That is incorrect.

If you want to build an empire, you're typically going to need the smartest men you can get. Or it comes with a greater advantage instead of just sending Men with clubs to conquer the rival tribe who has the exact same thing. And yes, these civilizations with better technology did uplift the people they conquered.

When Spain & Portugal reached the new world, the Native Indians were still in the Iron Ages. It's only after getting conquered, did they now learn about firearms or how to build multi-story buildings.

Of course, this isn't ALWAYS the case, as I just explained that Germany lost WW2 despite how ambitious they were with new technology. But that should be seen as an exception.

I have no idea what you people see in space exploration.

Space exploration is another branch of science. What is science? How humans attempt to understand their surroundings. It's actually pathetic to see Space research shunned, when there could be so much out there that actually explains where we came from, instead of just growing old and dying on this floating space rock like every other human before us.