Zoltan Istvan Gyurko, professionally known as Zoltan Istvan (born March 30, 1973), is an American transhumanist, journalist, entrepreneur, political candidate, and futurist.
Formerly a reporter for the National Geographic Channel, Istvan now writes futurist, transhumanist, secular and political-themed articles for major media, including The New York Times. He believes transhumanism will grow into a mainstream social movement in the 2020s. Istvan is the author of The Transhumanist Wager, a philosophical science fiction novel.
In late 2014, Istvan announced he was running for President of the United States in the 2016 election. He ran for his own Transhumanist Party to raise awareness for transhumanist politics issues but did not place his name on any state ballot. Later, in 2017, Istvan ran for Governor of California in the 2018 election as a member of the Libertarian Party. In 2019, Istvan ran for the Republican Party's nomination in the 2020 United States presidential election against President Donald Trump.