21 Survival Action Items for AI Accelerationists

Imagine a world that becomes completely unrecognizable in 10 years. Starting today, what changes would you make?

Author: intern

Translation: Deep潮 TechFlow

Deep潮 Guide:

While most people are still debating whether AI will replace jobs, Silicon Valley tech elites have already begun reconstructing their entire life plans.

This article originates from a deep reflection by X platform blogger intern, who proposes a radical hypothesis: if the exponential growth of AI makes the world unrecognizable in 10 years, have all our current financial, health, and career decisions been wrong?

From stopping pension contributions to early withdrawals of future cash flows, from abandoning long-term health management to reshaping social circles—these 21 suggestions are not only survival guides but also a “dimensionality reduction” attack on traditional linear life views.

Full Text:

Imagine if the world in 10 years becomes completely unrecognizable.

Starting today, what changes would you make?

Most of my friends in the tech industry are very aware of how fast AI is accelerating. For those who follow this, the acceleration has been evident for several years, but in the past year, the probability of a “big explosion” that can truly change the world has greatly increased.

Now, this awareness is beginning to spread beyond the tech circle—among ordinary people.

The world five years from now will be vastly different. In ten years, it may be unrecognizable.

Once you accept this internally, a natural question arises:

“Then… what should I do now?”

If you fundamentally change your view of the future, then it makes sense to change your behavior in the present.

I have been pondering this question for years. Over the past few months, I have written various versions of these ideas and shared them with friends and family who asked me this question. I decided to compile my views and conclusions into a list.

Here is the detailed content:

Investments

• Invest directly in AI proliferation: (e.g., Tesla, Nvidia, Palantir, Google; if you have channels, also consider Anthropic and OpenAI).
• Invest in AI-related exponential growth industries: Robotics, Biotech, Crypto, Space.
• Invest in supply chains: computing power, energy, raw materials.
• If you are under 50, you should no longer contribute to 401(k) or Roth IRA accounts: avoid locking capital into 30-40 year retirement tools. These rely on a predictable world; over long cycles, they have positive expected value (+EV), but if you need to withdraw early, their expected value becomes negative. Instead of pursuing decades of tax optimization, prioritize liquidity. When these accounts mature, they are likely to become meaningless.

General Finance

• Cash out future cash flows as early as possible: overall, you should take on debts that need to be repaid in the future in exchange for today’s cash.
• Lock in fixed-rate debt whenever possible.
• For example: don’t pay off student loans faster than required; apply for long-term mortgages. Overall, treat debts due in 10 years as potentially “non-existent” and act rationally based on that.
• Avoid annuities and long-term financial products that rely on stability.
• Reduce dependence on institutions that assume “slow/linear change.”

Regarding Careers and Skills

• Prepare for most cognitive and physical labor to be deeply automated within 5 years.
• Don’t pursue law school, medical school, or other long-cycle training programs solely for financial ROI.
• Get extremely close to AI systems: whether as a developer or a power user.
• Build distribution capabilities (audience, leverage, branding): rather than collecting various certificates and qualifications.
• Work in environments where you can observe exponential change up close.

Regarding Life and Time Planning

• Stop planning life over a 30-40 year span.

Some practical examples:

• Don’t focus your 20s and 30s on “post-retirement quality of life.”
• Don’t overly trust long-term longevity optimization: you don’t need to worry about long-term impacts of cancer, aging, hypertension, or anything you will “pay for” ten years later. Basically, debts related to nicotine, sun exposure, alcohol, smoking, or most long-term unhealthy habits may never be paid back (implying that technology will solve these issues or the world will have changed dramatically).
• Learn to habitually abandon outdated plans.
• Buy a house near your family as soon as possible: you may want land and to be with those you are closest to. This doesn’t change much for most people’s plans, but it’s better to do it early.
• Usually avoid planning more than 5-10 years ahead: the world will change so much that planning may become meaningless.
• Complete your “bucket list”: do now what you’ve always wanted to do.

If the world is accelerating exponentially, your current actions should reflect that—this is simply an update to the underlying assumption.