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Season 1

May 31, 2024

E61: Noah Smith on Wokeness, Right Wing Muckrakers, and Class vs Identity

Todays episode features a conversation between Noah Smith and Erik Torenberg discussing the recent angry posts on X from David Austin Walsh, a history postdoc at Yale, and what this controversy says about elite overproduction in the US. They also cover the the rise of right-wing muckrakers, discuss what the conservative movement needs now, and who they consider the smartest thinkers today are — on the left and the right.

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May 24, 2024

E60: AI in the Techno-Economic War with China with Vinod Khosla, Todd Young, and Jacob Helberg

In this episode of Upstream, we're publishing a session recorded live at The Hill & Valley Forum in May 2024 hosted by Jacob Helberg, and featuring Vinod Khosla of Khosla Ventures, and Senator Todd Young (R-IN).

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May 17, 2024

E59: Bryan Caplan on Housing Regulation, Fertility, and Crime

This week on Upstream, Erik sits down with Bryan Caplan to discuss his new book about housing regulation. The conversation touches on political economy, fertility, crime, and more. beehiiv: Head to https://Beehiiv.com and use...

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May 11, 2024

E58: Jonathan Haidt on Analyzing Culture, Tech, and Politics

This week on Upstream, Erik sits down with Jonathan Haidt to discuss his book The Anxious generation. The conversation covers the effects of social media on teen mental health, culture, politics, education, and more.

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May 3, 2024

E57: Noah Smith Analyzes Economies: USA, China, Japan, Russia, India, Korea, & More

This week on Upstream, we're releasing an episode from Erik's podcast with Noah Smith, Econ 102. Noah breaks down the economies of the USA, China, Japan, Russia, India, Korea, and more.

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April 26, 2024

E56: Brian Chau on Spreading Informed AI Optimism

This week on Upstream, Nathan Labenz of The Cognitive Revolution podcast and Brian Chau, a machine learning engineer who recently founded the Alliance for the Future, talk about Brian's efforts in Washington, D.C. to influence AI policy based on informed AI optimism. After their conversation, Nathan and Erik chat about the AI landscape.

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April 19, 2024

E55: Why China's Universities Will Become Harvard

This week on Upstream, we’re releasing an episode from Turpentine’s show Live Players with Samo Burja. Erik and Samo discuss China’s universities and the future of China’s elites.

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April 12, 2024

E54: Naval Ravikant and Balaji Srinivasan on Why History Points to Crypto

This episode was initially recorded before a live audience in 2018. Erik talks with Naval Ravikant and Balaji Srinivasan about the history of money and centralization and why crypto has the potential to fulfill the promise of the internet.

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April 5, 2024

E53: Nathan Labenz and Noah Smith on What AI Actually Means for the Economy

This week on Upstream, Erik is joined by Nathan Labenz and Noah Smith for a deep dive on how AI will impact job markets, the social contract, and the role of the government.

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March 29, 2024

E52: David Friedman on Anarcho-Capitalism, Utilitarianism, and Inequality

This week on Upstream, Erik is joined by David Friedman for a deep dive on anarcho-capitalism, utilitarianism, and more.

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March 22, 2024

E51: How We Build More Housing with Brad Hargreaves & Noah Smith

In this special roundtable episode, Erik Torenberg is joined by Brad Hargreaves (the founder of Common, co-founder of General Assembly, and writer of Thesis Driven) and Noah Smith (podcast host, economist and writer of Noahpinion).

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March 15, 2024

E50: Alex Blania on Worldcoin, AGI, and Future Predictions

This week on Upstream, Erik is joined by Alex Blania, who, with Sam Altman, co-founded Tools for Humanity, the organization behind Worldcoin. Erik and Alex go deep on Worldcoin, AGI, and other future tech.

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March 8, 2024

E49: The Legacy of Effective Altruism with Igor Kurganov

This week on Upstream, Erik is joined by Igor Kurganov, poker player and founder of Raising for Effective Giving.

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March 1, 2024

E48: Liron Shapira on Why We Need to Pause AI

This week on Upstream, Erik is joined by Liron Shapira to discuss the case against further AI development, why Effective Altruism doesn’t deserve its reputation, and what is misunderstood about nuclear weapons.

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Feb. 23, 2024

E47: Rob Henderson on Life in Foster Care, Academia, and Beyond

This week on Upstream, Erik is joined by Rob Henderson, psychologist and author of the newly released Troubled: A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class. They discuss dating, cancel culture, luxury beliefs, and more.

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Feb. 16, 2024

E46: Lyn Alden on How Money Works

This week on Upstream, Erik is joined by Lyn Alden, an investment strategist known for her unique blend of engineering, tech, and finance expertise. They discuss her book Broken Money, macro trends, and her best advice in the face of an uncertain economic future.

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Feb. 9, 2024

E45: Bayeslord and Nadia Asparouhova on Effective Accelerationism

On this episode of Upstream, Erik sits down with e/acc founder Bayeslord and writer Nadia Asparouhova to discuss the foundations and future of the e/acc movement.

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Feb. 2, 2024

E44: Tyler Cowen on Harvard, the GOAT Economist, and Ending Stagnation

On this episode of Upstream, Erik sits down with Tyler Cowen to discuss Harvard, AI, Javier Milei's legacy, the value of non-legibility in talent spotting, and more.

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Jan. 26, 2024

E43: Richard Hanania on Wokeness, Israel-Palestine, and the Mythos of the Modern Right

This week on Upstream, political scientist and writer Ricard Hanania returns to the show. Erik and Richard discuss wokeness, the Israel-Palestine conflict, the mythos of the modern right, Richard's upcoming debate with Curtis Yarvin, and more.

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Jan. 19, 2024

E42: Erik Torenberg on the Evolution of Media

This week on Upstream, the tables are turned, and Erik is sitting in the guest seat. We're airing an episode the podcast Where It Happens hosted by Greg Isenberg. They discuss B2B creators, how to find profitable niches, how to monetize media businesses, and more.

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Jan. 12, 2024

E41: Steve Hsu on the Future of Everything

In this episode of Upstream, Erik sits down with theoretical physicist and startup founder Steve Hsu. They discuss political polarization in academia, the fertility crisis, AI, and more.

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Jan. 5, 2024

E40: Develop Your Personal Investing Strategy with Itay Vinik

On today's Upstream, Erik interviews Itay Vinik to get an overview of the markets and current macro environment, learn frameworks for adjusting an investing strategy based on rising or falling interest rates, and debunk common investment myths.

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Dec. 29, 2023

E39: Balaji Srinivasan and Nathan Labenz on AI's Future, Human-AI Symbiosis, and AI Control

On today's Upstream, we're sharing a recent episode where Balaji Srinivasan joins Nathan Labenz to discuss the future of AI: polytheistic AI and AI gods, human-AI symbiosis, and how AI will be controlled.

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Dec. 22, 2023

E38: Holiday Special: Request for Startups

This week, in a departure from Upstream's usual format, Erik sits downs with friends Nick DeWilde, Sean Linehan, and Justin Mares to exchange startup ideas in a new format called "Request for Startups." Please note that this ...

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