What is ‘techno-optimism’? 2 technology scholars explain the ideology that says technology is the answer to every problem

By Seyram Avle, Associate Professor of Global Digital Media, UMass Amherst
Jean Hardy, Assistant Professor of Media & Information, Michigan State University

Silicon Valley venture capitalist Marc Andreessen penned a 5,000-word manifesto in 2023 that gave a full-throated call for unrestricted technological progress to boost markets, broaden energy production, improve education and strengthen liberal democracy.

The billionaire, who made his fortune by co-founding Netscape – a 1990s-era company that made a pioneering web browser – espouses a concept known as “techno-optimism.”…

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