Thread · 3 tweets · 12 Sept 2020

There's a lot I like in there. (I am less sure of the "do no harm" bit because I think ethics is more complex, but that feels like a side-note. I have a similar idea (which I recently stole from Popper) which is that to solve problems you want institutions, not leaders.

Most startups start by finding leaders. This is THE person (or few people) who will solve Big Problem. That's a lot like looking for the Philosopher King who will rule over the perfect state because they're such a great person. In practice, it sucks.

You're much better off designing an institution: something that will work(-ish) even with imperfect leaders, in fact ideally even with really bad ones. Democratic institutions are a good example. I think your idea of building from the moral culture is similar. I like it!