Stewart Brand on Maintenance, Musk, and a 10,000-Year Vision
Stewart Brand, the legendary figure at the intersection of 1960s counterculture and modern Silicon Valley, continues to think on a grand scale at 87 years old. From his home in Petaluma, California, Brand reflects on his extraordinary life, his latest project focused on maintenance, and his views on tech giants like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos.
A Life of Big Ideas and Long-Term Thinking
Brand's career spans decades, encompassing roles as a writer, editor, soldier, photojournalist, and government adviser. He is best known for the Whole Earth Catalog, which Steve Jobs famously praised in a 2005 Stanford commencement speech, echoing its mantra: "Stay hungry. Stay foolish." Brand's philosophy has always emphasised empowerment and access to tools, both literal and intellectual, fostering a sense of agency in individuals.
His Long Now Foundation, co-founded 30 years ago, aims to promote thinking about the next 10,000 years of human civilisation. One of its flagship projects is the Clock of the Long Now, a mechanical timepiece buried in a Nevada mountaintop, funded by Jeff Bezos. Brand describes it as a "statue of responsibility" designed to inspire long-term perspective.
The Mundane Made Epic: Maintenance as a Central Theme
Brand's new book, Maintenance: Of Everything, Part One, explores what he admits is a seemingly dull topic. However, he argues that maintenance is fundamental to keeping everything from technology to institutions functioning. "Maintenance is what keeps everything going. It's what keeps life going," he says.
The book delves into examples from industrial history, such as the role of maintenance in warfare. Brand notes that in the Vietnam War, the AK-47's simplicity made it more reliable than the US's M16, and in Ukraine, Russia's invasion struggles were partly due to poorly maintained equipment. He highlights how maintenance cultures can determine success or failure.
Admiration for Elon Musk and Technological Progress
Surprisingly, Brand expresses approval for Elon Musk, particularly for pushing manufacturing boundaries. He compares Musk's Tesla to Henry Ford's Model T, noting that Tesla's innovations, like fewer parts in electric vehicles, reduce maintenance needs and advance technology. "What I find so admirable about Musk is that he keeps pushing the envelope of the possible in manufacturing," Brand remarks.
He also praises platforms like YouTube for democratising repair knowledge, allowing people to fix things themselves. This, he argues, represents progress, as we now expect reliability but have tools to address issues when they arise.
Institutions and Global Order in Need of Maintenance
Brand extends his maintenance concept to institutions, discussing recent events like the Davos forum, where leaders noted ruptures in the global order. He suggests that just as we take working clocks for granted, we might assume institutions will function indefinitely, but they require active upkeep. "Some institutions might falter, others might prevail, or come back in a different form," he says, advocating for adaptive thinking.
Bridging Technology and Environmentalism
Throughout his life, Brand has straddled the divide between technologists and environmentalists. He points out that NASA's image of Earth, which inspired conservation movements, came from the space programme—something environmentalists often criticised. He believes technology and nature can complement each other, citing personal computing as an exponential boon compared to psychedelics.
Brand was an early adopter of computing, involved in key events like the 1968 "mother of all demos" and co-founding the Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link (Well), a proto-social media platform. While some critics blame him for Silicon Valley's libertarian mindset, he remains a community-focused idealist and environmentalist.
Personal Health and Optimistic Outlook
Despite a progressive respiratory illness, Brand maintains an optimistic outlook. He has always been active, taking up CrossFit at 75, and now uses supplementary oxygen. "Imagine the luck, to get to be 87 – it's just fantastic!" he says, without regret.
He emphasises that we need not passively accept fate. Drawing from his work with the Global Business Network, he advises: "If you like some scenarios better than others, you can be aware of the ones you don't like and look for signs of them, and also look at signs of the ones you want to have come to pass, and lean differentially toward them." This incremental approach, he believes, is how we muddle forward into a better future.
Maintenance of Everything, Part One by Stewart Brand is published by Stripe Press, offering a unique lens on sustaining our world for generations to come.
