Latest Interviews
Showing 5671–5685 of 6,112 interview transcripts.
- 80,000 Hours2h 40m
#25 - Prof Robin Hanson on why we have to lie to ourselves about why we do what we do
Robin Hanson, Kevin Simler, Keiran Harris, Rob Wiblin
Robin Hanson and Kevin Simler propose in *The Elephant in the Brain* that human institutions like education, medicine, and charity function primarily as signals of status and virtue rather than fulfilling their stated goals. By exposing how self-deception and hidden motives sustain these systems, the authors argue that effective reform requires designing policies that allow individuals to maintain their high-minded self-image while actually achieving better real-world outcomes. This perspective challenges conventional wisdom across sociology and futurology, urging a shift from abstract idealism to pragmatic strategies aligned with true human incentives.
- 80,000 Hours55 min
#24 - Stefan Schubert on why it’s a bad idea to break the rules, even if it’s for a good cause
Stefan Schubert, Keiran Harris, Rob Wiblin
Stefan Schubert examines the tension between epistemic modesty and effective altruism's cultural cohesion, warning that overconfidence and political tribalism threaten the movement's rational foundations while urging a shift toward specialized expertise. He analyzes organizational trends where talent gaps now overshadow funding constraints and highlights the slow pace of "creative destruction," noting that the community's reputation for integrity remains a fragile asset that demands strict adherence to norms over short-term gains. Ultimately, Schubert clarifies the concept of cause neutrality to argue that deep confidence in existential risks like AI safety can coexist with a willingness to update beliefs, provided the movement avoids irreversible political entanglements and continues expanding its reach into the developing world.
- 80,000 Hours46 min
#23 - How to actually become an AI alignment researcher, according to Dr Jan Leike
Dr Jan Leike, Jan, Keiran Harris, Rob Whitland
Dr. Jan Leicher, a research scientist at DeepMind and the Future of Humanity Institute, discusses the critical challenges of aligning advanced AI systems with human intentions through recent collaborations with OpenAI on learning reward functions from human preferences. The conversation details specific failure modes where robustness breaks down due to unreliable uncertainty quantification in deep neural networks and highlights severe security vulnerabilities regarding adversarial attacks and side effects in agent exploration. Leicher further outlines the urgent need for qualified technical talent, recommending rigorous mathematical training and PhD-level research experience to address the growing shortage of experts capable of navigating the frontier of AI safety.
- 80,000 Hours1h 8m
#22 - Dr Leah Utyasheva on the non-profit that figured out how to massively cut suicide rates
Dr Leah Utyasheva, Keiran Harris, Rob Wiblin
Founded in 2016 by Leah Utyasheva and Professor Michael Eddleston, the Centre for Pesticide Suicide Prevention advocates for banning highly toxic Class 1A pesticides to address the 150,000 annual deaths caused by impulsive agricultural self-poisoning. Backed by a GiveWell grant and affiliated with the University of Edinburgh, the organization is collecting hospital data from India and Nepal to demonstrate that restricting access to these lethal means is a cost-effective strategy, having already saved 93,000 lives in Sri Lanka. This evidence-based approach aims to persuade local regulators to prioritize means reduction over ineffective safe storage measures, thereby relieving overwhelmed health systems and fulfilling government obligations to protect citizen safety.
- Y Combinator4h 20m
Female Founders Conference - Mountain View
Kirsteen Nathoo, Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, Adora Chung, Christina, Tiffany, Ashley, Carolyn Levy, Alexandra Zatarain, Jess Lee, Holly Liu, Stephanie, Pat Piper
Hosted by Y Combinator partners Kirsteen Nathoo and Carolyn Levy, the five-year-old Female Founders Conference convened 350 women in Mountain View to discuss scaling strategies, fundraising, and product validation through sessions led by founders from Promise, Vanta, and Eight. The event featured critical insights on overcoming bias in venture capital from Sequoia Capital's Jess Lee and detailed case studies on pivoting and hiring from Kabam's Holly Liu, who shared lessons from her billion-dollar exit. Outcomes included actionable advice on "doing things that don't scale" for early traction, navigating government contracts, and shifting investor narratives from empathy to financial opportunity.
- The Economist35 min
Steve Bannon debate at The Economist #OpenFutures festival
Steve Bannon, Zanny Minton Beddoes, Julissa Arce, Daniel Franklin
Steve Bannon articulates a strategy of economic nationalism that prioritizes immigration restrictions and trade protectionism to reclaim American jobs, while defending European populist leaders like Viktor Orbán and Matteo Salvini as legitimate defenders of national sovereignty. He characterizes China as a totalitarian rival in an economic war and frames the Paris Climate Agreement as a geopolitical failure, arguing instead that the true threat to the working class lies in the convergence of automation and genetic engineering. This worldview drives a broader mission to deconstruct the administrative state and appoint conservative judges who can dismantle regulatory overreach, positioning Donald Trump as the essential vehicle to break the "medieval theology" of free trade.
- The Economist25 min
Tony Blair on the future of liberalism
Marking the 175th anniversary of *The Economist* and the 21st anniversary of New Labour, former Prime Minister Tony Blair reflects on the 1998, 2003, and 2004 policy decisions that contributed to modern societal fractures while outlining a renewal strategy for liberalism. Blair proposes addressing root causes of polarization through strict immigration controls without prejudice, a proactive technological policy agenda, and a return to positive-sum economic growth to counter the rise of populism. Urging the restoration of a rational political center, he suggests resolving the Brexit impasse via a second referendum and warns that without a centrist platform, the UK risks perpetual political paralysis between the extremes.
- Y Combinator1h 8m
A Conversation About Crypto-currencies and ICOs with Andy Bromberg
Andy Bromberg transitioned from founding the failed expert-discourse platform Sidewire to co-launching CoinList, where he led the Filecoin ICO and established strict criteria for tokenized startups that prioritize decentralization over centralized intermediaries. By contrasting token sales with traditional equity, Bromberg highlights how decentralized assets grant immediate investor liquidity while preserving founder control, yet often lack the incentive alignment and governance rights characteristic of venture-backed firms. Despite noting that only a fraction of contacted companies meet his rigorous standards, he argues that tokens serve a specific role in trustless value transmission, predicting a market where few blockchains host numerous interoperable assets built on established standards like ERC-20.
- 80,000 Hours2h 36m
#21 - Holden Karnofsky on times philanthropy transformed the world & Open Phil’s plan to do the same
Holden Karnofsky, Margaret Sanger, Gregory Pincus, Katherine McCormick, Keiran Harris, Rob Wiblin
The Open Philanthropy Project, funded primarily by Good Ventures, operates on a venture-capital model to deploy over $100 million annually toward high-risk, high-impact causes including U.S. criminal justice reform, farm animal welfare, and artificial intelligence safety. The organization employs a distinct "50-40-10" grant approval framework and prioritizes field building to create expert communities in neglected areas like AI alignment and pandemic preparedness. Through strategic board engagement at institutions like OpenAI and a rigorous, truth-seeking hiring culture, the project aims to mitigate global catastrophic risks while maximizing philanthropic returns on long-term societal transformation.
- 80,000 Hours1h 18m
#20 - Bruce Friedrich on inventing outstanding meat substitutes to end speciesism & factory farming
Bruce Friedrich, Natalie Cargill, Keiran Harris, Rob Wiblin
The Good Food Institute executes a strategy to displace industrial animal agriculture by accelerating the development of plant-based and clean meats that compete on price, taste, and convenience rather than ethical appeal. While current market share for alternatives remains below 1% amidst a record 9 billion annual animal slaughters, industry experts project cost parity with conventional meat within a decade through bioreactor scaling and synthetic biology. Operating as a rapidly expanding nonprofit funded entirely by philanthropy, the organization targets a 2050 vision where these technologies collectively fulfill 100% of global meat demand.
- 80,000 Hours1h 5m
#19 - Samantha Pitts-Kiefer on working next to the White House trying to prevent nuclear war
Samantha Pitts-Kiefer, Keiran Harris, Rob Wiblin
The Nuclear Threat Initiative, founded by Sam Nunn and Ted Turner, outlines critical risks of nuclear terrorism and great power miscalculation through insights from Senior Director Samantha Pitts-Kyfer. The analysis highlights how dirty bombs could cause economic collapse, while modern cyber vulnerabilities and hair-trigger alert statuses between the US and Russia threaten accidental nuclear war with global catastrophic consequences. To mitigate these existential dangers, the organization advocates for ending prompt launch policies, restoring US-Russia dialogue, and accelerating verified disarmament to prevent both state conflict and non-state acquisition of weapons of mass destruction.
- Milken Institute18 min
CreditEase Founder Ning Tang at MIGlobal
At the Milken Institute's 21st Annual Global Conference, Credit Ease CEO Nian Tang outlined his company's strategic pivot from China's pioneering P2P lending sector into a global fintech leader facilitating over $1 trillion in transactions. Tang detailed how the firm is leveraging mobile technology and robust investor education to bridge China's credit infrastructure gaps, shifting market behavior from speculation toward long-term wealth management and professional asset allocation. By combining deep financial expertise with advanced technology, Credit Ease aims to serve underserved small businesses and democratize financial advisory services for the Chinese middle class while navigating an increasingly rigorous regulatory landscape.
- 80,000 Hours1h 19m
#18 - Ofir Reich on using data science to end poverty & the spurious action-inaction distinction
Ofir Reich, Keiran Harris, Rob Wiblin
The Center for Effective Global Action at UC Berkeley advances global poverty alleviation through three core initiatives: fostering academic networks, enforcing research transparency to combat the reproducibility crisis, and directing funding for over 70 academics to study poverty. Recent data science projects led by Ophir Reich apply machine learning to detect tax evasion in India, optimize agricultural yields via mobile platforms in Ethiopia and India, and evaluate mobile salary payments for Afghan teachers. These efforts rely on rigorous randomized controlled trials and open data practices, while the organization advises aspiring practitioners to prioritize high-impact roles in established institutions to build the necessary technical capital for long-term effectiveness.
- 80,000 Hours1h 53m
#17 - Prof Will MacAskill on moral uncertainty, utilitarianism & how to avoid being a moral monster
Prof Will MacAskill, Will MacAskill, Rob Wiblin
Will McCaskill reflects on the transition of the Effective Altruism movement from its origins in GiveWell and Giving What We Can to its current status as a global network, while stepping down as CEO of the Center for Effective Altruism to pursue academic leadership in moral uncertainty research. He argues that decision-making should analogously apply expected value reasoning to moral theories, proposing a "Long Reflection" era where humanity resolves fundamental value questions before committing to irreversible actions. Despite these theoretical advances, McCaskill emphasizes the necessity of addressing critiques regarding justice, institutional bias, and the need for greater diversity to prevent the community from stagnating in groupthink.
- 80,000 Hours55 min
#16 - Dr Hutchinson on global priorities research & shaping the ideas of intellectuals
Dr Hutchinson, Michelle Hutchinson, Keiran Harris, Rob Wiblin
Established at the University of Oxford, the Global Priorities Institute operates as an academic research body dedicated to determining how to maximize good per unit of resources by integrating effective altruism principles with philosophy and economics. Under the leadership of Director Hilary Graves, the institute is currently hiring researchers to develop comparative cause prioritization frameworks and address the limitations of traditional metrics like the QALY. To ensure long-term viability within the university system, the organization structures roles to balance movement-focused agendas with traditional high-status academic publishing, seeking to eventually establish satellite hubs that mirror models like J-PAL.