01
Topic area
Physics
What does it mean to take our best theories in physics seriously? What do they tell us about what the world is really like, and might that help us overcome the slow rate of progress in physics?
Our Mission
Understanding how knowledge grows—the central concern of epistemology—is one of humanity's most fundamental questions. Knowledge shapes every endeavor, such as science, politics, artificial intelligence, parenting, and entrepreneurship; mistaken theories of knowledge send us down blind alleys in all of these fields. Karl Popper, David Deutsch, and others identified a better account: knowledge grows through conjecture and criticism.
ProblemConjectureCriticism=Progress
Philosophy of knowledge has consequences wherever humans can make progress. Newton, Darwin, and Einstein transformed particular fields; the right philosophy of knowledge, meanwhile, applies to every problem a person or society faces. Spreading the right philosophy of knowledge can therefore dissolve barriers to progress that most people do not yet know stand in their way.
Ideas with consequences.
Six topic areas connected by a single question: how does knowledge grow, and what becomes possible when we understand it?
02
Topic area
AGI and Computer Science
Creating an artificial general intelligence will require the right theory of knowledge. It will not require Bayesian calculations or increasing our best machines' calculational repertoire.
Fellows
03
Topic area
Taking Children Seriously
Children's reasons, desires, emotions, and creativity all work precisely the same way that those of adults do—in short, children are people. What does this mean for parenting?
04
Topic area
Epistemology
All knowledge grows via conjecture and criticism. This seemingly simple idea has radical implications for fields ranging from science to politics to raising children.
05
Topic area
Economics
The amount of bad philosophy and widespread errors in economic research and education is overwhelming. Explaining why traditional approaches to economics are wrongheaded—and correcting for them—demands sound epistemology.
06
Topic area
Aesthetics
Progress in the arts is as real as scientific or technological progress. If art is objective, what distinguishes beautiful creations from ugly ones? How can our understanding of beauty refine what it means to live a full, creative life?
Our Books
Ideas worth turning over.
Aaron Stupple · with Logan Chipkin · 211 pages
The Sovereign Child
An exploration of Taking Children Seriously, examining how children's reasons and creativity work the same way as adults'. The book offers practical insights into parenting without rules, based on critical rationalism.
The Sovereign Child. Book 1 of 5.
Our Conferences
Conjecture Institute Conference: Advances in Physics
June 17, 2026 · Online
An online conference hosted by Conjecture Institute that brought together physicists and philosophers of physics working at the foundations of the field. All thirteen talks are now available to watch on YouTube.
Conjecture Con 2026
September 25–27, 2026 · Philadelphia
This annual conference brought together dozens of philosophy and science enthusiasts from around the world for a sold-out weekend of talks, workshops, and discussions.
Conjecture Institute Conference: Defend the West
January 13, 2027 · Online
An online conference on the ideas that built the modern West — reason, free inquiry, individual rights and open markets — and what it takes to defend them.
Our Fellows
Physics
Sam Kuypers
Quantum physicist, interested in foundational questions. In his research, published in reputable scientific journals, he explores the quantum theory of time, the many-worlds interpretation, and locality. His work connects these areas under a broader commitment to realism—the view that a real world exists and that science is a quest for good explanations describing this real world.
Sam Kuypers. Person 5 of 9.
AGI and Computer Science
Carlos De la Guardia
An AGI researcher with a background in robotics and longevity. He's writing a book explaining how human minds are uniquely, cosmically powerful, and how we can upgrade them to achieve immortality.
Carlos De la Guardia. Person 1 of 1.
Epistemology
Eric Denton
A freelance writer and host of The Falsifiable Podcast, a show in which Eric explores both current events and evergreen topics in science, culture, and politics through a Popperian lens. He is currently working on a book that serves as a one-stop shop for anyone interested in epistemology in general—and Popperian epistemology in particular.
Eric Denton. Person 2 of 4.
Economics
Maxime Desalle
Aspiring polymath with a background in mathematics, physics, and computer science. He leads operations at Sablier, an a16z-backed crypto startup. He is writing a book on Many-Worlds—exploring its physics, history, and philosophy. Current interests include quantum mechanics, cryptocurrencies, Venetian history, and classical piano.
Maxime Desalle. Person 2 of 3.
Aesthetics
Tom Hyde
Writer interested in the relationship between epistemology and aesthetics. He is developing Wonderism, a bold new book aiming to reconcile Enlightenment rationality with Romanticist sentiment. To wonder, both to think and to feel, to question and to marvel, lies at the heart of all human action. Wonderism explains both sides of this balance and sheds light on the relationships between knowledge and experience, reason and feeling, science and art.
Tom Hyde. Person 2 of 3.
Senior Scientists
Chiara Marletto
Chiara Marletto is an Oxford-based physicist, author of The Science of Can and Can't, and a Senior Scientist at Conjecture Institute. She leads a new research group based in Oxford that investigates constructor theory, a theory in physics that seeks to express all laws of physics in terms of possible and impossible tasks. Having established a constructor theory of information, thermodynamics, probability, and life, Chiara and her new group are now investigating how to apply ideas from constructor theory to experimentally test whether or not gravity is classical. They are also investigating a constructor theory of time and locality.
Chiara Marletto. Person 1 of 2.
Senior Philosophers
Maarten Boudry
Dr. Maarten Boudry is a philosopher of science and first holder of the Etienne Vermeersch Chair of Critical Thinking at Ghent University. He published over 50 academic papers and two edited volumes: Science Unlimited? (2018) and Philosophy of Pseudoscience (2013). He also wrote six trade books in Dutch on science and philosophy. His book The Betrayal of Enlightenment will be published by Pitchstone Publishing. He’s also a Roots of Progress fellow and a regular contributor to Quillette, Persuasion, The Conversation, The Independent, and Human Progress.
Maarten Boudry. Person 1 of 1.
Advisors
Julian Barbour
Julian Barbour is a theoretical physicist whose work on the foundations of dynamics, quantum gravity, and the nature of time has challenged core assumptions in physics. Best known for arguing that time is not fundamental but an emergent illusion arising from change, he developed a relational, Machian approach to classical and quantum physics in which the universe is described solely in terms of relative configurations of matter without an external time parameter.
He is the author of The End of Time, which presents a timeless account of the universe consistent with quantum cosmology; The Discovery of Dynamics (on the history of absolute versus relative motion); and The Janus Point, which proposes a two-directional origin of time from a low-entropy “Janus Point.”
He is the author of The End of Time, which presents a timeless account of the universe consistent with quantum cosmology; The Discovery of Dynamics (on the history of absolute versus relative motion); and The Janus Point, which proposes a two-directional origin of time from a low-entropy “Janus Point.”
Julian Barbour. Person 2 of 4.
Ambassador
Brett Hall
Brett Hall is an Australian educator, science communicator, and technical advisor. Brett is the host of ToKCast, a podcast promoting optimism, unbounded progress, and creative critical thinking using the best known explanations from fundamental physics and philosophy. He is also the host of the Conjecture Institute podcast, where he interviews the Fellows, Advisors, and Founders of Conjecture Institute.
Brett Hall. Person 1 of 1.
Board of Directors
Logan Chipkin
President
Logan Chipkin is a writer and editor in Philadelphia. He currently serves as Managing Editor of a nonprofit that works to spread liberty in the West. He has written articles about fundamental physics, economics, history, and Popperian philosophy for outlets such as Gizmodo, Physics World, Quillette, History Magazine, The Libertarian Institute, The Pennsylvania Gazette, and Bitcoin Magazine, and he has written a fantasy novel called Windfall. He has also edited a book written by a prominent physicist and has collaborated with other physicists to communicate their ideas to a general audience. Finally, he hosts and produces Rat Fest, an annual in-person philosophy conference in Philadelphia.
Logan Chipkin. Person 2 of 3.
Supporting Team
Brendan Kelly
Brendan lives in Los Angeles, where he is completing his MBA. He has a deep interest in science, Popperian epistemology, Taking Children Seriously, and is a fellow optimist. A fervent reader, he derives happiness from seeking our best explanations and spreading those ideas widely.
Brendan Kelly. Person 2 of 3.