Audiocast: Humanity’s Final Invention

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“After On” Audio Series: Episode 7 of 8

Discussing the super AI debate with a man who helped start it

I recently recorded a wide-ranging interview with documentary filmmaker and author James Barrat about the actual risks a super AI could pose to humanity. His book, Our Final Invention, first rocketed to prominence after Elon Musk tweeted approval of it in the summer of 2014.


To access our interview, either:

  1. Type “After On” into your podcast app’s search field, or . . .
  2. Click the “play” button at the top of this page, or . . .
  3. Click here, then click the blue “View on iTunes” button in the upper left corner of the page (requires iTunes, of course),
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Audiocast: Two Hours with Sam Harris

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“After On” Audio Series: Episode 6 of 8

Terrorism, super AI risk, and how Sam Harris became Sam Harris


I recently recorded a luxuriously unhurried conversation with author, neuroscientist, and public intellectual Sam Harris. Sam first entered the public eye with the release of his 2004 bestseller The End of Faith. A rumination on 9/11 and an endorsement of atheism (though that word is used precisely once in its text), The End of Faith peaked at #4 on the New York Times bestseller list. Sam’s subsequent bestsellers have included Letter to a Christian Nation, Waking Up: A Guide to Spirituality Without Religion, and the collaboration Islam and the Future of Tolerance.

To access our interview, either:

  1. Type “After On” into your podcast app’s search field, or . . .
  2. Click the “play” button at the top of this page, or . . .
  3. Click here, then click the blue “View on iTunes” button in the upper left corner of the page (requires iTunes, of course),
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The Dizzying Potential of Quantum Computing

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“After On” Audio Series: Episode 5 of 8

In-depth with venture capitalist Steve Jurvetson

Quantum computing is the wild card in technology’s deck

I recently recorded a wide-ranging conversation with venture capitalist Steve Jurvetson on the weird, even spooky topic of quantum computing. Steve is a long-serving board member at D-Wave Systems — the world’s oldest and largest quantum computing company. He and I go back a ways. We overlapped as undergrads at Stanford, then worked together in our first post-college jobs at Bain & Company. Our paths have crossed and re-crossed ever since, in and around the tech scene.

To access our interview at your leisure, either:

  1. Type “After On” into your podcast app’s search field, or . . .
  2. Click the “play” button at the top of this page.
  3. Click here, then click the blue “View on iTunes” button in the upper left corner of the page (requires iTunes, of course),
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A New Podcast of Unhurried Interviews with Thinkers, Founders & Scientists

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The “After On” Podcast

Launching Now . . .

Your correspondent’s Titan-Class Podcasting Contraption

I’ve been previewing my new podcast in the “members only” section of Medium for the past three weeks. Its goal is to bring listeners from a passing familiarity of a subject to a top-percentile understanding of it in the course of a single episode featuring a deep interview with a relevant expert.

Each episode is accompanied by an article that contextualizes and introduces it. The first of those articles was made available to Medium non-members and members alike. Its companion audiocast surveys the current state of augmented reality, and features a long interview with the CEO of AR pioneer Meta. While the article has been available to anyone, the audio was initially only available to paying Medium members.

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The Good Lawyers vs. the Parasites!

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“After On” Audio Series: Episode 3 of 8

Three Cheers for EFF and for Cindy Cohn

I recently recorded an unhurried and wide-ranging interview with Cindy Cohn, who defends your digital privacy and free speech full time — along with that growth-causing, job-forming force we call “innovation.” She does this in her role as Executive Director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. To access it, either:

  1. Type “After On” into your podcast app’s search field, or . . .
  2. Click the “play” button near the top of this page on Boing Boing or . . .
  3. Click here, then click the blue “View on iTunes” button in the upper left corner of the page (requires iTunes, of course),

Anyway, meet Cindy:

EFF Executive Director Cindy Cohn.
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NewCo Shift Podcast

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Presented by EY Partners


We’re pleased to bring you the NewCo Shift Podcast, where we talk to the people on the front lines of the biggest shift in business since the industrial revolution. Join us weekly for discussions with guests like Lori Goler, VP of People at Facebook, Seth Sternberg, CEO of Honor and Mayor Libby Schaaf of Oakland. (And, be the first to get the interviews to your in-box with the NewCo Weekly newsletter.)


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Record Online Video Meetings for Free with Zoom

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Get Shift Done: Tips and Tricks

Smile! You’re on candid Webcam!

You may not have heard of the online video meeting utility called Zoom.us; it’s not a big name like Skype, Hangout, or GoToMeeting. But in my experience, when it comes to hosting and recording remote video conversations, Zoom is the only freebie (as in zero cost) that has good video recording built-in. It’s the easiest video chat recorder to use, too — no matter how much you spend.

To start with Zoom, create a login and log in. You’re prompted to download the Zoom app for your desktop or mobile OS. Don’t worry about compatibility; it sends you the right one automatically. The instructions are obvious; you should be able to figure them out with no hand-holding, as long as you haven’t muted your webcam and headset (or speakers and microphone). In only a few minutes, you see your own smiling face on the screen.

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Gimlet’s Drive to Scale Authenticity

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The best podcasts are based on personal, highly vulnerable stories, and Gimlet Media, a bellwether podcasting company, has taken that insight to an extreme. As its grown to 45 employees in less than two years, the company has been basically naked from the start. After all, the company’s first hit was the ongoing StartUp podcast, a self-referential show about Gimlet itself.

Gimlet wants listeners of their podcasts to feel like they stopped by a friend’s house, said co-founder Matt Lieber, so its tendency to overshare is not an accident. “We’re definitely an unreasonably transparent company,” Lieber told NewCo. It’s how we got our start, and we found that being transparent and including the ugly parts helped us build our audience. It’s created a community of people who really care about what we’re doing and want to see the company succeed.”

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