Latest Interviews
Showing 46–60 of 80 interview transcripts.
Clear all filters- Milken Institute51 min
Fountain of Age: Unlocking the Secrets of Longer Life
Dr. Craig Venter, Dr. Peter Diamandis, Paul Irving
Human Longevity, Inc. is executing a strategy to sequence one million human genomes and integrate multi-omics data, including microbiome and neuroimaging, to enable predictive modeling that identifies complex genetic traits and anticipates diseases like dementia decades before onset. By leveraging machine learning to correlate vast datasets with phenotypic markers, the company aims to shift healthcare from reactive treatment to preventative intervention while addressing significant privacy challenges through advanced security protocols. The initiative projects to revolutionize the global economy by extending healthy lifespans, potentially unlocking trillions in capital and redefining retirement, provided society navigates the associated ethical frameworks regarding genetic data and discrimination.
- Milken Institute59 min
The Learning Gap: Creating the Workforce Industry Needs
Giselle Fernandez, Felix Ortiz III, Eloy Ortiz-Oakley, Chris Romer, Raul Valentin, Judy Woodruff
A diverse panel of education leaders and industry experts identified a critical national skills gap where 75 million Americans lack qualifications for middle-skill jobs, creating a mismatch between over 1 million unfilled openings and millions of unemployed individuals. Key figures including Felix Ortiz III, Raul Valentin, and Chris Romer argued that bureaucratic educational rigidity, outdated funding models, and insufficient employer engagement are exacerbating this crisis, which they characterize as a national security threat and an economic imperative requiring a shift toward competency-based outcomes. To resolve these barriers, the group proposed a new "employment triangle" that ties state funding to graduation rates, leverages data to align curricula with labor demands, and establishes hybrid credentialing systems to support lifelong learning and demographic surges.
- Milken Institute57 min
A Path Appears: A Conversation With Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn
Nicholas Kristof, Sheryl WuDunn, Steve Grove, Nick Kristof, Ashley, Derek McKesson, Dan Galpin, Esther Duflo, Brian Mulaney, Dan Pallotta, Eric Schmidt, Sheryl McCarthy, Nick Orloveyski
Google News Lab director Steve Grove facilitated a discussion with Pulitzer Prize-winning authors Nick Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn regarding their book *A Path Appears* and its accompanying PBS documentary on transforming social vulnerability into opportunity. The speakers advocate for applying business principles and market incentives to poverty alleviation, citing evidence from randomized trials that effective interventions must measure outcomes rather than inputs and leverage corporate strategies to address systemic issues like missing girls and the "word gap." They further highlight the physiological benefits of philanthropy and argue that future social progress depends on a "double bottom line" model where for-profit enterprises and rigorous data measurement replace traditional charity to solve intractable challenges in education, health, and urban violence.
- Milken Institute48 min
A Conversation With Ben Horowitz
Ben Horowitz discusses the unexpected broad resonance of his book *The Hard Thing About Hard Things* while detailing the dramatic $2.8 billion valuation of Slack, which emerged from a $18 million failure at TinySpec. He analyzes modern market dynamics, arguing that Silicon Valley avoids bubbles due to lower capital requirements and cloud infrastructure, while noting that regulatory gaps in private markets pose significant risks to liquidity and valuation. Additionally, Horowitz outlines a non-quota hiring strategy that eliminated unconscious bias to achieve 53% female representation and debunks the notion of a ride-sharing monopoly by highlighting driver saturation and the imminent disruption of self-driving technology.
- Milken Institute46 min
Engaging a Curious Mind: Brian Grazer Talks With Bob Iger About Life, Listening
Brian Grazer, Bob Iger, Robert Iger
Producer Brian Grazer attributes his success in film and television to a disciplined practice of seeking diverse conversations, ranging from political leaders like Vladimir Putin to scientists like Jonas Salk, which consistently reshape his creative perspectives. This approach, which he details in *A Curious Mind*, treats curiosity as a strategic superpower that has directly influenced major projects such as *Apollo 13* and *Empire* by connecting disparate experiences into coherent narratives. Executives like Bob Iger have adopted similar metrics for leadership, prioritizing authentic curiosity in hiring and strategic decision-making to navigate complex market dynamics.
- Milken Institute1h 6m
Dealing With China: A Conversation With Henry Paulson
Former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson details his tenure managing the 2008 financial crisis, highlighting real-time policy pivots involving Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Lehman Brothers that prevented total economic collapse. He further outlines his strategic engagement with China, noting the establishment of the Strategic Economic Dialogue which secured long-term climate cooperation while navigating tensions over human rights and intellectual property theft. Looking forward, Paulson advises prioritizing pragmatic economic linkages and institutional influence, such as joining the AIIB, to manage the complex spectrum of U.S.-China relations amid rising geopolitical and structural challenges.
- Milken Institute1h 23m
The Frackers: The Outrageous Inside Story of the New Billionaire Wildcatters
Gregory Zuckerman, Joel Kurtzman, Conrad Kieschel, Greg Zuckerman, David J., Eric Schmidt, John McCutchan, David Freeman, David Sanger
At a Milken Institute forum, author Greg Zuckerman and moderator Joel Kurtzman analyzed how unconventional entrepreneurs like George Mitchell and Harold Hamm drove a U.S. energy revolution, slashing import dependence from 40% to 14.5% through hydraulic fracturing innovations. This technological surge, powered by horizontal drilling and "slick water" fracking, transformed the nation into the world's top energy producer while generating millions of jobs and reshaping global geopolitical dynamics. Despite ongoing debates regarding environmental safety and seismic activity, the discussion emphasizes that these breakthroughs have provided a critical economic bridge toward future renewable energy adoption.
- Milken Institute1h 16m
Uncharted: Big Data as a Lens on Human Culture
Erez Aiden, Jean-Baptiste Michel, Skip Reimer
This analysis of a 5-million-book corpus derived from Google Books reveals how irregular verbs have regularized, collective memory decays faster than ever, and the time for technological adoption has plummeted from 65 to 26 years. Researchers also quantified the suppressive power of regimes like Nazi Germany and modern China through automated detection of n-gram frequency drops while demonstrating that cultural inertia allows for predictable long-term language trends. Ultimately, the study advocates for democratized big data access to objectively track public sentiment, career fame trajectories, and potential algorithmic biases across diverse fields.
- Milken Institute1h 17m
Son of a Gambling Man: My Journey from a Casino Family to the Governor's Mansion
Bob Miller, Joel Kurtzman, Mike Milken
On January 21, 2014, Harvard researchers Aris Aydin and Jean-Baptiste Michel will discuss *Uncharted Big Data as a Lens on Human Culture* alongside former Nevada Governor Bob Miller, who remains at the venue to sign copies of his autobiography. The event contextualizes Miller's career within the broader evolution of Las Vegas, tracing its transformation from a mob-influenced gambling hub into a globally recognized economic leader through the strategic visions of figures like Bugsy Siegel, Howard Hughes, and Steve Wynn. By detailing shifts in financing, regulatory oversight, and infrastructure, the session highlights how legal enforcement and corporate innovation drove Nevada's diversification beyond gaming into fields such as biotechnology, mining, and tech.
- Milken Institute56 min
A Conversation with Edmund Phelps, Moderated by Peter Passell
Edmund Phelps, Peter Passell, Krishna Kumar
Co-hosted by RAND and the Milken Institute, this event featured Nobel Laureate Edmund Phelps arguing that a shift from individualism to corporatism since the 1930s has stifled indigenous innovation and halved US productivity growth rates. Phelps highlighted that while established corporations currently leverage regulatory protections to block startups, China is matching historical US innovation rates through technological diffusion and grassroots experimentation. He concluded that reversing the stagnation requires a fundamental cultural shift that prioritizes individual creativity and risk-taking over traditional conformism, as standard economic policies alone cannot restore economic dynamism.
- Milken Institute1h 9m
MI Breakfast With Bill Richardson, Moderated by Ambassador Charles Ries
Bill Richardson, Charles Ries, Mike Clowden, Kevin Blyer
Governor Bill Richardson and Ambassador Charles Reese joined Milken Institute and RAND for a joint breakfast in Santa Monica to launch Richardson's book, *How to Sweet Talk a Shark*, and outline future innovation summits. The discussion featured Richardson's firsthand accounts of negotiating hostage releases with dictators in North Korea, Sudan, and Cuba, while also detailing strategic lessons on ethics, translator reliability, and the necessity of personal rapport. The event further highlighted three upcoming initiatives: a Nobel Laureate conversation with Edmund Phelps, a biotech investor conference in New York, and a private California Summit for state-level policy reform.
- Milken Institute1h 14m
Innovate Like IDEO: Meet the Dynasts of Design
David Kelley, Tom Kelley, Patrick Adams, Mike Clouton
IDEO co-founders David and Tom Kelly argue that creative confidence, a universal trait combining ideation with the courage to act, can be rebuilt through guided mastery to overcome societal fear of failure. Their framework emphasizes radical collaboration, empathy-driven problem reframing, and strategic prototyping, exemplified by innovations like the low-cost Embrace incubator and the redesign of the computer mouse. By shifting focus from innate talent to disciplined practice and rapid iteration, the authors demonstrate how individuals and organizations can systematically unlock breakthrough solutions across diverse fields.
- Milken Institute51 min
Dinner Program - To Infinity and Beyond: Jeff Skoll Talks with Elon and Kimbal Musk (updated)
Jeff Skoll, Kimbal Musk, Elon Musk, Paul
At a panel introduced by Jeff Skoll, brothers Elon and Kimbal Musk detailed their divergent yet complementary ventures, ranging from early startups like Zip2 and PayPal to Elon's engineering firms SpaceX and Tesla and Kimbal's culinary and nonprofit initiatives. The discussion highlighted specific milestones such as the sale of PayPal to eBay for $1.5 billion, Tesla's launch of the award-winning Model S, and The Kitchen Community's measurable impact on childhood nutrition and school test scores. Both founders reflected on their formative years in South Africa and Silicon Valley, emphasizing a shared philosophy that combines technological innovation with social responsibility through scalable, market-based solutions.
- Milken Institute55 min
A Conversation with Howard Marks and Mike Milken (updated)
Howard Marks, Mike Milken, Michael Milken
Historical analysis of major market crashes, including the 1973 Nifty Fifty collapse and the 2008 financial crisis, reveals that investors often suffer catastrophic losses by ignoring cyclical valuations and overestimating the safety of high-quality assets. The presentation further explains that long-term bond returns depend more on reinvestment rates than initial yields, while successful investing requires focusing on knowable factors like specific companies and demographics rather than unpredictable macro variables. Finally, the discussion highlights how Oaktree Capital Group sustains its long-term success through a firm culture rooted in specific ethical creeds, harmonious teamwork, and a succession strategy that prioritizes the perpetuation of values over individual founder skills.
- Milken Institute1h 15m
MI Forum: The Grace of Silence
Journalist Michele Norris presented her book *The Grace of Silence* at a KCRW forum, recounting how her family's unspoken trauma regarding her grandmother's "Aunt Jemima" performances and her father's 1946 police shooting in Birmingham revealed the protective function of silence in Black American history. Norris contrasted these personal narratives with systemic racial disparities and the "post-racial" myth, arguing that unaddressed historical trauma continues to shape contemporary inequities in employment and education. The event concluded with Norris advocating for a "National Day of Listening" to preserve such family oral histories, emphasizing that acknowledging these specific stories is essential for understanding national strength rather than dwelling in pain.