How will an empathetic AI interact with humans? What if we used AI not just for its IQ, but its EQ? How do we build the trust to enable it to take agency on our behalf? This week, Reid and Aria sit down with an expert and friend, Sean White to start answering those questions. Sean White is currently the CEO of Inflection AI and is working on expanding the relationship of what AI can do for humans. Sean takes a humanist approach to new technology, and is interested in AI that can go beyond intell...
Oct 02, 2024•42 min•Season 3Ep. 23
With Election Day fast approaching, Reid tackles some big questions: Is Silicon Valley leaning increasingly red? How can—and should—the government modernize voting? Is there a place for AI agents in politics? And which party is really best for business right now? For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
Sep 25, 2024•17 min•Season 3Ep. 22
What’s driving some of the greatest political divisions and threats to democracy ahead of the 2024 U.S. presidential election? This week, Reid and Aria attempt to unpack this with someone who specializes in listening to American voters and translating those insights, at scale: Republican political strategist and The Bulwark co-founder/publisher Sarah Longwell. Sarah, who also hosts The Focus Group Podcast, joins the show to talk about her experience listening to everyday voters through focus gro...
Sep 18, 2024•1 hr 12 min•Season 3Ep. 21
Reid reflects on his early exposure to AI as an undergraduate at Stanford and on navigating the space between academia and industry. Plus, he and Aria discuss human outcomes of technology—and how human-centered technologists such as Fei-Fei Li, Mustafa Suleyman, and Kevin Scott have helped him keep those outcomes top of mind. For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
Sep 11, 2024•11 min•Season 3Ep. 20
How can scientists leverage AI and machine learning to more effectively research, develop, and deliver new drugs? This week, Reid and Aria talk drug development with renowned computer scientist and executive Dr. Daphne Koller, whose company, insitro, uses machine learning to improve the quality and speed of drug discovery. She addresses several ways AI and ML are already being used to redefine diseases and create better therapeutic interventions. Plus, she shares her experience transitioning fro...
Sep 04, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 3Ep. 19
This week, Reid veers toward science fiction, tackling big questions including: Is a single mentally-linked network in our future? Can and should humans create other sentient beings? Select mentions: David Brin
Aug 28, 2024•10 min•Season 3Ep. 18
What might it look like if we used AI to make democracy work better and to make society more equal? In this special live recording of Possible, Aria turns the tables on her co-host, interviewing Reid alongside Atlantic CEO Nick Thompson. They discuss AI-native generations, the future of friendship and social connections, media, data, privacy, and democracy in the age of AI. To kick off the episode, Reid’s avatar makes a cameo. Read the transcript of this episode here: https://www.possible.fm/pod...
Aug 21, 2024•54 min•Season 3Ep. 17
This week, Aria asks Reid about government regulation of AI, including where the U.S. fits in on the global stage and how America can learn from where the early regulation of social media fell short. For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
Aug 14, 2024•14 min•Season 3Ep. 16
How can the U.S. government support the use of AI to stimulate innovation, bring healthcare to people more effectively, and educate people more equitably—all while thoughtfully navigating technology’s impact on people’s way of life? On this week’s episode, Reid and Aria sit down with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo to discuss her work leading the government’s efforts to minimize the risks and maximize the benefits of AI for Americans. She gets into the federal government’s approach to A...
Aug 07, 2024•34 min•Season 3Ep. 15
In this episode, Aria asks Reid about his general and AI-specific investment philosophies, including what draws him to a pitch and what raises red flags. They discuss agentic AI, robots, and hardware. For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
Jul 31, 2024•15 min•Season 3Ep. 14
This week, Reid and Aria are joined by Ashton Kutcher. While you might know him as the actor and producer who rose to fame on That ‘70s Show, Dude, Where’s My Car, and MTV’s Punk’d, Ashton is also an accomplished venture capitalist. He is co-founder of the VC firm Sound Ventures, and he has been investing in AI for more than a decade. Ashton, Reid, and Aria discuss the future of AI software and hardware, startups, and the AI revolution’s impact on society. For more info on the podcast and transc...
Jul 24, 2024•42 min•Season 3Ep. 13
Reid discusses what aspects of urban planning need to be reimagined. He advocates that prioritizing smart technology, clean energy, and data can vastly improve residents’ quality of life. Plus, Aria asks Reid about the potential of technologies existent and forthcoming—including self-flying cars. For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
Jul 17, 2024•11 min•Season 3Ep. 12
What if we built cities focused around community, leveraging technology to actually increase human connection, health, and fulfillment? Devon Zuegel, the leader of Edge Esmeralda—a pop-up village that took place in June 2024—joins Possible to discuss how she is reimagining cities to optimize for community. In this episode, Devon, Aria, and Reid get into why designing cities with intention can impact quality of life and strengthen communities. Devon shares what she has learned from Edge Esmeralda...
Jul 10, 2024•53 min•Season 3Ep. 11
Reid talks about why he invested in California Forever, the ambitious sustainable city project in Solano County, California. He contends with some of the concerns that have been raised about the initiative and states his case for the best way to fix the affordable housing crisis. The answer just might be surprisingly simple. Aria also asks Reid about exciting sustainability projects that aren’t getting the attention they deserve. For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, ...
Jul 03, 2024•14 min•Season 3Ep. 10
What if we could build the ideal sustainable city from scratch? This week’s guest is aiming to do that, and he has unique insight into what making that dream a reality can look like. Jan Sramek is the founder of California Forever, a company aiming to build an affordable, urban community in Solano County, California. Reid—an investor in California Forever—and Aria sat down with Jan to talk about the vision for the city, where it draws inspiration from, and some of the controversy that has sprung...
Jun 26, 2024•53 min•Season 3Ep. 9
In this episode, Aria asks Reid about the path from idea to execution—and Reid draws from LinkedIn to share his launch lessons. Plus, Reid predicts how AI will—and won’t—impact food, dining, and restaurants. For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
Jun 19, 2024•12 min•Season 3Ep. 8
What role might artificial intelligence play in making the perfect meal? How will AI transform food creation—and creation more generally? Massimo Bottura—legendary Italian chef and entrepreneur—joins Possible to talk about the future of food, human creativity, and how technology factors in. Massimo, Aria, and Reid discuss the roles of joy and innovation in fine dining, technology’s potential to enhance human connection, and Food For Soul, the nonprofit Massimo and his wife Lara created to turn s...
Jun 12, 2024•48 min•Season 3Ep. 7
What will being a software engineer look like in the future, when the predominant coding language is English—or whatever language you speak—instead of JavaScript? In this episode, Reid reflects on his own education, including the value of studying philosophy. Plus, he shares what he’d prioritize in designing kids' classroom experiences today and gets into AI’s potential to help customize lessons to align with students’ curiosities and learning styles. For more info on the podcast and transcripts...
Jun 05, 2024•12 min•Season 3Ep. 6
What does AI literacy mean for students and their teachers? Code.org Chief Academic Officer Pat Yongpradit—himself a former middle school computer science teacher—joins Reid and Aria for the first-ever live-taping of Possible, recorded at the ASU+GSV Summit in San Diego. In this episode, they discuss why school-wide bans on AI are a terrible idea and what “always be learning” refers to in an age of AI. Plus, Pat unveils, for the first time publicly, Code.org’s newest tool for teachers: an AI ass...
May 29, 2024•50 min•Season 3Ep. 5
What should we keep in mind as we venture into this new AI era? Reid Hoffman delivers a speech, entitled Humanity’s Hegelian Golden Braid, to address this question. The speech offers six guiding maxims related to AI, humanity, and technology—and weaves through Hegel and Hofstadter, cathedrals and griffins, T.S. Elliot and Hyman Minsky, and more. This speech was originally given by Reid Hoffman in English on May 24, 2024 after accepting an honorary doctorate from the University of Perugia. It’s a...
May 24, 2024•32 min
In this episode, Aria asks Reid about the roles and responsibilities of technology journalists, along with his thoughts on the TikTok ban (recorded before President Biden signed the TikTok Ban bill into law). For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
May 22, 2024•15 min•Season 3Ep. 4
Alongside this week’s riff from Reid on tech journalism and last week’s episode with Kara Swisher, we’re bringing you a conversation between Reid and Kara that originally dropped as a March 2023 episode of “On with Kara Swisher.” This duo has known each other since the 90s, when Reid was fresh off the sale of PayPal and before he co-founded LinkedIn. On this episode, they discuss Reid’s donations to Biden and other Democrats, how his political views have impacted his friendships with Peter Thiel...
May 22, 2024•43 min
What will the media landscape look like as tech companies, as opposed to traditional media, own increasingly more ink? And who better to offer an optimistic take on the news industry’s future than…Kara Swisher?! Reid and Aria speak with the famous—and famously direct—tech journalist, author, and podcast host about the roles and responsibilities of journalists covering rapidly developing innovations, along with those of the technologists driving advancements. They cover the OpenAI/New York Times ...
May 15, 2024•59 min•Season 3Ep. 3
Reid recounts the story of a milestone GPT-4 demo at Bill Gates’ house—and shares what series of achievements by AI would most impress and excite him next. Aria also asks Reid about the investment in technology and AI that he’d like to see be made at the domestic and international level. Lastly, Reid addresses the skepticism people have about AI—and how to best direct that skepticism to the benefit of people. For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.pos...
May 08, 2024•18 min•Season 3Ep. 2
What if artificial intelligence becomes so ubiquitous that, in the future, we won’t be able to imagine what life was like without it? Kevin Scott is Executive Vice President of AI and Chief Technology Officer of Microsoft. He joins the Possible Podcast to talk about AI, its impact on education, healthcare and jobs, and how AI can benefit more of us, irrespective of our geography. Kevin, Reid, and Aria discuss Kevin’s leading role in Microsoft’s OpenAI partnership, along with collective decision-...
May 01, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Season 3Ep. 1
Reid recently created an AI version of himself—REID AI—and recorded a video Q&A to see how this digital twin might challenge him in new ways. Watch the full clip here: https://youtu.be/rgD2gmwCS10 This is Reid’s latest AI experiment, following the book he co-wrote with GPT-4 (Impromptu), the podcast he co-hosted with ChatGPT (Fireside Chatbots), and, of course, Possible, in which we use AI tools like Pi and GPT-4 to prompt guests and enrich conversations. Possible returns next week, but in the m...
Apr 24, 2024•3 min
The award-winning podcast Possible is back with a new season and some new changes! As always, you can tune in every Wednesday for grounded and speculative thoughts on the future from forward-thinking leaders, deep thinkers, and ambitious builders across a range of fields: tech, art, geopolitics, healthcare, climate change, education, and more. But now, the show is on year round — that means Possible won't take a break after a dozen episodes! Plus, every other week you'll hear Reid's latest takes...
Apr 23, 2024•3 min
What can we learn from the OpenAI saga? What role might AI play in the 2024 election? What’s the deal with the New York Times suing OpenAI? How will AI evolve our sense of human purpose? Reid and Aria reflect on season two of Possible and answer questions like these from a variety of sources: Listeners, Pi, ChatGPT, and each other. Read the transcript of this episode here. For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all of the episodes, visit www.possible.fm/podcast. Topics: 00:48 - Reflecti...
Jan 31, 2024•58 min•Season 2Ep. 13
What would it take for AI to become as trusted a source of information as Wikipedia? Katherine Maher, former CEO of the Wikimedia Foundation, joins the show to talk about the fundamental building blocks of trust behind Wikipedia. The use of AI will fundamentally reshape what information is distributed on the internet—and how. Reid, Aria, and Katherine talk about what creating and scaling positive spaces and community-driven ideas online would look like in the context of AI. Could in-text citatio...
Jan 24, 2024•54 min•Season 2Ep. 12
How can technology change—and actually deepen—human connection? Kerry Washington is an Emmy-winning, SAG-and-Golden Globe-nominated actor. She’s also a director, and producer, and New-York-Times-bestselling author of the memoir Thicker Than Water. She joins the podcast to talk about how AI and other technology can transform our most important relationships. She, Reid, and Aria also discuss AI’s impact on the entertainment industry; her use of social media to elevate the hit TV show “Scandal;” an...
Jan 17, 2024•59 min•Season 2Ep. 11
