde
* 2016 Cape Verdean presidential election 2 October 2016
Chad
* 2016 Chadian presidential election 10 A ...
. He ran for his own
Transhumanist Party to raise awareness for
transhumanist politics issues but did not place his name on any state ballot.
Later, in 2017, Istvan ran for
Governor of California
The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard.
Established in the Constitution of California, t ...
in the
2018 election
The following elections are scheduled to occur in 2018. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world.
Africa
*2018 Djiboutian parliamentary election 23 February 2018
*2018 Sierra Leonean general elect ...
as a member of the
Libertarian Party
Active parties by country
Defunct parties by country
Organizations associated with Libertarian parties
See also
* Liberal parties by country
* List of libertarian organizations
* Lists of political parties
* Outline of libertarianism
...
.
In 2019, Istvan ran for the
Republican Party's nomination in the
2020 United States presidential election against President
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021.
Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of ...
.
Early life and education
Zoltan Istvan was born in Los Angeles in 1973 to his Hungarian immigrant parents Ilona and Steven (István) Gyurko. He was a nationally ranked swimmer and waterpolo player in his youth. Istvan later graduated from
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...
in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...
with a degree in philosophy and religion.
During his freshman year, Istvan was arrested by undercover cops for selling $80 worth of
marijuana
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in variou ...
to fellow students.
His arrest and subsequent
felony
A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that res ...
conviction, which was later dismissed and expunged, influenced how he views the U.S. government's
war on drugs
The war on drugs is a global campaign, led by the United States federal government, of drug prohibition, military aid, and military intervention, with the aim of reducing the illegal drug trade in the United States.Cockburn and St. Clair, ...
.
Career
Early career
Istvan was an online and on-camera reporter for the
National Geographic Channel
National Geographic (formerly National Geographic Channel; abbreviated and trademarked as Nat Geo or Nat Geo TV) is an American pay television network and flagship channel owned by the National Geographic Global Networks unit of Disney General ...
. His writings have appeared in a blog of the ''
San Francisco Chronicle
The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and Michael H. de Young. The pap ...
'', and ''
Outside''. His work has been covered in publications such as ''
The Huffington Post
''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...
''. Istvan's coverage of the war in
Kashmir was made into a documentary, ''Pawns of Paradise'', distributed by Janson Media. Australia's ''
The Age
''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territo ...
'' has acquired non-exclusive Australian rights to the show.
According to Istvan, he invented, pioneered and popularized the
extreme sport
Action sports, adventure sports or extreme sports are activities perceived as involving a high degree of risk. These activities often involve speed, height, a high level of physical exertion and highly specialized gear. Extreme tourism overl ...
of
volcano boarding.
Istvan is an entrepreneur who works in real estate.
He also owns
vineyard
A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vine ...
properties in Mendoza, Argentina, Bordeaux, France, and California's Napa Valley. Istvan owns a 68 acre island in Nova Scotia, Canada in the Atlantic Ocean.
Futurist career
After publishing ''The Transhumanist Wager'', Istvan began actively promoting transhumanism and other futurist issues via speeches, media interviews, activism and his writings.
Istvan's writings and ideas on transhumanism, philosophy, atheism and futurist issues have been featured in major media Istvan has also written for ''
Gizmodo
''Gizmodo'' ( ) is a design, technology, science and science fiction website. It was originally launched as part of the Gawker Media network run by Nick Denton, and runs on the Kinja platform. ''Gizmodo'' also includes the subsite '' io9'', w ...
'', ''New Scientist'', ''Salon'', ''TechCrunch'', ''The Daily Dot'', ''International Business Times''
Singularity University's ''Singularity Hub'', ''TechInsider'', ''Newsweek'', ''Futurism'' and ''
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
''.
Istvan gives talks on futurist and transhumanist topics, which include speeches at the
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...
,
World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...
(Global Future Council), Congreso Futuro, Moogfest, the
World Future Society
The World Future Society (WFS), founded in 1966, is an international community of futurists and future thinkers.
History
Prominent members and contributors have included Ray Kurzweil, Peter Drucker, Carl Sagan
Carl Edward Sagan (; ; Nov ...
's annual conference, and ''
Financial Times
The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nikke ...
'' Camp Alphaville conference.
He appeared in the 2016 documentary ''
The Future of Work and Death''.
2016 presidential campaign
In October 2014, Istvan announced that he was "in the very early stages of preparing a campaign to try to run" for U.S. President in 2016. He stated that his goals would be to support scientists in "overcoming human death and aging within 15–20 years" to encourage Americans to embrace "radical technology and science" and to set up safeguards against dangers including potential abuse of such technology.
In October and November 2014 interviews, Istvan explained that he aimed to unify the transhumanist community, which otherwise was splintered, and to establish a single voice. He said great changes in society could happen and that Transhumanism could provide ideas, safeguards and policies. He said the aim for a Transhumanist Party would be to get onto as many state ballots as possible.
In March 2015, Istvan reported progress in organizing a campaign and explained his wish to get major candidates to address issues. He hoped to be included in some debates, at least with third parties. He himself had funded nearly all of his campaign's expenses to date and he noted donations were needed.
Istvan helped to publicize his campaign in late 2015 by driving a bus shaped like a casket—the "
Immortality Bus"—across the United States.
Istvan planned the bus tour to raise awareness of life extension.
At the end of the Immortality Bus tour, Istvan delivered a "Transhumanist Bill of Rights" to the U.S. Capitol.
His 20-point platform includes a universal basic income, increased funding for space travel and taking money from the military and putting it into science and medicine.
In February 2016, it was reported that Istvan was likely to vote
Democrat, placing himself "somewhere between Bernie and Hillary in terms of political ideologies",
but later in 2016 he also wrote articles supporting Libertarian presidential candidate
Gary Johnson
Gary Earl Johnson (born January 1, 1953) is an American businessman, author, and politician. He served as the 29th governor of New Mexico from 1995 to 2003 as a member of the Republican Party. He was the Libertarian Party nominee for Presid ...
. On October 15, 2016, Istvan stated on his social media accounts that he would be voting for himself.
Istvan was not on the ballot in any state, though he claimed to have substantial potential
write-in
A write-in candidate is a candidate whose name does not appear on the ballot but seeks election by asking voters to cast a vote for the candidate by physically writing in the person's name on the ballot. Depending on electoral law it may be poss ...
backers.
2018 California gubernatorial campaign
Istvan emphasized science, technology, longevity, transhumanism and Libertarian values in his California gubernatorial run, along with support for
basic income
Universal basic income (UBI) is a social welfare proposal in which all citizens of a given population regularly receive an unconditional transfer payment, that is, without a means test or need to work. It would be received independently of a ...
.
He suggested basic income could be paid for without raising taxes through a "Federal Land Dividend". Under this program, the government would allocate monthly payments to households by leasing out federal land. In his debut editorial for ''
Reason
Reason is the capacity of Consciousness, consciously applying logic by Logical consequence, drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activ ...
'' magazine, he argued that reparations for harm caused to marijuana users during the federal government's
War on Drugs
The war on drugs is a global campaign, led by the United States federal government, of drug prohibition, military aid, and military intervention, with the aim of reducing the illegal drug trade in the United States.Cockburn and St. Clair, ...
may be appropriate.
He suggested reparations could be paid as tax credits or through the sale of federal lands, so as not to put further burden associated with the drug war on taxpayers.
2020 presidential campaign
In December 2017, Istvan announced he was considering running for the
Libertarian Party
Active parties by country
Defunct parties by country
Organizations associated with Libertarian parties
See also
* Liberal parties by country
* List of libertarian organizations
* Lists of political parties
* Outline of libertarianism
...
's Presidential nomination. In March 2019 during an interview on the Bread and Circuses podcast, Istvan told Caleb Salvatore and Nick Koehler that he was again considering a run for President. Istvan announced a run for the
Republican nomination
Presidential primaries have been held in the United States since 1912 to nominate the Republican presidential candidate.
1912
This was the first time that candidates were chosen through primaries. President William Taft ran to become the nomi ...
on November 19.
Philosophy
Istvan states that in the 21st century, as modern man confronts the finitude of life, everyone faces a Transhumanist Wager, a concept that is explored in
his science fiction novel of the same name. The Transhumanist Wager follows from a life philosophy Istvan calls Teleological Egocentric Functionalism (TEF). Istvan summarizes the Transhumanist Wager as follows:
Istvan is the creator of the concepts of Theistcideism, Omnipotism, the AI Imperative,
the Singularity Disparity,
Speciation Syndrome, Post-earthism, Delayed Fertility Advantage, and Jethro's Window, a possible solution to the
Fermi Paradox
The Fermi paradox is the discrepancy between the lack of conclusive evidence of advanced extraterrestrial life and the apparently high a priori likelihood of its existence, and by extension of obtaining such evidence. As a 2015 article put it ...
. Istvan is also a populizer of AI Day, the transhumanist olympics, the Jesus Singularity, cryothanasia a robot AI President, and quantum archaeology (technological resurrection). Istvan proposed and developed the concept of a Longevity Peace Prize at the XPRIZE Foundation in 2019. Writing for The New York Times opinion section, Istvan argued conservatives should consider supporting artificial wombs to move the abortion debate forward. Istvan also argued to allow surfing during the Covid lockdowns in The New York Times Opinion section.
Istvan authored an article entitled "Transhumanism and Theistcideism" for publication in ''
Pandeism: An Anthology'' (2017). Istvan wrote the short fictional story "The Jesus Singularity" on a religious AI that goes rogue and destroys the world. It was published in ''
Vice
A vice is a practice, behaviour, or Habit (psychology), habit generally considered immorality, immoral, sinful, crime, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refe ...
'' magazine.
Istvan has a chip implanted in his hand and consulted with the U.S. Navy on broad about the use of the implant in humans.
According to Istvan's novel, the three laws of Transhumanism are:
# A transhumanist must safeguard one's own existence above all else.
# A transhumanist must strive to achieve omnipotence as expediently as possible—so long as one's actions do not conflict with the First Law.
# A transhumanist must safeguard value in the universe—so long as one's actions do not conflict with the First and Second Laws.
Transhumanist community reception
Within the transhumanist community, reactions to Istvan's U.S. Transhumanist Party have ranged from enthusiastic to sharply critical. Some transhumanist critics, such as Peter Rothman, have questioned whether the Transhumanist Party adds value to the overall goals of transhumanism.
Personal life
Istvan resides in
Mill Valley, California
Mill Valley is a city in Marin County, California, United States, located about north of San Francisco via the Golden Gate Bridge and from Napa Valley. The population was 14,231 at the 2020 census.
Mill Valley is located on the western and ...
with his wife, who is a physician, and his daughters.
[ He identifies as an atheist.]
In February 2015, he helped launch BiZoHa, the world's first free-thinker orphanage, in Mukhoya, Kasese district
Kasese District is a district in Western Uganda. Like most other Ugandan districts, the town of Kasese is the site of the district headquarters.
History
In September 2022, the district was hit by deadly landslides.
Location
Kasese District is ...
, western Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The south ...
. Istvan's promotional article on the topic in ''Vice
A vice is a practice, behaviour, or Habit (psychology), habit generally considered immorality, immoral, sinful, crime, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refe ...
's'' ''Motherboard'', helped a GoFundMe
GoFundMe is an American for-profit crowdfunding platform that allows people to raise money for events ranging from life events such as celebrations and graduations to challenging circumstances like accidents and illnesses. From 2010 to the ...
campaign to achieve success in raising $5,820 to provide funding for the orphanage.
References
External links
Zoltan Istvan's personal site
Transhumanist Party's website
Zoltan Istvan's 2020 campaign site
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Istvan, Zoltan
1973 births
Living people
21st-century American male writers
21st-century American novelists
21st-century American non-fiction writers
21st-century American politicians
American atheism activists
American male non-fiction writers
American male novelists
American people of Hungarian descent
American political party founders
American transhumanists
Atheist philosophers
California Libertarians
Candidates in the 2016 United States presidential election
Candidates in the 2018 United States elections
Candidates in the 2020 United States presidential election
Columbia College (New York) alumni
Life extensionists
Philosophers from California
Transhumanist politicians
Writers from Los Angeles