![[DISCUSSION] Imagining futures that get “a little better” every day](https://www.byteseu.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/mp94YaOlzTgm1B7BReyapq2-ORrZs7wfXnz1xwpLVe4-1024x512.jpeg "[DISCUSSION] Imagining futures that get “a little better” every day")
Our stories about tomorrow lean overwhelmingly dystopian, and that bias could seep into the very AI systems now learning from us. I argue for “Practical Protopianism” the idea that we should normalize futures that improve by small, measurable steps: cleaner air, fairer credit, cheaper meds.
Link to the full 1500-word essay (free/no pay-wall): https://dayafter.substack.com/p/into-the-unwritten-dawn
- What other “micro-protopias” deserve spotlight time?
- Could seeding more hopeful training data meaningfully shift AI alignment?
- Why do we keep leaning towards dystopia in our stories about the future?
[DISCUSSION] Imagining futures that get “a little better” every day
byu/WhenSingularity inFuturology
2 Comments
We lean towards dystopia because that’s the direction we’ve been steadily heading towards since the 80s.
We live in a dystopian attention economy where clicks and views generate money, and because of human psychology, things that elicit negative emotions get more clicks and views than things that elicit positive emotions.
Edit to add – The impact on the development of AI aside, I don’t disagree with the author’s overall argument and suggestions for action, but I think their impact will be minimal as long as our brains are constantly being milked for revenue in increasingly sophisticated ways.