# One Good AI Idea May Put Us Past Recursive Self-Improvement by Dave Blundin > "If [OpenAI researcher Noam Brown] has six out of ten good ideas and the AI has one out of ten, you're way past [recursive self-improvement] because the AI is effectively a multi-billion-person research force, and [Brown] is still one guy. ... As long as [the AI is] hitting balls over the wall, [it has] an infinite number of pitches, and you just test them all. ... You're way past [recursive self-improvement] if it has any good ideas at all." > **— Dave Blundin**, *Moonshots #309, recorded November 6, 2026* ## Sources and Context - **Source dossier:** [[research/Midterms, Politics, AI, and Infrastructure Research - Moonshots|Midterms, Politics, AI, and Infrastructure Research — Moonshots]]. - **Direct publication or recording:** [recording, 00:45:03–00:46:05](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WF-ADiC7Khs&t=2703s). - **Editorial form:** The readable quotation retains visible brackets and/or an ellipsis for source-supported clarification or omission. The candidate map below records the exact treatment. - **Context and treatment:** Dave Blundin compares OpenAI researcher Noam Brown with a massively parallel AI research force and argues that scale can outweigh a lower hit rate; [recording, 00:45:03–00:46:05](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WF-ADiC7Khs&t=2703s). Brackets restore Brown's full identity from the opening of the same turn, expand `RSI`, and resolve the baseball analogy's pronouns to the AI; ellipses omit nonessential elaboration within one continuous turn. ## Related Articles and Collections - **Collection:** [[collections/Simple Reminders|Simple Reminders]] - **Collection:** [[collections/The Politics of AI Infrastructure|The Politics of AI Infrastructure]] - **Collection:** [[collections/American Infrastructure|American Infrastructure]] - **Collection:** [[collections/American|American Culture Collection]] - **Article:** [[articles/Vertically Integrating an AI Superpower from AI Factory to Citizen|Vertically Integrating an AI Superpower from AI Factory to Citizen]] - **Article:** [[articles/The Gigawatt Is the New Measure of War|The Gigawatt Is the New Measure of War]] - **Article:** [[articles/The Political Party That Inherits Super Intelligence in 2028|The Political Party That Inherits Super Intelligence in 2028]] ## Related Topics - [[wiki/Dave Blundin|Dave Blundin]] - [[wiki/Machine Succession|Machine Succession]] - [[wiki/Moonshots 309|Moonshots 309]] ## Share on Social Media ``` "If [OpenAI researcher Noam Brown] has six out of ten good ideas and the AI has one out of ten, you're way past [recursive self-improvement] because the AI is effectively a multi-billion-person research force, and [Brown] is still one guy. ... As long as [the AI is] hitting balls over the wall, [it has] an infinite number of pitches, and you just test them all. ... You're way past [recursive self-improvement] if it has any good ideas at all." — Dave Blundin, Moonshots #309, recorded November 6, 2026 https://bryantmcgill.com/simple-reminders-dave-blundin-one-good-ai-idea-may-put-us-past-recursive-self-improvement ```