Azeem Azhar's Exponential View

As 2021 draws to a close and Covid cases spike, it’s easy to think not much has changed. But in between pandemic waves, we’ve made major progress in science and technology. And that progress gives us clues about how the future might play out. Host Azeem Azhar reflects on the tech trends we’ve seen this year and key shifts in industry and society that are changing cities, the labor market, and the semiconductor business. He also discusses: Why semiconductor chips were hot property (and will only get hotter). What people got wrong about the “death of the city.” New media, the creator economy, and the “great resignation.” @Azeem @exponentialview Further resources: Exponential View Newsletter Learning From 2020: Azeem’s Takeaways Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Andreessen Horowitz general partner Andrew Chen and host Azeem Azhar have something in common: they were both tech company insiders and early-stage investors before becoming authors. They explore why they decided to write their books, how writing intersects with their day jobs, and whether they’d do it all again. They also discuss: What selling a book online has taught them about e-commerce. How the future for factual books has changed as publishing has decentralized. What books can communicate that other media can’t. @Azeem @AndrewChen @ExponentialView Further resources: Mary Meeker’s Internet Trends 1995-2019 Status as a Service (Eugene Wei, 2019) The Cold Start Problem (Andrew Chen, 2021) The Exponential Age (Azeem Azhar, 2021) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Quantum computing won’t be an incremental improvement – it will be a step-change in the power of the technology that underpins a huge part of our economy. Exponentially faster computing won’t just help us solve problems more quickly, but it will also allow us to tackle problems that have been impossible to answer and find answers to questions we did not know to ask. Chad Rigetti, founder and CEO of Rigetti Computing, speaks to Azeem Azhar about just how revolutionary quantum computing will be. They also discuss: How quantum could usher in a new computing revolution. Why having the lead in quantum computing is turning into the contemporary equivalent of the “space race.” How quantum computing could change how we do science. @Azeem @ChadRigetti Further resources ‘Building A Quantum Computer with Light’, (Exponential View Podcast, 2021) ‘Making Quantum Computers a Commercial Reality’, (Exponential View Podcast, 2021) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Nuclear fusion seems to have been “twenty years away” forever, but recent advances could mean fusion is finally on its way to becoming part of our energy mix. Azeem Azhar speaks to Nick Hawker, co-founder and CEO of First Light Fusion, a UK-based company that uses an approach it calls “projectile fusion” to generate energy. That method uses an electromagnetic launcher to fire material towards fuel at high speeds. Nick explains why it’s one of the most promising approaches to a problem that has puzzled physicists for decades. He breaks down the challenges, both extraordinary and mundane, that fusion experiments involve. They also discuss: Why First Light Fusion’s system could generate power more efficiently than the sun. When the first fusion reactor could plug into an electrical grid. How many lasers it takes to turn on a light bulb. @Azeem @FLF_Nick Further resources Investing in Deep Tech for an Abundant Future (Exponential View Podcast, 2021) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Murray Shanahan, professor of cognitive robotics at Imperial College London and a senior research scientist at DeepMind, joins Azeem Azhar to discuss AI: where developments have exceeded expectations, where they have fallen short, and what the next steps are towards an artificial general intelligence (AGI). They explore the hurdles that stand in the way of truly intelligent computer programs: why an AGI might need to exist in a body that can sense the world around it to reach its full potential, whether we can teach computers common sense, and what it means for a self-driving car to “think.” They also discuss: What the future of AI may have in common with the aeronautical ingenuity of the Wright brothers. The pros and cons of the various approaches to AI from symbolic models to convoluted neural networks, transformers, and generative models. Why huge salaries for commercial deep learning engineers might actually hinder research. @mpshanahan @exponentialview @Azeem Further resources: AI’s Competitive Advantage (Exponential View podcast, 2021) How To Practice Responsible AI (Exponential View podcast, 2021) ‘Conscious exotica’ (Murray Shanahan, Aeon, 2016) State of AI Report 2021 (Nathan Benaich and Ian Hogarth) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Former Greek Finance Minister, economist, and bestselling author Yanis Varoufakis joins Azeem Azhar to discuss his speculative novel Another Now. In that book, he presents a world where mass organization, technological progress, and an overhaul of companies and markets have made society more equitable. Like all great science fiction, the book is as much about the present as the future. Yanis is an advocate of blockchain technology and “one person, one vote” structures, as measures to redistribute power. He and Azeem discuss how tech could change our world for the better – if we use it judiciously.They also discuss: How Yanis’s proposals for a Greek digital currency ran aground. Where COP26 fell short. How equitable technological progress could lead us to a “Star Trek”-like utopia. Further resources: How Taiwan is Using Technology to Foster Democracy – Exponential View Podcast, 2020 ‘A Central Bank Cryptocurrency to Democratize Money’ – Yanis Varoufakis, Project Syndicate, Jul. 2021 ‘Cop26 is doomed, and the hollow promise of ‘net zero’ is to blame’ – Yanis Varoufakis, The Guardian, Nov. 2021 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Artificial intelligence had a breakout year, with major new developments in disparate fields, from medical biology to defense. AI investors Nathan Benaich and Ian Hogarth, who co-author the annual “State of AI” report, join Azeem Azhar to explore why AI is thriving in those sectors. In addition, they offer their take on the flood of new investments in AI and how we can best keep this technology safe for humanity. They also discuss: Why AI is fundamentally changing how we research medical science. How an AI system developed to learn the English language can be adapted to understand gene sequences. How the bottlenecks in AI deployment are being exploited by states for competitive advantage. @azeem @exponentialview @nathanbenaich @soundboy Further resources: State of AI Report 2021 (Nathan Benaich and Ian Hogarth) AI’s Competitive Advantage (Exponential View podcast, 2021) How To Practice Responsible AI (Exponential View podcast, 2021) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Renewable energy is the future of power, but relying on solar, wind, etc. will require a more reliable and resilient grid. Effective energy storage would make it possible to smooth out discrepancies in supply and demand, and harness renewable power more efficiently. A range of technologies are being developed and refined with that mission in mind, including large-scale lithium-ion batteries and clean hydrogen storage. Former Alphabet X moonshot spinoff Malta Inc. uses established industrial processes and molten salt to store energy and pump it back into the grid as demand requires. Malta CEO Ramya Swaminathan joins Azeem Azhar to discuss why energy storage is so crucial to fighting climate change, how it could affect the economics of energy, and why the electric grid of the future will be more technologically diverse and complex than today’s. They also discuss: How progress in energy storage could hit an exponential inflection point. Working with established companies to revolutionize power distribution. The market mechanisms necessary to optimize the grids of the future. @azeem @exponentialview @maltaenergysto1 Further resources: “Energy Storage to Steal $277B From Power Grids by 2050” – BloombergNEF, Mar. 2021 “Energy Storage Grand Challenge: Energy Storage Market Report” – U.S. Department of Energy, Dec. 2020 Bloomberg New Energy Finance ARES Energy Vault Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Hopin is one of the fastest-growing startups in history. Founder and CEO Johnny Boufarhat joins Azeem Azhar to talk about how he grew the virtual events company from six employees in February 2020, at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, to more than eight hundred, and a valuation of almost $8 billion, a year and a half later. Johnny explains how he seized the opportunity presented by the pandemic, what it was like learning to lead at one of the fastest-growing startups in history, and why he dreams of a future in which a founder’s location is no impediment to success. They also discuss: Hopin’s future, beyond the world of work. The promise of the metaverse, and the limits of VR. Barriers to entry for founders from developing countries, and how to lower them. @Johnnyboufarhat @Azeem Further resources Making Venture Capital Work for Entrepreneurs – Exponential View Podcast, 2020 ‘Scaling Innovation’ (with Elad Gil) – Exponential View Podcast, 2018 ‘The Challenging Political Economy of Silicon Valley’ (with Reid Hoffman) – Exponential View Podcast, 2018 Building Unicorns in Europe (with Reshma Sohoni) –  Exponential View Podcast, 2019  ‘Events scaleup Hopin raises at $7.75bn valuation’ – Sifted, August 2021 ‘CEO Secrets: “My billion-pound company has no office”’ – BBC, June 2021 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The transition to a greener economy is absolutely essential for the future of life as we know it. Governments and companies have committed to net-zero emissions by 2050, but it’s not clear how they plan to get there – or how much it will cost. Today’s guest, though, has some idea. Michele Della Vigna runs the Carbonomics research program at Goldman Sachs, which looks at the economics behind a transition to net-zero emissions. On the eve of the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), Michele joins Azeem Azhar to discuss the importance of carbon pricing, market pressure, and new technology in accelerating a shift to net-zero. They also discuss: Why the American consumer makes carbon taxes trickier. The role of oil majors in the shift to renewables. How corporate commitments to decarbonize could surprise at COP26. @azeem @exponentialview Further resources: Funding Innovation to Fight Climate Change (with Dawn Lippert, Elemental Excelerator), Exponential View Podcast, 2021 ‘Carbonomics: Five Themes of Progress for COP26’ – Goldman Sachs Research Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.