Effective Altruism pioneer Peter Singer says 'incompetent' SBF hasn't tarnished movement
Australian philosopher Peter Singer is one the key intellectuals behind effective altruism, which focuses on maximising the impact of philanthropy, and has become highly popular in tech circles.
The Australian intellectual godfather of effective altruism has rejected claims Sam Bankman-Fried corrupted the movement, which focuses on optimising the impact of philanthropy.
Bankman-Fried famously claimed to have founded the FTX crypto exchange after determining it was the quickest way for him to create a fortune he could then donate. FTX collapsed in 2022 after Bankman-Fried was found to have plugged financial gaps with customers’ money.
“I don’t think Bankman-Fried’s failures to manage his enterprises properly has anything to do with what we’re doing,” said Peter Singer, philosopher and founder of The Life You Can Save, a nonprofit based on a book of the same name published by Singer in 2009.
Singer, an Australian, has taught bioethics at Princeton University since 1999 and is among the most influential living philosophers. Speaking on the sidelines of Blackbird’s Sunrise conference, Singer said people are eager to discredit effective altruism to justify not donating to charities.
