Bryan Johnson turns 49 and shifts focus to women's health
The millionaire biohacker and his Australian partner Kate Tolo told triple j hack they remain committed to immortality.
The triple j hack interview
Bryan Johnson, the American millionaire known for extreme anti-aging routines, has told the ABC youth current affairs program triple j hack that a substantial part of the world wants him to die.
Johnson turned 49 last week. His Australian partner, 30-year-old Kate Tolo, told hack that the number does not match his physical and mental state, saying "he annoyingly feels younger than me!"
Tolo, who was born in Mackay in Queensland, has recently joined Johnson's project and says she wants to become "the world's most measured woman". She said female health was "always next" in both their minds, and described it as a deeply personal issue.
Biohacking refers to the practices of people committed to extreme anti-aging and longevity regimes. The ABC describes Johnson as the movement's poster boy.
The cloning claim
Johnson announced last month that he had cloned himself as a newborn, saying the clone would become his own "blood boy", would help "test therapies" and would "grow organs for transplantation".
The claim was immediately challenged online, by scientists and by the medical establishment. A community note added under his post on the social media platform X read: "Human cloning is not possible."
According to the ABC, what Johnson had actually done was create induced pluripotent stem cells, known as iPSCs, a method that reprograms adult cells back into a versatile stem cell state. The ABC reports that scientists consider the technology exciting but say it does not equate to human cloning.
Johnson told hack: "I actually listed out in great detail exactly what steps we followed."
Provocation and pushback
Asked whether he deliberately posts provocative material to boost engagement, Johnson paused before answering. "Kate and I have moved the conversation of eight billion humans on planet Earth to discuss the idea of Don't Die," he said, adding that their way of communicating "gets them talking".
Medical professionals quoted by the ABC warn people not to confuse "good public health practices with vested interests". The ABC does not name those professionals in the material available.
Johnson's earlier ventures include a multi-generational blood plasma swap involving his teenage son and his father, and the public sharing of night-time erection tracking data.
Criticism has also come from religious commentators. Crisis Magazine, a Catholic publication, published an opinion piece on his "Don't Die" movement following a conversation between Johnson and columnist Ross Douthat on Douthat's final podcast for The New York Times. The piece argues Johnson's "war on death" treats a spiritual problem in purely material terms.
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