The Hope Axis by Anna Gát

Houda Nait El Bar, an OpenAI researcher and writer exploring AI, technology, and the humanities, considers what human flourishing could mean in an AI-shaped world. They explore whether personal AI can democratize expertise, preserve autonomy, and make failure more affordable. The conversation also examines why friction, difference, and meaningful human relationships remain essential.

Taylor Lorenz, technology journalist, author of Extremely Online, and founder of User Mag, joins Brian Chau, engineer and founder of AI-powered investigative outlet Effort. They explore journalism beyond legacy media, the internet’s misunderstood cultures, AI-assisted reporting, funding and influence, fear-driven narratives, and why hopeful visions of technology and abundance remain so elusive.

On this episode of The Hope Axis, Anna Gát is joined by Anastasia Berg, philosopher, writer, and longtime friend of Interintellect, to talk about hope, culture, family, and the future.Anastasia and Anna discuss her work on family and birth, the ideas behind her book “What Are Children For?," the cultural narratives that shape how we think about the future, and the power of individuals to help shape the world around them. Hope you enjoy!For the full transcript of our conversation, click here:https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rcwi6BtgIrlqFdBZOt7fOb5rBbXLfut8/view?usp=sharingImportant Links:X (Twitter) –https://x.com/a_n_a_berg Substack–https://anastasiaberg.substack.com/ Website– https://www.anastasiaberg.com/ Linkedin – https://www.linkedin.com/in/anastasia-berg-410484132 Show Notes:(0:00:00) Guest Introduction(0:02:42) Academia and the Program for Public Thinking(0:10:07) Problems with the Incentive Structure at Universities(0:14:28) The Old Way of Taking Exams(0:23:11) Students Using AI(0:31:02) Encouragement from AI vs AI Dependency(0:41:29) Submissions and Editing at The Point(0:51:21) Becoming More Mindful About Human Interactions Because of AI(0:58:14) Having Children in the Age of AI(1:04:56) The Societal Role of Universities(1:12:37) Cognitive AutonomyBooks, Essays & References Mentioned:Anastasia Berg & Rachel Wiseman — What Are Children For?The Point Magazine — Literary and cultural magazineProgram for Public Thinking — University of ChicagoChicago Common Core — University of Chicago undergraduate curriculumDaily Nous — Philosophy blogClaude — AI language modelGemini — AI model by GoogleGrok — AI chatbot by xAIPangram — AI writing detection tool

On this episode of The Hope Axis, Anna Gát is joined by Alec Stapp, CEO and co-founder of the Institute for Progress, to talk about what gives him hope, and much more.Alec shares the story behind his five-year transition to sole leadership at IFP, and they discuss progress studies, policy innovation, science funding, technology, and more. Hope you enjoy!For the full transcript of our conversation, click here:https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zC8Rywf4pO8RVvgiLQM3Vz7lgi87oofG/view?usp=sharingImportant Links:X (Twitter) – https://x.com/AlecStapp IFP–https://ifp.org/author/alec-stapp/ Website– https://alecstapp.com/ Linkedin – https://www.linkedin.com/in/alec-stapp-20804b45/ Show Notes:(0:00:00) The Introduction(0:05:02) Starting The Institute for Progress(0:11:58) Changes Since 2021(0:15:48) Abundance(0:22:45) Institutional Problems in the US(0:28:50) Working with the Ever-Changing Overton Window(0:32:26) Aschenbrenner, AI Security Risks, & the Inertia in DC(0:37:11) AI Safety: Self-Corrections, the Impact of the AI Researchers(0:46:59) Data Centers(0:55:17) Flock Cameras(0:56:25) Staying Agile(0:58:11) IFP - Building an Institution(1:02:51) The Wrong Electoral Incentives(1:04:03) Closing RemarksBooks, Essays & References Mentioned:Derek Thompson — The Abundance AgendaDerek Thompson & Ezra Klein — AbundanceAlex Karp — The Technological RepublicLeopold Aschenbrenner — Situational AwarenessNan Ransohoff — Third Wave of American PhilanthropyThe Federalist Papers — Hamilton’s paper on judicial reviewRené Girard — Girardian theoryBoston Tea PartyPace in the Frontier — Letter on the pace of frontier AI development.

On this episode of The Hope Axis, I’m joined by Mike Solana to talk about what gives him hope, and much more. Mike is the editor-in-chief of Pirate Wires and Chief Marketing Officer at Founders Fund, and we discuss free speech, the fragmentation of reality in the internet age, the rise of grievance politics, the failures of the abundance movement, student debt, AI, and more. Hope you enjoy!For the full transcript of our conversation, click here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/16drg8RuK8-vlFZvrThdID6Gp5CrRnlp-/view?usp=sharingImportant Links:X (Twitter) – Mike Solana (@micsolana) / X Founders fund–https://foundersfund.com/team/michael-solana/ Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/micsolana/?hl=en Linkedin – https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-solana-2484a644/?isSelfProfile=falseShow Notes:(00:00) Introduction (01:39) Freedom of speech(07:48) Political bubbles and separate realities (15:28) DSA, Millennial, and Zoomer grievances (19:42) The case of student loan debt (26:33) Social media and endless ideological war (29:25) "Grok, is this true?" (38:33) The Abundance movement (48:55) The road from science-fiction to political reality (59:05) Ending Books, Essays & References Mentioned:Derek Thompson & Ezra Klein — AbundanceLouis Hartz — The Liberal Tradition in AmericaMichael Solana — Citizen SimNick Bostrom — Simulation hypothesisDoug Hofstadter — Cognitive science and philosophyPeter Thiel — Email on millennials, capitalism, and student debtCommunity Notes — Crowdsourced fact-checking systemGrok — AI chatbot by xAIChatGPT — AI language modelLarge Language Models (LLMs) — Artificial intelligence modelsUniversal Basic Income (UBI) — Economic policy proposalLibertarianism — Political philosophyPost-scarcity — Economic conceptRob Henderson — Luxury BeliefsCarly Simon — "Let the River Run" (Working Girl)

Sarah Constantin, mathematician and writer active in AI, biotech, defense, and mental health. She revisits early internet networks, the shift from Covid to an AI era, and why practical institutional experience matters. They explore healthcare opacity, dispute-resolution tools, romance and conversation dynamics, and manufacturing and defense supply vulnerabilities.

This week on The Hope Axis, I’m joined by investor and startup veteran Julie Fredrickson for a conversation that purposefully wanders away from the standard career trajectory.We move past the typical bio to talk about what actually sustains agency in a world that often feels designed to induce hopelessness. As the "Mary Poppins of startups" and a former founder herself, Julie understands the grit required to build. We discuss the quiet, radical act of ignoring the noise to simply do good work.I hope you enjoy this one.For the full transcript of our conversation, click here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UkTSGglb9yTo1OiKilxQ-02lLsIOmPqL/view?usp=sharingImportant Links:X (Twitter) – https://x.com/AlmostMedia?lang=enLinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliefredrickson/?isSelfProfile=falseInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/juliefredrickson/?hl=enWebsite - https://jfredrickson.com/Show Notes:(00:00) Guest Introduction  (01:51) Knowing Your True Limits  (07:07) Remembering and Forgetting  (12:50) Family Systems  (16:23) Losing a Father  (21:58) Becoming the Explainer After 40  (25:27) Community & Being a Beacon on the Internet  (33:40) The Silicon Valley Diaspora  (39:18) Algorithms Taking Over the Feeds  (45:09) How to Show up on the Internet Today  (48:22) Being the First Friendly Face on the Internet  (54:28) Funding the Miracle StartupsBooks, Essays & References Mentioned:William Gibson — Pattern RecognitionThomas Mann — Joseph and His BrothersHowe-Strauss — The Fourth Turning theoryPeter Turchin — CliodynamicsHenry Giroux — The Violence of OrganizedForgetting Internal Family Systems (IFS) — Psychological frame workRudolf Steiner — Waldorf educational philosophyRobin Dunbar — Dunbar's numberStendhal — The Stendhalian approach to new experiencesSheryl Sandberg — Advice on fertility and career planningParsifal — The Parsifalian question

This week on The Hope Axis, Dean Ball joined me for a conversation that took a real intersection in the space-time continuum to finally make happen. Dean — a senior fellow at the Foundation for American Innovation, author of the Substack Hyperdimensional, and an influential policy voice in Washington — and I sat down to talk about his groundbreaking AI policy work including his recent four months at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, where he served as the principal staff drafter for America's AI Action Plan. We went into Dean's journey in politics, his writing, why Beethoven matters for technologists, and much more. Hope you enjoy!For the full transcript of our conversation, click here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1m6PwzgJI5p2zYbNYwypFnz6F5WPEaL0E/view?usp=sharingImportant Links: X (Twitter) – https://x.com/deanwball?lang=en Substack - https://www.hyperdimensional.co/ LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/dean-ball-66823728 The Foundation for American Innovation - https://www.thefai.org/profile/dean-ballThe Federalist Society - https://fedsoc.org/bio/dean-ball-2Show Notes:(00:00) Introduction (01:54) Dean Ball's family history (05:33) New wave of politicians (11:52) Explaining AI public debate to an alien (17:19) The difference between American and European thought about AI? (21:50) Technological chase and it's ties (24:52) Is it still possible for the past to guide us through the present revolutions? (29:51) The warmth of untidiness and conservative disposition (36:42) Why don't Europeans understand AGI? (47:23) The Encyclical (50:32) What did it cost to publicly criticize the Anthropic–Department of War fiasco? (58:59) The Hope Axis question - Beethoven and the metaphor of technology. (01:01:55) Final commentsBooks, Essays & References Mentioned: Michael Oakeshott — On Being Conservative Joel Mokyr — The Great Divergence Luis and Pieter Garicano — Silicon Continent Pope Leo XIII — Rerum Novarum Ludwig van Beethoven — Hammerklavier Claude Shannon — Information Theory Alan Turing — Signal Processing Marc Andreessen — Technoculture and AI Frantz Fanon — Post-colonial theory Alexis de Tocqueville — American democracy and society.

This week on The Hope Axis, Hollis Robbins joins me to talk about her dense career and what it actually means to build a life dedicated to the humanities today.Hollis, a dear friend of Interintellect and one of the first hosts, stepped back from her role as Dean of Humanities at the University of Utah in 2024 to focus on writing three upcoming books, including one with the incredible title, “Do Not Go to College Unless.” We get into her journey, and finding room for hope and leisure in the middle of it all. Hope you enjoy!For the full transcript of our conversation, click here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QrykHXAFjyGdh6OlLQ1WD7yo06rIBf8J/view?usp=drive_linkImportant Links:X (Twitter) – https://x.com/anecdotal?lang=enSubstack - https://substack.com/@hollisrobbinsLinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/hollisrobbinsGoogle Scholars - https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=d2MNMeMAAAAJ&hl=enInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/_anecdotal/ Show Notes:(00:00) Introduction(02:12)  College, dropping out, intellectual ideals and AI (07:22)  The state of universities and colleges in the time of information abundance (15:01)  Intellect and technology (29:00)  Anti-AI and pro-intellectual discourse is missing the point (33:39) America's higher (mid) education doesn't compete with AI (42:45)  Reinventing tutoring(48:04)  How is Hollis Robbins surviving in the humanities? (53:59)  The process of ""dumbing down"" of the American University (01:04:03)  If a specialist won't be teaching you at the university - don't go there. (01:07:24) Intellectual labour in scale economy. (01:10:02)  Final thoughts

Dylan O'Sullivan, an internet literary commentator who curates classics and reading recommendations, joins to discuss the second life of old books online. He talks about rereading, whether teens should tackle difficult texts, cultural stagnation, how to find trustworthy book picks, and why long walks and silence help thinking. The conversation focuses on classics, attention in the TikTok age, and enduring authors like Dostoevsky and Tolstoy.