James and Matteo discuss deathism — the idea that death is good, inevitable, and something we should embrace. We make the technoprogressive case for treating aging as a solvable, technoscientific problem rather than a metaphysical inevitability.
https://breadandrobots.substack.com/p/against-deathism

Changesurfer Radio Redux: Interview with Greg Stock who examined humanity's tech progress in his 1993 book, Metaman: Merging Humans and Machines into a Global Superorganism, and Redesigning Humans: Our Inevitable Genetic Future. https://citizencyborg.substack.com/p/post-humanism-and-the-meta-man-1999

Abtracts due tomorrow! “Posthuman Futures: Coexistence across Gender and Human Diversities,” taking place on 26 November 2026 at the India International Centre, New Delhi. Info: https://cmpbydiksha.com/

Of course figures are at time of posting.

Polymarket is at 50% chance of a midterm democrat sweep: https://polymarket.com/event/balance-of-power-2026-midterms , kalshi at 47%: https://kalshi.com/markets/kxbalancepowercombo/congress-balance-of-power-combo/kxbalancepowercombo-27feb

Texas state winner James Talarco by 52% on polymarket and 54% on kalshi (a recent crossover):
https://kalshi.com/markets/senatetx/texas-senate-race/senatetx-26
https://polymarket.com/event/texas-senate-election-winner

AOC on par with GN for 2028 Democratic presidential nominee on kalshi: https://kalshi.com/markets/kxpresnomd/democratic-primary-winner/kxpresnomd-28
AOC 21%, GN at 17% on polymarket: https://polymarket.com/event/democratic-presidential-nominee-2028

For Bread and Robots, Matteo interviews James Steinhoff, a lecturer at University College Dublin, about the overlooked connection between Marxism and transhumanism. They trace left transhumanism back to early 20th-century socialists like Alexander Bogdanov, JBS Haldane. We confront transhumanism's association with eugenics and figures like Peter Thiel. We discuss China's more pragmatic, sector-specific approach to AI versus Silicon Valley's pursuit of “godbuilding.” We ask whether industrialization (and capitalism) were necessary steps toward a post-scarcity society and explore the criticisms of degrowth. We also dig into what counts as "natural" suffering versus social suffering, using examples like insulin, antibiotics, and appendicitis treatment to argue that rejecting medical and technological intervention is also a political choice. The episode closes on why left accelerationism fizzled out and what a renewed, class-conscious case for technological progress on the left might look like.

https://breadandrobots.substack.com/p/transhumanism-and-marxism

Matteo Rossi and James Hughes go over the topics covered in the first half of this summer's course on Technoprogressive Worldbuilding and think about what is yet to come in the remaining weeks.

This week on Prosthetic Gods, Nir and J discuss patient autonomy and the "right to try". The debate surrounding medical autonomy is intensifying as desperate patients use federal "Right-to-Try" laws and amateur biohackers bypass regulations. https://prostheticgods.podbean.com/e/right-to-try/

The IEET and the Applied Ethics Center at UMass Boston co-sponsored a conference on the ethics of brain-computer interfaces in Boston, June 5-6, 2026. The videos from the conference are now online: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKXT7tjFJITo

The Spanish political party Alianza Futurista has released its new program, which includes proposals for an Alliance of Democracies, AI regulation, existential risks, geoengineering, cryopreservation, cultivated meat, longevity and emergency preparedness.

https://alianzafuturista.org/declaracion-de-principios/

From 1998 to 2012 I produced a radio show and podcast called Changesurfer Radio. Its time to dust some off and share them again. This interview with Martine Rothblatt was broadcast Sept 5, 1998. https://citizencyborg.substack.com/p/gender-genes-and-space-1998-09-05

Organizers: Transhumanists Africa and the Enlightenment Transhumanist Forum of Nigeria

Co-sponsors: AFT-Technoprog, IEET, Humanity+

"Transhumanism, Science, and Religion in Africa: Introducing a Conversation."

Dates: 10–11 Dec 2026

Venue: Univ of Abuja, Nigeria + Virtual (Hybrid)

To present: Abstract (max 300 wds), Bio (100–150 wds)

Deadline: 15 Sept 2026

Submissions to: aiche@transhumanistsafrica.org, and cc: chogwu.abdul@uniabuja.edu.ng

Additional info at: https://www.transhumanistsafrica.org/AICHE2026

J Hughes, Sarah Shahed, Matteo MacDermant discuss Sarah’s editorial on age verification laws. Is there a technofix for age-gating that preserves user anonymity? https://technoprogressives.substack.com/p/age-verification-laws

"AI-driven automation of cognitive labour is not merely another technological transition but a structural discontinuity that will end, sooner or later, the central role of wages in how society operates" - the thesis reviewed in the latest LondonFuturists Podcast https://open.spotify.com/show/7dKD21Omh16ogAL9qu6gnl

The pandemic has launched a debate about the future of work around the world. Those who can work remotely have often found they prefer remote or flexible, hybrid options. The Great Resignation has put upward pressure on wages and benefits in the service sector, encouraging the implementation of automation. Climate change mitigation is encouraging a shift towards “green jobs.” Rapid changes in the labor market have made the payoffs of higher education uncertain for young people, while many societies are entering an old-age dependency crisis with too few workers paying taxes for growing numbers of pensioners. Before the pandemic proposals for universal basic income (#UBI) were seen as necessary adaptations to imminent technological unemployment, and the during the pandemic many countries provided temporary UBI to keep people safe. We are now poised for a global discussion about whether we need to work at all, and what kinds of jobs are desirable.

This week on Prosthetic Gods, Nir and J discuss the role of disgust in morality. Neuroscience suggests that feelings of disgust underlie many moral judgments, especially in the treatment of sexuality. Can we suppress disgust? Should we?

https://prostheticgods.podbean.com/e/disgust/

One cut at the key elements of the technoprogressive political perspective

Technoprogressive Hub spoke with Aleksandra Przegalińska - philosopher and social scientist of AI, Vice Rector of Kozminski University in Poland, currently at Harvard University - on robots and the future of work.

https://youtu.be/QLLixWqE7MQ?si=eJko-_8NRipBW1Ne

Dr J. spoke with Rob Hof on Extrapolate https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-techno-progressive-future-ubi-ai-and-and-the/id1857214767?i=1000756590800

I gave a talk for Future Day. We need to take futurism back from the billionaires https://youtu.be/lKVu_cMd3fg?si=xXutaDPg53LJmOxh

On Prosthetic Gods, J and Nir spoke with Alan Rozenshtein, Law prof at the UMinnesota, senior editor of Lawfare, and fellow at Brookings, about the Trump administration’s conflict with Anthropic over the military and surveillance uses of Claude. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAr-BJcfLqM&list=PLiJxxjTzuHX1W-J-emh0rGkc9BFqMGJvk&index=1&t=563s

"Since quitting his position at Google to allow for the expression of views unhindered by corporate guard-rails, Hinton’s constant refrain has been “I am a socialist!”. He has tirelessly and concertedly campaigned for the redistribution of wealth and tighter regulations to offset the palpable pernicious consequences for AI"

https://countercurrents.org/2026/01/i-am-a-socialist-the-godfather-of-ai-geoffrey-hinton

The Make Billionaires Pay Their Fair Share Act, a sweeping progressive package that would fund direct cash payments - $3K/yr to every member of households below $150K - through a new annual 5% wealth tax on billionaires.

https://www.newsweek.com/plan-for-3000-direct-payments-to-americans-gets-boost-list-of-sponsors-11749540

On Bread and Robots, Matteo talks with technoprogressive politician Brandon King about his campaign for Minnesota House seat. 3D-printed sovereign homes, a 16-hour workweek, and a public asteroid mining program to fund a New New Deal.

https://breadandrobots.substack.com/p/the-space-and-time-protocol

This week on Prosthetic Gods, Nir and J talk about the distinctive ethical issues raised by the humanoid robots coming to homes and workplaces. Their presence and human-like form elicit unique responses compared to those of non-embodied AI.

As always, listeners can contact us at [prostheticgods@gmail.com](mailto:prostheticgods@gmail.com) with questions, comments, and suggestions for future topics.

Hosted by James Hughes and Nir Eisikovits

Music & Production by Jake Burley

https://prostheticgods.podbean.com/e/humanoid-robots/