The odd part isn’t that Musk, Zuckerberg, and Bezos all adore the same book series. The odd part is that it’s a socialist space utopia. Iain M. Banks’s The Culture imagines a moneyless, AI-powered society — and the three tech moguls can’t get enough of it.

Seven years ago, Jeff Bezos spoke at the International Space Development Conference about the future of Blue Origin. Recalling how science fiction shaped his dreams of space conquest, he cited Asimov and Heinlein, but singled out one series in particular: “The Culture series is definitely one of my absolute favorites in terms of more modern science fiction. We’re not there technologically; there’s a lot of work to be done, but the utopian element is incredibly compelling to me.”

And Bezos isn’t alone in this affection. Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg have both publicly praised the works of Scottish author Iain M. Banks. What’s ironic, however, is that the values of the series stand in direct opposition to the capitalist tech empires these billionaires have built.

A Very Different Kind of Spacefaring Future

Back in the 1960s, sci-fi was trending toward grim dystopias. Banks responded with something radical: instead of a flawless hero saving a broken world, The Culture presents flawed humans interacting with a society that’s already near-perfect.

His friend and mentor Ken MacLeod said it best: “By imagining what a good society might look like, Iain Banks accomplished more than he knew. He created the first utopia that readers actually wanted to live in.”

Bezos has tried for years to bring the books to Prime Video. Zuckerberg promoted the novel Player of Games on Facebook. And Musk — who frequently recommends the books — reportedly modeled some of SpaceX’s rockets after the series’ designs.

And yet, it’s a strange contradiction: these men preach workaholism, social media surveillance, and privatized resource extraction — while professing love for stories that celebrate post-scarcity socialism and collective ownership.

The Culture’s Vision: AI Rule, No Money, Absolute Freedom

The Culture rejects money because chasing it means poverty. Scarcity is gone, replaced by AI that fulfills all needs. No one has to work. People are free to modify their bodies as they please. No governments. No police. Just organized anarchy — where the harshest punishment is getting uninvited from a party.

As journalist Constance Grady pointed out: “The Culture’s ultimate villain, Joiler Veppers, is a wealthy man who owns the media, manipulates labor, and abuses his servants — a reflection of today’s tech oligarchs.”

If Banks were still alive, he might insist that media and networks be publicly owned, space profits be equitably shared, that inherited privilege must end, and that work should be voluntary, not mandatory.

Yet here we are: three of capitalism’s high priests idolize a fictional universe where anarchy and socialism reign supreme. And perhaps, ironically, they already hold the keys to making it real.

Source: 3djuegos