Skip to main content
Sigal Samuel

Sigal Samuel

Senior Reporter

Sigal Samuel is a senior reporter for Vox’s Future Perfect and co-host of the Future Perfect podcast. She writes primarily about the future of consciousness, tracking advances in artificial intelligence and neuroscience and their staggering ethical implications. She also writes about how to make the world better for all of us now, from improving mental health to alleviating poverty to protecting nature.

Before joining Vox, Sigal was the religion editor at the Atlantic. Her work has also been published in outlets like BuzzFeed, the Daily Beast, the Rumpus, and Electric Literature. She has appeared on NPR, BBC, and CBC. Sigal is also the author of two award-winning books. Osnat and Her Dove, a children’s book, tells the true story of the world’s first female rabbi. The Mystics of Mile End, a novel, tells the story of a dysfunctional family dealing with mysticism, madness, and mathematics in Montreal. Sigal earned her MFA in creative writing from the University of British Columbia and her BA in philosophy from McGill University. Learn more about Sigal here.

Sigal can be reached by email sigal.samuel@vox.com and on Twitter at @sigalsamuel.

Ethics Statement

Future Perfect coverage may include stories about organizations that writers have made personal donations to. This does not in any way affect the editorial independence of our coverage, and this information will be disclosed clearly when relevant.

Future Perfect is supported in part by grants from foundations and individual donors. Future Perfect prizes its editorial independence, and all editorial decisions are made separately from fundraising and commercial considerations. See Vox’s ethics and guidelines for more.

Latest articles by Sigal Samuel

Traveling this summer? Maybe don’t let the airport scan your face.Traveling this summer? Maybe don’t let the airport scan your face.
Future Perfect

You have the right to opt out of facial recognition tech. Here’s how.

By Sigal Samuel
What if absolutely everything is conscious?
Science

Scientists spent ages mocking panpsychism. Now, some are warming to the idea that plants, cells, and even atoms are conscious.

By Sigal Samuel
The biggest unknown in psychedelic therapy is not the psychedelicsThe biggest unknown in psychedelic therapy is not the psychedelics
Future Perfect

Why critics call the company pushing to legalize MDMA a “therapy cult.”

By Sigal Samuel
OpenAI insiders are demanding a “right to warn” the public OpenAI insiders are demanding a “right to warn” the public 
Future Perfect

“I’m scared. I’d be crazy not to be,” one former employee tells Vox.

By Sigal Samuel
10 big things we think will happen in the next 10 years
Future Perfect

Obesity will go down, electric cars will go up, and a nuclear bomb might just fall.

By Bryan Walsh, Dylan Matthews and 4 more
The double sexism of ChatGPT’s flirty “Her” voiceThe double sexism of ChatGPT’s flirty “Her” voice
Future Perfect

Is OpenAI gaslighting Scarlett Johansson?

By Sigal Samuel
“I lost trust”: Why the OpenAI team in charge of safeguarding humanity imploded“I lost trust”: Why the OpenAI team in charge of safeguarding humanity imploded
Future Perfect

Company insiders explain why safety-conscious employees are leaving.

By Sigal Samuel
Some say AI will make war more humane. Israel’s war in Gaza shows the opposite.Some say AI will make war more humane. Israel’s war in Gaza shows the opposite.
Future Perfect

AI nudges us to prioritize speed and scale. In Gaza, it’s turbocharging mass bombing.

By Sigal Samuel
Philosophers are studying Reddit’s “Am I the Asshole?”Philosophers are studying Reddit’s “Am I the Asshole?”
Future Perfect

In which philosophy tries to understand how normal people think about morality.

By Sigal Samuel
Your brain’s privacy is at risk. The US just took its first big step toward protecting it.Your brain’s privacy is at risk. The US just took its first big step toward protecting it.
Future Perfect

Colorado passed legislation to prevent companies from selling your brainwaves. But is it enough to stop the likes of Meta and Apple?

By Sigal Samuel