Shows
LessWrong posts by zvi“Keeping Up Against the Joneses: Balsa’s 2025 Fundraiser” by Zvi Several years ago Zvi Mowshowitz founded Balsa Research, a tiny nonprofit research organization currently focused on quantifying the impact of the Jones Act on the American economy, and working towards viable reform proposals.
While changing century-old policy is not going to be easy, we continue to see many places where there is neglected groundwork that we’re well positioned to do, and we are improving at doing it with another year of practice under our belts.
We’re looking to raise $200,000 to support our work this giving season, though $50,000 would be sufficient to keep the ligh...
2025-12-2312 minLessWrong posts by zvi“Keeping Up Against the Joneses: Balsa’s 2025 Fundraising Letter” by jenn, Zvi Balsa Research is a tiny nonprofit research organization currently focused on quantifying the impact of the Jones Act on the American economy, and working towards viable reform proposals. While changing century-old policy is not going to be easy, we continue to see many places where there is neglected groundwork that we’re well positioned to do, and we are improving at doing it with another year of practice under our belts. We’re looking to raise $200,000 to support our work this giving season, though $50,000 would be sufficient to keep the lights on, and we think we are also...
2025-12-2212 min
Don't Worry About the Vase PodcastFrom the Archives - Immoral MazesA “From the Archives” episode, the full Immoral Mazes sequence.* 00:00:00 - Introduction* 00:07:07 - Moloch Hasn’t Won, By Zvi Mowshowitz, December 28th, 2019* 00:07:23 - Meditations on Moloch* 00:12:50 - That’s Not How This Works, That’s Not How Any of This Works* 00:15:15 - Moloch’s Army: An As-Yet Unjustified But Important Note* 00:16:53 - Meditations on Elua* 00:21:41 - Perfect Competition, By Zvi Mowshowitz, December 29th, 2019* 00:21:51 - Perfect Competition* 00:24:03 - Remind Me: What Exactly is Perfect Competition?* 00:25:52 - Super-Perfect Competition* 00:29:39 - Universal...
2025-11-084h 57
"The Cognitive Revolution" | AI Builders, Researchers, and Live Player AnalysisZvi Mowshowitz on Longer Timelines, RL-induced Doom, and Why China is Refusing H20sToday, Zvi Mowshowitz returns to The Cognitive Revolution to discuss how recent AI developments like GPT-5 and IMO gold medals have led to modestly extended timelines despite being on-trend, while policy missteps around chip exports to China and alignment challenges from reinforcement learning have increased risk assessments, covering everything from live players in the AI race to safety funding priorities and virtuous actions for navigating our current moment.
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2025-09-063h 13
Complex Systems with Patrick McKenzie (patio11)Getting better at LLMs, with Zvi MowshowitzIn this episode, Patrick McKenzie (patio11) recorded with Zvi Mowshowitz (TheZvi) live at the LessOnline conference. They explore practical strategies for getting better results from large language models. Zvi explains how to customize AI behavior through thoughtful system prompts, while Patrick shares techniques for using LLMs as writing partners and research assistants. They discuss the evolving relationship between content creators and AI training data, touching on the emerging field of "generative engine optimization" (GEO). The conversation also covers multimodal capabilities, recursive AI use, and strategies for avoiding common failure modes like hallucination and sycophancy. –Full transcript: www.co...
2025-06-1251 min
Future of Life Institute PodcastUnderstanding AI Agents: Time Horizons, Sycophancy, and Future Risks (with Zvi Mowshowitz)On this episode, Zvi Mowshowitz joins me to discuss sycophantic AIs, bottlenecks limiting autonomous AI agents, and the true utility of benchmarks in measuring progress. We then turn to time horizons of AI agents, the impact of automating scientific research, and constraints on scaling inference compute. Zvi also addresses humanity’s uncertain AI-driven future, the unique features setting AI apart from other technologies, and AI’s growing influence in financial trading. You can follow Zvi's excellent blog here: https://thezvi.substack.com Timestamps: 00:00:00 Preview and introduction 00:02:01 Sycophantic AIs 00:07:28 Bottlenecks for AI ag...
2025-05-091h 35
Curiosity ⇔ EntangledScott Aaronson x Zvi Mowshowitz | Why the AI Revolution Won’t Look Like You Expect—And Why That’s More DangerousThis podcast is produced by volunteers at Accelerator Media, a nonprofit educational media organization. Our work is supported by listeners and viewers like you. If you’d like to help us ignite curiosity and inspire long-term thinking about our shared future, please consider making a donation: https://acceleratormedia.org/donate/In this episode of Curiosity Entangled, theoretical computer scientist Scott Aaronson and writer Zvi Mowshowitz confront one of the biggest questions of our time: what happens when humanity builds tools that can outthink us? In a wide-ranging and unsparing conversation, they explore the realities of AI risk, gr...
2025-04-281h 40
跨国串门儿计划#101. O3模型揭幕：AGI降临还是技术幻象？📝 本期播客简介本期节目再次邀请到AI领域的资深专家 Zvi Mowshowitz（知名博客《别担心花瓶》主笔）与主持人 Nathan Labenz 进行深度对话。这是 Zvi 第九次做客“认知革命”播客。本次讨论的核心围绕 OpenAI 最新发布的 GPT-4o 模型展开，深入探讨了它是否标志着通用人工智能（AGI）的到来、其在科研领域的革命性潜力与现实瓶颈、AI自我迭代的可能性、超级智能的形态与风险，并对当前AI赛道的主要玩家进行了逐一点评。Zvi 分享了他对 AI 武器化的独特见解，并将他的“末日概率”预测上调至 70%，呼吁正视 AI 带来的根本性风险。👨⚕️ 本期嘉宾Zvi Mowshowitz，知名 AI 分析博客《别担心花瓶》(Don't Worry About the Vase) 的主笔。作为 AI 领域的深度观察者和分析师，他每日消化大量前沿资讯，并以其深度、全面的分析报告闻名。Zvi 已是“认知革命”播客的常客，本次为第九次做客。📒 文字版精华见微信公众号⏱️ 时间戳00:00 开场与嘉宾介绍00:33 yikai介绍本期核心内容：GPT-4o, AGI可能性, 科研应用, AI自我迭代, 超级智能风险, 主要玩家分析, Zvi的末日概率更新02:23 Nathan 正式欢迎 Zvi，再次强调 Zvi 的专业性与播客老朋友身份03:46 Nathan 概述讨论要点：自动化潜力 vs 基础算力，稳定状态的挑战，Zvi 末日概率上调至 70%04:09 Nathan 预告玩家分析环节，提及硅谷对杀人机器人的态度，个人与行业的应对GPT-4o 与 AGI 讨论08:40 GPT-4o 是 AGI 吗？Zvi 观点：不是AGI，是工具使用体验的重大突破09:19 对比 Zvi 与 Tyler Cowen 对 GPT-4o 的评价：智能预期与不同思维模式（细节 vs 结构）AI 在科研与知识工作中的应用14:30 AI 的知识广度 vs 跨界创新能力：Nathan 引用 Google AI 科学家案例15:45 AI 科研潜力讨论：AI 自主发现药物抗药性机制，但为何未被广泛采用？19:41 瓶颈分析：Zvi 认为制药公司等行业采纳缓慢源于惯性、风险规避而非技术或成本21:03 自动化挑战：为何自动化日常工作进展缓慢？Zvi 谈个人经验与工具局限28:45 知识工作者自动化的门槛：Nathan 的企业系统接入设想与 Zvi 的 AGI 判定31:00 企业数据微调的挑战：成本、数据质量、流程复杂度34:18 AI 代码能力：Nathan 分享 GPT-4o 处理大型代码库的惊艳体验37:33 AI 能力的不均衡：擅长前沿研究 vs 搞不定日常任务（如点外卖）AI 自我迭代与超级智能45:54 GPT-4o 代码 PR 处理能力分析：40% 成功率意味着什么？Zvi 的质疑54:11 Mechanist AI 成立：从 AI 安全转向 mundane task 自动化，Zvi 的看法59:05 超级智能的本质：Zvi 定义 (远超人类，探索未知)，并驳斥人类文化优势论01:05:31 超级智能影响社会：卡马拉哈里斯竞选思想实验，Zvi 认为 AI 可轻易操控选举/资源01:17:58 超越人类直觉：Nathan 的多模态超级智能设想 (20 种新感知)01:20:49 稳定状态与治理：MAM 假说讨论，权力集中 vs 分散的风险AI 安全、风险与 P(doom)01:23:31 AI 接管的可能性：效率驱动、部分人类意愿、失控 AI 的竞争优势01:26:30 Zvi 的 P(doom) 更新至 70%：对 GPT-4o 失调现象和行业忽视风险的担忧01:29:40 警示信号已现：AI 模型内部的“小动作”与研究者的幸运观察窗口01:30:17 避免末日的希望：发展速度放缓、转向推理/工具优化可能争取时间AI 赛道玩家分析01:34:39 Meta (Facebook): Zvi 认为其已出局，缺乏战略和创新能力01:37:05 中国 (DeepSeek, 阿里 Qwen, Kimi): DeepSeek 是主要玩家但受限，对其他公司和开源动机持保留态度01:44:46 Safe Superintelligence (Ilya Sutskever 新公司): 因 Ilya 具可信度，但属高风险尝试，赞赏其安全措施01:47:11 xAI (Grok): Zvi 持负面看法，认为马斯克分心、信息茧房、产品缺乏亮点01:53:34 Anthropic: 技术扎实，论文出色，但在竞争中显露疲态；Dario 的中美竞赛言论分析01:59:23 Google DeepMind: Gemini 模型强大，Demis Hassabis 沟通能力强，但公司层面行动迟缓、安全措施保守02:02:38 O
2025-04-232h 19
"The Cognitive Revolution" | AI Builders, Researchers, and Live Player AnalysisIs o3 AGI? Zvi Mowshowitz on Early AI Takeoff, the Mechanize launch, Live Players, & Why p(doom) is RisingIn this episode of the Cognitive Revolution podcast, the host Nathan Labenz is joined for the record 9th time by Zvi Mowshowitz to discuss the state of AI advancements, focusing on recent developments such as OpenAI's O3 model and its implications for AGI and recursive self-improvement. They delve into the capabilities and limitations of current AI models in various domains, including coding, deep research, and practical utilities. The discussion also covers the strategic and ethical considerations in AI development, touching upon the roles of major AI labs, the potential for weaponization, and the importance of balancing innovation with safety...
2025-04-223h 05
"The Cognitive Revolution" | AI Builders, Researchers, and Live Player AnalysisZvi’s POV: Ilya’s SSI, OpenAI’s o1, Claude Computer Use, Trump’s election, and moreIn this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan welcomes back Zvi Mowshowitz for an in-depth discussion on the latest developments in AI over the past six months. They explore Ilya's new superintelligence-focused startup, analyze OpenAI's O1 model, and debate the impact of Claude's computer use capabilities. The conversation covers emerging partnerships in big tech, regulatory changes, and the recent OpenAI profit-sharing drama. Zvi offers unique insights on AI safety, politics, and strategic analysis that you won't find elsewhere. Join us for this thought-provoking episode that challenges our understanding of the rapidly evolving AI landscape.Check out "Don't...
2024-11-162h 39
Complex Systems with Patrick McKenzie (patio11)Bet on it: Zvi Mowshowitz on professional gambling, trading, and AI futuresIn this episode, Patrick McKenzie (patio11) is joined by Zvi Mowshowitz (TheZvi) to discuss his wide-ranging career as a professional Magic: The Gathering player, sports gambler, equities trader, public intellectual on the covid-19 epidemic, and AI-focused journalist. They go into depth on how trading happens in less formal markets with lessons that resonate in more formal markets. They also explore the fallacies of rational decision-making in large organizations, the significance of obsession and practice in achieving excellence, and exchange predictions on AI.–Full transcript available here: https://www.complexsystemspodcast.com/betting-trading-zvi-mowshowitz/–Sponsors: Safebase R...
2024-08-081h 26
AI Article ReadingsLaunch of the Don't Worry About the Vase PodcastHey listeners, this is Ask who with an important update about the "Don't Worry About the Vase" episodes.As you know, this feed has been converting Zvi Mowshowitz's blog posts into audio format. Due to the popularity of these episodes, I'm excited to announce that "Don't Worry About the Vase" now has its own dedicated podcast feed!To keep listening to Zvi's posts, please subscribe to the new feed. Here is the link.The new feed will focus exclusively on "Don't Worry About the Vase" content, making it easier for you to find...
2024-07-2200 min
AI Article ReadingsAI #73: Openly Evil AI - By Zvi MowshowitzAI narration of AI #73: Openly Evil AI - By Zvi Mowshowitz.I really hope you're enjoying this podcast version of Zvi's posts. If you're finding it useful, please do consider becoming a paid subscriber. I love making these posts more accessible, but the human-sounding AI voice does come with a bit of a cost - about $0.24 per 1000 characters. No pressure at all, though if you do chip in, feel free to suggest any interesting articles you'd like me to consider for future episodes. Or if you prefer, there's also a ko-fi link https://ko-fi.com/askwhocastsai for...
2024-07-181h 47
AI Article ReadingsHousing Roundup #9: Restricting Supply - By Zvi MowshowitzAI narration of Housing Roundup #9: Restricting Supply - By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-07-171h 35
AI Article ReadingsHousing Roundup #8: Your Local Area - By Zvi MowshowitzAI narration of Housing Roundup #8: Your Local Area - By Zvi Mowshowitz.Askwho Casts AI is a reader-supported podcast. To receive new episodes and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-07-1627 min
AI Article ReadingsAI #72: Denying the Future - By Zvi MowshowitzAI Narration of AI #72: Denying the Future - By Zvi Mowshowitz.If you like these episodes, and wish to contribute to the cost of creating them, consider subscribing.Alternatively, you could help via a one-time tip. https://ko-fi.com/askwhocastsai This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-07-111h 16
AI Article ReadingsMedical Roundup #3 - By Zvi MowshowitzAI NArration of Medical Roundup #3 - By Zvi Mowshowitz.Askwho Casts AI is a reader-supported podcast. To receive new episodes, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-07-0936 min
AI Article ReadingsAI #71: Farewell to Chevron - By Zvi MowshowitzAI narration of AI #71: Farewell to Chevron - By Zvi Mowshowitz.Askwho Casts AI is a reader-supported podcast. To receive new episodes and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-07-041h 12
AI Article ReadingsEconomics Roundup #2 - By Zvi MowshowitzAI Narration of Economics Roundup #2 - By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-07-0254 min
AI Article ReadingsAI #70: A Beautiful Sonnet - By Zvi MowshowitzAI Narration of AI #70: A Beautiful Sonnet - By Zvi Mowshowitz.Askwho Casts AI is a listener-supported podcast. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-271h 56
AI Article ReadingsChildhood and Education Roundup #6: College Edition - By Zvi MowshowitzAI Narration of Childhood and Education Roundup #6: College Edition - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAI This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-261h 07
AI Article ReadingsMonthly Roundup #19: June 2024 - By Zvi MowshowitzAI narration of Monthly Roundup #19: June 2024 - By Zvi Mowshowitz.If you enjoy these audio conversions and wish to see more like them, you can help contribute to the cost of production by subscribing! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-251h 50
AI Article ReadingsOn Claude 3.5 Sonnet - By Zvi MowshowitzAI narration of On Claude 3.5 Sonnet - By Zvi Mowshowitz.Askwho Casts AI is a reader-supported conversion. To receive new posts and support, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-2429 min
AI Article ReadingsOn OpenAI's Model Spec - By Zvi MowshowitzAI Narration of On OpenAI's Model Spec - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAI This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-2155 min
AI Article ReadingsAI #69: Nice - By Zvi MowshowitzAI Narration of AI #69: Nice - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAIAskwho Casts AI is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-201h 41
AI Article ReadingsOn DeepMind's Frontier Safety Framework - By Zvi MowshowitzAI narration of On DeepMind's Frontier Safety Framework - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAIAskwho Casts AI is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai...
2024-06-1822 min
AI Article ReadingsOpenAI #8: The Right to Warn - By Zvi MowshowitzAI Narration of OpenAI #8: The Right to Warn - By Zvi MowshowitzFor those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAIAskwho Casts AI is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-171h 05
AI Article ReadingsThe Leopold Model: Analysis and Reactions - By Zvi MowshowitzAI narration of The Leopold Model: Analysis and Reactions - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAI This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-141h 51
AI Article ReadingsAI #68: Remarkably Reasonable Reactions - By Zvi MowshowitzAI narration of AI #68: Remarkably Reasonable Reactions - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAI This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-131h 33
AI Article ReadingsAiPhone - By Zvi MowshowitzAn AI narration of AiPhone - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAI This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-1325 min
AI Article ReadingsOn Dwarkesh's Podcast with Leopold Aschenbrenner - By Zvi MowshowitzAI narration of On Dwarkesh's Podcast with Leopold Aschenbrenner - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAI This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-101h 58
AI Article ReadingsQuotes from Leopold Aschenbrenner's Situational Awareness Paper - By Zvi MowshowitzAn AI reading of Quotes from Leopold Aschenbrenner's Situational Awareness Paper - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAI This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-071h 11
AI Article ReadingsAI #67: Brief Strange Trip - By Zvi MowshowitzAn AI Narration of AI #67: Brief Strange Trip - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAI This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-06-071h 13
AI Article ReadingsThe Gemini 1.5 Report - By Zvi MowshowitzAI narration of The Gemini 1.5 Report - By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-05-3154 min
AI Article ReadingsOpenAI: Helen Toner Speaks - By Zvi MowshowitzAI narration of OpenAI: Helen Toner Speaks - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAI This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-05-3026 min
AI Article ReadingsAI #66: Oh to Be Less Online - By Zvi MowshowitzMulti voiced AI reading of AI #66: Oh to Be Less Online - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAI This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-05-301h 48
AI Article ReadingsOpenAI: Fallout - By Zvi MowshowitzAI Reading of OpenAI: Fallout - By Zvi Mowshowitz.For those who appreciate this kind of production, and want to see more like it, you can help contribute to the cost of generation here: https://www.patreon.com/AskwhoCastsAI This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-05-281h 10
Astral Codex Ten PodcastAsterisk/Zvi on California's AI Bill California’s state senate is considering SB1047, a bill to regulate AI. Since OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, and Meta are all in California, this would affect most of the industry. If the California state senate passed a bill saying that the sky was blue, I would start considering whether it might be green, or colorless, or maybe not exist at all. And people on Twitter have been saying that this bill would ban open-source AI - no, all AI! - no, all technology more complicated than a toaster! So I started out skeptical. But Zvi Mowshowitz (su...
2024-05-2816 min
AI Article ReadingsI am the Golden Gate Bridge - By Zvi MowshowitzAI Reading of I am the Golden Gate Bridge - By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-05-2757 min
AI Article ReadingsThe Schumer Report (RTFB) - By Zvi MowshowitzMulti Voice AI Reading of The Schumer Report (RTFB) - By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-05-241h 09
AI Article ReadingsAI #65: I Spy With My AI - By Zvi MowshowitzMulti voiced AI reading of AI #65: I Spy With My AI - By Zvi Mowshowitz.https://open.substack.com/pub/thezvi/p/ai-65-i-spy-with-my-ai?r=67y1h&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-05-231h 19
AI Article ReadingsDo Not Mess With Scarlett Johansson - By Zvi MowshowitzA (slightly ironic this time) AI reading of Do Not Mess With Scarlett Johansson - By Zvi Mowshowitz.https://open.substack.com/pub/thezvi/p/do-not-mess-with-scarlett-johansson?r=67y1h&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-05-2230 min
AI Article ReadingsOpenAI: Exodus - By Zvi MowshowitzAI reading of OpenAI: Exodus - By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-05-201h 29
"The Cognitive Revolution" | AI Builders, Researchers, and Live Player AnalysisOpenAI and Google Race to "Her" - Is the Big Tech Singularity Near? Part 1 with Zvi MowshowitzDive into a critical analysis of AI's rapidly evolving realm with Zvi Mowshowitz. Discover our take on Google's I-O event highlights, OpenAI's spring event, the big tech and startup AI dynamics, and the significant shifts in OpenAI's safety team. Gain insights into the competitive landscape, technological advancements, and strategic challenges that shape today's AI industry, as we explore the future's uncertainties and the potential for change.Part 2 is coming soon.SPONSORS:Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) is a single platform for your infrastructure, database, application development, and AI needs. OCI has...
2024-05-182h 01
AI Article ReadingsGPT-4o My and Google I/O Day - By Zvi MowshowitzAI reading of GPT-4o My and Google I/O Day - By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-05-161h 12
AI Article ReadingsAI #64: Feel the Mundane Utility - By Zvi MowshowitzAI reading of AI #64: Feel the Mundane Utility - By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-05-161h 26
AI Article ReadingsAI #63: Introducing Alpha Fold 3 - By By Zvi MowshowitzAn AI reaing of AI #63: Introducing Alpha Fold 3 - By By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-05-0947 min
80k After HoursHighlights: #184 – Zvi Mowshowitz on sleeping on sleeper agents, and the biggest AI updates since ChatGPTThis is a selection of highlights from episode #184 of The 80,000 Hours Podcast.These aren't necessarily the most important, or even most entertaining parts of the interview — and if you enjoy this, we strongly recommend checking out the full episode:Zvi Mowshowitz on sleeping on sleeper agents, and the biggest AI updates since ChatGPTAnd if you're finding these highlights episodes valuable, please let us know by emailing podcast@80000hours.org.Highlights put together by Simon Monsour, Milo McGuire, and Dominic Armstrong
2024-04-2529 min
80,000 Hours Podcast#184 – Zvi Mowshowitz on sleeping on sleeper agents, and the biggest AI updates since ChatGPTMany of you will have heard of Zvi Mowshowitz as a superhuman information-absorbing-and-processing machine — which he definitely is. As the author of the Substack Don’t Worry About the Vase, Zvi has spent as much time as literally anyone in the world over the last two years tracking in detail how the explosion of AI has been playing out — and he has strong opinions about almost every aspect of it. Links to learn more, summary, and full transcript.In today’s episode, host Rob Wiblin asks Zvi for his takes on:US-China negotiationsWhether AI progress...
2024-04-113h 31
AI Article ReadingsOn the Gladstone Report - By Zvi MowshowitzAn AI Narration of On the Gladstone Report - By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-03-201h 21
AI Article ReadingsOpenAI: The Board Expands - By Zvi Mowshowitz.An AI reading of OpenAI: The Board Expands - By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-03-1253 min
AI Article ReadingsRead the Roon - By Zvi MowshowitzAN AI reading of “Read the Roon - By Zvi Mowshowitz” This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-03-0530 min
AI Article ReadingsSora What - By Zvi MowshowitzAn AI reading of Sora What - By Zvi Mowshowitz This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-02-2320 min
"The Cognitive Revolution" | AI Builders, Researchers, and Live Player AnalysisOpenAI Sora, Google Gemini, and Meta with Zvi MowshowitzIn this episode, Zvi Mowshowitz returns to the show to discuss OpenAI’s Sora model, Google’s Gemini announcement, Anthropic’s Sleeper Agents, and other live player analysis. Try the Brave search API for free for up to 2000 queries per month at https://brave.com/apiDefinitely also take a moment to subscribe to Zvi's blog Don't Worry About the Vase (https://thezvi.wordpress.com/) - Zvi is an information hyperprocessor who synthesizes vast amounts of new and ever-evolving information into extremely clear summaries that help educated people keep up with the latest n...
2024-02-212h 18
AI Article ReadingsMore on the Apple Vision Pro - By Zvi MowshowitzAn AI reading of More on the Apple Vision Pro - By Zvi Mowshowitz.https://open.substack.com/pub/thezvi/p/more-on-the-apple-vision-pro This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-02-1315 min
AI Article ReadingsOne True Love - By Zvi MowshowitzAI reading of One True Love - By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-02-0921 min
AI Article ReadingsAI #50: The Most Dangerous Thing - By Zvi MowshowitzAn AI reading of AI #50: The Most Dangerous Thing - By Zvi Mowshowitz. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit askwhocastsai.substack.com/subscribe
2024-02-0842 min
The Bayesian Conspiracy204 – Simulacra Levels with Zvi (and more)We speak with Zvi Mowshowitz about his work and recent history, what happened at OpenAI, and then really dig into Simulacra Levels – a way to categorize the different types of things people are attempting to do when they say words to other people.
OTHER LINKS
Zvi’s Simulacra Levels Summary
Less Wrong Simulacra Page
Zvi on the Clearer Thinking podcast re Simulacra
Zvi on OpenAI’s Battle of the Board
On Bounded Distrust
Zvi’s Substack
Zvi’s Twitter
You Get About Five Words
More Dakka
0:00:23 – Zvi’s many e...
2024-01-242h 02
The Bayesian Conspiracy204 – Simulacra Levels with Zvi (and more)We speak with Zvi Mowshowitz about his work and recent history, what happened at OpenAI, and then really dig into Simulacra Levels – a way to categorize the different types of things people are attempting to do when they say words to other people.
OTHER LINKS
Zvi’s Simulacra Levels Summary
Less Wrong Simulacra Page
Zvi on the Clearer Thinking podcast re Simulacra
Zvi on OpenAI’s Battle of the Board
On Bounded Distrust
Zvi’s Substack
Zvi’s Twitter
You Get About Five Words
More Dakka
0:00:23 – Zvi’s many e...
2024-01-242h 02The Bayesian Conspiracy204 – Simulacra Levels with Zvi (and more)We speak with Zvi Mowshowitz about his work and recent history, what happened at OpenAI, and then really dig into Simulacra Levels – a way to categorize the different types of things people are attempting to do when they say words to other people.
OTHER LINKS
Zvi’s Simulacra Levels Summary
Less Wrong Simulacra Page
Zvi on the Clearer Thinking podcast re Simulacra
Zvi on OpenAI’s Battle of the Board
On Bounded Distrust
Zvi’s Substack
Zvi’s Twitter
You Get About Five Words
More Dakka
0:00:23 – Zvi’s many e...
2024-01-242h 02
Clearer Thinking with Spencer GreenbergSimulacra levels, moral mazes, and low-hanging fruit (with Zvi Mowshowitz) Read the full transcript here. Why do we leave so much low-hanging fruit unharvested in so many parts of life? In what contexts is it better to do a thing than to do a symbolic representation of the thing, and vice versa? How can we know when to try to fix a problem that hasn't yet been fixed? In a society, what's the ideal balance of explorers and exploiters? What are the four simulacra levels? What is a moral "maze"? In the context of AI, can solutions for the problems of generation vs. evaluation also provide solutions...
2023-12-211h 28
Humans of MagicCurious Obsession - Zvi MowshowitzZvi Mowshowitz is a Magic player, writer, and Hall of Famer. He currently writes about AI, policy and rationality on his Substack, "Don't Worry About the Vase."
Show notes: humansofmagic.com/
Patreon: patreon.com/humansofmagic
2023-12-182h 57
UndertoneZvi MowshowitzZvi and I talk about AI and strategy games.
Transcript
--
Timestamps
(0:00:00) Intro
(0:00:43) What makes a good strategy game?
(0:05:29) Culture of Magic: The Gathering
(0:10:14) Raising the status of games
(0:13:31) First mover advantage in LLMs
(0:18:23) Consumer vs. enterprise AI
(0:21:28) Non-technical founders
(0:25:24) Where Zvi gets the most utility from AI
(0:28:56) Straussian views on AI risk
(0:36:18) Is AI communist or libertarian?
(0:44:50) Dangers of open source models
(0:47:18) How much GDP growth can realize...
2023-10-111h 18
"The Cognitive Revolution" | AI Builders, Researchers, and Live Player AnalysisOpenAI, Amazon's Anthropic Investment, and the Roman Empire with Zvi MowshowitzZvi Mowshowitz, the writer behind Don't Worry About the Vase, returns to catch up with Nathan on everything OpenAI, Amazon-Anthropic collab, and Google Deepmind. They also discuss Perplexity, deepfakes, and software bundling vs the Roman Empire. If you're looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/cognitiveDefinitely also take a moment to subscribe to Zvi's blog Don't Worry About the Vase (https://thezvi.wordpress.com/) - Zvi is an information hyperprocessor who synthesizes vast amounts of new and ever-evolving information into extremely clear summaries that help edu...
2023-09-301h 53
Theo Jaffee Podcast#3: Zvi Mowshowitz - Rationality, Writing, Public Policy, and AIZvi Mowshowitz is a former professional Magic: The Gathering player who is a Pro Tour and Grand Prix winner, and member of the MTG Hall of Fame. He’s also been a professional trader and market maker, and a startup founder. He’s been involved in the rationalist movement for many years, and today, he writes about AI, rationality, game design and theory, philosophy, and more on his blog, Don’t Worry About the Vase.
PODCAST LINKS:
Video Transcript: https://www.theojaffee.com/p/3-zvi-mowshowitz
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1IJRtB8FP4Cnq8lW...
2023-08-192h 21
"The Cognitive Revolution" | AI Builders, Researchers, and Live Player AnalysisAdvancements in AI: Updating the Scouting Report, Task Automation, and Google BreakthroughsJoin Nathan Labenz and Erik Torenberg as they analyze the last month in AI advancements. Nathan takes us through the meaningful updates to his Scouting Report (released last month, linked below), discusses highlights from recent episodes of The Cognitive Revolution, and gives us a sneak peek at upcoming interviews with Google researchers. If you're looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/cognitiveWe're hiring across the board at Turpentine and for Erik's personal team on other projects he's incubating. He's hiring a Chief of Staff, EA, Head of...
2023-08-1039 min
EconTalkZvi Mowshowitz on AI and the Dial of ProgressThe future of AI keeps Zvi Mowshowitz up at night. He also wonders why so many smart people seem to think that AI is more likely to save humanity than destroy it. Listen as Mowshowitz talks with EconTalk's Russ Roberts about the current state of AI, the pace of AI's development, and where--unless we take serious action--the technology is likely to end up (and that end is not pretty). They also discuss Mowshowitz's theory that the shallowness of the AI extinction-risk discourse results from the assumption that you have to be either pro-technological progress or against it.
2023-08-071h 36
"The Cognitive Revolution" | AI Builders, Researchers, and Live Player AnalysisOpen AI, Anthropic, and Meta | Analyzing the AI Frontier with ZviThis isn't news, it's analysis! Nathan Labenz sits down for an with Zvi Mowshowitz, the writer behind Don't Worry About the Vase to talk about the major players in AI over the last few months. In this extended conversation, Nathan and Zvi debate if AI has attained the intelligence of a well-read college graduate (per OpenAI's Jan Leike), a live player analysis (who to count/ who not to count), and the role of independent red teaming organizations. If you're looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/cognitiveDefinitely...
2023-08-023h 00
"The Cognitive Revolution" | AI Builders, Researchers, and Live Player AnalysisThe AI Safety Debates with Zvi MowshowitzNathan Labenz sits down with Zvi Mowshowitz, the writer behind Don't Worry About the Vase.Zvi is an information hyperprocessor who synthesizes vast amounts of new and ever-evolving information into extremely clear summaries that help educated people keep up with the latest news. In this episode, we cover his AI safety worldview, an overview of the AI discourse, and who really matters in the AI debates.We're hiring across the board at Turpentine and for Erik's personal team on other projects he's incubating. He's hiring a Chief of Staff, EA, Head of...
2023-07-112h 44
The Old Mage MTG PodcastZvi’s Fires Part 1 of a 374 Part Series | The Old Men Magic Podcast Ep. 41In this episode, we begin our review of the "My Fires" articles written by Zvi Mowshowitz.
Contact the old men here:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/OldMenMagic
Email: oldmenmagic@gmail.com
Some of our favorite MTG resources on the web:
https://mtgstocks.com
https://tcgplayer.com
https://scryfall.com
https://gatherer.wizards.com/
2023-06-181h 40
FUTURATI PODCASTEp. 130: Should we halt progress in AI? | Zvi MowshowitzZvi Mowshowitz is a former professional Magic: The Gathering player, a former trader and market maker in both traditional and non-traditional markets, and he was CEO of the personalized medical startup MetaMed. Recently, he wrote a very thoughtful analysis of the Future of Life's call to halt experiments with large language models, and that's the subject of our chat today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
2023-04-1847 min
From the New World(Classic Episode) Zvi Mowshowitz - How the Worst People in Society Bungled a PandemicZvi is a COVID forecaster, writer of thezvi blog, and game designer at the recently released (as of republishing) card game https://emergentstcg.com. We discuss Magic the Gathering, chess and computability, learning curves, COVID projections, the CDC banning testing, immoral mazes, selection effects, psychological malleability, Robin Hanson and medicine, institutional incentives, egalitarianism, civilizational collapse, populism, libertarianism, and pure math.Note: the timestamps are somewhat inaccurate due to editing and intro.0:00 MTG19:00 chess, computability, and learning36:30 COVID projections49:00 CDC banning tests + immoral mazes57:15 narrative hedging1:14:05 s...
2023-03-133h 33
From the New WorldTyler Cowen: The Dark Side of Talent, Sorting and InstitutionsTyler Cowen is a Professor of Economics at George Mason University and writer of the legendary blog Marginal Revolution alongside Alex Tabarrok. We discuss talent, Ontario, immigrants, institutional trust, power attractors, the Intellectual Dark Web, public health, the internet, generation Z, the significance of social change versus technology, upsides of wokeness, populism, imposter syndrome, self-deception, and corporate hiring.Marginal Revolutionhttps://marginalrevolution.com/Talent by Tyler Cowen and Daniel Grosshttps://www.amazon.ca/Talent-Identify-Energizers-Creatives-Winners/dp/1250275814Twitter:https://twitter.com/tylercowenFrom the New World...
2022-09-051h 46
From the New WorldZvi Mowshowitz - How the Worst People in Society Bungled a PandemicZvi is a COVID forecaster, writer of thezvi blog, and game designer at emergents.We discuss Magic the Gathering, chess and computability, learning curves, COVID projections, the CDC banning testing, immoral mazes, selection effects, psychological malleability, Robin Hanson and medicine, institutional incentives, egalitarianism, civilizational collapse, populism, libertarianism, and pure math.Note: the timestamps are somewhat inaccurate due to editing and intro. 0:00 MTG19:00 chess, computability, and learning36:30 COVID projections49:00 CDC banning tests + immoral mazes57:15 narrative hedging1:14:05 selection vs. malleability1:21:20 Robin Hanson and medicine
2022-08-293h 33
The Vance Crowe Podcast#271 | Zvi Mowshowitz; Gambling, Game Theory, Inflation and COVIDZvi Mowshowitz is an analyst and blogger in addition to being a champion in popular game 'Magic The Gathering'. Vance and Zvi discuss the nuances of gambling, how it is different as a professional vs as an amateur, inflation, COVID, the war between Russia and Ukraine and more.Read Zvi's Blog: https://thezvi.wordpress.com/Follow Zvi on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheZviWAYS TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST —Join the Articulate Ventures Network | https://network.articulate.ventures/ —We are a patchwork of thinkers that want to articulate ideas in a forum wher...
2022-06-201h 19
The Nonlinear Library: Alignment SectionAlignment Newsletter #16: 07/23/18 by Rohin ShahWelcome to The Nonlinear Library, where we use Text-to-Speech software to convert the best writing from the Rationalist and EA communities into audio.
This is: Alignment Newsletter #16: 07/23/18, published by Rohin Shah on the AI Alignment Forum.
Highlights
Seedbank — discover machine learning examples (Michael Tyka): Seedbank provides interactive machine learning examples in Colab notebooks (think Jupyter notebooks in the cloud). This makes it really easy to just run example code without any setup, and even to modify it to play around with it. Google even provides a free GPU to make the training and inference faster!
My opinion: I haven't explored it...
2021-11-1719 min
AffixEpisode 1: CovUK and Zvi MowshowitzThe Trolley Problem:There is a runaway trolley barrelling down the railway tracks. On the tracks, there are five people tied up and unable to move. You are standing next to a lever. If you pull this lever, the trolley will switch to a different set of tracks with one person on the side track. You have two options:Do nothing and allow the trolley to kill the five people on the main track.Pull the lever, diverting the trolley onto the side track where it will kill one person.QALY...
2021-01-0445 min
Narratives18: Simulacra Levels, Moral Mazes, and COVID-19 with Zvi MowshowitzIn this episode, we are joined by Zvi Mowshowitz. We discuss simulacra levels, moral mazes, and our civilizational response to COVID-19. Zvi writes the blog Don't Worry About the Vase. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit willjarvis.substack.com
2020-11-301h 11
Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: Omnath's BodymanWith less than a week until the Grand Finals Brian David-Marshall and Magic: The Gathering Hall of Famer Zvi Mowshowitz discuss the state of Standard post-Uro ban and pre-grand reveal of the 32 Standard decks the players will bring to the virtual tables.
Topics include:
Has the over/under on the number of Omnath's changed?
Why aren't people playing Arboreal Grazer in their Omnath lists?
Red Bull Qualifier decklist discussion.
What does the Walking Dead Secret Lair mean?
Has WotC lost our trust?
...
2020-10-0600 minTop 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: Quest for the Messed-up Magic CardsWith Zendikar Rising previews in full swing, Brian David-Marshall and Magic Hall of Famer Zvi Mowshowitz go on a quest to find the most messed-up Magic cards in the set so far. The duo go through the 41 rares and mythics that had been previewed as of Thursday Sept 3rd looking for the cards that most like to party, which ones are going to impact your Commander games and which ones meet the highest honor Zvi can bestow upon a card -- "That's a messed up Magic card!"
Your hosts:
Brian David-Marshall - https://twitter.com...
2020-09-042h 10
The Filter Podcast with Matt AsherEp 16: Zvi Mowshowitz on Immoral Mazes, Levels of Language, and the Magic of MagicZvi Mowshowitz comes on The Filter to discuss a series of blog posts he wrote about “Immoral Mazes”, or pathological institutions that incentive perverse behaviors. We also talk about levels of meaning in language and the arc towards more complex and indirect forms of communication, the many uses and abuses of the college system, and the magic of Magic the Gathering.
Related links:
Zvi Mowshowitz Official Blog
Zvi Mowshowitz - Immoral Mazes Articles
Zvi Mowshowitz – Unifying the Simulacra Definitions (Aug 2020)
Zvi Mowshowitz – Magic Articles I’ve Written (Mar 2011)
Magic: The Gathering Official Website
Jean Baudrillard - Simulacra and Simulation (1981)
Maslow’s Hierarchy
2020-08-0851 minTop 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: Next Ban UpWith the Temur Reclamation dominated Players Tour Finals in the rearview mirror, Wizards of the Coast announced a huge swath of bans in Standard, Pioneer, Historic, and even Brawl. The announcement takes the total number of banned cards in this Standard format to ten -- a number of cards we have not seen banned at the same time since Urza's Block.
Brian David-Marshall and Magic Hall of Famer Zvi Mowshowitz walk through the history of banned and restricted cards in Standard, talk about the impact of these bans in the various formats, and Zvi...
2020-08-041h 12Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: Standard Wolf RatiosBDM and Magic Hall of Famer Zvi Mowshowitz climb back on the virtual bicycle to resume creating new episodes of the game's longest running (okay, okay, walking) podcast about all things MTG. In this episode the duo talk about:
Zvi's wolf ratio -- how often has he cried wolf accurately and how many times has it just been a stray dog? SPOILERS Wilderness Reclamation was a MF'n wolf.
This weekend's upcoming Player's Tour Finals Top 8 and the various weapons the 8 players will be bringing to the table.
Their picks for the winner of the event...
2020-07-291h 09Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: You Still Had All TheseThe longest running Magic podcast is back with a new (and long-running) episode. Brian David-Marshall is once more joined by Magic Hall of Famer Zvi Mowshowitz as the pair discuss the upcoming Players Tour, recent bannings, the changes to companions, and how Zvi's Stompy deck has found a lane in the Standard metagame.
With Magic 2021 spoilers coming fast and furiously they spend the rest of the episode going through the cards and trying to determine if the reprinting of Baneslayer Angel means that we are going to see R&D start to shift further away...
2020-06-102h 22Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: Bob Barker Says, Spay and Neuter Your PetsThe much heralded Banned and Restricted announcement has come and gone. While there is some immediate relief for Vintage and Legacy players from Lurrus, if you are a Standard player looking to avoid getting paired against a Companion deck anytime soon you are not going to be happy.
There was an interesting nugget buried in the last paragraph of the "Other Formats" section of the announcement in which Ian Duke said, "If we see signs of long-term health issues resulting from high metagame share of companion decks, we're willing to take steps up to or including...
2020-05-181h 20Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: Mythic Choices with ZviBDM and Zvi catch up early in the week as Zvi mulls his options for the upcoming Mythic Qualifier on MTG Arena, which he qualified for largely by playing Limited and rarely sporting more than 13 lands in his decks. Fortunately that same deck -- with not that many more lands -- is reasonably playable in Standard.
The duo talk through some of the recent metagame shifts from the Weekend Championship which former Rookie of the Year Oliver Tiu won with Jeskai Yorion Fires. Standard is not only pet-friendly right now it is downright mandatory.
As...
2020-05-061h 12Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: Cycling Through Ikoria Limited with Zvi: Part 3 - Rares and MythicsAt this point it is widely accepted that Ikoria Limited's shining star is the cycling deck that features uncommon build-arounds like Flourishing Fox and Valiant Rescuer; super-efficient red removal like Flame Spill and Fire Prophecy; and other key cards like Drannith Stingers and Healers, Ominous Seas, and Zenith Flare. There is a plethora of cheap options all at common or uncommon.
As Brian and Zvi get to the rare and mythic cards in their set review they do so with an eye to how many of the pricey rares rise above the high standards of the pauperific...
2020-04-252h 23Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: Cycling Through Ikoria Limited with Zvi: Part 2Part 2 of BDM and Zvi's journey through Ikoria limited. This episode covers Red, Green, Multicolored, Artifacts, and Lands.
Your hosts:
Brian David-Marshall - @Top8Games
Zvi Mowshowitz - @TheZvi
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Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/top8magic/support
2020-04-221h 47Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: Cycling Through Ikoria Limited with Zvi: Part 1Magic Hall of Famer Zvi Mowshowitz has gotten as low as 13 lands in the Ikoria Limited decks thanks to the power of "Cycling 1." He sits down with co-host Brian David-Marshall to look at the commons and uncommons in White, Blue, and Black as they try to figure out which cards make this draft format tick. They have already discussed the Companions and each other them have had success with them in Draft but is this a Prince or Pauper format? Do the commons and uncommons dominate the strategies or dies it all come down to the rare inhabitants of...
2020-04-201h 51Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: The Ikoria Companion PieceBDM and Zvi braved the scary new world of Skype-casting so the Hall of Fame Magic player and game designer could vent about free cards. Free cards are fun but not when everybody has them on exactly the turn they need them. Join Brian and Zvi for a brief discussion about the 10 cards with Companion and why Zvi is very wary about them.
Your hosts:
Brian David-Marshall - @Top8Games
Zvi Mowshowitz - @TheZvi
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Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/top8magic/support
2020-04-151h 20Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: Totally Lost in PhoenixJust another day at the office for BDM and Zvi as the Hall of Famer returns from his weekend in Phoenix to play in his first regional Players Tour event. Topics covered in this episode include:
- The Mono Blue Devotion deck designed by Sam Black and played by Zvi
- Zvi gets Fblthp'd
- How Mike Flores "saved some money" on a hotel room
- OH. MY. GOD! Was that an Elspeth, Sun's Nemesis in the Top 8??
- Are bans called for? (spoilers: they are not)
- Does a regional Players...
2020-02-111h 29Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic: Constellations of Cake: Part 1The whole gang is together for this one -- sort of. First Brian David-Marshall and Hall of Famer Zvi Mowshowitz chatted about ***spoilers*** Michael J's PTQ win this past weekend, the state of Standard, and what Zvi is hoping to find under his Utopia Tree this holiday season from the slowly-being-revealed Theros Beyond Death set.
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Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/top8magic/support
2019-12-181h 54Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comThe Top 8 Magic Mythic Championship VI Zvi-ViewBrian David-Marshall and Magic Hall of Famer Zvi Mowshowitz sat down at the Upper Westside location of Hex and Company (a burgeoning chain of NYC gaming cafes) to talk about Zvi's preparation for the upcoming Mythic Championship in Richmond. He walked through his approach to draft and why he thinks it is actually easy being green in Throne of Eldraine. He also reveals the deck that was almost his weapon of choice. At the time of recording he was pretty set on playing Cavaliers but was still hoping to go back to his ElkBlade brew; a deck that combines...
2019-11-071h 30Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic Presents: The Mythic Championship V Preview ShowIt was a dark and stormy night... No seriously. It was both dark and stormy. What better weather to huddle up in the office and pore over pages and pages of decklists. The Top 8 Magic team was out in full force with Brian "BDM" David-Marshall, Michael "MichaelJ" J. Flores, and Zvi "The Zvi" Mowshowitz breaking down the Mythic Championship V field just days before the event happens. With decks being locked in more than a week before the actual event was to be played, how much innovation got locked out in the tight turnaround time? With 29 of the 68...
2019-10-172h 22Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comZvi’s PT Prep: LimitedOn the day of BDM getting to play with Throne of Eldraine cards for the very first time he sat down with Pro Tour champion and Hall of Famer Zvi Mowshowitz to get his first takes on the new Limited format.
After the draft, BDM and Michael J. Flores connect to talk about the draft (***spoilers*** it did not go well) and discuss the cards Mike is thinking about buying from Face to Face Games for this new Standard format. After that the two discuss the new fall TV season and what they have been watching so...
2019-10-082h 18Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comZvi’s Adventures in Eldraine Parts 1 & 2Once upon a time there was a Hall of Famer and Pro Tour champion named Zvi who was going to be attending the Mythic ball in Richmond. Before he could attend that ball the wicked tournament organizer said had to complete all his chores; poring over the new cards as they were released to public, thinking about building new decks, and talking about the new cards for multiple hours on the longest running Magic podcast on the game’s history.
Magic Hall of Famer Zvi Mowshowitz joins Pro Tour Historian emeritus for another episode — and then anot...
2019-09-182h 50Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.comTop 8 Magic #483 - Core Set 2020 Preview: White Mike and ZviWith BDM out of town, Mike tags in Pro Tour Hall of Famer Zvi Mowshowitz to preview the White cards from Core Set 2020.
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2019-07-021h 05
Yo! MTG Taps!Yo! MTG Taps! YMTGT #13 Mage's ArkSupport YMTGT on Patreon!
This week, Joey and bhj welcome Cardhoarder as a new co-sponsor of the show, and introduce their new Fringe Division segment. Then they break down the details of the Red Bull Untapped tournament series, the London Mulligan going into effect with the release of Core Set 2020, and the just-announced Magic: the Gathering cartoon coming to Netflix! Finally, they dive into Modern Horizons spoilers!
Red Bull Untapped Tournament Series Details!
Magic: the Gathering Cartoon Details
OK, fine. Here's the REAL link to the Magic: the Gathering cartoon details.
2019-06-051h 24Top 8 Magic – magic.facetofacegames.com#477 - Breaking vases since 1999: a talk with Zvi MowshowitzBDM is in San Francisco this week, without Mike. But good thing he is, as this gave him the chance to connect and catch up with Pro Tour Hall of Famer and old friend, Zvi Mowshowitz about Magic the Gathering old and new.
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Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/top8magic/support
2019-05-241h 13
MTG Pro Tutor - Insights, Tips & Advice from Magic: The Gathering Pros34: Zvi Mowshowitz Teaches You To Develop A Growth MindsetZvi Mowshowitz has 9 Grand Prix top 8s including winning Grand Prix New Orleans. He has 4 Pro Tour top 8s including being the champion of Pro Tour Tokoyo in 2001. He was inducted into the Magic: The Gathering Hall of Fame in 2007. Zvi was born and raised in New York City.
Click to Tweet: I got a ton of value from Zvi Mowshowitz when he shared his story on MTG Pro Tutor today! Click here: http://bit.ly/mtgprotutor-ep34
First Set
Revised
The Dark (first booster pack)
Favorite Set
Lim...
2015-10-1357 min