Realizations about artificial intelligence, how to prepare for AGI in the ways that truly matter

First and foremost, whether it happens in 5, 10, or 20 years, AGI will eventually come. Yes, you might lose your job, or you might find yourself in financial trouble. We’ve already seen the first major strike driven by fears of automation. Ports in China are becoming fully automated or at least heavily partially automated.

Here’s the thing: this is going to happen, and unless you’re wealthy, you will probably struggle financially for a while—at least until we implement something like Universal Basic Income (UBI).

You can’t change the fact that this transition is coming. I highly recommend getting politically involved to push for UBI and reeducation programs, where AI is used to teach our children more effectively, focusing on concepts over rote memorization, whether in math or computer science.

Now, how can you personally prepare for this? In unexpected ways. Start by taking better care of your health. When you look at top executives, they look like models—Elon Musk being an exception. Most high-level CEOs take excellent care of themselves, working out and maintaining their health. Meanwhile, the engineers who are working to make themselves obsolete are getting unhealthy. I have engineer friends who look terrible. They tell themselves it’s okay because they’re making money now, but many of them are being laid off. They’ve sacrificed themselves for capitalism, and now they’re angry because that system offers no real reward for personal sacrifice.

Here’s the truth: capitalism doesn’t reward you for sacrificing yourself. It pays you just enough to help you make yourself obsolete, then it discards you. That’s how the system works.

So, instead of being caught off guard, do yourself a favor and start taking care of yourself now. Start doing yoga, hit the gym, and improve your well-being. Even if you have to live in your van for a while, do it, because in the long run, you are only as valuable as you value yourself.

Go to any ultra-wealthy neighborhood, and you’ll notice they put self-worth above everything else. The difference between the working-class poor and the rich is that the poor only value themselves as much as someone else rewards them. Meanwhile, the ultra-rich value themselves independently and prioritize self-worth above all.

This is something the poor often fail to understand: there is no great reward for prostituting yourself to the rich.

Take care of yourself. In the long run, it’s all that really matters. If you need proof, look at the ultra-rich. They know this—they just don’t want you to know it.

The way to prepare for AGI is to start taking better care of yourself now. Stop worrying about when you’ll become obsolete—it’s going to happen. You can’t change that. We’ll need protests, strikes, and collective action to demand that the rich pay their fair share so everyone can live with some level of affluence.

Until then, stop sacrificing your health for the benefit of the wealthy. Recognize that you are just as valuable as they are.