Cosmic Modesty: Rethinking Elon Musk’s Place in Space

Avi Loeb argues that proclaiming Elon Musk the most accomplished space entrepreneur since the Big Bang is premature, warning that light pollution from satellite megaconstellations could blind us to other civilizations. He references SpaceX Starlink and Reflect Orbital’s Eärendil-1, urges cosmic humility, and emphasizes the need to actively search for technosignatures and biosignatures beyond Earth to avoid false negatives and truly gauge humanity’s place in the cosmos.