Yes, And

Driving home on Sunday. Radio blaring in the background. A break in the music, and the host jumps in:

“Richard Branson went to space. Jeff Bezos will follow in a few weeks. The question everyone wants to know: do these space missions serve any higher purpose? Or do they just inflate the egos of billionaires?

It’s been interesting to watch the coverage of Branson and Bezos’s space missions over the past few weeks. Opinions seem split. Some feel excited to see space exploration move forward. Some feel indifferent. But a certain subset of very-online people are furious that these missions are taking place. 

“Imagine going to space when instead you could write one check and solve world hunger.” This not-uncommon hot-take can be easily found on Twitter and third-tier blog sites. Commenters share their desire to “eat the rich”. Tweets about Bezos’s upcoming mission include replies with Amazon-branded guillotines.  

Why the criticism? From my view, these space missions are self-evidently rad. Mankind’s most successful businessmen choosing to risk their lives scrape the edge of the atmosphere? I can think of worse ways they could spend their money. They’re pioneering new rocket technology and prying open a brand-new space tourism industry, and with enough cajones to risk their own lives as part of the effort. Dozens, hundreds, and eventually thousands will soar through the stratosphere as a result of their zeal for exploration. 

But it inflates their egos. Yes. It does. Any doubt of ego-service disappeared when Branson scrambled to schedule his own spaceflight immediately after Bezos announced his trip.  These space flights bring attention and adoration to two of the wealthiest men on Earth, neither of whom are lacking for praise. They boost the billionaires’ companies and personal status. 

We’re biological creatures. From the poorest beggar to Bezos and Branson, all of us receive the world through a three-kilogram knot of neurons. No number of zeros attached to a net worth can help someone transcend our biological hardware. Our worldview is partially driven by an ancient caveman-like amygdala that craves food, sex, status, and not much else. Blasting through the stratosphere in a rocket you created is a high-status move. 

Branson and Bezos are motivated by their egos. But the ego stroke does not erase the nobility of these missions. All of our actions are driven by egos, at least in part. We’re beholden to our biology. But ego isn’t the only motivation. Both men do believe in the importance of spaceflight to accelerate human advancement, spur innovation, and inspire future builders. The two aren’t mutually exclusive, and firing off hot-take criticism of these missions misses the mark. Yes, these missions bring status to the billionaires. *And* they inspire mankind. 

Cynical criticism of these space flights is tempting because it scores quick internet points. But beware a blindspot toward the benefit that spaceflight brings along with the ego boost. Cut the rocket billionaires a break, because we’re all status. Some just happen to leave the earth in service of their egos. Thankfully, unlike yachts or Rolexes or McLarens, this fancy hobby also moves the human project unalterably forward. Yes, And.