*https://manifund.org/essay*

Manifund, in partnership with Inkhaven, is sponsoring 3 prizes for the best new essays that give us insight into how to navigate the future. Winners receive a $500 cash prize + a bonus prize, and winning essays may be republished (with attribution) on our newsletters.

Essays due midnight April 24; submit here!

The topics

Manifund: “What systems might manage the coming torrent of funding?”

Funding in EA may soon skyrocket. Between Anthropic & OpenAI tenders, the new OpenAI foundation, and short timelines to AGI, the amount of money available will be unprecedented. What mechanisms, incentive structures, orgs, and attitudes will help direct this windfall wisely?

Mox: “How to create a flourishing EA & AI safety scene in San Francisco?”

The race to build AI is going on in SF. So why is the AI safety scene here so weak? Berkeley, London, and DC all offer examples to learn from, but SF has its own unique challenges and opportunities. Beyond that, ecosystems like the startup scene, movements like climate change, and even religions may offer lessons for how to proceed.

Manifest: “How can we leverage forecasting into better decisions?”

Prediction markets have exploded in popularity over the last year. AI forecasters are on track to overtake the best humans by June 2027. But for all that EA has invested into forecasting, it sure doesn’t seem like we’re using them to make better decisions — whether as individuals, within orgs, or as a society. How might we get there?

Prize terms