Jeff Bezos Invests in Time: The Story of a $42 Million Clock
Jeff Bezos, the creator of Amazon and the wealthiest person globally, has been grabbing attention for his lavish expenditures. One notable example is the “Clock of the Long Now,” a mechanical timepiece designed to keep time for the next 10,000 years. Bezos and his scientist friend, Danny Hillis, have been constructing the clock on Bezos’s property in Texas, with a total cost so far of $42 million.
This towering clock stands 500 feet tall and is driven by the Earth’s thermal cycles. It ticks annually and chimes once every millennium, with its century hand moving forward every 100 years. On the millennium, a cuckoo emerges, signifying a significant moment in the clock’s enduring existence.
The Clock of the Long Now project has been ongoing for almost thirty years, originating from Hillis’s imagination in 1986. Bezos stated in a blog post that the clock is a “representation, an emblem for long-range thinking.” Its purpose is to prompt individuals to look beyond immediate concerns and reflect on how their actions might affect future generations.
Building such a long-lasting clock presents significant engineering challenges. Experts are excavating spaces in the mountain to install an array of gears and flywheels that will ensure the clock’s operation for the next 10,000 years. Bezos has characterized the clock as “entirely mechanical, powered by day/night thermal changes” and “synchronized with solar noon.”
The construction of the clock commenced in 2018, with no definitive completion date in sight. While it may not require another 10,000 years to finish, Bezos and Hillis are committed to establishing a lasting legacy. The Clock of the Long Now symbolizes their enduring vision and dedication to making a positive impact on the world.
