Inside Jeffrey Epstein’s ‘baby ranch’ plan: Did he aim to impregnate 20 women to create a ‘super race’?

Epstein ‘baby ranch’ scheme: Was he planning to impregnate 20 women to build a ‘super race’?

• Epstein planned to create a "super race" using his DNA at his New Mexico ranch.
• He joined elite scientific circles, funding research and conferences.
• No evidence confirms Epstein's plan was carried out or that he fathered children

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Jeffrey Epstein, the wealthy financier who died in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges, had spoken for years about a disturbing plan to use his wealth, property and influence to propagate his own DNA and create what he described as a “super race” of humans.

According to a detailed investigation by The New York Times, Epstein discussed the idea with scientists, advisers and business figures over several years, imagining a future in which women would be inseminated with his sperm at his sprawling New Mexico estate.

The ‘Baby Ranch’ Concept

From the early 2000s, Epstein allegedly described using his 33,000-square-foot Zorro Ranch near Santa Fe as a base where women would give birth to his children, an idea some who heard it privately referred to as a “baby ranch”.

Two scientists and a wealthy adviser recalled hearing Epstein outline the plan between 2001 and 2006. A woman who identified herself as a NASA scientist told reporters that Epstein wanted as many as 20 women pregnant at the ranch at any given time.

Despite the repeated discussions, there is no evidence that the plan was ever carried out, and no indication that it necessarily crossed legal boundaries.

Roots in Transhumanism

Epstein’s vision was linked to his interest in transhumanism, a movement that promotes the use of technologies such as genetic engineering and artificial intelligence to enhance human abilities.

Critics have often compared elements of transhumanist thinking to eugenics, the early-20th-century belief in improving humanity through selective breeding, an ideology later adopted and weaponised by the Nazis.

Courting the scientific elite

According to the New York Times, Epstein used money and persistence to embed himself within elite scientific circles, despite having exaggerated his financial achievements and misrepresented his influence.

Scientists linked to Epstein included Nobel Prize-winning physicist Murray Gell-Mann, Stephen Hawking, Stephen Jay Gould, genetic engineer George M. Church, neurologist Oliver Sacks and physicist Frank Wilczek.

He funded conferences, sponsored research and underwrote informal gatherings where scientific ideas were debated. Epstein donated $6.5 million to help establish Harvard University’s Program for Evolutionary Dynamics and gave $20,000 to the Worldwide Transhumanist Association.

On one occasion, scientists including Hawking boarded a submarine chartered by Epstein.

Controversial views and fallout

Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker said he attended gatherings where Epstein dominated discussions. At one session, Epstein criticised efforts to reduce starvation and expand healthcare in poorer countries, arguing such measures increased overpopulation.

Pinker said he challenged this view and was later informed that he was no longer welcome at Epstein’s gatherings.

Alan Dershowitz, Epstein’s lawyer during his 2008 case, later described the eugenics angle as shocking, questioning whether scientists were drawn by Epstein’s ideas or his money. Pinker has since called Epstein an “intellectual impostor”.

Sex trafficking charges and death in custody

Epstein pleaded not guilty to charges of trafficking girls as young as 14 and conspiracy. He was arrested on July 6, 2019, and held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan.

He was found dead in his cell on August 10, 2019. The New York City medical examiner ruled his death a suicide by hanging, a conclusion that has continued to spark controversy.

Claims about children and secrecy

Whether Epstein fathered children remains unclear. Recently released US Department of Justice files contain references suggesting he may have.

One diary entry describes a woman who said she gave birth around 2002 at the age of 16 or 17, alleging the baby was taken from her shortly after birth under the supervision of Ghislaine Maxwell. These claims have not been independently verified.

No children are mentioned in Epstein’s will, and there has never been public confirmation that he had offspring.