John Carmack & Palmer Luckey Gnomically Respond to My Wired Article on John Carmack & Palmer Luckey

In my Wired article last week, after I quoted Palmer Luckey saying that he'd "absolutely" plug into Robert Nozick's experience machine, and that “Once you’ve perfected VR, you can imagine a world where you don’t need to perfect anything else”, Palmer posted this quote on my Facebook wall:

"What’s the difference between the real world and the virtual one?"

"The quantity of data, that's all." pic.twitter.com/khz3YOT89d

— Palmer Luckey (@PalmerLuckey) January 20, 2016

I had to dig a bit for the reference, and turns out it's from Sword Art Online, a manga/anime series. So there's that.

I quoted John Carmack, Luckey's CTO at Oculus, as saying, "[S]ome fraction of the desirable experiences of the wealthy can be synthesized and replicated [in VR] for a much broader range of people", and “If people are having a virtually happy life, they are having a happy life. Period.” His response on that:

@slhamlet @PalmerLuckey I am an unabashed technological triumphalist. Technology *IS* the answer.

— John Carmack (@ID_AA_Carmack) February 25, 2016

... which kinda confused me, because I'm not sure what Carmack thinks the question is. I sought clarity:

Does that mean you think technology alone can help everyone become a first class citizen, as Lanier wants? https://t.co/nBnZZL4OSL

— Wagner James Au (@slhamlet) February 25, 2016

That's in reference to Jaron Lanier telling me, “I’d prefer to see a world where everyone is a first-class citizen and we don’t have people living in the Matrix.” But no response to that so far.

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Comments

[Pathfinder]

I really liked your article, and I especially like how you're continuing the conversation with Carmack and Luckey. There are many "tough" questions around VR and Virutal Worlds, and the toughest ones have absolutely nothing to do with technology and everything to do with humanity. Thanks asking the tough questions. :)

[Wagner James Au]

Thanks much, Path!

[Iggy]

Your article was a fine read and it asks the right questions. You are not a snake-oil salesman.

Like James Howard Kunstler, I'm a techno-skeptic. So I really scoff at this:

"I am an unabashed technological triumphalist. Technology *IS* the answer."

and

"The quantity of data, that's all."

Brought to you by the same sorts of minds that gave us "nuclear war-fighting," "better living through chemistry" and "Roundup Ready" crops.

Ridiculous. Most tech is a neutral tool, but some isn't. The *right* technology is a good answer, but not every technology is right.

For me the jury on VR is decidedly still OUT.

[pussycat catnap]

It just points out how little Mr. Carmack understands both humanity, and the divide between the 1% and the destitute, let alone even the rest of us.

Granted the difference between poverty and the middle class is shrinking in a downward trend - making this failed understanding of humanity even more tragic.

People like Mr Carmack having a hold on the shape of the future will lead us into a nightmare that is so perfect for them, they will be oblivious to the horror they force on others.

[cube3]

the difference between the real and virtual world is that i can read in the newspapers what type of car the owner/creator of a virtual world drives.;)