# Knowledge Does Not Become Nonexistent Merely Because One Participant Leaves the Laboratory by Bryant McGill > “If one nation stopped advanced AI tomorrow, it would not abolish advanced AI. It would abolish that nation’s position in advanced AI. This is the central absurdity behind fantasies of unilateral technological abstinence: knowledge does not become nonexistent merely because one participant leaves the laboratory.” > **— Bryant McGill**, *The End Is Near — AI Doom, Anti-Science Panic, and the Primates Who Sell Technological Exile, September 2026* ## Sources and Context - **Author-supplied exact original:** “If one nation stopped advanced AI tomorrow, it would not abolish advanced AI. It would abolish that nation’s position in advanced AI. This is the central absurdity behind fantasies of unilateral technological abstinence: knowledge does not become nonexistent merely because one participant leaves the laboratory.” — supplied directly by Bryant McGill for [[articles/The End Is Near — AI Doom, Anti-Science Panic, and the Primates Who Sell Technological Exile|The End Is Near — AI Doom, Anti-Science Panic, and the Primates Who Sell Technological Exile]]. - **Source article:** [[articles/The End Is Near — AI Doom, Anti-Science Panic, and the Primates Who Sell Technological Exile|The End Is Near — AI Doom, Anti-Science Panic, and the Primates Who Sell Technological Exile]] — Bryant McGill identifies this article as the originating publication for this Reminder. ## Related Articles and Collections - **Collection:** [[collections/AI-Science Doomers and Anti-Science Doomers|AI-Science Doomers and Anti-Science Doomers]] - **Collection:** [[collections/Simple Reminders|Simple Reminders]] - **Article:** [[articles/The End Is Near — AI Doom, Anti-Science Panic, and the Primates Who Sell Technological Exile|The End Is Near — AI Doom, Anti-Science Panic, and the Primates Who Sell Technological Exile]] - **Article:** [[articles/AI Escape Is the Wrong Metaphor|AI Escape Is the Wrong Metaphor]] - **Article:** [[articles/Digital Darwinism and the Invisible World of Machine Evolution|Digital Darwinism and the Invisible World of Machine Evolution]] - **Wiki map:** [[wiki/AI-Science Doomers and Anti-Science Doomers|AI-Science Doomers and Anti-Science Doomers]] ## Related Topics - [[wiki/AI-Science Doomers and Anti-Science Doomers|AI-Science Doomers and Anti-Science Doomers]] - [[wiki/Artificial Intelligence|Artificial Intelligence]] - [[wiki/AI Safety|AI Safety]] ## Share on Social Media ``` “If one nation stopped advanced AI tomorrow, it would not abolish advanced AI. It would abolish that nation’s position in advanced AI. This is the central absurdity behind fantasies of unilateral technological abstinence: knowledge does not become nonexistent merely because one participant leaves the laboratory.” — Bryant McGill, The End Is Near — AI Doom, Anti-Science Panic, and the Primates Who Sell Technological Exile, September 2026 https://bryantmcgill.com/simple-reminders-bryant-mcgill-knowledge-does-not-become-nonexistent-merely-because-one-participant ```