TED Talks Daily - podcast cover

TED Talks Daily

Want TED Talks on the go? Everyday, this feed brings you our latest talks in audio format. Hear thought-provoking ideas on every subject imaginable – from Artificial Intelligence to Zoology, and everything in between – given by the world's leading thinkers and doers. This collection of talks, given at TED and TEDx conferences around the globe, is also available in video format.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last refreshed:
Download Metacast podcast app
Podcasts are better in Metacast mobile app
Don't just listen to podcasts. Learn from them with transcripts, summaries, and chapters for every episode. Skim, search, and bookmark insights. Learn more

Episodes

Sunday Pick: How to find true love (w/ Francesca Hogi) | from How to Be a Better Human

Love coach Francesca Hogi is dedicated to helping daters find “lasting love in the midst of a broken dating culture.” In this episode, Francesca shares her approach to analyzing romantic patterns and feeling more empowered in your love life. From discussing romantic manifestations to reflecting on bell hooks’ claim that humans are unskilled at love, Chris and Francesca talk about the ways you can be more open to finding love. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Feb 15, 202639 min

The AI-generated intimacy crisis | Bryony Cole

Tonight, millions of people will go to bed and whisper to an AI companion. But what are we giving up when we fall in love with machines? Sextech expert Bryony Cole offers three questions to ask yourself if you’re already intimate with AI, laying out a playbook for synthetic companionship that doesn’t hide you from the messiness of human life — but prepares you for it instead. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Feb 14, 202616 min

The doctor on a mission to build a healthier South Sudan | Yohanis Riek

Yohanis Riek went from herding cattle and fighting as a child soldier to becoming the first doctor in his community in South Sudan. He shares his journey to found a nonprofit bringing health care to remote communities — empowering locals to take charge of their own health, as the world's newest country finds its place in the world. (Following the talk, Lily James Olds, director of the TED Fellows program, interviews Riek on the effect of USAID withdrawal in South Sudan and why he’s choosing to s...

Feb 13, 202629 min

The pressure that makes Olympians perform worse | Dominique Condo

Why do we celebrate appearance over ability in sports? Performance scientist Dominique Condo explores why so many elite female athletes — women with Olympic medals, world records and championship trophies — report body image concerns that end up hindering their performance. She offers a series of subtle shifts we can make to help any athlete stay focused on building strength, resilience and confidence. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Feb 12, 202614 min

How competition is stifling AI breakthroughs | Llion Jones

Llion Jones cowrote "Attention Is All You Need," the seminal paper that introduced the transformer — the architecture that launched the generative AI revolution. Now he warns that the industry that grew out of this breakthrough is stifling the next one. Learn why the current corporate arms race is killing true innovation and how we can get back to bold exploration. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feb 11, 202616 min

The 6 essential ingredients of loving relationships | Sara Nasserzadeh

How do you build a lifetime of love? After analyzing 450 couples across more than 40 countries, relational psychotherapist Sara Nasserzadeh discovered six essential ingredients for successful relationships (hint: it's not just about sexual chemistry). Learn more about "emergent love" — a new, evidence-based model for fostering the love you desire. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feb 10, 202611 min

The brilliance of bridges and roads that repair themselves | Mark Miodownik

Your skin heals after a scratch. What if our roads, bridges and cities could self-repair after getting damaged, too? Scientist and engineer Mark Miodownik describes a new class of materials — animate matter — with the potential to sense damage, self-heal and even biodegrade when the job is done. Humanity's next great leap isn't making more stuff, he says — it's making stuff that doesn't fall apart. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Feb 09, 202612 min

Sunday Pick: The Truth About "The Zone" (with Steph Curry) | Good Sport

Host Jody Avirgan investigates the mythical "zone" in sports, featuring NBA All-Star Steph Curry's insights on its fleeting nature. Sports psychologist Dr. Nicole Detling then introduces mental resilience as a trainable skill, illustrated by Olympic biathlete Clare Egan's routine for shifting focus during high-pressure competition. The discussion covers practical strategies like process-oriented thinking, training through discomfort, and the power of neutral self-talk to optimize performance and translate sports lessons into everyday life challenges.

Feb 08, 202635 min

A songwriting battle with my AI clone | Jason "Poo Bear" Boyd, Elise Hu

As AI tools get better at making music, will there be a time when machines move people more than musicians? Putting that question to the test, legendary hitmaker Jason "Poo Bear" Boyd joins journalist Elise Hu to discuss how new tech is changing the music industry — followed by a live performance where he battles his digital twin to see who can write a catchier song. (Poo Bear is joined onstage by musician Sasha Sirota.) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Feb 07, 202635 min

A different way to measure success in health care | Andrew Bastawrous

After building a smartphone app to bring eye care to millions of people in remote areas, eye surgeon and TED Fellow Andrew Bastawrous confronted a new question: What do we lose when health care chases speed and efficiency? He offers a quiet provocation for how to get better outcomes for patients and health care workers alike. (Following the talk, Lily James Olds, director of the TED Fellows program, interviews Bastawrous on how his company, Peek Vision, is rethinking access to eye care. The surp...

Feb 06, 202634 min

Will AI take your job in the next 10 years? Wrong question | Vinciane Beauchene

As AI agents take over more tasks at work, the question isn’t whether or not humans matter — it’s how we make our impact count. Leadership expert Vinciane Beauchene challenges some commonly held assumptions about how AI will transform the workplace, sharing a blueprint for leaders to design organizations where people can focus on what truly makes a difference. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feb 05, 202614 min

What ancestral intelligence can teach us about AI | Nanjira Sambuli

Nanjira Sambuli introduces Ubuntu, an African philosophy emphasizing interconnectedness and collective well-being, as a new ethical framework for AI development. She critiques the current tech landscape where 'elephants fight' for dominance, often at the expense of the 'grass' (people and resources). The talk highlights how African innovators are charting a different path, leveraging ancestral intelligence to build equitable and inclusive AI solutions.

Feb 04, 20269 min

1 thing you can do today to be happier | Sonja Lyubomirsky

Happiness scientist Sonja Lyubomirsky explains that decades of research show the key to happiness lies in feeling connected and loved by others. She offers practical advice for fostering deeper connections through authentic sharing and empathetic listening, addressing modern challenges like social media's impact and the need to balance solitude. The episode explores the scientific definition of happiness, the negative effects of disconnection, and how to navigate an increasingly chaotic world by prioritizing real human interaction.

Feb 03, 202623 min

In defense of hip-hop | Roland Fryer

Hip-hop often gets blamed for its controversial lyrics. What if there was a way to actually measure its impact on people's lives? Analyzing 40 years' worth of radio station data and lyrics from rappers like Tupac, Dr. Dre, Jay-Z and Kendrick Lamar, economist Roland Fryer puts one of culture's most notorious debates on trial. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feb 02, 202614 min

Sunday Pick: How to think critically about history — and why it matters (w/ David Ikard)

This episode features Professor David Ikard, who highlights the societal and personal dangers of inaccurate historical knowledge. He debunks the widely accepted, yet fictionalized, story of Rosa Parks, revealing her true motivations and context. Ikard stresses that history is a constructed reality, not a fixed empirical fact, and advocates for critical examination, listening to marginalized voices, and the continuous revision of historical understanding through primary sources to foster intellectual humility and societal progress.

Feb 01, 202630 min

The language you're fluent in — but forgot how to hear | Louis VI

What if the calm you feel when you hear birdsong isn't a coincidence, but ancient evolutionary wiring ... a signal that once meant safety? Musical ecologist and rapper Louis VI says humans are hardwired to nature's sonic language, but modern life has drowned it out. He explores how we can tap back into the "overwhelming chorus of aliveness" we’ve stopped hearing — and performs an original song incorporating rainforest recordings from the Amazon and the Caribbean. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/p...

Jan 31, 202619 min

Why can't we better prepare for extreme weather? | Catherine Nakalembe

Thanks to advanced technology, we can now see droughts and crop failures months before they hit. So why are millions of people still going hungry? TED Fellow Catherine Nakalembe, director of the NASA Harvest program in Africa, exposes the blind spots that keep life-saving climate intelligence from reaching the communities it's designed to protect — and shares how to turn early warning into early action. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Jan 30, 202611 min

How to become a K-pop superstar — in 7 minutes | Charlene Kaye

Want to become a K-pop superstar? Comedian and musician Charlene Kaye lays out the formula for breaking through in just a few easy steps, from rapping like a sexy baby to dancing like you’re making pizza in the Matrix. Part musical, part dance performance, part comedy show — this is your how-to guide for creating the next K-pop hit. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jan 29, 20269 min

What happened when I started scoring my life every day | Chris Musser

Can you measure a "good life?" Management consultant Chris Musser set out to answer this question for himself, developing a daily tracker to monitor progress across nine dimensions, from faith and relationships to work and wellbeing. Learn how it helped him focus on what really matters — and how you can adopt this 90-second habit, too. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jan 28, 202612 min

The purity test that's killing clean energy | Riddhima Yadav

Why is it taking so long to finance the climate transition? After years working with the world's largest wealth funds and banks, finance innovator Riddhima Yadav has seen the same pattern: the climate movement is seeking perfection over progress, and starving the very industries that need to transition most. Discover why working with emerging markets and heavy polluters might be the uncomfortable solution to powering a clean future. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Jan 27, 202611 min

Are you spending your money wisely? | Wolfgang Schnellbaecher

Drawing on his experience negotiating million-dollar deals for global brands, procurement expert Wolfgang Schnellbaecher distills the tricks of the world's best buyers into three simple rules to help you make the most of your money. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jan 26, 202611 min

Sunday Pick: Unsolicited Advice: How to get your mojo back at work | Fixable

Are you feeling overwhelmed, uninspired, or burned out at work? In this special Unsolicited Advice episode, Anne and Frances are getting ready for summer by tackling the importance of rest and the power of intention. They offer unexpected tips and tricks for recovering from constant stress, owning what you need to feel alive and engaged, and creating an experience of work that unleashes your ambition. Follow Hosts: Anne Morriss ( @annemorriss | LinkedIn: @anne-morriss ), Frances Frei ( @francesx...

Jan 25, 202637 min

How to power the world 24/7 — without oil | Cindy Taff

Deep beneath the Earth sits 50,000 times more energy than all the world's fossil fuel reserves, but accessing it requires using the same controversial technology that oil companies spent trillions to develop: fracking. Cindy Taff left Shell to prove that drilling for geothermal heat instead of hydrocarbons can deliver what solar, wind and fossil fuels can't — clean, renewable power at all times, regardless of weather. Could this be the breakthrough that finally solves our energy challenges? Host...

Jan 24, 202611 min

What I learned from cooking my way across a continent | Dieuveil Malonga

Chef and TED Fellow Dieuveil Malonga traveled to nearly every country in Africa, tasting flavors straight from farms and local kitchens, to learn about the traditions that transform a dish. Today, he runs a center to train the next generation of top chefs from across the continent, collaboratively crafting food that shares each country’s culinary secrets with the world. Following the talk, Lily James Olds, director of the TED Fellows program, interviews Malonga on Chefs Exchange, a program welco...

Jan 23, 202624 min

How I found resilience as my life fell apart | Jane Marie Chen

Entrepreneur and TED Fellow Jane Marie Chen started a company that created a low-cost portable incubator for premature babies in underserved communities, with the goal of saving more than one million babies around the world. But when a major setback at the company led to burnout, she had to make a choice. In this powerful talk, she shares what happened next — and how it taught her the secret to resilience. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Jan 22, 202611 min

How to raise kids who can handle hard things | Kathryn Hecht

Could exposing kids to their fears help them thrive later on in life? Exploring the science of exposure therapy, pediatric psychologist Kathryn Hecht shows how encouraging children to handle discomfort builds confidence and resilience. Through personal stories and practical strategies, she shares the secret for raising kids ready to meet life’s challenges. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jan 21, 202619 min

3 possible futures for AI — which will we choose? | Alvin W. Graylin, Manoush Zomorodi

After decades working in technology across both the US and China, Alvin W. Graylin sees three possible paths for the future of AI: one where tech giants create a class of trillionaires, one where competition escalates into war or one where humanity builds and shares this technology for the common good. In conversation with TED Radio Hour host Manoush Zomorodi, Graylin cuts through the hype to clarify how we choose the right path. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Jan 20, 202612 min

The missing piece in climate action (it's not what you think) | Yi Li

Entrepreneur Yi Li discusses her experience co-founding Farmworks to build climate-smart farms in Kenya. She explains how their initial focus on scientific solutions proved insufficient, leading to the discovery that financial sustainability for farmers is the true key to lasting climate action. By prioritizing economic viability, Farmworks empowered farmers to invest in better practices and built a scalable business, challenging traditional environmental movement assumptions.

Jan 19, 202610 min

Sunday Pick: Interview: What happens to your brain without any social contact? with Dr. Vivek Murthy

In this episode, TED Health host Dr. Shoshana Ungerleider invites Dr. Vivek Murthy, the 19th and 21st Surgeon General of the United States, to discuss the ongoing loneliness epidemic. After the interview, Shoshana shares a TED-Ed talk from Terry Kupers, "What happens to your brain without social contact?" Everyone needs time to themselves, and peaceful solitude has stress-relieving benefits. But when being alone is forced upon you, the effects can be surprisingly extensive. And though different ...

Jan 18, 202639 min

The art (and science) of stop-motion animation | Brian McLean

You’re invited into the world of stop-motion animation, where design and engineering collide to create fan-favorite films. Visual effects artist Brian McLean (from the Oscar-winning studio behind “Coraline” and “ParaNorman”) explores how 3D printing is revolutionizing this century-old craft, showing how creative obsession paired with cutting-edge technology can reinvent the way we make things. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....

Jan 17, 202617 min
For the best experience, listen in Metacast app for iOS or Android