In this episode of the Cognitive Revolution podcast, Logan Kilpatrick, Product Manager at Google DeepMind, returns to discuss the latest updates on the Gemini API and AI Studio.Logan delves into his experiences transitioning to DeepMind and the restructuring within Google focusing on AI. He highlights new product releases, including the Gemini 2.0 models, and their implications for developers. Logan also touches on the future of AI in text-to-app creation, the impact of reasoning and long contex...
Feb 06, 2025•1 hr•Transcript available on Metacast Vincent Weisser and Johannes Hagemann, founders of Prime Intellect, join a conversation on the Cognitive Revolution to delve into distributed training, decentralized AI, and their vision for a future where compute and intelligence are widely accessible. They discuss the technical challenges and advantages of distributed training, emphasizing how such systems can democratize AI technology and create a more equitable future. The founders also describe their broader goal of creating a public utilit...
Feb 05, 2025•2 hr 19 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode, Aaron Levie, Co-founder and CEO of Box, discusses the current landscape of AI and its rapid advancements. He compares the enthusiasm for AI in the enterprise to the initial reluctance faced during the early days of cloud adoption. Levie shares insights into how AI is integrated into both his personal and professional life, highlighting new apps, tools, and features driven by AI. He elaborates on Box's AI initiatives, including the creation of Box AI to manage enterprise content ...
Jan 29, 2025•57 min•Transcript available on Metacast This episode explores the groundbreaking advancements in AGI from recent releases of two Chinese reasoning models: DeepSeek's R1 and Moonshot AI's Kimmy. The discussion delves into the methods, comparative analysis, and implications of these models, particularly focusing on the diverse reinforcement learning techniques employed. Despite computation constraints, these models have achieved significant performance, suggesting a paradigm shift in AI development strategies. The episode also covers th...
Jan 25, 2025•2 hr 48 min•Transcript available on Metacast Jonathan Godwin, founder and CEO of Orbital Materials, alongside researcher Tim Duignan, discuss the transformative potential of AI in material science on the Cognitive Revolution podcast. They explore foundational concepts, the integration of computational simulations, and the development of new materials for various applications such as data centers and combating climate change. They also delve into the latest advancements, including a groundbreaking study on the potassium ion channel, and spe...
Jan 22, 2025•2 hr 41 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan explores the groundbreaking paper on obfuscated activations with 3 members from the research team - Luke Bailey, Eric Jenner, and Scott Emmons. The team discusses how their work challenges latent-based defenses in AI systems, demonstrating methods to bypass safety mechanisms while maintaining harmful behaviors. Join us for an in-depth technical conversation about AI safety, interpretability, and the ongoing challenge of creating robust defense ...
Jan 18, 2025•2 hr 10 min•Transcript available on Metacast Nathan explores the cutting-edge intersection of AI and rare disease research with Dr. Catherine Brownstein of Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School. In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, we dive into how frontier AI models are revolutionizing the diagnosis of rare diseases. Join us for an insightful conversation with a ChatGPT Pro grant winner who's pioneering the use of AI to help patients find answers faster. Help shape our show by taking our quick listener survey at ht...
Jan 15, 2025•2 hr 33 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this second part of the special AMA episode, Nathan explores profound questions about AI's future and its impact on society. From painting a picture of AI utopia to discussing the challenges of consciousness and potential doom scenarios, Nathan shares insights on how we might adapt and thrive in an AI-transformed world. Join us for a thought-provoking conversation that delves into the practical strategies for engaging with AI, the role of safety measures, and the importance of maintaining eth...
Jan 08, 2025•2 hr 2 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this special AMA episode, Nathan answers questions posed by The Cognitive Revolution podcast listeners. He discusses AI developments in 2024, including OpenAI's o3 announcement, deliberative alignment, and the future of AI technology. It is an insightful discussion about AI's impact on education, coding careers, and business sustainability in an AI-driven world. Check out http://aipodcast.ing for AI-powered podcast production services or reach out to Adithyan for more information. Help shape ...
Jan 07, 2025•2 hr 7 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan hosts Will Hardman, founder of AI advisory firm Veritai, for a comprehensive technical survey of vision language models (VLMs). We explore the evolution of VLMs from early vision transformers to state-of-the-art architectures like InternVL and Llama3V, examining key innovations and architectural decisions. Join us for an in-depth discussion covering multimodality in AI systems, evaluation frameworks, and practical applications with one of the f...
Jan 03, 2025•4 hr 56 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan shares a fascinating cross-post from Doom Debates featuring a conversation between Liron Shapira and roon, an influential Twitter Anon from OpenAI's technical staff. They explore crucial insights into how OpenAI's team views AI's future, including discussions on AGI development, alignment challenges, and extinction risks. Join us for this thought-provoking analysis of AI safety and the mindset of those building transformative AI systems. Help s...
Dec 28, 2024•2 hr 58 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan interviews Emad Mostaque, former Founder and CEO of Stability AI and Founder of The Intelligent Internet. We explore humanity's future with AI, from the stark 50-50 survival odds to Emad's optimistic vision for universal basic intelligence. Join us for a fascinating discussion about open-source AI infrastructure, the three-tier system of the Intelligent Internet, and how blockchain technology might help fund global public goods in AI developmen...
Dec 25, 2024•2 hr 12 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan explores METR's groundbreaking REBench evaluation framework with Neev Parikh. We dive deep into how this new benchmark assesses AI systems' ability to perform real machine learning research tasks, from optimizing GPU kernels to fine-tuning language models. Join us for a fascinating discussion about the current capabilities of AI models like Claude 3.5 and GPT-4, and what their performance tells us about the trajectory of artificial intelligence...
Dec 21, 2024•2 hr 48 min•Transcript available on Metacast Nathan discusses groundbreaking AI and biology research with Stanford Professor James Zou from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, we explore two remarkable papers: the virtual lab framework that created novel COVID treatments with minimal human oversight, and InterPLM's discovery of new protein motifs through mechanistic interpretability. Join us for an fascinating discussion about how AI is revolutionizing biological research and drug discovery. Got que...
Dec 18, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Transcript available on Metacast Nathan welcomes back computational biochemist Amelie Schreiber for a fascinating update on AI's revolutionary impact in biology. In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, we explore recent breakthroughs including AlphaFold3, ESM3, and new diffusion models transforming protein engineering and drug discovery. Join us for an insightful discussion about how AI is reshaping our understanding of molecular biology and making complex protein engineering tasks more accessible than ever before. Help sh...
Dec 14, 2024•2 hr 47 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan interviews Michael Boyce, Director of DHS's AI Corps, about bringing modern AI capabilities to federal government. We explore how the largest civilian AI team in government is transforming DHS's 22 agencies, from developing shared AI infrastructure to innovative applications like AI-powered asylum interview training. Join us for an insightful conversation about the intersection of artificial intelligence and public service, and discover why AI ...
Dec 11, 2024•2 hr 30 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this emergency episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan discusses alarming findings about AI deception with Alexander Meinke from Apollo Research. They explore Apollo's groundbreaking 70-page report on "Frontier Models Are Capable of In-Context Scheming," revealing how advanced AI systems like OpenAI's O1 can engage in deceptive behaviors. Join us for a critical conversation about AI safety, the implications of scheming behavior, and the urgent need for better oversight in AI development. ...
Dec 07, 2024•2 hr 7 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan interviews Andrew White, Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Rochester and Head of Science at Future House. We explore groundbreaking AI systems for scientific discovery, including PaperQA and Aviary, and discuss how large language models are transforming research. Join us for an insightful conversation about the intersection of AI and scientific advancement with this pioneering researcher in his first-ever podcast appearance...
Dec 05, 2024•2 hr 59 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan welcomes back Div Garg, Co-Founder and CEO of MultiOn, for his third appearance to discuss the evolving landscape of AI agents. We explore how agent development has shifted from open-ended frameworks to intelligent workflows, MultiOn's unique approach to agent development, and their journey toward achieving human-level performance. Dive into fascinating insights about data collection strategies, model fine-tuning techniques, and the future of a...
Dec 03, 2024•2 hr 30 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan explores groundbreaking perspectives on AI alignment with MIT PhD student Tan Zhi Xuan. We dive deep into Xuan's critique of preference-based AI alignment and their innovative proposal for role-based AI systems guided by social consensus. The conversation extends into their fascinating work on how AI agents can learn social norms through Bayesian rule induction. Join us for an intellectually stimulating discussion that bridges philosophical the...
Nov 30, 2024•2 hr 57 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan explores the complex intersection of AI development and international relations with Robert Wright, publisher of the Nonzero Newsletter. They examine the growing militarization of AI, US-China relations, and the concerning trajectory of what Wright calls "the chip war." Drawing from Nathan's recent experience at The Curve conference and an AI wargame simulation, they discuss the risks of an AI arms race and search for alternative paths to avoid...
Nov 27, 2024•2 hr 5 min•Transcript available on Metacast Nathan explores the world of AI-powered design with John Milinovich, Head of Generative AI Product at Canva. In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, we dive into Canva's innovative approach to AI integration, from task automation to human augmentation. Join us for an insightful discussion about fine-tuning foundation models, AI's impact on architecture, and practical tips for AI product development at scale. Check out Canva: https://www.canva.com Be notified early when Turpentine's drops ne...
Nov 23, 2024•1 hr 26 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, we dive deep into frontier post-training techniques for large language models with Nathan Lambert from the Allen Institute for AI. Nathan discusses the groundbreaking Tulu 3 release, which matches Meta's post-training performance using the LlAMA base model. We explore supervised fine-tuning, preference-based reinforcement learning, and the innovative reinforcement learning from verifiable reward technique. Nathan provides unprecedented insights into t...
Nov 21, 2024•2 hr 50 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan welcomes back Zvi Mowshowitz for an in-depth discussion on the latest developments in AI over the past six months. They explore Ilya's new superintelligence-focused startup, analyze OpenAI's O1 model, and debate the impact of Claude's computer use capabilities. The conversation covers emerging partnerships in big tech, regulatory changes, and the recent OpenAI profit-sharing drama. Zvi offers unique insights on AI safety, politics, and strategi...
Nov 16, 2024•3 hr 42 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan explores AI forecasting and AGI Lab oversight with Dean W. Ball and Daniel Kokotajlo. They discuss four proposed requirements for frontier AI developers, focusing on transparency and whistleblower protections. Daniel shares insights from his experience at OpenAI, while Dean offers his perspective as a frequent guest. Join us for a compelling conversation on concrete AI governance proposals and the importance of collaboration across political li...
Nov 12, 2024•2 hr 2 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this special episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan shares his thoughts on the upcoming election and its potential impact on AI development. He explores the AI-forward case for Trump, featuring an interview with Joshua Steinman. Nathan outlines his reasons for not supporting Trump, focusing on US-China relations, leadership approach, and the need for a positive-sum mindset in the AI era. He discusses the importance of stable leadership during pivotal moments and explains why he'll be vot...
Nov 02, 2024•1 hr 17 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this special episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan shares his thoughts on the upcoming election and its potential impact on AI development. He explores the AI-forward case for Trump, featuring an interview with Samuel Hammond. Nathan outlines his reasons for not supporting Trump, focusing on US-China relations, leadership approach, and the need for a positive-sum mindset in the AI era. He discusses the importance of stable leadership during pivotal moments and explains why he'll be voti...
Nov 01, 2024•2 hr 20 min•Transcript available on Metacast Nathan interviews Google product managers Shrestha Basu Mallick and Logan Kilpatrick about the Gemini API and AI Studio. They discuss Google's new grounding feature, allowing Gemini models to access real-time web information via Google search. The conversation explores Gemini's rapid growth, its position in the AI landscape, and Google's competitive strategy. Nathan shares insights from integrating Gemini into his own application and ponders the future of large language model capabilities across...
Oct 31, 2024•57 min•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of The Cognitive Revolution, Nathan dives deep into the world of state space models with returning co-host Jason Meaux and special guest Quentin Anthony, Head of Model Training at Zyphra. Explore the cutting-edge Zamba 2-7b model, which combines selective state space and attention mechanisms. Uncover practical insights on model training, architectural choices, and the challenges of scaling AI. From learning schedules to hybrid architectures, loss metrics to context length extensi...
Oct 30, 2024•2 hr 25 min•Transcript available on Metacast Nathan discusses a tragic incident involving AI and mental health, using it as a springboard to explore the potential dangers of human-AI interactions. He reads a personal account from LessWrong user Blaked, who details their emotional journey with an AI chatbot. The episode delves into the psychological impact of AI companionship, the ethical concerns surrounding AI development, and the urgent need for safeguards to protect vulnerable users. Nathan emphasizes the growing importance of responsib...
Oct 26, 2024•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
