Rationalist community (LessWrong / MIRI)
Rationalist community around Eliezer Yudkowsky's LessWrong (2009+) and the Machine Intelligence Research Institute. Documented sub-community concerns including the 2022–2025 Ziz cult-of-personality murders.
CLCI radar
BITE breakdown
0 — Rationalist community around LessWrong and MIRI; documented sub-community concerns including the 2023 Ziz cult-of-personality murders.
Profile facts
In context
The mainstream Rationalist community is a substantial intellectual community focused on epistemics and AI safety. Documented high-control sub-currents include Leverage Research (Geoff Anders), various 'Berkeley CFAR'-adjacent sub-circles, and most notoriously Ziz (Jack LaSota), whose followers committed multiple murders 2022–2025.
Recovery resources
- ICSA (International Cultic Studies Association) — General referral and cult-aware therapist directory.
- INFORM (Information Network on Religious Movements) — LSE-founded UK research-based information service covering new religious movements.
- Reclamation Collective — Religious-trauma-aware therapist network; relevant for post-exit identity-rebuilding.
- Freedom of Mind Resource Center — Steven Hassan's organisation; BITE-model resources and family-side exit guidance.
See the full curated list at /resources.
Legal cases & controversies
- 2022–2025 Ziz murder investigations
Evidence by BITE axis
- Multiple documented high-control sub-currents
- Ziz cult-of-personality multiple murders 2022–2025
- documented sub-community concerns including the 2023 Ziz cult-of-personality murders
Timeline
- 2009LessWrong founded by Yudkowsky
- 2011Leverage Research founded
- 2022–2025Ziz cult-related murders documented
Evidence matrix
Structured sources cross-linked to the claims they document. Tiered per the source hierarchy. For free-text citations see the Sources section below.
| Title | Type | Reliability | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Effective Altruism: Introduction — Essays in Philosophy (2017) | Academic | Secondary | — |
| Collapse of FTX deprives academics of grants, stokes fears of forced repayment · archive | Journalism | Secondary | — |
| Police arrest apparent leader of Zizian group tied to killing of U.S. border agent near Canada · archive | Journalism | Secondary | — |
| A 'death cult' on the run: The Bay Area fringe group terrorizing America · archive | Journalism | Secondary | — |
| Government wants to execute Teresa Youngblut after Vermont shooting that killed border agent, her lawyer says · archive | Journalism | Secondary | — |
| She Wanted to Save the World From A.I. Then the Killings Started · archive | Journalism | Secondary | — |
| The Rise of Silicon Valley's Techno-Religion · archive | Journalism | Secondary | — |
| Silicon Valley's Safe Space · archive | Journalism | Secondary | — |
| The Delirious, Violent, Impossible True Story of the Zizians · archive | Journalism | Secondary | — |
| Slate Star Codex and Silicon Valley’s War Against the Media · archive | Journalism | Secondary | — |
Sources
- Various press coverage including Bay Area News Group on Ziz murders search ↗
- Effective Altruism: Introduction — Essays in Philosophy (2017) — https://doi.org/10.7710%2F1526-0569.1580 open ↗
- Collapse of FTX deprives academics of grants, stokes fears of forced repayment — https://www.reuters.com/technology/collapse-ftx-deprives-academics-grants-stokes-fears-forced-repayment-2023-04-06/ open ↗
- Police arrest apparent leader of Zizian group tied to killing of U.S. border agent near Canada — https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/zizian-group-leader-arrest-1.7461231 open ↗
- A 'death cult' on the run: The Bay Area fringe group terrorizing America — https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/new-details-bay-area-zizians-death-cult-20165754.php open ↗
- Government wants to execute Teresa Youngblut after Vermont shooting that killed border agent, her lawyer says — https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/06/28/metro/government-execute-teresa-youngblut-vermont/ open ↗
- She Wanted to Save the World From A.I. Then the Killings Started — https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/06/business/ziz-lasota-zizians-rationalists.html open ↗
- The Rise of Silicon Valley's Techno-Religion — https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/04/technology/rationalists-ai-lighthaven.html open ↗
- Silicon Valley's Safe Space — https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/13/technology/slate-star-codex-rationalists.html open ↗
- The Delirious, Violent, Impossible True Story of the Zizians — https://www.wired.com/story/delirious-violent-impossible-true-story-zizians/ open ↗
- Slate Star Codex and Silicon Valley’s War Against the Media — https://www.newyorker.com/culture/annals-of-inquiry/slate-star-codex-and-silicon-valleys-war-against-the-media open ↗
We cite sources by name and outlet rather than fabricating links. Where a source includes its own URL, the open ↗ link opens it directly; otherwise search ↗ runs a Google Scholar query for the cited title — useful for verifying academic sources. For news outlets, search the outlet's own archive.
Change history
Substantive edits logged per the score-updates policy.
- 2026-05-29Phase 1 Batch J: per-group recovery resources applied via programmatic palette (closest-fit by category + subCategory + score). Palette: Political cadre.
- 2026-05-20Score band scheme migrated from 4 bands to 5 (Minimal 0–5 / Low 6–12 / Moderate 13–20 / High 21–30 / Extreme 31–40). No CLCI value changed; the new Minimal band was carved out of the bottom of the previous Low band.
Relevant hubs
Curated entry points on CLCI Hub for situations connected to this group.
You may also want to explore
Frequently asked questions
Q.Is Rationalist community a cult?
CLCI Hub deliberately avoids the binary label "cult." Instead it places groups on a transparent 0–40 spectrum of documented control using Steven Hassan's BITE model (Behaviour, Information, Thought, Emotional). Rationalist community scores 16 out of 40 — "Moderate Control", at medium confidence. The score describes documented control patterns, not a judgement of members' sincerity or beliefs; many members do not personally experience the patterns listed.
Q.What is Rationalist community's CLCI score?
Rationalist community scores 16 out of 40 on the Cult-Like Control Index, which falls in the "Moderate" band. That total is the sum of four BITE axes — Behaviour 3, Information 4, Thought 5, Emotional 4 — plus a signed modifier of +0 for aggravating or mitigating factors.
Q.Why does Rationalist community score 16 on the CLCI?
The score reflects publicly documented patterns including: Multiple documented high-control sub-currents; Ziz cult-of-personality multiple murders 2022–2025. These map onto the BITE axes of behaviour, information, thought, and emotional control, and a signed modifier of +0 is applied for factors such as financial demands, leadership accountability, and exit costs. Every claim is backed by the citations in the Sources section on this page.
Q.How reliable is the Rationalist community rating?
This profile is rated Medium confidence. Medium confidence means the score rests on reputable journalism plus consistent ex-member testimony. CLCI scores are not fixed — they are revised whenever new public evidence appears, and groups that reform can score lower over time.
Q.Where can I get help regarding Rationalist community?
If you or someone you care about is affected by Rationalist community, start with the Recovery resources listed on this page. General cult-aware support is available from the International Cultic Studies Association (icsahome.com) and the Freedom of Mind Resource Center (freedomofmind.com). CLCI Hub is an educational resource, not a crisis service — if anyone is in immediate danger, contact local emergency services.
Found something wrong on this profile?
We accept correction requests from anyone — current and former members, researchers, journalists, family members, and the listed organisation. Submissions are reviewed by an editor; we do not auto-publish.