Self-styled ‘biohacker’ Bryan Johnson has shared his reasons for trying one of the most powerful hallucinogens on the planet.
Johnson has spent years publicly tracking his efforts to extend his lifespan, following a tightly controlled routine. Some parts are familiar—carefully managing what he eats and keeping up regular exercise—while others are more unconventional, including having a hyperbaric oxygen chamber at home.
His approach also involves an extensive morning routine aimed at keeping his body and health markers in peak condition.
Although he typically keeps strict boundaries around what he will and won’t put into his body, the multi-millionaire tech entrepreneur has occasionally experimented with more extreme ideas.
He has previously shared his experience using magic mushrooms, and has now escalated things by trying a significantly stronger psychedelic.
The substance in question was 5-MeO-DMT, a compound found naturally in certain plants and in a species of toad, and one that’s sometimes used recreationally.
During an appearance on the The All-In Podcast, Johnson outlined what motivated him to take it.
“Two things. One is mostly as a longevity experiment,” he said.
He said the decision came from broader research he’d been doing into possible life-extension interventions, framing it as part of a wider process of systematically testing options.
“So when I started this project 5 years ago, the approach we had was go through all the scientific evidence ever published on health and longevity,” he said.
“Try to find the interventions that have the best evidence for effect size and we just went down the list from top performing on down.
“So, of course, you start with exercise, nutrition, sleep, and you work your way down to things like hyperbaric oxygen therapy and sauna, and then rapamy, metformin.”
Johnson said psychedelics came up as part of that larger review.
“And so, we never actually had on our radar psychedelics,” he said.
“They were always either an ancient medicine, you know, being used in in ritualistic practices or being pointed at things like depression and anxiety in in certain trials, but it was never understood as a rejuvenation protocol, something that was for anti-aging.”
He then described the experience of taking the drug in striking terms.
“I’m stunned. absolutely floored, speechless,” he said. “You you basically experience raw consciousness and raw intelligence.”
He added: “This is without question the most dynamic experience I’ve ever experienced as a human.”