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The Blurb On The Back:
A wild and entertaining investigation into the business of eternal life.
From the epic of Gilgamesh to the alchemy of the philosopher’s stone, humanity’s eternal quest for immortality - and its rejuvenation tricks, therapies and tinctures - has always been our most mortal endeavour.
But now, the giants of invention and investment are building a fountain of youth of their own creation: one they not only engineer, but also own and control. Death is simply their next problem to solve, the latest expression of a hubris that regards humans as appliances to be fixed and machines to be upgraded. By harnessing technology to ‘cure’ ageing, and funding cutting-edge - and often controversial - research, today’s immortalises are locked in an arms race to be the first to pocket the profits of longevity.
What was once a wild west of experimentation has wormed its way into Washington’s corridors of power. Award-winning broadcaster and academic Aleks Krotoski journeys from those cult fringes to the heartlands of government to meet the moguls, effective altruists, geoscientists and entrepreneurs who are disrupting death. Along the way, she encounters radical life extortionists transfusing their teenage son’s blood, transhumanists who want to upload consciousness to the cloud, biohackers flogging AI-powered wellness apps and billionaire kingmakers building brand-new nations.
This razor-sharp, powerful and at times chilling investigation empowers us to consider what it truly means to be human, asking: do we really want a handful of Silicon Valley power brokers to be the architects of our forever?
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Aleks Krotoski is an award-winning broadcaster, academic and author focusing on technology and social science. This is a really interesting overview of the tech bros’ foray into extending the human lifespan, that brings in libertarian desire to reduce regulation and build independent economic zones, effective altruism and, above all, profit but you get more from it if you are already familiar with some of these topics and can draw them together.
THE IMMORTALISTS: THE DEATH OF DEATH AND THE RACE FOR IMMORTAL LIFE was released in the United Kingdom on 23 October 2025. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
From the epic of Gilgamesh to the alchemy of the philosopher’s stone, humanity’s eternal quest for immortality - and its rejuvenation tricks, therapies and tinctures - has always been our most mortal endeavour.
But now, the giants of invention and investment are building a fountain of youth of their own creation: one they not only engineer, but also own and control. Death is simply their next problem to solve, the latest expression of a hubris that regards humans as appliances to be fixed and machines to be upgraded. By harnessing technology to ‘cure’ ageing, and funding cutting-edge - and often controversial - research, today’s immortalises are locked in an arms race to be the first to pocket the profits of longevity.
What was once a wild west of experimentation has wormed its way into Washington’s corridors of power. Award-winning broadcaster and academic Aleks Krotoski journeys from those cult fringes to the heartlands of government to meet the moguls, effective altruists, geoscientists and entrepreneurs who are disrupting death. Along the way, she encounters radical life extortionists transfusing their teenage son’s blood, transhumanists who want to upload consciousness to the cloud, biohackers flogging AI-powered wellness apps and billionaire kingmakers building brand-new nations.
This razor-sharp, powerful and at times chilling investigation empowers us to consider what it truly means to be human, asking: do we really want a handful of Silicon Valley power brokers to be the architects of our forever?
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Aleks Krotoski is an award-winning broadcaster, academic and author focusing on technology and social science. This is a really interesting overview of the tech bros’ foray into extending the human lifespan, that brings in libertarian desire to reduce regulation and build independent economic zones, effective altruism and, above all, profit but you get more from it if you are already familiar with some of these topics and can draw them together.
THE IMMORTALISTS: THE DEATH OF DEATH AND THE RACE FOR IMMORTAL LIFE was released in the United Kingdom on 23 October 2025. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.
