A powerfully prophetic discussion about the meaning of work in the 21st century as technology transforms all areas of the global economy. 

Ryan Avent, economics columnist at The Economist, and Azeem Azhar, curator of Exponential View, explore issues around how digital technologies are, and will continue to exponentially change the relationship between capital and labour. 

They discuss what new social contracts will ensue, and how we will see the reshaping of social and cultural capital in a dramatically reordered world. What role for the human in this altered landscape, how will they find meaning and purpose in redefined and irrevocably renegotiated relationships to productivity and the market? 

This conversation was recorded as a fireside chat in front of a live audience at a private Exponential View event in London.

The Wealth of Humans: Ryan Avent in conversation with Azeem Azhar

A wide-ranging conversation on technology with Jason Pontin, Editor-in-Chief of MIT Technology Review.

We touch on gene editing, Moore's Law, artificial intelligence, Facebook and fake news and what ties all these disparate strands together.

A survey of technology: Jason Pontin in conversation with Azeem Azhar

Philosopher and investor, Dr Shamil Chandaria, investigates how we might live much longer lives and asks how we can make those longer lives more meaningful.

He dives into the emerging medicine and science of life extension in a deep but accessible way. He explains how we should consider super-longevity and super-wellbeing in tandem. And in discussion with an audience we explore the motivations for and ramifications of much longer lives.

The future of longevity: a discussion with Dr Shamil Chandaria

A conversation between Prof Yuval Harari and Azeem Azhar.

We cover the compelling insights Yuval makes in his new book Homo Deus. Where are we, as a species, going now that we have conquered main of the things that ailed preceding generations?

How will the twin advances of genetic engineering and artificial intelligence come together to transform humans and human society?

Homo Deus: A conversation between Yuval Harari and Azeem Azhar

Living with and loving robots: The Exponential View salon with Kate Devlin on robot intimacy and a new age of sex, relationships and social life.

Up close and personal: Living intimately with robots with Kate Devlin

Scott Santens is a writer and an advocate for universal basic income. His articles have been featured in TechCrunch, Boston Globe, and Politico, among others. Scott coauthored two books: “What Do We Do About Inequality?” and “Surviving the Machine Age: Intelligent Technology and the Transformation of Human Work”. He moderates /r/BasicIncome community on Reddit. 

In this episode, Scott talks about why he believes “citizens’ salary” is a necessary measure for our societies to deal with tech unemployment by providing an independent income floor. He finds it paradoxical that we keep on developing technology to help us do more, while ending up being afraid of tech taking over our jobs. In these circumstances, he notes, a new model of ownership needs to be implemented, with everyone starting off from the same point.

For further reading on Scott's work and UBI, visit:

http://www.scottsantens.com/basic-income-faq

https://www.reddit.com/r/BasicIncome/wiki/index#wiki_that.27s_all_very_well.2C_but_where.27s_the_evidence.3F

https://www.basicincome.org.

Basic income: A conversation between Scott Santens and Azeem Azhar

For the tech community, code almost exclusively has a uniform meaning: a set of instructions, until recently only written by humans, that specifies any action a computer should execute. 

In his most recent book, Philip Auerswald talks about “code” in a broader meaning of the word — it is the “how” of human productivity, the manner in which we create, refine and implement the infrastructure that forms a human society. The advance of code, from the Neolithic era to the modern times, has been driving the identity and work reinvention. Philip argues that we are at one of those crucial stages now, and through his book offers a guide to the future. 

Philip Auerswald is an associate professor of public policy at George Mason University Schar School of Policy and Government and a co-editor of Innovations, a quarterly journal about entrepreneurial solutions to global challenges. He currently leads the Global Entrepreneurship Research Network, an initiative of the Kauffman Foundation. His most recent book, The Code Economy: A Forty-Thousand-Year History, explains how code has been a key driver of human development.

You can find Philip's book here: auerswald.org/2016/12/30/the-code-economy-a-forty-thousand-year-history/

Code as the Key Driver of Human Development: A conversation between Philip Auerswald and Azeem Azhar

With more than 40% market share in mobile games, a billion monthly active users and 2.6 billion unique devices, Unity has a profoundly important role in booming gaming and VR markets. 

In this episode, Azeem talks with Dr. Danny Lange, VP of AI and machine learning at Unity about the role of these technologies in revolutionizing the ways games are developed and monetized. Dr Lange talks about the significance of the undergoing paradigm shift in computing, OODA loop in machine learning, and what happens to software engineers when their trade goes obsolete. 

Dr. Lange is VP of AI and machine learning at Unity Technologies. Before joining Unity, he led the machine learning efforts at Uber, Amazon and Microsoft. 

Through his work on General Motor’s OnStar Virtual Advisor, Danny provided the foundation for the development of one of the largest deployments of an intelligent personal assistant until the arrival of Siri. 

Prior to joining General Magic, Dr. Lange was Visiting Scientist at IBM Tokyo Research Laboratory, 1993 to 1997, where he is known for his invention of the Java Aglet, a lightweight mobile agent for the Java programming environment. In addition to his software agent work, he has also made significant contributions in the areas of hypertext technology, object-oriented database modeling, and Design Pattern visualization techniques.

This episode was supported by SVB, Silicon Valley Bank.

www.exponentialview.co

The state of machine learning: A conversation between Azeem Azhar and Dr. Danny Lange

A recording of an Exponential View salon held in London in May 2017.

“The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter,” said Winston Churchill.

But whatever you think of it, democracy has served us well. An increase in democracy is almost always matched by an increase in GDP. 

According to MIT economist, Daron Acemoglu, a country that switches from autocracy to democracy achieves about 20% higher GDP per capita over roughly 30 year period.

Yet, data at the end of 2016, research suggested that in several advanced economies, including the US and the UK, those born since the late 1980s, value democracy less than older cohorts.

Yes, we’ve witnessed something. Driven by the underlying shifts - in media, in technology, in the expression of state power, in cultural values, in big money funding data. And what we’ve experienced is a manifestation of new behaviours around the democracy process: the transition from broadcast media to niche media moderated by dominant social media platforms.

The use of microtargeting across social media to better address niche voters; The interference of states in more or less significant ways in the political processes, at least of the US election. The bypassing of electoral laws. The spread of fake news across social platforms.
The maturing of our information systems have closed our ability for discussion. 

Questions are predicted. Answers are echo chambers.

Have these behaviours hacked our democracy? For better or for worse?
Azeem discusses these questions with Carole Cadwalladr, Luciano Floridi, Hari Kunzru, Tom Loosemore.

www.exponentialview.co

Hacking democracy

Azeem Azhar speaks with Kai-Fu Lee: a VC investor, technology executive, and one of the most prominent figures in the Chinese internet sector and AI. Azeem and Kai-Fu discuss Chinese government's techno-utilitarian approach to technology, the ambition of China's technology founders, and the future of job automation West and East.&nbsp; www.exponentialview.co

China, An AI Superpower: Kai-Fu Lee & Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Azeem Azhar speaks with Bill Janeway about the three-player game between the mission-driven state, financial speculators and markets in the innovation economy. Are we stuck on the dark side of this configuration? How do we move forward? www.exponentialview.co

Entrepreneurs, the Market & the State: Bill Janeway & Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Azeem speaks with Dr Mariarosaria Taddeo, Deputy Director of the Digital Ethics Lab at the Oxford Internet Institute. Dr Taddeo is a philosopher, ethicist and a researcher focusing on cyber conflicts, cyber security, and ethics of data science. Cyber attacks are escalating in frequency, sophistication and impact. With this in mind, Azeem and Dr Taddeo unpack the state of cyber security and warfare, the complex symbiosis between governments and criminal actors, as well as the ways digital technologies are changing cyber warfare. www.exponentialview.co

AI, Warfare & Global Security: Mariarosaria Taddeo & Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Azeem Azhar speaks with entrepreneur and investor Elad Gil about Silicon Valley, scaling companies from 10 to 10,000 employees, the state of blockchain, and how blockchain and artificial intelligence will overlap. Elad Gil is a serial entrepreneur, operating executive, investor and advisor to private companies including Airbnb, Pinterest, Square, and Stripe. Elad was the VP of corporate strategy at Twitter, and previously on the mobile team at Google. www.exponentialview.co

Scaling innovation & Future Pathways: Elad Gil & Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Azeem speaks with "the sage of Silicon Valley", Reid Hoffman. Reid is an internet entrepreneur, executive and investor, best known as the co-founder of LinkedIn. Reid and Azeem discuss the business culture of Silicon Valley, in particular the concept of "blitzscaling". They dive deep into Silicon Valley's attitudes towards government, the role of the state in innovation, and maintaining techno-optimism.&nbsp; www.exponentialview.co

The Challenging Political Economy of Silicon Valley: Reid Hoffman & Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Azeem Azhar speaks with Andrew Yang, entrepreneur and author, who is standing for President in the 2020 U.S. elections. At the heart of Andrew's platform is the "freedom dividend", a universal basic income of $1,000, payable to all Americans every month. Azeem and Andrew discuss core ideas behind Andrew's platform, why they are necessary, and how to get there. www.exponentialview.co

UBI,  Automation & Society in the US: Andrew Yang & Azeem Azhar in Conversation

A conversation with Matthew Taylor. In this conversation, Azeem and Matthew discuss the well-being economy, the meaning of good work in an age of automation, and the state of democracy. Matthew Taylor is the Chief Executive of the Royal Society of Arts, a UK organisation committed to finding practical solutions to societal problems. Before leading the RSA, Matthew was the Chief Adviser on Political Strategy to UK's Prime Minister Tony Blair. www.exponentialview.co

The Future of Work & Democracy in the Information Age: Matthew Taylor & Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Anousheh Ansari is the world's first female private space explorer and the first Iranian astronaut in space. She is the CEO of X Prize Foundation, an organisation which supports radical breakthrough solutions to some of the greatest challenges facing the humanity today. Azeem and Anousheh discuss the ways space development could help us tackle climate change, pollution, and achieve sustainable crypto mining. Anousheh shares her journey to becoming a space explorer, her time on the International Space Station, as well as her role as the CEO of X Prize. www.exponentialview.co

Space Innovation, Fixing the Earth and Youth Empowerment: Anousheh Ansari and Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Kate Raworth is a Senior Visiting Research Associate at Oxford University’s Environmental Change Institute, where she teaches on the Masters in Environmental Change and Management. She is also a Senior Associate at the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership. Kate is focused on exploring the economic mindset needed to address the 21st century’s social and ecological challenges. In this episode, Kate and Azeem discuss the Doughnut economics framework, as the essence of rethinking economics for the world inhabited by 10 billion people, hit by climate change, and social justice struggles. Kate sets a vision for an equitable and sustainable future. www.exponentialview.co

Doughnut Economics, Rethinking Economics for the 21st Century: Kate Raworth and Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Casper Klynge is the world's first Tech Ambassador with a global mandate and staff in Copenhagen, Silicon Valley and Beijing. His appointment as the Danish Tech Ambassador in 2017 marked a new phase in diplomacy and international relations, and the first time a nation state deployed an Ambassador to represent its citizens to the world's most powerful technology companies. Casper and Azeem assess the current alignment between some of the largest technology companies and nation states, and discuss the role of technology in fostering democracy and innovation. www.exponentialview.co

Diplomacy in the Age of GAFA: Casper Klynge and Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Michael Liebreich is a leading global expert on clean energy and transportation, smart infrastructure, technology, climate finance and sustainable development. He founded New Energy Finance in 2004, which was acquired by Bloomberg in 2009.  Michael and Azeem discuss the significance of the US National Climate Assessment and IPCC's report, staying below two degrees, and the role of exponential technologies in transitioning to renewables.  www.exponentialview.co

Renewable Energy, Climate Change and Technology: Michael Liebreich and Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Gina Neff is a Senior Research Fellow and Associate Professor at the Oxford Internet Institute and at the Department of Sociology, University of Oxford. She studies innovation, the digital transformation of industries, and how new technologies impact work. Gina published three books: Self-Tracking (MIT Press) in 2016,&nbsp;Surviving the New Economy (Routledge) in 2015, and Venture Labor (MIT Press) in 2012. Gina and Azeem discuss technology development from a sociological perspective, and the implications of self-tracking and quantifyied self for the individual, as well as the society. www.exponentialview.co

Quantified Self, Data Ownership & Sociological Approach to Technology: Gina Neff and Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Jack Clark is Policy Director at OpenAI. He has contributed to the development of the AI Index, an AI forecasting and progress initiative that is part of the Stanford One Hundred Year Study on AI. Azeem and Jack discuss the state of artificial intelligence development, the geopolitics of technology, and the implications of automation on the society.  www.exponentialview.co

The State of Artificial intelligence: Jack Clark and Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Emil Eifrem is the CEO and co-founder of Neo4j, the graph database platform powering some of the largest companies today. Emil is the creator of the property graph model and he coined the term "graph database" to describe the technology that would change how we understand big data. Neo4j's technology was used to reveal the rogue offshore financial relationships in the largest journalist leak ever, the Panama Papers. www.exponentialview.co

Making Sense of the Data-Rich World with Graph Databases: Emil Eifrem and Azeem Azhar in Conversation

Marietje Schaake is a&nbsp;Dutch&nbsp;politician&nbsp;and&nbsp;Member of the European Parliament&nbsp;(MEP) from the&nbsp;Netherlands. The Wall Street Journal&nbsp;called her "Europe's most wired politician", and Politico named her the "ultimate digital MEP". Marietje is the Member of the Committee on International Trade, Vice-Chair of the Delegation for Relations with the US, and she established a Digital Agenda intergroup, gathering Members of the Parliament who are interested in addressing the future of digital technologies. Marietje and Azeem discuss the governance of the cyberspace, responsibility of technology companies, and the new era of geopolitical competition in cyber space.&nbsp; www.exponentialview.co

Regulating the Cyberspace: Marietje Schaake in Conversation with Azeem Azhar

Elif Shafak is an award-winning British-Turkish author and human rights activist. She has published 16 books, 10 of which are novels. The New York Review of Books called her latest novel "Three Daughters of Eve" a 'marvelous lesson in multiculturalist angst, the clash between modernity and tradition, and the vicissitudes of personal struggle'. Elif and Azeem discuss the polarisation of culture springing out of the foundations of the open internet, and the ways to tackle the pervasive issues in today's digital technology sphere. www.exponentialview.co

Overcoming the Epistemic Crisis: Elif Shafak in Conversation with Azeem Azhar

Parag Khanna is a leading international relations expert, who recently published a new book "The Future is Asian: Commerce, Conflict and Culture in the 21st Century". Azeem and Parag discuss the law of technology diffusion, break common myths about Asia's development, and question whether the future belongs to cities or nation-states. www.exponentialview.co

Technology Diffusion & the Rise of Asia: Parag Khanna in Conversation with Azeem Azhar

We are now available on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify and many more. Just search for "Exponential View podcast"!

Catching up with Exponential View

Azeem Azhar, curator of Exponential View, goes deep and insightful in conversation with leading thinkers about how technology is driving exponential change in our business models, political economy and society. You can subscribe to our podcast on iTunes, Google Play or wherever you go to get your podcasts.

Exponential View

Pinned to spotlight

Popular tracks