Manifold

71:05

Effort News and AI-Driven Journalism with Brian Chau...

Manifold ·

2026/09/24

Brian Chau is a mathematician, machine learning specialist, and the founder of Effort News, an independent media outlet focused on data-first, document-led investigative journalism.https://www.effort.news/https://x.com/brianchau57Chapter Markers:(00:00) - Intro(03:14) - Network School Fallout (14:17) - Effort News Origins (17:24) - AI Reporting Workflow (35:41) - Medicare Medicaid Momentum (37:05) - Epstein Files AI Law (43:27) - Biolabs Base Rates Debate (47:27) - Business Model And AI

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74:34

Machine God: Hsu, Greer, Huang – #120

Manifold ·

2026/09/10

Machine God is a feature-length AI documentary film, created by Steve Hsu, John Greer, and Lei Huang. This episode discusses the film's creation and content.Chapter Markers:(00:00) - Meet the Filmmakers(02:06) - Berkeley AI Boomtown Origins (19:23) - Techno Capital and the Pause Plea (38:55) - Why Slow Down AI (41:40) - Recursive Self Improvement (46:01) - Gradual Disempowerment (51:48) - Film Release and Closing –Steve Hsu is Professor of Theoretical Physics and of Computational

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60:33

How to Build a Research Institute: Thomas Fink of the...

Manifold ·

2026/08/27

Dr. Thomas Fink is an Anglo-American physicist, author, and entrepreneur who serves as the founding Director of the London Institute for Mathematical Sciences (LIMS).He studied physics at Caltech, where he won the Fisher Prize, and earned his PhD at Cambridge University. His research focuses on statistical physics, combinatorics, and evolvable systems, using these tools to gain insights into physical and biological systems.In 2011, Dr. Fink founded LIMS, the UK's first independent research

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65:46

Venture Capital and Technology in China with Bohan...

Manifold ·

2026/08/13

Bohan Lou is a partner at Chemistry Ventures, based in SF.https://x.com/loubohanBohan's report on the venture ecosystem in China:https://www.linkedin.com/posts/bohanlou_i-spent-last-month-in-china-meeting-most-ugcPost-7487909585689698304-qepw/Chapter Markers:(01:42) - Venture Capital in China; Bohan’s Shanghai Roots(11:15) - Chemistry Fund and China Investing (20:04) - China Trip and Venture Reality Check (32:18) - Pressure Cooker: Founder Exits and Financial Liability (33:50) - Variation

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52:44

Iran, AI, and the Third World War (Crossover with...

Manifold ·

2026/07/30

This is a crossover episode with Alf Beckinsale, an Oxford University student who hosts the Seeking Truth From Facts podcast. The main topics are the US-Iran conflict, geopolitics, and US-China AI competition.Chapter Markers:(00:00) - Introduction(02:33) - No Off Ramp in Gulf (04:11) - Missile Stockpile Crisis (06:46) - Oil Shock and Reserves (14:07) - Israel Stays Out (29:34) - China Frontier AI Surge (43:25) - World War and Nukes –Steve Hsu is Professor of Theoretical Physics and of

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51:33

State of AI, Summer 2026 – #116

Manifold ·

2026/07/16

Steve discusses the state of AI in summer 2026. Topics covered include: AI in math and theoretical physics, Recursive Self-Improvement, Agent swarms and tokenomics, IPOs and US-China competition, documentary film Machine God.Machine God trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5RSv3wmDIpYTheoretical Physics with Generative AI: https://stevehsu.substack.com/p/theoretical-physics-with-generativeChapter Markers:(00:00) - State of AI, Summer 2026(02:39) - AI in Math Physics (13:54) - Recursive

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100:57

Beff Jezos and Effective Accelerationism: Machine God...

Manifold ·

2026/07/02

Beff Jezos (Guillaume Verdon) is a Canadian physicist, quantum computing researcher, and tech entrepreneur. He is best known as the founder of the Effective Accelerationism (e/acc) movement.This interview was recorded in collaboration with John Greer and Lei Huang for the documentary film Machine God.John Greer: https://www.johncgreer.com/Chapter Markers:(00:00) - Meet Beff Jezos (01:56) - Hyperstition vs AI Doom (21:29) - Accelerate or Die (37:51) - Scaling Intelligence Upside (40:26) -

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80:32

Razib Khan at Manifest 2026: Genetic Discoveries, AI,...

Manifold ·

2026/06/18

This episode was recorded live at Manifest 2026. Razib Khan is a prominent writer, population geneticist, and podcaster. He is best known for his extensive deep-dives into human evolutionary history, consumer genomics, culture, and ancient DNA. https://x.com/razibkhanhttps://x.com/razibkhan?lang=enChapter Markers:(00:00) - Razib Khan at Manifest 2026: Genetic Discoveries, AI, and Academia(01:18) - Manifest Q&A Kickoff (02:43) - Yamnaya: Ancient DNA Mysteries (15:01) - Yamnaya: Y

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81:08

Letter from Beijing 2: Tsinghua University – #113

Manifold ·

2026/06/04

This special episode was recorded at Tsinghua University in Beijing, generally regarded as the top university in China. Our guests are 3 Americans studying and working at Tsinghua: Gabriel (undergrad), Justin (PhD student in AI), and Alex (Professor in AI research). Topics discussed include: Tsinghua University and elite human capital, AI in China, US-China competition, and the flow of human capital between the US and ChinaHan Feizi, columnist at Asia Times and the guest from the previous

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100:41

AI Billionaire on Existential Risk: Jaan Tallinn

Manifold ·

2026/05/21

Jaan Tallinn is a tech billionaire and founding engineer of Skype who leverages his wealth to mitigate existential risks from artificial general intelligence (AGI). He co-founded the Future of Life Institute and the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk, while making early foundational investments in frontier AI labs like DeepMind andAnthropic.Chapter Markers:00:00 Assessing Current AI Risk Levels03:28 Inside Self-Sustaining AI Scenarios09:10 The Global AI Race Dynamics42:25 Explaining

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90:58

Embryo Selection and Frontier Genomics with Dr. Alex...

Manifold ·

2026/05/07

Dr. Alex Young, a statistical geneticist and assistant professor in the Human Genetics department at UCLA, joins Steve Hsu to discuss the cutting edge of genomic prediction. They cover his research on polygenic embryo screening in IVF (including the ImputePGTA method), family-based DNA analysis, missing heritability, and the implications of polygenic scores for traits like education and disease. Alex also discusses his recent battles with cancer.https://x.com/AlexTISYoungChapter

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49:27

Iran War is the First Missile War (crossover with...

Manifold ·

2026/04/23

Steve and Alf discuss the Iran War, emphasizing what itreveals about modern missile and anti-missile technology, drones, andthe implications for a US-China conflict in the Western Pacific.Links:https://seekingtruthfromfacts.substack.com/Chapter Markers:(00:00) - Missile War Reality Check(01:49) - How the War Started (04:46) - Iran Outperforms Expectations (06:22) - Why Missile Defense Fails (14:25) - Ceasefire and Hormuz Brinkmanship (19:52) - Nukes and the JCPOA Fallout (33:44) - US

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111:31

Dreamers and Doomers: Our AI future, with Richard Ngo...

Manifold ·

2026/04/09

Richard Ngo is an independent AI researcher and philosopher known forhis work on AGI safety and alignment. He recently resigned fromOpenAI, where he was a member of the Governance team focused onforecasting the capabilities and risks of advanced AI systems. Hisdebut fiction collection is titled "The Gentle Romance: Stories of AIand Humanity", published in December 2025. The book features 22science fiction stories that explore the psychological andsociological impacts of advanced artificial

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63:38

China, Acceleration, and Nick Land - with Matt...

Manifold ·

2026/03/26

Matt Southey is an editor for an AI safety organization. He wrote his PhD dissertation on the philosophy of Nick Land. Matt's "A Brief History of Accelerationism" can be found here, and he recommends the second chapter of Crypto-Current as a good introduction to Land's usage of Kant. He and Steve discuss Accelerationism, AI, and Steve's recent meeting with Land in Shanghai.Chapter Markers:(00:00) - Introduction(02:07) - China Trip: Shenzhen, Beijing, Shanghai (03:16) - Tsinghua University:

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71:21

Shenzhen is the Technology Capital of the World, with...

Manifold ·

2026/03/12

Recorded live in Shenzhen with Taylor Ogan, the founder and CEO ofSnowbull Capital, which invests in Chinese technology companies.Taylor on X:https://x.com/TaylorOganPrevious episodes with Taylor:https://youtu.be/iehHON07UHI?si=h2c3po5AX9Z9ANaK https://youtu.be/fmjR3me5s_Q?si=sPsMFOdKebEOZXQr(00:00) - Shenzhen is the Technology Capital of the World, with Taylor Ogan(00:53) - Meeting in Shenzhen (02:40) - Greater Bay Area Explained (06:36) - Shenzhen Boom Stories (18:26) - China Tech

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102:37

AI DOOM: Jesse Hoogland of Timaeus

Manifold ·

2026/02/26

This is the second episode of our series based on interviews for the documentary film, Dreamers and Doomers, about the SF Bay Area in the last days before AGI. Steve interviews Jesse Hoogland, co-founder and executive director of Timaeus, an AI safety research org working on applications of Singular Learning Theory (SLT) for AI safety. SLT establishes a connection between the geometry of the loss landscape and internal structure in models. This connection is used to develop scalable,

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134:19

Dreamers and Doomers: Jeremy Nixon at AGI House – #105

Manifold ·

2026/02/12

Jeremy Nixon is a prominent AI researcher, entrepreneur, and the co-founder of AGI House, a leading "hacker house" community for artificial intelligence developers in Silicon Valley. He studied Applied Math, Computer Science, and Economics at Harvard and was previously a researcher at Google Brain.This footage was shot for a documentary project, "Dreamers and Doomers," about the SF Bay Area and the dawn of AGI.(00:00) - Dreamers and Doomers: Jeremy Nixon at AGI House – #105(01:47) -

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84:55

Industrial Maximalism and Its Discontents: Dan Wang...

Manifold ·

2026/01/29

Links:Breakneck: China's Quest to Engineer the Futurehttps://www.amazon.com/Breakneck-Chinas-Quest-Engineer-Future/dp/1324106034Dan's 2025 annual letterhttps://danwang.co/2025-letter/Related episodes:Jian Lian on Industrial Maximalism, Manifold Episode #99https://www.manifold1.com/episodes/jian-lian-on-chinas-industrial-policy-and-global-strategy-99(00:00) - Introduction and Welcome(02:14) - Breakneck - Dan's huge book (05:00) - China's Technological and Political Landscape (21:07) -

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47:47

Geopolitics 2026, crossover with Seeking Truth From...

Manifold ·

2026/01/15

Steve and Alf discuss geopolitical events of 2025 and what they expect in 2026.Links:Manifold episode with Han Feizi, Letter From Beijinghttps://www.manifold1.com/episodes/letter-from-beijing-with-han-feizi-72Previous crossover episodes:Weeks Where Decades Happenhttps://www.manifold1.com/episodes/seeking-truth-from-facts-weeks-where-decades-happenAI, China, Tariffs, Geopoliticshttps://www.manifold1.com/episodes/seeking-truth-from-facts-ai-china-tariffs-geopolitics-84(00:00) - Geopolitics

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60:12

Polygenics and Machine SuperIntelligence;...

Manifold ·

2026/01/01

This is a two-part episode. The first ~30m covers the most important 2025 breakthroughs in polygenic embryo screening, while the second 30m focuses specifically on AI capabilities at the frontier of human knowledge. Both segments make predictions for 2026 and beyond.Links:Chinese billionaires, Philo-semitism, and the Chosen embryos:https://x.com/hsu_steve/status/2000206116823675078My talk from Reproductive Frontiers 2025 in Berkeley:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n64rrRPtCa8Previous

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