How to Spend a Trillion Dollars

If you had a trillion dollars and allocated a whole year to spend it on global good and the advancement of science, what would you do? It's an incredible amount of money, yet it represents only 1 percent of global GDP, roughly the value of Google, Microsoft, or Amazon. It's far smaller than what the world found to bail out its banks in 2008 or to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. But what could you achieve with a trillion dollars? You could solve the pandemic, for example, eradicate malaria, and perhaps cure all diseases. You could end global poverty. You could settle on the moon and explore the solar system. You could build a massive particle collider to explore the nature of reality like never before. You could build quantum computers, develop artificial intelligence, or extend the human lifespan. You could even create a new life form. Or what about converting the world to clean energy? Or preserving rainforests, or saving all endangered species? Perhaps you could refreeze the melting Arctic, launch a new sustainable agricultural revolution, and reverse climate change? How to Spend a Trillion Dollars is a thought experiment, but it's also a call to action: These are all things we can do, if we put our efforts into them—and our money.