In “The Three-Body Problem” science fiction trilogy, there’s a constant tension between the “escapists” who want to leave the galaxy and its problems and those who want to stay. We don’t have the technology yet to escape the universe on near-lightspeed ships. But in the tech community there is increasingly a discussion about another form of escapism—solving our social and unemployment problems with a combination of universal basic income and virtual reality.  

Or, as you might think of it on pop culture terms, intentionally opting to live in The Matrix.