--- title: "Billionaire Peter Thiel Says He’s Freezing His Body After Death Just in Case" description: "Whether cryogenics ultimately works or not, billionaire Peter Thiel says he's duty-bound to freeze his ol' bag o' bones nonetheless." date: "2023-05-08" modified: "2023-05-08" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/peter-thiel-cryonics" categories: - "Future Society" tags: - "cryogenics" - "immortality tech" - "peter thiel" - "the digest" --- # Billionaire Peter Thiel Says He’s Freezing His Body After Death Just in Case ![Whether cryogenics ultimately works or not, billionaire Peter Thiel says he's duty-bound to freeze his ol' bag o' bones nonetheless.]() *\Image: John Lamparski via Getty / Futurism\* ## Anti-Death Activist Billionaire tech entrepreneur and investor Peter Thiel says he's freezing his body when he dies — if only as a moment of anti-death activism. Thiel explained his "just in case" cryonics aspirations to journalist and former Twitter Filer Bari Weiss on Weiss' podcast, *Honestly*, in a [lengthy podcast episode]() published last week. "I think of it more as an ideological statement," Thiel told Weiss, [as quoted by *Fortune*](). "I don't necessarily expect it to work," he continued, "but I think it's the sort of thing we're supposed to try to do." In other words: cryo might not ultimately work, but as one of the most vocal leaders on the [immortality-seeking technological crusade](), he's duty-bound to freeze his ol' bag o' bones nonetheless. Gotta walk the walk if you talk the talk. ## Mortal Meat Suits As for where he's seeking to freeze himself, Thiel told Weiss that he's eyeing Alcor, the prominent cryo firm that back in 2009 [was accused of]() both accidentally decapitating and accidentally freezing what appeared to be a can of tuna to the icy head of baseball great Ted Williams. Thiel's cryo plans aren't all that surprising, as the billionaire's enthusiasm for immortality tech has been widely documented. Along with making some [notable investment]()s into immortality tech firms, Thiel was [famously accused of seeking blood infusions]() from young donors. And back in 2014, the VC took anti-aging to a whole new level when he [declared to the *Telegraph*]() that he was "against" the concept of mortality. "People have a choice to accept death, deny it or fight it," Thiel told *Telegraph*. "I think our society is dominated by people who are into denial or acceptance, and I prefer to fight it." Thiel reiterated a version of that 2014 argument in his recent conversation with Weiss, saying that we should at least understand *why* humans are doomed to toil away in our mortal meat suits. "We haven't even tried," the PayPal and Palantir cofounder lamented. "We should either conquer death or at least figure out why it's impossible." Of course, the answer to that latter point may well be answered by simple biology. And to that end, immortality-seeking cryo has been [decried by some experts]() as something along the lines of a pseudoscientific hail mary. Regardless, whether Thiel's anti-death investments will one day pay off remains to be seen. But even if he's ultimately unable to attain immortality, at least he'll die trying. **More on immortality tech:** [*Elon Musk Says That Immortality Tech Would Be Very Dangerous*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()