About Me
I was born and raised in San Francisco, California. I've lived in SF, Amsterdam, Washington D.C., and Oxford, and I hold dual Dutch-American citizenship.amsterdam summer >>
I study the techno-ideologiesEngland...? that constitute Valley discourse: transhumanism, effective altruism, accelerationism. My research project aims to understand where these ideologies originate, how they become meaningful and legitimized, and how they influence the development of new technologiesAGI within the Valley. My highly commended Master's thesis at Oxford, entitled "Coding Utopia: Effective Accelerationism & Evolving Techno-Optimism in Silicon Valley," drew on Frankfurt School critical theory, elite interviews, and computational methods to investigate and historicize effective accelerationism ("e/acc").
My other academic research circles the same fundamental questions: where does AI come from, and how will it change us? Inquiries include questions of AI personhood^& consciousness!, and what might constitute legal speech in an AI-native world. My undergraduate research focused on political polarization and the conditions under which moderation is possible in democratic societies, and AI's role in decreasing polarization.
Elsewhere
Beyond academia, I write poetry (published by the Oxford Poetry Society), contribute to citizen science projects on black hole detection, study the Mesopotamian and Near Eastern empires, and read at least 52 books a year. I am also an avid amateur photographer.
I love the outdoors: I spent a month in Patagonia in 2024, which felt like a natural extension of growing up with Yosemite as my backyard. These days, I run regularly through Golden Gate Park and play tennis whenever the weather cooperates.