robertwrighter

robertwrighter, 1 hour ago to random

Had a great chat w/ Paul Bloom about what recent developments in AI portend for the human future. We covered the good, the bad, and the ugly. You can watch here or listen on the Nonzero podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfRJPqmwAR0

robertwrighter, 6 days ago to random

Another civil-if-intermittently-contentious conversation between me and Eli Lake. You can watch here or listen on my Nonzero podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOIpTDE-iZM

robertwrighter, 22 days ago to random

Thanks to Coleman Hughes for discussing/debating such a contentious issue with me in such a thoughtful and civil way. You can watch here or listen on my Nonzero Podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a95OYJTScG8

robertwrighter, 27 days ago to random

In a mere hour, Paul Bloom and I settle these campus free speech issues once and for all plus give what intellectual historians yet unborn will call the definitive take on Dan Dennett. Remarkable efficiency. Watch here or listen on the Nonzero podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uapBNrh-_6E

robertwrighter, 1 month ago to random

I had a predictably illuminating chat with Joshua Landis of the Quincy Institute about the causes and consequences of Iran's attack on Israel. You can watch here or listen on the Nonzero podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QLK2TNyNhc

robertwrighter, 1 month ago to random

I had a great chat w/ Paul Bloom about Danny Kahneman & his legacy, the sociology of the rationalist community, AI doomerism, etc. You can watch here or listen on the Nonzero Podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWoS467b-dM

robertwrighter, 2 months ago to random

I had another great conversation with Paul Bloom. Among other things, we did a comparative psychological assessment of Elon and Sam Altman. Also: Deserved and undeserved Oscars, the TikTok question, etc. Watch here or listen on the Nonzero podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5NxeB4oIKU

robertwrighter, 2 months ago to random

John Searle's 'Chinese Room' argument--the most famous argument that AIs are in principle incapable of understanding--is dead, dead, dead, I argue in this piece. And a large language model is holding the smoking gun. http://tinyurl.com/3tsz243b

robertwrighter, 2 months ago to random

I had a great time discussing and at times debating AI with the illustrious and contentious @garymarcus. You can watch here or listen on my Nonzero podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7GB8Cm6_cE

robertwrighter, 3 months ago to random

I had a great chat with Nikita Petrov (shown here more than a decade ago, in the black shirt) about what it was like to be a young idealistic Russian in the age of Navalny, and about Navalny's legacy.
You can watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yjKocPQZCjQ or listen on the Nonzero podcast.

robertwrighter, 3 months ago to random

I had a great chat with the excellent journalist Leonid Ragozin about Ukraine and Russia and how their internal politics could shape the war and the prospects for peace. You can watch here or listen on the Nonzero podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JN7lndxsfIk

robertwrighter, 3 months ago to random

Really enjoyed this conversation with Russ Roberts. We disagree on some things but we aired our disagreements respectfully and attentively. You can watch at the URL below or listen on my @NonzeroPods feed--and this will be airing on Russ's EconTalk podcast as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeIt-eur01g&t=111s

robertwrighter, 4 months ago to random

Thanks to Noam Dworman for having me on his show to talk about the Middle East. A lot of healthy, respectful disagreement (plus some agreement!).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ldIMYcXEp0

robertwrighter, 4 months ago to random

I had a great chat with Reid Hoffman about why he co-founded Inflection AI (maker of PI), why he's less worried about AI than I am, and lots of related stuff. You can watch here or listen on my Nonzero Podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omzH1U8nx9A

robertwrighter, 4 months ago to random

I talked w/ Stephen Walt about whether the Gaza war is in US & Israel's interest (no & no, he says), Biden's unused leverage w/ Israel, the Harvard controversy, & how his book The Israel Lobby relates to all this. Watch here or listen on the Nonzero podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVD7h0vWbR8

robertwrighter, 4 months ago to random

With the 60th anniversary of JFK's assassination just past, I figured I'd talk with Jefferson Morley, publisher of the JFK Facts newsletter, about why he thinks the official story doesn't hold up. You can watch here or listen on my Nonzero Podcast.

https://youtu.be/nBKUuTGJBDs?si=vaXJg74EuADlT5Gz

robertwrighter, 4 months ago to random

I ask you: Who did a better job of picking Person of the Year--Time magazine or the NonZero Newsletter? https://nonzero.substack.com/p/nzns-person-of-the-year

robertwrighter, 5 months ago to random

My conversation about Gaza with Tom Friedman was very interesting--including his takes on how the war could end, whether Bibi's govt could fall before that & whether a Bibi-Biden showdown is coming. You can watch here or listen on the Nonzero podcast feed.

https://youtu.be/I0Q_Fe_yclo?si=Tczpe6qQvI-c1XvP

robertwrighter, 5 months ago to random

Thanks to Max Abrahms for coming on my podcast and having a candid and at times contentious but always respectful conversation about a difficult subject. You can watch here or listen via the Nonzero Podcast feed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTwoZSRcl9M&t=1s

robertwrighter, 5 months ago to random

Had a great conversation with Omar Baddar about the Gaza War, its causes and consequences, and the prospects for resolving the Israel-Palestine conflict. You can watch here or listen on the Nonzero podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykQ_ToGGjA8

robertwrighter, 6 months ago to random

Thanks to Glenn Loury for having me on the Glenn Show. We talked about Hamas, the Gaza War, and the Israel-Palestine issue more broadly.
https://youtu.be/zbscM6ss4Tk?si=u4wROah_ORReM-oM

robertwrighter, 6 months ago to random

Matt Yglesias and I decided to sit down and figure this whole Middle East thing out. You can watch the results here or listen on my Nonzero Podcast.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ElhQz8mXJw

robertwrighter, 6 months ago to random

Had a great chat w/ Paul Bloom. We touched on such questions as cosmic purpose and whether SBF is weirder than Elon. You can watch here or listen on the Nonzero podcast.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mE_7FGligjE

robertwrighter, 6 months ago to random

I had a very illuminating conversation with Jerusalem resident Daniel Seidemann about the volatile situation in East Jerusalem and the West Bank more broadly.
You can watch here or listen on the Nonzero podcast.
https://youtu.be/KICczZ1DyZU?si=-WmIf-mPpr2m0br9&t=4

robertwrighter, 6 months ago to random

My latest piece in the Nonzero Newsletter: https://nonzero.substack.com/p/why-israels-anti-hamas-strategy-is