Hyperstition

QUOTE

William James once said…

“What we believe determines what we become.”

(American philosopher and psychologist)

CONCEPT

Hyperstition

Hyperstition is a concept that blends “hyper” and “superstition” to describe how fictional ideas or narratives, once circulated, can become real by influencing behavior, systems, or culture.

This idea refers to self-fulfilling prophecies that accelerate reality toward the imagined. A hyperstition begins as fiction—but if enough people believe it, act on it, or build around it, the fiction manifests as fact.

STORY

To Boldly Go … and Make It So?

In 1966, a television series about a space crew aboard a fictional starship aired on NBC to mediocre ratings—and quietly began changing the future.

The show was *Star Trek*, and from the start, it wasn’t just entertainment—it was an exercise in imagination as prophecy. The starship Enterprise featured flat touchscreen consoles, handheld communicators, universal translators, tablet-style computers, and voice-activated AI.

None of these things existed. But they would.

Though the show was canceled after just three seasons, *Star Trek* didn’t disappear. It became a cult phenomenon in syndication, gaining a devoted following among scientists, engineers, and technologists. But more than just fans, many of these viewers became builders.

Martin Cooper, the inventor of the first mobile phone, explicitly credited *Star Trek*’s communicator as inspiration. The iPad? A dead ringer for the show’s PADDs (Personal Access Display Devices). Voice-controlled assistants like Siri and Alexa? Heralded by the ship’s conversational computer. Even the flip phone’s iconic design mimicked the show's props.

But *Star Trek* didn’t just inspire gadgets. It shaped *mindsets*.

At a time when race and gender inequality were stark, the show depicted a multi-ethnic crew, including Lieutenant Uhura, a Black woman in a leadership role, and Hikaru Sulu, a Japanese-American helmsman—just two decades after World War II. This was not the world as it was. It was a fictional future acting on the present.

And it had real-world effects.

In 1976, fans petitioned NASA to name the first space shuttle Enterprise. NASA agreed. Mae Jemison, the first Black woman in space, cited *Star Trek* as a pivotal influence. She later appeared in an episode of *The Next Generation*, completing a circle between fiction and reality.

The writers of *Star Trek* weren’t building technology or drafting policy. They were telling stories. But the belief those stories generated—among viewers, engineers, children—began to materialize. A fictional world seeded a generation’s real-world ambitions.

By imagining a future of inclusion, exploration, and technology, *Star Trek* helped nudge the world toward it. Not with blueprints, but with conviction. Its greatest invention wasn’t warp drive or teleportation…

It was the belief that we could reach a better future.