When a billionaire's money dries up, effective altruism isn't so effective.
The entire team of the Future Fund resigned on Thursday saying they were unable to perform their work. Sam Bankman-Fried, the billionaire founder of one of the world's largest digital currency exchanges, resigned amid continued turmoil. The founder's pet project appears to be dead in the water.
The field of research and philanthropy that uses the scientific method and reasoning to maximize charitable giving is called effective altruism. The movement has developed a committed following among Silicon Valley's wealthy founders. The movement's focus on so-called longtermism and opaque ideas prevent it from addressing current economic and social issues, according to critics. Effective altruism can serve as a vehicle for billionaires to avoid paying taxes, according to others.
Bankman-Fried once said that he would get filthy rich for charity's sake.
The Effective Altruism Forum, a community space for members of the philanthropic movement, was the site where members of the Future Fund posted their resignations. Even if FTX still had money in the bank, the former members had questions about the legitimacy of the business operations that were funding the FTX Foundation. The co- founder of the effective altruism movement was among the signers.
We don't have a full picture of what went wrong and we are following the news online as it unfolds. We condemn the behavior of the leadership of FTX to the fullest extent possible. Being a good actor is about trying to act with honesty and integrity.
The SEC is investigating Bankman- Fried for possibly violating securities rules. In a lengthy 22-part thread, the founder apologized for overestimating FTX's cash availability andunderestimating FTX users' margins.
He said he messed up and should have done better. Less than a day after the company filed for Chapter 11 reorganization, the CEO resigned from his position.
The effective altruism movement is at risk of being dealt a blow by Bankman- Fried. Before founding FTX, the CEO appeared to put his money where his mouth was, even though he had attained a lot of wealth. Bankman- Fried said in an interview that he was committed to giving away 99% of his wealth and continued to drive a Toyota corolla. The effective altruism movements' wealthiest adherent was Bankman- Fried.
It is not clear how much of the founder's billions made it to the causes he advocated. The Future Fund only committed about $170 million in grants and investments. Bankman- Fried spent more than a hundred million dollars on naming rights for the Miami Heat's basketball arena and a single Super Bowl ad.
The FTX Future Fund members apologized. The outcome of the Future Fund is heartbreaking to us.
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