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The Rise of Technocracy: Origins of a Movement

In the early 20th century, as industrialization accelerated and traditional political systems faltered in their ability to manage rapid technological change, a radical new idea emerged: Technocracy. It proposed a society governed not by politicians or businessmen, but by scientists, engineers, and experts—those best equipped, its founders believed, to manage the complex machinery of modern life.

At the heart of this movement was Howard Scott, a charismatic yet controversial figure who would become the founder of Technocracy, Inc., the central organization of the technocratic vision. Born in 1890, Scott trained as an engineer and worked in various industrial roles before entering the public spotlight. He gained prominence in the 1920s as a member of the Technical Alliance, a research group that sought to study the energy economics of North America and advocate for a scientifically managed economy.

The movement truly took shape during the Great Depression. As capitalism seemed to collapse under its own contradictions and millions suffered from unemployment and poverty, technocracy offered an alluring alternative: a society not run by the invisible hand of markets or the inefficiencies of politics, but by objective expertise and engineering logic.

In 1933, Scott formally established Technocracy, Inc. Its headquarters were located in New York, and its mission was clear—develop and promote a new form of governance based on energy accounting rather than monetary economics. Technocrats argued that since all goods and services require energy to produce, the most rational way to organize society was by measuring energy input and output across a continental scale. Rather than relying on money as a medium of exchange, technocrats proposed using energy certificates that represented the amount of energy required to produce goods, distributed equitably among citizens.

Technocracy, Inc. envisioned a continental system—one that ignored national boundaries in favor of a unified North American Technate. It promoted ideas like production for use rather than profit, automation of labor, and the scientific management of all social systems. The organization had a strict, almost militaristic structure, complete with uniforms and a code of conduct. Its messaging often used charts, graphs, and scientific jargon to distinguish itself from both capitalist and socialist ideologies.

However, the movement was not without its critics. Many found Scott's personality abrasive and his credentials questionable—he had no formal degree in engineering. His complex lectures often alienated audiences, and his inability to simplify the message hindered public outreach. Moreover, the rise of World War II shifted national attention away from utopian redesigns of society and back to the demands of realpolitik and military mobilization.

By the 1940s and 1950s, Technocracy, Inc. had become more of a fringe movement, though it retained a devoted base of followers, particularly in Canada and the Pacific Northwest of the United States. While the organization never achieved political power, its influence echoed through mid-century thought and resurged decades later in the growing public discourse around automation, sustainability, and post-scarcity economics.

Today, the ideas of the technocratic movement remain oddly prescient. With artificial intelligence, algorithmic governance, and climate-conscious resource management rising to prominence, Scott’s dream of a scientifically administered society feels less like a relic and more like a draft—flawed, yes, but hauntingly visionary—of the systems we may yet build or inherit. 

Make no mistake: we are now living in a technocracy headed by modern day oligarchs. Technocracynow.com will keep you up to date on all the latest news of events shaping our technocracy.