Joscha Bach

Joscha Bach is a German-American cognitive scientist and AI researcher who received over $500,000 in comprehensive personal financial support from Jeffrey Epstein between 2015 and 2019, covering not just research but rent, health insurance, children's school tuition, immigration attorneys, tax debts, and family travel. Epstein directly placed Bach in academic positions at Harvard and MIT through an introduction to Joi Ito, and Bach became wholly financially dependent on Epstein for his family's basic living expenses.

The most explosive document in the archive is a July 2017 email in which Bach, at Epstein's request, wrote a multi-page analysis of how people perceive Epstein's sex offender status. In it, Bach described Epstein as an "ephebophile" and a "connoisseur of immature girls," acknowledged his "dominant-submissive" relationships with "very young women," and suggested that Epstein "paid a much higher price than your purported victims" — all while continuing to receive roughly $100,000+ per year from Epstein. Bach also participated in an email thread in which another correspondent referenced Epstein's "high profile island orgies," and he continued to use Epstein-controlled apartments as late as November 2023, more than four years after Epstein's death.

Background#

Joscha Bach is a cognitive scientist specializing in artificial general intelligence (AGI), computational cognitive science, and philosophy of mind. Born in Germany, he holds a Ph.D. in cognitive science from the University of Osnabrück. He became known in AI circles for his work on the MicroPsi cognitive architecture and his talks at conferences such as the Chaos Communication Congress. He was affiliated with the MIT Media Lab and Harvard's Program for Evolutionary Dynamics before relocating to San Francisco, where he joined the AI Foundation. He is married to Mira Bach (née Voigt), and they have two children, Aino and Taiyo.

Bach's public profile has centered on provocative ideas about consciousness, computation, and intelligence. His relationship with Epstein was not publicly known in detail until the release of the Epstein document archive.

Correspondence with Epstein#

Epstein Places Bach in Academia (2013)

The relationship began no later than January 2013. In a June 2013 email, Epstein introduced Bach to Joi Ito, director of the MIT Media Lab, writing: "I was bringing him to Harvard, my institute, but you can have him if you want. hes very thoughtful, is in touch with synthetic, intelligence, artificial general intelligence, biological inspired intelligence, and some thoughts on virtual worlds." Epstein to Ito, Jun 2013 This establishes that Epstein directly arranged Bach's academic placements and considered Bach someone he could assign to institutions at will.

Bach subsequently took a position at the MIT Media Lab, but his visa required MIT to be his formal employer while Epstein was his actual financial backer — an arrangement that created persistent complications. As Bach explained in December 2015: "My visa means that I can receive income only from my employer (MIT). However, my salary has to go to regular HR at MIT, and they have been very difficult (no idea if Joi could fix it, and what cost to himself)." Bach to Epstein, Dec 2015

Complete Financial Dependency ($500,000+)

A comprehensive accounting prepared by Richard Kahn of HBRK Associates (Epstein's accountant) in January 2018 documents the full flow of funds to Bach: Kahn to Epstein, Jan 17, 2018

Documented total through January 2018: at least $533,630.

The entity "Enhanced Education" was an Epstein-controlled vehicle. "Humanity Plus," an AI organization led by Ben Goertzel, served as a salary pass-through for Bach, allowing Epstein's money to reach him in a way that could be structured around visa requirements. Bach to Epstein, Sep 2016

This was not research funding in any conventional sense. Epstein paid for Bach's rent, health insurance, children's private school tuition, immigration attorney fees, tax debts, and family travel. Bach repeatedly reported that his accounts were empty:

• September 2016: "We are out of funds again; to cover rent, supplemental health insurance etc. from now until the end of the year, we will need about 25000 USD." Epstein replied: "no need to let it get to stressed stage." Bach to Epstein, Sep 2016

• June 2017: Bach requested approximately $80,000 for living expenses and rent through end of year, plus $14,000 for health insurance, $14,280 for German school tuition, and $10,000 for green card lawyers. Bach to Epstein, Jun 2017

• April 2018: Bach owed $51,845 in federal taxes and wrote: "This is very embarrassing, and I should have planned for this well in advance, but could you please bail us out?" Bach to Epstein, Apr 2018

• November 2018: Bach requested an additional $60,000 for moving expenses to San Francisco, living expenses, and taxes, noting he would need salary from the "AI Foundation" starting February. Bach to Epstein, Nov 2018

The degree of financial dependency was total. Bach could not pay rent, insure his family, educate his children, or remain legally in the United States without Epstein's ongoing support.

The "Ephebophile" Letter (July 2017)

The single most significant document in Bach's correspondence is a July 7, 2017 email thread in which Epstein solicited Bach's views on how others perceive him — and Bach responded with a multi-page analysis that demonstrates full awareness of Epstein's predatory behavior toward young women. Bach to Epstein, Jul 7, 2017

The exchange was triggered by Epstein writing: "I recently met very smart college student. very cute.. I told her I would help her getting grants. she was insulted. and when pressed said she couldnt be bought... your funding is intact :). no matter what" — explicitly linking Bach's continued funding to personal loyalty while describing his pursuit of a young woman.

Bach's response included the following passages:

On Epstein's Wikipedia entry and public perception:

"The first sentence of your Wikipedia entry introduces you as a sex offender, which due to contemporary America's fascinating difficulty of dealing with all things sex related establishes a strong prior on you being a pariah."

On how people categorize Epstein:

"Their null hypothesis will tend to be that you combine the apparently suspicious trait of being wealthy with the apparently horrible trait of being too much interested in too young girls."

"If people are able to think outside of moralistic terms, they may simply mark you down as an ephebophile but are bound to notice a few quirks."

On Epstein's failure to avoid consequences:

"First of all, why did you let yourself get caught? In the German jurisdiction (and likely not just there) you may have not faced the same risks, and you are good at calculating risks. Multiply the risk of a relationship to a girl getting sour or highjacked by an enemy by a sufficiently large number of girls, and doom is almost certain."

On Epstein's visible behavior with young women:

"publicly showing off relationships to very young women... Surrounding oneself with multiple young women while maintaining a power differential is apparently only seen as acceptable for teenage rockstars or rappers in their twenties"

"your relationships to young women appear not to be on equal footing but dominant-submissive, with little apparent regard for hurt feelings"

On Epstein's character:

"It is as if you are attracted to women (as long as they are not too womanly), but you don't like them very much."

"you cannot present an image as an unrepentant and unevolving connoisseur of immature girls."

Most remarkably, Bach suggested that Epstein suffered more than his victims:

"Some people might even realize that you paid a much higher price than your purported victims."

Bach also proposed a PR rehabilitation strategy, suggesting Epstein claim childhood abuse as an explanation for his behavior. He closed the email: "On a personal level: I cannot say how grateful I am for your unwavering support."

This document is extraordinary for several reasons. It demonstrates that Bach had firsthand knowledge of Epstein's ongoing pattern of pursuing young women in dominant-submissive dynamics. He chose to intellectualize and rationalize this behavior rather than distance himself. He actively advised Epstein on reputation management. He minimized the harm to victims. And he did all of this while receiving over $100,000 per year from Epstein — a fact both parties acknowledged in the same email thread.

The "Island Orgies" Email Thread (January 2015)

In January 2015, Bach participated in a brainstorming email thread about ideas for Epstein's network. In the same thread, Michele Reilly wrote to Epstein: "High profile island orgies also independently come to mind; but I have a strong suspicion that you may already have that covered." Bach, replying in the same chain, proposed: "Psychedelic retreats for groups of select individuals" and "A network of media people that can be used to efficiently place and coordinate friendly items in our corrupt opinion market." Email thread, Jan 2015

Bach did not object to or acknowledge the "island orgies" reference. His own suggestions — psychedelic retreats and media manipulation networks — indicate comfort with Epstein's inner circle culture and its transgressive framing.

The MIT Complications

Bach's time at MIT was marked by friction. In September 2016, he wrote: "The MIT affair took a toll." Bach to Epstein, Sep 2016 The precise nature of "the MIT affair" is not fully explained, but several factors are documented:

In July 2016, Bach wrote to Epstein about MIT's "Forbidden Research" conference: "Joi tells me that Ramona (MIT's HR person) was not happy about the idea to make a deal with the student. I suppose you discussed it. Did they feel that MIT might look too shady if they tried that?" Bach to Epstein, Jul 2016 The reference to "making a deal with the student" that MIT HR resisted remains unexplained.

Also in July 2016, Epstein reprimanded Bach for a confrontation with Noam Chomsky at one of Epstein's gatherings: "on a personal note, you telling chomsky that he should try to be quiet so that he might learn something new, was, not a big help to your career. attacking him personally made little sense." Bach replied: "Thank you, Jeffrey, for still talking to me after that! I have taken a break. I will take great care to not set myself up like this during a debate, it was most disgraceful." Epstein to Bach, Jul 2016

Bach also planned MIT's "Forbidden Research" conference and listed Epstein alongside Chomsky, George Church, and Steven Pinker as prospective participants, and proposed research topics including "Genetics and IQ, gender and sexuality" and "Psychedelics" — aligning with Epstein's interest in eugenics-adjacent science. Bach to Epstein, Jul 2016

Epstein-Funded Travel

Epstein's office, through Lesley Groff and American Express Centurion Travel, booked and paid for commercial flights for Bach and his family on multiple occasions:

• February 2019: Four tickets from Boston to San Francisco for the Bach family's relocation ($1,409.16 total). The travel agent asked: "what is kid's gender? I forgot who is boy, who is girl?" Travel booking, Feb 2019
• May 2019: Groff held flights for Bach to Germany at $2,492.33, with the family's tickets priced at $6,894.09. Groff to Bach, May 2019
• June 2018: Groff asked Epstein: "Ok to book these trips for Joscha and his family as stated below?" for a workshop in Italy, 2 adults and 2 children. Groff to Epstein, Jun 2018
• May 2019: EasyJet booking Berlin to Pisa for "JOSCHA BACH, MIRA BACH, TAIYO BACH, AINO BACH" on Epstein's account; Bach partially reimbursed $839.52. Travel records

All documented travel was commercial coach class. No evidence of private jet travel was found.

Christmas Gift (2018)

Bach received an Apple Watch Series 4 (40mm, stainless steel, space black, black Milanese loop) as a Christmas gift from Epstein in 2018, alongside other Epstein associates including Martin Nowak, Larry Visoski, and Karyna Shuliak. Gift list, Dec 2018

Visits to Epstein Properties#

Bach is documented visiting Epstein's properties repeatedly across multiple years, both for meetings and for extended stays in Epstein-controlled apartments.

Meetings at 9 East 71st Street (Epstein's NYC Mansion)

• December 12, 2016: "2:00pm Appt w/Joscha Bach" Schedule
• July 21, 2016: "11:30am Ehud, Ben Goertzel, Joscha Bach plus 7 more in the afternoon" Schedule

Meetings at Harvard

• June 4, 2015: "12:30pm LUNCH w/Martin, Noam, Joi Ito, Danny Hillis, Joscha Bach" Schedule
• September 17, 2016: Trip alongside Lawrence Krauss, Ehud Barak, Joi Ito, Martin Nowak, Leon Peshkin Schedule
• March 26, 2017: Bach listed alongside Noam Chomsky, Joi Ito, Danny Hillis, Seth Lloyd, Larry Summers, Mike Hopkins Schedule
• October 15, 2018: "3:30pm Appt w/Joscha Bach" on same day as Martin Nowak, Larry Summers dinner, Joi Ito dinner Schedule

Meetings at Martin Nowak's Office

• "2:45pm Joscha Bach" alongside Gerald Chan and Danny Hillis Schedule
• February 2018: Nowak wrote: "ideally i like to work with jeffrey alone for some time. please ask joscha to come after 2pm" Nowak email, Feb 2018

Epstein-Controlled Apartments

Bach regularly stayed in apartments controlled by Epstein's organization:

• July 2016: Apartment 7J Records
• March 2018: Bach requested: "From the 16th to the 18th of March, I would like to visit a workshop at NYU. Would it be possible to use the apartment during that time?" Bach email, Mar 2018
• April 2019: Apartment 10B — "Good morning Joscha. Hope you had a nice meeting with Jeffrey yesterday." Email, Apr 2019
• November 2023: Apartment 3M — a welcome letter prepared for "Joscha Back" [sic] to stay starting November 11, 2023, more than four years after Epstein's death in August 2019. Welcome letter, Nov 2023

The November 2023 stay indicates that Bach continued to benefit from Epstein estate-controlled resources well after Epstein's death and the extensive public exposure of his crimes.

Connections#

Bach's correspondence places him in direct contact with a significant network of Epstein associates:

• Jeffrey Epstein (1,664 emails) — Primary funder, patron, and the person on whom Bach was financially dependent
• Lesley Groff (496 emails) — Epstein's executive assistant who coordinated Bach's travel, apartments, and logistics
• Martin Nowak (238 emails) — Harvard evolutionary dynamics professor; frequent co-attendee at Epstein meetings
• Joi Ito (229 emails) — MIT Media Lab director who facilitated Bach's position at MIT; later resigned over Epstein ties
• Richard Kahn (74 emails) — Epstein's accountant at HBRK Associates who tracked all disbursements to Bach
• Ben Goertzel — Head of Humanity Plus, the organization used as a salary vehicle for Bach
• Danny Hillis — Co-attendee at multiple Epstein gatherings
• Noam Chomsky — Co-attendee whom Bach confronted at an Epstein meeting
• Lawrence Krauss — Co-attendee at Epstein's Harvard gatherings
• Ehud Barak — Co-attendee at Epstein meetings
• Seth Lloyd — Co-attendee at Epstein meetings
• Larry Summers — Co-attendee at Epstein meetings
• Michele Reilly — Co-correspondent in the "island orgies" brainstorming thread
• Kevin Slavin (66 emails) — MIT Media Lab associate
• Mira Bach/Mira Voigt (209 combined emails) — Bach's wife, whose family travel was also funded by Epstein

Document References#

• HBRK Associates funding accounting, Jan 2018 — Complete financial ledger of payments to Bach
• Bach's "ephebophile" analysis of Epstein, Jul 2017 — Multi-page letter analyzing Epstein's sex offender reputation
• Epstein introduces Bach to Joi Ito, Jun 2013 — Placement at MIT/Harvard
• Bach tax bailout request, Apr 2018 — $51,845 tax debt
• Brainstorming thread with "island orgies" reference, Jan 2015
• Bach out-of-funds request, Sep 2016 — $25,000 for rent and insurance
• Post-mortem apartment stay, Nov 2023
• Christmas gift list, Dec 2018 — Apple Watch
• Forbidden Research conference planning, Jul 2016 — "deal with the student" reference
• Family relocation flights, Feb 2019