Core Concepts
Attempts to engineer a simplified, optimized human diet through products like Soylent fail to account for the complex, holistic nature of human nutrition and embodied existence.
Abstract
The article discusses the rise and fall of Soylent, a food replacement product developed by a group of Silicon Valley engineers who aimed to "hack humanity" by optimizing human nutrition. Soylent was marketed as a convenient, efficient way to meet the body's nutritional needs, appealing to tech workers and biohacking enthusiasts.
However, the article highlights several issues that emerged with Soylent:
- Alarming side effects like gastrointestinal problems, suggesting the human body is not easily "hacked"
- Recalls due to quality control issues, revealing the risks of applying a "move fast and break things" approach to people's health
- Skepticism from nutrition experts about the ability to reduce the complexities of a healthy diet to a pre-defined formula
- Feedback from users about mental fog, fatigue, and the social and behavioral aspects of eating being overlooked
The article argues that Soylent embodies the hubris of tech culture's belief that every aspect of life can be optimized through technology. It suggests that the human body and nutrition are far more complex and unpredictable than software, and that attempts to engineer a "better" human fuel often fail to account for the fundamental nature of embodied existence. The article concludes that a more empathetic, holistic approach to addressing human nutritional needs is needed, rather than a reductive, techno-utopian vision.
Stats
"Soylent had raised over $3 million in crowd and angel funding for its first commercial product and, shortly after that, secured a $20 million Series A round led by repeat offenders Andreessen Horowitz."
"People reported gastrointestinal discomfort, mental fog, and fatigue."
Quotes
"To quote N.N. Taleb, this is "epistemic arrogance." Sailors only need protein and potatoes? Oops, didn't know about scurvy and vitamin C. We need fat-soluble vitamins? Oops, consumers get vitamin A or D poisoning, as it's stored in body fat."
"To imagine a few bottles of beige goop might replace this vast, complex system is not just misguided but an affront to the wondrous, fundamental nature of embodied existence."
"To see this fare as the answer to hunger is to disregard the deep emotional and gustatory needs food fulfils and to unthinkingly embrace a heartless, two-tiered model of society — a world where the underprivileged must trade away one of the primal joys of embodied existence for the sake of basic sustenance."