Burning Man is an annual gathering that takes place at Black Rock City — a temporary community erected in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada. The event is described as an experiment in community and art, influenced by 10 main principles, including “radical” inclusion, self-reliance and self-expression,community cooperation, gifting and decommodification, as well as leaving no trace of the festivities behind. It blends music and art with a particular participatory social vision.

Last weekend, outside Las Vegas, a different kind of desert festival took place, called Further Future, now in its second year. The Guardian called it ‘Burning Man for the 1%’: a desert party for the tech elite. The guest list says it all. Among those present were Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Alphabet; Clear Channel CEO Bob Pittman; and top Facebook executive Stan Chudnovsky.

At Burning Man, attendees typically live in tents and bring their own provisions. It has even come under some criticism from old time Burners for allowing hidden luxury camps at the edge of town. In contrast, created by up-market devotees of Burning Man, Further Future is unapologetic about offering up “Unabashed luxury”, the website reads.

Can the ethos of Burning Man be sustained while dining on $250 a head dinners from the famed Japanese restaurant Nobu? Judge for yourself: If you want to know more about what happened behind these high walls of extreme luxury and tech royalty read further here

---

Also published on Medium.