Shows
The Last InventionThe AccelerationistsMeet the accelerationists: a rising movement that believes expediting AI development is not only inevitable but morally necessary – humanity’s best chance at transcending its limits. What happens when the world’s most powerful technologists treat AI progress as a duty rather than a danger?
THIS EPISODE FEATURES:
Olivier Oullier, Guido de Croon, Alex Williams, Reid Hoffman, Guillaume Verdon/“Beff Jezos”
LINKS:
Beff Jezos/Guillaume Verdon’s Twitter
David Sinclair’s website
Olivier Oullier’s Company
Alex Williamss is a contributor here
Reid Hoffman’s Person...
2025-11-2053 minThe Last InventionThe ScoutsA decade ago, the leading minds in AI gathered to make sure this technology would benefit everyone. Today, those hopes are colliding with the reality of an AI arms race. Today, game theorist Liv Boeree and philosopher William MacAskill lay out what they see as the “narrow path” between a future of limitless potential and one of irreversible loss.
THIS EPISODE FEATURES:
Max Tegmark, Nick Bostrom, Liv Boeree, William MacAskill
LINKS:
Max Tegmark’s book “Life 3.0, Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence”
Nick Bostrom's book "Superintelligence"
Liv Boer...
2025-11-1355 minThe Last InventionThe AI DoomersWhat happens when some of the most idealistic techno-optimists come to believe that superintelligence poses a threat to humanity's survival? Today, the best case for the worst case scenario. We sit down with Nate Soares and Connor Leahy and ask them to make their case for why we need to stop ASI, before it’s too late.
THIS EPISODE FEATURES:
Connor Leahy, Natasha Vita-More, Max More, Keach Hagey, Nate Soares
LINKS:
Nate Soares’s book (with Eliezer Yudkowsky) If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies
Connor Leahy’s AI safety startu...
2025-11-0657 minThe Last InventionContactIn the strange months after ChatGPT’s release, the world made contact with something new. A tech CEO begged to be regulated, a chatbot seemed to fall in love, and the godfathers of AI became frightened by the implications of what they’d spent their lives building.
THIS EPISODE FEATURES:
Keach Hagey, Kevin Roose, Yoshua Bengio, Geoffrey Hinton
LINKS:
Keach Hagey’s book The Optimist
Sam Altman testifies at Senate artificial intelligence hearing, May 16, 2023
Sam Altman testifies at Senate hearing on artificial intelligence, May 8, 2025
Kevin Roose’...
2025-10-2351 minThe Last InventionSpeedrunIs the only way to stop a bad guy with an AGI… a good guy with an AGI? In a twist of technological irony, the very people who warned most loudly about the existential dangers of artificial superintelligence—Elon Musk, Sam Altman, and Dario Amodei among them—became the ones racing to build it first. Each believed they alone could create it safely before their competitors unleashed something dangerous. This episode traces how their shared fear of an “AI dictatorship” ignited a breakneck competition that ultimately led to the release of ChatGPT.
THIS EPISODE FEATURES:
Karen Hao...
2025-10-161h 02The Last InventionPlaying the Wrong GameWhat if the path to a true thinking machine was found not just in a lab… but in a game? For decades, AI’s greatest triumphs came from games: checkers, chess, Jeopardy. But no matter how many trophies it took from humans, it still couldn’t think. In this episode, we follow the contrarian scientists who refused to give up on a radical idea, one that would ultimately change how machines learn. But their breakthrough came with a cost: incredible performance, at the expense of understanding how it actually works.
THIS EPISODE FEATURES:
Yoshua Bengio, Liv Bo...
2025-10-0951 minThe Last InventionThe SignalIn 1951, Alan Turing predicted machines might one day surpass human intelligence and 'take control.' He created a test to alert us when we were getting close. But seventy years of science fiction later, the real threat feels like just another movie plot.
THIS EPISODE FEATURES:
Connor Leahy, Max Tegmark, Robin Hanson, Karen Hao, Nick Bostrom, Sam Harris, and Justin Murphy
LINKS:
Karen Hao’s book “Empire of AI”
Nick Bostrom's book "Superintelligence"
CREDITS:
This episode of The Last Invention was reported and produced by Andy M...
2025-10-0254 min
The Last InventionReady or NotA tip alleging a Silicon Valley conspiracy leads to a much bigger story: the race to build artificial general intelligence — within the next few years — and the factions vying to accelerate it, to stop it, or to prepare for its arrival.
FEATURING:
Mike Brock, Kevin Roose, Geoffrey Hinton, Connor Leahy, William MacAskill, Liv Boeree, Sam Harris, and Yoshua Bengio
LINKS:
Sam Harris 2016 TED Talk, Can We Build AI Without Losing Control Over It
Nick Bostrom's book Superintelligence
Sam Harris' Making Sense podcast
Center for AI Safe...
2025-10-0236 min
Mental Health: Hope and RecoveryThriving in Mental Health Recovery In this episode, Valerie and Helen pursue the holy grail of recovery—thriving in the aftermath of mental illness. For centuries, the ability to thrive would seem almost inconceivable, as traditional treatments focused on the cessation of symptoms and basic survival. But recent studies prove that thriving is possible, even for those who’ve suffered from severe, long-term illness or multiple diagnoses. Helen and Valerie reveal how they progressed into thriving after long years of struggle. Three guests also share their insights and methods for thriving today. As proven in research, thriving after mental illness is becoming recognized a...
2024-04-301h 00
Two Psychologists Four BeersRE-RELEASE: Destigmatizing Mental Health (with Andrew Devendorf)Andrew Devendorf joins Alexa and Yoel to discuss his work on "me-search" (or self-relevant research) within clinical psychology. He talks about the prevalence of mental health difficulties within the field, and the harmful taboos against speaking openly about them. And, he shares his own reasons for studying depression and suicide, and how he has been discouraged from citing personal experience as a motivation for his work. Their conversation also explores common misconceptions about mental illness, strengths of self-relevant research, and ways to be more supportive to those facing mental health challenges. In the end, Yoel and Alexa fail to...
2023-10-041h 21
Under the CortexBest Of: Revisiting Episodes on the Myers-Briggs Test, the Grieving Brain, and MoreAt the height of the COVID-19 epidemic in 2020, the Association for Psychological Science joined countless other organizations around the world in turning to podcasts to share findings and conversations. The result is Under the Cortex, which now celebrates 100 episodes in which psychological scientists help us understand some of their most interesting and impactful new research. This special episode is a bit of a greatest hits compilation, featuring clips from six of our favorite episodes to date.
Dan McAdams provides a skeptical deep dive on the Myers Briggs test.
Mary Frances O'Connor discusses what happens in the grieving brain.
A...
2023-08-1021 min
A Bit More ComplicatedEpisode 22 - Mental Health Stigma with Andrew DevendorfIn this episode, we are joined by Andrew Devendorf to discuss mental health stigma and how--even among mental health professionals--people often have to hide their mental health conditions or receive social backlash for them. We discuss how this effects research, clinical work, youtube videos, and the broader culture.
Suicidal ideation in non-depressed individuals: The effects of a chronic, misunderstood illness: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1359105318785450?journalCode=hpqa
Stigmatizing Our Own: Self-Relevant Research (Me-Search) Is Common but Frowned Upon in Clinical Psychological Science: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/21677026221141655
Depression presentations, stigma, and...
2023-04-1053 min
Under the CortexLived Experiences Can Be a Strength. So Why the Bias Against “Me-Search”?Questions often emerge when researchers tend to engage in research on topics that are personally relevant for them. For example, when someone with depression also studies it, should they disclose their personal interest? How is this type of self-relevant research—“me-search,” as it’s popularly known— perceived by the academic and scientific community?
In a recent study published in Clinical Psychological Science, researchers found that more than 50% of participants had conducted self-relevant research. Those who had not engaged in self-relevant research made more stigmatizing judgments of it and its disclosure than did those who did engage in se...
2023-03-2319 minTwo Psychologists Four BeersDestigmatizing Mental Health (with Andrew Devendorf)Andrew Devendorf joins Alexa and Yoel to discuss his work on "me-search" (or self-relevant research) within clinical psychology. He talks about the prevalence of mental health difficulties within the field, and the harmful taboos against speaking openly about them. And, he shares his own reasons for studying depression and suicide, and how he has been discouraged from citing personal experience as a motivation for his work. Their conversation also explores common misconceptions about mental illness, strengths of self-relevant research, and ways to be more supportive to those facing mental health challenges. In the end, Yoel and Alexa fail to...
2023-02-081h 19
Inside TBTInside TBT Episode 13: Top Moments of 2020, Eric Devendorf & Grant LeonardBefore officially turning the page to 2021, Joey and Andrew spend a few minutes reflecting on the craziness of last summer (0:00 - 4:58). They're then joined by Boeheim's Army captain Eric Devendorf, who's raised over $60k to help small business during the COVID-19 pandemic (4:58 - 18:00). Finally, Team D2 GM Grant Leonard breaks down why his team of little-known Division 2 players has found success against some of TBT's best (18:00 -32:57).
2021-01-0533 minInside TBTInside TBT Episode 4: Basketball is Back, Boeheim's Army & C.J. JacksonHave you heard?!? TBT 2020 will tip-off July 4 at Nationwide Arena in Columbus and live on the ESPN family of networks. Andrew and Joey discuss the big news (0:00-17:51). Syracuse alumni Eric Devendorf, Donte Greene, and Demetris Nichols break down this year's stacked Boeheim's Army team (17:51-58:28). Big X point guard C.J. Jackson dishes on the team's rivalry with Carmen's Crew (58:28-1:27:25). Enjoy!
2020-06-111h 29