Announcing Foom

Pleased to announce today the launch of a new science journalism website called Foom. 

The word 'foom' is an onomatopoeia that has most famously been used to describe the hypothetical 'hard takeoff' of a recursively self-improving artificial intelligence (AI).

My basic goal with the website is to provide an original, high-quality source of news and analysis on the science and technology of AI, which is being pushed through a period of explosive change—especially in its societal impacts.

With my articles, I'll be trying to serve both the communities concerned about the existential risks of AI as well as the communities concerned about current impacts, and serve them equally, on an even footing.

For me, current impacts can already seem pretty existential, even if they might be less dramatic. Speaking glibly, if you wanted to pigeonhole me as an AI doomer, I would be one who marked the 'all of the above' checkbox.

That said, I'm someone who mainly likes to keep my own views out of my writing and focus on exploring and investigating the views of others.

My plan is to publish one article every week or so (as time permits) for at least six-to-twelve months, with initial funding provided by a generous grant from the Effective Ventures Foundation, or more specifically the EA Funds Long Term Future Fund.

Although this funding comes from an organization affiliated with the effective altruism movement, to be clear, all my writing for Foom will be editorially independent, with no outside interference.

Finally, one thing I've come to learn over the past couple years is that journalism doesn't fulfill its purpose without connecting with a readership who stand to benefit.

In this case, I'll be looking to connect with readers primarily by sharing articles on online platforms like BlueSky, Reddit, Less Wrong, Twitter/X, and LinkedIn.

I have mixed feelings about participating in online platforms, as on a personal level, I often find them to be addicting, self-promoting, and engagement-baiting cesspools of epic proportions. I am also somewhat of a lurker by disposition.

I have a lot of questions about how to build real communities online and how I should engage with them on a personal and professional level. 

Nevertheless, it's also clear that the internet is where our society has come (or been driven) to live, and if I want to write articles that serve the public, which is indeed my mission, I need to figure out how to engage with it.

This will undoubtedly be a tall order, but I'm reasonably confident in my ability to write stories that matter, and I'm also well aware of the great need to write more of them.

Relatedly, if you have an idea of something I could help with; something you'd like to see written about, or looked into, like a new research result from the fields of AI safety or ethics, I'd love to hear it. (Either publicly here, or in private, at mrorvig@gmail.com.)

Thanks in advance for any questions, comments, or critiques—and thanks for reading.