Are we about to witness the most unequal societies in history?
by Yuval Noah Harari from on (#2QJ8W)
Biotechnology and the rise of AI may split humankind into a small class of 'superhumans' and a huge underclass of 'useless' people. Once the masses lose their economic and political power, inequality levels could spiral alarmingly
Inequality goes back to the Stone Age. Thirty thousand years ago, bands of hunter-gatherers in Russia buried some members in sumptuous graves replete with thousands of ivory beads, bracelets, jewels and art objects, while other members had to settle for a bare hole in the ground.
Nevertheless, ancient hunter-gatherer groups were still more egalitarian than any subsequent human society, because they had very little property. Property is a pre-requisite for long-term inequality.