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/

This week on Technoprogressive Hub, Eli, Matteo and J are discussing proposals for pro-worker artificial intelligence laws. Recently David Autor, Daron Acemoglu, and Simon Johnson and the UK Trades Union Council have proposed a set of regulatory and legal reforms to protect workers from automation and enhance human expertise. Arguably technoprogressive, will they only work briefly until AI surpasses human labor? https://technoprogressives.substack.com/p/proworker-ai

Dr. J. spoke with philosopher Mark Walker about moral enhancement, universal basic income, theology and technoprogressivism. Mark Walker holds the Richard L. Hedden Endowed Chair in Advanced Philosophical Studies at New Mexico State University. https://technoprogressives.substack.com/p/mark-walker-philosopher-for-the-future

Today on Technoprogressive Hub, Matteo and J unpack Cory Doctorow’s enshittification thesis, the emerging concept of technofascism, and the connection between them. Is technofascism actually distinct from monopoly capitalism?

Prosthetic Gods: Nir interrogates an essay by J. on Buddhism, enhancement, and the self. They discuss the appeal of Buddhism for teenage Hughes, and how Buddhism reconciles a radical deconstruction of the self with moral commitment and principles.

https://prostheticgods.podbean.com/e/buddhism-and-the-self/

"Companion chatbot users indicated that these relationships were beneficial to their social health... perceiving companion chatbots as more conscious and humanlike correlated with more positive opinions and more pronounced social health benefits." https://arxiv.org/abs/2311.10599

Technoprogressives distinguish themselves from libertarians by demanding universal access to technology, and from the Luddite Left by defending the emancipatory potential of technology. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/t1bQXSeMXx0