Close your eyes and imagine the future: a great-grandmother blowing out 100 birthday candles, surrounded by four generations of family. A college graduate in 2050 planning not just for one career, but for three or four across a life that could stretch a century. These aren’t science-fiction dreams anymore. They are very real possibilities, thanks to one of humanity’s greatest achievements: longer lives.
In the United States, average life expectancy today is 78.4 years, up nearly 30 years from just a century ago (CDC, 2023). And the trend is upward. Each generation lives longer than the one before, supported by advances in medicine, public health, and technology. The question is no longer if people will live longer, but how far.
At the start of the 1900s, life expectancy in America hovered around 47 years (CDC, 2020). Infectious disease, unsafe childbirth, and poor sanitation cut lives short. Few people imagined a world where grandparents might see their grandchildren graduate from college.
Then, progress came in waves: vaccines, antibiotics, safer childbirth, clean water, better nutrition, and modern hospitals. By mid-century, people were living into their 60s; by the turn of the millennium, into their late 70s.
As Stanford psychologist Laura Carstensen, director of the Stanford Center on Longevity, has observed:
“People don’t just want more years, they want more healthy, meaningful years.”
And that’s exactly what we’ve gained: not just quantity, but quality. People are spending more years in good health, pursuing passions, traveling, and contributing to their communities.
In 2023, U.S. life expectancy rose again, gaining nearly a full year compared to the previous year (CDC, 2023). Women now live on average to 81.1 years, men to 75.8 years. These numbers will continue to inch upward, as preventive care, early diagnosis, and healthier lifestyles add resilience.
What this means is profound: for many of us, the prospect of living into our 80s or 90s is no longer the exception; it’s the expectation.
For most of human history, medicine was reactive: it treated disease once it appeared. Today, medicine is shifting toward prevention, even toward slowing or reversing aging itself. Several frontiers are especially promising:
As Sonia Arrison, author of 100 Plus: How the Coming Age of Longevity Will Change Everything, has written:
“Increasing the healthy lifespan, extending the sweet-spot of adulthood that combines vigor with wisdom, will give the world’s best minds more time to innovate solutions to humanity’s problems.”
Longevity, then, isn’t just a personal gift - it’s a collective one. Longer, healthier lives mean more innovation, more intergenerational wisdom, more opportunities to solve the world’s toughest challenges.
If you’re in your 20s or 30s today, you’re stepping into adulthood with tools your grandparents couldn’t have imagined. Preventive healthcare is more advanced, chronic disease management is stronger, and science is moving at an exponential speed.
The United Nations World Population Prospects projects that global life expectancy will continue rising from 72.8 years in 2019 to about 77.1 years by 2050 under its medium scenario (UN WPP, 2022).
And here in the U.S., the Census Bureau projects that life expectancy could reach 85.6 years by 2060, up from around 79.7 in 2017 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2020).
Taken together, these projections suggest a clear trajectory: Millennials, Gen Z, and future generations may live into their 90s routinely, with many surpassing 100.
This generational reality is about more than statistics. It’s about possibility. Imagine: More time for careers and reinvention. More time to raise children and watch grandchildren grow. More time to pursue passions, contribute to communities, and build legacies.
The Ripple Effects of Longevity
Longer lives reshape everything. Social structures, economies, and even our sense of self evolve when decades are added to the human story.
Carstensen captures this beautifully: “Aging isn’t the challenge; building an equitable society is.”
If people routinely live into their 90s, we’ll need new ways of thinking about work, retirement, family, and education. Life may no longer be a straight line (childhood, work, retirement), but a series of chapters, reinventions, and second (or third) acts.
Numbers and projections tell one story. But at its heart, longevity is about something more human: the gift of time. Time to see your great-grandchildren graduate. Time to pursue passions later in life. Time to love, to heal, to create, to contribute.
As Aubrey de Grey, a biogerontologist, has provocatively suggested: “Medical technology may enable human beings alive today not to die from age-related causes.”
Whether or not his bold prediction comes true in our lifetimes, it underscores a vital point: aging is no longer seen as inevitable decline, but as a frontier we can influence.
Longevity is one of humanity’s greatest achievements, but also one of its greatest challenges. To make longer lives fulfilling, we must plan: socially, emotionally, and financially.
The extra decades science is giving us are a gift. And like any gift, they are best enjoyed when prepared for.
At Savvly, we believe longer lives are richer lives, but only if they are supported by security, independence, and freedom. We are entering an era where turning 80, 90, or 100 will be ordinary. The question for each of us is: what kind of life will those extra years hold?
Assumptions and Risk Disclosure
The information on this page is provided for educational purposes only and is not intended as investment, legal, or tax advice. It is designed solely to illustrate how longevity-based investment benefits may work under certain assumptions. Actual results will vary.
All illustrations, examples, and case studies are hypothetical and are intended to demonstrate potential scenarios—not to predict or guarantee actual outcomes. They do not represent the performance of any individual investor, portfolio, or account.
Key Assumptions Used in the Illustrations
- Life expectancy and mortality projections are based on the most recent Social Security Administration (SSA) tables available at the time of simulation.
- In the event of death or early withdrawal, hypothetical scenarios assume that beneficiaries may receive 75% of the lesser of the initial investment or current market value, plus 1% for each full year the account was active.
- Case studies assume standardized market growth of 8% annually and do not incorporate unexpected market volatility, inflation, changes in interest rates, or changes in an investor’s personal circumstances.
- Simulations may assume a 3% annual early withdrawal rate prior to payout or death.
- All figures shown are net of fees.
Risks to Consider
- Market Risk: Investment values will fluctuate and may be worth more or less than the amount invested. There are no guaranteed returns.
- Sequence of Returns Risk: The order and timing of market gains or losses—particularly near the payout phase—can materially affect results.
- Longevity Risk: Living longer than projected may reduce the pooled benefit per participant; shorter-than-expected lifespans may affect the amount received.
- Redemption Impact: Early or voluntary withdrawals by other participants can impact overall fund performance and distribution outcomes.
No forecast, projection, or hypothetical return should be relied upon as a promise or representation of future performance. Investors should carefully evaluate their own circumstances and consult a qualified financial professional before making any investment decision.