Billionaire Marc Andreessen rejects deep thinking

Billionaire Marc Andreessen has claimed that “introspection” is of little value and only goes back 400 years. He also said he engages in “zero” or “as little as possible” deep thinking, noting that:

I find that people who dwell on the past, get stuck the past.

Ever heard of philosophy?

Andreessen, a Silicon Valley Venture Capitalist, made the comments on the Founders podcast:

Andreessen claims:

If you go back 400 years ago, it would never have occurred to anybody to be introspective… Great men of history didn’t sit around doing this stuff at any prior point right?

He must be trolling, right? Even before Ancient Greece, highly influential philosophy in Persia (modern-day Iran) dates back to 1700–1800 BCE. Zarathustra, as well as Hammurabi’s Code (c. 1754 BCE), introduced revolutionary ethical concepts that later Western philosophers like Immanuel Kant built upon through Deontology (acting as if everyone followed your example). Then there’s the opposing theory: Utilitarianism (the greatest good for the greatest number).

No wonder Andreessen has ‘zero’ introspection. He clearly thinks little of established ethical frameworks. The billionaire probably finds it convenient not to reflect on his actions, as he now simply takes stakes in businesses and lets the money roll in. Meanwhile, 90 percent of Americans own just around 10 percent of the stocks.

Philosophy was the original subject, before Plato taught Aristotle in around 400-300 BCE. Aristotle then categorised study into different subjects. This was the literal foundation of Western academic thought and educational systems.

Introspection: high value

Introspection is highly important, but it must be coupled with study. Otherwise you are just going over ideas that prior thinkers have dedicated their lives to.

It’s obvious why billionaires want to promote mindless consumerism. The thing is, will people continue to dumb themselves down?

Featured image via X/Twitter