Silicon Valley AI tycoons are all building doomsday bunkers: Zuckerberg built a 465-square-meter one in Hawaii, and Altman admitted to having a fortified basement.

Tech giants, billionaires, AI bettors & influencers...

But you may not have noticed that apart from these identities, Altman and Zuckerberg also have a little - known common ground:

Doomsday bunker builders.

The so - called doomsday bunker refers to an underground shelter where one can survive for a long time in times of crisis. It has functions such as disaster prevention, food storage, and self - sufficiency, and is the last insurance in the eyes of tech billionaires.

According to Wired, this summer, Zuckerberg quietly spent $65 million to buy a 962 - acre ranch on the northern coast of Kauai Island in Hawaii.

Why say "again"?

Because starting about a decade ago, Zuckerberg has been buying land here on a large scale:

In 2014, he spent $100 million to purchase 700 acres of land for the first time; in 2021, he bought nearly 700 more acres.

This year's land purchase is adjacent to the previously acquired properties, increasing the total landholding of Zuckerberg and his wife on Kauai Island to more than 2,300 acres, worth more than $300 million.

However, unlike the traditional script of a wealthy person buying an island for retirement, Zuckerberg's land - buying isn't just for vacations and surfing.

Well...

Do these tech bigwigs in the AI field see something we don't?

Both Altman and Zuckerberg are planning to build doomsday bunkers

It's reported that Zuckerberg's continuous land - buying on Kauai Island is to develop a large - scale comprehensive residential park on this large estate. The park will include two large mansions (with 30 bedrooms and 30 bathrooms), blast - proof door bunkers, high - end sports facilities, dozens of guesthouses, and unique tree - houses.

Due to the large amount of land purchased, some of the buildings and land occupy the traditional cemeteries of Native Hawaiians (although the relevant areas are fenced off).

The most distinctive point to note is that Zuckerberg plans to build an underground shelter of over 5,000 square feet (about 465 square meters) in this park, with an emergency escape tunnel.

The report says that the interior of this shelter is equipped with living spaces and mechanical equipment rooms. The entrance door is made of metal and filled with concrete, and the overall structure is more like a modern - day air - raid shelter.

Therefore, it's called Zuckerberg's doomsday bunker by the media.

— Although Zuckerberg flatly denied it in an interview with Bloomberg at the end of last year, saying, "It's more like a small shelter, just like a basement."

However, more revelations show that this doomsday bunker not only has a considerable area but also comes with its own energy and water supply systems, aiming for long - term self - sufficiency.

In other words, no matter what happens in the world, Zuckerberg and his family can survive independently in this bunker for a long time.

Another AI bigwig who has taken similar actions is Altman, who has publicly stated that he has a fortified basement.

This was revealed during a podcast interview on "This Past Weekend" this year.

Altman said at that time:

I have, like, an underground concrete, heavily fortified basement... but I don't have a real shelter.

Like Zuckerberg, they both refuse to admit it's a shelter.

The person interviewing Altman immediately joked in response, "That's a shelter, bro."

"What's the difference between a basement and an air - raid shelter?" Altman countered.

The answer he got was: It's a place where you can hide when everything is over.

Finally, Altman repeatedly emphasized and explained that the reason for having such a place isn't out of concern for AI development (here a dog - head emoji would be appropriate), but to deal with other emergencies.

Such as pandemics, cyber - wars, climate disasters, long - term infrastructure failures, etc.

Do these tech bigwigs see something we don't?

Zuckerberg and Altman are definitely not the only tech bigwigs building doomsday bunkers for themselves.

Among all the doomsday bunker enthusiasts, the earliest and more well - known one is actually Peter Thiel.

We're also quite familiar with him. He's the founder of PayPal, the earliest angel investor in Facebook (now Meta), and one of the most mysterious billionaires in Silicon Valley.

(He also has another controversial label. He's very interested in "blood - transfusion anti - aging" and has publicly stated his interest in whether young people's blood can delay aging)

As early as 2011, Peter Thiel spent a large sum of money to buy 500 acres of private land in Wanaka, planning to build a "doomsday bunker - style estate".

The architectural drawings show that the building is wave - shaped, embedded in the mountainside, and partially hidden in the mountain.

The Wanaka area he chose is a mountainous region in New Zealand's South Island known for its natural beauty and remoteness. So, this plan has been strongly opposed by environmentalists, who claim it will "destroy our beautiful lake environment".

Finally, the project was aborted because the local council ruled that "the residence would have an overly negative impact on the surrounding landscape".

But our ordinary people's doubts haven't stopped; instead, they've become even stronger.

Why do these people who know technology best and are closest to the trend of AI change make such thorough preparations for the "doomsday"?

Do they really have no confidence in the future of technology?

Or is the development potential of AI so amazing that even those who know it best are scared?

Or perhaps, do these tech bigwigs see some signs that we ordinary people don't?

There's a huge buzz on X and Reddit, and the number of comments on relevant discussion posts keeps rising, scrolling endlessly.

Although these shelters cost tens of millions of dollars, some people point out that for these bigwigs, it's just a small expense for their safety.

Some people are also discussing whether these bigwigs have considered providing security, servants, etc., and giving these service personnel a place in their doomsday bunkers.

At this time, a netizen left a very trendy comment:

There's no need to worry about this. Robots will soon be on the job!

After browsing through the comment sections of various platforms, all I could come up with was this:

They say it's just a "basement" or a "small shelter", but look at that metal - fortified door, the private power system, and the dedicated water supply system...

If even Altman and Zuckerberg have quietly built their doomsday bunkers, should we ordinary people start stocking up on instant noodles?

Reference links:

[1]https://x.com/JasonBassler1/status/1952119031562981518

[2]https://www.reddit.com/r/ChatGPT/comments/1mi66bh/sam_altman_mark_zuckerberg_and_peter_thiel_are/#lightbox

[3]https://www.sfgate.com/hawaii/article/hawaii-zuckerberg-buys-kauai-land-20792415.php

[4]https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/sam-altman-mark-zuckerberg-jeff-bezos-and-other-tech-giants-to-go-underground-building-secret-bunkers-for-world-war-crises-pandemics-and-climate-disasters/articleshow/123044689.cms

[5]https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/sam-altman-fears-world-war-3-more-than-a-rogue-ai-apocalypse-reveals-his-safety-plan-amid-people-dropping-bombs-again/articleshow/123021893.cms

This article is from the WeChat official account "QbitAI". The author focuses on cutting - edge technology. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.