---
title: "Bizarre MIT Meeting About Jeffrey Epstein Ends In Tears, Yelling"
description: "MIT Media Lab's meeting about donations from Jeffrey Epstein dissolved into tears & yelling after comments from cofounder Nicholas Negroponte."
date: "2019-09-05"
modified: "2019-09-09"
authors:
  - name: "Kristin Houser"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/kristin"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/mit-jeffrey-epstein-meeting"
categories:
  - "Future Society"
tags:
  - "jeffrey epstein"
  - "Massachusetts Institute of Technology"
  - "mit media lab"
  - "the digest"
---

# Bizarre MIT Meeting About Jeffrey Epstein Ends In Tears, Yelling

![A meeting of MIT Media Lab employees to discuss the school's acceptance of donations from Jeffrey Epstein led to a bizarre series of events.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/mit-epstein-meeting.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: Fcb981/Victor Tangermann\</em\>*

## Dirty Money

On Wednesday, the MIT Media Lab held an all-hands meeting to discuss the institute's acceptance of [$800,000](<http://news.mit.edu/2019/letter-regarding-jeffrey-epstein-and-mit-0822>) in donations from convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who recently died in jail while awaiting trial on child sex trafficking charges.

During that meeting, which a journalist for [*MIT Technology Review* attended](<https://www.technologyreview.com/s/614264/mit-media-lab-jeffrey-epstein-joi-ito-nicholas-negroponte-funding-sex-abuse/>), Media Lab cofounder Nicholas Negroponte reportedly told the audience he had recommended that the Media Lab's director Joi Ito accept funds from Epstein.

Then he said something that shocked many in attendance, according to *MIT Tech Review*: "If you wind back the clock, I would still say, 'Take it.'"

## Record Scratch

The comments set off a series of events that sound more like something from an episode of "Real Housewives" than a meeting of some of the top scientific minds in the world.

According to *MIT Tech Review's* story, members of the audience cried, accused Negroponte of making "messes" for them to clean up, and shouted for him to "shut up." Finally, he mumbled "good grief," and sat down.

The meeting ended soon after.

## Meeting Adjourned

Negroponte later [told *The Boston Globe*](<https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2019/09/04/mit-media-lab-founder-defends-embattled-director-decision-accept-epstein-money/kixBgtLr0v7xx9hAurF82M/story.html?event=event12>) his comments about MIT and Epstein were misconstrued.

"Given what we know today \[about the recent sex-trafficking charges\]... nobody would or should have taken his money," he said. "But wind the clock backwards, given what we knew then, I would have accepted his money now."

So, to clarify, donations from a convicted child predator are OK. Money from an accused sex trafficker, however, you leave on the table.

*Editor's note 9/6/2019: this story originally misstated the amount of funding MIT accepted from Epstein. It has been updated.*

**READ MORE:** [MIT Media Lab founder: Taking Jeffrey Epstein’s money was justifie](<https://www.technologyreview.com/s/614264/mit-media-lab-jeffrey-epstein-joi-ito-nicholas-negroponte-funding-sex-abuse/>)d \[*MIT Tech Review*\]

**More on Jeffrey Epstein:** *[Sex Trafficker Jeffrey Epstein Obsessed With Eugenics, Cryogenics](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/jeffrey-epstein-obsessed-eugenics-cryogenics>)*

### Author social links  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristinjhouser>)