Futurology

Nick Srnicek, author and scholar on technology and the future of work, discusses automation, the shift from platforms to hard infrastructure, and how AI concentrates power in tech firms. He revisits accelerationist ideas about reducing wage labor and expanding free time. Conversations cover geopolitics shaping tech, regulation dilemmas, and imagining democratic institutions for AI governance.

Elif Shafak, prolific novelist who writes about identity, memory, and plural histories. She explores fiction as a defense against dogma and collective amnesia. She discusses multilingual belonging, marginalized memories, nonhuman voices in storytelling, and the need to hold opposites like faith and doubt together in a fast, uncertain world.

Hartmut Neven, founder of Google’s Quantum AI Lab and pioneer in quantum processors and ML, explores whether quantum superposition could underlie consciousness. He recounts his path from DARPA neural‑vision work to building quantum devices. He explains many‑worlds thinking, outlines experiments linking brain states to qubits, and describes isotope and anesthetic tests to probe quantum conscious moments.

A wide-ranging conversation about how meritocracy shaped public life and fueled political backlash. They explore why young people crave public moral reasoning and how markets turned success into moral worth. The discussion covers reforms like citizen assemblies, civic education, curbing outrage-driven social media, and ethical questions around AI and the human-virtual boundary.

Was “open and transparent” social media ever a good idea? Evan Spiegel explains why he built Snapchat differently. | Subscribe to Futurology! https://linkin.bio/futurology/ Are some of tech’s best innovations born from subtraction? Evan Spiegel built Snapchat around design choices that undid industry norms: no likes, no public comments, no permanent posts.  In this conversation with Dawn Nakagawa, the Snap CEO explains why giving teenagers a tool to measure social capital in real time was never a good idea and where today’s tech revolution could take us next, beyond the smartphone. From deliberative democracy to the interconnectedness of all life, Spiegel ponders the big ideas that will help us design our future, not just react to it. Subscribe to the Berggruen Institute on YouTube to be the first to listen to new Futurology episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@Berggrueninst Catch up on the Futurology conversation with full episodes on YouTube.  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLyYCSKWs8iYgjg-mhu-EuhTrG0-adrb0c  Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/futurology/id1821718921 Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/2I38HvHP6KlXrD5ysfygxk?si=XB2qyyGjT2ONMTd5XUKJAg&nd=1&dlsi=ac8cda6751834298 Mentioned in this Episode: America in One Room — Deliberative Democracy Lab at Stanford Department of Angels — Official site Altagether — Official site Team Palisades — Official site Where to find Evan Spiegel:  Snapchat: https://www.snapchat.com/@evan Snap Inc. YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@snapinc Snap Spectacles: www.instagram.com/spectacles/ Snap.com: Official Profile Show ideas and feedback? Email: futurology@berggruen.org Learn more about the Berggruen Institute  https://www.berggruen.org Follow Futurology! Instagram:   / futurologypod Twitter/X:   / futurologypod Tiktok:   / futurologypod Facebook:   / berggrueninst   LinkedIn:   / berggrueninst   Bluesky:   / futurologypod Credits  Executive Producers: Nicolas Berggruen, Nathan Gardels, Nils Gilman, Dawn Nakagawa, & Jason Hoch Producers: Grant Slater, Alex Gardels, & Nathalia Ramos Associate Producer: Elissa Mardiney Theme Music: Marcus Bagala Audio Engineer: Aaron Bastinelli & Kyle Scott Wilson Futurology is a production of Studio B and Wavland for the Berggruen Institute in Los Angeles, California.

A sharp conversation about how bombing and conflict have strengthened hardline power in Iran and crushed chances for reform. They argue Iran acts as a rational survivalist state, not a fanatic theocracy. The discussion explores the IRGC's hidden authority, the irony of hereditary succession, and how nationalism and a cosmic war mindset reshape futures.

Lea Ypi grew up through the collapse of communist Albania. Now, as liberal democracy begins to fray, she examines what freedom means.  | Subscribe to Futurology! https://linkin.bio/futurology/ Is the collapse of liberal democracy already here? Political philosopher Lea Ypi grew up in communist Albania and watched an entire political system disintegrate overnight. Now she sees a familiar undermining of the institutions the West takes for granted, fueled by Big Tech’s ubiquitous surveillance practices. In this episode, Ypi draws on her extraordinary life story and rigorous political philosophy to interrogate what freedom means in a political landscape where old assumptions have vanished and personal autonomy is under closer watch than ever before. Subscribe to the Berggruen Institute on YouTube to be the first to listen to new Futurology episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@Berggrueninst Catch up on the Futurology conversation with full episodes on YouTube.  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLyYCSKWs8iYgjg-mhu-EuhTrG0-adrb0c  Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/futurology/id1821718921 Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/2I38HvHP6KlXrD5ysfygxk?si=XB2qyyGjT2ONMTd5XUKJAg&nd=1&dlsi=ac8cda6751834298 Mentioned in this Episode: Free — Lea Ypi (Memoir) Indignity — Lea Ypi (Book) “The Anthropologist as Inquisitor” — Carlo Ginzburg (Essay) The Age of Surveillance Capitalism — Shoshana Zuboff (Book, 2019) Everything Was Forever, Until It Was No More — Alexei Yurchak (Book, 2005) The Gift — Marcel Mauss (Essay/Book, 1925) Where to find Lea Ypi: Website: https://leaypi.com/ Instagram: @lea.ypi Bluesky: @leaypi.bsky.social X: @lea_ypi Show ideas and feedback? Email: futurology@berggruen.org Learn more about the Berggruen Institute  https://www.berggruen.org Follow Futurology! Instagram:   / futurologypod Twitter/X:   / futurologypod Tiktok:   / futurologypod Facebook:   / berggrueninst   LinkedIn:   / berggrueninst   Bluesky:   / futurologypod Credits  Executive Producers: Nicolas Berggruen, Nathan Gardels, Nils Gilman, Dawn Nakagawa, & Jason Hoch Producers: Grant Slater, Alex Gardels, & Nathalia Ramos Associate Producer: Elissa Mardiney Theme Music: Marcus Bagala Audio Engineer: Aaron Bastinelli & Kyle Scott Wilson Futurology is a production of Studio B and Wavland for the Berggruen Institute in Los Angeles, California.

What do music, medicine, and markets have in common? They all rely on stories we tell ourselves about how the world works. And those stories are being turned on their heads by AI.  In this episode, medtech investor and former Spotify Artist-in-Residence D.A. Wallach digs into what makes music special (hint: it’s not originality) and what upending the healthcare industry would look like if AI puts the world’s best doctor in your pocket. This is a conversation about taste, technology, and what happens when you follow your curiosity wherever it leads. Subscribe to the Berggruen Institute on YouTube to be the first to listen to new Futurology episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@Berggrueninst Catch up on the Futurology conversation with full episodes on YouTube.  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLyYCSKWs8iYgjg-mhu-EuhTrG0-adrb0c  Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/futurology/id1821718921 Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/2I38HvHP6KlXrD5ysfygxk?si=XB2qyyGjT2ONMTd5XUKJAg&nd=1&dlsi=ac8cda6751834298 The Gap — Ira Glass (Video, 2009) https://vimeo.com/85040589 Who Owns the Future? — Jaron Lanier (Book, 2013) https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Who-Owns-the-Future/Jaron-Lanier/9781451654974 Bitcoin for Rockstars — D.A. Wallach (Essay, 2014) https://www.wired.com/2014/12/bitcoin-for-rockstars/ Zero Toll Medicine — D.A. Wallach (Essay, 2024) https://dawallach.substack.com/p/zero-toll-medicineWhere to find D.A. Wallach: X: @dawallach Instagram: @dawallach LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dawallach/ Show ideas and feedback? Email: futurology@berggruen.org Learn more about the Berggruen Institute  https://www.berggruen.org Follow Futurology! Instagram:   / futurologypod Twitter/X:   / futurologypod Tiktok:   / futurologypod Facebook:   / berggrueninst   LinkedIn:   / berggrueninst   Bluesky:   / futurologypod Credits  Executive Producers: Nicolas Berggruen, Nathan Gardels, Nils Gilman, Dawn Nakagawa, & Jason Hoch Producers: Grant Slater, Alex Gardels, & Nathalia Ramos Associate Producer: Elissa Mardiney Theme Music: Marcus Bagala Audio Engineer: Aaron Bastinelli & Kyle Scott Wilson Futurology is a production of Studio B and Wavland for the Berggruen Institute in Los Angeles, California.

Where does consciousness come from, and who (or what) gets to have it? The newest AI models have the power to convince users that they’re very much alive inside. But what if there were a test to check if they’re right? Consciousness science is working on just that. In this episode, renowned neuroscientist Christof Koch chronicles his decades-long exploration of the biology of consciousness. Sharing the field’s leading theories and what they say about everything from brain bridging to quantifying the soullessness of LLMs, he reveals why his own beliefs have changed on the subject and where he thinks all this talk of self-awareness is headed next. Subscribe to the Berggruen Institute on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Berggrueninst All Futurology Episodes Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/futurology/id1821718921 Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/2I38HvHP6KlXrD5ysfygxk?si=XB2qyyGjT2ONMTd5XUKJAg&nd=1&dlsi=ac8cda6751834298 Mentioned in this Episode: Then I Am Myself the World: What Consciousness Is and How to Expand It — Christof Koch (Book, 2024) The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature — William James (Book, 1902) My Octopus Teacher — Pippa Ehrlich and James Reed (Documentary Film, 2020) Website: https://christofkoch.com/ Tiny Blue Dot Foundation: https://www.tinybluedotfoundation.org/about-us Allen Institute: https://alleninstitute.org/person/christof-koch/ Show ideas and feedback? Email: futurology@berggruen.org Learn more about the Berggruen Institute  https://www.berggruen.org Follow Futurology! Instagram:   / futurologypod Twitter/X:   / futurologypod Tiktok:   / futurologypod Facebook:   / berggrueninst   LinkedIn:   / berggrueninst   Bluesky:   / futurologypod Credits  Executive Producers: Nicolas Berggruen, Nathan Gardels, Nils Gilman, Dawn Nakagawa, & Jason Hoch Producers: Grant Slater, Alex Gardels, & Nathalia Ramos Associate Producer: Elissa Mardiney Theme Music: Marcus Bagala Audio Engineer: Aaron Bastinelli & Kyle Scott Wilson Futurology is a production of Studio B and Wavland for the Berggruen Institute in Los Angeles, California.

We live in a moment when the power to change the world often arrives before the wisdom to understand that power. CRISPR, a bacterial immunity process turned DNA editing tool, promises breakthroughs across scientific disciplines. But it also collapses long-standing boundaries between nature and human design. In this episode, Jennifer Doudna – Nobel Prize-winning chemist and founder of the Innovative Genomics Institute – reflects on the thrilling discovery of CRISPR as a gene-editing tool and what it means to suddenly possess the ability to edit the code of life itself. From the ongoing explosion of new opportunities to the shock of seeing ethical boundaries crossed in real time, is there a safe path forward in shaping the future of biological life as we know it? Subscribe to the Berggruen Institute on YouTube to be the first to listen to new Futurology episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@Berggrueninst Catch up on the Futurology conversation with full episodes on YouTube.  https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLyYCSKWs8iYgjg-mhu-EuhTrG0-adrb0c  Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/futurology/id1821718921 Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/2I38HvHP6KlXrD5ysfygxk?si=XB2qyyGjT2ONMTd5XUKJAg&nd=1&dlsi=ac8cda6751834298 Mentioned in this Episode: The Double Helix — James D. Watson (Book, 1968) https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Double-Helix/James-D-Watson/9780743216302 The Pleasure of Finding Things Out — Richard P. Feynman (Book, 1999) https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/richard-p-feynman/the-pleasure-of-finding-things-out/9780465023951/ “The RNA World” — Walter Gilbert (Article, 1986) https://www.nature.com/articles/319618a0.pdf A Programmable Dual-RNA–Guided DNA Endonuclease in Adaptive Bacterial Immunity — Martin Jinek, Krzysztof Chylinski, Ines Fonfara, Michael Hauer, Jennifer A. Doudna, Emmanuelle Charpentier (Paper, 2012). https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1225829 “Generation of Gene-Modified Cynomolgus Monkey via Cas9/RNA-Mediated Gene Targeting in One-Cell Embryos” — Niu et al. (Paper, 2014) https://www.cell.com/fulltext/S0092-8674(14)00171-6 Infant with rare, incurable disease is first to successfully receive personalized gene therapy treatment – (Article, May 2025) https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/infant-rare-incurable-disease-first-successfully-receive-personalized-gene-therapy-treatment Human Genome Editing: Science, Ethics, and Governance — National Academies (Report, 2017) https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/24623/human-genome-editing-science-ethics-and-governance “Can CRISPR Cut Methane Emissions From Cow Guts?” — UC Davis (Article, 2023) https://www.ucdavis.edu/food/news/can-crispr-cut-methane-emissions-cow-gutsWhere to find Jennifer Doudna:  Website, Innovative Genomics Institute: https://innovativegenomics.org/people/jennifer-doudna/ Instagram, Innovative Genomics Institute: https://www.instagram.com/innovativegenomics/ Bluesky, Innovative Genomics Institute: https://bsky.app/profile/innovativegenomics.bsky.social Linkedin, Innovative Genomics Institute: https://www.linkedin.com/company/innovative-genomics-institute Show ideas and feedback? Email: futurology@berggruen.org Learn more about the Berggruen Institute  https://www.berggruen.org Follow Futurology! Instagram:   / futurologypod Twitter/X:   / futurologypod Facebook:   / berggrueninst   LinkedIn:   / berggrueninst   Bluesky:   / futurologypod Credits  Executive Producers: Nicolas Berggruen, Nathan Gardels, Nils Gilman, Dawn Nakagawa, & Jason Hoch Producers: Grant Slater, Alex Gardels, & Nathalia Ramos Associate Producer: Elissa Mardiney Theme Music: Marcus Bagala Audio Engineer: Aaron Bastinelli & Kyle Scott Wilson Futurology is a production of Studio B and Wavland for the Berggruen Institute in Los Angeles, California.