Infinite Loops: Recent Episodes
Jim O'Shaughnessy and Jamie Catherwood
Sometimes we get caught up in what feels like infinite loops when we try to figure things out. Markets go up and down, research is presented and then refuted, and we wind up right back where we started.
The goal of this podcast is to learn how we can reset our thinking on issues that leaves us with a better understanding as to why we think the way we think and how we might be able to change that, to avoid going in infinite loops and thoughts.
Hosts, Jim O’Shaughnessy and Jamie Catherwood, hope to offer you a fresh perspective on a variety of issues and look at them through a multi-faceted lens. Including history, philosophy, art, science, linguistics, and quantitative analysis. And help you become a better investor and also a more nuanced thinker.
Nadia Asparouhova, author of "Antimemetics: Why Some Ideas Resist Spreading," joins me for a fascinating exploration of why some ideas go viral while others—often the most important ones—resist transmission entirely.
We dive into antimemes, Curtis Yarvin's journey from being canceled to becoming mainstream, St. Paul as history's ultimate memetic engineer, and why "Don't Mess with Texas" became a masterpiece of viral messaging. Plus her current research on advanced meditation techniques, internet dynamics, and MUCH MORE!
Important Links:
- Nadia's Twitter
- Nadia's LinkedIn
- Personal Website
- Nadia’s Substack: Monomythical
Show Notes:
- Nadia’s fall into the Antimemetics Rabbithole
- Girardian Theory vs. Antimemetics
- The Story of Curtis Yarvin
- How Subcultures Form and Coalesce
- Engineering Supermemes
- Why Maxims are Compressed Memes
- The History of Antimemes
- Truth Tellers and Meme Spreading
- Gaining Immunity from Memetic Viruses
- Nadia’s Jhana Journey
- Nadia as Empress of the World
Books Mentioned:
- Antimemetics: Why Some Ideas Resist Spreading; by Nadia Asparouhova
- Virus of the Mind; by Richard Brodie
- There Is No Antimemetics Division; by qntm
- Steal This Book; by Abbie Hoffman
- Collective Illusions; by Todd Rose
- How to Change Your Mind; by Michael Pollan
- Thank You for Smoking; by Christopher Buckley
- Last Chance to See; by Douglas Adams
I’m joined today by two remarkable men I met through the O’Shaughnessy Fellowships and Grants program.
Israel Balogun was homeless and illiterate until the age of 22. Now, he leads a Nigerian youth rehabilitation nonprofit for street kids and is building a self-sustaining village for 200 out-of-school children with the support of an OSV Fellowship.
Miyoba Hamuhuma lost both parents by 12 and battled polio as a child. Now he runs Enlight Abilities, a Zambian organization advocating for inclusive education and economic dignity for children with disabilities and their families, backed by an OSV Grant.
“Inspiring” is overused nowadays, but here, it barely does them justice. As well as digging into their stories, we explore how personal pain became public mission, how grassroots enablement beats top-down intervention, and why they believe rewriting destiny begins with changing who gets seen, who gets supported, and who gets to dream.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Israel Balogun's Akhin Foundation
- Israel Balogun's LinkedIn
- Miyoba Hamuhuma's Enlight Abilities
- Miyoba Hamuhuma's LinkedIn
Show Notes:
- First Goodnight in 12 Years
- How OSV Helped to Build a Home for Street Kids
- The Street King – Reclaiming Agency
- The Dignity of Choice
- Microenterprise for the Mothers
- Rethinking the Street Kid Stigma
- Inclusion is Not a Luxury, It is a Necessity
- Trust over Control: We help the kids Lead
- We seek to enable and empower
- Emperors of the World
- $10 = 30 bricks = Home for a Street Child
Dr. Diane Hennacy Powell, neuropsychiatrist and author of "The ESP Enigma," joins me for a mind-bending exploration of consciousness, savant abilities, and the limitations of materialist science. Trained at Johns Hopkins under a neurologist-turned-psychiatrist, Diane has spent decades investigating phenomena that challenge our fundamental assumptions about how the brain works.
We dive deep into why the scientific establishment reacts so emotionally to consciousness research, her fascinating work with autistic savants, and why she believes the brain functions as a navigation tool for consciousness rather than its creator.
This is one of those conversations that might just upgrade your entire worldview. I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!,” check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Personal Website
- The Telepathy Tapes
Show Notes:
- Dr. Powell’s Journey through Science
- Early Interest in Savants
- Filter Failure and Consciousness
- Why People Reject Obvious Data
- Why are Savants different from Neurotypical People?
- The Sheep Goat Effect in Parapsychology
- The Brain as a Navigational Tool
- Improving our own Intuition and Focus
- Dr. Diane’s work on Twins
- Speculations in Post-Materialism
- Dr. Diane as Empress of the World
Books Mentioned:
- The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat; by Oliver Sacks
- The ESP Enigma; by Diane Hennacy Powell
- What Is Life? The Physical Aspect of the Living Cell; by Erwin Schrödinger
- Mind Over Back Pain; by Dr. John Sarno
Todd Rose, co-founder and CEO of Populace and author of books including "Collective Illusions" and "The End of Average," joins the show to discuss the science behind collective illusions and their impact on society.
We explore why so many Americans self-silence, the dangers of conformity, and how one person can spark change.
Todd and I are simpatico on… pretty much everything! So this was a fun one. I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!,” check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Website
- Collective Illusions
- The End of Average
Show Notes:
- Are We Living in the Truman Show?
- The Danger of Self-Silencing
- How to Know What People REALLY Think
- Why We Are Suckers For Groupthink
- Social Media: Why Bots Are Everywhere
- Why Persuasion is the Wrong Strategy for Fighting Collective Illusions
- There is More Social Trust in America Than You Think
- How We Can Fight Collective Illusions
- The Human Need to Be Understood
- Steelmanning & the Popperian Solution
- The Role of Fiction
- The Dawn of a New Era?
- Todd as World Emperor
Books Mentioned:
- Collective Illusions; by Todd Rose
- The End of Average; by Todd Rose
- The Power of the Powerless (essay); by Václav Havel
- Troubled; by Rob Henderson
- The Idea Factory; by Jon Gertner
- Theory of Moral Sentiments; by Adam Smith
- The Wealth of Nations; by Adam Smith
- White Mirror; by Tinkered Thinking
- The Guns of August; by Barbara Tuchman
Aerospace investor and York Space Systems chairman Chuck Beames joins me for a fascinating discussion on the commercial space revolution and the future of satellite security. A retired Air Force colonel with over 20 years experience as a space and intelligence officer, Chuck brings unparalleled expertise to our conversation about what many are calling "the second space race”.
We explore how America can leverage her free-market strengths, why ‘zero trust’ protocols could revolutionize cybersecurity, the military origins of GPS, and why Space Force needs a streamlined procurement approach.
I hope you enjoy this insightful conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Chuck's Twitter
- Chuck's Forbes Contributor Page
- The SmallSat Alliance
Show Notes:
- The Second Space Race
- The Zero Trust Approach and ‘Secure By Design’
- GPS as a Military Technology
- The Space Force is dealing with Multiple Complex Adaptive Systems
- New Paradigms in Satellite Design
- What VCs and Bankers Need to know about the Space Community
- Wargaming with AIs and Humans
- Laser Spoofing and Adversarial AIs
- Establishing Supply Chain Sovereignty
- Open Organizational Cultures
- Chuck’s Lessons from Woodworking
- The Job of an Executive Chairman
- Chuck as World Emperor
Strategy consultant turned writer Natasha Joukovsky joins me to discuss why bourgeois comfort is more conducive to writing than you think, why choice-plots make for better fiction, the eyerolling prevalence of manufactured nonchalance, our shared distaste for Atlantis Bahamas, and MUCH more!
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Natasha’s Website
- Natasha’s Substack
- The Portrait of a Mirror
Show Notes:
- “You can do everything, just not at the same time”
- It’s Recursion All the Way Down
- Pretending to Read vs Actually Reading
- Manufactured Nonchalance as a Status Signal
- Counter-Signalling, Fake-Famous & Jim’s Cursed Trip to Atlantis Bahamas
- On No-Choice Plots & Writing in Service of Beauty
- The Self-Deception of Status Hunting
- Why Bourgeois Comfort is More Conducive to Art Than You Think
- Natasha’s Next Book
- “We don’t do auctions”
- Natasha as World Empress
Books Mentioned:
- The Portrait of a Mirror; by Natasha Joukovsky
- The novels of Jane Austen
- Status Anxiety; by Alain de Botton
- The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock (poem); by T.S. Eliot
- Class: A Guide Through the American Status System; by Paul Fussell
- Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid; by Douglas R. Hofstadter
- Ulysses; by James Joyce
- Metamorphosis; by Franz Kafka
- Beloved; by Toni Morrison
- In Search of Lost Time (Remembrance of Things Past); by Marcel Proust
- Collective Illusions; by Todd Rose
- The Status Game; by Will Storr
- Anna Karenina; by Leo Tolstoy
- The Theory of the Leisure Class; by Thorstein Veblen
- A Little Life; by Hanya Yanagihara
I’ve said before that one of the best parts of hosting Infinite Loops is the chance to connect with people who consistently make me think differently — and few do that quite like Tiago Forte.
Tiago Forte joins Infinite Loops for the first time, and within minutes we closed the door on his best-selling “Building A Second Brain” and were off to the races: from digitizing 50,000+ words of personal data to build an AI-powered life coach, to the emotional intelligence hiding inside envy, to the surprising lessons he learned walking through a tiny historical museum in Coconut Grove.
We also dig into the messy magic of identity shifts, how fit dads triggered a personal transformation, and why letting go of productivity-as-performance might be the most productive thing you can do. Plus: the power of NotebookLM, building AI-native systems of self-awareness, and why the future will belong to those who embrace the one-way door.
Unsurprisingly, this was a fun one. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Tiago Forte’s Website
- Tiago Forte on X
- Tiago Forte on LinkedIn
- Tiago Forte’s Annual Reviews
- Building A Second Brain Book
- The PARA Method Book
- I Replaced my $700/hour Coach with NotebookLM — Here’s What Happened (YouTube)
- What I Learned About the Future By Reading 100 Science Fiction Books
Show Notes:
- Closing the Door on Second Brain
- The Power of the Annual Review
- Tiago's Family: Incredibly Vibrant, Visual, Auditory
- Incorporating AI Into Work & Life
- Joe Hudson: Mentorship and Emotional Intelligence
- Miami: The Most Introspective Place on Earth
- Irreversible Decisions
- Archival Material: Underrated Forcing Function
- The Future of Book Publishing
- The Hard Truth on Performance Reviews
- AI Skepticism & Building Moats
- AI-First Mentality for Early Adopters
- Learning From Sci-Fi Books
- Cumulative Cultural Evolution
- Tiago as Emperor of the World
Books Mentioned:
- Building A Second Brain: A Proven Method to Organize Your Digital Life and Unlock Your Creative Potential; by Tiago Forte
- The PARA Method: Simplify, Organize, and Master Your Digital Life; by Tiago Forte
- How Emotions are Made: The Secret Life of the Brain; by Lisa Feldman Barrett
- Tiny Experiments: How to Live Freely in a Goal-Obsessed World; by Anne-Laure Le Cunff
- Why Greatness Cannot Be Planned; by Kenneth O. Stanley and Joel Lehman
- Molecules Of Emotion: The Science Behind Mind-Body Medicine; by Candace B. Pert
- What Works on Wall Street; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- The Beginning of Infinity; by David Deutsch
- One Summer: America, 1927; by Bill Bryson
- White Mirror; by Tinkered Thinking
- The Forever War; by Joe Halderman
Author, speaker, founder, investor and behavioral design maestro Nir Eyal joins me for his second appearance on the show.
Today, we dig into Nir’s first book, “Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products.” We also discuss the difference between coercion and persuasion, AI’s use case as our personal Jiminy Cricket and MUCH more!
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Nir’s personal blog
- Nir’s LinkedIn
- Nir’s Twitter
- Nir’s YouTube channel
- Nir’s Habit Tracking Tool
- Nir’s Schedule Maker Tool
Show Notes:
- What Makes Silicon Valley’s Tech Products So Sticky?
- The Morality of Manipulation
- The Perils of Legalized Gambling
- Twitter is for Journalists and Nerds
- AI for Behavioural Design
- Believing in our own Agency
- On Labels and Limiting Identities
- Pills Don’t Teach Skills
- The Power of an Internal Locus of Control
- Escaping Discomfort & Getting Hooked
- AI as a Self-Directed Personal Tutor
- Nir As Emperor of the World
Books Mentioned:
- Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products; by Nir Eyal
- Influence; by Robert Cialdini
- Sick Souls, Healthy Minds: How William James Can Save Your Life; by John Kaag
Nathan Baschez is the cofounder and CEO of Lex, an AI word-processor. He also cofounded Every, was the first employee at Substack AND co-created Product Hunt.
Suffice to say, Nathan knows a thing or two about building on the internet.
He joins the show to discuss how AI is changing writing, why it’s time to rethink the article, the rise of solo founders and MUCH more.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Lex
- Substack
Show Notes:
- Lex: Your Spotter In the Writing Gym
- Letting People Into Your Creative Process
- Collaboration-as-a-Service
- Creation Is Fundamentally About Choices
- What Will Become of the AI Holdouts?
- AI Is Like the Internet In 1995
- Can AI Unfuck the Government?
- Blindspots While Working In Organizations
- Rethinking The ‘Article’ As A Medium
- Memes Are Dense Information Packets
- It’s Time for Solo Founders
- Why Learning About Cumulative Cultural Evolution Is Vital
- What’s Next for Lex?
- Writing As A Way To Design Thoughts
- Nathan As World Emperor
Books Mentioned:
- A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life; by George Saunders
- The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous; by Joseph Henrich
- The Secret of Our Success: How Culture Is Driving Human Evolution, Domesticating Our Species, and Making Us Smarter; by Joseph Henrich
Young, polymathic, and full of energy — Tommy Potter is on a quest to build a “CIA for Entrepreneurs.” He calls it “The Power Hour” — a startup community in Michigan that hosts dropouts, undergrads and PhDs across many industries: enterprise, consumer, CPG, aviation, gaming, robotics and AR/VR, as they work together to build cool projects.
I had a great time chatting with Tommy as we spoke about non-linear career paths, embracing authenticity, working with dazzling, delusional people and more!
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- X/Twitter
- Powerhour: The CIA For Entrepreneurship
Show Notes:
- Tommy’s Origin Story
- Using The Third Door
- Lessons from Documenting the Homeless
- Can We Ever Be Our Authentic Self?
- What Traits Tommy Looks for in People
- Bringing Delusional People Together
- The East Coast - West Coast Bubbles
- Being a ‘Weirdo Broker’
- Process Over Outcomes. Serendipity Over Itinerary.
- Different Personalities in Public vs. Private Markets
- The Importance of Learning People
- Life Isn’t a Highlight Reel - Live It All
- Tommy As World Emperor
Books Mentioned:
- The Third Door: The Mindset of Success; by Alex Banayan
- One-upmanship; by Stephen Potter
- Class: Style and Status in the USA; by Paul Fussell
- Dignity: Seeking Respect in Back Row America; by Chris Arnade
- The Science of Getting Rich; by Wallace D. Wattles
- The Act of Creation; by Arthur Koestler
Shopify Product Director Alex Danco returns for his NINTH appearance on the show — and he comes in hot. As you’ll hear, I didn’t even get a chance to introduce him before he launched into his take on what everyone gets wrong about Citizen Kane.
We also unpack the performance art of parenting, why dinner parties are the new status signals, the difference between meme and slop culture and MUCH more.
Unsurprisingly, this was a fun one. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/Alex_Danco
- Substack: https://danco.substack.com
- Website: https://alexdanco.com/
- Previous episode: https://newsletter.osv.llc/p/finding-method-in-the-madness?utm_source=publication-search
Show Notes:
- What EVERYONE gets wrong about Citizen Kane
- Jim’s hardest interview question
- Elon & Lutnick: clash of the cartoons
- The status hierarchy of baby strollers
- What happened to Yuval Noah Harari? (With a diversion via digital girlfriends and North Korean crypto hackers)
- Dinner parties as status signals
- Parenting as performative art
- History’s greatest memers
- Infinite Jest: the sequel (an Alex Danco & Jim O’Shaughnessy production)
- GIF culture vs AI slop
- From “code is capital” to “code is labour”
- “Did I mention that I dropped out of Stamford?”
- From Clint Eastwood to Cloud Atlas
- MORE!
Books, Articles & Films Mentioned:
- Two Thoughts: A Timeless Collection of Infinite Wisdom; by Jim O'Shaughnessy and Vatsal Kaushik
- Finnegans Wake; by James Joyce
- Invest Like the Best; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
- Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind; by Yuval Noah Harari
- Underwriters of the United States: How Insurance Shaped the American Founding; by Hannah Farber
- The Magic Mountain; by Thomas Mann
- The Gervais Principle; by Venkatesh Rao
- Scarcity & Abundance in 2025; by Alex Danco
- Cloud Atlas; by David Mitchell
- Citizen Kane; directed by Orson Welles
- F for Fake; directed by Orson Welles
- My Dinner with Andre; directed by Louis Malle
- Letters from Iwo Jima; directed by Clint Eastwood
- Million Dollar Baby; directed by Clint Eastwood
- Fawlty Towers (TV show)
- Absolutely Fabulous (TV Show)
My guest today is my former teammate Vizi Andrei, founder of The Sovereign Artist program and author of Sovereign Artist: Meditations on Lifestyle Design.
Vizi’s journey has been anything but conventional. After dabbling in various creative projects, he realized that the internet offers a unique opportunity: the freedom to take countless small risks without catastrophic consequences.
He built The Sovereign Artist program to help creators step away from the toxic hustle culture and build sustainable, meaningful lives rooted in creativity, deep work, and sacred leisure. His insights into Slow Living, the Sicilian Dream, and embracing experimentation over optimization can help one break free from comparison traps.
He joins me to discuss the dangers of chasing unrealistic benchmarks of success, the myths of modern productivity, how to unlock creative freedom, and MUCH more!
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Website
- The Sovereign Artist
- KronArête (Community)
- Gumroad
- X
- The Great Reshuffle
Show Notes:
- Is procrastination a signal for something bigger?
- The Sicilian Dream: challenging the hustle culture
- The Pursuit of Busyness
- The rise of the pseudo-entrepreneur
- Are we taking the internet for granted?
- The outlier obsession can kill your creative potential
- Are your goals your own? or borrowed from prepackaged societal narratives?
- Drunk with too many choices
- Crossing the bridge of nihilism
- The art of boredom: slow living might just be the answer
- Knowledge is existential; energy is everything
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Sovereign Artist: Meditations on Lifestyle Design; by Vizi Andrei
- The Pathless Path: Imagining a New Story for Work and Life; by Paul Millerd
- Status Anxiety; by Alain de Botton
- The Soul of the World; by Roger Scruton
- Escolios to an Implicit Text; by Nicolás Gómez Dávila
- Antifragile: Things That Gain from Disorder; by Nassim Taleb
- The Infinity of Lists; by Umberto Eco
- The Myth of the Eternal Return; by Mircea Eliade
- Happy: Why More or Less Everything is Absolutely Fine; by Derren Brown
My friend Barry Ritholtz has spent his career being an astute market observer, investigating behavioral finance and data analytics. He runs Ritholtz Wealth Management which has been named ETF Advisor of the Year, Financial Times Top 300 Advisors, and one of America’s fastest-growing RIAs. He’s also the host of Masters in Business, Bloomberg Radio’s most popular podcast (50+ million streams/downloads), which he started way back in 2014.
In his new book, How Not To Invest, Barry emphasizes how avoiding rookie mistakes can significantly help you do better financially. He blends engaging stories with data-driven insights, and explores overlooked aspects of behavioral finance, psychology and the market. Reading his book is like having a casual drink with an experienced, wise, and honest friend.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Blog
- Ritholtz Wealth Management
Show Notes:
- How Amateurs Win
- Managing Emotions When the Market Goes Down
- If You Can't Afford a Financial Advisor Yet…
- Notable Financial Innovations
- Barry’s Transition from a Trader to an Investor
- Varieties of Investor Personas
- What To Do When Randomness Derails Your Plans
- Finding Your Own Maintainable Processes
- Having Reliable Information Sources
- Barry As World Emperor
Books Mentioned:
- How Not to Invest: The Ideas, Numbers, and Behaviors That Destroy Wealth - And How to Avoid Them; by Barry Ritholtz
- Winning the Loser’s Game; by Charley Ellis
- How We Know What Isn't So: The Fallibility of Human Reason in Everyday Life; by Thomas Gilovich
The relentlessly prolific Jason Carman is making the films our culture needs: optimistic, inspiring and positioned at the frontiers of modern tech and science. In under two years, he has shipped more than 70 high-quality mini-documentaries exploring the startups shaping the future, racking up over 130,000 YouTube subscribers along the way.
His new venture, Story Company, premiered “New Space”, its 100+ minute-long exploration of the modern space industry, to a packed San Francisco theater this year. Story Company has multiple projects in the pipeline, including a full-length sci-fi feature. Ultimately, he intends to create a new generation of sci-fi films: a Star Wars for the 21st century.
I love Jason’s ambition, drive and enthusiasm (not to mention his filmmaking chops), which is why we awarded him a $100k O’Shaughnessy Fellowship last year.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Jason on X
- Story Company on X
- Story Company on Youtube
- Story Company’s Website
- “New Space” Frontier Film
- Jason’s Fellowship
Show Notes:
- How Jason fell in love with filmmaking
- Laziness as an edge
- How to build a good team
- How to fix Hollywood
- Frontier Films: a new category of movie
- From science-fact to science-fiction
- Finding the right infinite loops
- The roots of the idea of America
- A Complete Unknown: Jason’s slideshow & Bob Dylan’s anti-authoritarianism
- Getting woo on Tenet’s Sator square
- How do you know when a movie is finished?
- The fragility of the artist
- We are all co-creators
- Jason as World Emperor
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- I Am a Strange Loop; by Douglas Hofstadter
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
- One Summer: America 1927; by Bill Bryson
- The Hypomanic Edge: What Built America; by John D. Gartner
- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; by Douglas Adams
Movies Mentioned:
- New Space (directed by Jason Carman)
- Flow (directed by Gints Zilbalodis)
- My Dinner With Andre (directed by Louis Malle)
- Star Wars (directed by George Lucas)
- A Complete Unknown (directed by James Mangold)
- Tenet (directed by Christopher Nolan)
- Dune: Part Two (directed by Denis Villeneuve)
My guest today is Anne-Laure Le Cunff, founder of Ness Labs and author of Tiny Experiments: How to Live Freely in a Goal-Obsessed World.
On paper, Anne-Laure had it all: top grades, a high-flying job at Google, and a life that seemed to hit all the markers of success.
But something was off. No matter how “traditionally” successful she became, she felt… “empty.”
So, she decided to do something about it. A neuroscience PhD, 100,000+ newsletter subscribers, and a newly published book later, she’s developed a new model of success — one built around conducting “tiny experiments” that help her build a life on her own terms.
She joins me to discuss how we get trapped in cognitive scripts, the hidden dangers of productivity culture, how we can experiment our way to a better life and MUCH more!
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Anne-Laure’s Twitter/X
- Ness Labs
- Tiny Experiments Book
Show Notes:
- How do you know you are bored out?
- People who love us the most might turn out to be our biggest blockers
- Don't confuse activity with effectiveness
- We will do virtually anything to gain what is really an illusion of control
- The map is not the territory, the menu is not the meal. And yet, words are magic spells.
- The Winner’s Script and the Loser’s Script
- "You got to run at the top speed if you just want to stay in place.”
- Let go of the linear and replace it with the loop- a more cyclical approach for growth
- Can you sit alone in a room for 15 minutes?
- Procrastination is just a signal from your brain that something is not quite working right now
- We know nothing
- AI is a rocket ship for the mind
- In 100 years, nobody will remember you
Books Mentioned:
- Why Greatness Cannot Be Planned; by Ken Stanley
- Thinking in Bets; by Annie Duke
- Collective Illusions; by Todd Rose
- Maybe Logic; by Robert Anton Wilson
- Beginning of Infinity; by David Deutsch
- Science and Sanity: An Introduction to Non-Aristotelian Systems and General Semantics; by Alfred Korzybski
- The Science of Storytelling: Why Stories Make Us Human and How to Tell Them Better; by Will Storr
If you’ve heard me speak for more than five minutes you’ve probably caught me dropping a Robert Anton Wilson reference (or several). Wilson is one of the most interesting (and underappreciated) writers I’ve ever come across — a Nostradamus for modern times.
I was delighted to sit down with Gabriel Kennedy, author of the excellent biography Chapel Perilous: The Life and Thought Crimes of Robert Anton Wilson. I could talk about this stuff for days, and we had a blast discussing Wilson’s ideas, influence and impact. Consider it a beginner’s guide to avoiding cosmic schmuckery.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Chapel Perilous: The Life and Thought Crimes of Robert Anton Wilson; by Gabriel Kennedy
- The Thinker and the Prover; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- Gabriel’s Substack
Show Notes:
- The most interesting man of the last fifty years?
- How can we escape chapel perilous?
- The anti-determinist, rock & roll philosophy of Bob Wilson
- Tune in: a 30 minute masterclass on the influences, ideas and impact of Robert Anton Wilson
- How to avoid becoming a cosmic schmuck
- Who influenced Wilson the most?
- Why you should read Wilson
- Gabriel as World Emperor
- MORE!
Books & Articles Mentioned:
- The Thinker and the Prover; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- Chapel Perilous: The Life and Thought Crimes of Robert Anton Wilson; by Gabriel Kennedy
- Prometheus Unbound by Robert Anton Wilson
- Quantum Psychology: How Brain Software Programs You and Your World by Robert Anton Wilson
- The Illuminatus! Trilogy by Robert Anton Wilson and Robert Shea
- Cosmic Trigger Volume I: Final Secret of the Illuminati by Robert Anton Wilson
- The New Inquisition: Irrational Rationalism and the Citadel of Science by Robert Anton Wilson
- Prometheus Rising by Robert Anton Wilson
- Quantum Psychology: How Brain Software Programs You and Your World by Robert Anton Wilson
- The Waste Land by T. S. Eliot
- From Ritual to Romance by Jessie L. Weston
- Finnegans Wake by James Joyce
- Science and Sanity: An Introduction to Non-Aristotelian Systems and General Semantics by Alfred Korzybski
- On the Einstein Podolsky Rosen Paradox; by John S. Bell
- How the Hippies Saved Physics: Science, Counterculture, and the Quantum Revival by David Kaiser
- Character Analysis by Wilhelm Reich
- Man Meets Dog by Konrad Lorenz
Christine Benz is the Director of Personal Finance and Retirement Planning at Morningstar, where she has spent over three decades helping investors navigate the complexities of financial planning. She is also the author of "How to Retire: 20 Lessons for a Happy, Successful, and Wealthy Retirement" and serves as the president of the John C. Bogle Center for Financial Literacy.
Before focusing on retirement planning, Christine worked as a fund analyst, bringing a unique perspective that combines deep investment knowledge with practical financial wisdom.
Christine joins the show to discuss why retirement isn't just about hitting your "magic number," how to overcome the psychological barriers to retirement spending, why keeping your inner circle vibrant is crucial for long-term happiness, the surprising power of lifetime giving, and MUCH more.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, "Hmm, that's interesting!", check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Website
Show Notes:
- Retirement Focus: Finances or Lifestyle?
- Bring Your Kids In The Loop
- Embrace the Challenges of Social Health
- A Day in The Life of a Retiree
- Defaulting People Into Saving
- Genesis of the FIRE Movement
- Horsemen of The Investment Apocalypse
- The Delicate Balance of Investment Buckets
- Dodging A Single Point of Failure
- How to Sniff Out Fishy Financial Advice
- The Saver vs the Investor Personality Type
- Keeping Up With Mr. Market
- Annuities: The Low-Risk Underdog
- Christine as World Emperor
Books / Authors Mentioned:
- How to Retire: 20 Lessons for a Happy, Successful, and Wealthy Retirement; by Christine Benz
- The works of Jonathan Franzen
Luke Fehily is the Director of Innovation Policy at Progress Ireland — an independent think tank backed by the likes of the Collison brothers — that’s on a mission to connect Ireland to proven policy solutions from around the world.
Before joining Progress Ireland, Luke cut his teeth in both public and private sectors, developing a unique perspective on how to navigate bureaucratic challenges while maintaining ambitious visions for change. His current work spans housing, infrastructure, and innovation policy, with a particular emphasis on meta-scientific approaches to research funding and development.
In this episode we discuss why Ireland should embrace techno-optimism, how to beat the NIMBY challenge with win-win solutions, why young scientists need more research funding, and MUCH more. Plus, we even touch on drone coffee deliveries (happening now in Dublin) and the things needed to unleash Ireland's entrepreneurial spirit.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Progress Ireland Website
Show Notes:
- The Irish GDP Boom
- The Origins of Progress Ireland
- The Path Past Bureaucratic Barriers
- Where the State Meets the Street
- How Bad Political Vibes Can Seep in
- Where the Creme De La Creme Goes in State Projects
- Innovation Amidst EU’s Strict Restrictions
- National EU Friction
- Densification Dilemmas
- Balancing Efficiency and Equity in Public Procurement
- How to Handle NIMBYs
- Pushing Past Infrastructural Comfort Zones
- Fostering Cultural Shifts
- What is Metascience?
- Recalibrating Success Metrics
- The Irish Brain Drain
Books Mentioned:
- Where the State Meets the Street by Bernardo Zacka
Rudy Havenstein is a writer and satirist known for his sharp critiques of America’s sprawling institutions and the elites who run them.
He joins the show to discuss the accountability crisis in America — how it manifests across political life and, most importantly, what we can do to fix it.
Important Links:
- Rudy’s Twitter
- Rudy’s Substack
Show Notes:
- Why we should fear hyperinflation
- “The Fed is Congress’ drug dealer”
- The Great Financial Crash & America’s accountability crisis
- How to disagree agreeably
- How democracy REALLY works
- Why we should bring back Glass-Steagall
- The problem of cluelessness
- Solutions to the accountability crisis
- What has happened to investigative journalism?
- Why partisanship is overstated
- Rudy as World Emperor
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Yellen: The Trailblazing Economist Who Navigated an Era of Upheaval; by Jon Hilsenrath
- Deterring Democracy; by Noam Chomsky
- The Rule of Nobody: Saving America from Dead Laws and Broken Government; by Philip K. Howard
Mark Daniel is the co-founder and managing partner of the investment firm Digital, whose portfolio extends across accelerated computing, gaming, crypto, social networking, AI, extended reality, cybersecurity, creator tools, spatial computing, and immersive learning.
Back in 2013, he was also one of the very first recipients of a Thiel Fellowship.
This was a fun one. Mark joins the show to discuss why podcasts are dangerous (😬), why content creators should have a 10 post limit, how he identifies kaleidoscopic aliens to invest in, and MUCH more.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Digital
- Mark’s Twitter
- Mark’s LinkedIn
Show Notes:
- Why podcasts are dangerous
- Why content creators should be limited to 10 posts
- Advice is simple; life is hard
- How to find a kaleidoscopic alien
- How to win the great game
- Mania-immune investing
- Jim’s “I’m a sports guy” algorithm
- What beliefs would you die for?
- What have you unlearned in the past year?
- The fragility of morality
- Passion as a forcing function
- Movie recommendations: My Dinner With Andre & Elevator to Gallows
- Mark as World Emperor
- MORE!
Books & Articles Mentioned:
- How to Be Successful; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- How to Win Friends and Influence People; by Dale Carnegie
John Kennedy, a director at the Corsi-Rosenthal Foundation, is tackling an overlooked crisis in American education: air quality.
With the ingenious use of a simple $60 box fan, he's on a mission to revolutionize the health and learning environments of students nationwide.
It's mind-boggling how much low-hanging fruit there is here. The difference that clean air makes to health and brain capacity is enormous, and it's a surprisingly cheap problem to fix. In fact, as you'll hear about halfway through our conversation, I was so convinced by John and the Corsi-Rosenthal team's solution that I committed to offering him a $100k Fellowship on the spot.
But our discussion went far beyond air quality. John shared fascinating insights into the future of education—how we can reorganize it from the ground up to produce happy, healthy, and high-agency adults ready for the challenges of the 21st century.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- The Corsi-Rosenthal Foundation
- John’s LinkedIn
- John’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Nobody gets to choose the air they breathe…
- Why has air quality been overlooked?
- When Jim got stranded up a mountain
- How do you scale a K-12 solution?
- What would it cost to put a Cori-Rosenthal box in every New York classroom?
- Surprise! Welcome to the O’Shaughnessy Fellowships
- What would a model 21st-century K-12 system look like?
- How to overcome systemic inertia
- Do Charter schools work?
- Why public schools can’t mimic private school innovations
- What exciting developments are happening in edtech?
- What does public school look like in 2044?
- John as World Emperor
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America; by George Packer
Michael Strong has spent decades quietly revolutionizing education by designing innovative schools and programs built around agency, critical thinking, entrepreneurship and creativity.
He is the founder and CEO of The Socratic Experience, a virtual school that equips students for lifelong happiness and success through Socratic dialogue.
Alongside his work in the US, he has educational consulting experience in multiple developing nations.
And… he’s a fellow Minnesotan!
Michael joins the show to discuss whether Socratic education can scale, the benefits of the Mormon model, why high agency is the default, and MUCH more!
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Michael’s Substack
- The Socratic Experience
Show Notes:
- One book a night and mental chess - a Minnesotan childhood.
- Can Socratic education scale?
- Are we entrenching a new elite?
- Why high agency is the default
- Creating new subcultures & the benefits of the Mormon model
- Experimenting our way to prosperity
- Tearing down the citadel, secret censorship & claiming the moral high ground
- Prediction markets & why we should be betting on our reputation
- The heroic tradition of reason
- Michael as World Emperor
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Dr. Semmelweis vs. the World (Infinite Loops Substack)
- Ignore. Fight. Ridicule (Infinite Loops Substack)
- The Habit of Thought: From Socratic Seminars to Socratic Practice; by Michael Strong
- Be the Solution: How Entrepreneurs and Conscious Capitalists Can Solve All the World's Problems; by Michael Strong and John Mackey
- The Case Against Adolescence: Rediscovering the Adult in Every Teen; by Robert Epstein
- The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr
- The New Inquisition: Irrational Rationalism and the Citadel of Science; by Robert Anton Wilson
- Hierarchy in the Forest: The Evolution of Egalitarian Behavior; by Christopher Boehm
- Collective Illusions: Conformity, Complicity, and the Science of Why We Make Bad Decisions; by Todd Rose
- Can Gambling Save Science? Encouraging an Honest Consensus; by Robin Hanson
- Skin in the Game: Hidden Asymmetries in Daily Life; by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
- Hothouse Earth: An Inhabitant's Guide; by Bill McGuire
- Think in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don't Have All the Facts; by Annie Duke
- The Ultimate Resource; by Julian L. Simon
- Keep Your Identity Small; by Paul Graham
Sahil Bloom, a prolific creator, founder and investor, has mastered the art of translating complex ideas about wealth and success into wisdom that resonates with millions. His newsletter, The Curiosity Chronicle, grew from just 100 readers to over 800,000 subscribers in three years - a testament to his ability to cut through the noise with clarity and insight. His upcoming book, "The 5 Types of Wealth," challenges our conventional understanding of what it means to be truly wealthy, arguing that financial success is just one piece of a much larger puzzle.
Here's what makes Sahil fascinating - he's built his empire not through traditional paths (he left his high paying private equity job), but by following his curiosity and sharing what he learns along the way. Today, we'll explore the frameworks that have helped him impact millions, why traditional definitions of success might be holding us back, and how Sahil’s relationship with time reshaped the way he thinks about wealth, wisdom, and the pursuit of a meaningful life.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Sahil’s Website
- Sahil’s Twitter
- Sahil’s Blog
Show Notes:
- The Ripple Effect of spreading good ideas
- Sahil’s Origin Story
- The Finite Impermanence of Time
- Would you trade lives with Warren Buffett?
- The Loneliness Epidemic
- The Paradox of setting Big Goals and needing Small Steps to get there
- Why waking up at 5am can rewire your brain
- Why do people chase the wrong things?
- Jim and Sahil’s Memento Mori
- Factoring in the 5 Types of Wealth when making a decision
- What makes A Wonderful Life?
- Money As a Byproduct of Pursuing Purpose
- Sahil’s Message As World Emperor
Books Mentioned:
- Zorba the Greek; by Nikos Kazantzakis
- Adventures of a Bystander; by Peter Drucker
- The Anxious Generation; by Jonathan Haidt
- Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu
- Collective Illusions; by Todd Rose
- The Psychology of Money; by Morgan Housel
Seth Stephens-Davidowitz, a data scientist and bestselling author, is known for his brilliant use of data to upend conventional wisdom - often with humorous, surprising, and occasionally shocking results. His latest book, Who Makes the NBA, uses data to interrogate some of basketball’s biggest questions, consistently yielding unexpected insights. Here’s the kicker - he wrote the entire book in just 30 days after discovering Code Interpreter.
Unsurprisingly for a former quant, I had a blast chatting to Seth. Topics discussed include why so many NBA players are called Chris, whether basketball is due for a Moneyball moment, and why so many of us misunderstand the rags-to-riches story.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Seth’s Website
Show Notes:
- Author, data scientist… comedian?
- Using Code Interpreter to write a book in 30 days
- The trait that makes it incredibly easy to become an NBA player
- Why the best NBA player in history isn’t who you think it is
- Is basketball due a Moneyball moment?
- Why are so many NBA players named Chris?
- What people get wrong about the rags-to-riches story
- The hidden magic of data storytelling
- Finding your audience
- The danger of glamour
- Keep it simple, stupid
- Why the standard interview sucks
- Doppelgangers & the power of A/B testing
- The overdue revolution in health data
- Why Google should be worried
- Stated vs revealed preferences
- The power of enormous data sets
- Seth as World Emperor
Books Mentioned:
- Who Makes the NBA?: Data-Driven Answers to Basketball's Biggest Questions; by Seth Stephens-Davidowitz
- Don't Trust Your Gut: Using Data to Get What You Really Want in Life; by Seth Stephens-Davidowitz
- Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who We Really Are; by Seth Stephens-Davidowitz
- What Works on Wall Street: A Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
Julian Gough sums up his career as follows: “I just sit in my room and write.”
Well, I think being an acclaimed children’s author, novelist, stage playwright, poet and top-ten Irish musician is a little more impressive than he’s letting on…
Oh, and I didn’t even mention that he wrote the ending to the computer game Minecraft!
His current project, The Egg and The Rock, puts all of this to shame. This book, which Julian is writing in public on Substack, seeks to do no less than redescribe the universe, arguing that is not some random, dead, purposeless sack of chemicals, but instead a living, evolving organism.
Julian joins me to discuss why the arc of human evolution bends towards man-made black holes, the hidden catastrophe at the heart of materialist science, the strange life of subterranean ice aliens, and MUCH more!
This was such an interesting conversation - I can’t wait for you to hear it. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Julian’s Website
- The Egg and The Rock
- Julian’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- “I just sit in my room and write”
- Why write a book in public?
- Materialism & science’s hidden catastrophe
- “The scientific method is in conflict with human nature”
- The faulty assumption at the heart of cosmology
- Big bangs, supermassive black holes & Darwinian evolution: A ~30 minute masterclass in cosmological natural selection
- “I'm predicting very, very large amounts of life in this universe”
- The strange life of subterranean ice aliens
- Could we spot man-made black holes?
- Bringing consciousness into physics
- Pulling back the curtain
- Julian as World Emperor
- MORE!
Books & Articles Mentioned:
- The New Inquisition: Irrational Rationalism and the Citadel of Science; by Robert Anton Wilson
- Against Method: Outline of an Anarchistic Theory of Knowledge; by Paul Feyerabend
- What the Tortoise Said to Achilles; by Lewis Carroll
- The Life of the Cosmos; by Lee Smolin
- What Is Life? The Physical Aspect of the Living Cell; by Erwin Schrödinger
- Isis Unveiled: A Master-Key to the Mysteries of Ancient and Modern Science and Theology; by Helena Petrovna Blavatsky
- The Bhagavad Gita
- Did the Universe evolve?; by Lee Smolin
- The Great Filter - Are We Almost Past It?; by Robin Hanson
Ben Reinhardt is the founder of Speculative Technologies “a nonprofit industrial research lab that’s working to unlock a wonderful, abundant future through technologies that don’t have a home in other institutions.”
He has previously worked at NASA and Bay Area startups/VC firms, founded a startup building robotics for eldercare, and helped entrepreneurs start companies in Singapore. Oh, and he has a Ph.D. in space robotics from Cornell University and is one of the few people with a B.Sc. in history!
Ben, who brings his expertise in emerging technologies to the OSV advisory council, joins the show to discuss why tech people don’t do philanthropy, when to trust a credential, why there aren’t more government moonshot programs, why academia is beholden to the new, and MUCH more!
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Speculative Technologies
- Ben’s Twitter
- Ben’s LinkedIn
Show Notes:
- Speculative Technologies: the four-stage roadmap
- How early VC funding can affect incentives
- From ‘eureka!’ to getting it out into the world
- Market failure & institutional consolidation
- Where are the moonshot programs?
- The skills needed to run a research program
- Why tech people don’t do philanthropy
- Turning philanthropy into a status game
- The hidden importance of materials & manufacturing
- When to trust a credential
- Agency & American culture
- Lean ideas vs. fat ideas
- Why academia is beholden to novelty
- Ben as World Emperor
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- What Works on Wall Street, Fourth Edition: The Classic Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations that Transform the World; by David Deutsch
- The Road; by Cormac McCarthy
- The Hypomanic Edge: The Link Between (A Little) Craziness and (A Lot of) Success in America; by John D. Gartner
- The Coffee Can portfolio; by Robert G. Kirby
My guest on Infinite Loops this week knew he wanted to be an entrepreneur from the time he was buying and selling things on eBay.
Jay Reno claims he didn’t know what the word ‘arbitrage’ meant back then, but if you tug on the colourful threads of his career, you’d reveal the kind of tenacity and resourcefulness that allows special founders like him to repeatedly find value in places that have long been deserted by everybody else.
If you listen in on today’s episode, it will become apparent why O’Shaughnessy Ventures invested in Jay and his current venture. Jay is the CEO and Founder of Pointhound, which helps people find amazing deals on flights and travel using their credit card points and miles. He’s also a partner at 645 ventures.
Among other fun pursuits, he’s spent the last ten years building all sorts of cool things; like a same-day grocery delivery service, a craft coffee company, a restaurant and bar reservation app, and a furniture rental service for city dwellers.
We spent our conversation talking about his advice for first-time founders; his learnings from building Pointhound; the whimsical world of credit card point programmes; his thoughts on consumer psychology; and much more!
For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Jay’s Twitter
- Jay’s LinkedIn
- 645 Ventures
- Pointhound HQ
Show Notes:
- How To Bring Your Idea To Life
- The Virtues of the Y-Combinator Model
- Picking the Right Investor
- Pointhound & The Points Game
- On Consumer Psychology and Trying New Things
- Removing the Invisible Barrier
- Product Cycles and User Feedback
- Slow Down to Speed Up
- The Common Pitfalls in Building Consumer Products
- The Credit Card Prestige Factor
- The Cashback Conundrum
- The Future of Pointhound
- Jay, The Emperor of The World
Books & Articles Mentioned:
- My Inventions: The Autobiography of Nikola Tesla; by Nikola Tesla
- Mistakes were Made. (And, Yes, by Me.); by Jim O’Shaughnessy
My guest today is Michael Garfield, a paleontologist, futurist, writer, podcast host and strategic advisor whose “mind-jazz” performances — essays, music and fine art — bridge the worlds of art, science and philosophy.
This year, Michael received a $10k O’Shaughnessy Grant for his “Humans On the Loop” discussion series, which explores the nature of agency, power, responsibility and wisdom in the age of automation.
This whirlwind discussion is impossible to sum up in a couple of sentences (just look at the number of books & articles mentioned!) Ultimately, it is a conversation about a subject I think about every day: how we can live curious, collaborative and fulfilling lives in our deeply weird, complex, probabilistic world.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Michael’s Website
- Humans On The Loop
- Future Fossils Substack
Show Notes:
- What is “mind jazz”?
- Humans “ON” the loop?
- The Red Queen hypothesis and the power of weirdness
- Probabilistic thinking & the perils of optimization
- Context collapse, pernicious convenience & coordination at scale
- How organisations learn
- Michael as World Emperor
- MORE!
Books, Articles & Podcasts Mentioned:
- The Nature of Technology: What It Is and How It Evolves; by W. Brian Arthur
- Pharmako-AI; by K Allado-McDowell
- The Global Brain: The Evolution of Mass Mind from the Big Bang to the 21st Century; by Howard Bloom
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
- One Summer: America, 1927; by Bill Bryson
- Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There; by Lewis Carroll
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch
- Scale Theory: A Nondisciplinary Inquiry; by Joshua DiCaglio
- Revenge of the Tipping Point: Overstories, Superspreaders and the Rise of Social Engineering; by Malcolm Gladwell
- The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous; by Joseph Henrich
- Do Conversation: There's No Such Thing as Small Talk; by Robert Poynton
- Reality Hunger: A Manifesto; by David Shields
- The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture; by William Irwin Thompson
- The New Inquisition: Irrational Rationalism and the Citadel of Science; by Robert Anton Wilson
- Designing Neural Media; by K Allado-McDowell
- Pace Layering: How Complex Systems Learn and Keep Learning; by Steward Brand
- Losing Humanity: The Case against Killer Robots; by Bonnie Docherty
- What happens with digital rights management in the real world?; by Cory Doctorow
- The Evolution of Surveillance Part 1: Burgess Shale to Google Glass; by Michael Garfield
- An Introduction to Extitutional Theory; by Jessy Kate Schingler
- 175 - C. Thi Nguyen on The Seductions of Clarity, Weaponized Games, and Agency as Art; Future Fossils with Michael Garfield
- 🎶⚔️👏🏼 205 - Greg Thomas & Stephanie Lepp on Jazz Leadership & Antagonistic Cooperation; Future Fossils with Michael Garfield
- 🌏🚜🫀212 - Manfred Laubichler & Geoffrey West on Life In The Anthropocene & Living Inside The Technosphere; Future Fossils with Michael Garfield
My guest today is Max Meyer, the proprietor of Arena Magazine, a new quarterly publication exploring technology, capitalism and civilization.
Arena’s aim? To “make it okay to dream in public again.”
Max and I discuss why he launched a print magazine in 2024, WTF happened to legacy media, the wisdom of Ratatouille and MUCH more.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Max’s Twitter
- Arena Magazine
- The New Needs Friends
- The Earthly Miracle of the Grocery Store
- Robert F. Kennedy announces the death of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Show Notes:
- What is going on with legacy media?
- Print advertising and the race to the bottom
- The collapse of trust in the media
- TikTok brain, news consumption & social media as a steam valve
- Bailouts & the appeal of the “zero interest fairyland”
- The wisdom of Ratatouille
- The decline of Presidential oratory
- American progress & the population bomb that didn’t go off
- Failure is a ladder
- The one rule of capitalism
- Long haul flights: Where’s our roast turkey?
- Why is Arena a physical magazine?
- Max as Emperor of the world
- MORE!
Books & Articles Mentioned:
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch
- The Ultimate Resource; by Julian L. Simon
- The Population Bomb; by Dr Paul R. Ehrlich
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
- How United Became an Airline; by Andy Kessler (WSJ)
- This is Water; by David Foster Wallace line.
Parmita Mishra is a computational biologist and the founder & CEO of Precigenetics, a company aiming to become a rocket to precision medicine.
Parmita is deeply knowledgeable about cutting-edge biology, particularly epigenetics — how behavior and environment can affect gene function without altering genetic code. Her passion for advancing our understanding of diseases is inspiring (and contagious: OSV is an investor in Parmita’s company!)
In our conversation, Parmita and I discuss everything from the curious case of male baldness to how her parents have saved 50,000 lives.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, highlights, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Website
- Precigenetics Twitter
- Preciginetics launch post
Show Notes:
- Explaining epigenetics to a golden retriever
- The curious case of male pattern baldness
- How to think about biology: start from first principles & beware binary thinking
- The lens you look through determines what you see
- The problem of data collection in biology
- Why the FDA needs to change its approach
- Why we still don’t understand the human brain
- Garry Tan’s advice: “Get an idea. Get a co-founder.”
- What’s been surprising about foundership?
- Failure is a ladder
- Obsession & how Parmita’s parents have saved 50,000 lives
- The most surprising things about America
- Parmita as World Empress
Books Mentioned:
- What is Life?; by Erwin Schrodinger
- I should have loved biology; by James Somers
- Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid; by Douglas Hofstadter
- The Hypomanic Edge: The Link Between (A Little) Craziness and (A Lot of) Success in America; by John D. Gartner
Professor Luis Seco is a mathematician, educator, and investor.
Among many other titles and achievements, he is the Professor of Mathematics at the University of Toronto, Director of the quant research hub Risklab, Chair of the Centre for Sustainable Development at the Fields Institute, and co-founder of the asset management firm Sigma Analysis & Management Ltd.
Got all that?!
This one was really fun, and not just because Luis is a fellow quant. We discuss how maths resembles Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, the future of the ‘metaversity’, the most important lesson Luis gives his students, why investing isn't what it used to be, and much more.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Website
- YouTube
Show Notes:
- What Luis learned from the Beethoven of mathematics
- “Mathematics is the language computers speak”
- The role of community in an increasingly confusing world
- Lifelong education & the voyage to the human brain
- Why to teach is to be human
- Timebinding & social media as a steam valve
- What matters more - content or communication?
- Math as a social science: quantifying risk in a nonlinear world
- From paper, to numbers, to images: The changing nature of data
- Why the future of education lies in decentralization
- Swarm solutions & why we’re in the century of collaboration
- Metaversities & the case for bringing your kids to work
- Why managing money is now based on words, not numbers
- Luis as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; by Douglas Adams
- The Two Cultures; by C.P. Snow
- Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance; by Robert M. Pirsig
- Manhood of Humanity; by Alfred Korzybski
- How to Win Friends and Influence People; by Dale Carnegie
- The Myth of 1926: How Much Do We Know About Long-Term Returns on U.S. Stocks?; by Edward F. Mcquarrie
Anthony Pompliano — investor, entrepreneur, and media powerhouse — returns four years and 228 episodes later to discuss his new book, How To Live an Extraordinary Life, a collection of 65 heartfelt letters to his two children.
At just 36, Anthony has already invested in circa 200 companies, served in Iraq with the U.S. Army, built and sold multiple businesses, and created one of the world’s largest independent media platforms. You don’t accomplish all that without learning a thing or two, and in this episode we dig into his hard-earned insights — from the uniting traits of the world’s smartest people, to the luxury of pessimism, to why luck isn’t real.
I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- How To Live an Extraordinary Life
- Website
- The Pomp Letter
- Anthony’s Previous Episode
Show Notes:
- The hidden power of “I don’t know”
- Why Anthony started writing letters to his children
- Today is practice for tomorrow
- Carve your ethics in stone, but your opinions in sand
- How bad positioning poisons decision-making
- Are there any parts of the book Anthony no longer believes in?
- What unites the smartest people in the world
- Why luck isn’t real
- The luxury of pessimism
- Power laws everywhere!
- Anthony as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books, Articles & Podcasts Mentioned:
- Adventures of a Bystander; by Peter F. Drucker
- The Art of Learning: An Inner Journey to Optimal Performance; by Josh Waitzkin
- How Will You Measure Your Life?: A thought-provoking approach to measuring life's success; by Clayton M. Christensen, James Allworth and Karren Dillon
- Rules for a Knight; by Ethan Hawke
- The Rise and Fall of American Growth: The U.S. Standard of Living since the Civil War; by Robert J. Gordon
- Why Writing Letters to Your Kids Is the Best Gift You Can Give Them as Adults; by Polina Pompliano
- Shane Parrish on the Clear Thinking podcast
- Lucky vs, Repeatable; by Morgan Housel
- What Kind of Lucky Are You?; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
There’s a quote I heard a long time ago that goes something like this - “India has consistently disappointed both the optimists and the pessimists”.
It is equal parts pithy and profound, and does a somewhat passable job of summarising the multitudes contained in 21st century India. It’s a quote that was brought to life for me numerous times in my conversation with this week’s guest on Infinite Loops - Sajith Pai.
Sajith is a GP at Blume Ventures, one of India’s largest homegrown VC firms. He's known for his prolific writing and sharp frameworks that have become part of Indian startup canon over the past decade.
In 2018, he swapped a long-time career as a media executive for one as a venture capitalist. This changing of lanes, relatively late in his professional life, has given him a refreshingly nuanced perspective on the Indian startup ecosystem (which he’s bestowed with the moniker of ‘Indus Valley’, as a nod to both Silicon Valley as well as the Indus Valley Civilisation, one of the cradles of the ancient world and the ancestral civilisation of the Indian people).
His most compelling insight? That India isn't the monolithic 1.5-billion-person market that many Westerners believe. Instead, it's three distinct "countries" hiding in plain sight. There's India One: 120 million affluent, English-speaking urbanites (think the population of Germany) who love their iPhones and Starbucks. Then comes India Two: 300 million aspiring middle-class citizens who inhabit the digital economy but not yet the consumption economy. Finally, there's India Three: a massive population with a similar demographic profile to Sub-Saharan Africa, that’s still waiting for its invitation to join India’s bright future.
‘India 1-2-3’ is one amongst many pearls of wisdom that Sajith gifted me over our conversation, that also touched on India as a "digital welfare state", India as a ‘low trust society’; the emergence of a new class of ‘Indo-Anglians’; how cultural nuances in India shape everything from app design to payment systems; and much, much more.
Whether you're an investor, founder, or just curious about where the next decade of innovation might come from, this conversation is your crash course to understanding India in the 21st century. Sajith likes to say that ‘India is not for beginners’. Well, if you are a beginner on India, this week you’re in luck.
For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Sajith’s website
- Sajith’s Twitter
- Sajith’s Substack
- Blume VC’s Indus Valley Annual Report 2024
Show Notes:
- The Three Indias
- Navigating India in the 21st century
- India as a ‘low trust’ society
- Touring ‘India 2’
- The States and the Union
- Caste and Class in Modern India
- Governance and the Government
- Brain Drain
- The English Tax
- The Rise of the Indo-Anglians
- I, Writer
- On Media and Markets
- India as a Digital Welfare State
- The Virtues of Leapfrogging
- Sajith, The Emperor of the World
Books and Articles Mentioned:
- The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid; by C. K. Prahalad
- Supercommunicators; by Charles Duhigg
- Career Advice; by Scott Adams
- The Indus Valley Report 2024; by Blume VC
My guest today is Scott Aaronson, a theoretical computer scientist, OG blogger, and quantum computing maestro.
Scott has so many achievements and credentials that listing them here would take longer than recording the episode. Here's a select few:
- Self-taught programmer at age 11, Cornell computer science student at 15, PhD recipient by 22!
- Schlumberger Centennial Chair of Computer Science at The University of Texas at Austin.
- Director of UT Austin's Quantum Information Center.
- Former visiting researcher on OpenAI's alignment team (2022-2024).
- Awarded the ACM prize in computing in 2020 and the Tomassoni-Chisesi Prize in Physics (under 40 category) in 2018.
… you get the point.
Scott and I dig into the misunderstood world of quantum computing — the hopes, the hindrances, and the hucksters — to unpack what a quantum-empowered future could really look like. We also discuss what makes humans special in the age of AI, the stubbornly persistent errors of the seat-to-keyboard interface, and MUCH more.
I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, some highlights from Scott’s blog, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!” check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Shtetl-Optimized (Scott’s blog)
- My Reading Burden
- On blankfaces
Show Notes:
- So much reading. So little time.
- The problem of human specialness in the age of AI
- It’s always the same quantum weirdness
- Why it’s easy to be a quantum huckster
- Quantum progress, quantum hopes, and quantum limits
- Encryption in a quantum empowered world
- Wielding the hammer of interference
- Scientific discovery in a quantum empowered world
- Bureaucracy and blank faces
- Scott as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Fifth Science; by ****Exurb1a
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy; by Douglas Adams
Danny Crichton is a man of many talents. He’s got a background in computer science, has worked in the worlds of foreign policy, was a managing editor at Techcrunch, and now serves as Head of Editorial at Lux Capital.
As Lux’s de-facto games master, Danny also devises their Riskgames: strategic simulations that immerse players in complex scenarios reflecting real-world challenges and dynamics. These games – whose players include senators, major generals, congressmen and, think-tank CEOs – include scenarios like ‘Hamptons at the Cross-Roads’ (that deals with climate change and maritime security) and ‘Powering Up’ (that deals with China’s global EV dominance).
Danny and I discuss the origins of Riskgaming and the lessons he’s learned in high-stakes games with tech founders and government officials. Plus, we riff on our shared Minnesotan roots, and discuss ways to combat the uncertain fog of war in our careers.
I hope you enjoy this insightful conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Danny's Twitter
- Danny's LinkedIn
- Danny's Personal Website
- Lux Securities Newsletter
- The Riskgaming Initiative
Show Notes:
- Origins of Riskgaming
- The Different Play Styles between Technologists and Policymakers
- One-off games vs. Iterative games
- The Game Theoretic Foundations of Riskgaming
- It’s All About Tough Decisions
- Parable of the First Mover Disadvantage
- The Importance of Incentives
- Why Insurance Companies are Obsessed with Truth in the Market
- How AIs Can Cut Through Bureaucratic Slog
- How Danny Builds Scenarios
- Why Riskgaming Teaches Better Decision Making
- Danny’s Thoughts on Intellectual Humility
- Danny and Jim’s Minnesotan Heritage
- Danny’s experience launching TechCrunch+
- Facing the Fog of War
- The Importance of Agility
- Danny as Emperor of the World
Books Mentioned:
- Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid; by Douglas Hofstadter
- Left Behind: A New Economics for Neglected Places; by Paul Collier
My guest today is the human Swiss Army Knife, Yuk Chi Chan, who has packed more into the last decade than many people do in a lifetime.
Yuk Chi is the founder of Charter Space, the first British space company to graduate from the Techstars Space Accelerator. Before that, he served as an officer in the Singapore army (hmm, so maybe I should have described him as a Singaporean Army Knife) and practiced as a space lawyer (it’s funny how much cooler being a lawyer becomes when you preface it with the word “space”).
Suffice to say, Yuk Chi knows a lot about space. We had a blast discussing how ‘ownership’ of territory really works, why the sector impacts our daily lives FAR more than we think, and the mind-boggling mission of an intrepid robotic space snake.
I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did. For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Substack
- Charter Website
- Charter Twitter
Show Notes:
- Yuk Chi Chan: The human Swiss Army Knife
- The strangely antiquated tools of the space industry
- Military training, problem-solving, and reframing the challenge
- The single most important trait in a co-founder
- Unlearning, cyclical culture, and robotic space snakes
- The labyrinthine world of space insurance
- Who owns space?
- The angry man on Yuk Chi’s shoulder
- Why Yuk Chi measures his life in dog years
- Space insurance as Zeno’s Paradox
- Why the space industry is WAY more ubiquitous than you think
- Yuk Chi as emperor of the world
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Flow My Tears, the Policeman Said; by Philip K. Dick
- Ubik; by Philip K. Dick
“Ignoring what is obvious incurs a huge cost.
It requires you to go about your day numbing yourself to the reality of who you are and what you want—which is a waste of time for you and everyone around you.
By contrast, admitting what is obvious is freeing and motivating. But it’s terrifying to do it. Sometimes the most obvious truths about ourselves are hard to see because the consequences of those truths seem so dire.”
Those are the opening lines of one of my favourite essays I’ve read in the last year, written by this week’s guest on Infinite Loops - Dan Shipper.
Dan is the Co-founder and CEO of Every, a media company that wants to be an intellectual lighthouse amidst the tempest that is the Age of AI.
Every began life in 2020 as a bundle of digital newsletters (almost like a centralised version of Substack with more of an editorial flourish). These days, it’s blossomed into an ecosystem of colourful newsletters, podcasts, courses, and software products, all oriented around the unpacking of a single question - “What comes next?”
Every is already one of my go-to destinations for all things interesting. It’s less brain food than brain buffet (the kind of buffet that serves fresh blueberry pancakes with real maple syrup).
In our conversation, Dan shares his thoughts on everything from AI companions; his approach to erecting the Every ‘Pyramid’; his playbook for building new media companies; the idea of LLMs as mirrors for humanity; and using content to ‘find your people’.
What I love about him is how candidly and thoughtfully he talks about his journey to discover his own truth. His realisation that he didn’t need to hang up his boots as a writer in order to become a founder is something that particularly hit home for me.
Dan Shipper is also my underdog pick to eventually wrest the title of Infinite Loops Emperor from reigning clubhouse leader Alex Danco. By which I mean to say, this is most certainly not the last time Dan joins us on the show, so you may as well get to know him better.
For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other goodies designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!”, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Dan’s Twitter
- Dan’s writing on Every
- Dan’s personal website
Show Notes:
- Dan’s Superhero Origin Story
- Writers as Founders
- What Would You Pay To Do?
- The Every Pyramid
- The New Media Playbook
- How To Find Your People
- Our AI Mirrors
- From Explanation Problems to Engineering Problems
- On Intuition
- From The Knowledge Economy To The Allocation Economy
- The Reluctance To AI Adoption
- AI Companions
- Dan, The Emperor of The World
Books and Articles Mentioned:
- Admitting What Is Obvious; by Dan Shipper
- The Global Brain: The Evolution of Mass Mind from the Big Bang to the 21st Century; by Howard Bloom
- Against Explanations; by Dan Shipper
- The Trial of Socrates; by I. F. Stone
- The WEIRDest People in the World; by ****Joseph Heinrich
- The Three Musketeers; by Alexandre Dumas
My guest today is Dr. Gena Gorlin, a psychologist specializing in the unique needs of the ultra-ambitious.
Unlike many in her field. Gena doesn’t aim to simply lift the floor of her clients’ ambitions — she wants to raise the ceiling.
In this episode, she breaks down the “Builder Mindset” - a way of thinking that empowers people to live to healthier, happier, and more fulfilled lives.
Over on our Substack, we dig deeper into Gena’s ideas, exploring the perils of perfectionism, the allure of complacency, and why psychological perfection might be more achievable than you think.
Important Links:
- Gena’s Website
- Building the Builders (Gena’s Substack)
- Gena’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- The Unique Needs of the Ultra Ambitious
- Death is the Default
- The Rigid Authoritarianism of Your Inner Drill Sergeant
- The Sweet, Stagnant Embrace of the Zen Master
- Agency & the Enlightenment
- Historical Ignorance as a Bottleneck
- Human Beings as the Base Unit of Action
- Fight, Flight or Freeze
- How to Build a Builder
- Perfectionism is not Perfect
- What to Do When Surrounded by C Players
- Persistence, Passion & Personality
- Reframing FTW
- Gena as Empress of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Hypomanic Edge: The Link Between (A Little) Craziness and (A Lot of) Success in America; by John D. Gartner
“Most people don’t want to acknowledge the uncomfortable truth that distraction is always an unhealthy escape from reality.”
My latest guest, Nir Eyal, writes, consults, and teaches about the intersection of psychology, technology, and business. Nir previously taught as a Lecturer in Marketing at the Stanford Graduate School of Business and the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford.
In our conversation, Nir gives it to us straight. Distraction is killing us, and stopping us from reaching our full potential. In a world that is constantly conspiring to keep us distracted, Nir provides an alternative: we can take back control. We can regain our agency.
All of these ideas are presented in his book, Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life (co-authored with Julie Li). This book is a clear guide to understanding the psychology behind our impulses and is chock-full of great anecdotes and peer-reviewed studies to help you better manage your time, and your life.
Nir’s framework is not only interesting, it is practical, so I suggest you check out our Substack, where you’ll find the episode transcript and some actionable takeaways. I also encourage you to buy Nir’s excellent book and start applying his strategies to your own life.
I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did!
Important Links:
- Nir’s personal blog
- Nir’s LinkedIn
- Nir’s Twitter
- Nir’s YouTube channel
- Nir’s Habit Tracking Tool
- Nir’s Schedule Maker Tool
Show Notes:
- What Being Indistractable Is All About
- Etymology of the Word Distraction
- The Strong Pull of Internal Triggers
- The Tyranny of the To-Do List
- The Difference Between High Performers and Low Performers
- The Dangers of Labelling Ourselves
- Using the Psychology of Identity
- Using Self-Determination Theory to Diagnose Distraction
- The Perils of Snowplow Parenting
- Believe the Good Science
- Nir as Emperor of the World
Books / Articles Mentioned:
- Indistractable; by Nir Eyal (+ bonus content)
- Nir’s articles on Timeboxing, Values, FOMO and Wage slavery
- Free to Learn: Why Unleashing the Instinct to Play Will Make Our Children Happier, More Self-Reliant, and Better Students for Life; by Peter Gray
As the saying goes, only three things in life are certain: death, taxes & Alex Danco.
Armed with sizzling hot takes on the sad death of Twitter likes and a new secret weapon in the form of his catchphrase-turned-episode theme (“Without mystery, there is no margin”), Alex returns for his eighth episode.
Despite our intentional lack of preparation, somehow this ended up as one our most cohesive conversations yet.
As usual, we’ve included links and an episode transcript over on our Substack, where we’ve also made the foolhardy attempt to distil one overriding theme from eight episodes of fiercely unstructured, defiantly unplanned, proudly meandering conversation.
Important Links:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/Alex_Danco
- Website: https://alexdanco.com/
- Previous episode: https://www.infiniteloopspodcast.com/alex-danco-on-self-delusion-sancho-panza-safe-words-seinfeld-ep156/
Show Notes:
- What the fuck is going on? & the sad death of Twitter likes
- Where are the journalists?
- Without mystery, there is no margin
- Why aesthetics are underrated
- Friction is good, actually
- Make things to gain agency
- Empowering small firms to access the mysterious margin
- Everything is positioning
- How to learn effectively
- Alex as emperor of the world
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Fifth Science; by Exurb1a
- What Works on Wall Street: A Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- The Gervais Principle, Or The Office According to “The Office”; by Venkatesh Rao
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
Mike Maples, Jr., co-founding partner of the VC firm Floodgate, is the veteran seed investor behind some of the 21st-century’s great success stories, including Twitter, Twitch, and Applied Intuition.
His book, Pattern Breakers (co-authored with Peter Ziebelman), articulates a new model of foundership, one built on the simple premise that transformative startups upend rather than improve current practices.
My company, OSV, is built around my belief that the collapse of the old models presents enormous opportunities to those savvy enough to seize them, so I had a blast quizzing Mike on the nuts and bolts of pattern-breaking foundership, from finding true believers to waging asymmetric war on the status quo.
If Mike’s theory sounds as interesting to you as it did to me, check out our Substack, where we’ve distilled some pattern-breaking insights and shared the episode transcript. I also encourage you to buy Mike’s excellent book.
In the meantime, I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did!
Important Links:
- Pattern Breakers: Why Some Start-Ups Change the Future; by Mike Maples, Jr & Peter Ziebelman
- Substack (Starting Greatness)
- Floodgate
Show Notes:
- Seagull mode: an unexpected founder paradigm
- How to wage asymmetric war on the present
- Evading the comparison trap
- Finding your people: how to build a movement
- Why we should continually seek the truth
- The customer isn’t always right, but the ones living in the future are
- Why disagreeableness is undervalued
- How to fix a pitch Franckendeck
- Don’t use jargon as a substitute for clear thinking
- How to find the true believers
- How to live in the future
- How founders are like trainspotters
- Why wanting to be a founder is a bad reason to start a company
- Reading habits of a pattern-breaker
- The unreliability of memory
- Mike as emperor of the world
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Jonathan Livingston Seagull: A story; by Richard Bach
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations that Transform The World; by David Deutsch
- What Works in Wall Street; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- Poor Charlie’s Almanac: The Essential Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger; by Charles T. Munger
As a former quant with six grandkids, my spidey-senses started tingling as soon as I heard about Ben Orlin’s mission to make math fun.
A native of St.Paul, Ben is a math educator and popularizer who is known for his “Math With Bad Drawing” blog and book series. Today’s conversation revolves around his excellent, original new book Math for English Majors: A Human Take on the Universal Language, which reframes math as a language, complete with nouns, verbs and grammar.
Like any mathematician worth his salt, Ben loves games, which he sees as ‘puzzle engines’. No wonder then that our conversation meandered and unfolded like a satisfying puzzle, touching upon rich concepts. We discussed making sense of sampling through fantasy towns where 70% of inhabitants are lawyers (not a town I’d like to be in), threw in a bit of Lewis Carroll to discuss the assumptions built into propositional logic (sometimes it really is turtles all the way down) and pitied the Welsh kids learning how to count (keep listening to know what that means).
I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did! For more thoughts on the episode, the full transcript, and bucketloads of other stuff designed to make you go; “Hmm, that’s interesting!” check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Ben’s Blog
- Ben’s Twitter
- Ben’s LinkedIn
Show Notes:
- A Mathematician’s Obsession
- The Language of Algebra
- What the Tortoise Said to Achilles
- The Concrete and the Abstract
- Games As Puzzle Engines
- We’re not Built to Understand Base Rates
- Why We Always Think About Samples Incorrectly
- Randomness and Wikipedia Rabbit-holing
- Counting in Different Languages
- The Concept of Zero
- Negatives as the Mathematical Language of Opposites
- Mathematical Escape Rooms
- Why Is the World Comprehensible?
- Discussing Infinity on Infinite Loops
- The Deep Mathematics of Music
- Ben As Emperor of the World
Books Mentioned:
- Math for English Majors: A Human Take on the Universal Language; by Ben Orlin
- Math with Bad Drawings: Illuminating the Ideas That Shape Our Reality; by Ben Orlin
- Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea; by Charles Seife
- Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid; by Douglas Hofstadter
- Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain; by Oliver Sacks
“We have created for ourselves a world that we didn't evolve for.”
Gurwinder Bhogal is, for my money, one of the most independent, original and insightful thinkers you’ll find in our corner of the internet.
He returns to discuss how willpower and good old-fashioned human agency can help us reclaim our mental sovereignty and escape the “constant avalanche of concerns that are being vomited over us through our laptop screens, our phones, our TV screens, and in conversations.”
For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other stuff designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!” check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Gurwinder's Substack
- Gurwinder's Twitter
- Gurwinder’s previous Infinite Loops appearance
Show Notes:
- “We have created for ourselves a world we didn’t evolve for”
- The dogged persistence of our stubborn beliefs
- Gamification; generational differences in agency
- The societal impact of the education system’s changing priorities
- How to zombify a population
- Skin in the game: Gurwinder’s guide to reclaiming agency
- LLMs, bullshit, and the atomization of culture
- How to play better games
- Willpower is the bottleneck
- Gurwinder as emperor of the world
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Why Everything is Becoming a Game; by Gurwinder Bhogal
- Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know; by Adam Grant
- The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr
- The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements; by Eric Hoffer
- Why the Mental Health of Liberal Girls Sank First and Fastest; by Jonathan Haidt (After Babel)
- America’s Colleges Are Reaping What They Sowed; by Tyler Austin Harper (The Atlantic)
- Joe Biden and the Common Knowledge Game; by Ben Hunt (Epsilon Theory)
- The Emperor’s New Clothes; by Hans Christian Andersen
- Futarchy Details; by Robin Hanson (Overcoming Bias)
- The Enlightenment Trilogy; by Jed McKenna
- The Weirdest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous; by Joseph Henrich
Professor Julia Sonnevend believes that charm is one of the defining political trends of our era.
In her latest book, she argues that charm will do no less than “shape the future of democracy worldwide,” exploring how it is weaponized by politicians ranging from Jacinda Arden to Kim Jong Un.
In our episode, you will discover why charm has emerged as a political force and how to innoculate yourself when you encounter it in the wild.
Julia and I also dig into the five components of a charming interaction, a tantalizing prospect for those of you who want to dabble in the dark arts yourself…
For the full transcript, episode takeaways, and bucketloads of other stuff designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!” check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Charm: How Magnetic Personalities Shape Global Politics
- Julia’s website
- Julia’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Why social scientists are scared of charm
- The beer test of political leadership
- Can charm be manufactured?
- How humor affects charm
- The five building blocks of charm
- Does writing a book about charm make you immune to charm?
- Suspicion of seduction
- Is personality damaging politics?
- The true arbiter of authenticity
- How to encourage students to think critically
- How global iconic events are constructed
- Historical villains & the banality of evil
- Charming or not-charming: a speed-round
- The transitory nature of the charm offensive
- The benefits of taking a moment
- Julia as Empress of the World
As a proud owner of the exceedingly rare “two-digit” designation on CompuServe (the internet’s precursor), I’ve always been an early adopter of new tech.
I was, therefore, particularly excited to speak to Bilawal Sidhu, a one-man corporation whose prolific output outpaces many creators put together.
Since he was 11, Bilawal has been passionate about using cutting-edge tech to create videos that unite reality with his imagination.
He made his bones as a product manager at Google, but after his short-form videos generated millions of views on social media, he decided to go all-in on his creative projects, including this video showing ‘shadow aliens’ invading Miami Mall, which racked up 11M views in 24 hours (!) on TikTok.
Bilawal is also an adept rune-reader in the tech industry — his Creative Digest newsletter and YouTube channel offer insights and analysis on tech and market developments, while his TEDAI podcast broke the recent Helen Toner x OpenAI story.
If you’re a creator curious about the opportunities presented by cutting-edge tech, you’re gonna love this episode.
For the full transcript and bucketloads of other stuff designed to make you go, “Hmm, that’s interesting!” check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Bilawal’s Website (includes links to all social channels)
- What Does “Rat Park” Teach Us About Addiction? (Psychiatric Times)
Show Notes:
- Aliens at the Miami Mall & the deep fake arms race
- How to unite reality with imagination
- The three waves of content democratization & the incoming content tsunami
- Artisan vs organic content
- Creation by proxy
- Climbing up the adoption curve
- Bilawal’s idea-to-execution creation process
- Remix culture & co-creation
- Competing visions of an AI-infused feature
- Finding an economic model that benefits indie creators
- Sovereign AI & being long human creativity
- Bilawal as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Fifth Science; by Exurb1a
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy; by Douglas Adams
- The God Problem: How a Godless Cosmos Creates; by Howard Bloom
- The Ultimate Resource; by Julian L. Simon
When Luca Dellanna speaks, I listen.
Unlike many of the other management, productivity and behavioral gurus out there, Luca is ruthlessly committed to providing actionable, tangible advice that is rooted in the messy, chaotic reality of daily life.
This conversation, my second with Luca, revolves around his excellent new book, Winning Long-Term Games: Reproducible Success Strategies to Achieve Your Life Goals.
Why should you care? Because long-term strategies consistently deliver better results. In other words, being able to identify, play, and win long-term games is, quite literally, the secret to success.
With examples ranging from NASA janitors to Stonehenge spray painters, we discuss how to successfully identify reproducible long-term strategies and how to persuade others to get on board with them.
We also explore how hypotheticals can be an insanely powerful tool for ensuring our short-term actions remain consistent with our long-term goals (and yes, before you ask, my beloved premeditation makes an appearance).
I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did! For more thoughts on the episode, the full transcript, and bucketloads of other stuff designed to make you go; “Hmm, that’s interesting!” check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Winning Long-Term Games: Reproducible Success Strategies to Achieve Your Life Goals
- Luca’s Website
- Luca’s Twitter
- Luca’s Previous Episode
- Five Counterintuitive Truths We Learned From Luca Dellanna
Show Notes:
- The Tale of the Three Bricklayers
- Tighten Up Those Feedback Loops
- The Perils of Short-Term Thinking
- How to Signal Long-Term Intentions
- Reproducibility is King
- The Mighty Power of the Humble Hypothetical
- Concretizing the Abstract
- Goldilocks Solutions
- Extracting Tangible Benefits From Stratospheric Objectives
- Intuition & Luck in Long-Term Games
- Risk of Tactic vs Risk of Strategy; Flexible North Stars
- Build Your Own Long-Term Company
- Tesla’s Risky Success
- Luca as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Winning Long-Term Games: Reproducible Success Strategies to Achieve Your Life Goals; by Luca Dellanna
- The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous; by Joseph Henrich
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy; by Douglas Adams
- Antifragile: Things that Gain from Disorder; by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
- The Infinite Game: How Great Businesses Achieve Long-Lasting Success; by Simon Sinek
Let me introduce you to the four horsemen of the investment apocalypse:
Fear.
Greed.
Hope.
Ignorance.
Notice anything?
Three of four are emotions.
I’ve long argued that effective investing is far more about emotional control than technical know-how (although the latter certainly helps!) By hook or by crook, the best investors can find a way to tame their pesky emotional impulses and overcome that primal urge to respond impulsively to panic, passion, or pride.
My guest, the razor-sharp Ateet Ahluwalia, is a veteran trader and investor who has spent well over 15 years at the coalface, from trading at Goldman at the dawn of the financial crisis to his current role as founder and managing director of the venture capital firm Island Green Capital Management. As you’ll hear from our conversation, Ateet has built an insanely deep understanding of the emotional constitution required to succeed in finance and venture capital, which informs his approach to risk management, hiring, investing, due diligence, and everything in between.
I hope you enjoy our wide-ranging conversation, whose implications extend well beyond investing. For episode takeaways, a full transcript, and various other goodies, check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- The Thinker and The Prover; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- Ateet’s LinkedIn
- Island Green Capital Management
Show Notes:
- Why Venture Capitalists Should Shun the Glory
- “In a changing world, playing it safe is one of the riskiest things you can do."
- Risk: Why Size Matters
- The Emotional Constraints of Investing
- How to Find Out What Someone Really Wants
- The Purifying Power of Mistakes
- Pick up the Phone!
- Being Humbled by the Market
- Public vs Private Investing
- Why Hit Rates Matter
- Assessing the Macro Position
- Bullshitting, Question-Dodging, and Other Red Flags
- The Many Bosses of the Venture Capitalist
- Be a Painkiller
- Ateet as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Enlightenment Trilogy; by Jed McKenna
- Venture Deals: Be Smarter Than Your Lawyer and Venture Capitalist; by Brad Feld & Jason Mendelson
- Financial Intelligence: A Manager’s Guide to Knowing What the Numbers Really Mean; by Karen Berman, Joe Knight & John Case
- Adventures of a Bystander; by Peter F. Drucker
I’ve always tried to encourage curiosity in my three children and now six (!) grandchildren. My kids often reminisce about my default response to their childhood questions: pointing to the bookshelf that flanked our sofa and saying, “look it up in there!”
Luckily, natural curiosity was never lacking in our household. Over the years, however, I have become increasingly frustrated when I hear about the stultifying, rote, curiosity-killing nature of our education system.
It was a pleasure, therefore, to speak to Audrey Wisch, an impressive young founder who, after witnessing first-hand how kids’ curiosity was being crushed, decided to do something about it. She left Stanford University to build Curious Cardinals, a personalized service that matches children with university mentors. What started as a pandemic project has grown into something much bigger - Audrey and her co-founder were named to the 2022 Forbes 30 Under 30 List in education, and Curious Cardinals has now delivered over 20,000 hours of mentorship to over 2,000 kids.
As you’ll hear in our conversation, Audrey’s approach to education is a breath of fresh air, focusing on agency and empowerment, meeting kids where their interests lie, and harnessing the benefits of technology.
I hope you enjoy our conversation! For the full transcript alongside bucketloads of other stuff designed to make you go; “Hmm, that’s interesting!” check out our Substack.
Important Links:
- Curious Cardinals
Show Notes:
- The Classroom: Disengaging, Uninspiring and Regurgitating
- The Chicken Nugget Strategy: Learning Through Interests
- Are Attention Spans Shortening?
- Why Mentors Matter
- Rose, Bud, Thorn: How to Design an Effective Mentorship Session
- The Perks of Proximity
- The RBG Approach to Disruption
- Against a One-Size-Fits-All Approach
- Curiosity, Lifelong Learning & Openness to Change
- Shakespeare on Snapchat
- The Changing Role of Memory
- Prompting via Socratic Iteration; Tapping into the Why
- How Audrey Became Interested in AI
- Why the College System Restrains K-12 Progress
- Hiring for the Output vs Hiring for the Input
- Audrey as Empress of the World
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness; by Jonathan Haidt
- Paper Belt on Fire: How Renegade Investors Sparked a Revolt Against the University; by Michael Gibson
Matthew Ball is the CEO of Epyllion, which makes angel investments, provides advisory services, and produces television, films, and video games.
He’s also a Venture Partner at Makers Fund, Senior Advisor to KKR, Senior Advisor to McKinsey & Company, and sits on the board of numerous start-ups.
Matthew is one of the sharpest and most original thinkers on the future of media and the Internet (i.e. The Metaverse). The fully revised and updated edition of his bestselling book "The Metaverse: Building the Spatial Internet" releases next week.
Important Links:
- Matthew’s website
- Matthew’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Into The Metaverse
- AI and The Metaverse
- ‘AI Can Bend the Laws of Physics’
- Human Engineering and the Human Brain
- Screens and Education
- The Reflexivity of AI Doomerism
- The Salvation of the ‘TV Species’
- From Passive Media to Active Media
- ‘What’s An Appropriate Simulation?’
- ‘We Don’t Outlaw Fire, We Train Firemen’
- Applying the Precautionary Principle
- Media and the Metaverse: Three Stages of Competition
- The Enduring Value of Taste
- Hardware and AI: The Vergence-Accommodation Conflict
- The Emperor of the Metaverse
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Metaverse: Building the Spatial Internet; by Matthew Ball
- The Streaming Book; by Matthew Ball
- The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous; by Joseph Henrich
Nat Eliason is a writer with a keen interest in writing about challenging and revealing things. His debut book, Crypto Confidential: Winning and Losing Millions in the New Frontier of Finance (out July 9th, 2024), charts his personal odyssey into Crypto’s Get-Rich-Quick underbelly.
Nat joins the show to discuss the highs and lows of the cryptocurrency market, the lessons learned from his financial adventures, the psychological effects of bubbles, crypto’s cutting-edge developments, and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Nat’s Website
- Nat’s Twitter
- Nat’s YouTube
Show Notes:
- Making A Lot of Money, As Fast as Possible
- The Peer Pressure of Crypto Markets
- The Psychological Effects of Diamond Hands
- Signs of Peak Speculation
- How Bitcoin Has Carried the Crypto Story
- Ethereum’s Innovations
- The Emergence of Stablecoins
- What Makes USD A Reserve Currency?
- The Crazy Anonymity of Crypto Projects
- The Two Options of Getting Into Crypto
- Imagining the Money Pile
- What Nat Couldn’t Keep in the Book
- Nat’s Next Career as a Novelist
- Nat as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Influence; by Robert Cialdini
Noor Siddiqui is currently building Orchid, a reproductive technology company that measures genetic predisposition to disease and provides embryo screening for couples going through IVF.
Noor joins the show to discuss the ambitious culture of the West Coast, getting into the Thiel Fellowship, her personal reasons for starting Orchid, the sacred act of reproduction and why it must be made safe, her belief in children as the future, and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Noor’s Personal Website
- Noor’s Twitter
- Noor’s Linkedin
- Orchid’s Website
Show Notes:
- The Ambitious Culture of San Francisco
- The East Coast Aversion to Risky Ambition
- The Intimate Origin Story of Orchid
- What Orchid Has Built
- The History and Controversy Around Reproductive Technology
- Surprising Aspects of Orchid’s Technology
- Benefits of Saliva Testing
- Making Our Own Genetic Luck
- Noor’s Predictions for the Field
- Advances in Embryonic Freezing
- Why Noor Values Clear Writing
- Noor as Empress of the World
- MORE!
Books/Essays Mentioned:
- What You Can't Say; by Paul Graham
- Secrets (from Zero To One); by Peter Thiel
The Fourth Way is a pseudonymously run Youtube channel and Twitter page dedicated to the path of psychological and spiritual growth and self-improvement. Built around the philosophy of two thinkers - George Gurdjieff and Peter Ouspensky - the ultimate aim of the Fourth Way is “to assist individuals in achieving a higher state of consciousness and self-awareness which can lead to a more fulfilling and meaningful existence.”
Tune in to this week’s episode to learn about the four ways of being; how to befriend your centers; the keys to the universe; and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- The Fourth Way Youtube channel
- The Fourth Way on Twitter
Show Notes:
- Memetic Alchemy
- Introducing The Fourth Way
- The Best Time To Start Is Now
- The Four Ways of Being
- Waking Sleep
- Befriending Your Centers
- Keys To The Universe
- The Law of Octaves
- Indoctrination as Hypnosis
- The Fourth Way Curriculum
- The Search for Mystery
- Don’t Forget To Self-Remember
- Life Is Movement
- A Pitch for The Fourth Way
- Don’t Go With The Flow
- The Fourth…Emperor Of The World
Books Mentioned:
- The Fourth Way; by Peter Ouspensky
- In Search of the Miraculous; by Peter Ouspensky
- Beelzebub's Tales to His Grandson; by ****George Gurdjieff
- In Search of Being: The Fourth Way to Consciousness; by George Gurdjieff
- The Struggle of the Magicians; by George Gurdjieff
- Siddhartha; by Herman Hesse
- The Emerald Tablets of Thoth the Atlantean; by Thoth The Atlantean
Mona Sobhani, Ph.D. is a cognitive neuroscientist, researcher, and author. In 2022 she published her first book, Proof of Spiritual Phenomena: A Neuroscientist's Discovery of the Ineffable Mysteries of the Universe, which documents her “transformation from diehard materialist to open-minded spiritual seeker.”
Mona joins the show to discuss blowing open the box of materialism, why anecdotes are scientifically underrated, what she learned from studying decades of research into psi-phenomena, how quantum science is transforming the way we think about consciousness, and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Mona’s Twitter
- Proof of Spiritual Phenomena: A Neuroscientist's Discovery of the Ineffable Mysteries of the Universe; by Mona Sobhani
- Cosmos, Coffee & Consciousness (Mona’s Substack)
- Life Will Be the Death of Me Podcast with Chelsea Handler (Ep. 19): People on the Other Side with Laura Lynne Jackson
- Infinite Potential: The Life & Ideas of David Bohm
- Prophetic AI
Show Notes:
- Mona’s Journey Beyond Materialism
- Anecdotes are Scientifically Underrated; Research Into Psi Phenomena
- How Mona Deals With Her Colleagues’ Skepticism
- The Persuasiveness of Personal Experience
- Psychic Phenomena & the Scientific Method
- Blowing Open the Box of Materialism
- How Quantum Science is Transforming How We Think About Consciousness
- Transcendent Technology
- Psychedelics as a Bridge
- What’s Next for Mona
- Bringing Humanity Back Into Science
- Mona as Empress of the World
- MORE!
Books & Articles Mentioned:
- Proof of Spiritual Phenomena: A Neuroscientist's Discovery of the Ineffable Mysteries of the Universe; by Mona Sobhani
- The Radical Ideas of Psychedelic Research 2.0 (Pt.1; Pt.2); by Mona Sobhani
- Many Lives, Many Masters: The true story of a prominent psychiatrist, his young patient and the past-life therapy that changed both their lives; by Dr. Brian Weiss
- The New Inquisition: Irrational Rationalism and the Citadel of Science; by Robert Anton Wilson
- Personal Knowledge: Towards a Post-Critical Philosophy; by Michael Polanyi
- The Two Cultures; by C. P. Snow
- The Fabric of Reality: Towards a Theory of Everything; by David Deutsch
- The work of Dean Radin
- The Common Basis of Memory and Consciousness: Understanding the Brain as a Write-Read Head Interacting With an Omnipresent Background Field’ by Joachim Keppler
- How To Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence; by Michael Pollan
- What the Tortoise Said to Achilles; by Lewis Carroll
Described by David Perell as “like Rick Rubin for writing,” Ellen Fishbein is an author, writing coach and founder of Altamira Studio, an independent publisher specializing in short-form books. She joins the show to discuss how traditional publishing disrespects intelligent readers, her advice for aspiring authors, what she’s learned from Shakespeare’s sonnets, and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Altamira Studio
- Writing.coach
- Muse By Mail
- Ellen’s Website
- Ellen’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- The Caves of Altamira
- The New Book Deal
- Using Shakespeare’s Sonnets as a Writing Guide
- The Author’s Compass
- The Storytelling Magic of Herman Hesse
- Zero to One & Writing as Personal Communication
- How Traditional Publishing Disrespects Smart Readers
- How the Legacy Publishing System Results in Regression to the Mean
- AI in the Writing Process
- Cutting Out the Middle Man
- Muse By Mail
- Advice for Aspiring Authors
- Writing Coaching & Working with Big Publishers
- Ellen as Empress of the World
- MORE!
Books, Articles & Films Mentioned:
- The New Book Deal; by Ellen Fishbein
- Future of Publishing: 10 High-Conviction Views; by Ellen Fishbein
- What makes Zero to One a masterpiece; by Ellen Fishbein
- Have you found your “bible”?; by Ellen Fishbein
- ASK ARISTOTLE; by Vishal Sharma and William Jaworski
- MEMES MAKE MILLIONS; by Jason Levin
- SPACEFARING: A contribution to Earth’s archives; by Ellen Fishbein
- The Glass Bead Game; by Hermann Hesse Hesse's
- Demian: The Story of a Boyhood; by Hermann Hesse
- Siddharta; by Hermann Hesse
- Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future; by Peter Thiel with Blake Masters
- What Works on Wall Street: A Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- How to Retire Rich: Time-Tested Strategies to Beat the Market and Retire in Style; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
Professor, Mathematician and Writer John A. Paulos joins the show to discuss math education, the power of puzzles, cognitive biases, and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- John’s Website
- John’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Why Do People Hate Math?
- The Power of Posing Problems with Counterintuitive or Shocking Results
- Using Everyday Examples to Understand Math Concepts
- Systems Designed to Take Advantage of Innumeracy
- People’s Ignorance of Randomness and Random Samples
- The Strange Power of Anchoring Bias
- Tradeoffs between Probability and Plausibility
- The Prisoner’s Dilemma & Math Anxiety
- Improving the Monty Hall Problem
- Designing an Ideal Intro Math Course
- The Big Brother Aspect of Nudging
- John as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Innumeracy - Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences; by J.A. Paulos
- A Mathematician Plays the Stock Market; by J.A. Paulos
- A Mathematician Reads the Newspaper; by J.A. Paulos
- Statistics; by D.A. Freedman, R. Pisani, and R.A. Purves
- Thinking Fast and Slow; by Daniel Kahneman
Chris Wilcha is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and commercial director.
His latest film, Flipside, which is co-executive produced by Jim and presented in association with Infinite Films (among others), opens in select US theaters tomorrow (May 31st, 2024).
An ode to creative failure, abandoned projects, and rekindled passion, Flipside premiered at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival to rave reviews. Here’s the full description:
“When filmmaker Chris Wilcha revisits the record store he worked at as a teenager in New Jersey, he finds the once-thriving bastion of music and weirdness from his youth slowly falling apart and out of touch with the times. FLIPSIDE documents his tragicomic attempt to revive the store while revisiting other documentary projects he has abandoned over the years. In the process, Wilcha captures This American Life icon Ira Glass in the midst of a creative rebirth, discovers the origin story of David Bowie’s ode to a local New Jersey cable television hero, and uncovers the unlikely connection between jazz photographer Herman Leonard and TV writer David Milch. This disparate collection of stories coheres into something strange and expansive—a moving meditation on music, work, and the sacrifices and satisfaction of trying to live a creative life.”
Important Links:
- Flipside; a film by Chris Wilcha
- 32 Sounds; a film by Sam Green
Show Notes:
- An Ode to Abandoned Projects
- How Flipside Got Made
- When Filmmaking Gets Personal
- Taking the Big Swings
- Bringing the Film to Life in the Editing Room
- "Life can only be understood backwards, but we must live it forwards”
- Meeting Uncle Floyd
- Working With Judd Apatow & the Coen Brothers; Balancing Art & Commerce
- Stylistic Choices & Following Your Obsession
- How Jim Got Into Music
- The Changing Landscape of Documentary Filmmaking
- How the Creative Industries Compare to Wall Street
- Chris’ Favourite Unmade Documentaries
- Chris as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
“PHETASY IS a movement disguised as a company. We just want to make you laugh while the world burns.”
Bridget Phetasy is an entrepreneur, writer, podcast host, political commentator, burgeoning media mogul, and standup comedian. Over the past few years, her media company - Phetasy - has become an outlet for 100s of hours of social commentary filtered through her sharp and spiky worldview.
She joins the show to discuss the comedic temperature in America today; the role of comedy in contemporary society; humour as a weapon; and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Bridget’s Twitter
- The ‘Beyond Parody with Bridget Phetasy’ newsletter
- Bridget’s Youtube channel
- Bridget’s website
Show Notes:
- Comedy as Dissidence
- Post-Trump Comedy
- America’s Comedic Temperature
- A Tipping Point For Comedy
- Does The Rubber Band Snap Back?
- The Atomization of Culture
- The Coddling of the American Mind
- Fighting Political Peer Pressure
- The Anti-fragility of Normie-ville
- “Capitalism Always Wins”
- The Pendulum Swings
- The Cyclical Nature of Moral Panic
- Luxury Beliefs
- Humor as a Weapon
- The Societal Utility of Comedy
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Trickster Makes This World: Mischief, Myth, and Art; by Lewis Hyde
- Mediated: How the Media Shapes Your World and the Way You Live in It; by Thomas de Zengotita
- Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community; By Robert D. Putnam
Porter Braswell is the Founder and CEO of 2045 Studio, an exclusive network for accomplished professionals of color.
Porter is also the Co-founder and Executive Chairman of the career advancement platform Jopwell, the host of the Harvard Business Review podcast Race at Work, and the author of two books, including 2019’s Let Them See You.
Porter joins the show to discuss how 2045 Studio is harnessing community to empower professionals of color to succeed, how to establish trust within a community, what he learned from Magic Johnson’s mentorship, and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- 2045 Studio
- Porter’s LinkedIn
- Porter’s Twitter
- Porter’s Instagram
- Race at Work podcast
- O'Shaughnessy Ventures Invests in 2045 Studio
Show Notes:
- The Significance of 2045
- Bridging the Inclusion Gap
- Networks, Community & the Clubhouse
- The Opportunity To Be in the Majority
- Building the Right Kind of Partnerships
- The Importance of Human Capital
- Socratic Problem-Solving
- How to Establish Trust Within a Community
- The 2045 Approach to Networking
- Councils & Relationship-Building
- Surprising Lessons From Foundership
- Leveraging the Community
- Magic Johnson’s Mentorship & the Advantages of the Athletic Mentality
- Why Porter Writes
- “Wouldn't it be so cool if I could always feel like I belong?”
- 2045’s Long-Term Vision
- Porter as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Let Them See You: The Guide for Leveraging Your Diversity at Work; by Porter Braswell
- Yes, You Can: The Secrets Revealed for How to Get into and Succeed at America's Top Universities and Colleges; by Porter Braswell
- The Intelligent Investor; by Benjamin Graham
Grant Mitchell is a seasoned entrepreneur, operator, and investor in the areas of health, technology, and machine learning. He is currently the co-founder and CEO of Every Cure, where he uses AI to research rare diseases and conduct drug repurposing.
Grant joins the show to discuss the use of AI in rare drug research, the role of translational scientists, neglected knowledge, and MUCH MORE!
Important Links:
- Every Cure Website
- Dr. Grant’s Twitter
- Dr. Grant’s LinkedIn
Show Notes:
- The Organizational Problem in Pharma
- The Power of Biomedical Knowledge Graphs
- The Traditional Pharma Approach to Drug R&D
- Risks in the World of AI-driven Drug Discovery
- The Limits of AI for Medical Use
- Biology’s ‘Ignorome’
- The Role of Translators
- Every Cure’s Typical Supporters
- Neglected Latent Knowledge
- Grant as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books/Essays Mentioned:
- The AI Revolution; by Tim Urban (Wait But Why)
- Ikigai - The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life; by Héctor García & Francesc Miralles
Author and friend-of-the-show Jimmy Soni returns to discuss the future of publishing, the changing world of book marketing, the courage of creative risk, and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Jimmy’s website
- Jimmy’s Twitter
- The Great Reshuffle
Show Notes:
- Why Traditional Publishing is in Stasis
- A Case of Broken Incentives
- The Changing World of Book Marketing & the Case for Patience
- Talent Spotting & Creative Risk
- The Challenge of Self-Publishing
- Experiment, Experiment, Experiment
- Taylor Swift, Michael Jordan, and the Courage of Trying Something New
- Don’t Be Trapped by the Opinions of Others
- Jimmy as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Founders; by Jimmy Soni
- A Mind at Play; by Jimmy Soni & Rob Goodman
- What Works on Wall Street; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
- Invest Like The Best; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
- How To Retire Rich; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
- Atomic Habits; by James Clear
- Psychology of Money; by Morgan Housel
- The Obstacle is the Way; by Ryan Holiday
- Trust Me, I'm Lying; by Ryan Holiday
- The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics; by Daniel James Brown
- You Are a Badass; by Jen Sincero
- 11/22/63; by Stephen King
Arjun Khemani is a 17-year-old writer and podcaster who dropped out of high school to help lead support at Airchat, the social network co-founded by Naval Ravikant.
As the host of the Arjun Khemani podcast, Arjun has spoken to a wide range of guests including David Deutsch, David Perell and Naval Ravikant. His Substack, Progress Good, “serves as a defense against the anti-Enlightenment tradition, exploring progress, rationality, and optimism.”
Arjun joins the show to discuss why education should be voluntary, the moral case for selfishness, the pessimism of ultimacy and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Arjun’s Twitter
- Progress Good (Arjun’s Substack)
Show Notes:
- The Myth of the Good Old Days
- The Citadel of Science
- Generational Warfare
- Why Education Should Be Voluntary
- Misunderstanding Money
- Escaping the Altruism Trap: the Case for Selfishness
- Coercion & Moral Righteousness
- The Pessimism of Ultimacy
- The Hunt for Better Problems
- Arjun’s Leap Into the Unknown
- Reimagining Education
- What’s Next?
- Arjun as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- One Summer: America 1927; by Bill Bryson
- The New Inquisition: Irrational Rationalism and the Citadel of Science; by Robert Anton Wilson
- The Road to Serfdom; by Friedrich Hayek
- The Lessons of History; by Will & Ariel Durant
- Power vs. Force: The Hidden Determinants of Human Behaviour; by David R. Hawkins
- Deschooling Society; by Ivan Illich
Eddy Elfenbein is an OG finance blogger, ETF manager, and FinTwit legend, with over 25 years of experience working in and around Wall Street.
Eddy joins the show to discuss the story behind his longtime blog - Crossing Wall Street (CWS), the origins of his famous Buy List, his ETF journey, his philosophy as an investor, and much more!
Important Links:
- Eddy’s Twitter
- Eddy’s Blog (Crossing Wall Street)
- Eddy’s Substack
- The Myth of 1926
Show Notes:
- Origins of a Wall Street Blogger
- Bypassing the Gatekeepers
- Eddy’s Buy List
- Many Paths to Stock Market Success
- The Last Sustainable Edge in Public Markets
- The Great Truths of Investing
- Stocks Don’t Know You Own Them
- The Market and the Casino
- Debating Academic Finance
- Major League Buy List
- Down with Perma-Bears
- Unpacking ETFs
- The Next Avatar of Market Intelligence
- The Moat of the Stock Picker
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- What Works on Wall Street; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- THE MISBEHAVIOR OF MARKETS: A Fractal View of Financial Turbulence; by Benoit Mandelbrot and Richard L Hudson
- Stocks for the Long Run; by Jeremy Siegel
- The Myth of 1926: How Much Do We Know About Long-Term Returns on U.S. Stocks?; by Edward F. McQuarrie
- Fama and French Three Factor Model Definition: Formula and Interpretation (Investopedia)
Friend-of-the-show Anna Gát returns to discuss… well… pretty much everything!
On April 13th, O’Shaughnessy Ventures and Interintellect are co-hosting a Future of Publishing event at the beautiful Pratt Mansion in NYC.
We’re bringing together established publishers, online writers, new publishing houses, journalists, technologists, authors and more to rethink and reimagine how ideas are spread in our changing world. Confirmed speakers include Coleman Hughes, Tara Isabella Burton, Tamara Winter, Sahil Lavingia and many more!
Here’s the best part - we want YOU to be there! To buy in-person tickets and for more information on live-streaming, scheduling, speakers, and more, just follow this link.
We hope to see you there!
Important Links:
- Interintellect
- Anna’s Twitter
- Anna’s Website
- Interintellect Substack
Show Notes:
- The Shock of Losing a Parent
- Interintellect & the Post-Tribe Internet
- How to Facilitate Better Conversations
- Surprising Salons
- Faker Spotting & the Temptations of Power
- Avoiding Audience Capture
- The Humanness of Casablanca
- Greatness, Co-Creation & Doing the Work
- Misconceptions About Leadership
- The Personality of Language
- What’s Next for Anna
- Cities as Ideas
- Anna as Empress of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity; by David Graeber and Wengrow
- Adventures of a Bystander; by Peter Drucker
- Mating; by Norman Rush
- The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York; by Robert A. Caro
- Power vs. Force; by David R. Hawkins
- Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu
- The Number Sense: How the Mind Creates Mathematics; by Stanislas Dehaene
- Embers; by Sándor Márai
- The Hunger Games; by Suzanne Collins
The inimitable Visakan Veerasamy returns for a characteristically wide-ranging discussion…
Important Links:
- Visa's Website
- Visa's Twitter
- Visa's Youtube
- Visa’s Previous Episode
- Visa’s Post-Episode Thread
Show Notes:
- Life as a Dad
- A Conversation With David Deutsch
- Change, Courage, Curiosity & Creativity
- Possibility Space & the Problem of Wretchedness
- A Good Blog Post Can Change the World
- The Outdated Language of Counterculture
- Colliding Our Reality Tunnels
- Imperfection Breeds Creativity
- We Are Co-Creators
- Status Quo Soldiers
- The Power of Noticing
- Visa as Emperor of the World
- MUCH more!
Books & Articles Mentioned:
- Friendly Ambitious Nerd; by Visakan Veerasamy
- Introspect; by Visakan Veerasamy
- status quo soldiers lose in the long run; by Visakan Veerasamy
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch
- The Thinker and The Prover; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- Leonardo Da Vinci; by Walter Isaacson
- Ninety-five Theses; by Martin Luther
- Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland; by Lewis Carroll
- The News: A User’s Manual; by Alain de Botton
- Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man; by Marshall McLuhan
- Power vs. Force: The Hidden Determinants of Human Behaviour; by David R. Hawkins
- How I Accidentally Started The Sixties; by Howard Bloom
- One Summer: America 1927; by Bill Bryson
Brendan McCord is the founder of Cosmos Institute — a non-profit dedicated to exploring the intersection of AI and philosophy.
Brendan joins the show to discuss Cosmos’ origins, the pursuit of philosophy as a technologist, the different schools of thought in AI, complex adaptive systems and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Brendan McCord’s Reading List
- Cosmos Institute Substack
- Brendan’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- The Genesis of the Cosmos Institute
- Philosophy as a Quixotic Pursuit
- The Man of the System Dilemma
- Existential Risk & Scenario Agnosticism
- The AI Schools of Thought
- The Religious Nature of the E/Acc Movement
- What Tocqueville Can Teach Us About AI
- The Philosophy-to-Code Pipeline
- “Cars ignited the Sexual Revolution” and Other Unexpected Occurrences
- The Best Systems are Adaptive
- Heterogeneity & Resilient Systems
- Open Source and the US-China Situation
- Automation, Augmentation & Open-Ended Generation
- The Underrated Nuance of Russian Realism
- Cinematic Visions of the Future
- Great Talent & the Risk of the Tasmanian Devil
- Brendan as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Murray Rothbard, “For A New Liberty”
- David R. Hawkins, “Power vs. Force”
- Jung Chang, “Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China”
- Jung Chang, “Mao: The Unknown Story”
- Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, “The Gulag Archipelago”
- Arthur Koestler, “Darkness At Noon”
- Adam Smith, “The Theory of Moral Sentiments”
- Lewis Carroll, “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”
- Lewis Carroll, “What the Tortoise Said To Achilles”
- Eliezer Yudkowsky, “Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality”
- Marc Andreessen, “The Techno-Optimist Manifesto”
- Alexis De Tocqueville, “Democracy in America”
- 'Pericles's Funeral Oration' quoted in Thucydides’ “History of the Peloponnesian War”.
- Plato, “Theaetetus”
- Plato, “The Republic”
- Nietzsche, “The Gay Science”
- C.P Snow, “The Two Cultures”
- Elinor Ostrom, “Governing the Commons: The Evolution of Institutions for Collective Action”
- James M. Buchanan, "Freedom in Constitutional Contract: Perspectives of a Political Economist”
- Iain M. Banks, “Consider Phlebas” (Culture Series #1)
- Chen Qiufan and Kai-Fu Lee, “AI 2041: Ten Visions for Our Future”
- Christopher Buckley, “Thank You for Smoking”
- John Stuart Mill, “On Liberty”
Alex Komoroske has spent his career studying, writing about, and working in complex adaptive systems. He has published multiple essays on topics like Schelling points in organizations, why debate should be collaborative, and how to ensure resilient growth in harsh environments. Alex has also worked as a product manager and in corporate strategy at Google and Stripe.
Alex joins the show to discuss how to escape busyness, why heroism is overrated, the different types of magic, and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Alex’s Website
- Alex’s Twitter
- Alex’s LinkedIn
Show Notes:
- The Parable of the Builder & the Gardener
- Against Heroism
- Noise is Good
- Complex Adaptivity All the Way Down
- Information Flow, Context Switching and Luck Surface-Area
- Escaping Busyness
- Paradigm Shifts & the Importance of Uncertainty
- The Self-Transcending Mindset
- The Power of Compression & The Virility of Memes
- Order From Chaos
- The Iterative Adjacent Possible
- Saruman & Radagast Magic
- The Illusion of Certainty
- Alex as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books and Articles Mentioned:
- The Magic of Acorns; by Alex Komoroske
- The Sarumans and The Radagasts; by Alex Komoroske
- The Iterative Adjacent Possible; by Alex Komoroske
- Crossing the Bridge of Nihilism; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- Adult Development Primer; by Dimitri Glazkov
- The Mower against Gardens; by Andrew Marvell
- Being There; by Jerzy Kosinski
- Noise: A Flaw in Human Judgment; by Daniel Kahneman, Olivier Sibony & Cass R. Sunstein
- Global Brain: The Evolution of Mass Mind from the Big Bang to the 21st Century; by Howard Bloom
- Zorba the Greek; by Nikos Kazantzakis
- Nonzero: The Logic of Human Destiny; by Robert Wright
- The Fifth Science; by Exurb1a
- A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction; by Christopher Alexander
Cedric Chin is a writer, researcher and operator whose Commoncog newsletter is dedicated to finding useful, practical ways to accelerate business expertise. He joins us to discuss some of the most potentially transformative concepts he’s uncovered, from the business expertise triad to naturalistic decision making.
Important Links:
- Cedric’s Website (Commoncog)
- Are You Ready for the Great Reshuffle?
- The Naturalistic Decision Making Podcast
- Wisdom Unleashed
Show Notes:
- Commoncog’s Rabbit-Holing Origins
- The Business Expertise Triad
- Quality Engineering & Process Control
- The Effectiveness of Naturalistic Decision Making
- Expectancy, Intuition & Investing
- How to Stay Open-Minded
- Trial & Error, Knowledge Shields & the Power of Reading
- Protocols & Pattern-Matching
- Cedric as Emperor of the World
- MUCH more!
Books and Articles Mentioned:
- The Tricky Thing About Creating Training Programs; by Cedric Chin
- The Business Expertise Series; by Cedric Chin
- The Oxford Handbook of Expertise; edited by Paul Ward, Jaan Maarten Schraagen, Julie Gore and Emile Roth
- Accelerated Expertise; by Robert R. Hoffman, Paul Ward, Paul J. Feltovich, Lia DiBello, Stephen M. Fiore and Dee H. Andrews
- The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success; by Will Thorndike
- Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon; by Colin Bryar and Bill Carr
- Understanding Variation: The Key to Managing Chaos; by Donald Wheeler
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations that Transform the World; by David Deutsch
- The Hound of the Baskervilles; by Arthur Conan Doyle
- What Works on Wall Street: The Classic Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
Devon Eriksen always wanted to be a writer. As a child, he was persuaded to abandon his aspirations in favor of a career in software engineering. Two decades later, he retired to finally fulfil his ambition to write imaginative hard-science fiction in the vein of authors like Asimov, Heinlein and Niven. He self-published his first novel, Theft of Fire, last year to an excellent reception.
Devon joins the show to discuss why his book incorporates alien technology, the role of patronage in the digital era, his unusual approach to obtaining feedback, and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Theft of Fire; by Devon Eriksen
- Devon’s Website
- Devon’s Twitter
- Introducing: The Life of David Rhoiney
Show Notes:
- Centralization & Institutional Corruption
- The Evolving Nature of Resource Constraints
- Why Theft of Fire Features Alien Technology
- The Musk Dynasty
- Architects vs Gardeners
- Editing, Feedback & Beta-Readers
- Audience Capture & Disagreeableness
- “Money is a measure of fu*ks given”
- Patronage & Intellectual Property in the Digital Era
- Permissionless Writing
- How to Become a High-Agency Character
- Devon as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books and Articles Mentioned:
- Theft of Fire; by Devon Eriksen
- The Ultimate Resource; by Julian Simon
- The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress; by Robert A. Heinlein
- The Population Bomb; by Paul R. Ehrlich
- Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance; by Robert M. Pirsig
- The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr
Jacqueline Novogratz is the founder of Acumen, a nonprofit impact investment fund “changing the way the world tackles poverty by investing in companies, leaders and ideas.”
As well as founding Acumen in 2001, Jacqueline is a public speaker and best-selling author. She also sits on multiple philanthropic boards. Her latest book Manifesto for a Moral Revolution, “reveals 12 leadership practices for anyone eager to build a better world.”
Jacqueline joins us to discuss how to create a high-trust society, the difference between moral righteousness and moral leadership, why the opposite of poverty is dignity, and MUCH more.
Important Links:
- Acumen’s Website
- Acumen Academy
- Jacqueline’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Acumen’s Origins
- A People-First Theory of Change
- Emerging Entrepreneurship in Africa
- Social Return on Investment and the Rise of Microfinance
- How to Create a High Trust Society
- The Blue Sweater
- The Path to Moral Leadership
- Defining Win-Win
- Solar Lights, the Adjacent Possible and the Rejection of Cynicism
- What Jacqueline is Most Excited For
- Jacqueline as Empress of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World; by Jacqueline Novogratz
- Manifesto for a Moral Revolution: Practices to Build a Better World; by Jacqueline Novogratz
Rupert Sheldrake is a biologist and author of 9 books and over 100 scientific papers. A critic of what he sees as the scientific establishment’s dogmatic dedication to materialism, he is perhaps best known for his theory of “morphic resonance,” via which information and activity can be transferred across space and time. Rupert joins the show to discuss being branded a heretic, how to test for telepathy, his advice for young scientists, and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Rupert’s Website
- Rupert’s Banned TED Talk
- The Science Delusion; by Rupert Sheldrake
- A New Science of Life; by Rupert Sheldrake
- Dogs That Know When Their Owners Are Coming Home: And Other Unexplained Powers of Animals; by Rupert Sheldrake
- Is The Sun Conscious?; by Rupert Sheldrake (Journal of Consciousness Studies)
Show Notes:
- The Apostate of Scientism
- The Origins of Scientism
- How to Achieve a Phase Change in the Sciences
- Testing for Telepathy & Incentivizing Intuition
- Structural Resistance to Panpsychism
- When Science Gets Personal
- Loosening the Grip of Determinism
- Advice for Young Scientists
- Rupert as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books & Articles Mentioned:
- The Science Delusion; by Rupert Sheldrake
- New Science of Life; by Rupert Sheldrake
- Dogs That Know When Their Owners Are Coming Home: And Other Unexplained Powers of Animals; by Rupert Sheldrake
- Is The Sun Conscious?; by Rupert Sheldrake
- The New Inquisition: Irrational Rationalism and the Citadel of Science; by Robert Anton Wilson
- Rationality: What It Is, Why It Seems Scarce, Why It Matters; by Steven Pinker
- The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature; by Steven Pinker
- Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds and Shape Our Futures; by Merlin Sheldrake
- The End of Faith; by Sam Harris
- The Fifth Science; by Exurb1a
- What the Tortoise Said to Achilles; by Lewis Carroll
- Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance; by Robert M. Pirsig
- The (Mis)Behaviour of Markets: A Fractal View of Risk, Ruin and Reward; by Benoit B. Mandelbrot & Richard L. Hudson
- The Structure of Scientific Revolutions; by Thomas Kuhn
Friend-of-the-show Rob Henderson returns to discuss his powerful, moving and important debut book, Troubled: A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class (published TODAY). We discuss Rob’s experience of the American foster care and adoption system, the life-changing impact of the military, the rise of Luxury Beliefs, the benefits of standardized testing, and MUCH more.
Important Links:
- Troubled: A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class (Amazon)
- The SAT is a pathway to more college diversity, not less; by Rob Henderson (The Boston Globe)
- Rob Henderson: Lessons I Learned the Hard Way; by Rob Henderson (The Free Press)
- Rob’s Substack
- Rob’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Foster Care, Adoption & Social Mobility
- Structural Origins of the Foster System
- Why Early-Life Stability is Underrated
- How Ideas Can Change Outcomes
- The Life-Changing Impact of the Military
- Young Male Syndrome
- The Role of Intelligence in Governing Outcomes
- The Benefits of Standardized Testing
- Yale, Luxury Beliefs & the Rise of Identity Politics
- Are Luxury Beliefs a Political or Class Phenomenon?
- Trickle-Down Meritocracy
- Technology, Assortive Mating & Social Mobility
- Is the Overton Window Shifting on Campus?
- Rob as Emperor of the World
Books and Articles Mentioned:
- Troubled: A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class; by Rob Henderson
- The SAT is a pathway to more college diversity, not less; by Rob Henderson (The Boston Globe)
- Rob Henderson: Lessons I Learned the Hard Way; by Rob Henderson (The Free Press)
- Blueprint: The Evolutionary Origins of a Good Society; by Nicholas A. Christakis
- Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960-2010; by Charles Murray
- Talent: How to Identify Energizers, Creatives, and Winners Around the World, by Tyler Cowen and Daniel Gross
- A Suitable Boy; by Vikram Seth
- The Son Also Rises; by Gregory Clark
Alec Stapp is the co-founder of the Institute for Progress, a non-partisan innovation policy think tank aiming to “accelerate scientific, technological and industrial progress while safeguarding humanity’s future.” He joins the show to discuss how to achieve change in the age of lobbying, why bipartisanship is underrated, why US immigration policy is so slow-moving and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- IFP’s Website
- Alec’s Twitter
- IFP’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Reimagining the Think Tank
- Progress is a Policy Choice
- Bipartisanship is Underrated
- Achieving Progress via Reframing
- Achieving Change in the Age of Lobbying
- Moonshot Projects and Incremental Change
- Ways to Enact Change Within Existing Institutions
- Governmental Embrace of Technology
- Reducing NIMBYism
- The Barbell Approach to Policy
- The Washington Mindset
- Reasons to be Optimistic
- Lessons From Other Countries
- Why Hasn’t Immigration Policy Changed?
- Alec as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books and Articles Mentioned:
- Recoding America: Why Government Is Failing in the Digital Age and How We Can Do Better; by Jen Pahlka
- The Proceduralist Fetish; by Nicholas Bagley
- The housing theory of everything; by Sam Bowman, John Myers & Ben Southwood
Essayist, tinkerer, and author Rohit Krishnan returns to discuss his book, Building God: Demystifying AI for Decision Makers. Important Links: * Strange Loop Canon (Rohit’s Substack) * Building God: Demystifying AI for Decision Makers * Rohit’s Twitter
Show Notes: * Demystifying AI * AI as a Fuzzy Processor * Complexity & Determinism * The Flash Crash Scenario * Regulating AI * Open Source, Closed Source & Big Brother * Carving Through Bureaucracy * Socially Adapting to AI Disruption * The Centaur Model * Integrated Information Theory & Consciousness * Big Tech in the AI Era * Are We Running Out of Data? * Rohit as Emperor of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * Building God: Demystifying AI for Decision Makers; by Rohit Krishnan
For this milestone 200th (yes, TWO HUNDREDTH) episode of Infinite Loops, regular guest and Infinite Media head Liberty RPF joins writer & researcher Ed William to turn the tables on Jim O’Shaughnessy. Stay tuned for Jim’s dream podcast guests, his advice to parents, a diabolical spin on his trademark closing question, and MUCH more! Important Links: * Infinite Loops Substack
Show Notes: * Episode One: Tequila With Ramp Capital * Taking Inspiration From My Dinner With Andre * Would the Show Be Different if Monetized? * “I would be doing this if I wasn’t pressing publish” * Jim’s Definition of a Successful Episode * Nerves & Jim’s Appearance on Oprah * Infinite Loops as a Serendipity Engine * The Infinite Loops Team * Jim’s Dream Guests * Controversiality & Being Distinctive * Jim’s Relationship With His Grandchildren * We Are Winners of the Cosmic Lottery * Why Aren’t There More History-Focused Episodes? * The Jim O’Shaughnessy Guide to Productivity: Silence, Journalling & Keeping Things Simple * Advice to Parents * What Has Jim Changed His Mind On in the Last 12 to 24 Months? * Advice to Young People Who Doubt the American Dream * When Will We See An Updated What Works on Wall Street? * What Would a World of Abundance Look Like? * Jim’s Favorite Poem * Jim as EVIL Emperor of the World * MORE!
Episodes Mentioned: * Ramp Capital and Super Mugatu (Ep.01) * Brian Muraresku (Ep. 57) * David Rhoiney (Ep. 99) * Will Storr (Ep. 122) * Alex Danco (latest episode) (Ep. 156) * Brian Roemmele (latest episode) (Ep. 168) * Julie Fredrickson (Ep. 181) * Ben Westhoff (Ep. 189) * Guy Spier (Ep. 197)
Books & Poems Mentioned: * The Immortality Key: The Secret History of the Religion with No Name; by ****Brian Muraresku * How to Retire Rich: Time-Tested Strategies to Beat the Market and Retire in Style; by Jim O’Shaughnessy * Invest Like the Best: Using Your Computer to Unlock the Secrets of the Top Money Managers; by Jim O’Shaughnessy * What Works on Wall Street: The Classic Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy * The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr * Fentanyl, Inc.: how rogue chemists are creating the deadliest wave of the opioid epidemic; by Ben Westhoff * One Summer: America 1927; by Bill Bryson * To His Coy Mistress; by Andrew Marvell * The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock; by T. S. Eliot
Lisa Wehden and Minn Kim are the founders of Plymouth Street, which guides talented individuals through the US immigration process. Its aim is to accelerate innovation through faster and more transparent immigration services. Lisa & Minn join the show to discuss the pitfalls of the current system, how Plymouth Street is injecting agency into the immigration process, the importance of storytelling, and MUCH more! Important Links: * Plymouth Street * Lisa’s LinkedIn * Lisa’s Twitter * Minn’s LinkedIn * Minn’s Twitter
Show Notes: * The Origins of Plymouth Street * Problems With the Current US Immigration System * Expanding Access to the O-1 Visa * High-Skilled Immigration as a Bipartisan Issue * The Importance of Storytelling * From Anecdotal to Empirical; Coalition Building * Injecting Agency Into the Immigration Process * Scaling with Technology * The Emotional Toll of the Immigration System * Building the Right Team & Breaking Bad News * Dealing With Negative Externalities * Is America Open for Business? * Augmenting Plymouth’s Offering * Remote Work vs In-Person * What’s Next? * Lisa & Minn as Emperors of the World
Books Mentioned: * The Hypomanic Edge: The Link Between (a Little) Craziness and (a Lot Of) Success in America; by John Gartner
Alice Albrecht is the founder and CEO of re:collect, a company dedicated to “enhancing human intelligence by augmenting memory, perception, and synthesis utilizing AI.” Alice started her career in psychology and academia, obtaining a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience from Yale University. She joins the show to discuss how to become more creative, why she believes that nothing is true, how to boost evolution and MUCH more! Important Links: * re:collect’s Website * Alice’s Twitter * Alice’s LinkedIn * How to Improve Your Creative Thinking
Show Notes: * Augmenting Human Creativity * Collection Does Not Always Lead to Recollection * Using re:collect to Connect Information * How to Increase Your Creativity * Different Phases of Creativity * How AI Fits Into the Picture * Harnessing Our Attention * AGI & ASI * Boosting Evolution * re:collect’s First Order Effects * Nothing is True * Convergence, Divergence & Collective Intelligence * re:collect in Seven Years’ Time * From Academia to Entrepreneurship * Alice as Empress of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch * The Fabric of Reality: Towards a Theory of Everything; by David Deutsch * The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous; by Joseph Henrich
Guy Spier runs the Aquamarine Fund, an “investment partnership closely modeled on the original Buffet Partnerships.” He is also a podcast host, YouTube creator, author of The Education of a Value Investor and the host of the annual investment gathering VALUEx. He describes his life’s project as “a quest for wealth, wisdom and enlightenment.” Guy joins the show to discuss the differences between Switzerland and the US, how to unlock the British class system, what he learned from Warren Buffett, and MUCH more! Important Links: * Guy’s Website * Guy’s Twitter * Guy’s YouTube Channel * 3Blue1Brown (YouTube Channel) * Numberphile (YouTube Channel)
Show Notes: * The Differences Between New York, Switzerland & Paris * Exploring the Dark Underbelly of New York Nightlife * Psychedelics, Guns & Regulation * The Advantages of Swiss Democracy * Don’t Short the United States * The Branding Skill of the Royal Family * Unlocking the Rules of the Class System * Life Paths & Premeditation * Luck, Opportunity & Non-Canonical Science * Jim’s Music Taste * Mathematical Shenanigans * Guy as Emperor of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us about Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence; by Michael Pollan * The Hypomanic Edge: The Link Between (a Little) Craziness and (a Lot Of) Success in America; by John Gartner * Write It Down, Make It Happen: Knowing What You Want and Getting It; by Henriette Anne Klauser * Invest Like The Best; by Jim O’Shaughnessy * Outside, the Sky is Blue: The story of a family told with searing honesty, humour and love; by Christina Patterson
Jared Dillian is a writer, strategist, financial expert, public speaker, and author of four books, including No Worries: How To Live a Stress-Free Financial Life (out this month!). He joins us to discuss why you should never loan money to your friends or family, why the FIRE movement is a fast track to a miserable life, the hidden costs of being cheap, and MUCH more! Important Links: * No Worries: How To Live a Stress-Free Financial Life * Jared’s Website * Jared’s Twitter * Daily Dirtnap * We’re Gonna Get Those Bastards * Jared Dillian Money
Show Notes: * From Coast Guard, to Wall Street, to Writer * “I am not in the money business—I am in the happy business” * The Awesome Portfolio * Stop Worrying About Small Financial Decisions * The Biggest Financial Decisions You Will Ever Make * Keep Your Finances Separate From Your Partner; Never Loan Friends or Family Money * To Make Money, You Have to Want Money * Generational Attitudes to Money * Being Wealthy vs Being Rich * Blowing Up Your Identity * Improving Financial Education * Why Investing Should Be Hard * The Hidden Costs of Being Cheap * Why People Are Scared of Entrepreneurship * The Worst Financial Decision Jared Has Ever Made * Jared as Emperor of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * No Worries: How To Live a Stress-free Financial Life; by Jared Dillian * Those Bastards: 69 Essays on Life, Creativity, and Meaning; by Jared Dillian * All The Evil of This World; by Jared Dillian * Street Freak: Money and Madness at Lehman Brothers; by Jared Dillian * Rich Dad Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not!; by Robert T. Kiyosaki * The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People; by Stephen R. Covey
Writer, marketer, entrepreneur, and master of mental models, George Mack, returns to discuss the top 0.1% of ideas he’s ever come across, from treating life as a video game to spotting high-agency individuals. Important Links:
- George’s Twitter
- The Lindy Library
- Roy: A Life Well Lived (Rick and Morty)
- How to Spot High Agency People
- The Mack Meditation
- What is ignored by the media — but will be studied by historians?
- The Early-Late Razor
Show Notes:
- Treating Life as a Video Game
- Finding the Important Metrics
- Embrace Momentum; Embrace Constraints
- How to Spot High Agency People
- How to Increase Your Agency
- The Mack Meditation & Silence as Alpha
- Why Pessimism vs Optimism is the Wrong Debate
- The Future of Media
- What is Ignored by the Media but will be Studied by Historians?
- The Reddit to Facebook Continuum
- George’s Most Midwit Opinion
- Randomness & Feeding the Algorithm
- How to Retain Curiosity
- George as Emperor of the World
Books Mentioned:
- The Hypomanic Edge: The Link Between (a Little) Craziness and (a Lot Of) Success in America; by John Gartner
- Happy: Why More or Less Everything is Absolutely Fine; by Derren Brown
- What Works on Wall Street; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- The Secret; by Rhonda Byrne
- Gödel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid; by Douglas Hofstadter
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations that Transform the World; by David Deutsch
Eric Jorgenson is (deep breath) an author, investor, writer, podcast host, online course creator, and the CEO of Scribe Media (breathe out). He joins the show to discuss the death of the marketing department, the changing nature of business-to-creator economics, the most impactful thing he learned from Balaji, the future of the publishing industry, and MUCH more! Important Links: * Website * Twitter * Fund * Scribe Media * Money 20/20 Talk * The Thinker and The Prover * Jimmy Soni & Liberty RPF — Unleashing the Future of Publishing
Show Notes: * A Guide to Creator Economics * The Death of the Marketing Department * Creator x Business Partnerships * Why Some People Are So Reluctant to Embrace the New Playbook * How to Become More Open-Minded * The Anthology of Balaji & the Curation-Author Effect * How to Cultivate Good Taste & the Rise of Curation * What Balaji Taught Eric About Technology * How Eric Became CEO of Scribe * Why Does Big Publishing Continue to Hold So Much Influence? * Helping the World Make Great Books * The Future of Books * Eric as Emperor of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * The Almanack of Naval Ravikant: A Guide to Wealth and Happiness; by Eric Jorgenson * The Anthology of Balaji: A Guide to Technology, Truth, and Building the Future; by Eric Jorgenson * What Works on Wall Street; by Jim O'Shaughnessy * Invest Like the Best; by Jim O'Shaughnessy * The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch
Arkady Kulik is a founding partner of rpv, a deep tech venture fund that aims to “drive tangible advancements in the well-being of humankind” by focusing on early, scientifically intensive ventures. He has over 15 years of experience in the IT sector as a C-level executive, a master’s degree in physics, and an MBA from INSEAD. Arkady joins the show to discuss how to evaluate a deep tech deal, why more scientists don’t become entrepreneurs, the ultimate goal of science, the two types of human motivation, and MUCH more! Important Links: * rpv’s Website * rpv’s Substack * Arkady’s LinkedIn * Arkady’s Twitter
Show Notes: * Judging Investments by Their Technology Readiness Level * Bringing Scientific Expertise Into Venture Capital * Scorecards & Dealbreakers: How rpv Analyzes a Deep Tech Opportunity * Spotting the Early Red Flags * How rpv Deploys Scientific Due Diligence * Providing Feedback & Educating the Industry * Self-Censorship, Ideology & the Scientific Method * Why Don’t More Scientists Become Entrepreneurs? * The Ideal Composition of a Deep Tech Founding Team * Science’s Ultimate Goal * Taking Progress for Granted * The Two Types of Human Motivation * How Neurotech Can Benefit Humanity * Why Arkady is Less Bullish on Quantum Computing * Incoming Deep Tech Developments * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * Survive & Thrive: Entrepreneurship Frameworks That Work; by Paul Kewene-Hite * The Nature of Technology: What It Is and How It Evolves; by W. Brian Arthur * One Summer: America 1927; by Bill Bryson
Alex Lieberman is the co-founder and Executive Chairman of Morning Brew, the cofounder of Storyarb and the host of 60 Second Startup & Founder’s Journal. Alex joins the show to discuss why hiring a Voice Editor contributed to Morning Brew’s success, how to spot a writing unicorn, how he learned to follow his intrinsic motivation and MUCH more! Important Links: * Alex’s Twitter * Founder’s Journal * Morning Brew * The Great Reshuffle * Will Storr on Infinite Loops * The Best Stuff | Conscious Leadership Group
Show Notes: * The Rise of Morning Brew * Finding Morning Brew’s Voice * Finding the Writing Unicorn * Writing Nature vs. Writing Nurture * Corporate Speak vs. Online Speak * The Power of Self-Awareness * Interviews & Talent Spotting * Ideating, Doing & Premeditating * Following the Intrinsics * Finding Your Zone of Genius * Building Storyarb * Alex as Emperor of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * What Works on Wall Street, Fourth Edition: The Classic Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy * The Adweek Copywriting Handbook: The Ultimate Guide to Writing Powerful Advertising and Marketing Copy from One of America's Top Copywriters; by Joseph Sugarman * The Tao Te Ching; by Laozi * The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership: A New Paradigm for Sustainable Success; by Jim Dethmer, Diana Chapman & Kaley Klemp * The Science of Storytelling: Why Stories Make Us Human, and How To Tell Them Better; by Will Storr * Burn Rate: Launching a Startup and Losing My Mind; by Andy Dunn
Tim Beiko, who runs the core protocol meetings for Ethereum, teams up with writer and consultant Venkatesh Rao to discuss their “Summer of Protocols” research program. This initiative brought together 33 researchers with a wide range of expertise to investigate protocols across several domains. Join us for an in-depth exploration of protocols: understanding what they are, their importance, why they can go wrong, and much more! Important Links:
- Summer of Protocols
- Protocolized Newsletter
- Venkatesh’s previous episode
- Venkatesh's Website
- Ribbonfarm
- Venkatesh's Substack
- Venkatesh's Twitter
- Tim’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Why We Should Care About Protocols
- Protocols, Narratives & World-Building
- The Three Preconditions of a Protocol
- "Civilization progresses by increasing the number of actions we can do without thinking about them.”
- When Protocols Go Wrong
- More Protocols = Less Agency?
- Workplace Safety & Protocol Complexity
- How to Build Good Protocols; Building Protocol Literacy
- Why Aren’t More People Talking About Protocols?
- How to Encourage Protocols-First Thinking
- Protocols Have Long Timelines
- Protocols in Fiction
- Protocol Hunting In Silico
- Determinism, Open Environments & Evolution
- How to Hack Protocols
- Agility Isn’t Always the Answer
- Memory: The Most Valuable Asset in a Civilization
- Next Steps & How to Learn More
- MORE!
Books & Essays Mentioned:
- The God Problem: How a Godless Cosmos Creates; by Howard Bloom
- Hope Runners of Gridlock; by Simon de la Rouviere
- High Rise; by J.G Ballard
- The Drowned World; by J.G Ballard
- The Drought; by J.G Ballard
- A Burglar's Guide to the City; by Geoff Manaugh
- The Mythical Man-Month: Essays on Software Engineering; by Frederick Brooks
- In the Beginning Was the Command Line; by Neal Stephenson
- Slow Ideas; by Atul Gawande
- Nakatomi Space; by Geoff Manaugh
- Base Layers And Functional Escape Velocity; by Vitalik Buterin
Will Schoder is a video essayist who explores a diverse range of topics including psychology, meaning, re-enchantment, metamodernism, mortality, and satire. Initially known for his short-form videos, his latest series is a trilogy of fascinating long-form deep dives into the nature, foundations, and secrets of happiness. Will joins the show to share his insights on the evolving significance of curation, the future of the creator economy, how to obtain deep happiness and MUCH more. Important Links: * Will’s YouTube Channel * Will’s Twitter * Eight Books That Changed My Life * Rick and Morty – Finding Meaning in Life * David Foster Wallace – The Problem With Irony * The Attention Economy – How They Addict Us * Every Story Is The Same * The Happiness Trilogy: + Part 1: What is Happiness? + Part 2: The Foundations of Happiness + Part 3: The Secret to Happier
- The moral roots of liberals and conservatives; Jonathan Haidt
- The Thinker and The Prover
Show Notes: * Short-Form vs Long-Form Videos * The Righteous Mind * The Internet as Liberator; the Rise of Curation * Pushback & Pop Culture * YouTube & the Rise of the TikTok Style * Navigating the Attention Economy * The Future of the Creator Economy * Will’s Hero’s Journey * Finding Deep Happiness * Compression, Genetics & Environment * Education vs. Entertainment * The Free Energy Principle * Filter Failure * Will as Emperor of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion; by Jonathan Haidt * One Summer: America 1927; by Bill Bryson * Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business; by Neil Postman * The Shallows: How the Internet Is Changing the Way We Think, Read and Remember; by Nicholas Carr * Happy: Why More or Less Everything is Absolutely Fine; by Derren Brown * Happiness: A Very Short Introduction; by Daniel M. Haybron * The Pursuit of Unhappiness: The Elusive Psychology of Well-Being; by Daniel M. Haybron * All The Light We Cannot See; by Anthony Doerr * How To Change Your Mind; by Michael Pollan
Ben Westhoff is a best-selling investigative journalist focusing on culture, drugs, and poverty. Ben’s book Fentanyl, Inc.: How Rogue Chemists Created the Deadliest Wave of the Opioid Epidemic was the culmination of a four-year investigation into the worst drug crisis in American history, an investigation that included Ben making an undercover visit to Chinese drug factories. His latest book, Little Brother: Love, Tragedy, and My Search for Truth tells the story of Ben’s search for his little brother’s killer. Ben is currently working on a documentary, Antagonist, about naltrexone, an opioid treatment medicine that some have called a “wonder drug.” Ben joins the show to discuss the failure of the War on Drugs, the role played by Big Pharma, how he speaks to his children about drugs, what most Americans misunderstand about poverty, and MUCH more. Important Links:
- Ben’s Website
- Drugs + Hip-Hop Newsletter
- Antagonist Documentary Teaser
Show Notes:
- The Worst Drug Crisis in World History
- How China and Fentanyl Are Connected
- Why Can’t the USA Stop This?
- The Failure of the War on Drugs; Better Solutions
- Vivitrol: a Wonder Drug?
- Finding Better Ways to Care For the Vulnerable
- Free Markets & Big Pharma
- How Ben Speaks to His Children About Drugs
- Innovation & Stigmatization
- How Harm Reduction Can Help
- What Has Happened to San Francisco?
- Could Decriminalization Work?
- Ben’s Hunt For His Little Brother’s Killer
- What Most Americans Misunderstand About Poverty; How Listeners Can Help
- How Ben’s Documentary Can Help
- Ben as Emperor Of The World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Fentanyl, Inc.: How Rogue Chemists Created the Deadliest Wave of the Opioid Epidemic; by Ben Westhoff
- Little Brother: Love, Tragedy, and My Search for Truth; by Ben Westhoff
- Original Gangstas: Tupac Shakur, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, Ice Cube, and the Birth of West Coast Rap; by Ben Westhoff
- Thank You For Smoking; by Christopher Buckley
AI researcher, memelord extraordinaire, and techno-optimist Roon joins the show to discuss coming up with the shape rotator vs. wordcel meme, what an AGI world could become, and why Tenet is Christopher Nolan’s best movie. Important Links: * Roon’s Twitter * Roon’s Substack * AGI Futures
Show Notes: * Shape Rotators Vs. Wordcels * Why AGI is Possible * AI in Science Fiction * AGI Future #1: Neuralink Third Impact * AGI Future #2: Simulation Theory * AGI Future #3: Dumb Matter * AGI Future #4: Balrog Awakened * AGI Future #5: Ultra Kessler Syndrome * AGI Future #6: The Tragedy of Taiwan * AGI Future #7: For Dust Thou Art * AGI Future #8: CEV Super Intelligence * Why Tenet is Christopher Nolan’s Best Movie * Roon as Emperor of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * The Lucifer Principle: A Scientific Expedition into the Forces of History; by Howard Bloom * The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom * The God Problem: How a Godless Cosmos Creates; by Howard Bloom * William Blake vs the World; by John Higgs * The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; by Douglas Adams
Katherine Dee is a writer, journalist, and internet culture reporter. A contributor to publications such as UnHerd, Tablet, and Blaze Media, she is also the proprietor of the Default Wisdom Substack, where she writes about a wide range of topics, including internet history and culture, digital communities, millennial nostalgia, and online fandom. Katherine joins the show to discuss why you’re never leaving Twitter, how to escape the nostalgia trap, whether it’s possible to heal our attention spans, and MUCH more! Important Links: * Default Wisdom * Why You’re Never Leaving Twitter; by Katherine Dee * Everything I Know About Elite America I Learned From ‘Fresh Prince’ and ‘West Wing’; by Rob Henderson
Show Notes: * Origin Story * Why You’re Never Leaving Twitter * Art & Journalism in the Attention Economy * Class, Wealth & Status * How to Heal Our Attention Span * Escaping the Nostalgia Trap * Technology, Cultural Lag & Barriers to Entry * Astroturfing vs. Organic Momentum * Katherine as Empress of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr * Class: A Guide Through the American Status System; by Paul Fussell * The novels of Donna Tartt * The novels of Easton Ellis
The inimitable Derek Sivers returns for Part Two of our conversation. Important Links: * Part One * Website * Twitter * Still Too Soon to Tell & Other Songs * Tech Independence
Show Notes: * Curiosity Starts With Dissatisfaction * Defining Things By Their Opposites * Counterbalancing Our Biases * How To Reframe Your Problems * Still Too Soon To Tell * Alternate Pasts & Alternate Futures * The Choice You Commit To Is The Best Choice * Just Do The Thing * What Next? * Derek As Emperor Of The World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * Anything You Want; by Derek Sivers * Hell Yeah Or No; by Derek Sivers * How To Live; by Derek Sivers * Your Music And People; by Derek Sivers * William Blake vs the World; by John Higgs * The God Problem: How a Godless Cosmos Creates; by Howard Bloom * The Selfish Gene; by Richard Dawkins * Awaken The Giant Within: How to Take Immediate Control of Your Mental, Emotional, Physical and Financial Life; by Tony Robbins * The Enlightenment Trilogy; by Jed McKenna * What's Our Problem?: A Self-Help Book for Societies; by Tim Urban
Over the years, Derek Sivers has been a musician, circus performer, computer programmer, author, public speaker, and entrepreneur. In the 2000s, he sold his business, CD Baby, for $22 million and gave the proceeds to charity. Derek has optimized his life “for creating and learning” and spends as much of his time as he can (often 12 hours a day, 6 days a week) passionately pursuing his interests. Known for his ability to compress complex ideas into succinct insights, he has written four books and is currently working on his fifth. This conversation was so much fun that Derek immediately asked to return for a sequel, which we will be releasing this Thursday (26 October). Stay tuned! Important Links: * Website * Twitter * There’s No Speed Limit * Ideas Are Just A Multiplier Of Execution * The Thinker and The Prover * Keep It Simple, Stupid (Infinite Loops Substack)
Show Notes: * Don’t Be AC/DC. Be Miles Davis. * Does It Have To Be This Way? * Rebranding Laziness * Time Is A Multiplier * From Idea To Execution * Useful Not True * When Simple Gets Hard * How Derek Found Agency By Accepting Blame * Cultivating Insatiable Curiosity * More!
Books Mentioned: * Anything You Want; by Derek Sivers * Hell Yeah Or No; by Derek Sivers * How To Live; by Derek Sivers * Your Music And People; by Derek Sivers * Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu * The Two Cultures; by C.P. Snow * Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There; by Lewis Carroll * The Cosmic Trigger trilogy; by Robert Anton Wilson * The Time Paradox: The New Psychology of Time That Will Change Your Life; by Philip Zimbardo and John Boyd * Prisoners of Geography: Ten Maps That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About Global Politics; by Tim Marshall * Au Contraire!: Figuring Out the French; by Gilles Asselin and Ruth Mastron * Watching the English: The Hidden Rules of English Behaviour; by Kate Fox
John Fio is an inventor and entrepreneur who has bootstrapped four products that have collectively generated hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue. He joins the show to discuss why ideas are harder than execution, what he learned from being Justin Bieber’s intern, what most people get wrong about Kanye West, why magic is real, and what the success of Barbie and Taylor Swift can tell us about the future. Enjoy! Important Links: * Twitter * LinkedIn * MoonPals * Fio Creations
Show Notes: * From Bieber’s Intern to Moon Pals * Ideas Are Harder Than Execution * Kickstarting Gravity Blankets * How to Have a Good Idea * Kanye West & the Creative Process * The Wizard & the Warrior * Magic is Real * Social Situations Are a Departure From the Truth * Moon Pals, Barbie, Taylor Swift & the Dawn of a New Paradigm * Long Tails, Curation & Good Taste * John as Emperor of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism, by Howard Bloom. * The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch * Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu * The Two Cultures; by C.P. Snow
James Pethokoukis is a policy analyst, official CNBC contributor, and Dewitt Wallace Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He is also the creator and writer of the Faster, Please! newsletter, which is dedicated to “discovering, creating, and inventing a better world through technological innovation, economic growth, and pro-progress culture.” James joins the show to discuss his new book, The Conservative Futurist: How to Create the Sci-Fi World We Were Promised. Important Links:
- Faster, Please!
- The Conservative Futurist
- WTF Happened In 1971?
- Tinkered Thinking — White Mirror
- The Great Reshuffle
- Bono On Nuclear Energy
- Our World in Data
Show Notes:
- What Happened to America?
- Up Wing vs. Down Wing Thinking
- AI as a General Purpose Technology; Regulatory Capture
- Technological Proficiency & Problem Solving
- How to Reframe Tomorrow
- “Be Like the Blade of Grass”
- Green Shoots of Optimism
- AI as a Lifelong Learning Instructor
- We Are the Economy
- Three Policies That Could Change the Future
- James as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Conservative Futurist: How to Create the Sci-Fi World We Were Promised; by James Pethokoukis
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch
- The Hypomanic Edge: The Link Between (a Little) Craziness and (a Lot Of) Success in America; by John Gartner
- The Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision Of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
Bojan Tunguz is a senior systems software engineer at NVIDIA, quadruple Kaggle grandmaster, former top 10 Amazon reviewer, and former physicist. He joins the show to discuss the problems that LLMs can’t solve, the speed of AI progress, why he homeschools his kids, how to win Twitter, and more! Important Links: * Twitter * Substack * 40 AI Use Cases
Show Notes: * Becoming a Kaggle Grandmaster * Hyper-Competitive Learning * From Physics to Data Science * How Natural Language Processing Has Evolved * The Problems That LLMs Can’t Solve * The Future of the Centaur Model * AI as a Creativity Extender * Why Bojan is Homeschooling His Kids * The AI Feedback Flywheel * How Quickly Will Different Sectors Be Transformed By AI? * Disruption vs. Destruction * Is AGI possible? * AI Use Cases: Mental Health & Elder Care * How to Win Twitter * Why Bojan Became a Top 10 Amazon Reviewer * Bojan’s Favorite Books * Bojan’s Current Side-Project * Bojan As Emperor of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * Lolita; by Vladimir Nabokov * The work of Haruki Murakami * The work of Milan Kundera * The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature; by Steven Pinker * Seeing Like a State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition have Failed; by James Scott
Julie Fredrickson is a former founder and the Managing Partner of Chaotic Capital, an “early stage fund for companies that adapt our lives and systems to the opportunities that chaos brings.” She joins the show to discuss the Great Weirding, becoming a playable character, how the market provides a muse, the power of preparation, and more! Important Links:
- Website
- Chaotic Capital
- The Great Weirding; by Venkatesh Rao
- The Thinker and The Prover
Show Notes:
- Julie’s Origin Story
- The Difference Between Hippies and Tech
- “Circumstances change. Humanity does not. Plan accordingly.”
- The Great Weirding
- The Myth of the Perfect Past
- How to Become a Playable Character
- The Weirdo Lighthouse
- The Power of Showing Up
- How Julie Assesses Founders
- Talent Doesn’t Matter
- The Market is the Muse
- “In the beginning, there was the word”
- Preference Falsification vs. Revealed Preferences
- Julie’s Revealed Preferences
- “Prepare, and the opportunity will come”
- Silicon Valley Is an Idea, Not a Place
- The Open-Source Ethos
- Julie as Empress of the World
Books Mentioned:
- Bad Predictions: 2000 Years of the Best Minds Making the Worst Forecasts; by Laura Lee
- The History of the Peloponnesian War; by Thucydides
- Republic; by Plato
- American Cycles of History: According to the Fourth Turning Generational Theory and The Boomer Soul 1946-2022; by William H. Van Marter Jr.
- William Blake vs the World; by John Higgs
- Julie, or the New Heloise; by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
- The End of History and the Last Man; by Francis Fukuyama
- The Peripheral; by William Gibson
- Neuromancer; by William Gibson
- The Fifth Science; by Exurb1a
- The Science of Storytelling: Why Stories Make Us Human, and How To Tell Them Better; by Will Storr
- Class: A Guide Through the American Status System; by Paul Fussell
- What Works on Wall Street: The Classic Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- Singularity Sky; by Charles Stross
- Marxism and Modernism; by Eugene Lunn
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
Danny Miranda’s ambition is to sell out Madison Square Gardens for a live edition of his podcast. Now, on episode 402 (and counting), he is getting closer to that goal every week. He joins the show to discuss the art of interviewing, why he’s attracted to the light, his favorite questions, and more. Important Links: * Danny’s Twitter * Danny’s Website * Wisdom Unleashed
Show Notes: * Fancy a phone call? The power of human interaction * What Danny has learned from 397 podcasts * The Art of Interviewing * Finding “the thing” * How has Danny changed deciding his aim was to sell out Madison Square Garden? * Danny’s research process * “I’m attracted to the light” * When did things go wrong? * Podcasting as idea collecting * In-person vs Zoom * The ability to speak to anyone in the world * Danny’s favorite questions * The different types of podcast * Why podcasts are like the printing press for audio * The importance of connection * What will podcasting look like in 2034? * Always Be Closing * Danny as emperor of the world * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * How to Win Friends and Influence People; by Dale Carnegie * Hidden Genius; by Polina Marinova Pompliano * The Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu * Jim’s “Exploring the Dark” Reading List: + Meditations; by Marcus Aurelius + Heart of Darkness; by Joseph Conrad + The Human Animal: A Personal View of the Human Species; by Desmond Morris + Exploring the Shadow: Understanding and Addressing the Dark Side of the Human Psyche; by John C. Friel and Linda D. Friel (Article) + Man's Search for Meaning; by Viktor E. Frankl + The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious; by Carl Jung + Memories, Dreams, Reflections: An Autobiography; by Carl Jung + Beyond Good and Evil; by Friedrich Nietzsche + The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil; by Philip Zimbardo + Meeting the Shadow: Hidden Power of the Dark Side of Human Nature; edited by Connie Zweig and Jeremiah Abrams
Dror Poleg is an author, speaker, and researcher investigating technology’s impact on the way people work, live, and invest. He joins us to discuss the relationship between AI and remote work, how cities are going to change, the internet’s role as a matching engine, and MUCH more! Important Links: * Dror’s Website * Dror’s Twitter * Our Great Reshuffle Series * The Once and Future Liberalism; by Walter Russell Mead * The Great Online Game; by Packy McCormick
Show Notes: * The relationship between AI & remote work * How remote work & AI will change our cities * What cities will succeed in the new world? * Remote work vs. Back to the office * Uncertainty & the death of the “job” * How to cure zero-sum thinking * The economy doesn’t need us all to be ambitious * How work is going to change * How AI will transform professions’ scalability; the internet as a matching engine * How Dror uses AI * Unbundling ideas from execution * The value of Twitter * The tragedy of the uncommon * The great online game * UBI & the need for new social systems * Dror as emperor of the world. * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * Rethinking Real Estate: A Roadmap to Technology’s Impact on the World’s Largest Asset Class; by Dror Poleg * After Office: A Survival Guide For Cities, Humans And Companies; by Dror Poleg * The Longer Long Tail: How Endless Choice is Creating Unlimited Demand; by Chris Anderson
Our previous episode with Trung & Rob included the bombshell reveal that Rob had never watched Apocalypse Now. Nearly one year later, Rob and Trung make their triumphant return to the show to discuss the themes of the film, the lessons aspiring creators can draw from its troubled production history, the role of the Vietnam War in American cinema, and a whole lot more. Important Links: * Rob’s Substack * Rob’s Twitter * Trung’s Substack * Trung’s Twitter * Our previous episode with Trung & Rob
Show Notes: * Rob’s homework assignment * The two endings of Apocalypse Now * Coppola’s disastrous production process * Should Willard have taken Kurtz’ place? * Draft dodgers: fear of death, or fear of social judgment? * Different perspectives of American Empire * The memory industry: Vietnam in film * When condemning backfires * The thin veneer of civilization * Willard’s moral injury * Is pacificism sustainable? * Art as a response to social conditions * Telling the story vs romanticizing it * Be careful what you wish for: The McKenna take * When Jim was Jedpilled * When Rob was Jedpilled * The creative process: feeding the black box, becoming the vessel, and summoning the muse * George Lucas’ version of Apocalypse Now * Cut scenes and time travel * Trung & Rob as Emperors of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * The Enlightenment Trilogy; by Jed McKenna * Heart of Darkness; by Joseph Conrad * The Lucifer Principle; by Howard Bloom * Howard Bloom hierarchies * The Sympathizer; by Viet Thanh Nguyen * The War of Art; by Steven Pressfield * Moby-Dick; by Herman Melville * The Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu * The Creative Act: A Way of Being; by Rick Rubin
Films, TV Shows & Podcasts Mentioned: * Apocalypse Now; directed by Francis Ford Coppola * Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse; directed by Fax Bahr, George Hickenlooper & Eleanor Coppola * The Vietnam War; directed by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick * Platoon; directed by Oliver Stone * The Wolf of Wall Street; directed by Martin Scorcese * Wall Street; directed by Oliver Stone * The Social Network; directed by David Fincher * Born on the Fourth of July; directed by Oliver Stone * The Deer Hunter; directed by Michael Cimino * A Clockwork Orange; directed by Stanley Kubrick * Patton; directed by Franklin J. Schaffner * Full Metal Jacket; directed by Stanley Kubrick * Saving Private Ryan; directed by Steven Spielberg * The Godfather & The Godfather Part II; directed by Francis Ford Coppola * The Matrix; directed by the Wachowskis * Rick and Morty * Do We Get To Win This Time? * Tetragrammation with Rick Rubin
"Who is America’s best-known banker? That would be Jamie Dimon.
But who is the richest? That would be Andy Beal, with an estimated net worth of $9 billion."
Friend-of-the-show Frederik Gieschen joins us for an impromptu conversation about his article on the life and work of Andy Beal, the richest banker in America.
Important Links:
- High Roller: Lessons from America’s Richest Banker
- Frederik’s Twitter
- Frederik’s Substack
- Frederik’s previous episode
- The Internet Contrarian
Show Notes:
- The Arena, the Maze, and the Labyrinth
- Why do myths endure?
- “You can’t do a good deal with a bad person”
- America’s richest banker: the Andrew Beal story
- Agreeableness, contrarianism, and accountability
- Thinking like a banker vs. thinking like an investor
- The random buzz generator: How to fight linear thinking
- The alchemy of success
- Bubbles: When heterogeneity becomes homogeneity
- “The higher you rise in a hierarchy, the less good the information you get.”
- Deterministic vs. probabilistic thinking
- The difference between being an investor and being in the investing business
- The return of Andrew Beal
- The importance of agility
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Cosmic Trigger trilogy; by Robert Anton Wilson
- Aesop’s Fables; by Aesop
- Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art; by James Nestor
- The Professor, the Banker, and the Suicide King: Inside the Richest Poker Game of All Time; by Michael Craig
- What Works on Wall Street; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life; by Alice Schroeder
Dr. Julie Gurner is a doctor of psychology and executive performance coach to top percentile executives, primarily in finance and technology. She is also the proprietor of the Ultra Successful newsletter, which delivers a weekly challenge pulled from global business leaders and designed to ”help you unleash your power.” Dr. Gurner joins the show to discuss the merits of being unreasonable, why your business should not be your identity, why niceness is overrated, and more! Important Links: * Substack * Twitter * Website
Show Notes: * Dr. Gurner’s origin story * How forensic psychology experience can help executive coaching * Leaning into the 1% * Why psychological tests are flawed * The common traits of successful founders * High performance & bottlenecks * Why your business should not be your identity * Data vs. emotion * How Dr. Gurner applies her strategies in her own life * Don’t be nice * Be unreasonable * Social validation is not important * How can you improve someone’s communication skills? * How Dr. Gurner would teach executive coaching * The “no Plan B” mentality * Can high energy be detrimental? * How to unpack charisma * How to turn down work * Dr. Gurner’s greatest satisfaction * How has leadership changed in the last 20 years? * Dr. Gurner as Empress of the World * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * The Art of War; by Sun Tzu
Board Certified hypnotist & Goodwin Hypnosis founder Todd Goodwin joins us for his second appearance to discuss why we should treat the mind like a garden, why revelation is not the same as resolution, why labels can be counterproductive, and much more!
Important Links:
- Goodwin Hypnosis
- Goodwin Hypnosis’ YouTube
- Todd’s first episode
- Luca Dellanna’s episode
- Our episode on Dr John Sarno
Show Notes:
- Treating the symptoms vs treating the cause
- Gardening the mind
- “Revelation is not resolution”
- Why aren’t hypnosis & NLP more popular?
- Could Todd’s work be filmed?
- Why labeling conditions can be counterproductive
- Clearing the emotional charge from traumatic memories
- Top-down vs. Bottom-up solutions
- Hypnosis as a way of reclaiming agency
- How we are shaped by childhood experiences
- Why we need a more compassionate criminal system
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Healing Back Pain; by John E. Sarno
Why is hard work a form of laziness? Why should we be wary of short-term success? How can imagining parallel worlds help us make better decisions? Author, management advisor, and researcher Luca Dellanna joins us to discuss these questions and more!
Important Links:
- Luca’s Website
- Luca’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Ergodicity: survival is king
- Why sample size matters
- The two types of competitors
- Teaching by signaling
- The parallel worlds approach to decision-making
- Racing to the bottom
- Why working hard can be a form of laziness
- The three things managers should prioritize
- Why desiring change isn’t enough
- Fighting avoidance with actionable small steps
- “Mixed values produce mixed results”
- Thinking by writing
- What Luca has learned from living in multiple countries
- Luca as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Antifragile: Things that Gain from Disorder; by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
- What Works on Wall Street; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
- Ergodicity: Definition, Examples, And Implications, As Simple As Possible; by Luca Dellanna
- The Control Heuristic: The Nature of Human Behavior; by Luca Dellanna
- 100 Truths You Will Learn Too Late; by Luca Dellanna
- Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu
Why is hard work a form of laziness? Why should we be wary of short-term success? How can imagining parallel worlds help us make better decisions? Author, management advisor, and researcher Luca Dellanna joins us to discuss these questions and more!
Important Links:
- Luca’s Website
- Luca’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Ergodicity: survival is king
- Why sample size matters
- The two types of competitors
- Teaching by signaling
- The parallel worlds approach to decision-making
- Racing to the bottom
- Why working hard can be a form of laziness
- The three things managers should prioritize
- Why desiring change isn’t enough
- Fighting avoidance with actionable small steps
- “Mixed values produce mixed results”
- Thinking by writing
- What Luca has learned from living in multiple countries
- Luca as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Antifragile: Things that Gain from Disorder; by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
- What Works on Wall Street; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
- Ergodicity: Definition, Examples, And Implications, As Simple As Possible; by Luca Dellanna
- The Control Heuristic: The Nature of Human Behavior; by Luca Dellanna
- 100 Truths You Will Learn Too Late; by Luca Dellanna
- Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu
Designer, entrepreneur and Visualize Value founder Jack Butcher joins us for his second appearance on the show to discuss how to get closer to reality, the differences between the US & the UK, whether vision can be taught, and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Jack’s Twitter
- Visualize Value
- Jack’s first appearance on the show
- How to Get Rich
- The Great Reshuffle
Show Notes:
- Jack’s origin story
- Productizing Visualize Value
- Ideas vs experience
- Fighting fear with experience
- Differences between the US & the UK
- “The buck stops here”
- “The day you plant the seed is not the day you eat the fruit”
- How to transcend language
- Can you teach vision?
- The internet as a variance amplifier
- How to communicate clearly
- Get closer to reality
- Jack’s Twitter X Logo
- Jack as emperor of the world
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Hypomanic Edge: The Link Between (a Little) Craziness and (a Lot Of) Success in America; by John Gartner
- The Illuminatus! Trilogy; by Robert Anton Wilson and Robert Shea
- The Psychology of Money, by Morgan Housel
- Spiritually Incorrect Enlightenment; by Jed McKenna
Dan Runcie is the Founder of Trapital, a company focused on music, media, and entertainment. Trapital’s output includes a podcast, weekly newsletter, and deep-dive essays breaking down trends in the music industry.
Dan joins us for his second appearance on the show to discuss how AI will transform the music industry, whether the age of the superstar is over, how artists become billionaires, and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Dan’s Twitter
- Trapital
- Dan’s first appearance on the show
Show Notes:
- Can the music industry embrace AI?
- What will happen to music when AI gets better?
- Will some genres be quicker to adapt than others?
- How streaming algorithms are improving
- Are AI playlists the death of DJs?
- How artists can game the algorithm
- How artists can use the music industry’s Pareto distribution
- Artists become millionaires selling music, and billionaires selling product
- Will we see the end of record companies?
- Will Bowie Bonds die?
- Are we going to see the end of the superstar?
- Ads & audiences
- Spotify vs YouTube vs TikTok
- Can newcomers displace the incumbents?
- Will the streamers dominate podcasting?
- What’s next?
- Dan as Emperor of the World
- MORE!
Dr. William Zeng is founder and President of the Unitary Fund, a non-profit dedicated to developing the quantum ecosystem to benefit the most people. He previously led initial development of Rigetti Computing’s quantum cloud platform, and is co-inventor of the Quil quantum instruction language. He was named to Forbes’ 30 under 30 in the Science category for his work on quantum computing.
Dr. William was one of the first recipients of an O’Shaughnessy Fellowship, which is a one-year program for ambitious people who want to build something great. Fellows receive a $100,000 grant and access to OSV’s network of founders, investors and experts to support them in bringing their projects to life. Dr. William is using his fellowship grant to study how emerging quantum technologies can explore foundational questions in quantum mechanics.
Important Links:
- The O’Shaughnessy Fellowships
- The Unitary Fund
- Will’s Twitter
- A possibilities no-go theorem on the Wigner’s friend paradox
Show Notes:
- An introduction to quantum computing
- Regular computers vs quantum computers
- The impact of simulating quantum systems
- How quantum computing can transform risk analysis
- What does a quantum world look like?
- Encryption & risk
- The benefits of an open-source ecosystem
- Wigner’s Friend experiments, agency & objective reality
- "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”
- “Technology is an integration of body and mind”
- The laws of physics
- What’s next?
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- How the Hippies Saved Physics: Science, Counterculture, and the Quantum Revival
- The science fiction of Greg Egan
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch
- Historical Ontology; by Ian Hacking
Jack Raines is an online writer and LinkedIn provocateur, whose newsletter Young Money has already amassed 30,000 readers.
Jack joins the show to discuss the importance of travel, the upsides of authenticity, risk, luck, and much, much more!
Important Links:
- Jack's Twitter
- Young Money
Show Notes:
- Jack’s origin story
- Optionality and opportunity costs
- Hostel hopping
- The healthy life
- Grindset and hustle culture
- LinkedIn pranks
- Slamming the door on opportunities
- Work culture and the Great Reshuffle
- The luck of being alive today
- Crypto skepticism
- Quantifying risk
- Jack’s three favourite places in the world
- The default path is not your destiny
Richard Craib is the Founder & CEO of Numerai, a new kind of hedge fund where data scientists around the world collaborate to predict equity returns using artificial intelligence.
Richard joins the show to discuss Numerai’s origins, how it embraces the spirit of open source, why it has its own cryptocurrency and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Numerai
- Richard’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- The genesis of Numerai
- How and why Numerai gives away its dataset
- Getting users to put skin in the game
- How Numerai scores users; becoming comfortable with the process
- Size limits & leverage
- Reactions to Numerai
- Numerai’s cryptocurrency
- How Numerai differs from Quantopian
- Data, optimization & LLMs
- “Monopolize intelligence, monopolize data, monopolize money, and decentralize the monopoly”
- What could go wrong?
- Numerai’s relationship with its data scientists
- Could Numerai’s model work in any other industries?
- What could go wrong?
- “Life is long”
- MORE!
The scientist, researcher, analyst, connector, thinker, and doer Brian Roemmele joins us for his second Infinite Loops appearance to discuss the decline of wisdom and how we can save it, why LLMs are the modern version of Plato’s cave, we need locally run AI models and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Brian’s Twitter
- ReadMultiplex.com
- 40 AI Use Cases: How Many Did You Know About?
- Brian’s first Infinite Loops appearance
Show Notes:
- Why LLMs are the modern version of Plato’s cave
- AI as Promethean fire
- Why we need locally run AI models
- AI use cases & the Nedd Ludd story
- The decline of wisdom
- Creating a wisdom keeper
- Loneliness & abandonment
- “How To Have A Conversation With Your Local Documents”
- History is written by the victors; using wisdom to define our future
- The tragedy of lost knowledge
- You are loved and you are not alone
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- Cycles: The Science of Prediction; by Edward R. Dewey and Edwin F. Dakin
- The Iliad; by Homer
- The Odyssey; by Homer
- The Epic of Gilgamesh
- The Bible
- The User Illusion: Cutting Consciousness Down to Size; by Tor Norretranders
- The Hero with a Thousand Faces; by Joseph Campbell
Dr. Pippa Malmgren is an economist, founder, keynote speaker & award-winning author.
She served President George W. Bush as Special Assistant to the President and on the National Economic Council. She was responsible for financial market issues during the Enron crisis, and was responsible for assessing terrorism risks to the economy after 9/11. She has also advised the US Cabinet.
Dr. Pippa’s most recent book, the Infinite Leader, won the International Press Award for the Best Book on Leadership for 2021.
Dr. Pippa joins the show to discuss why leadership has gone wrong, what she thinks of the recent UFO news, why we’re already in World War III, and a whole lot more!
Important Links:
- Dr. Pippa’s website
- Dr. Pippa’s Substack
- Dr. Pippa’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Why leadership has gone wrong
- Worldbuilding & the difference between management and leadership
- Why leaders always stay too long
- Balancing trust vs truth
- Confidence vs competence
- Balance, surfing & Taoism
- Numbers, stories & UFOs
- Reality belief systems: "It's not only stranger than we think, it's stranger than we can think.”
- How psychedelics impact how we understand reality
- What Pippa would include in her leadership academy
- Bailouts, inflation & CBDCs
- We are already in World War III
- Creating a hug movement
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Infinite Leader: Balancing the Demands of Modern Business Leadership; by Chris Lewis & Dr. Pippa Malmgren
- The Leadership Lab: Understanding Leadership in the 21st Century; by Chris Lewis & Dr. Pippa Malmgren
- Signals: How Everyday Signs Can Help Us Navigate the World's Turbulent Economy; by Dr. Pippa Malmgren
- Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life; by Rory Sutherland
- Why Do So Many Incompetent Men Become Leaders; by Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic
- Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu
- The Rig Veda
- Prometheus Rising; by Robert Anton Wilson
- Wholeness and the Implicate Order; by David Bohm
- Orthodoxy; by G. K. Chesterton
mgren is an economist, founder, keynote speaker & award-winning author.
She served President George W. Bush as Special Assistant to the President and on the National Economic Council. She was responsible for financial market issues during the Enron crisis, and was responsible for assessing terrorism risks to the economy after 9/11. She has also advised the US Cabinet.
Dr. Pippa’s most recent book, the Infinite Leader, won the International Press Award for the Best Book on Leadership for 2021.
Dr. Pippa joins the show to discuss why leadership has gone wrong, what she thinks of the recent UFO news, why we’re already in World War III, and a whole lot more!
Important Links:
- Dr. Pippa’s website
- Dr. Pippa’s Substack
- Dr. Pippa’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Why leadership has gone wrong
- Worldbuilding & the difference between management and leadership
- Why leaders always stay too long
- Balancing trust vs truth
- Confidence vs competence
- Balance, surfing & Taoism
- Numbers, stories & UFOs
- Reality belief systems: "It's not only stranger than we think, it's stranger than we can think.”
- How psychedelics impact how we understand reality
- What Pippa would include in her leadership academy
- Bailouts, inflation & CBDCs
- We are already in World War III
- Creating a hug movement
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Infinite Leader: Balancing the Demands of Modern Business Leadership; by Chris Lewis & Dr. Pippa Malmgren
- The Leadership Lab: Understanding Leadership in the 21st Century; by Chris Lewis & Dr. Pippa Malmgren
- Signals: How Everyday Signs Can Help Us Navigate the World's Turbulent Economy; by Dr. Pippa Malmgren
- Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life; by Rory Sutherland
- Why Do So Many Incompetent Men Become Leaders; by Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic
- Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu
- The Rig Veda
- Prometheus Rising; by Robert Anton Wilson
- Wholeness and the Implicate Order; by David Bohm
- Orthodoxy; by G. K. Chesterton
Ethan Mollick is an Associate Professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he studies and teaches innovation and entrepreneurship. He also leads Wharton Interactive, an effort to democratize education using games, simulations, and AI.
When Ethan started his Substack One Useful Thing in November last year, he was planning on writing about a different management paper every post.
Then, in Ethan’s words, the arrival of ChatGPT turned him from “an AI-skeptic to an AI-believer.”
Over the last few months, Ethan has been explaining the rapid developments in the AI industry, documenting how he has incorporated AI into his teaching, and providing practical guides to how we can use AI in our daily lives.
Important Links:
- Ethan’s Substack
- Ethan’s Twitter
- 40 AI Use Cases: How Many Did You Know About?
Show Notes:
- From AI skeptic to AI believer
- AI is already disruptive
- Unexpected AI use cases
- AI is not a search engine
- Prompt crafting is not the future
- Is the centaur model the future?
- How will AI impact education?
- Will AI accelerate entrepreneurship?
- The politics & geopolitics of AI
- How to get unique results using AI
- Using AI to explore liminal spaces
- Speed-running the adoption curve
- Can you teach curiosity?
- The complex relationship between corporations and AI use
- We have agency over our future
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Singularity is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology; by Raymond Kurzweil
- The Iliad; by Homer
Chen Qiufan (AKA Stanley Chan) is an award-winning science fiction writer, screenwriter, creative producer, and columnist. He is the president of the World Chinese Science Fiction Association and the founder of the content development studio Thema Mundi. Chen joins the show to discuss his latest novel, AI 2041: Ten Visions for the Future, which he co-wrote with former Google China president Kai-Fu Lee. Part science fiction, part science forecasting, over ten short stories AI 2041 imagines the different ways, good and bad, that AI will impact our society. The central thesis? AI will transform our lives, but we remain masters of our fate. Important Links: * Qiufan’s Website * Qiufan’s Twitter
Show Notes: * Qiufan’s sci-fi influences * When did the third wave of AI begin? * Why is modern sci-fi so dystopian? * How AI is going to impact education * Hidden biases & the objective function * Deep fakes & narrative collapse * Accelerationism, balance & Daoism * Do we need real jobs? * Happiness is a byproduct * Living in a post-scarcity society * What’s next? * MORE!
Books Mentioned: * AI 2041: Ten Visions for Our Future; by Kai-Fu Lee & Chen Qiufan * Bullshit Jobs: A Theory; by David Graeber * Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu * Trekonomics: The Economics of Star Trek; by Manu Saadia * Waste Tide; by Chen Qiufan
Todd Goodwin is the founder of Goodwin Hypnosis, a hypnosis center based in North Carolina. He is a Board Certified Fellow of the National Guild of Hypnotists, a designation earned by only one in every 500 hypnotists. As well as working with thousands of clients since opening Goodwin Hypnosis in 2007, Todd has co-facilitated hypnosis certification courses, created a book and accompanying 30-day hypnosis system designed to stop people from smoking, and given numerous presentations on hypnosis to physicians, students, and medical staff. Todd joins the show to discuss some of the common myths & misconceptions around hypnosis. Important Links:
- Goodwin Hypnosis
- Goodwin Hypnosis’ YouTube
- The Thinker and the Prover
- Our episode on Dr John Sarno
- The Six Stage Model of Behaviour Change
Show Notes:
- Hypnosis in our everyday lives
- Why isn’t hypnosis more widely used?
- “I don’t want someone in my head”
- “I can’t be hypnotized”
- Targeting the root causes of behavior
- Tension between the conscious & the unconscious
- How secondary gains can obstruct progress
- How to clear root fear
- Using language to elicit change
- Be curious about yourself; remember that you are worthy of love
- MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- Healing Back Pain; by John E. Sarno
- Influence: Science and Practice; by Robert Cialdini
- Frogs into Princes: Neuro Linguistic Programming; by Richard Bandler and John Grinder
Nat & Martha Sharpe have been a creative team for over a decade. Nat was a film school graduate and Martha a storytelling enthusiast. They fell in love while filming a musical parody of "Beowulf" with their friends. After another comedy and two documentaries, they started having children. Focus shifted from art to survival. Together, they learned to code, got off food stamps, and traveled around America in an RV. Today, Nat and Martha homeschool their 5 kids and are eager to explore alternative education, expand their comfort zones, and—as always—make movies. Nat & Martha were the first recipients of an O’Shaughnessy Fellowship, which is a one-year program for ambitious people who want to build something great. Fellows receive a $100,000 grant and access to OSV’s network of founders, investors and experts to support them in bringing their projects to life. Nat & Martha are using their fellowship grant to study and make documentary films of alternative childhood education schools. Important Links:
- The O’Shaughnessy Fellowships
- Nat & Martha’s Website
- Nat & Martha’s Twitter
- Nat & Martha’s O’Shaughnessy Fellowship Application Video
- Nat & Martha’s YouTube Channel
- OSV’s investment in Synthesis School
Show Notes:
- Nat & Martha’s origin story
- How education is connected to community
- “Kids want to survive, they want to thrive, they want to learn”
- Education vs indoctrination
- Screen time isn’t the problem & why unschooled children become entrepreneurs
- The magic blue bus
- Finding the others
- What caused the rise in helicopter parenting?
- The conflict between agency & community
- It can be hard to give people money
- Learning by doing; in-demand learning
- How can we monetize the best teachers in the world?
- How AI is going to transform education
- What’s next?
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- One Summer: America, 1927; by Bill Bryson
Jason Crawford is the founder & president of The Roots of Progress, a nonprofit dedicated to establishing a new philosophy of progress for the 21st century. Jason has written well over 100 essays on the history of technology and the philosophy of progress, and given numerous talks and interviews on the same. He joins the show to discuss whether humans deserve progress, how to make progress cool, the two types of optimism, and more! Important Links:
- The Roots of Progress
- Jason’s Website
- Jason’s Twitter
- Discourse on the Arts and Sciences; by Jean-Jacques Rousseau
- Triumph of the Nerds
- Why I’m a proud solutionist
Show Notes:
- Why do we need progress studies?
- Are humans conditioned to resist progress?
- Increasing the burden of safety
- What the Roots of Progress is seeking to achieve
- How can we make progress cool?
- Pessimism of the intellect; optimism of the will
- Do we deserve progress?
- Progress & politics
- Steelmanning the case against progress
- How can we defend against bad actors?
- Calibrating our approach to risk
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- Frankenstein; by Mary Shelley
- Erewhon; by Samuel Butler
- Darwin Among The Machines; by Samuel Butler
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch
- The Ultimate Resource; by Julian L. Simon
- The Collapse of the Common Good: How America's Lawsuit Culture Undermines Our Freedom; by Philip K. Howard
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy; by Douglas Adams
- The Jungle; by Upton Sinclair
- One Summer: America, 1927; by Bill Bryson
David Pinsof is an evolutionary social scientist and a co-creator of the game Cards Against Humanity. He holds a PhD in Psychology from UCLA, where he studied the evolutionary origins of political bullshit, and has written a handful of academic papers, one of which has been cited 152 times and another of which was quoted in the New York Times. David is the author of the ‘Everything Is Bullshit’ Substack, which aims to poke holes in the stories we tell ourselves. He joins the show to discuss why happiness & morality are bullshit, the difference between bullshit & lying, why we conceal the status monkey, and more! Important Links: 1. David’s Twitter 2. David’s Substack; Everything is Bullshit 3. Cards Against Humanity 4. The Execution Hypothesis; by Richard Wrangham 5. Discordianism 6. Our podcast with George Mack 7. Our podcast with Will Storr
Show Notes: 1. What is bullshit? 2. The difference between bullshitting and lying 3. Why moralizing is bullshit 4. Concealing the status monkey 5. The origins of Cards Against Humanity 6. How are status games changing? 7. Why happiness is bullshit 8. Happiness as a status symbol 9. How can we escape bullshit? 10. Why we’re driven by negative emotions 11. How to become more positive 12. The role of humor in calling out bullshit 13. MUCH more!
Books Mentioned: 1. On Bullshit; by Harry G. Frankfurt 2. Propaganda; by Edward Bernays 3. Influence: Science and Practice; by Robert Cialdini 4. The Moral Animal: Why We Are The Way We Are; by Robert Wright 5. The Status Game: On Social Position and How We Use It; by Will Storr 6. The Lucifer Principle: A Scientific Expedition Into the Forces of History; by Howard Bloom 7. Why Buddhism is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment 8. Happy; by Derren Brown 9. Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu 10. Gödel, Escher, Bach; by Douglas Hofstadter
Dylan O’Sullivan is a writer and media specialist based in Cork, Ireland. Dylan’s work has been published in magazines such as The Spectator and Areo. He is also the creator of Essayful, a Substack dedicated to becoming “a new home for writing.” Following his participation in David Perell’s Write of Passage course last year, Dylan joined us as an intern at O’Shaughnessy Ventures. He joins the show to discuss the problem with traditional education, the blurry border between fiction & nonfiction, how AI is going to impact writing, why Ireland has such cultural influence, and more! Important Links: * Dylan’s Twitter * Essayful * Write of Passage
Show Notes: * Losing the O’s * The collapse of the old institutions * An introduction to Essayful * "There's nothing new under the sun.” * The blurry border between fiction & nonfiction * Rebuilding the Tower of Babel * A book as a living thing * How is AI going to impact writing? * Why Dylan took Write of Passage * Why are academic papers so hard to read? * Why does Ireland have such cultural influence? * What’s next? * More!
Books Mentioned: * Old God’s Time; by Sebastian Barry * Unflattening; by Nick Sousanis * The Island of Saints and Scholars; Sean McMahon * Ulysses; by James Joyce
After starting his career on a market stall in Essex, John Sills has spent the last twenty-five years working to make the world a better place for customers. John is the Managing Partner at the customer-led growth company The Foundation, and his writing has also been featured in publications such as The Guardian and Management Today. He joins the show to discuss his thought-provoking and timely new book The Human Experience: How to make life better for your customers and create a more successful organization. Important Links:
- John’s Website
- John’s Twitter
- John’s Substack
Show Notes:
- John’s time working on an Essex market stall
- Human vs functional customer experience
- What’s blocking the human experience?
- Why do leaders stay away from the frontline?
- Escaping Vogonization
- Does the human experience scale?
- The benefits of starting from first principles
- Why companies should empower their staff
- The link between curiosity, creativity & customer experience
- Why aren’t companies changing & why aren’t more startups disrupting?
- Are frictionless customer experiences desirable?
- The myth of customer loyalty
- Tech upgrades & immersion
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Human Experience: How to make life better for your customers and create a more successful organization; by John Sills
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
- The Customer Copernicus: How to be Customer-Led; by Charlie Dawson
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy; by Douglas Adams
Billy Oppenheimer is a researcher for Ryan Holiday. He is also known for his viral long-form tweets and Six at 6 on Sunday newsletter. Billy is insatiably curious. He is a master at drawing lessons from anecdotes from the worlds of sports, music, comedy, business, and more. He joins the show to discuss how to cultivate good taste, whether everything is a remix, why he learns through introjection, and a whole lot more. Important Links:
- Six at 6 on Sunday
- Billy’s Twitter
- Billy’s website
- Our episodes with David Senra (1, 2)
- 'A Bicycle of the Mind' - Steve Jobs on the Computer
- Our episode with Edward Rooster
- To His Coy Mistress; by Andrew Marvell
- Kubla Khan; by Samuel Taylor Coleridge
Show Notes:
- Focus on doing the thing
- SIX at 6’s origin story
- Learning through introjection
- Developing taste & cultivating curiosity
- “People don’t have ideas, ideas have people”
- How Billy practices his scales
- Fiction vs non-fiction
- Repetition, repetition, repetition
- Should we study more failures?
- Process compounds
- “Care, but don’t care too much”
- Has anyone succeeded without persistence?
- Conceptual ancestors
- Everything’s a remix
- Taste, tools, markets & feedback
- Finding your pain points
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- Trust Me, I'm Lying; by Ryan Holiday
- Psychology of Money; by Morgan Housel
- Atomic Habits; by James Clear
- The Immortality Key : The Secret History of the Religion with No Name; by Brian C. Muraresku
- Reality Hunger; by David Shields
- The Power of Myth; by Joseph Campbell & Bill Moyers
- Cloud Atlas; by David Mitchell
- The Great Gatsby; by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- The Da Vinci Code; by Dan Brown
Friend-of-the-show (and new O’Shaughnessy Ventures team member) Liberty RPF joins Jim and fellow friend-of-the-show Jimmy Soni to discuss the current state of the publishing industry and the new opportunities emerging for current and aspiring authors. Important Links:
- Jimmy’s Website
- Jimmy’s Twitter
- Liberty’s Newsletter
- Liberty’s Twitter
- 10 Reasons Why I’m Publishing My Next Book on Substack
- Kurt Vonnegut: Unstuck in Time
Show Notes:
- How has the publishing industry changed?
- Reinventing the audiobook
- The living book
- Towards new book pricing models
- Why the traditional publishing industry is becoming unsustainable
- The tragedy of unwritten books
- A rejection from a traditional publisher is meaningless
- What do traditional publishers do well?
- The importance being invested in the success of a product
- Leveraging AI & other tools in the writing process
- Why the publishing industry is successful
- Increasing the power of individual creators
- Change, prestige & disruption
- Playing the right kind of status games
- Aligning quality with meritocracy
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Founders; by Jimmy Soni
- A Mind at Play; by Jimmy Soni & Rob Goodman
- Rome's Last Citizen: The Life and Legacy of Cato, Mortal Enemy of Caesar; by Jimmy Soni & Rob Goodman
- What Works on Wall Street; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
- Invest Like The Best; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
- Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds; by David Goggins
- The Psychology of Money; by Morgan Housel
- The 4-Hour Work Week: Escape the 9-5, Live Anywhere and Join the New Rich; by Tim Feriss
- Harry Potter; by J. K. Rowling
- Reality Hunger; by David Shields
- $100M Offers: How To Make Offers So Good People Feel Stupid Saying No; by Alex Hormozi
- The Status Game: On Social Position and How We Use It; by Will Storr
Alex Danco returns for his seventh (yes, SEVENTH) appearance on Infinite Loops to discuss, as usual, pretty much everything other than the topics we had prepared in advance. This week, we discuss: The two types of lawyers, what Alex learned from reading Don Quixote, Elon the Reply Guy, the psychology of Seinfeld, the best Wall Street Movies, and much more. Important Links:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/Alex_Danco
- Website: https://alexdanco.com/
- Newsletter: https://danco.substack.com/
Show Notes:
- The two kinds of lawyers
- Medicine, placebo, Don Quixote & theatre
- Heroes, villains & main characters
- Elon the Reply Guy
- Safe words, scams & narrative collapse
- Self-deception is multiplayer
- The psychology of Seinfeld
- To what extent are great innovations already baked into the systems?
- Margin Call: The two schools of thought
- The best Wall Street movies
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Theory And Practice Of Gamesmanship Or The Art Of Winning Games Without Actually Cheating; by Stephen Potter
- Don Quixote; by Miguel de Cervantes
- The Fifth Science; by Exurb1a
- The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr
- The Lucifer Principle: A Scientific Expedition into the Forces of History; by Howard K. Bloom
- Games People Play: The Psychology of Human Relationships; by Eric Berne
- Mendel's Dwarf; by Simon Mawer
- The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine; by Michael Lewis
- The Bonfire of the Vanities; by Tom Wolfe
- The Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron; by Peter Elkind & Bethany McLean
Gurwinder Bhogal is a writer and programmer who writes about the myriad ways in which technology and psychology conspire to fool us and how we can withstand the covert assault on our senses. Gurwinder is known for his epic Twitter ‘Megathreads’ which set out a series of powerful concepts for understanding the world. He joins the show to discuss our tendency to narrativize information, how to overcome the bandwidth tax, why Wikipedia is the world’s largest source of misinformation, and MUCH more! Important Links:
- Megathread: Feb 7, 2020 (53,000 likes)
- Megathread: Feb 11, 2022 (62,000 likes)
- Megathread: March 18, 2023 (most recent)
- Gurwinder's Substack
- Gurwinder's Twitter
- The Toxoplasma of Rage
Show Notes:
- Megathreads & the Woozle effect
- AI, the Encyclopedia Disinformatica, and cultivating a garden of Mithridates
- Capturing the nuance between dishonesty and lying
- The Toxoplasma of Rage
- Overcoming the bandwidth tax
- Brandishing the golden hammer; why we can’t comprehend large numbers
- Tribalism & intersubjectivity
- The purity spiral
- Are we facing a lost generation?
- We are programmed to like complex explanations
- Narrativizing information
- “Certainty is the death of thought”
- Climbing the thinking ladder
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Fifth Science; by Exurb1a
- Talking to Strangers; by Malcolm Gladwell
- Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu
- What's Our Problem?: A Self-Help Book for Societies; by Tim Urban
This week, we’re delighted to welcome Ed Latimore back for his second Infinite Loops appearance.
Ed is a best-selling author, former professional heavyweight boxer, competitive chess player, Physics graduate, father, and husband. He joins us to discuss stoicism, progress & pain, demonstrating authenticity, being liked vs. being respected, and a whole lot more. Important Links:
- Ed’s Twitter
- Ed’s website
- Ed’s Substack
- Ed’s first Infinite Loops appearance
Show Notes:
- New child; new house; new book
- How Ed’s new book has developed
- Humor and progress
- Understanding addiction
- Being liked vs being respected
- “Stoicism found me”
- Is progress possible without pain?
- “Humans are very bad at the future”
- Demonstrating authenticity
- Being cast as a father figure
- What’s next for Ed
- Ed’s three step process for self-improvement
- “I don't think any situation has ever gotten worse because someone has good manners.”
Books Mentioned:
- The Founders: The Story of PayPal and the Entrepreneurs who Shaped Silicon Valley; by Jimmy Soni
- The Art of Learning: An Inner Journey to Optimal Performance; by Josh Waitzkin
- Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds; by David Goggins
- The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life; by Mark Manson
Edward Rooster is one of our favourite writers. His themes include the future, mythology, time and history. He has written two books, Box of Stars and Harvest, and he is currently working on a third. Edward joins the show to discuss embracing uncertainty, avoiding becoming Icarus, unsticking yourself from time, and MUCH more! Important Links:
- Edward’s Mirror
- Edward’s Substack
- Edward’s Typeshare
- Edward’s Twitter
- The Days Dad Started Over
- Leaving Eternity’s Parking Lot
- You Do Not Have to Be Perfect
- Looking Back from the Future
Show Notes:
- The Days Dad Started Over: Why Edward started writing
- Edward’s book writing process
- Unsticking yourself from time
- Sources of storytelling inspiration
- Embracing uncertainty
- Avoiding the content trap
- The ‘create you own adventure’ approach to writing
- [Finding inspiration in music]
- Storytelling & common knowledge
- Writing as found art
- Not as much matters as we think it does
- How can we avoid becoming Icarus?
- Editing; Editors
- The opportunities of generative AI
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- Stray Reflections; by Jawad Mian
- Box of Stars; by Edward Rooster
- Harvest; by Edward Rooster
- Retrieve; by Edward Rooster
- What Works on Wall Street: A Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- Cloud Atlas; by David Mitchell
- The Great Gatsby; by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- American Gods; by Neil Gaiman
- Reality Hunger; by David Shields
- Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance; by Robert Pirsig
- Looking Backward; by Edward Bellamy
Venkatesh Rao is a writer, consultant, and author. He has been writing about indie consulting for years and has recently published The Art of Gig, Volumes 1 & 2, which together take an in-depth look at the gig economy. Venkatesh joins the show to discuss tragic luck, becoming slightly nonsensical, the advantages of mediocrity, and a whole lot more! Important Links:
- Venkatesh's Website
- Venkatesh's Blog
- Venkatesh's Substack
- Venkatesh's Twitter
- The Art of Gig
- The Art of Gig: our synthesis
- The Gervais Principle
Show Notes:
- Origins of The Art of Gig
- Paycheck People
- Learning how to take risks
- Is there a risk-taking gene?
- The case for fixed-point futurism
- Finding meaning
- Personality types, narrative, and becoming a courageous thinker
- Don’t get tragically lucky
- Generational agency
- Sparring, pressure and meaning-making
- Be slightly nonsensical
- Teaching others to appreciate randomness
- Towards infinite games; be mediocre
- Understanding divergentism
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Art of Gig: Volumes 1 & 2; by Venkatesh Rao
- The 4-Hour Work Week: Escape the 9-5, Live Anywhere and Join the New Rich; by Tim Feriss
- Free Agent Nation: The Future of Working for Yourself; by Daniel H. Pink
- The Pathless Path: Imagining a New Story For Work and Life; by Paul Millerd
- Tempo: timing, tactics and strategy in narrative-driven decision-making; by Venkatesh Rao
- The Redemptive Self: Stories Americans Live By; by Dan P. McAdams
- Finite and Infinite Games: A Vision of Life As Play and Possibility; by James Carse
- Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-free Productivity; by David Allen
Ananyo Bhattacharya is the author of The Man from the Future: The Visionary Life of John von Neumann, a brilliant biography of one of the most prolific and influential scientists to have ever lived. He joins the show to discuss von Neumann’s contributions to quantum physics, game theory, the Manhattan Project, and much more! Important Links:
- Ananyo’s Twitter
- The Man from the Future
Show Notes:
- How did John von Neumann even exist?
- Would von Neumann’s discoveries have happened without him?
- The Martians of Hungary
- The migrant mentality
- Innovation in the face of extinction
- Science, genius & the herd mentality
- Von Neumann’s contribution to quantum physics
- Game theory, Minimax and zero-sum games
- von Neumann: quant in the streets; romantic in the sheets
- The eccentricity of brilliance
- Von Neumann and the Manhattan Project
- The godfather of the open-source movement
- Von Neumann as a project manager
- How writing the book changed Ananyo’s understanding of von Neumann
- Ananyo’s next projects
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Man from the Future: The Visionary Life of John von Neumann; by Ananyo Bhattacharya
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
- Theory of Games and Economic Behaviour; by John von Neumann and Oskar Morgenstern
Michael Breitenbach is Senior Vice President within the Chief Investment Office at Bank of America Global Wealth and Investment Management, where he is responsible for leading development of quantitative infrastructure and machine learning models for evaluating both internally and externally covered investment offerings. He is also the man behind an extremely popular anonymous Twitter account that many of you will be familiar with (see if you can guess which one…) Michael joins the show to discuss the FTX fallout, the current state of the crypto industry, the rise of AI compliance, and MUCH more! Important Links:
- Michael’s LinkedIn
- Michael’s (personal) Twitter
Show Notes:
- FTX: grift or systemic failure?
- The decline of old media
- AI compliance & regulation
- Crypto: use cases, privacy & regulation
- The end of privacy
- Dealing with new and better problems
- Scale vs anti-scale
- Cynicism can be a comparative advantage
- Against binary thinking
- Time binding & cultural evolution
- Consider taxation
Books Mentioned:
- The Power Law: Venture Capital and the Art of Disruption; by Sebastian Mallaby
- Time-Binding: The General Theory; by Alfred Korzybski
Visakan Veerasamy is a prolific thinker, writer & creator. As well as being the author of the books ‘Introspect’ and ‘Friendly Ambitious Nerd’, he is known for weaving huge, interconnected Twitter threads and for his mission to build “the greatest social graph of friendly, ambitious nerds that the world has ever seen.” Important Links: * Visa's Website * Visa's Twitter * Visa's Youtube
Show Notes: * The origins of Friendly Ambitious Nerd * “The most heroic thing you can do is not hate yourself” * Confronting the minotaur * Introspection & Maslow’s hierarchy of needs * Overriding human OS * Humor is the cure * How to demonstrate the power of humor * Dealing with judgment & criticism * Responding to requests for help * Enforcing a no-assholes rule * "Focus your time and energy on what you want to see more of” * “School is bullshit” * Question defaults & screw around * MUCH more!
Books Mentioned: * Friendly Ambitious Nerd; by Visakan Veerasamy * Introspect; by Visakan Veerasamy * The Science of Storytelling; by Will Storr * The Status Game: On Social Position and How We Use It; by Will Storr * The Hero with a Thousand Faces; by Joseph Campbell * Shantaram; by Gregory David Roberts * The Art of War; by Sun Tzu * The Tao Te Ching; by Laozi * The Lord of the Rings; by J. R. R. Tolkien
Friends-of-the-show David Senra & Liberty RPF return for a characteristically wide-ranging conversation. Enjoy! Important Links * Founders Podcast * Founders on Colossus * David’s Twitter * Liberty’s Substack * Liberty’s Twitter * David Bowie Predicts the Impact of the Internet on Newsnight
Show Notes: * David’s lunch with Sam Zell * Optimizing for freedom * Information can build a fortune * Persist, persist, persist * Burning the ships * Customising education * Where are the Teddy Roosevelt’s of today? * Embracing our evangelical side * “Art is not what you see, but what you make others see” * Fighting fear of technological development * Is anything truly ‘new’? * "Properly understood technology is just a better way to do something” * Towards positive sum games * How to cultivate voluntary engagement * Unleashing the scenius * Finding better explanations * Risk-taking and the origins of the USA * The explore and create framework * Read biographies * MUCH more!
Books Mentioned: * Am I Being Too Subtle?: Straight Talk From a Business Rebel; by Sam Zell * The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey; by Candice Millard * Hero of the Empire: The Boer War, a Daring Escape, and the Making of Winston Churchill; by Candice Millard * Cinema Speculation; by Quentin Tarantino * Christopher Nolan: The Iconic Filmmaker and His Work; by Ian Nathan * The WEIRDest People in the World; by Joseph Henrich * Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future; by Peter Thiel * The Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie; by Andrew Carnegie * All I Want To Know Is Where I'm Going To Die So I'll Never Go There: Buffett & Munger - A Study in Simplicity and Uncommon, Common Sense; by Peter Bevelin * The Almanack of Naval Ravikant: A Guide to Wealth and Happiness; by Eric Jorgenson * Enzo Ferrari 2018: Power, Politics and the Making of an Automobile Empire; by Luca Dal Monte * The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch * One Summer: America, 1927; by Bill Bryson
Dwarkesh Patel is the host of The Lunar Society podcast, where he interviews scientists, historians, economists, intellectuals, & founders about their ideas. He also writes about tech, progress, talent, science, and the long-term over at his Substack. Dwarkesh has been described as “one of the best young podcasters alive”, and his Substack has been praised by the likes of Jeff Bezos, Paul Graham and Tyler Cowen. Important Links:
- The Lunar Society
- Dwarkesh’ Twitter
- The Mystery of the Miracle Year
- Popularizers are intellectual market makers
- Scouting talent as buying options
Show Notes:
- How to become a better podcaster
- The importance of curiosity
- Disagreement & problem solving
- “Computer programs are written by humans for other humans to read, and only incidentally for computers to execute”
- The difference between podcasting & essay writing
- Investing in public and private companies; human OS
- Premeditation & decision-making
- The mystery of the miracle year
- How much innovation is baked into the cake?
- How to cultivate young talent
- AI & education
- The importance of intellectual market makers
- Scouting talent as buying options
- Interviewing Sam Bankman-Fried
- Effective altruism & virtue signalling
- If you do everything, you will win
Books Mentioned:
- The Years of Lyndon Johnson; by Robert Caro
- What Works on Wall Street: A Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- Little Soldiers: An American Boy, a Chinese School, and the Global Race to Achieve; by Lenora Chu
- Outliers: The Story of Success; by Malcolm Gladwell
- One Summer: America, 1927; by Bill Bryson
- The Lessons of History; by Will & Ariel Durant
- The Story of Civilization; by Will & Ariel Durant
- Fallen Leaves: Last Words on Life, Love, War, and God; by Will Durant
David Ha is the Head of Strategy at Stability AI, and one of the top minds working in AI today. He previously worked as a research scientist in the Brain team at Google. David is particularly interested in evolution and complex systems, and his research explores how intelligence may emerge from limited resource constraints. He joins the show to discuss the advantages of open-source models, modelling AI as an emergent system, why large language models are bad at maths and MUCH more! Important Links:
- David’s website
- David’s Twitter
- Teaching Machines to Draw (2017)
- Weight Agnostic Neural Networks (2019)
Show Notes:
- Why David joined Stability AI
- The advantages of open-source models
- We cannot predict the inventions of tomorrow
- Making memes with generative AI
- The centaur approach to AI
- An introduction to large language models
- The relationship between complex systems and resource constraints
- Large language models are bad at maths
- Modelling AI as an emergent system
- Understanding different perspectives
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch
- Why Greatness Cannot Be Planned: The Myth of the Objective; by Kenneth Stanley and Joel Lehman
Jesse Michels is an investor at Thiel Capital and the creator and host of ‘American Alchemy’, a Youtube channel dedicated to highlighting the most heretical thinkers and ideas of our time. He joins the show to discuss the transmission theory of consciousness, whether mushrooms are aliens, the reawakening of the Boomers and MUCH more! Important Links: * American Alchemy * Jesse’s Twitter
Show Notes: * The modern-day Robert Anton Wilson * Why Jesse started American Alchemy * The transmission theory of consciousness * Why mushrooms may have catalysed human civilisation * Paradigm shifts and heretical thinking * Are mushrooms aliens? * Nixon, psychedelics & brainwashing * The reawakening of the Boomers * AGI, qualia & quantum physics * AI, learned helplessness & Twitter * The power of curiosity * Reality is a compressed version of something much larger. * MUCH more!
Books Mentioned: * The Half-Life of Facts: Why Everything We Know Has an Expiration Date; by Samuel Arbesman * The User Illusion: Cutting Consciousness Down to Size; by Tor Norretranders * Gödel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid; by Douglas Hofstadter * The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch * The Immortality Key : The Secret History of the Religion with No Name; by Brian C. Muraresku * The New Inquisition: Irrational Rationalism and the Citadel of Science; by Robert Anton Wilson * How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression and Transcendence; by Michael Pollan * Chaos: Charles Manson, the CIA, and the Secret History of the Sixties; by Tom O’Neill * Weird Scenes Inside the Canyon: Laurel Canyon, Covert Ops & the Dark Heart of the Hippie Dream; by David McGowan * Prometheus Rising; by Robert Anton Wilson * Quantum Psychology: How Brain Software Programs You & Your World; by Robert Anton Wilson * The Cosmic Trigger trilogy; by Robert Anton Wilson * Communion: A True Story; by Whitley Strieber
Mark Nelson is the Managing Director of Radiant Energy Group, a consultancy which advises governments, nonprofits and industry about nuclear energy. He joins the show to discuss Chernobyl the memes vs Chernobyl the molecules, introducing nuclear festivals, adopting an abundance mindset, and a whole lot more. Important Links: * Mark’s Twitter * Radiant Energy Group * Mark’s LinkedIn
Show Notes: * Why does the nuclear industry have a confidence problem? * Electricity deaths vs nuclear deaths * Chernobyl the memes vs Chernobyl the molecules * How do we create better nuclear memes? * Bureaucracy and the precautionary principle * Steelmanning the case against nuclear power * Recency bias, human OS and high visibility events * The story of Three Mile Island * Introducing nuclear festivals * Wind and solar is not essential for the grid * Take memes seriously * Disambiguating nuclear weapons from nuclear power * Tying financial needs with energy needs * Escaping Mad Max * How can we encourage an abundance mindset? * Bipartisan enthusiasm for nuclear power * MUCH more!
Books Mentioned: * The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch
Author, CEO of VUDU Marketing and digital nomad Sam McRoberts returns for his second appearance on Infinite Loops. This week, Sam and Jim discuss Sam’s latest book ‘The Grand Redesign’. Part science-fiction, part operating manual for upgrading human OS, ‘The Grand Redesign’ touches on a number of recurring Infinite Loops themes, and is available for free online (see ‘Important Links’ section below). Important Links:
- The Grand Redesign
- Sam’s Twitter
- Sam’s Substack
- The Thinker and The Prover
- Tinkered Thinking’s winning entry to our ‘White Mirror’ competition
Show Notes:
- Why Sam wrote the book
- Is the Watcher a reliable narrator?
- Interfering with complex systems
- An overview of Social OS
- Why we need White Mirror
- The kindness pledge
- Incentives and the Cobra Effect
- How do we break the Shannon limit?
- Jim’s movie idea
- Improving the political and legal system
- The opportunities of AI
- Optimising our system for flourishing
- Finding the hidden geniuses
- Sam’s solutions; reaching the tipping point
- Sam’s hopes for the book
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Grand Redesign; by Sam McRoberts
- The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr
- Prometheus Rising; by Robert Anton Wilson
- House of Cards: Psychology and Psychotherapy Built on Myth; by Robyn Dawes
- The Lessons of History: by Will Durant and Ariel Durant
- Happy: Why More or Less Everything is Absolutely Fine; by Derren Brown
- The Inevitable: Understanding the 12 Technological Forces That Will Shape Our Future; by Kevin Kelly
Cliff Asness is the Founder, Managing Principal and Chief Investment Officer at AQR Capital Management. Prior to co-founding AQR Capital Management, he was a Managing Director and Director of Quantitative Research for the Asset Management Division of Goldman, Sachs & Co. Cliff joins the show to discuss FTX, AMC , why hedge funds aren’t hedging, the role of index funds and a whole lot more. Important Links:
- Cliff’s Twitter
- Cliff’s Blog
- AQR Capital Management
- Do Hedge Funds Hedge?
Show Notes:
- Cliff’s take on FTX and crypto
- The AMC saga
- HODL and the MOASS
- Finding the right media format for substantive investment conversations
- Thoughts on the value spread
- “We don’t want a world where markets are perfect”
- Hedge funds aren’t hedging
- The role of index funds
- Never override a model
- “Study statistics and stick to your principles”
Books Mentioned:
- What Works on Wall Street: A Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
Ben Tossell writes Ben’s Bites, a daily newsletter on AI that’s read by over 15,000 others from Google, a16z, Sequoia, Amazon, Meta and more. He previously founded Makerpad, a no-code education side which was acquired by Zapier in March 2021. Important Links:
- Ben’s Newsletter
- Ben’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Ben’s journey into AI
- The importance of ease of use
- How AI will impact our lives
- Ben’s hackathon
- Balancing originality and usefulness
- Why Ben is wary of providing strategic advice
- Achieving ground-up change with AI
- Interaction between the AI industry and the governments
- How Ben wants AI to be used
- Following your curiosity
- Making the world more competitive
- MUCH more!
We’ve landed. After 3 months of stealth mode, sneak-peeks, and surprise announcements, we have finally hit launch day. In this special episode of Infinite Loops, hosted by Patrick O’Shaughnessy, Jim chats through the rationale behind founding OSV, the positive impact he wants it to have on the world, and the ways you can get involved. Important Links:
- OSV’s Website
- Jim’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- The origins of OSV
- Why OSV does not invest third parties’ money
- The story of Jim’s investment in Stability AI
- What has surprised Jim the most about the world of AI
- What OSV will look like on 1 January 2023: the four verticals
- Assembling the OSV team
- OSV’s objective function
- Where the majority of Jim’s energy will be directed
- How you can get involved with OSV
Tom Morgan returns for his third appearance on Infinite Loops with Jim, Infinite Loops’ own Ed William and special guest Brett Andersen, an evolutionary psychology PhD student at the University of New Mexico. We discuss the implications of the ideas presented in Brett’s fantastic essay ‘Intimations of a New Worldview’, whether the rise of anti-heroes is a challenge to Campbell’s Hero’s Journey, the influence of conscious vs unconscious design, and much more. Important Links:
- Intimations of a New Worldview
- Brett’s Substack
- Brett’s Twitter
- Tom’s blog
- Tom’s Twitter
- Awakening from the Meaning Crisis
Show Notes:
- Objective vs subjective morality
- Complexity as a precondition
- Biological complexification
- Complexification and social selection
- Relevance realisation
- Jordan Peterson’s ‘Maps of Meaning’ and the metamyth
- The optimal path and the process of creation
- The cognitive purpose of supernatural beliefs
- Mapping a response to the meaning crisis
- Quantum entanglement and consciousness
- Practical implications of Brett’s theory
- Cultural evolution
- Conscious vs unconscious design
- There is an underlying flow of things
- Breaking Bad and the Hero’s Journey
- Slack vs tension
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- Meaning in Life and Why It Matters; by Susan Wolf
- The Romance of Reality: How the Universe Organizes Itself to Create Life, Consciousness, and Cosmic Complexity; by Bobby Azarian
- The Life of the Cosmos; by Lee Smolin
- Evolution's Arrow: the direction of evolution and the future of humanity; by John Stewart
- Nonzero: The Logic of Human Destiny; by Robert Wright
- The Mating Mind: How Sexual Choice Shaped the Evolution of Human Nature; by Geoffrey Miller
- Maps of Meaning: The Architecture of Belief; by Jordan Peterson
- Zombies in Western Culture: A Twenty-First Century Crisis; by John Vervaeke
- Principia Mathematica; by Alfred North Whitehead and Bertrand Russell
- The Master and his Emissary: The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World; by Iain McGilchrist
- The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous; by
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
- Life Finds A Way: What Evolution Teaches Us About Creativity; by Andreas Wagner
- Tao Te Ching; by Laozing
Brom Rector is the founder of Empath Ventures, a VC fund that in invests in early-stage psychedelics startups. Prior to founding Empath, Brom sent several years as a portfolio manager and quantitative researcher. Brom joins the show to discuss the current state of the psychedelics industry, the lessons learned founding a VC fund, the differences between psychedelics and cannabis, and a whole lot more. Important Links:
- Empath Ventures
- Brom’s LinkedIn
- Brom’s Twitter
- The Brom Podcast
Show Notes:
- How Brom became interested in psychedelic investing
- Psychedelics and the mental health epidemic
- Depoliticising psychedelics
- Empath Ventures’ business model
- How we can scientifically improve psychedelics
- The influence of hippie culture
- A contrarian view on Big Pharma
- The potential benefits of ibogaine
- The differences between cannabis and psychedelics
- Do some people not react to psychedelics?
- Brom’s thoughts on microdosing
- Lessons learned from founding a VC company
- The benefits of Rule 506(c)
Books Mentioned:
- How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence; by Michael Pollan
- Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection; by John E. Sarno MD
Ahead of the release of the next episode of his lecture series on René Girard, Johnathan Bi returns for his second appearance on the show. He and Jim discuss Girard, prestige, innovation, AI, and much more. Enjoy! Important Links:
- Johnathan’s website
- Johnathan’s Twitter
- Johnathan’s lecture series with David Perell
- Our research note on Johnathan
- Johnathan’s first appearance on the show
Show Notes:
- The Girardian notion of prestige
- What proof is there for mimesis?
- The difference between mimesis and status signalling
- Philosophical critiques of Girard
- Girard on innovation
- Historical understandings of innovation
- A conversation between a pessimist and an optimist
- AI, progress and the panopticon
- Could we ban innovation?
Books Mentioned:
- The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr
- The Alchemy of Finance; by George Soros
- The Laws of Imitation; by Gabriel Tarde
- When These Things Begin: Conversations with Michel Treguer; by René Girard
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch
- The Invention of Improvement: Information and Material Progress in Seventeenth-Century England; by Paul Slack
- Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future; by Peter Thiel
Rohit is a VC and essayist who writes fascinating, thought-provoking essays on complexity, progress, innovation and technology over at Strange Loop Canon. He joins the show for a second time to discuss the lessons learned from the FTX meltdown, why there isn’t a philosophy of business, creating an AI picture book, and a whole lot more. Important Links:
- Rohit’s Twitter
- Rohit’s Substack
- Our research note on Rohit
Show Notes:
- What can VCs learn from FTX?
- FTX, hubris and good manners
- “Don’t let anyone push you into a decision that you don’t want to make”
- Signing up to the right narratives
- Why you can’t beat the market
- Why isn’t there a philosophy of business?
- Markets, desire and innovation
- How AI allows us to talk to machines in our language
- The complexities of the AI sentience debate
- How AI unlocks new outlets for creativity
- The need for positive stories
- The three components of innovation
- “Curiosity is a shit starter”
- Finding new ways to create community
- Openness and experimentation
- MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- What Works on Wall Street: A Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
- Unflattening; by Nick Sousanis
- Slouching Towards Utopia: An Economic History of the 20th Century; by Brad DeLong
- American Gods; by Neil Gaiman
- Lessons: A Novel; by Ian McEwan
Julia is the co-founder of Rosetta Analytics Inc, “an alternative asset manager that is pioneering the use of advanced artificial intelligence to build and actively manage liquid investment strategies.”
Prior to co-founding Rosetta, Julia served as President of Wilshire Consulting and was a member of Wilshire’s Board of Directors and Consulting Investment Committee.
Julia joins the show to take a deep dive into deep reinforcement learning and Rosetta’s pioneering work using AI as the basis of its investment strategies.
Important Links:
- Rosetta Analytics
- Julia’s LinkedIn
Show Notes:
- Julia’s journey from Wilshire to Rosetta
- Defining deep reinforcement learning
- AI and non-linear thinking
- Using adaptive models
- Overcoming the human need for ‘why’
- Pitching deep reinforcement learning models to new investors
- Telling positive stories about AI; improving our discourse
- “Wake up and look for the joy”; “overcoming fear is the biggest barrier to success”
Books Mentioned:
- What Works on Wall Street: A Guide to the Best-Performing Investment Strategies of All Time; by Jim O’Shaughnessy
- The Beginning of Infinity: Explanations That Transform the World; by David Deutsch
- The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy - What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America's Next Rendezvous with Destiny; by William Strauss and Neil Howe
Creator and curator Liberty RPF returns for his second appearance on Infinite Loops. He and Jim discuss the art of curation, the opportunities and risks of AI, the curse of creativity, the future of learning, and MUCH more!
Title:
Description:
Lulu Cheng Meservey is the Chief Communications Officer and Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs at Activision Blizzard.
She joins Infinite Loops to provide us with a masterclass in communications for startups. A must-listen for current and aspiring founders.
Important Links:
• Lulu’s Twitter
• Lulu’s Substack
Show Notes:
• Why people write hit pieces
• The insurgency framework
• How to access your audience’s neural real estate
• How to develop a spontaneous elevator pitch
• Tips for becoming better at reading the room
• Speak directly and take the hits
• Defining business objectives
• Learning from other industries
• Personalising your message
• Overcoming resistance to the unknown, what Christianity can teach us about comms
• Escaping corporate jargon
• How comms resembles rugby
• Taking ownership of comms
• Moving to a new model of comms
• “Don’t let things happen to you. Go and happen to things.”
Books Mentioned:
• The Network State: How To Start a New Country; by Balaji S. Srinivasan
• The Hero with a Thousand Faces; by Joseph Campbell
“With enough curiosity, self-confidence is irrelevant.”
Tinkered Thinking is a writer, artist, author and creator. He is also the worthy winner of our ‘White Mirror’ competition.
His writing includes a series of ‘Lucilius Parables’, short stories dispersed throughout time and space designed to help readers reconceptualise their experience of being alive.
He joined the show to discuss writing, technology, curiosity, optimism and MUCH more!
Important Links:
- Website
- The Lucilius Parables, Volume I
- The Lucilius Parables, Volume II
- The Century of the Self: Happiness Machines - Adam Curtis
Show Notes:
- The origin of Lucilius
- Why write short stories?
- Fear and human nature
- Technology, progress and optimism
- Where is the positive poetry of today?
- The momentum metric
- How to rebrand Guatemala
- White Mirror
- Choose your disposition
- The power of curiosity
- The question as a concept
- Hope grows foolish with no doing
Books Mentioned:
- The Lucilius Parables, Volume I; by Tinkered Thinking
- The Lucilius Parables, Volume II; by Tinkered Thinking
- The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory; by Brian Greene
- The Fifth Science; by Exurb1a
- Foundation; by Isaac Asimov
- Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance; by Bob Pirsig
- The Beginning of Infinity; by David Deutsch
- Language in Thought and Action; by S.I. Hayakawa
- Screw the Zoo: Escape From Your Cage, Free Your Mind, and Take Over the World; by Sam McRoberts
- Unflattening; by Nick Sousanis
- Atomic Habits; by James Clear
- The Power of Habit; by Charles Duhigg
- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; by Douglas Adams
- The Egg; by Andy Weir
- The Varieties of Religious Experience by William James
- Awakening: Conversations with the Masters; by Anthony De Mello
- Spiritually Incorrect Enlightenment; by Jed McKenna
Edward Slingerland is a University Scholar and Professor of Philosophy at the University of British Columbia. He has authored a number of books, including ‘Trying Not to Try’ and ‘Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization’. He joins the show to discuss the paradox of effortless action, the history of Chinese philosophy, the benefits of alcohol, and a whole lot more.
Important Links:
- Edward’s Twitter
- Edward’s Website
- Drunk
- Trying Not to Try
Show Notes:
- The paradox of trying not to try
- Western equivalents to wu-wei
- The difference between wu-wei and flow
- How to cultivate wu-wei
- How technology makes it harder to find wu-wei
- Why were Confucianism and Daoism so successful?
- Utilitarianism, China and the panopticon
- The right amount of rationality, choking
- Shutting down the prefrontal cortext
- The evolutionary origins of our love of alcohol
- The power of psychedelics
- Ecological niches, cooperation, creativity and honesty
- An alternative model of honesty
- Stop pushing so hard, go walk in the woods
Books Mentioned:
- Trying Not to Try: The Ancient Art of Effortlessness and the Surprising Power of Spontaneity; by Edward Slingerland
- Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization; by Edward Slingerland
- The Dao De Jing; by Laozi
- The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr
- The Science of Storytelling: Why Stories Make Us Human and How to Tell Them Better; by Will Storr
- The Master and His Emissary; by Iain McGilchrist
- Choke: What the Secrets of the Brain Reveal About Getting It Right When You Have To; by Sian Beilock
- The Immortality Key: The Secret History of the Religion with No Name; by Brian C. Muraresku
Jeremiah Lowin is the founder & CEO of Prefect, a dataflow automation company. Jeremiah joins Jim for his second appearance on Infinite Loops to discuss executing, storytelling, artificial intelligence and, of course, puns.
Important Links:
- Prefect.io
- Disney Research Hub
- The story of the fake statue of Venus
Show Notes:
- Slack, puns and the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
- Planning, executing and the story of Prefect in 2022
- Why naming things is a superpower
- If you can’t pivot, you’re dead
- Make original mistakes
- AI, storytelling, deep fakes and open source
Books Mentioned:
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy; by Douglas Adams
- What Works on Wall Street; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
- The Beginning of Infinity; by David Deutsch
Herbert is a writer and editorial director who has been writing online since he was 15. He is the editor of 'The World According to Kanye' and has written for publications such as Forge, TIME and Quartz.
Herbert joins the show to discuss his book 'Creative Doing: 75 Practical Exercises to Unblock Your Creative Potential in Your Work, Hobby, or Next Career', and to share some practical, actionable methods of harnessing the creative impulses that lie inside us all.
Important Links:
- Herbert’s Twitter
- Herbert’s Website
- Creative Doing
Show Notes:
- “Think less; do more”
- Adapting to social media
- “Don’t make the bad the enemy of the good”
- “Doing is thinking”
- The strongest case for thinking over doing
- The role of the subconscious in the creative process
- The Madman and the Judge
- What initial steps can an aspiring creator take?
- Is there such a thing as natural creativity?
- “Quality is a word smart people use to procrastinate”
- Unifying the Madman and the Judge
- Why do societies try to crush creativity out of people?
- Why we are all creative
Books Mentioned:
- Creative Doing: 75 Practical Exercises to Unblock Your Creative Potential in Your Work, Hobby, or Next Career; by Herbert Lui
- Why Greatness Cannot Be Planned: The Myth of the Objective; by Kenneth O. Stanley and Joel Lehman
- The Love Song of J. Alfred Profrock; by T.S. Eliot
- The I Ching
- Tao Te Ching; by Laozi
- Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance; by Robert M. Pirsig
Emad Mostaque is the founder and CEO of Stability AI, the company behind Stable Diffusion.
Emad joins Stability AI’s recently announced Executive Chair of the board of directors Jim O’Shaughnessy to discuss the future of AI, the benefits of open source software, and much more.
Important Links:
- Stability AI
- Stable Diffusion Launch Announcement
- Stability AI’s Twitter
- Emad’s Twitter
- Jim’s announcement as Executive Chair
Show Notes:
- The open vs closed AI debate
- How will open AI lead to better outcomes for AI safety?
- How will AI allow us to to solve previously unsolvable problems?
- How AI can transform education
- AI and storytelling
- What is ‘clean’ data?
- Can AI technology increase IQs across the entire world?
- The future: optimism, pessimism, jobs, AI alignment and the panopticon
- Why closed AI is a bad business model
- Anticipating and defending against future problems
- What two ideas would you like to give everyone in the world?
Books Mentioned:
- The WEIRDest People in the World; by Joseph Henrich
“To get me stop, they’re going to have to pry the microphone out of my cold dead hand”.
Hot on the heels of his hugely popular appearance on ‘Invest Like The Best’, David Senra joins a marathon episode of Infinite Loops to discuss obsession, education, optimism, podcasting, and so much more.
Unsurprisingly, this one is not to be missed.
Important Links:
- Founders Podcast
- Founders on Colossus
- David’s Twitter
- David’s Substack
- Runnin’ Down a Dream - Bill Gurley
Show Notes:
- David’s grandfather, refugees, and risk-taking
- Why reading history raises our ambition
- Obsession and genetics
- Why founders are the most important people in the world
- Our failing education system
- “To get me to stop, they’re going to have to pry the microphone out of my cold dead hand”
- “Don’t do anything that somebody else can do”
- Societal responses to change, predicting the future
- The benefits of small teams
- “Plan B should be to make plan A work”
- Optimism, risk and the bridge of nihilism
- Why you need to start a podcast
- “History doesn’t repeat, human nature does”
- AI and art
- The internet is the greatest variance amplifier in history
- “You can’t fake passion”
- Infinite networks
- Luck, burnout, learning and excuses
- “Don’t be surprised if your best idea comes 30 to 40 years into your career”
- The blueprint for a great day
- Pick the right heroes
Books Mentioned:
- Am I Being Too Subtle?: Straight Talk From a Business Rebel; by Sam Zell
- The Sugar King of Havana: The Rise and Fall of Julio Lobo, Cuba's Last Tycoon; by John Paul Rathbone
- The Hypomaniac Edge: The Link Between (A Little) Craziness and (A Lot of) Success in America; by John D. Gartner
- One Summer: America, 1927; by Bill Bryson
- Reluctant Genius: The Passionate Life and Inventive Mind of Alexander Graham Bell; by Charlotte Gray
- Born of this land : my life story; by Chung Ju-yung
- Shoe Dog; by Phil Knight
- Pulitzer: A Life in Politics, Print, and Power; by James McGrath Morris
- Only the Paranoid Survive: How to Exploit the Crisis Points That Challenge Every Company; by Andrew S. Grove
- Time to Make the Donuts: The Founder of Dunkin Donuts Shares an American Journey; by William Rosenberg
- Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration; by Ed Catmull
- The Tao Te Ching; by Laozi
- My Life & Work - An Autobiography of Henry Ford; by Henry Ford
- One from Many: VISA and the Rise of Chaordic Organization; by Dee Hock
- Zanies: The world’s greatest eccentrics; by Jay Robert Nash
Dr Michael Donnino is the founder/director of the Psychophysiologic Research Group, and the first person in the country to complete a residency/fellowship program leading to board certification in internal medicine, emergency medicine, and critical care.
Liz Wallenstein is a licensed mental health counselor who has trained in, among other areas, the methodology of ‘TMS Mind Body-Connection’.
Liz and Dr Michael join the show to discuss the profound influence of Dr John Sarno on their lives, and the potentially transformational power of ‘Mind-Body’ therapies.
Important Links:
- The Mind-Body Group
- Michael’s Twitter
- Liz’s Website
- Healing Back Pain: The Mind-Body Connection
Show Notes:
- Introductions to Dr. Sarno
- The relationship between our emotional and physical reactions
- Reasons to be hopeful
- Emotions and conditioning
- A response to the sceptics
- The societal costs of chronic pain
- Mental health: moving beyond diagnostic labels
- Long COVID and mind-body syndrome
- The future of psychophysiological research
- What does the medical community think of mind-body syndrome?
- Doing the inner work that’s needed to heal
- The future of mind-body treatments
- The importance of sincerity
Books Mentioned:
- Your Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma; by Bessel van der Kolk;
- Molecules of Emotion: The Science Behind Mind-Body Medicine; by Candace Pert
- Healing Back Pain; by John E. Sarno
- The Screwtape Letters; by C.S. Lewis
- The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr
- The Great Pain Deception: Faulty Medical Advice Is Making Us Worse; by Steve Ozanich
- Anatomy of an Illness: As Perceived by the Patient; by Norman Cousins
The brilliant Kyla Scanlon returns for her second appearance on Infinite Loops. As well as being a prolific creator, curator and writer, Kyla is the founder of the financial education company Bread. Kyla joins the show to discuss the vibecession, her plans for Bread, the creator economy, and much more.
Important Links:
- Kyla’s website
- Kyla’s Twitter
- Kyla’s TikTok
- Kyla’s Instagram
- Kyla’s Substack
- Kyla’s Youtube
Show Notes:
- Losing control of the meme
- Everything is vibes
- Inflation is a tax
- Are vibes top-down or bottom-up?
- Making complicated information fun
- The importance of having thick skin
- The benefits of free markets
- Do governments have vibes?
- How do you cultivate good vibes?
- The creator economy
- Bread's mission
- Education is broken
- Advice for upcoming content creators
- Against credentialism
- Open AI vs closed AI
- How can you change your models?
- What is your favourite medium?
- What would be the most surprising development over the next 12 months?
Books Mentioned:
- The Dancing Wu Li Masters: An Overview of the New Physics; by Gary Zukav
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
Is this the greatest crossover event in history? Fresh from their individual appearances on Infinite Loops, Trung Phan and Rob Henderson join forces to discuss TV, film, and why Rob still hasn’t seen Apocalypse Now.
Important Links:
- Rob’s Substack
- Rob’s Twitter
- Trung’s Substack
- Trung’s Twitter
Show Notes:
- Hearts of Darkness: one of the craziest stories in Hollywood history
- The beginning of TV’s golden age
- Breadth or depth? The two paths to prestige TV
- What TV can teach you about elite America
- The two ways of watching prestige TV
- How TV shows program us
- The decline of event TV
- Recurring themes and HumanOS
- Succession and signalling
- The Great Reshuffle and Substack
- The 70s: one of the worst American decades of all time
- What will TV be like in 10 years’ time?
- Challenge yourself with art
- Broaden your content horizons
Books Mentioned:
- Heart of Darkness; by Joseph Conrad
- Unflattening; by Nick Sousanis
- The Iliad; by Homer
- The Odyssey; by Homer
- The Da Vinci Code; by Dan Brown
- Infinite Jest; by David Foster Wallace
TV Shows and Films Mentioned:
- Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse
- Apocalypse Now
- The Shield
- The Godfather
- The Sopranos
- Seinfeld
- All In The Family
- The Wire
- The Simpsons
- The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
- Mad Men
- Game of Thrones
- The West Wing
- Roseanne
- Power Rangers
- The O.C.
- Breaking Bad
- Better Call Saul
- The Truman Show
- Back to the Future
- I Love Lucy
- Succession
- Will and Grace
- Severance
- House of Cards
- Stranger Things
- Office Space
- Euphoria
- Avengers: End Game
- Top Gun Maverick
- The Office
- Parasite
Nick Gillespie is the host of the Reason Interview and an editor at large at Reason. Nick is one of the most interesting libertarian thinkers in America, and has been described by the New York Times as being to libertarianism “what Lou Reed is to rock ‘n’ roll, the quintessence of its outlaw spirit".
Important Links:
- Nick’s Substack
- Nick’s Twitter
- Nick’s Podcast
- Reason
Show Notes:
- Is libertarianism dead?
- Saying what you think
- The case for rational optimism
- Labels and empathy
- President Nixon, the Great Reshuffle, Bitcoin
- Bureaucracy and responsiveness
- The rapidly changing world
- Prohibition and legalisation
- Why America does not have enough immigration
- The enfranchising power of social media
- Obscenity and moral panics
- Empathy with the dispossessed
- And MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Declaration of Independents: How Libertarian Politics Can Fix What’s Wrong with America; by Nick Gillespie and Matt Welch
- The Rational Optimist; by Matt Ridley
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy; by Douglas Adams
- The Population Bomb; by Paul Ehrlich
- The Beginning of Infinity; by David Deutsch
- Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy; by Joseph Schumpeter
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
- One Summer: America, 1927; by Bill Bryson
- The War on Alcohol; by Liza McGirr
- Immigration and Freedom; by Chandran Kukathas
- The Illuminatus! Trilogy; by Robert Anton Wilson and Robert Shea
- What It Means to be a Libertarian: a Personal Interpretation; by Charles Murray
- Raising PG Kids in an X-Rated Society; by Tipper Gore
- Ulysses; by James Joyce
- The Status Game: On Human Life and How to Play It; by Will Storr
- Happy: Why More or Less Everything is Absolutely Fine; by Derren Brown
Will Storr is an award winning journalist and author. His book ‘The Status Game’ transforms our understanding of human nature by demonstrating how our unconscious desire for status ultimately drives our behaviour.
Important Links:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/wstorr?s=21&t=ZdtIqP9eE3_a5qZocDjEXQ
- Website: https://willstorr.com
- The Science of Storytelling: https://www.thescienceofstorytelling.com
Show Notes:
- Will’s origin story
- The strange case of David Irving
- The fundamental nature of status games
- The Stanford prison experiment and dominance games
- The status games played by cults
- Luxury beliefs
- Why we are all moral hypocrites
- The importance of being funny
- Social status and socioeconomic status
- Human OS and the education system
- How status seeking leads to the “very best of human nature”
- The murderous nature of reputation destruction
- The post WW1 humiliation of Germany
- Loaded magazine
- Finding the true reason behind seemingly crazy beliefs
- The value of religion
- Trading status
- Spreading humility
- Why we could be wrong about our closest beliefs
Books Mentioned:
- The Unpersuadables: Adventures with the Enemies of Science; by Will Storr
- The Lucifer Principle: A Scientific Expedition into the Forces of History; by Howard Bloom
- The Genius of the Beast: A Radical Re-Vision of Capitalism; by Howard Bloom
- The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous; by Joseph Henrich
- The Science of Storytelling; by Will Storr
- Slaughterhouse-Five; by Kurt Vonnegut
- Selfie: How We Became so Self-Obsessed and What It’s Doing to Us; by Will Storr
- The Status Game: On Social Position and How We Use It; by Will Storr
Vitaliy Katsenelson is the CEO of a value investment firm IMA, author of two books on investing, and a recently published non-investing book named “Soul In The Game”. Known for his uncommon common sense, Forbes magazine called him "The New Benjamin Graham."
Vitaliy loves to read, listen to classical music, play chess, and write about life, investing, and music.
Important Links:
- Blog: https://contrarianedge.com/
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/vitaliyk
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/vitaliyk
- IMA: https://imausa.com/
- Favorite classical music website: https://myfavoriteclassical.com/
- “The Gateway Drug to Classical Music” Spotify playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1tfsohjLty6IK2b2B8AGE0
Show Notes:
- Coming to America from Soviet Russia
- How movies shape perception
- Two frameworks to understand the mind
- Programming yourself with the words you use
- The Thinker and the Prover
- Abracadabra—I create as I speak
- Four modes of communication
- Not letting an idea become your identity
- Writing about both sides of the argument
- Reality is nuanced
- Depersonalize your arguments
- A mathematical formula to determine outcomes
- Table cloth model of investing
- Event, Judgement, Reaction framework
- Reframing your worries away
- Is the USA still the best place to be for talented people?
- Elon Musk’s distinctiveness
- Favorite classical composers
- Opera as a plunger for the writer's block
- Introducing kids to classical music
- The best financial advice Vitaliy ever got
- Can money buy happiness?
- Experiencing self vs. remembering self
- Traveling is an antidote for monotony
- Going outside your myopic circles
- “The Gateway Drug to Classical Music” playlist
- And MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- Soul In The Game; by Vitaliy Katsenelson
- Think Again; by Adam Grant
- Influence; by Dr Robert B. Cialdini
- The Wealthy Barber; by David Chilton
- Gödel, Escher, Bach; by Douglas Hofstadter
- How to Win Friends & Influence People; by Dale Carnegie
Dennis McKenna is the founder of the McKenna Academy and has conducted research in ethnopharmacology for over 40 years. He is a founding board member of the Heffter Research Institute, and was a key investigator on the Hoasca Project, the first biomedical investigation of ayahuasca.
Important Links:
- McKenna Academy: https://mckenna.academy/
- ESPD 55 (Ethnopharmacologic Search for Psychoactive Drugs): https://espd55.com/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/DennisMcKenna4
- ICEERS (International Center for Ethno-botanical Education, Research, and Service): https://www.iceers.org/
Show Notes:
- ESPD 55 conference
- Goals of the McKenna Academy
- How psychedelics affect our relationship with nature
- Bridging the gap between ancestral and moderns scientific knowledge
- Psychedelics on the safety scale
- Nixon’s war against drugs
- Fear of persecution in the medical community
- LSD being really responsible for the birth of modern neuroscience
- DMT reopening the door to clinical research
- Using psilocybin for end of life applications
- Psychedelics are not just “band-aids”
- Dissipation of knowledge among indigenous tribes
- Reality hallucination
- Therapeutic utility of psychedelics
- Future of psychedelic research
- Making psychedelics more accessible
- Protecting endangered plants
- Forming alliances with indigenous communities
Books Mentioned:
- The Immortality Key; by Brian Muraresku
- How to Change Your Mind; by Michael Pollan
- Psychology and Alchemy; by Carl Jung
David Perell is prolific writer and online educator, who runs a writing school called “Write of Passage”. David also hosts the “The North Star Podcast” featuring interviews with writers, athletes, and entrepreneurs.
Important Links:
- Website: https://perell.com/
- Writing School: https://writeofpassage.school/
- Friday Finds Links: https://perell.com/friday-finds-links/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/david_perell
Show Notes:
- Origins of “Write of Passage”
- Writing leads to thinking
- David’s ever expanding portfolio
- Live the life that you teach
- Applying lessons from Disneyland to a writing course
- Four Seasons of writing education
- Ana’s success with David’s course
- Writing as a career transition
- Average course cohort age
- Building a personal monopoly
- Advice for an aspiring creator
- Dive into the work of the people you admire
- Managing fear of creating in public
- The network age
- Building a product for high-schoolers
- Finding your tribe on the internet
- Going against the trend with long-form essays
- Checklists and prescriptions
- The cover band strategy for investing
- Building an internet native education system
- Schools stifling creativity
- The Never-Ending Now
Books Mentioned:
- Zero to One; by Peter Thiel
- One Summer: America, 1927; by Bill Bryson
- The Status Game; by Will Storr
- Invest Like the Best; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
Shreyas Doshi is a startup advisor who has formerly worked in the product teams of tech firms like Stripe, Twitter, Google, Yahoo. He regularly writes about product, strategy, org psychology, leadership, and life!
Important Links:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/shreyas
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shreyasdoshi
Show Notes:
- Shreyas’s childhood
- Operating with the owner mindset
- The LNO framework
- Getting good at leveraging time
- The antithesis principle
- Having a great manager
- Individual vs. group decision making
- “Apple Pie” positions
- Beware of certainty theater
- Social media: A global intelligence network
- Minimizing your opportunity costs
- The issue with following the rubric
- Lessons from school at the workplace
- Learning to unlearn
- Tao Te Ching on leadership
- Being an invisible leader
- Tight vs. weak grip
- And MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Science of Storytelling; by Will Storr
- The Status Game; by Will Storr
- Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu
Our recurring guest (who rarely recurs these days), Alex Danco, comes back for his sixth appearance on Infinite Loops!
Important Links:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/Alex_Danco
- Website: https://alexdanco.com/
- Newsletter: https://danco.substack.com/
Show Notes:
- Our planned, but unplanned conversations
- Pink Floyd were philosophers
- From Heraclitus, to Lao Tzu, to Gita, to Deutsch
- Where does decision making come from?
- Projection 101
- Can you versus can’t you read people’s mind
- Jim throwing big fancy words like “Phylogenetic inertia”
- Corn: The apex predator
- Self-serving nature of memetic theory
- The Mirror Philosophy
- What is a “creator”?
- Communication theory by Gregory Bateson
- The Founding Murderer
- Consequences of eating the fruit from the tree of knowledge
- "The most entertaining outcome is the most likely.”
- Hot media vs. Cool media
- The Wire, and dumb Stringer
- The state of accreditation
- Balancing mystery with transparency
- Knowing pop culture as a status symbol
- And MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Science of Storytelling; by Will Storr
- The Status Game; by Will Storr
- Happy; by Derren Brown
- The Selfish Gene; by Richard Dawkins
- Steps to an Ecology of Mind; by Gregory Bateson
- War and Peace; by Leo Tolstoy
Johnathan Bi started out getting trained in Mathematics, and then eventually went on to study Philosophy and Computer Science at Columbia. He hosts a lecture series on René Girard’s Mimetic Theory and is also a founding member of Lonsdale Investment Technology.
Important Links:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/JohnathanBi
- Lecture series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Qu6vBebwwg
- Website: https://johnathanbi.com/
- Lonsdale Investment Technology: https://www.longterm.com/
Show Notes:
- Becoming pessimistic with age
- Humiliation always comes back to bite you
- How Jonathan got introduced to Buddhism and Girard
- Why Jonathan left academia
- The driving human emotion
- Has modernity ignored the “spirit”?
- Girard’s apocalyptic predictions
- Wild, wild west of capitalism
- The mystery with the discovery of the skull
- What does eugenics say about science?
- Science becoming dictatorial
- Buddhism figuring out the inner telescope
- Physical vs. metaphysical desires
- Mimesis in asset valuation
- Price to magic ratio
- Nietzsche's will of power
- Is delusion bad?
- Can internet lead to greater violence?
- “The Buddhist Solution”
- Girard—A rescuer of spirit
- And MUCH more!
Books Mentioned:
- The Status Game; by Will Storr
- The Struggle for Recognition; by Axel Honneth
- Sapiens; by Yuval Noah Harari
- The Science of Storytelling; by Will Storr
- The Origin of Species; Charles Darwin
- Untimely Meditations; by Friedrich Nietzsche
Dan McMurtrie is the Portfolio Manager at Tyro Partners, an asset management firm for institutions and HNWIs; and the General Partner at Anchorless Bangladesh, an early stage venture fund focused on Bangladeshi startups.
Links:
- Dan’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/SuperMugatu
- Tyro Partners: https://www.tyropartners.com/
- Anchorless Bangladesh: https://www.anchorless.vc/
- Coolworks: Jobs in Great Places: https://www.coolworks.com/
Show Notes:
- Are we in the schadenfreude part of the market cycle?
- Going back to the fundamentals
- Solving the agency problem
- Taking concentrated beta risk
- Having clarity around your goals
- The behavioral risk in investing
- Do not get married to your investment thesis
- It’s always you vs. you
- Investing is about understanding other people's mistakes
- Societal costs of stablecoins being unstable
- Compatibility of social media and representative democracy
- Issues with the current US Govt. administration
- Number one existential risk for US currently
- Risks of information overload
- Improving education about commerce
- Dopamine manipulators
- Leadership vs. Stakeholder management
- America vs China for policy changes
- US legal immigration system
- And MUCH more!
Description:George Mack is a creator who writes about the intersection of mental models, marketing, and technological tools and tactics. His marketing agency “Multiply” has helped grow some of the fasted growing businesses in the world backed by VCs like Stripe, YC, Sequoia, and LVMH.
- George’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/george__mack
- George’s newsletter: https://emailoctopus.com/lists/6d23df04-dff2-11ea-a3d0-06b4694bee2a/forms/subscribe
- Multiply Marketing: https://www.multiply.marketing/
Show Notes:
- Specific knowledge and technology
- Rise of TikTok
- Bringing people closer to tech
- Regulation slowing down tech innovation
- High agency filters
- A self-made teenage billionaire?
- New forms of education
- Word of mouth 2.0
- The best marketer doesn’t look like a marketer
- Elon’s 21 second pause
- Optimizing for luck
- The smart friend razor
- Superpower in being weird
- How to build a porn site
- Assess others to assess yourself
- The issue with personality tests
- Advice to the young
Books Mentioned:
- Zero to One; by Peter Thiel
- Tao Te Ching; by Lao Tzu
- The Bhagavad Gita
Ian Cassel is the founder of MicroCapClub, a community where hundreds of investors have discussions on US and Canadian microcap companies. They also help you become better investors with educational content covering investing strategies, intelligent fanatic CEOs, great investors, and more.
Ian is also Founder and CIO at Intelligent Fanatics Capital Management, whose goal is to own the smallest, most illiquid, least institutionally owned, misunderstood businesses that are run by intelligent fanatics.
- Ian’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/iancassel
- MicroCapClub: https://microcapclub.com/
- Intelligent Fanatics Capital Management: https://if.capital/
Show Notes:
- Microcaps are boons for quants
- How Ian fell in love with microcaps
- Managing other people’s money
- Advantages and risks of microcap investing
- Profitability, scarcity, and great stories
- The top-down and bottom-up investment framework
- Not being limited by minimum market caps
- Being a hands-on investor
- Turnovers in microcap portfolios
- PE taking over microcap firms
- Increasing the flywheel of serendipity
- Preparing to be effortless
- Not getting into arguments with people with made up minds
- Being honest about your investment approach
- The “mute” button hack
- Identifying bad management
- Importance of base rates
- Educating about microcaps
- Optimism beats pessimism
- Do macroeconomic factors really matter?
- What is chasing you?
Books Mentioned:
- The Psychology of Money, by Morgan Housel
- The Tao Jones Averages, by Bennett Goodspeed
After working at McKinsey and getting an MBA from MIT, Paul Millerd was succeeding well on a path that “made sense”. However, things started changing when he had a health crisis, which ended up with him embarking on a pathless path. Since 2017, he’s been tinkering with multiple side-hustles, writing newsletters, creating podcasts, traveling, and helping others join the pathless path.
- Paul’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/p_millerd
- Paul’s newsletter: https://boundless.substack.com/
- ‘The Pathless Path’ book: https://think-boundless.com/the-pathless-path/
Show Notes:
- Having fun paying bills
- Jumping off your fitness landscape
- The first few years of being self-employed
- Connecting with the subconscious self
- Internet as an off-ramp
- How to stir up curiosity
- Lessons from DJing
- The social construct of retirement
- Internet economy requires showing up daily
- Design for liking your life
- Tinkering
- Embracing laziness
- Luxury of doing what you want
- The shift from cynicism to optimism
- Societal progress over the last decades
- What’s next for Paul?
Books Mentioned:
- The Pathless Path; by Paul Millerd
- The Body Keeps The Score; by Bessel van der Kolk
Dave Chilton is a Canadian author, investor, and a venture capitalist who has appeared on television in the Canadian version of Dragons’ Den. In 1989, he released his book ”The Wealthy Barber” which went on to sell an astonishing two million copies in Canada.
You can follow Dave on Twitter at https://twitter.com/wealthy_barber and buy his book at https://www.amazon.com/THE-WEALTHY-BARBER/dp/B000SAI072
Show Notes:
- How Dave met Jim
- Signs of curiosity
- “The Wealthy Barber” TV show
- Twitter as a global intelligence network
- Capital Camp and Rethinking Private Equity
- Getting good at taking criticism
- Dave’s approach to writing “The Wealthy Barber”
- The decline in business travel
- Starting new businesses at 60
- Helping out authors with book publishing
- “The Chilton Method” web-series
- Power laws in podcasting
- Inviting Jim’s kids to Infinite Loops
- How to react if your passport gets pickpocketed
- Living in the moment
- Building a healthy relationship with your kids
- The natural love for trivia
- Collecting art
- Anecdotal info in the world of big data
- Still using a Blackberry
Books Mentioned:
- The Wealthy Barber; by Dave Chilton
- What Works on Wall Street; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
- Invest Like the Best; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
- Psychology of Money; by Morgan Housel
- The Immortality Key; by Brian Muraresku
Meb Faber is co-founder and the Chief Investment Officer of Cambria Investment Management, author of multiple books, and host of “The Meb Faber Show” podcast. You can follow Meb on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MebFaber and know more about him and his work at https://mebfaber.com/
Show Notes:
- Replicating the Yale endowment
- Why investors won’t follow advice
- Importance of writing down your investment plan
- The challenges of buy and hold
- Learning from your losses
- Out of favor strategies
- A dividend strategy without dividends
- The branding issue with buybacks
- Harsh book reviews
- Investing in international markets
- Are we in an expensive downtrend?
- Stated vs. Actual preference
- Not betting on merely sentiment
- Robinhood with an educational spin
Trung T. Phan is a creator in the tech, business, and media space. His Twitter threads are full of knowledge and humor, and he also co-hosts the “Not Investment Advice” podcast. Follow Trung on Twitter at https://twitter.com/TrungTPhan and subscribe to his newsletter at https://trungtphan.com/subscribe/
Show Notes:
- Trung’s Vietnamese origins
- Humor in your talent stack
- Asymmetric returns of creating content online
- The power of memes
- Getting a CFA
- Going back to writing movie scripts
- Succeeding in the creator economy
- How to acquire people’s attention
- Creating content on LinkedIn and Facebook
- The importance of traveling
- Donald Trump’s popularity in SE Asia
- History is not black or white
- Steve Jobs with the Picasso
- How a Microsoft guy catalyzed the iPad
- Musk’s space meeting with Bezos
- Not letting complacency set in
- Putting historical dates into perspective
- Structuring speech to persuade
- Jim not dissing Plato
- Making Ted Lasso likable in 157 seconds
- And MORE!
Books Mentioned:
- The Status Game; by Will Storr
- The Beginning of Infinity; by David Deutsch
- Virus of the Mind; by Richard Brodie
- The Republic; Plato
Jimmy Soni is an author whose work focuses on people who create and build interesting things—whether theories, carousels, or companies. His books include “The Founders: The Story of PayPal and the Entrepreneurs Who Shaped Silicon Valley”, “A Mind at Play: How Claude Shannon Invented the Information Age”, and more!
You can follow Jimmy on Twitter at https://twitter.com/jimmyasoni and go through his work on https://jimmysoni.com/
Show Notes:
- The joy of curiosity
- How memes spread
- The Great Reshuffle
- How internet changed the publishing industry
- Parallels between early days of PayPal and Bitcoin
- Money as an information system
- Appreciating the micro-level decisions
- Three new things about Elon
- The Elon Effect
- How the PayPal founders brought the best out of people
- The unknown names who were critical to PayPal
- Claude Shannon’s financial decisions
- Wealth is a byproduct of the devotion to the craft
Books Mentioned:
- The Founders; by Jimmy Soni
- A Mind at Play; by Jimmy Soni
- Virus of the Mind; by Richard Brodie
- The Sovereign Individual; by James Dale Davidson and Lord William Rees-Mogg
- What Works on Wall Street; Jim O'Shaughnessy
Peter Saddington is a man of many talents. He’s a software developer, founder, author, VC, and writes “The Agile VC” newsletter which covers Inside Startups, Venture Capital, and Life!
You can connect with Peter on Twitter at https://twitter.com/agilepeter and subscribe to his newsletter at https://theagilevc.substack.com/
Show Notes:
- Being exceptionally useful
- Holding nothing close to the vest
- Mastering the inner self
- Peter’s childhood
- Financial future of our world
- Antifragility of Bitcoin
- Mining cryptocurrencies
- Infinite Loop’s NFT journey
- The future of NFTs
- How Peter got censored on YouTube
- The rise of Substack
- Jim’s business ideas for the new world
- The unfair advantage of a physical connection
- Fixing your house before fixing the world
- Most important skills to have for a young person
- Manifestation is about taking action
Ben Hunt is the creator and primary author of Epsilon Theory, and co-founder and CIO at Second Foundation Partners.
Epsilon Theory is a newsletter that examines markets through the lenses of game theory and history. Over 100,000 professional investors and allocators across 180 countries read Epsilon Theory for its fresh perspective and novel insights into market dynamics.
You can follow Ben on Twitter at https://twitter.com/EpsilonTheory and read Epsilon Theory here: https://www.epsilontheory.com/
Show Notes:
- Neurolinguistic hard reset
- Ben’s days at Harvard
- Why Klaus Schwab is a raccoon
- Human beings are social animals
- How language impacts and limits us
- The cost of the Metaverse
- How the nudging state is rewiring us
- Does narrative follow price, or is it the inverse?
- Traders respond to stories everyday
- How technology can fight the nudging state.
- NOAH: An ark of stories on the blockchain
Books Mentioned:
- The WEIRDest People in the World; by Joseph Henrich
- How the Irish Saved Civilization; by Thomas Cahill
Brian Feroldi is the author of the book “Why Does The Stock Market Go Up?: Everything You Should Have Been Taught About Investing In School, But Weren't”. His mission statement is “To Spread Financial Wellness”, and he does exactly that in this episode of Infinite Loops!
You can connect with Brian on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BrianFeroldi and get his book from Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/Why-Does-Stock-Market-Everything/dp/1735066168/
Show Notes:
- Brian’s first exposure to the stock market
- The power of mission statements
- Personal finances over investments
- Paying off your mortgage early
- Finding high-quality companies
- (Business) Momentum investing
- Brian’s Investment Checklist
- Importance of narratives in investments strategies
- 99% of great investing is doing nothing
- On being wrong, and learning from mistakes
- DCA’ing into index funds
- Capitalism is brutal
- Knowing Tom Engle
Books Mentioned:
- Why Does The Stock Market Go Up?; by Brian Feroldi
- The Tao Jones Averages; Bennett W. Goodspeed
- How To Retire Rich; by Jim O'Shaughnessy
- The Intelligent Investor; by Benjamin Graham
- The Psychology of Money; Morgan Housel
- Just Keep Buying; Nick Maggiulli
Tracy Alloway is the co-host of the Odd Lots podcast and a managing editor at Bloomberg Markets. You can follow Tracy on Twitter at https://twitter.com/tracyalloway and listen to her podcast here: https://open.spotify.com/show/1te7oSFyRVekxMBJUSethH
Show Notes:
- Financial crisis hindsight
- Being obsessed with risk and systemic stability
- Historical parallels to the crisis of ‘08
- Macro vs. micro bullshitting
- Why people refuse to say “I don't know”
- Victorian chicken bubble
- Tales of forensic accounting
- NFTs being used to launder money?
- NFTs’ path to success
- Insights from collapse of previous civilizations
- Understanding the Human OS
- Fair Wages for Robots
- Praise for Citi’s Matt King and Credit Suisse’s Zoltan Pozsar
Nick Maggiulli is a financial educator, author of the blog “Of Dollars and Data”, and the newly released book “Just Keep Buying: Proven Ways To Save Money And Build Your Wealth.”
In this episode, we talk with Nick about the robust empirical research that has gone behind the insights and ideas presented in his new book!
You can follow Nick on Twitter at https://twitter.com/dollarsanddata and buy his book at https://ofdollarsanddata.com/justkeepbuying/
Show Notes:
- Coming up with title of the book
- The save-invest continuum
- Is buying a house a good investment?
- Debt: Good or bad?
- On being shaped by our experiences
- One path the wealth creation?
- 2020 vs 2021 as an investment year
- Handling emotions during a bear market
- Importance of diversification
- The ideal asset allocation
- The Great Reshuffle
- The argument against stock picking
- Negative yield bonds
- Lump sum vs. DCA
- Index investors or momentum investors
- Life as a growth, and value stock
Books Mentioned:
- Just Keep Buying; by Nick Magguilli
- Security Analysis; Benjamin Graham
- The Intelligent Investor; Benjamin Graham
- Influence; by Robert Cialdini
William Green is a journalist and author of the book “RICHER, WISER, HAPPIER: How the World's Greatest Investors Win in Markets and Life.” — a book that draws on hundreds of hours of interviews with many of the world’s super-investors to demonstrate that key insights for building wealth apply to life as well.
You can follow William on Twitter https://twitter.com/williamgreen72 and get his book at https://www.amazon.com/Richer-Wiser-Happier-Greatest-Investors/dp/1501164856
Show Notes:
- From Journalism to Investing
- Obsessiveness required to play and win a game
- Behavioral biases
- Role of patience in investing
- Stoicism, and dealing with uncertainty
- Reading authors like Henry James
- Saying YES to serendipity
- Being present in the moment
- Delaying gratification
- “When I fall, I shall rise”
- Getting out of your own way
- Staying away from the games that don't suit you
- How body posture can affect you psychologically
- Giving pleasure to your creator
- Not knowing the truth
Books Mentioned:
- Richer, Wiser, Happier: How the World's Greatest Investors Win in Markets and in Life; by William Green
- Happy: Why More Or Less Everything is Absolutely Fine; by Derren Brown
As Chamath Palihapitiya put it back in April 2021, 10-K Diver is “one of the best fintwit accounts on Twitter.” 10-K Diver loves breaking down complex financial topics and helping people understand them via engaging Twitter threads.
You can follow 10-K Diver on Twitter at https://twitter.com/10kdiver and read all his threads at https://10kdiver.com/twitter-threads/
Show Notes:
- Curating aggressively
- Is there a long term plan?
- Reasoning from the first principles
- Volatility tax
- Do markets have a memory?
- Financial Independence, Retire Early (FIRE)
- Mental models for investing
- Premeditating
- Jim’s GIF game
- Is it a Lindy or a turkey?
- The ‘Money Concepts’ show
- Benefits and pitfalls of leverage
- What’s next for the 10-K diver?
Books Mentioned:
- Reminiscences of a Stock Operator; by Edwin Lefèvre
- Happy; by Derren Brown
Morgan Housel comes back for his second episode and Infinite Loops’ 100th episode! Morgan is a financial writer and author of the bestselling book “Psychology of Money” — having sold more than a million copies worldwide!
You can follow Morgan on Twitter at https://twitter.com/morganhousel, and read his blog at https://www.collaborativefund.com/blog/
Show Notes:
- Morgan’s role at Collaborative Fund
- Marketing that isn’t “forced”
- Good product is good marketing
- When perception becomes reality
- Feedback to Morgan’s book
- The power of stories
- Understanding finance vs. Experiencing it
- Writing is thinking
- Not a great age for middlemen
- Promises of crypto
- Should volatility be considered as risk?
- Morgan’s next book
- Disconnect between the ideal and the practical
- Change in Morgan’s life after his book’s success
- Happiness is not about money
- Raising children into great adults
- Interviews should be conversations, not interrogations
- On luck and humility
Books Mentioned:
- Psychology of Money; by Morgan Housel
Dr. David Rhoiney is a Robotic Surgeon, but his talent stack also includes being a cryptologist, financial educator, writer, public speaker, web developer, former Division One Basketball player and sprinter, and more! Phew...
However, he did not come from a background of privilege. He started out homeless, and the only bread winner of his struggling family from a very young age. So how did he change his life? One word: Perseverance.
Dr. David is now on the path of helping others change their own lives, and shares one of most inspiring stories we have heard till date. We are grateful to be able to share his life's journey with you. Hope you enjoy this episode as much as we did.
You can contact Dr. David on Twitter at https://twitter.com/FiSurgi and subscribe to his newsletter at https://surgifi.substack.com/
Show notes:
- David’s childhood
- Managing to stay away from Foster care
- Going through a GI bleed
- An academic turnaround
- Becoming a submariner
- Four years of cryptology
- Getting into medical school
- Introduction to financial literacy
- Origins of SurgiFi
- On always being kind and helpful
- David’s Talent Stack
- Advice to the young
- Motivating people to learn
- Never going back to poverty
- Being an autodidact
- Poverty is NOT chosen
- Ideas to improve financial literacy in the world
Douglas A. Boneparth is the President at Bone Fide Wealth, Founder at CryptoDrip, and co-author of the book ‘Millennial Money Fix’.
Follow Douglas on his Twitter at https://twitter.com/dougboneparth, CryptoDrip at https://twitter.com/cryptodripxyz and know more about Bone Fide Wealth here: https://bonefidewealth.com/
Show Notes:
- Writing a book with your spouse
- "Killing your darlings"
- Humor as a marketing strategy
- Generating leads with Twitter and SEO
- Scaling a financial planning business
- Demystifying financial jargon
- Dealing with the 2020 crisis
- Doug's introduction to Bitcoin
- The Web 2.0/Web 3.0 bridge
- Crypto Drip: A coffee-based NFT collection
- Trusting the trust-less system
- Gamestop-AMC saga
- Responsibilities of a fiduciary
- Earning the Right to Invest
- How NOT to suck on Twitter
Books Mentioned:
- The Millennial Money Fix; by Douglas A. Boneparth and Heather Boneparth
Steven Begleiter is a Managing Director of Flexpoint Ford. Prior to joining Flexpoint Ford in 2008, Steve was a Senior Managing Director at Bear Stearns & Co. He is also a professional Poker player who claimed the 6th place in World Series of Poker 2009, winning $1.59M
Show Notes:
- Culture at Bear Stearns
- The liquidity crisis that ended Bear Stearns
- Evolution of Financial Services
- Importance of having a ‘thesis’ for your investments
- The Rise of Private Equity
- Where is PE headed to?
- Investing lessons from a Poker career
- Role of luck in life and Poker
- Psychology at the poker table
- How micro-expressions can give your game away
- Historical perspective to the Russia-Ukraine crisis
- Importance of reading military history
Jake Taylor is the CEO of Farnam Street Investments and author of the book ‘The Rebel Allocator’, a book that help readers make better investment and business decisions. You can find Jake on Twitter at https://twitter.com/farnamjake1 and get his book from https://www.amazon.com/Rebel-Allocator-Jacob-Taylor/dp/173268832X
Show Notes:
- Iron Law of Economic Survival
- Trade-offs between profit and brand
- Capturing intangible value
- Products as signalling devices
- Journalytic — Getting better at decision making
- Reducing the friction around journalling
- Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey
- Shortening the brain’s feedback loop
- The Great Reshuffle
- The Thinker and The Prover
- Cheng versus Ch'i
- Plato’s cave analogy for business decision making
- What makes a good decision maker?
Books Mentioned:
- The Rebel Allocator; by Jake Taylor
- The Wealthy Barber; by Dave Chilton
- The Nature of Value; by Nick Gogerty
- The Genius of the Beast; by Howard Bloom
- Happy; by Derren Brown
Our recurring guest Alex Danco of Spotify, err.. Shopify returns to Infinite Loops for his fifth appearance to discuss all things Web 3! Follow Alex on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Alex_Danco and read his essays at https://alexdanco.com/
Show Notes:
- Was it un-Canadian for Canada to pass the Emergency Act?
- Was the MAGA movement monarchist?
- Social meaning of NFTs
- What NFTs are not
- Catholicism — The original blockchain
- Code that can make commitments
- Wallets are the new web browsers
- What really is censorship
- Blockchains tell you what to ignore
- Porting from Web 2.0 to Web 3.0
- NFTs as human readable format of a smart contract
- Why gamers end up as good decision makers
- How to identify an extremely online person
Rohit Krishnan is a VC and essayist who writes the ‘Strange Loop Canon’ newsletter in which he tries to understand the ever increasing complexity of our world. You can follow Rohit on Twitter at https://twitter.com/krishnanrohit and subscribe to his newsletter at https://www.strangeloopcanon.com/
Show Notes:
- Douglas Hofstadter’s Strange Loop
- Memory as an unreliable narrator
- Are we seeing a decline in eccentricity?
- The Great Reshuffle
- We need more Thiel-style patrons
- Why do big companies suck at innovation?
- Importance of failure
- Reducing the cost of failure
- Universal Basic Income/Dividend
- Maximizing EV vs. Maximizing hit rate
- Are governments inefficient?
- Fragility of jobs
- World in 2050
Books Recommended:
- Gödel, Escher, Bach; by Douglas Hofstadter
- I Am a Strange Loop; by Douglas Hofstadter
- The Misbehavior of Markets; by Benoit Mandelbrot and Richard L. Hudson
Title:
Description:Sam McRoberts is the CEO of VUDU Marketing, an SEO agency and author of the book ‘Screw the Zoo’, a book that helps you “escape from your cage, free your mind, and take over the world.” You can contact Sam on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Sams_Antics and get his book at https://screwthezoo.com/
Show Notes:
- Life as a digital nomad
- Role of video games in children’ education
- The Great Unwashed
- Running an SEO consultancy
- Jed McKenna — A fictional character?
- Being kind to everyone
- Importance of curation in social media
- Bot infestation in Twitter
- Free will vs. Nature of reality
- Surrender comes after enlightenment, not before
- Memory as a latticework
- Shannon Limit
- Love as detachment
- Perseverance and survivorship bias
- The Original Sin
- Another dark age?
- To mute, or to block?
- Virtual Reality and Robots
- Psychedelics
Books Recommended:
- The Beginning of Infinity; by David Deutsch
- Cloud Atlas; by David Mitchell
- Screw the Zoo; by Sam McRoberts
Rick Doblin in the Founder and Executive Director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). MAPS is a leading organization in the USA supporting psychedelic and marijuana research since 1986. You can follow Rick on his Twitter at https://twitter.com/RickDoblin.
Amy Emerson is the CEO of the MAPS Public Benefit Corporation (MAPS PBC), a wholly-owned subsidiary of MAPS. You can learn more about MAPS and donate at https://maps.org/
Show Notes:
- Rick’s journey from Construction to Psychedelics
- How Amy met Rick and started working together
- How psychedelic research was hampered for decades
- MDMA therapy for police officers and Navy Seals
- Cultural shift in the perception of psychedelics
- Has internet made it easier or difficult to spread propaganda?
- Legitimate concerns agains advancements in psychedelic research
- MDMA: A euphoric, or psychedelic?
- Man-made vs. Natural psychedelics
- Psychedelics are NOT magic cure-all pills
- MDMA treatment for childhood trauma?
- Alternative forms of treatment like sound therapy, VR, hypnotism
- Why donate to MAPS
Books Mentioned:
- One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest; by Ken Kesey
- Cosmic Serpent: DNA and the Origins of Knowledge; by Jeremy Narby
- How to Change Your Mind; by Michael Pollan
- The Immortality Key; by Brian Muraresku
- Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance; by Robert M. Pirsig
- The Body Keeps the Score; by Bessel van der Kolk
- Happy; by Derren Brown
- The Beginning of Infinity; by David Deutsch
Lily Francus is a risk theorist and a quantitative researcher at Moody’s. She is also the author of the ‘Midnight on the Market Momentum’ newsletter. Find Lily on her Twitter at https://twitter.com/nope_its_lily and read her newsletter at https://nopeitslily.substack.com
Jesse Livermore is an OSAM research partner and a recurring guest at Infinite Loops. You can connect with him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Jesse_Livermore and read more about his work at http://www.philosophicaleconomics.com/
Show notes:
- Why all the recent focus on bubbles?
- How the era you grow up in shapes your investment philosophy
- Intrinsic and Extrinsic value
- How leverage impacts pricing
- What is a bubble? And how to identify if you’re in one
- Role of uncertainty in arbitraging
- What makes a bubble pop
- How bubbles set a new floor price
- Do we have enough short sellers?
- Time arbitrage
- Information arbitrage in a hyper-connected world
- Are we currently in a financial bubble?
- Implications of pseudonymity
- Is there a free will?
Zachary Resnick is the Managing Partner and co-founder at Unbounded Capital, a trumpet player and composer, and a poker enthusiast. We speak with Zach about:
- Scaling issues with BTC
- Why isn't Bitcoin SV the prominent Bitcoin?
- The best use-cases for Bitcoin SV
- Can Bitcoin SV survive a govt. attack?
- Jazz music, Poker, and much more!
Follow Zachary on his Twitter at https://twitter.com/TrumpetisAwesom and know more about Unbounded Capital at https://unboundedcapital.com/
Dave Nadig is the CIO & Director of Research for ETF Trends and ETF Database. However, our conversation with Dave takes a curious turn and instead of ETFs, we end up discussing about:
• Tokenizing everything
• Left vs. Right brain thinking
• Working on the limitations of Web 3.0
• Role of psychology in asset valuation
• And MUCH more!
Follow Dave on Twitter at https://twitter.com/DaveNadig and know more about ETF Trends at https://www.etftrends.com
Louisa is a Neuroscientist & Neurophysiologist, and a performance advisor to pro athletes, teams & portfolio managers. Our discussion with Louisa includes:
- The origin of Neuro Athletics
- Goal setting done right
- How light and melatonin affects sleep
- Impact of sleep on your cognitive abilities
- Ice baths, sauna, performance myths
- And MUCH more!
Know more about Louisa’s firm “Neuro Athletics” at www.neuroathletics.com.au and read her newsletter at https://neuroathletics.substack.com
In this episode of Infinite Loops we have Sahil Lavingia with us. Sahil is the founder and CEO of Gumroad, and author of the book “The Minimalist Entrepreneur”.
- The rise, and fall, and rise of Gumroad
- Physical vs. Digital Communities
- Befriending ‘volatility’
- Applications of Web 3
- And MUCH more!
Follow Sahil on Twitter at https://twitter.com/shl and buy his book from Amazon at amzn.to/2ZnIGOl
Tren Griffin returns to what is his third appearance on Infinite Loops — with a series of stories on business, investing, and life!
- Why Gates didn’t write an autobiography
- How “rude” QnAs can be helpful
- Having a purpose in life
- Keeping business separate from the personal
- And MUCH more!
Follow Tren on Twitter (https://twitter.com/trengriffin) and read his blog at: https://25iq.com/
Frederik is the author of the “Neckar’s Insecurity Analysis” newsletter where he writes about great investors, innovators, masters of the inner game. We talk about:
- Trying to “fit in”
- The Great Reshuffle
- Destroying your ideas and starting afresh
- Synthesizing knowledge
- And MUCH more!
Follow Frederik on Twitter at https://twitter.com/NeckarValue and subscribe to his newsletter at neckar.substack.com
Thomas J Bevan is an author and essayist. He pens The Commonplace newsletter which includes workshops on writing, movie reviews, and essays on life. We talk about:
- Starting a commonplace
- Striking a balance between the physical and digital
- Not defining growth with metrics
- The Soaring 20s Social Club
- And MUCH more!
Follow Thomas on Twitter at https://twitter.com/thomasjb3van and subscribe to his newsletter at https://thomasjbevan.substack.com/
Nicholas Gruen is a widely published policy economist, entrepreneur and commentator. He has advised Cabinet Ministers, sat on Australia’s Productivity Commission and founded Lateral Economics and Peach Financial. We discuss:
- Fast foodification of Democracy
- Isegoria, or equality of speech
- Pros and Cons of a citizen jury
- How citizen juries help in nuanced policy discussions
- Using philanthropy for political experiments
- And MUCH more!
Follow Nicholas on Twitter at https://twitter.com/NGruen1 and read his essays at https://clubtroppo.com.au
Lisa is a Neuroscientist, psychologist, and author of the books "Seven and a Half Lessons About the Brain" and "How Emotions are Made". We talk about:
- How expressing your emotions can help you control them
- Why democracy might not be great for brain's body budgeting
- Brain myths that deserve to die
- The replication crisis in Psychology
- And MUCH MORE!
Follow Lisa on Twitter at https://twitter.com/LFeldmanBarrett and know more about her research and writings at https://lisafeldmanbarrett.com/
Diane Macedo is a news anchor at ABC News and author of the newly-released book "The Sleep Fix". Diane helps us understand many sleep disorders and their solutions, and other topics like:
- Are 'Insomnia' and 'Sleep deprivation' the same?
- Sleep efficiency
- Journaling to help you sleep
- How effective are sleep aids?
- And MUCH more!
Follow Diane on Twitter at https://twitter.com/dianermacedo and purchase her book at https://www.harpercollins.com/pages/thesleepfix
Erik Hoel is a neuroscientist and an author. Erik often writes about the intersection of humanities and science, and his debut novel "The Revelations" is a tale of science, murder, and consciousness. Our discussion with Erik includes topics like:
- Are humans really "conscious"?
- Different theories of consciousness
- Neural pruning in babies
- How emotions drives scientific progress
- Accepting the flaws in each of us
- And MUCH more!
Follow Erik on his Twitter at https://twitter.com/erikphoel and read more about his work at https://www.erikphoel.com/
Jay is a scientist in Tucson, AZ. He was trained in philosophy, neuroscience, and cognitive psychology, and completed his Ph.D. at the University of Arizona on the neural processes of conscious and unconscious visual perception. Our discussion with Jay includes topics like:
- Using ultrasound to cure depression
- Power of placebos
- Mindfulness practices
- Dealing with Complex Adaptive Systems
- And MUCH more!
Follow Jay on Twitter at https://twitter.com/JaySanguinetti and read more about his research on his website: https://www.jaysanguinetti.com/
Jesse Livermore (pseudonym), a Research Partner at OSAM, is back to Infinite Loops for his second appearance to talk about:
- Payments in the Metaverse
- Crypto regulation
- Incentives of governments vs. corporations
- Rise of online education
- Universal Basic Income
Follow Jesse on Twitter (https://twitter.com/Jesse_Livermore), and check out his writing here http://www.philosophicaleconomics.com/.
Matt is the Co-founder & CEO at Entrepreneur First, and Co-founder & NED at Code First Girls. We talk with Matt about:
- Internet in an era of "dampened variance"
- Increasing democratic participation
- Bull and Bear case for creativity
- What Matt looks for in people before investing
- Role of geography in entrepreneurship
- And MUCH more!
Follow Matt on his Twitter at https://twitter.com/matthewclifford and subscribe to his newsletter at http://tib.matthewclifford.com/
Ana is a former teacher, an edu-preneur, and the Chief Evangelist at Synthesis School. We have a very intriguing discussion with Ana around:
- Idea and implementation of Synthesis School
- Increasing engagement and ownership among students
- Problems with the traditional education system
- How schools crush creativity
- Beginning of the end of the existing educational system
- And MUCH more!
Follow Ana on Twitter at https://twitter.com/anafabrega11, subscribe to her newsletter at https://afabrega.com/newsletter, and try out the Synthesis experience at https://synthesis.is/oshag
Kyla Scanlon is known for her humorous videos on social media platforms like TikTok and Twitter, covering topics like monetary policy, crypto, economics, etc. Our discussion with Kyla revolves around:
- Building your CV online
- Financial Education in 2021
- Web 3.0 and Bitcoin
- Supply-chain Crisis
- Importance of the analog in the digital era
- And MUCH more!
Follow Kyla's TikTok at https://www.tiktok.com/@kylascan, and subscribe to her newsletter around the nuances of human behavior at https://kyla.substack.com/
Tom Morgan, Director of Communications & Content at The KCP Group, joins us for his second appearance at Infinite Loops to discuss:
- The trillion-to-one ratio of attention
- "Love" as a compass for growth
- Religions and Traditions
- Enlightenment vs. Adulthood
- And MUCH more!
Follow Tom on his Twitter at https://twitter.com/tom_morganKCP and read his brilliant essays at https://thekcpgroup.com/insights
Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman of Ogilvy Group, joins us for an almost unprecedented third appearance on Infinite Loops. Our discussion with Rory centers on:
- The marketing of Saint Paul and religious leaders.
- Humor as a vehicle for effective messaging.
- The advantages and drawbacks of remote work.
- “Category” vs. “brand” advertising.
- And MUCH more!
Follow Rory on Twitter at twitter.com/rorysutherland and get his must-read book 'Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life' from Amazon.com
LibertyRPF is an anonymous Twitter account researching and writing his fascinating insights on Substack. Our discussion with LibertyRPF revolves around:
- The Decline of Gatekeepers
- Why Liberty started his newsletter
- Liberty’s investment process
- The role of social media in society
- And MUCH more!
Follow LibertyRPF on Twitter (https://twitter.com/libertyrpf) and read his work here: https://www.libertyrpf.com/
Max Arbitrage (pseudonym) is a doctor who is great at deconstructing complex health related issues and ideas down to the layman's understanding. We discuss:
- mRNA vaccine technology
- Medical Insurance in the USA
- Increasing abstraction in the world
- Importance of non-information and focus
- And MUCH more!
Follow Max on his Twitter at https://twitter.com/max_arbitrage!
Our recurring guest, Alex Danco, returns to Infinite Loops for his fourth appearance to discuss:
- Books on social hierarchies
- Expensive in time vs. money
- Schooling in Canada vs. the USA
- The Great Reshuffle
- Long term impact of COVID
- And MUCH more!
Follow Alex on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Alex_Danco and read his amazing essays at https://alexdanco.com/
Robert Plomin is a psychologist and geneticist best known for his work in twin studies and behavior genetics. He is also the author of several books on genetics, including "Blueprint: How DNA Makes Us Who We Are". Our discussion with Robert revolves around:
- Evolution of Behavioral Genetics
- Role of IQ in relationships
- How valuable are expensive schools?
- Genetics of criminal behavior
- The flaw with most parenting books
- And MUCH more!
Read more about Robert Plomin here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Plomin and buy his book "Blueprint" here: https://www.amazon.com/Blueprint-How-Makes-afterword-Press/dp/0262537982/
This episode is a recording of a special live conversation we had with Tim Urban of Wait But Why on Twitter Spaces! After a discussion with Jim, we had a QnA session with the audience as well. Our discussion revolves around:
- The Wait But Why book
- The Great Filter
- Left vs. Right ideologies
- Twitter as an intelligence network
- Live Q&A session
Follow Tim on Twitter at https://twitter.com/waitbutwhy and read his popular blog here: https://waitbutwhy.com/
Kevin is a Computer Scientist, part-time lecturer at Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering, and research partner at OSAM. Our discussion with Kevin revolves around:
- What is Machine Learning (ML)?
- Biases in ML algorithms
- Application of ML in medicine, markets, and sports
- Parallels in Fantasy Sports and Investing
- And MUCH more!
Follow Kevin on his Twitter at https://twitter.com/kczat and read OSAM's research articles at: https://osam.com/Commentary
Perth Tolle is the Founder at Life + Liberty Indexes. Their indexes focus on human rights, economic freedoms, emerging markets, etc. In this episode, we talk about:
- Wall Street titans on China
- Freedom-weighted index funds
- Different countries on the freedom scale
- Freedom stocks — Overvalued or undervalued?
- Problems with US's mainstream media
- and MUCH more!
Follow Perth on her Twitter at https://twitter.com/Perth_Tolle and know more about Life + Liberty Indexes here: https://www.lifeandlibertyindexes.com/
Tobias is founder and managing director of Acquirers Funds LLC, where he also serves as portfolio manager of the firm's deep value strategy. He is also author of the books "The Acquirer's Multiple " and "Deep Value". Our discussion with Tobi revolves around:
- Stock market fall of early 2021
- Valuing digital businesses
- Quantitative and Value Investing
- Learning from ancient philosophers
- Separating the message from the messenger
- And MUCH more!
Follow Tobias on his Twitter at: https://twitter.com/Greenbackd and know more about Acquirers Funds here: https://acquirersfunds.com/
In this episode of Infinite Loops, we have not one but two phenomenal guests: Adam Robinson and Bill Brewster! Adam is the co-founder of "The Princeton Review," an author, a rated chess master, and advisor to hedge funds. Bill is the host of "The Business Brew" podcast, a long-form podcast focusing on how investors can improve their decision making. We talk about: * Choosing your words carefully * How reliable are memories? * Chess: Intuitive or Rational? * Managing the Shannon Limit * Walking with the data * and much more!
Learn more about Adam on his website: https://iamadamrobinson.com/ and listen to Bill's podcast here: https://www.podpage.com/the-business-brew/
In this edition of Infinite Loops, we spoke with Rob Henderson. Rob is a veteran and a PhD candidate in Psychology, at the University of Cambridge. We talk about:
- Growing up in foster care and overcoming a "tough" childhood
- Role of a military stint in early adulthood
- Luxury beliefs
- Role of media in shaping identities
- America's export of cultural ideas
- and MUCH more!
Follow Rob on Twitter at https://twitter.com/robkhenderson and read his essays about the many aspects of human behavior here: https://www.robkhenderson.com/
In this episode of Infinite Loops, we speak with Packy McCormick, author of the Not Boring newsletter. We discuss many aspects of the Great Reshuffle like:
- UBI with crypto
- Designing new money
- How to increase crypto adoption
- Will NFTs go mainstream?
- Future of work and workspaces
- And MUCH more!
Follow Packy on Twitter at https://twitter.com/packyM and subscribe to his newsletter at https://www.notboring.co/
Chris Williamson is the host of the Modern Wisdom podcast, a YouTuber, TEDx Speaker, and an ex-professional Party Boy! We have a wide ranging discussion with Chris in this episode of Infinite Loops, including topics like:
- The need to explore different ideas
- Impact of The Great Reshuffle
- Genetic Behaviorism
- Cultural difference in US vs UK
- Getting good at 'Networking'
- And a LOT more!
Follow Chris on his Twitter here: https://twitter.com/ChrisWillx and listen to his podcast on his YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIaH-gZIVC432YRjNVvnyCA
In this episode of Infinite Loops we have Tom Morgan with us. Tom is the Director of Content and Communications at the The Knall/Cohen/Pence Group and a stellar knowledge curator. We speak about:
- Following your interests
- Operating in complex adaptive systems
- Winner-take-all effects in the creator economy
- Rethinking 'Education'
- Flaws in binary thinking
- And a LOT more!
Follow Tom on his Twitter here: https://twitter.com/tomowenmorgan and read his articles at: https://thekcpgroup.com/resources
Marinelli is an Executive Board Member at Aser Ventures, the majority owner of Premier League team Leeds United Football Club. Massimo is also on the Leeds United Board of Directors. In this episode, we speak about:
· The economics of soccer and the Premier League
· Aser’s decision to invest in Leeds United
· Differences in EPL & NFL finances
· COVID's impact on sporting events
· Merchandising and Social Media in sports
· The role of content in sport finances
· And a LOT more!
Know more about Massimo here: https://aser.com/aser/massimo-marinelli-to-join-leeds-united-board-of-directors/
In this episode of Infinite Loops we speak with Linda Lebrun, Director of Finance & Investing Writer Recruitment at Substack. We talk about: * Writing and earning on Substack * Going from 'Platform owning people', to 'People owning platforms' * The end state of publishing * Tips for new writers * Getting good at cold outreach * And a LOT more!
Follow Linda on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/SubstackLinda and kick start your own Substack here: https://substack.com/investing-and-business
In this episode of Infinite Loops we speak with Johnny Nelson, @generativist, on the state of Social Media and the Internet. We discuss about: * Managing your attention * Algorithms: Good or bad? * Censorship on social media * What will make people adopt a new social platform? * Is history an accurate predictor of the future? * And a LOT more!
Follow Johnny on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/generativist and read his essays here: https://generativist.falsifiable.com/
In this episode of Infinite Loops we speak with Brian Muraresku, New York Times Best Selling author of "The Immortality Key: the Secret History of the Religion with No Name". We discuss: * Role of women in early Christianity * Mysticism of the ancient wine * The political war on drugs * The rise of Archeochemistry * Classical education in the 21st century * And a LOT more!
Know more about Brian and his work from his website: https://www.brianmuraresku.com/ and follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BrianMuraresku
In this episode of Infinite Loops we speak with Dan Rasmussen, founder and CIO of Verdad Advisers. We discuss: * Bubbles vs. Crises * Investing in Emerging Markets * Identifying when "value investing" works, and when it doesn't * Theory vs. Practice * And a LOT more!
Follow Dan on Twitter at https://twitter.com/verdadcap and learn more about Verdad Advisers here: https://verdadcap.com/
In this episode of Infinite Loops we speak with Denise Shull, a Performance and Strategy advisor and Founder at The Rethink Group. We talk about:
- Role of emotions in trading and investing
- Could Daniel Kahneman be wrong?
- Imprinting and Emotional Granularity
- Standing up for yourself (Denise vs. Billions)
- And a LOT more!
Follow Denise on Twitter at https://twitter.com/DeniseKShull and learn more about The Rethink Group here: https://therethinkgroup.net/
Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman of Ogilvy Group, comes back for his second appearance at Infinite Loops! We discussed various marketing strategies and behavioral tics, including:
- In-group vs. Out-group
- Fractal nature of behavioral science
- Pricing heuristics
- "Woke" persuasion
- Barbra Streisand effect, Canada, And a LOT more!
Follow Rory on Twitter at twitter.com/rorysutherland and get his must-read book 'Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life' from Amazon.com
As our recurring guest, Alex Danco of Shopify returns to Infinite Loops for the third time! We talk about: * Age of Scarcity vs. Abundance * Everyone's job is World Building * Early days of the Internet * 'The Office' — and it's parallels with the real world * Hierarchies in corporate and cultural America * and a LOT more!
Follow Alex on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Alex_Danco and read his amazing essays at https://alexdanco.com/
In this episode of Infinite Loops we unravel the mystery around the Meme King of Wall Street — Litquidity Capital! We talk about: * Meme-ing: As a finance insider and outsider * Wall Street's culture * Current state of financial education * Growing the "Liquidity" brand * Elon Musk's meme game * And a LOT more!
Follow Litquidity on Twitter at https://twitter.com/litcapital and sign up for their newsletter at: https://execsum.co/
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Jack Butcher, creator of Visualize Value — "The operating system for value creators". We talk about: * Journey from employment, to consulting, to entrepreneurship. * Productizing yourself * Building a brand * Overcoming fear and imposter syndrome * Process vs. Goals * And a LOT more!
Follow Jack on Twitter at https://twitter.com/jackbutcher and get Visualize Value products from https://shop.visualizevalue.com/
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Luke Burgis, author of the book 'Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life'. We talk about: * Needs vs. Desire * The current state of social media * 'Celebristan' and 'Freshmanistan' * How to identify fake "experts" * Scapegoating and Mimetic Violence * And a LOT more!
Follow Luke on Twitter at https://twitter.com/lukeburgis and get his newly-released book 'Wanting' from: https://lukeburgis.com/wanting/
For this episode of Infinite Loops, Michael S. Falk, CFA and partner at the Focus Consulting Group joins us. We talk about:
- Different careers in Finance
- Succession Planning
- Michael's books on sustainable economic growth
- ALS
- Luck, Resilience, Gratitude, and a LOT more!
Follow Michael on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MSFalk and get his books from Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/Get-Work-Future-Michael-Falk/dp/1704375827
In this unique episode of Infinite Loops, Tren Griffin returns to the podcast, but this time as the co-host. Tren asks Jim a series of thought-provoking questions that cover topics like (Jim got a few questions to Tren as well):
- The importance of asking "why"
- Treating failures as lessons
- How writing helps in detecting blind-spots in your thinking
- Courage, and to go all-in!
- Munger, Buffett, Gates, Jobs, and A LOT more!
Follow Tren on Twitter (https://twitter.com/trengriffin) and read his blog at: https://25iq.com/
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Paul Craven, an expert in behavioral biases and decision making. In this conversation we discuss:
- What behavioral science is
- Building trust and relationships
- Temporal discounting and reframing
- Managing emotions in investing
- Surviving is winning
- And A LOT more!
Follow Paul on Twitter (https://twitter.com/CravenPartners) and his website https://www.paulcraven.com/
In this episode of Infinite Loops, we speak with Jeremiah Lowin, CEO at Prefect. In this conversation we cover:
- Overcoming inertia
- When information challenges your beliefs
- Choosing the right words for expression
- Narratives and decision-making
- Building a culture that appreciates uncertainty
- And A LOT more
Follow Jeremiah on Twitter (https://twitter.com/jlowin), and learn more about Prefect at https://www.prefect.io/
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with OSAM Research Partner Jesse Livermore (pseudonym). In this conversation we chat:
- MMT and valuations
- Bitcoin: Bull & Bear Cases
- Transactional valuation
- Intrinsic valuation
- Managing future crises
- And MUCH more
Follow Jesse on Twitter (https://twitter.com/Jesse_Livermore), and check out his writing here (http://www.philosophicaleconomics.com/).
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Daniel Jeffries, futurist and author. Daniel’s newest book is Mastering Depression and Living the Life You Were Meant to Live. In this conversation we chat:
- The multiverse
- Why Dan wrote his newest book
- Mimetic desires and human behavior
- Questioning everything
- And MUCH more
Follow Daniel on Twitter (https://twitter.com/Dan_Jeffries1), check out his writing (https://medium.com/@dan.jeffriescheck), and find his new book here.
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Howard Lindzon, Founder & General Partner at Social Leverage, and Founder of StockTwits. In this conversation we chat:
- Why Howard is Larry David
- The reasons he launched a SPAC
- How SPACs differ from Venture Capital
- His thoughts on FinTech & Crypto
- And MUCH more
Follow Howard on Twitter (https://twitter.com/howardlindzon), and check out his website (https://howardlindzon.com/)
In this episode of Infinite Loops, we spoke with Joe Weisenthal, Executive Editor of Digital News at Bloomberg. In this fun and thought-provoking conversation we chat: • NFTs • Bitcoin Believers and its viability • MMT • Robinhood • And MANY more sensitive subjects Follow Joe on Twitter (Twitter.com/thestalwart).
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Bill Brewster, investor and host of The Business Brew podcast. In this conversation we covered:
- How Bill’s investment career took shape.
- The tragic story of Bill’s relative.
- Important questions on Robinhood.
- Investor education.
- Gambling vs. Investing.
- And MUCH more.
Follow Bill on Twitter (https://twitter.com/BillBrewsterSCG) and check out Bill’s podcast (https://www.podpage.com/the-business-brew/)
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Josh Wolfe, co-founder and managing partner at Lux Capital. In this conversation we covered:
- The acceleration of technological change.
- Inflation, the dollar, and crypto.
- Macro and geopolitical risk.
- Lux’s portfolio companies
- And MUCH more
Follow Josh on Twitter (https://twitter.com/wolfejosh) and check out Lux Capital (https://luxcapital.com/)
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Alex Danco of Shopify. In this wide-ranging discussion we cover:
- How to create a scene
- Great scenes and movements from history
- The Canadian startup market
- The Pepsi/Coke blind taste test
- And MUCH more
Follow Alex (https://twitter.com/Alex_Danco) on Twitter, and read his blog here http://alexdanco.com/ .
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Anna Gat, Founder and CEO of Interintellect. In this conversation we covered:
- Power of conversation
- The Salons that Anna runs
- The importance of framing
- Communication differences in genders
- Fostering human connection
- And MUCH more
Follow Anna on Twitter (https://twitter.com/TheAnnaGat) and check out Interintellect (www.Interintellect.com)
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with the man behind anonymous Twitter account Max Arbitrage. Max is an investor, entrepreneur, and top mind in the health care industry. In this conversation we covered:
- Game theory and modern markets
- Deterministic vs. probabilistic thinking
- Max’s entrepreneurial ventures
- Fixing what sucks in an industry
- The perils of status games
- And MUCH more
Follow Max on Twitter (https://twitter.com/max_arbitrage).
In this episode of Infinite Loops, we spoke with Lily Francus, an independent quantitative researcher and creator of the NOPE indicator. In this conversation we covered:
- Lily’s dive into the world of options
- Her popular whitepaper and subsequent NOPE indicator
- The power of Twitter for networking and insights
- Retail participation in the options markets
- GameStop madness
- And MUCH more
Follow Lily on Twitter (https://twitter.com/nope_its_lily) and check out her writing (https://nopeitslily.substack.com/).
In this episode of Infinite Loops, we spoke with Polina Marinova, founder, and author of The Profilenewsletter, which covers the masters and experts within various industries. In this conversation we covered:
- Polina’s decision to leave Fortune
- The business aspect of content creation
- Lessons learned from profiling the greats
- How The Profile has evolved over time
- Developing an alter ego
- And MUCH more
Follow Polina on Twitter (https://twitter.com/polina_marinova) and check out her newsletter (https://readtheprofile.com/).
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Naufal Sanaullah, Chief Macro Strategist at EIA All Weather Alpha Partners. In this wide-ranging discussion we cover:
- How Naufal navigated markets at the start of COVID-19.
- Leveraging Twitter for mentorship
- The Momentum Factor and Goldman’s Baskets
- Positive and negative impacts of the internet
- Naufal’s charitable work
- And much more.
In this episode we spoke with Tim Urban, founder and writer at Wait But Why? In this super episode Jim and Tim discuss:
• The story of us
• Managing and taming our biases
• Flat earthers and how we’re no different
• Overcoming our outdated mental hardware
• and MUCH more.
Follow Tim on Twitter (Twitter.com/waitbutwhy) and check out his site (waitbutwhy.com)
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Jason Zweig of The Wall Street Journal, where he writes his famous The Intelligent Investor column. Jason is also the author of Your Money and Your Brain, and the editor of the revised edition of Benjamin Graham''s The Intelligent Investor. In this discussion we cover:
- The power of writing to learn.
- Why humans never learn from their mistakes.
- Jason’s path into markets out of college.
- The lessons we can learn from the past.
- And much more
Follow Jason on Twitter (https://twitter.com/jasonzweigwsj) and check out his website (https://jasonzweig.com).
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Francis Suarez, Mayor of Miami. In this wide-ranging discussion we cover:
- The mass business migration to Miami
- Leveraging Twitter as a public official
- The elevator pitch for moving to Miami
- Why the Mayor is so optimistic about Miami’s future
- Jim and Jamie’s post-episode discussion
- And much more
Follow Mayor Suarez (https://twitter.com/FrancisSuarez) on Twitter.
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Dan Runcie, author of the popular newsletter Trapital, which focuses on hip-hop business trends. Our conversation covers:
- Apple vs. Spotify
- Music as an investment asset
- Unique revenue streams for innovative artists
- The economics of hip-hop
- Opportunities for artists in Tiktok and other new apps
- And MUCH more
Follow Dan (https://twitter.com/RuncieDan) on Twitter, and check out his newsletter https://trapital.co/.
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Brian Roemmele, aka “The Voice Expert”. Our long and in-depth conversation covers:
- The rise of Voice systems like Alexa
- The future of voice, AI, and knowledge
- Brian’s exciting invention
- Intelligence Amplification
- And MUCH more
Follow Brian (https://twitter.com/BrianRoemmele) on Twitter, and check out his website http://voicefirst.expert/.
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Pete Weishaupt. Our conversation with Pete covers:
- Starting an e-commerce business
- Running cheap experiments
- How to leverage Twitter
- Behavioral economics
- And much more
Follow Pete (https://twitter.com/peteweishaupt) on Twitter, and read his blog herehttps://maverickmedia.substack.com/.
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Alex Danco of Shopify. In this wide-ranging discussion we cover:
- Alex’s first 6 months at Shopify
- Social Capital & SPACs
- How Twitter has changed status networks
- The rise of e-commerce
- Can Founders Lie?
- And much more
Follow Alex (https://twitter.com/Alex_Danco) on Twitter, and read his blog here http://alexdanco.com/ .
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Tren Griffin, Senior Director at Microsoft and author of the popular business and investing blog 25iq . In this wide-ranging discussion we cover:
- Base rates and ‘escaping gravity’
- Living a rewarding life.
- Entrepreneurship and risk-taking
- The importance of becoming an ‘Editor’
- And much more
Follow Tren (https://twitter.com/trengriffin) on Twitter, and read his blog here 25iq.
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Josh Brown & Brian Portnoy, authors of the newly released book How I Invest My Money. In this discussion, we cover:
- How Brian and Josh invest personally.
- Highlighted stories from some of the 25 contributing authors.
- The concept of “Funded Contentment”
- How money can be wielded as a weapon
- Behavioral biases and money
- Roasting Jamie… and much more
Follow Josh (https://twitter.com/ReformedBroker) and Brian (https://twitter.com/brianportnoy) on Twitter, and their new book here How I Invest My Money: Finance Experts Reveal How they Save, Spend, and Invest.
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Michael Batnick, Director of Research at Ritholtz Wealth Management. In this conversation, we cover:
- Michael’s journey to Ritholtz Wealth Management
- His terrible experiences in the insurance industry
- Breaking into finance
- How the Ritholtz Wealth Management business has grown
- And much more
Follow Michael on Twitter at https://twitter.com/michaelbatnick , and find his blog here The Irrelevant Investor.
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with James Clear, author of the bestselling book *Atomic Habits*. In this fascinating discussion, we cover:
- Maintaining habits amid COVID-19
- The importance of time horizons
- Writing as an antidote to confusion
- The steps for forming atomic habits
- And much more
Follow James on Twitter at https://twitter.com/JamesClear , and find his book here Atomic Habits.
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Annie Duke, former professional poker player, decision-making expert, and best-selling author. Her latest book is How to Decide: Simple Tools for Making Better Choices, which was released this week. In this conversation, we cover:
- COVID-19 and decision-making
- Resulting and the 2016 election
- What drove Annie to write her new book
- Writing as a powerful tool for testing your knowledge
- And MUCH more.
Follow Annie on Twitter at https://twitter.com/AnnieDuke , and find her new book here https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0593418484?tag=randohouseinc13176-20.
In this episode of Infinite Loops we invited Adam Townsend back on to speak exclusively about Sales, and why it is so important. In this conversation, we cover:
- Extreme salesmanship
- What you cannot learn from Sales books
- The sales we don’t even realize we’re making
- The right and wrong approaches to selling
- And MUCH more.
Follow Adam on Twitter at https://twitter.com/adamscrabble .
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Brent Beshore, CEO and Founder of Permanent Equity. In this conversation, we cover:
- What Brent has learned since making his first deal.
- How COVID-19 has impacted the businesses in Brent’s portfolios
- The importance of time horizons
- The lasting changes from COVID-19
- Finding the right partners and teams in business
You can follow Brent on Twitter (https://twitter.com/BrentBeshore) and learn more about Permanent Equity here (https://www.permanentequity.com/about-our-firm)
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with legendary actor, documentarian, Co-Founder of Imagine Entertainment, and academy award winning director Ron Howard. In this wide ranging discussion, we cover:
- The pressure and thrill of directing a Beatles documentary
- How the movie industry has evolved, and the impact of COVID-19
- How documentaries differ from traditional movie making
- The future of entertainment and how streaming changes things
- And MUCH more
Enjoy!
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Phil Pearlman. We discuss:
- What Phil has learned from studying the Tao
- The narratives you tell yourself
- The most important rule: Don’t suck
- How marketing & finance has evolved over Phil’s career
- And MUCH more…
Follow Phil on Twitter (https://twitter.com/ppearlman) to stay up to date on all of his exciting projects.
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Tyrone Ross. We discuss:
- Tyrone’s inspiring journey
- Empowering youth through financial literacy
- The power of gratitude
- Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies
- And MUCH more…
Follow Tyrone on Twitter (twitter.com/tr401) to stay up to date on all of his exciting projects.
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Rory Sutherland, Author of Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Brands, Business, and Life, and Vice-Chairman of Ogilvy Group UK. We discuss:
- The relationship between marketing and innovation.
- Human psychology and behavioral economics.
- The importance of framing.
- “Stated” preferences and “Revealed” preferences
Follow Rory on Twitter (https://twitter.com/rorysutherland) and check out his books here (https://www.amazon.com/Rory-Sutherland/e/B07L3WRSWM?ref_=dbs_p_ebk_r00_abau_000000)
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Bronwyn Williams. We discuss:
- What being a ‘futurist’ means
- Accelerating trends as a result of COVID-19
- Geopolitics and the African continent
- Technology and economic development
- The future of governance
Follow Bronwyn on Twitter (https://twitter.com/bronwynwilliams) and check out her website here (https://whatthefuturenow.com/)
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Anthony Pompliano. We discuss:
- Building a personal brand and business
- The Bitcoin landscape
- Moats and innovation
- The power of Twitter for networking
- And much more…
Follow Pomp on Twitter (https://twitter.com/APompliano) and check out his website here (https://www.youtube.com/c/AnthonyPompliano)
In this super episode of Infinite Loops, we spoke with Adam Townsend. We discuss:
- Adam’s illustrious career on Wall Street
- Wealth extraction
- Extreme salesmanship
- Adam’s COVID-19 blog
- Chinese foreign and domestic policy
- And MUCH more…
Follow Adam on Twitter (https://twitter.com/adamscrabble) and check out his website here (https://www.adamtownsend.me/).
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Chris Sommers, CEO at Unhedged. We discuss:
- Sailing the world for 4 years without knowing how to sail
- Chris’ experience at Greenlight Capital
- Shorting Lehman’s stock in 2008
- And much more…
Follow Chris on Twitter (https://twitter.com/QuisitiveInvest) and learn more about Unhedged here (https://www.unhedged.com/).
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Chris Sommers, CEO at Unhedged. We discuss:
- Sailing the world for 4 years without knowing how to sail
- Chris’ experience at Greenlight Capital
- Shorting Lehman’s stock in 2008
- And much more…
Follow Chris on Twitter (https://twitter.com/QuisitiveInvest) and learn more about Unhedged here (https://www.unhedged.com/).
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Eric Jorgenson, Product Strategist at Zaarly, and author of the Almanack of Naval Ravikant. We discuss:
- Who is Naval Ravikant?
- The key lessons from Naval’s writing and career
- What made Eric want to write this book?
- Wealth, happiness, and leverage
- And much more…
You can follow Eric on Twitter (https://twitter.com/EricJorgenson ) and learn more about his new book here (https://www.navalmanack.com/).
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Ed Latimore, a former professional heavyweight boxer (13-1-1) and full-time author that writes about getting sober, forgiveness, and self-improvement. We discuss:
- The path to sobriety and lessons learned
- Ed’s extraordinary boxing career
- What Ed dubs the ‘manosphere’
- The importance of transparency and grit
- And much more…
You can follow Ed on Twitter (https://twitter.com/edlatimore ), and follow his writing at (https://edlatimore.com/).
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Christie Hamilton, Head of Investments at the $2 billion Children’s Health Medical Center of Dallas. We discuss:
- Misconceptions about institutional investing
- The importance of transparency
- Due diligence during COVID-19
- The traits of a good mentor and mentee
- And much more…
You can follow Christie on Twitter( https://twitter.com/ROIChristie ), and can donate to Children’s Health here (https://www.childrens.com/get-involved/donate)
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Dan McMurtrie, Founder & CEO of Tyro Partners, and Partner at Anchorless Bangladesh. In this in-depth discussion, we cover:
- Disastrous double dates
- Navigating uncertain markets in a COVID-19 world
- Succumbing to behavioral biases in volatile times
- The investment opportunity in frontier markets
- Companies that Anchorless is working within Bangladesh
- The future of asset management
You can follow Dan on Twitter( https://twitter.com/SuperMugatu ), and learn more about Anchorless here (https://www.anchorless.vc/)
In this episode of Infinite Loops, we spoke with Chris Arnade, author of the bestselling book Dignity: Seeking Respect in Backrow America. We discussed: * Why Chris left Wall Street to document ‘back row America’.
- How Wall Street has changed over the years
- Why Chris’s work triggers certain crowds of people
- The importance of McDonald's to American communities
- The lessons he’s learned from traveling around America’s lower-income communities.
- And more…
If you’d like to order Chris’ book, you can find it here: https://www.amazon.com/Dignity-Seeking-Respect-Back-America/dp/0525534733
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Morgan Housel, a Partner at the Collaborative Fund. Our conversation covered:
- The content of Morgan’s upcoming book
- Whether money is the ‘last taboo’
- Money as a hierarchal system
- What shapes the role of money in different societies
- Investor psychology and self-inflicted problems
If you’d like to pre-order Morgan’s book, you can find more information here: https://www.amazon.com/Psychology-Money-Timeless-lessons-happiness/dp/0857197681
In this episode of Infinite Loops we spoke with Michael Green, Partner & Chief Strategist at Logica Capital Advisers. In a wide-ranging discussion that could have lasted the rest of the day, we covered:
- The passive narrative, and its impact on market structure.
- Vanguard and Blackrock’s lobbying efforts.
- Target Date Funds and their increasing dominance.
- COVID-19 and the government’s response.
- The power of language.
- Michael’s recent paper: Policy in a World of Pandemics, Social Media, and Passive Investing (linked below)
And much more. You can find Michael’s paper here: https://www.logicafunds.com/policy-in-a-world-of-pandemics
Our guest this week is Liz Hall, an investor who burst onto Financial Twitter with a hundred tweet thread on her ‘hot takes’ in finance. In this episode, we discuss:
- Her unique background and introduction to investing.
- The power of narrative and emotion in investing.
- The importance of dispassionate analysis.
- Capital allocation.
And much more. You can find Liz’s super thread here: https://twitter.com/LAForeverHall/status/1205981236960714754?s=20
Our guest this week is Madelaine D’Angelo, Co-founder and CEO of Arthena, the first quantitative investment firm for art assets. The firm uses hundreds of thousands of data points to identify the factors (artist, year of creation, gallery displays, etc.) that are predictive of future returns. In this wide-ranging conversation, Jim, Jamie, and Madelaine discuss:
- Value & Momentum factors in the art market.
- Arthena’s models.
- The problems with repeat sales data.
- Portfolio construction and exit strategy.
- The nuances of investing in art assets.
- Biggest misconceptions about art investing.
For more information, check out https://arthena.com/ .
Our guest this week is renowned short-seller Jim Chanos, founder, and president of Kynikos Associates. Over the course of his long and successful career, Jim has publicly bet against companies like Enron, which Barron’s deemed the “market call of the decade, if not the past 50 years.” While many know him for these famous shorts, fewer know that Jim is also a passionate historian, and is a firm believer in the notion that history can act as a useful guide for investors today. In this wide-ranging conversation, we discuss:
- How Jim started his career in finance
- The Mississippi Bubble
- How past financial frauds and manias can be useful for modern investors
- Tesla
- Lessons from the Great Financial Crisis
- Jim’s financial history course at Yale and Wisconsin
- Theranos
And much, much more… we hope you enjoy.
In this episode, we sit down with two of the most prominent anonymous accounts on Financial Twitter, Ramp Capital and Super Mugatu. Enjoy this wide ranging conversation, and peak behind the curtain of anonymous Twitter.