Yes—and no. The Fermi Paradox remains a useful framework for discussing the possibility of extraterrestrial life, encouraging us to consider the probabilities and challenges of making contact. It’s a great starting point for exploring the vastness of the universe and our role within it. However, its implied conclusion—that we “should have” seen signs of intelligent life by now—is fatally flawed. This assumption oversimplifies the complexities of interstellar communication and the nature of alien civilizations.

First, the universe is unimaginably vast, and humans have only been broadcasting detectable signals for about a century. These signals have barely traveled 100 light-years in a universe that spans billions of light-years. Expecting contact already assumes that advanced alien civilizations exist within this tiny range, are actively listening, and would prioritize responding to us. It’s more likely that we are in the very early stages of the search, my TST Futurism Timeline puts first contact at about the year 2325, plus or minus a century.

Second, the Paradox often overlooks that alien civilizations might not think or act anything like us. They are not simply advanced humans; their evolution, priorities, and technologies could be incomprehensibly different. To them, humanity might be unremarkable, akin to how we view ants—interesting but not a priority. This anthropocentric bias reveals more about our assumptions than it does about the likelihood of extraterrestrial life.

For more on why the Fermi Paradox’s built-in assumption doesn’t hold up, take the deep-dive: The Fermi Paradox is Too Anthropocentric.