Longevity escape velocity
The hypothetical point at which medical progress adds more than a year to life expectancy for every year that passes, so your remaining lifespan grows faster than you age. The term was popularised by the biogerontologist Aubrey de Grey. It is a speculative idea, not a forecast or a consensus scientific position.
If it ever arrived, a retirement could run far longer than any plan assumes — which is why even a small chance of it is an argument for a withdrawal rate and a portfolio built to last indefinitely, not just 30 years.
I don't bet on it arriving — nobody can. But I don't need it to be likely for it to change my maths: I already build for a pot that never runs out, and a longer life only makes that call look better. Plan for the long version; if it never comes, you were only ever too safe.
Every term, in plain English, on one page — the full glossary. Education, not advice.
Bring me a challenge.
The Exit Audit, then ninety minutes: a straight verdict, real alternatives with their pros and cons, and your first move. If you want someone to nod along, I’m the wrong person to pay.
Ninety minutes, online, €600 — the Exit Audit included.