Why Democrat Zoltan Istvan Is Backing Basic Income, Home Robots in California Governor Bid

As artificial intelligence threatens to disrupt the American workforce, Zoltan Istvan, who’s running for the Democratic nomination for Governor in California, is betting on a radical solution: universal basic income and a humanoid robot in every home.

Istvan’s campaign comes as tech leaders warn that AI could eliminate up to 50% of entry-level jobs within the next five years. Istvan believes the threat is far broader, predicting that the rise of generative AI and humanoid robots imperils half of all jobs.

“That is what my campaign is about,” Istvan told Decrypt. “We’re saying 50% of all jobs at this point are at risk. You can see the infrastructure being built in China and the U.S. and around the world for these humanoid robots.”

While AI has become widespread since the public launch of ChatGPT in 2022, Istvan called the stakes urgent, arguing that the public’s understanding of AI hasn’t kept pace with its rapid development.

“It’s like a BMW, what hits the market is what was developed 18 months ago,” he said. “Right now, they’re test-driving 2027 models, producing 2026 models, and selling us the 2025 versions. The same thing is happening in AI.”

Best known for his 2016 presidential bid under the Transhumanist banner, Istvan drove a coffin-shaped bus across the country to promote his platform of radically extending human life through advancements in biotechnology, artificial intelligence, and other technologies.

Though he still identifies with transhumanist ideals, Istvan said switching from the Transhumanist Party to the Democratic Party is a strategic move to stay competitive in a traditionally one-party state.

“In California, to run as anything other than a Democrat would just mean you’re not going to win,” Istvan said.

To confront what he calls a looming “job apocalypse,” due to a convergence of humanoid robots and AI, Istvan is promoting two primary policy goals: establishing a universal basic income and ensuring a humanoid robot in every California household.

“Implementing universal basic income must be a top priority,” he said. “Otherwise, people in the next year or two, as they start losing their jobs en masse, are going to be picking up the pitchforks and causing huge disruption to society.”

Istvan said he is less concerned with the method of funding UBI, with options including taxation, company shares, or a robot tax, and more concerned with the urgent implementation.

Greater ambitions

The second policy he proposed is even more ambitious, providing every California citizen with a humanoid robot.

“We want to provide or lease a humanoid robot to every household,” he said. “That way, people can spend less time on chores, driving, or cooking, and more time with family.”

Getting voters to accept the idea of a free robot may be easier said than done. In a recent survey of U.S. and U.K. respondents, 12% reported being polite out of fear of a future AI uprising.

Istvan acknowledged the cultural resistance to robots, fueled by decades of dystopian science fiction films like James Cameron’s “The Terminator” and Gareth Edwards’ “The Creator,” but believes the benefits will outweigh fears.

That said, Istvan expressed concern about unregulated progress toward artificial general intelligence and superintelligence, commonly referred to as the singularity. He compared the current trajectory to playing with a loaded gun.

“We can’t just launch superintelligence and hope that it turns out for the best,” he said. “Unlike nuclear weapons, which remain under human control, superintelligence could develop beyond our ability to contain it.”

To create meaningful guardrails for AI, Istvan believes international cooperation is necessary.

“This is not going to be China versus America anymore,” he said. “This is going to be the human race versus a potential AI that might not like us.”

As the AI revolution accelerates, Istvan hopes California can serve as a testing ground for policies that merge technology with humanity’s best interests—before it’s too late.

“If we could guarantee that AI is not going to come after us, I would absolutely say, let us go through with it,” he said. “We’d end up in a more utopic world. The standard of living will go up. People will live longer.”

Before his utopian vision can come to pass, however, Istvan will still need to get through a highly competitive, expensive, and often contentious California election season.

Among ten “likely candidates” in a statewide Emerson College poll in April, former Vice-President Kamala Harris led the pack with 30 percent of the vote (though 50% of people polled said she shouldn’t run). Istvan was not among the names polled.

Edited by Josh Quittner and Sebastian Sinclair