Podcast Episodes

When You Come at the King: Holding Presidents to Account (with Elie Honig)

Season 1 Episode 72

It’s our first Saturday drop! Nate and Maria host former assistant US Attorney Elie Honig to discuss his new book, a brisk history of special counsels — plagued by politics, checked by presidents, de…

Published on 5 hours ago

Can The Center Hold After Charlie Kirk? Plus: Shutdown Strategy

Season 1 Episode 71

Nate and Maria share their reactions to last week’s assassination of conservative organizer and activist Charlie Kirk, who died after sustaining a gunshot wound at a speaking event on a Utah campus. …

Published on 3 days, 5 hours ago

Is There Really A Crisis of Masculinity?

Season 1 Episode 70

Tesla has offered CEO Elon Musk a package worth $1 trillion to stay at the helm of the company — if he can hit a series of very ambitious goals. All of this comes in the midst of a serious dip in per…

Published on 1 week, 3 days ago

Determinative Decisions Before Birth: Genes and Names

Season 1 Episode 69

Nate is on vacation this week, so Maria is joined by journalist David Epstein, author of The Sports Gene and Range. They talk about a new company that offers comprehensive genetic sequencing on embry…

Published on 2 weeks, 2 days ago

The Game Theory of Reality TV (with Survivor’s Boston Rob)

Season 1 Episode 68

This week, Maria interviews reality TV legend Boston Rob. Rob has been on Survivor six times, and has also appeared on The Amazing Race, The Traitors, and Deal or No Deal Island. He’s a master strate…

Published on 3 weeks, 2 days ago

Where the Puck Is Going: Why Maximum Gerrymandering May Be Inevitable

Season 1 Episode 67

As Texas embarks on a rare round of mid-decade redistricting and California threatens to answer with its own, Nate and Maria analyze the history, politics, and game theory of gerrymandering.

For more…

Published on 4 weeks, 2 days ago

What’s the Optimal Personality for AI?

Season 1 Episode 66

This week Nate and Maria discuss the release of GPT-5, the latest model from OpenAI. This model promises to be faster, smarter, and more useful while also reducing hallucinations and sycophancy. It a…

Published on 1 month ago

Grand Theft Automated: How to Save a Trillion Lives from Cautionary Tales

Season 1

A radical thought experiment transforms the lives of a new breed of philanthropists, as they follow the logic of altruism to extraordinary lengths. The most famous convert to the Effective Altruism m…

Published on 1 month, 1 week ago

America’s New AI Strategy

Season 1 Episode 65

With all the frenzy last week around Jeffrey Epstein and ColdplayGate, you might have missed an important story: Trump’s new AI Action Plan. Released alongside three new executive orders on AI, the p…

Published on 1 month, 2 weeks ago

You Play Better When You’re Having Fun (with Leo Margets and Erik Seidel)

Season 1 Episode 64

To wrap up our coverage of the World Series of Poker, we bring you a poker interview extravaganza. This year, Leo Margets became the second woman ever to make it to the Main Event final table—and the…

Published on 1 month, 3 weeks ago