Latest Interviews

ESG Passes the Stress Test

John Goldstein, Liz

During the 2020 market downturn, ESG funds demonstrated exceptional resilience and attracted $120 billion in net inflows while non-ESG alternatives saw outflows, proving sustainable finance is a fundamental economic driver rather than a market luxury. Goldman Sachs and other industry leaders now prioritize "Inclusive Growth" alongside environmental goals, urging investors and corporations to move beyond ideological labels toward tangible execution in risk mitigation, talent retention, and supply chain mandates. Looking ahead to 2021, the strategic focus shifts to standardizing data, accelerating decarbonization in hard-to-abate sectors like steel and energy, and integrating these real-economy drivers directly into core business purposes.

Eddie Hearn on Selling Matchroom For 5 Billion | E58

Eddie Hearn, Stephen Bartlett

Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn discusses the psychological drive stemming from a win-centric upbringing that fuels his relentless business aggression while acknowledging the severe toll this takes on his family life and mental stability. He outlines a strategy to maximize Matchroom Boxing's global valuation by maintaining total control, rejecting offers of sale or IPO to preserve his legacy alongside his father before eventually transitioning into retirement. Despite admitting to anxiety and the paradox of finding peace only in chaos, Hearn emphasizes his evolved focus on simple goals and the ultimate realization that family time outweighs material success.

Uncle Bob - The Long Reach of Code, Automating Programming, and Developing Coding Talent

Uncle Bob, Robert Martin

Robert Martin argues that the future of programming depends on irreplaceable human intuition and leadership rather than AI automation, emphasizing that current machines lack the sentience required to handle complex specifications and legacy quirks. He proposes a significant shift in professional training and hiring, recommending that trade-style apprenticeships replace traditional university degrees while assessment focuses on long-term observation of problem-solving skills rather than standardized coding tests. Furthermore, Martin calls for the industry to establish a professional regulatory body to enforce ethical standards and advocates for merit-based hiring practices to ensure technical competence without political or diversity quotas.

Dennis Lynch, Head of Counterpoint Global at Morgan Stanley Investment Management

Dennis Lynch, Katie

Dennis Lynch, who oversees over $100 billion in assets at Morgan Stanley's CounterPoint Global, discusses how the pandemic accelerated e-commerce and digital infrastructure trends while reinforcing a fundamental investment approach centered on internet advertising, streaming, and healthcare technology. Lynch emphasizes that strict position sizing for capital-intensive businesses and a culturally diverse, long-tenured team are critical for navigating systemic crises and drawdowns. He further advises emerging investors to cultivate broad perspective over narrow specialization to ensure long-term relevance as industry landscapes shift over decades.

E13: SPACsgiving Special! Vaccine news, innovation vs regulation, fixing higher ed, challenge trials

Chamath, Friedberg, Sacks, Jason, Dave Chappelle, Trump, Biden

David Sacks, Chamath Palihapitiya, and Jason Calacanis discussed Metro Mile's SPAC-led public listing, highlighting its pay-per-mile insurance model that leverages OBD-II data to lower costs for consumers. The panel also analyzed the rapid rollout of mRNA vaccines under Operation Warp Speed, debating the ethics of challenge trials and attributing the acceleration to deregulation and a critique of regulatory capture. Broader economic conversations covered SEC rules for gig workers, the potential of income sharing agreements for education, and the geopolitical shifts driven by energy economics that facilitated the Abraham Accords.

Tristan Harris, President of the Center for Humane Technology

Tristan Harris, Jessica

Tristan Harris, a former Google design ethicist and founder of the Center for Humane Technology, argues that Silicon Valley business models exploit human psychological weaknesses through algorithms that prioritize engagement over wellbeing. He contends that these systems fracture shared reality, drive societal polarization, and undermine collective action on existential threats like climate change by treating users as domesticated livestock rather than citizens. Harris proposes regulating these underlying attention economies to restore executive control and build a nonpartisan foundation for democratic resilience.

Misan Harriman, Photographer

Misan Harriman

British Vogue Editor-in-Chief Edward Enninfield selected photographer Anne Harriman to shoot the historic September cover, marking the first time in the publication's 104-year history that a Black photographer has held the role. This decision followed the viral spread of Harriman's civil rights imagery from the 2020 London protests, which highlighted her self-taught background and dual Nigerian-English cultural influences. Looking toward the future, Harriman aims to scale her media business "We See" to drive institutional change while advocating for prison education reform and expanding into documentary filmmaking to emulate the legacies of artists like Gordon Parks.

Comma.ai Drive and Tour with George Hotz and Lex Fridman

George Hotz, Lex Fridman

George Hotz demonstrated the Comma 2 system's end-to-end neural network capabilities during a San Diego drive, where the vehicle successfully navigated complex banked curves and lane changes without disengagement while leveraging Hyundai's existing longitudinal control. Operating from multinational facilities in the U.S. and Europe, the company has grown its active user base to nearly 3,000 monthly devices and now manages 30 million miles of data to validate safety through rigorous injection testing. With plans to deploy OpenPilot 1.1 via over-the-air updates and integrate new machine learning talent, the firm aims to achieve full holistic autonomy on highways before expanding to dense city environments.

How She Built Her Confidence, and Then an Empire with Krissy Cela | E57

Krissy Cela

Fitness entrepreneur Chrissy Chella details her evolution from a bullied immigrant to the founder of the Tone and Sculpt app, driven by a commitment to unfiltered honesty and the prioritization of mental health over traditional aesthetics. Despite achieving financial independence and scaling her business to 22 employees, she candidly discusses the strain of balancing entrepreneurship with relationships, which contributed to the breakdown of her marriage to co-founder Jack. With her upcoming book set to release in January, Chella aims to shift her legacy toward fostering genuine emotional support and long-term resilience within her community of women.

How to learn and master a new skill

The speaker advocates for a mastery philosophy rooted in daily discipline rather than fleeting motivation, asserting that a minimum of two hours of practice for one year is necessary to establish a lasting learning habit. Over a five-year timeline, this intensive regimen can be scaled down to a single hour or even ten minutes of daily maintenance, relying on the cumulative effect of skill acquisition and the inevitability of passion returning through persistent effort. By reframing struggle as a positive indicator of neural "locking in" and prioritizing consistency over rest, the approach aims to transition learners from conscious effort into a state of flow where the art itself becomes a source of deep meaning and enjoyment.

Oscar Munoz, Executive Chairman of United Airlines

Oscar Munoz, John

United Airlines Executive Chairman Oscar Munoz leveraged his background in crisis management and direct government lobbying to secure CARES Act funding and implement rapid liquidity measures that enabled the carrier to navigate the pandemic's immediate threats. Under Munoz's leadership, the airline shifted from reactive survival to proactive customer-centric innovation by eliminating change fees and advocating for global rapid testing protocols to facilitate safe international travel. With a strategic focus on passenger safety and profitability, United projects a phased return to full operations by 2022, contingent on vaccine deployment and the successful integration of hybrid digital and physical customer service models.

Dr. Tony Coles, President, CEO and Chairperson of Cerevel Therapeutics

Dr. Tony Coles, Ross

Dr. Tony Coles, President and CEO of Cerevel Therapeutics, leverages his dual leadership of the company and the Black Economic Alliance to articulate how the biopharmaceutical sector's scientific "platinum age" must align with urgent socio-economic imperatives. He outlines how breakthroughs in vaccine development and shifting consumer demands, evidenced by Edelman research, compel businesses to prioritize diversity, wage equity, and moral stewardship to mitigate revenue risks in a polarized climate. Ultimately, Coles argues that organizational success now depends on leadership courage to address systemic racism and economic displacement, moving beyond traditional analytics to drive reskilling initiatives and inclusive policies.

How Technology is Disrupting the Insurance Industry

Kelly Galanis, Liz

Valued at approximately $5 trillion, the global insurance market is undergoing significant technological disruption driven by $7 billion in recent venture capital, strategic M&A activity, and the adoption of AI, IoT, and cloud-based core systems. While incumbents leverage minority investments and distribution partnerships to maintain relevance, emerging insurtechs are utilizing full-stack direct models and advanced underwriting automation to optimize customer acquisition and retention across life, auto, and commercial lines. This dynamic fosters a non-winner-takes-all environment where collaboration between established carriers and innovative entrants focuses on re-bundling offerings and utilizing alternative data for precise risk assessment.

Tom Lister, Co-Managing Partner of Permira

Tom Lister

Primera Capital navigated the early pandemic's valuation gap by fortifying its existing healthcare and technology portfolios before resuming aggressive investment in resilient marketplaces. The firm’s current strategy prioritizes securing exceptional assets despite intense competition, relying on rigorous primary-source verification and a disciplined approach to monetization timing rather than model-dependent assumptions. Looking ahead, investors are advised to maintain resilience against market pushback while preparing for a higher S&P 500 trajectory, even as geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China remain politically driven.

Douglas Parker, Chairman and CEO of American Airlines

Douglas Parker, Doug

American Airlines Chairman and CEO Doug Parker outlined a crisis management strategy focused on transparency, maintaining 100% employee work hours via CARES Act support, and prioritizing full cash refunds over competitor voucher practices to preserve corporate character. The airline has accelerated the retirement of roughly 150 aircraft and reduced daily cash burn to $25–30 million while projecting 2021 capacity to remain 10% below 2019 levels to align with demand constraints. Additionally, American leveraged its youngest global fleet to enforce strict safety protocols and invest in sustainable aviation fuels, aiming for profitability recovery by 2022 as leisure travel drives the market.