TL;DR
Prime made for students and young adults
- Fast, free delivery for dorm and study essentials
- Prime Video and Amazon Music included
- Member-only deals
Astral Codex Ten published Open Thread 453, its weekly reader discussion post. It announced up to $10 million in grants for work on middle powers and transformative AI, a follow-up on a contested California House endorsement, and new effective altruism campus meetups.
The blog Astral Codex Ten published its weekly visible open thread, Open Thread 453, a recurring post where readers can raise questions and discuss topics of their choosing. Beyond the open discussion format, the thread carries several concrete announcements, including a $10 million grant program for work on how countries other than the US and China should respond to transformative AI, and a follow-up to author Scott Alexander’s earlier California primary endorsement that drew a direct response from a congressional candidate.
The largest concrete item in the thread is a grant announcement from the Astralis Foundation and Macroscopic Ventures. According to the post, the two organizations will distribute up to $10 million in grants for work on “middle powers and transformative AI” — described in the announcement as “research, training, public writing and new organizations focused on what countries beyond the US and China can do to help navigate” the AI transition. Alexander notes his uncertainty about the organizations’ exact relationship to his broader community, writing that he thinks they are “parts of our conspiracy although I can’t keep track any more.” Interested applicants can read more and apply through the linked announcement.
The thread also revisits a California political endorsement. In a primary ballot recommendations post in the spring, Alexander said he was voting for the “boring incumbent” in California’s 12th District House race because the challenger, Jamie Joyce, seemed eccentric and had no chance of winning. Joyce contacted Alexander after the primary and asked him to change his mind, according to the post — both candidates will face each other again in the November general election. Alexander declined to revisit his May reasoning but said he “may reconsider” if he writes a post on the November election, and he linked to Joyce’s response, which he recommended to interested 12th District voters.
Two smaller items round out the thread. New effective altruism campus meetup groups are being planned at Oxford, University College Dublin, and the University of the Philippines, joining an existing list of such groups. The thread also highlights four “comments of the week,” all drawn from the blog’s recent “Mysteries of AI Generalization” post, including contributions from Eliezer Yudkowsky on why recent generalization failures are bad news, Ezra Newman on distinctions between pretraining, midtraining, and RLVR, Elias Schmied linking Evan Hubinger on why “Hacker Opus” did not show emergent misalignment, and Stuart Armstrong on how emergent misalignment happens.
Why the $10 Million Grant Matters
The grant program is the most substantive item for readers outside the blog’s regular community. The stated focus — what countries beyond the US and China can do during an AI transition — targets a gap in AI policy discussions, which are frequently dominated by the two leading AI powers. Up to $strong>10 million directed at research, training, public writing, and new organizations could seed work on how middle powers such as European states, India, or Southeast Asian nations shape AI governance, and the application window is open now.
The thread also illustrates the unusual role ACX plays at the intersection of online community and real-world activity. In a single weekly post, the blog functions as a discussion forum, a noticeboard for in-person meetups on multiple continents, a funding announcement channel, and — in the California 12th District item — a small piece of political commentary that a congressional candidate felt was worth responding to directly. For readers who follow effective altruism and AI safety communities, the post is a snapshot of where attention and money are currently flowing.
How Open Threads Fit Into ACX
: “Astral Codex Ten, written by Scott Alexander, publishes a visible open thread each week as a general-purpose space where readers can “post about anything you want, ask random questions, whatever,” according to the thread’s standard introduction. The blog also maintains an unofficial subreddit, a Discord server, a bulletin board, and a network of in-person meetups around the world. Most of the site’s content is free, with some material reserved for paying subscribers.
The political item continues a thread of local election commentary: Alexander’s spring post on the California primary ballot explained his choice in the 12th District race, and the general election rematch between the incumbent and Jamie Joyce in November gives the endorsement question a second life. The “comments of the week” section, meanwhile, builds on the blog’s recent long-form post on AI generalization, where the highlighted commenters — several of them well-known figures in AI safety circles — debated recent empirical results.
“The challenger in that race, Jamie Joyce, contacted me and asked me to change my mind (both candidates will be facing off again in the general election).”
— Scott Alexander, Astral Codex Ten
Open Questions in the Thread
Several things remain unclear. Alexander himself flags ambiguity about the relationship between Astralis Foundation and Macroscopic Ventures and his broader community, saying he can no longer keep track of the organizational landscape. The post does not specify deadlines, grant sizes, or selection criteria for the $10 million program; those details are left to the linked application page. On the California race, Alexander has not said whether he will write a November endorsements post at all, so whether he reconsiders his 12th District position is unresolved. Finally, as an open thread, the substantive reader discussion it hosts is unstructured and will develop in the comments over the coming days.
Deadlines and Discussions Ahead
Organizations and individuals interested in the middle powers and AI grants can apply through the link in the original post, though the announcement does not state a closing date in the thread itself. The 12th District race between the incumbent and Jamie Joyce will be decided in the November general election, and any reconsideration of Alexander’s endorsement would likely appear in a future ballot recommendations post. The new meetup groups at Oxford, University College Dublin, and the University of Philippines will hold their planned events on schedules listed in the community’s meetup directory. The next weekly open thread will follow the blog’s regular cadence.
Key Questions
What is Open Thread 453?
It is the 453rd weekly visible open thread on the blog Astral Codex Ten, a post where readers can discuss any topic. This edition also includes announcements about grants, meetups, and a California election follow-up.
Who can apply for the $10 million AI grants?
The grants from Astralis Foundation and Macroscopic Ventures target research, training, public writing, and new organizations focused on middle powers and transformative AI. Full eligibility details and the application form are available through the link in the original post.
Did Scott Alexander change his endorsement in California’s 12th District?
No. He stood by his spring primary reasoning for now but said he may reconsider if he writes a post on the November election. He linked to challenger Jamie Joyce’s response to his original comments.
Which new EA meetup groups were announced?
New campus meetup groups are planned at Oxford, University College Dublin, and the University of the Philippines, according to the post’s meetup list.
What were the highlighted comments of the week about?
All four came from the blog’s “Mysteries of AI Generalization” post and covered recent generalization failures, distinctions between training stages such as pretraining and RLVR, and different views on how emergent misalignment arises.
Source: rss
Fall Picks
fall essentials
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
