The Link Connecting Effective Altruism, FTX and Charity
Who is William David MacAskill?
He is a Scottish philosopher, writer, and one of the movement’s founders who promoted effective altruism. He is the Director of the Forethought Foundation for Global Priorities Research as well as an Associate Professor of Philosophy and Research Fellow at the Global Priorities Institute at the University of Oxford.
A quick rewind to the year 2002 when William MacAskill was an undergrad student at Oxford and like any other student in that phase of life, he was busy loving his life. Until one day when everything changed for him. This is the moment when MacAskill came across a paper written in 1972 and titled ‘Famine, Affluence and Morality. This was penned down by an Australian ethical philosopher named Peter Singer and contained a very simplified premise which goes like this – “If you have money, you must donate and help those who are less fortunate.”
MacAskill is taken aback! Reading the newspaper offers him the exact clarity he needs to revamp his life and discover his calling.
Instead of splurging on things that most college students would ordinarily buy, he starts saving money. He begins to reflect hard on inequality and riches. And ten years later, he leads the “Effective Altruism” (EA) movement, which has the rather straightforward objective of using money as effectively as possible. He exhorts people to share their wealth more freely. He does, however, want their contributions to be more effective than traditional charities. He wants them to solve moral conundrums using a logical and analytical method.
Effective Altruism (EA)
At its core, Effective Altruism emphasises three things :
- How much good can solve a problem do?
- How easily is the issue resolved?
- How ignored is the issue?
Let’s try to explain this with a live instance. Who remembers the Ice Bucket Challenge that was doing the rounds on social media back in the year 2014?
You were required to pour ice water from a bucket onto your head, record the event, post the video to social media, and nominate three additional persons to follow suit. It wasn’t merely a pastime. It was intended to raise awareness of the devastating neurological condition known as ALS. And it succeeded. That year, the Ice Bucket Challenge assisted in raising $115 million for ALS. People gave money!
An efficient altruist, however, might disagree. quite vociferously.
They claim that ALS already receives a lot of attention. It isn’t ignored. Therefore, it doesn’t fulfil point three. Additionally, because of the slow rate of progress, finding a cure could take several years. So solving it is not simple. That negates point two.
And one can contend that by giving more money to ALS, you’re taking funds away from other, more deserving causes.
The Ice Bucket Challenge, in MacAskill’s view, did more harm than good.
What, therefore, is a worthy cause in the eyes of an effective altruist?
Malaria is the solution, according to the effective altruism website.
There is the humanitarian aspect, as malaria claims the lives of 450,000 people annually. And children under the age of five account for 70% of mortality.
So how exactly does money save lives?
The cost of a mosquito net is $2. Furthermore, utilising a net can cut malaria cases by 50%! Additionally, every $1 million spent on the fight against malaria can increase a nation’s GDP by $12 million. A very small amount of money can have a remarkable effect.
The EA wants precisely that! It fulfils all three criteria: it is very effective, swiftly resolved, and a cause that few people find appealing.
Fast Forward to November 2022
The EA movement quickly caught on in Silicon Valley. The notion also appealed to them because they were already making a lot of money. Earn-to-give became the guiding principle, and MacAskill rose to fame. People eagerly listened to his ideas, read his books, asked him to conferences, and read his novels.
But then November 2022 came around.
When MacAskill opened his eyes, he discovered his world was in disarray. The matrix had a bug in it.
Do you remember Sam Bankman-Fried, the mind behind the FTX cryptocurrency exchange’s rapid ascent? Well, FTX fell apart fairly dramatically a few weeks ago.
Back in 2012, when the EA movement was just getting started, MacAskill met Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), an MIT undergraduate who was thinking about going into politics at the time. SBF was persuaded by MacAskill to abandon the plan and concentrate on maximising wealth during the conference. He thought SBF could create change by producing tonnes of cash and donating it to worthwhile organisations. SBF also adored the concept.
The second impact is on your reputation! And that presents a far bigger issue. People are now debating whether MacAskill’s theories encouraged SBF to take these absurd risks.
Conclusion
Was SBF of the idea that pursuing noble ends justified his wicked means?
Did he believe he could take shortcuts to become wealthy quickly?
Perhaps he did. If so, did MacAskill’s influence contribute to the development of a sinister Ponzi scheme?
Maybe. Possibly not, in any case, people are now seriously questioning the concept as a whole. Effective Altruism is currently very prominent, and its spokespersons are fighting to save the reputation of the movement.
Until further on as things unfold.
