You could more generously interpret the comment as meaning "evolution would never have got us to where we are now - i.e. the existence of humanity - without the

You could more generously interpret the comment as meaning "evolution would never have got us to where we are now - i.e. the existence of humanity - without there being substantial amounts of extinction along the way", which is harder to argue with. The real question is whether there's a bright future for life on earth without our own species going extinct first, or even without being replaced by a species with a comparable level of cognitive ability and self-awareness (but hopefully better ability to avoid have such a devastating impact on so many other species).