Deep Questions with Cal Newport

02:23:07

Ep 386: Was 2025 a Great or Terrible Year for AI? (w/...

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2026/01/05

Ep 386: Was 2025 a Great or Terrible Year for AI? (w/ Ed Zitron) 2025 was a year that was saturated in AI news, from Deep Seek, through claims of economic “bloodbaths,” to GPT-5, Sora, and Chatbot girlfriends. Frankly, it was exhausting. As we now look back on 2025 an interesting question arises: all in all, did this end up being a good or bad year for AI? To help me answer this question, I’m joined by hard-hitting AI commentator Ed Zitron, who's been everywhere in the media in recent months helping

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01:14:33

Ep 385: Single-Purpose Notebooks (REPLAY)

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/12/29

In this replay of a classic episode from March 2024, Cal discusses his transformative experience using a small analog notebook to tackle a complicated problem in his life. He makes the broader argument that sometimes simple analog tools can far exceed the utility of their digital counterparts.Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvoVideo from today’s episode:youtube.com/calnewportmediaDeep

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01:16:55

Ep 384: What Should I Read for a Deeper New Year?

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/12/22

In our annual holiday episode, Cal tackles one of the questions he’s asked most often: What should I read? But with a twist. He recommends six books that are not from the self-help or advice genre that will nonetheless help you change your life into something deeper. For the rest of the episode, he then answers listener calls.Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: bit.ly/3U3sTvoVideo from today’s episode:

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01:35:25

Ep 383: Why Is Everyone Talking About “Against the...

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/12/15

Earlier this fall, the activist, novelist, and essayist Paul Kingsnorth published an anti-technology polemic called “Against the Machine.” To say it hit a nerve is an understatement. In the months that followed, Kingsnorth has been everywhere; profiled, among places, in the New York Times, the New Yorker, and The Atlantic. In today’s episode, I want to find out why Kingsnorth’s take on technology is resonating so strongly. To help me answer this question, I’m joined by the journalist and scholar

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01:19:16

Ep. 382: Is the Internet Becoming Television?

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/12/08

Last month, Derek Thompson published an intriguing essay that made waves in technology criticism circles. It was titled: “Everything is Television.” In today’s episode, Cal takes a closer look at this essay, unpacking and expanding Thompson’s arguments, and ultimately concluding with a series of predictions about what to expect next from the internet. He then answers listener questions and discusses the five books he read in November 2025.Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with

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01:38:29

Ep. Ep 381: Life Advice from Legendary Writers

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/12/01

In today’s episode, Cal reviews some of his favorite advice from legendary writers (plus a bonus piece of advice from his own craft). Within each suggestion, he finds a general idea that can apply to anyone looking to build a deep life in an increasingly distracted world. He then answers listener questions and responds to comments about last week’s episode.Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link:

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01:18:50

Ep. 380: ChatGPT is Not Alive!

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/11/24

There has been a lot of loose talk online recently about the capabilities of existing AI tools. In this episode, Cal reacts to a specific recent clip from the Joe Rogan podcast in which the guest argues that language models are like a child’s brain, and may already be conscious. Cal puts on his (always stylish) computer scientist had to explain why this cannot be true. He then answers listener questions and reacts to feedback on his recent episode about using a notebook to enhance long

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01:55:27

Ep. 379: The Flexibility Myth

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/11/17

When companies began instituting return-to-office plans after the pandemic, a disproportionate number of women chose instead to leave the workforce. Why? The obvious answer is that they wanted the flexibility of remote work. But in this episode, Cal draws on a recent New York Times op-ed that offers a deeper explanation – one that affects all knowledge workers. He then explores solutions to the problem, answers listener questions, and (God help him) respond to comments on his recent

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01:28:53

Ep. 378: The Lost Art of Long Thinking

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/11/10

We often talk on this show about how digital devices undermine our ability to consume more complicated and meaningful ideas. But what about our ability to produce such ideas from scratch? In this episode, Cal identifies a key productive skill – long thinking – that we’re increasingly losing. He argues that it’s critical for living a deep life and provides a simple strategy to help regain the skill. He then answers listener questions and discusses the books he read in October 2025.Below are the

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01:31:14

Ep. 377: The Case Against Superintelligence

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/11/03

Techno-philosopher Eliezer Yudkowsky recently went on Ezra Klein's podcast to argue that if we continue on our path toward superintelligent AI, these machines will destroy humanity. In this episode, Cal responds to Yudkowsky’s argument point by point, concluding with a more general claim that these general styles of discussions suffer from what he calls “the philosopher’s fallacy,” and are distracting us from real problems with AI that are actually afflicting us right now. He then answers listener

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01:23:51

Ep. 376: The Lincoln Protocol

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/10/27

How do you escape a world where constant digital distractions and darkness threatens to pull you down? Maybe take a page out of Abraham Lincoln’s life. In this episode, Cal argues that Lincoln faced analog versions of many of the same issues we face in our contemporary digital world, and by studying how he escaped we can learn a method to accomplish something similar. He then answers listener questions on this theme and revisits the comments from a 2008 essay where he first introduced some of these

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01:36:12

Ep. 375: Did OpenAI Just Kill Social Media?

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/10/20

Ep. 375: Did OpenAI Just Kill Social Media?OpenAI has been making waves recently with their release of their Sora 2 video generation model, which they have launched alongside a TikTok-style social media sharing app. The internet is usually pretty excited about AI innovations, but this one has people unsettled. In today’s episode, Cal looks at one implication of Sora 2 in particular that is both important but currently overcooked: the impact of AI content generation on the existing social media

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01:38:17

Ep. 374: This is Your Brain on Phones

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/10/13

It’s hard to cultivate a deep life when you cannot go more than a few minutes without checking your phone. In this episode, Cal looks closer at the precise neural mechanisms at play that make the physical act of looking at your phone irresistible. Then armed with this knowledge, he explains why many popular remedies fail, and which specific responses are most likely to succeed. He then answers listener questions and discusses the five old-fashioned analog books (!) that he read last month.Below are

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01:36:45

Ep. 373: The Internet’s Best Advice for Reinventing...

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/10/06

In 2023, I published an episode about resetting your life that became one of my most popular. In the years since, multiple major podcasters and YouTubers have done their own videos on the same theme. In today’s episode, I extract the best ideas from five such recent videos to create an all-star reset strategy. I connect this to my work on technology and its impacts, by noting that taking control of your life can be the most important first step toward taking control of your devices.Below are the

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01:26:39

Ep. 372: Decoding TikTok’s Algorithm

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/09/29

Last week, it was announced that Oracle would take over operation of TikTok in the US. One of the primary reasons proposed for this deal is that it was in national interests for us to take over control of TikTok’s fabled “algorithm.” But what is this algorithm? How does it work? To what extent can it be controlled? In today’s episode, Cal looks deeper at these questions and arrives at a broader philosophical point about the role these services, in general, should play in our civic culture. He then

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01:04:57

IN-DEPTH: Focus like a Nobel Prize Winner (w/ Brian...

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/09/25

In this episode of IN-DEPTH, Cal is joined by Dr. Brian Keating, the Chancellor’s Distinguished Professor of Physics at UCSD, and one of the most prolific popularizers of science around (you may have seen him recently chatting about cosmology with Joe Rogan and Andrew Huberman). They talk about Keating’s new book, HOW TO FOCUS LIKE A NOBEL PRIZE WINNER, as well as many other topics, including a deep look at Keating’s unusual path to academia, and a deconstruction of what’s needed to succeed at the

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01:25:55

Ep. 371: Is it Finally Time to Leave Social Media?

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/09/22

We seem to be stuck in a purgatory when it comes to the worst of the social media platforms. We know they’re not great, but it’s hard to muster enough motivation to bother to leave. In today’s episode, motivated by the assassination of Charlie Kirk, Cal puts on his technology critic hat and offers a step-by-step technical explanation for why these platforms are strictly and incessantly making your life worse and why the only reasonable response is to quit them. He then answers listener questions on

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01:10:46

Ep. 370: Deep Work in the Age of AI

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/09/15

A recent study called into question a core assumption about the generative AI revolution: that these tools, at the very least, will make us more productive. In this episode, Cal dives deep into the study and argues that when it comes to efforts that require deep work, AI can sometimes make things worse. He then answers listener questions and then takes a closer look at an article claiming that the lack of Wi-Fi in a West Virginia school is making their students dumber. Below are the questions

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01:33:24

Ep. 369: Why Are We Getting Dumber? A Debate.

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/09/08

IQ scores had been steadily rising since WWII. But, more recently, this phenomenon has stopped. Since 2010, we’ve actually been getting dumber. In this episode, Cal gets into the common theories for why this is true before offering his own take, which leads to some practical takeaways to help you thrive in an increasingly stupider world. He then answers listener questions and talks about something he read recently.Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your

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01:57:01

IN-DEPTH: The Game of Life (w/ Tim Ferriss)

Deep Questions with Cal Newport ·

2025/09/04

In this episode of IN-DEPTH, Cal is joined by bestselling author and podcaster, Tim Ferriss. Tim rocketed to prominence with his 2007 book, “The Four Hour WorkWeek” which basically redefined a generation’s relationship with work, meaning, and the possibilities for building an interesting life. More recently, Tim created a card game! It’s called Coyote. And he created it with one of the top designers in the business, the same company that created Exploding Kittens.Video from today’s episode:

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