Corporate global catastrophic risks (C-GCRs)

Abstract

Are corporations causing global catastrophic risks (C-GCRs)? Here, I argue for this to be true, based on the following claims: Corporations grow ever larger over time.Corporations grow exponentially more powerful over time.Corporations cause exponentially more regulatory capture over time.Corporations cause exponentially larger externalities over time. If all these claims are true and cannot be falsified, then it follows that the externalities of big, powerful, unregulated corporations will increase over time to the level of GCRs. I then argue for the following corollaries: Corporations are already the distal cause and main driver of anthropogenic and emergent technological GCRs such as global catastrophic biological risks (GCBRs).C-GCRs are a bigger threat than GCRs from state actors.C-GCR reduction is more effective than targeted GCR reduction because it is broader, large in scale, neglected, and solvable. I suggest concrete policy proposals to reduce C-GCRs, by diversifying corporate ownership, enforcing corporate taxes, and optimizing funding for regulatory agencies.