Ajay Banga took Mastercard from a $30 billion company to $360 billion in a decade, was the frontrunner to run Citibank's quarter of a million people, quit to become CEO of a company with 4,000 — and today runs the World Bank Group, a $120 billion-a-year institution that was originally built to rebuild Europe and Japan after the Second World War and now exists to kill poverty by creating jobs. He says 600 million people in Africa have zero electricity and he doesn't mean inadequate electricity he...
Apr 21, 2026•1 hr 24 min
Ajay Banga took Mastercard from a $30 billion company to $360 billion, left when he was the frontrunner to run Citibank's 250,000 people, and now controls $120 billion a year as the President of the World Bank Group — the institution that was built after the Second World War to stop poverty from turning into war. He says life is 50% luck but most people leave their luck on the station platform, that India gets under 20 million tourists a year which is insane for a country with beaches, mountains...
Apr 18, 2026•2 min
Rishi Sunak says patience is a bigger competitive advantage than speed, that every decision that reaches a leader is 50-50 by definition because if it weren't someone else would have made it, that the long term is just a succession of short terms you either survived or got kicked out of, and that the thing he wishes he'd done more of in his career is read fiction — because non-fiction tells you what to do and how to do it but fiction teaches you why and gives you a deeper understanding of people...
Mar 25, 2026•3 hr 2 min
Rishi Sunak says he could not function without his marriage, that losing the most public job in the world taught him that the Gita was right about focusing on dharma and not outcomes, and that the blank canvas at 45 is more exciting than the track that got him there. Akshata Murty says she’s not stuck on being her father’s daughter or her husband’s wife, she is clear on who she is than any title ever made her and the answer to most things lives in balance, somewhere between stoicism and epicurea...
Mar 23, 2026•2 min
One of them says the Gita's line on duty over outcomes is what got him through the most public failure of his life. The other says her identity has never been her father's name or her husband's title. They've been together 20 years and still argue about ice cream flavours. First couple's episode we've ever done. #nikhilkamath Co-founder of Zerodha and Gruhas Host of 'WTF is' & 'People By WTF' Podcast Twitter: https://x.com/nikhilkamathcio/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nikhilkamathcio...
Mar 23, 2026•24 sec
I sat down with Chamath Palihapitiya. He sold a company to Nvidia for $20 billion, woke up the next morning, saw $13 billion hit the account, and felt nothing. This is a guy who grew up in a home with alcoholism and abuse, immigrated to Canada with nothing, lost billions on SPACs, rebuilt, and now says the whole game is exactly that — a game. We got into the uncomfortable stuff: why pain is the single best predictor of entrepreneurial success, why investing is never a team sport and anyone who s...
Mar 02, 2026•1 hr 11 min
Chamath Palihapitiya has made and lost billions. He backed Tesla, Bitcoin, and the Golden State Warriors when everyone told him he was insane. Now he's building what he calls a software factory — the machine that makes the machine. We talked about why pain is a prerequisite for scale, why socialism might be closer than any capitalist wants to admit, and why none of the metrics society uses to measure success actually mean anything. This was not a polished conversation. Chamath Palihapitiya has m...
Feb 28, 2026•2 min
I sat down with Dario Amodei in Bangalore. He built Claude, but he started as a biologist looking for a tool to cure disease. Today, he's at the helm of an AI revolution that he compares to a tsunami society is actively ignoring. We got into the heavy stuff: why Anthropic secretly withheld a working model before ChatGPT existed, whether AI is on the verge of consciousness, and if outsourcing our thinking is going to make humans measurably stupider. Dario makes the case that coding is a dying ski...
Feb 24, 2026•1 hr 9 min
Dario Amodei runs a company valued at tens of billions of dollars, building the very AI systems he warns could reshape everything. So I asked him directly: isn't this a bit like rich people saying capitalism is bad? His answer surprised me. We went deep on the economics, the geopolitics, the safety debate, and why the people building AI might actually be the most paranoid about it. A long, honest, no-script conversation about the technology that's about to change all of our lives. #nikhilkamath ...
Feb 24, 2026•1 min
I sat down with Yuval Noah Harari at the World Economic Forum in Davos and we ended up covering everything from why Christianity's core story is essentially "you are loved by an omnipotent God" to why Greenland might just be the world's most expensive real estate play. He walked me through how algorithms were handed the job of managing public conversation and optimised for hate because hate drives engagement, how AI is about to become the new rabbi because it can read every religious text ever w...
Feb 13, 2026•1 hr 24 min
Is religion dying, or is it just being replaced by AI? We are living through a dramatic geopolitical shift. The rules we grew up with are being rewritten. I sat down with historian and author Yuval Noah Harari at the World Economic Forum to understand if we are witnessing the end of an era or the beginning of something entirely new. From the "madness" of the US-Europe split to the private conversations between Putin and Xi that nobody talks about, this conversation connects the dots. Footage cou...
Feb 12, 2026•2 min
Elon Musk × Nikhil Kamath — अब हिन्दी में। आपकी रिक्वेस्ट पर, हमने पूरा एपिसोड हिन्दी में डब किया है ताकि यह बातचीत और भी लोगों तक पहुंच सके। Timestamps : 00:00 – Settling in 02:08 – On X, text vs video, how people communicate 06:45 – Collective consciousness 09:54 – Meaning of life, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy 14:16 – Individuals vs collectives 17:35 – What makes a company worth investing in 20:00 – Work Elon is most excited about across Tesla, SpaceX and xAI 23:35 – Starlink explained sim...
Dec 08, 2025•1 hr 54 min
A long conversation with #ElonMusk about work, consciousness, family, money, AI and how the future might unfold. No script, no performance, just two people thinking out loud. A big thank you to Manoj Ladwa - a close friend of many years and a remarkable connector of India to the world and the world to India. Through India Global Forum, he has built one of the most influential platforms showcasing India’s rise. As I’ve said before, this is India’s decade, and leaders like @ManojLadwa and India Gl...
Nov 30, 2025•1 hr 54 min
Here’s to delaying gratification. The future belongs to the patient. #NikhilKamath Entrepreneur & Investor Host of 'WTF is' & 'People By WTF' Podcast X: https://x.com/nikhilkamathcio/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nikhilkamathcio/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikhilkamathcio?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nikhilkamathcio/ #elonmusk X - https://x.com/elonmusk Watch 'WTF is' Podca...
Nov 30, 2025•2 min
What struck me most in this conversation with AR Rahman was not his mastery but his humility. He talks openly about fear, self-doubt, imposter syndrome, and why he constantly leaves comfort to evolve. We got into everything, Bombay Dreams, London, Hollywood, Oscars, classical music’s future, AI composition, spiritual surrender, and why consistency matters more than lifestyle. If you’ve ever wondered how someone stays grounded while being celebrated globally, you should watch this! Timestamps: 00...
Nov 21, 2025•1 hr 48 min
Building the next Uber in India? Dara shares lessons on competition, EVs, quick commerce, and how he helped build Uber through chaos. Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro 01:22 - Dara’s visits to India 01:58 - Uber’s Indian competitors 04:42 - Growing up in Iran 10:47 - Dara on religion & spirituality 16:40 - From Iran to US 19:54 - Key lesson from Barry Diller 28:05 - How AI can reinvent travel 32:12 - Dara’s vision for fixing travel 34:50 - Decoding taste from data 36:48 - What Uber really represents...
Aug 25, 2025•1 hr 32 min
I finally sat down with Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, to discuss the launch of GPT-5, its differences, whether we’re inching closer to agent-like AI, what it takes to build a future that’s moving at breakneck speed. 00:00 - Intro 01:13 - What’s New in GPT-5? 02:54 - Sam on First Principles, Careers & Future Industries 05:47 - What’s Possible with GPT-5 07:09 - Building on GPT-5: Skills & Science Applications 10:28 - Mastering Today’s AI Tools 11:37 - Sam’s Self-Perception & Edge at 19 1...
Aug 14, 2025•45 min
Watch 'WTF is' Podcast on Spotify https://tinyurl.com/4nsm4ezn Watch 'People by WTF' Podcast on Spotify https://tinyurl.com/yme92c59 Watch 'WTF Online' on Spotify https://tinyurl.com/4tjua4th #WTFiswithnikhilkamath #PeopleByWTF #WTFOnline
Aug 13, 2025•59 sec
When I was starting out, this is the kind of conversation I wish I had access to. I sat down with Vinod Khosla, one of the sharpest minds in venture, and asked him the questions every young founder has on their mind. What industries will matter in 2035? Should you build for cities, small towns, or somewhere no one’s looking yet? Also listeners! Just a heads up that we recorded this episode on July 7, 2025, so some details might have changed since then. #NikhilKamath - Investor & Entrepreneur...
Aug 02, 2025•1 hr 22 min
In this upcoming episode, I sat down with Vinod Khosla, Sun Microsystems Co-founder and Founder of Khosla Ventures to find out where tomorrow’s big bets lie and why contrarian thinking still pays off. #NikhilKamath - Investor & Entrepreneur Twitter: https://x.com/nikhilkamathcio LinkedIn: / nikhilkamathcio Instagram: / nikhilkamathcio Facebook: / nikhilkamathcio #VinodKhosla - Co-founder, Sun Microsystems & Founder, Khosla Ventures Twitter: https://x.com/vkhosla LinkedIN: / vinod-khosla-...
Aug 02, 2025•2 min
Here’s one of my favourite conversations with Palo Alto Networks’ CEO, Nikesh Arora. This episode is a CxO’s playbook where we deep dived into the mindset, strategy, and decision-making frameworks that have shaped Nikesh’s journey across roles at Google, SoftBank, and now leading one of the world’s top cybersecurity firms. This isn’t just business talk. Learn how to think like a CxO when the rules of the game keep changing. #NikhilKamath - Investor & Entrepreneur Twitter: https://x.com/nikhi...
Jun 30, 2025•1 hr 22 min
In what can be described as one of my favourite chats, I sat down with Nikesh Arora, CEO of Palo Alto Networks, to discuss where cybersecurity is headed in a post-AI world, why the education system is overrated, and a whole lot more. Full episode drops soon. #NikhilKamath - Investor & Entrepreneur Twitter: https://x.com/nikhilkamathcio LinkedIn: / nikhilkamathcio Instagram: / nikhilkamathcio Facebook: / nikhilkamathcio #NikeshArora - CEO, Palo Alto Networks Twitter: https://x.com/nikesharora...
Jun 20, 2025•2 min
In this candid deep dive, I sit down with Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos to unpack the company’s remarkable journey from a DVD-by-mail service to a global streaming giant. We revisit Netflix's early battle with Blockbuster, the bold pivot to streaming, the company’s plans for India, and how they cracked the code on turning binge-watching into a universal habit.What was interesting for me was how he spots the next phenomenon before the world catches on. For anyone in media, tech, or entrepreneurship...
Jun 07, 2025•1 hr 55 min
I sat down with Ted Sarandos, Co-CEO of Netflix, for a no-holds-barred chat. From what’s really disrupting the entertainment industry, how Netflix greenlights projects, and India’s potential, we covered it all. Full episode drops soon. #NikhilKamath - Investor & EntrepreneurTwitter: https://x.com/nikhilkamathcioLinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikhilkamathcio/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nikhilkamathcio/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nikhilkamathcio/ #TedSarandos - Co-CEO,...
Jun 05, 2025•2 min
Here’s a glimpse into my chat with YouTube CEO Neal Mohan. We talk about the future of the platform to the masks we wear, and what happens when we take them off. Stay tuned for the episode #NikhilKamath - Investor & EntrepreneurTwitter: https://x.com/nikhilkamathcio LinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikhilkamathcio/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nikhilkamathcio/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nikhilkamathcio/ #NealMohan - CEO, YouTubeTwitter: https://x.com/nealmohan LinkedIN: ...
May 25, 2025•2 min
In this episode, I speak with YouTube CEO Neal Mohan about what defines the platform today and where it’s headed. We discuss why audiences now trust podcasters over traditional news, and what the next decade of content consumption might look like. For me, this wasn’t just a chat. It was a chance to question the shifting boundaries between passion, talent, identity, and influence. We also dug into how algorithms shape what people see. If you’ve ever wondered what drives YouTube behind the screen,...
May 24, 2025•1 hr 6 min
I’ve always been curious to know why people are the way they are. After reading Bill’s memoir, Source Code, it felt more like peeling back layers than simply asking questions. Part 2 of our chat, I got to know him in a way I haven’t before. In this episode of People by WTF, Bill talks about the drive and curiosity that keeps him active, playing ‘Crennis’ with Sachin Tendulkar, his childhood, how AI can reshape capitalism, and many more. Is success in today’s capitalistic world bred by some form ...
Apr 11, 2025•40 min
A conversation that veers from unexpected childhood confessions to what still drives him after decades at the top. Stay tuned for Part 2 of my conversation with Bill Gates. #NikhilKamath Co-founder of Zerodha and Gruhas Host of 'WTF is' & 'People By WTF' Podcast Twitter: https://x.com/nikhilkamathcio/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nikhilkamathcio/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikhilkamathcio?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios...
Apr 09, 2025•2 min
In our previous episodes, we’ve often spoken about the parallels between Business and Politics; be it risk taking abilities, micro vs macro zooming abilities, & most importantly, leadership. In this episode, we sit down with Christopher Luxon, Prime Minister of New Zealand, to talk about exactly that. We also talk about the challenges of public scrutiny, and how global dynamics translate in today’s world. If the leaders of tomorrow come from unexpected, and more nuanced places, who should we...
Apr 05, 2025•41 min
From corporate life to politics, cricket heartbreaks, people-to-sheep ratio in New Zealand —this conversation has it all. Stay tuned! #ChristopherLuxon Prime Minister of New Zealand Twitter: https://x.com/chrisluxonmp LinkedIn: / christopher-luxon- bb701b195 Instagram: / christopherluxon Facebook: / christopherluxon #NikhilKamath Co-founder of Zerodha and Gruhas Host of ‘WTF is?’ Podcast & ‘People By WTF’ Podcast Twitter: https://x.com/nikhilkamathcio LinkedIn: / nikhilkamathcio Instagram: /...
Mar 29, 2025•2 min
