Biohacking and the Quest to Transcend the Body: A Critical Look at Smarter Not Harder

Overview

Two philosophers dissect biohacking, transhumanism, and the ethics of self-improvement. They analyze Dave Asprey’s Smarter Not Harder, contrast everyday self-experimentation with extreme tech interventions, and raise questions about equality, regulation, and the limits of human control.

Introduction

In this episode, the hosts introduce biohacking as a broad movement that seeks to optimize human biology through lifestyle tweaks, technologies, and sometimes invasive procedures. They contrast popular media portrayals with philosophical questions about autonomy, risk, and the social meaning of self-improvement.

What Biohacking Encompasses

The discussion clarifies two main strands: everyday self-experimentation such as diet, sleep, and exercise, and more extreme interventions like neural devices or genetic editing. They stress the spectrum and discuss how people become self-experimenters in pursuit of peak performance and longevity.

Quote: biohacking as a global movement based on the idea that you can change the environment around you and inside of you - Dave Asprey.

Dave Asprey and Smarter Not Harder

The hosts review the book’s core premise, arguing that Asprey promotes a hero’s journey of optimization but positions his own regimen as a turnkey shortcut to better living. They highlight the Meat OS metaphor, the idea that the body runs like an operating system and can be tuned for better output without pain.

Quote: The hero's journey is a pain in the ass - Dave Asprey.

Self-Experimentation and Its Limits

They connect Montaigne’s idea of experience as experimenting with Alison Gopnik’s view of early human curiosity, emphasizing that everyday tinkering with one’s body is a natural human trait but not a foolproof path to optimization. They discuss carrot and cabbage seeds, jaw-mouth breathing hacks, and the ethical boundary between benign self-trial and dangerous DIY biology.

Quote: There are things that are beyond human control - David Pena Guzman.

Ethics, Trade-offs, and Regulation

The conversation turns to the dangers of overclaiming control over biology, trade-offs in cutting-edge tech, and the regulatory gray areas that surround DIY biohacking. They examine CRISPR twins and Josiah Zanner’s on-stage genome editing, highlighting the moral tension between open access and safeguarding against harm, especially when self-experimentation crosses into experimentation on others.

Conclusion

The episode closes with reflections on the cultural obsession with optimization, the deification of technology, and the need for thoughtful policy and critical inquiry to balance curiosity with caution.