Future of Life Institute · Michael Klare on the Pentagon’s view of Climate Change and the Risks of State Collapse Find the podcast on: Michael Klare, Five College Professor of Peace & World Security Studies, joins us to discuss the Pentagon’s view of climate change, why it’s distinctive, and how this all ultimately relates […]
Future of Life Institute · Avi Loeb on UFOs and if they’re Alien in Origin Find the podcast on: Avi Loeb, Professor of Science at Harvard University, joins us to discuss unidentified aerial phenomena and a recent US Government report assessing their existence and threat. Topics discussed in this episode include: Evidence counting for the […]
Future of Life Institute · Avi Loeb on ‘Oumuamua, Aliens, Space Archeology, Great Filters, and Superstructures Find the podcast on: Avi Loeb, Professor of Science at Harvard University, joins us to discuss a recent interstellar visitor, if we’ve already encountered alien technology, and whether we’re ultimately alone in the cosmos. Topics discussed in this episode […]
Future of Life Institute · Nicolas Berggruen on the Importance of Wisdom and Ideas in the Age of AI Find the podcast on: Nicolas Berggruen, investor and philanthropist, joins us to explore the dynamics of power, wisdom, and ideas in the 21st century. Topics discussed in this episode include: What wisdom consists of The role […]
Future of Life Institute · Bart Selman on the Promises and Perils of Artificial Intelligence Find the podcast on: Bart Selman, Professor of Computer Science at Cornell University, joins us to discuss a wide range of AI issues, from autonomous weapons and AI consciousness to international governance and the possibilities of superintelligence. Topics discussed in this […]
Future of Life Institute · Jaan Tallinn on Avoiding Civilizational Pitfalls and Surviving the 21st Century Find the podcast on: Jaan Tallinn, investor, programmer, and co-founder of the Future of Life Institute, joins us to discuss his perspective on AI, synthetic biology, unknown unknows, and what’s needed for mitigating existential risk in the 21st century. […]
Future of Life Institute · Joscha Bach and Anthony Aguirre on Digital Physics and Moving Towards Beneficial Futures Find the podcast on: Joscha Bach, Cognitive Scientist and AI researcher, as well as Anthony Aguirre, UCSC Professor of Physics, join us to explore the world through the lens of computation and the difficulties we face on […]
Future of Life Institute · Roman Yampolskiy on the Uncontrollability, Incomprehensibility, and Unexplainability of AI Find the podcast on: Roman Yampolskiy, Professor of Computer Science at the University of Louisville, joins us to discuss whether we can control, comprehend, and explain AI systems, and how this constrains the project of AI safety. Topics discussed in […]
Future of Life Institute · Stuart Russell and Zachary Kallenborn on Drone Swarms and the Riskiest Aspects of Autonomous Weapons Find the podcast on: Stuart Russell, Professor of Computer Science at UC Berkeley, and Zachary Kallenborn, WMD and drone swarms expert, join us to discuss the highest risk and most destabilizing aspects of lethal autonomous […]
Future of Life Institute · Beatrice Fihn on the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons Find the podcast on: Beatrice Fihn, executive director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) and Nobel Peace Prize recipient, joins us to discuss the current risks of nuclear war, policies that can reduce the risks of nuclear conflict, […]
Future of Life Institute · Max Tegmark and the FLI Team on 2020 and Existential Risk Reduction in the New Year Find the podcast on: Max Tegmark and members of the FLI core team come together to discuss favorite projects from 2020, what we’ve learned from the past year, and what we think is needed […]
Future of Life Institute · Future of Life Award 2020: Saving 200,000,000 Lives by Eradicating Smallpox Find the podcast on: The recipients of the 2020 Future of Life Award, William Foege, Michael Burkinsky, and Victor Zhdanov Jr., join us on this episode of the FLI Podcast to recount the story of smallpox eradication, William Foege’s […]
Future of Life Institute · Sean Carroll on Consciousness, Physicalism, and the History of Intellectual Progress Find the podcast on: Sean Carroll, theoretical physicist at Caltech, joins us on this episode of the FLI Podcast to comb through the history of human thought, the strengths and weaknesses of various intellectual movements, and how we […]
Future of Life Institute · Mohamed Abdalla on Big Tech, Ethics-washing, and the Threat on Academic Integrity Find the podcast on: Mohamed Abdalla, PhD student at the University of Toronto, joins us to discuss how Big Tobacco and Big Tech work to manipulate public opinion and academic institutions in order to maximize profits and avoid […]
Future of Life Institute · Maria Arpa on the Power of Nonviolent Communication Find the podcast on: Maria Arpa, Executive Director of the Center for Nonviolent Communication, joins the FLI Podcast to share the ins and outs of the powerful needs-based framework of nonviolent communication. Topics discussed in this episode include: What nonviolent communication (NVC) […]
Future of Life Institute · Stephen Batchelor on Awakening, Embracing Existential Risk, and Secular Buddhism Find the podcast on: Stephen Batchelor, a Secular Buddhist teacher and former monk, joins the FLI Podcast to discuss the project of awakening, the facets of human nature which contribute to extinction risk, and how we might better embrace existential […]
Future of Life Institute · Kelly Wanser on Marine Cloud Brightening for Mitigating Climate Change Find the podcast on: Kelly Wanser from SilverLining joins us to discuss techniques for climate intervention to mitigate the impacts of human induced climate change. Topics discussed in this episode include: The risks of climate change in the short-term Tipping […]
Future of Life Institute · Andrew Critch on AI Research Considerations for Human Existential Safety Find the podcast on: In this episode of the AI Alignment Podcast, Andrew Critch joins us to discuss a recent paper he co-authored with David Krueger titled AI Research Considerations for Human Existential Safety. We explore a wide range of […]
Future of Life Institute · Iason Gabriel on Foundational Philosophical Questions in AI Alignment Find the podcast on: In the contemporary practice of many scientific disciplines, questions of values, norms, and political thought rarely explicitly enter the picture. In the realm of AI alignment, however, the normative and technical come together in an important and […]
Future of Life Institute · Peter Railton on Moral Learning and Metaethics in AI Systems Find the podcast on: From a young age, humans are capable of developing moral competency and autonomy through experience. We begin life by constructing sophisticated moral representations of the world that allow for us to successfully navigate our way through […]
