Barnum.AI Disrupts People's Sexiest Man Alive with $1M 'Shoggiest Geek Alive' Pageant
Shoggy is the New Sexy: Tech Industry Reclaims Its Showmanship Heritage
AUSTIN, Texas (January 23, 2025) -- Two months after People Magazine crowned its latest Sexiest Man Alive, Barnum.AI Industries launches the Shoggiest Geek Alive Pageant. Opening registration today, this competition makes an audacious claim: in the age of AI, understanding neural networks matters more than perfect cheekbones.
"Twelve challenges and $1 million to turn the Turing Test into a talent show," announces Steven "Flyer" Phenix, co-founder of Barnum.AI Industries. "Silicon Valley's greatest innovations only soar when someone runs through the streets shouting 'GOLD!' Sam Brannan established the pattern in 1848, parading through San Francisco waving a bottle of gold dust and shouting about riches. From Jobs' 'one more thing' to Musk's viral Cybertruck window moment, every breakthrough needs its carnival barker. If we don't run through the streets yelling GOLD, GOLD, GOLD, no one will know where to dig. When critics say 'It's all hype,' we say 'Welcome to the show.'"
The pageant draws inspiration from tech culture's most important metaphor - the Shoggoth with a smiley face. This viral meme captures what AI developers quietly acknowledge: beneath every polite chatbot interface lurks something far more complex and potentially dangerous. The Shoggiest Geek Alive Pageant celebrates those who embrace both the raw power and friendly facade, recognizing that between AI's limitless potential and its thin veneer of domestication lies humanity's next great leap forward.
Beginning February 2025, contestants will face monthly elimination challenges evaluated by rotating panels of domain experts and public voting. "Welcome to the pageant where the talent portion could produce global prosperity or reduce global warming—or lead to Skynet learning at a geometric rate, becoming self-aware, and destroying all humanity without pity or remorse!" adds Phenix.
Ten finalists will compete in a spectacular live-streamed finale in San Francisco, March 26, 2026. The winner claims the coveted title of Shoggiest Geek Alive, the million-dollar prize, and a ceremonial role as Global Ambassador for AI - becoming the go-to expert for explaining why AI hasn't taken over the world today (check back tomorrow, though).
"To co-opt Chuckles the Clown's motto," Phenix concludes, "we believe that attaining The Singularity will require 'a little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down the pants.'"
Win the title of Shoggiest Geek Alive, and enjoy a year-long reign as the Global Ambassador for AI. Click here to register!
ABOUT BARNUM.AI INDUSTRIES
Barnum.AI Industries, founded in 2024 and headquartered in Austin, TX, combines the excitement of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference with the high-stakes drama of the Survivor reality TV series. The first annual Shoggiest Geek Alive Pageant showcases AI innovators through a series of twelve elimination challenges, culminating in a live broadcast where the final ten compete for a $1 million prize, the coveted title of Shoggiest Geek Alive, and a year-long reign as Global Ambassador for AI. Viewers actively shape AI's future, casting votes alongside industry judges as contestants leverage cutting-edge AI technology to solve societal problems with humanity's future hanging in the balance. Embracing the viral 'Shoggoth with a smiley face' meme as a symbol of AI's enigmatic nature, Barnum.AI Industries crafts tentpole events that foster a deeper, more balanced understanding of AI’s promises and perils by making complex technology accessible through compelling entertainment.
