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PODCAST

What Could Go Right?

The Progress Network with Zachary Karabell and Emma Varvaloucas

It"s easy to be pessimistic, especially with headlines dominated by global challenges like a changing geopolitical landscape, the rise in authoritarianism, and a seemingly unstable global economy. But what if, despite all that, humanity is actually making progress?Join Progress Network Founder Zachary Karabell every Wednesday as he chats with leading experts like Ian Bremmer and Anne Marie Slaughter to challenge the negativity and find out whether we should be so pessimistic about everything from

society & culture news commentary

All Episodes

18:34

Why Scientists Are Suddenly So Optimistic About...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/10/05

Why are researchers and doctors who treat dementia so happy right now? Experts think we're in a new optimistic age for Alzheimer's research with new treatments and new diagnostic tools that are changing the landscape. That’s our main story on the What Could Go Right Progress Report. We're also talking about a new kind of battery that you can eat, and last but not least, in This Week in History, we're talking about a 30-year-old agreement about Antarctica that probably saved our planet. For

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44:20

The Race for the Arctic Has Already Begun. Is America...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/09/30

There was a time in American history when everything was about ships. For centuries, power on the seas was necessary for economic success, but U.S. maritime power isn’t what it used to be. That change has never been more important than in the growing territorial tension in the Arctic Circle. Author, columnist, and economic analyst Rana Foroohar joins host Zachary Karabell to talk about her new book Sea Change: America’s New Great Game in the Arctic. They discuss how sea lanes opening across the

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19:59

AI Experts Are Warning About Human Extinction. Here’s...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/09/28

After a former Anthropic researcher quit and gave a doomsday warning about artificial intelligence, a debate on a human extinction event is raging in the media. Could AI get too smart too fast? Are we really in danger of AI going rogue and killing off humanity, or is it all an overblown distraction? That’s our main story, and we’re also talking about a brand new way to stop sand erosion that's being tested in the Maldives. Could this save beaches all over the world? Last but not least, in This

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48:03

The Science of Sports Betting: How Gambling Apps Are...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/09/23

Legal betting has exploded in the US. With the phone in your pocket, you can bet on the specific outcome of a game or who will attend the next State of the Union address. But legal betting has plenty of controversy, including how it affects sports fandom and the way it’s marketed to young men. Are the concerns overblown or do we need a real plan to address real harm? Two guests join our host Zachary Karabell for this conversation. Dr. Brendan Dwyer is a professor and the director of research at the

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17:59

The World Map You Grew Up With Is Wrong

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/09/21

Maps have distorted the true size of the African continent for 500 years, but a new UN resolution is changing that. Progress Network Executive Director Emma Varvaloucas examines this historic shift toward a more accurate projection to correct centuries of cartographic bias. Plus: a biological breakthrough that could prevent premature births, and the wild story of how Neptune was discovered 175 years ago.For transcripts, to join the newsletter, and for more information, visit:

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57:47

Could Reparations Actually Happen in America? With...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/09/16

In the United States, we have constant debates about long-standing systemic issues like classism, racism, and economic inequality, and we speak about these issues as if they are complicated and impossible to address. But what if history tells us that we already have the solutions to some of our biggest and oldest problems? What if there is a bold path that looks to the past to redirect our economic future? Georgetown Law Professor Dorothy Brown joins host Zachary Karabell to talk about her book

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16:50

AI Was Supposed to Destroy Jobs. Here's What Actually...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/09/14

There’s been a lot of doom and gloom around artificial intelligence taking our jobs. Even founders of AI companies like Sam Altman have said that many jobs will go poof and disappear. But is the AI job apocalypse all hype, or are we just in the calm before the storm? We dive in. We also discuss adorable dogs gene-edited to be hypoallergenic, and two women in New Zealand who paved the way for women’s rights. For transcripts, to join the newsletter, and for more information, visit:

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56:28

Why We Can't Picture a Good Future Anymore | With Ari...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/09/11

Are we trapped in a cultural doom loop that forces us to fear the future instead of dreaming of a better one? In this episode, futurist Ari Wallach joins host Zachary Karabell to examine why modern society defaults to short-termism and how we can fundamentally redesign our approach to tomorrow. They dive deep into Wallach's "Longpath" framework, exploring how Western death anxiety, a deficit of transgenerational empathy, and a cultural obsession with dystopian media hinder our ability to tackle

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18:37

AI Designed a Cancer Therapy, Cyborg Bugs Are Saving...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/09/07

What if you never have to wear a pink ribbon again? For years, experts called the medical dream of a personalized cancer vaccine impossible. Now, a new therapy written by an algorithm is making it happen. We're also talking about how Australian cyborg cockroaches could come to the rescue at natural disasters, and we get into the alliance that brought a California farming empire to its knees and created a historic labor movement.For transcripts, to join the newsletter, and for more information,

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49:19

Alien Civilizations, Mars Colonization & Humanity in...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/09/02

Is interest in space dying, or are we on the brink of our greatest interstellar discoveries? In this episode of What Could Go Right, Zachary Karabell sits down with Dr. Dakotah Tyler, an astronomer and astrophysicist who pivoted from a promising college football career to unraveling the mysteries of the universe.They discuss the existential threats and promises of large language models, questioning whether tech leaders can manipulate human thought and if our innate drive to explore is being

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24:31

Introducing: The Ongoing Transformation

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/08/31

This week, we want to share a podcast from our friends at Issues in Science & Technology. It’s called The Ongoing Transformation and it looks at how science and society are continually transforming each other.From countless ads to outright scams, spam is an annoying constant of online life. But does it have to be that way? In this episode, Rebecca Coyne and Jason Lloyd examine the history of spam. And take a look at efforts to address spam in the early 2000s may offer lessons for how we might

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61:05

Social Media Is Making Politics Feel Worse Than It...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/08/26

David Pakman is the founder and host of The David Pakman Show, one of the most watched independent progressive podcasts and online political shows. He's built an audience of over 6.7 million subscribers across social media platforms through calm, fact-based analysis and critical thinking. David joins host Zachary Karabell to discuss his new book, Pay Attention, coming out on September 22. They dive into the missed messaging opportunities for the left, the ongoing culture wars that lend themselves to

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17:10

1. The Crime Wave Is Over. Why Does Nobody Believe It?

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/08/24

The media is constantly telling us that danger is everywhere. Between true crime binges and political rants, we're led to believe that our streets are a war zone. However, recent statistics released by the FBI tell a completely different story. Plus, we'll get into why video game fans have the resume the FAA is looking for. Then in our this week in history segment, we’re taking a look at a bad deal that sparked a massive non-violent protest in the form of a human chain. Join Emma Varvaloucas on

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49:47

The AI Future Isn’t Inevitable. So Why Are We Told It...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/08/19

Being a human being is an anxious experience, and to calm the fear of uncertainty, we’re obsessed with predicting the future. Whether spiraling about changes to the economy, politics, or culture, we’re desperate to know what’s coming around the corner. In this episode, host Zachary Karabell is joined by Carissa Véliz, philosopher and author of "Prophecy: Prediction, Power, and the Fight for the Future, from Ancient Oracles to AI." They discuss the ways tech executives and AI experts offer

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13:52

Why the Experts Were Wrong about India

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/08/17

Winston Churchill predicted this nation would collapse, but today India is experiencing a massive economic glow up as it rapidly lifts hundreds of millions out of extreme poverty. We also investigate why crucial historical signs are quietly vanishing from America's national parks, and how an eccentric doctor's argument with mother nature saved countless lives from malaria. Join Emma Varvaloucas on this episode of the What Could Go Right progress report to hear the full story.For transcripts, to join

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39:53

How Haters Can Accidentally Make You Happier | with...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/08/12

The concept of the American Dream calls up images of enormous money and fame that most of us will never see. But what happens to someone who actually becomes mega famous? Is it truly something to strive for? Is the cost worth it? Ronda Rousey, the superstar MMA fighter turned graphic novelist, joins Zachary Karabell to explain her approach to creativity, life, and happiness that rejects our traditional metrics for success. The discussion touches on Ronda's meteoric rise to fame, the tremendous wave

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56:58

The Case for Rewriting Nature's Code | with Ben Lamm

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/08/05

Words like "de-extinction" and "cloning" are often associated with dystopian science fiction stories, but reality tells a more hopeful tale.Ben Lamm, CEO and co-founder of Colossal Biosciences, joins host Zachary Karabell to argue that de-extinction, genetic engineering, and biotechnology can fix the harms humans have caused to our environment and prevent us from passing down genetic diseases. Ben discusses the role of government in regulating private companies, ethical standards, and his personal

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16:23

Global Shark Conservation Sees Historic Regulatory...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/08/03

After decades of facing severe overfishing and cultural stigma, global shark populations are finally rebounding thanks to strict new international trade bans and expanding marine sanctuaries. Emma Varvaloucas, Executive Director of The Progress Network, shares how much our views and treatment of sharks have shifted over the last century and why there’s reason for optimism.Plus: a team of 23 students in the Netherlands successfully engineered the world's first fully solar-powered ambulance to

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54:39

Why the Economic Numbers Don't Match How You Feel |...

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/07/29

There is a massive chasm between what official data tells us about the financial landscape and how average Americans actually experience their daily lives. Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's, joins Zachary Karabell to break down why this disconnect exists and how a skewing of income distribution means different classes are living in entirely separate realities. They explore whether modern technological leaps like artificial intelligence will create devastating job losses or spark a much-needed

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16:07

The Invisible Arms Race Against Wildfire Smoke

What Could Go Right? ·

2026/07/27

While the severity of North American wildfires and their deadly smoke has undeniably increased, humanity is quietly winning an invisible technological arms race against our changing atmosphere. Emma Varvaloucas, Executive Director of The Progress Network, explores how eight decades of innovations—from the invention of the HEPA filter to electrostatic N95 masks—are enabling individuals to mitigate climate impacts and become the architects of their own survival. Plus: A Harvard-led discovery of an

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