Google DeepMind: The Podcast

AI doesn’t just exist in the lab, it’s already solving a range of problems in the real world. In this episode, Hannah encounters a realistic recreation of her voice by WaveNet, the voice synthesising system that powers the Google Assistant and helps people with speech difficulties and illnesses regain their voices. Hannah also discovers how ‘deepfake’ technology can be used to improve weather forecasting and how DeepMind researchers are collaborating with Liverpool Football Club, aiming to take sports to the next level. For questions or feedback on the series, message us on Twitter @DeepMind or email podcast@deepmind.com.  Interviewees: DeepMind’s Demis Hassabis, Raia Hadsell, Karl Tuyls, Zach Gleicher & Jackson Broshear; Niall Robinson of the UK Met Office CreditsPresenter: Hannah FrySeries Producer: Dan HardoonProduction support: Jill AchinekuSounds design: Emma BarnabyMusic composition: Eleni ShawSound Engineer: Nigel AppletonEditor: David PrestCommissioned by DeepMind Thank you to everyone who made this season possible!  Further reading: A generative model for raw audio, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/wavenet-generative-model-raw-audioWaveNet case study, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/research/case-studies/wavenetUsing WaveNet technology to reunite speech-impaired users with their original voices, DeepMind:| https://deepmind.com/blog/article/Using-WaveNet-technology-to-reunite-speech-impaired-users-with-their-original-voicesProject Euphonia, Google Research: https://sites.research.google/euphonia/about/Nowcasting the next hour of rain, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/nowcastingNow DeepMind is using AI to transform football, WIRED: https://www.wired.co.uk/article/deepmind-football-liverpool-aiAdvancing sports analytics through AI, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/advancing-sports-analytics-through-aiMetOffice, BBC: https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/The village ‘washed on to the map’, BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-28523053Michael Fish got the storm of 1987 wrong, Sky News: https://news.sky.com/story/michael-fish-got-the-storm-of-1987-wrong-but-modern-supercomputers-may-have-missed-it-too-11076659#:~:text=In%20a%20lunchtime%20broadcast%20on,%2C%22%20he%20confidently%20told%20viewers. Please leave us a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts if you enjoyed this episode. We always want to hear from our audience whether that's in the form of feedback, new idea or a guest recommendation!  

Step inside DeepMind's laboratories and you'll find researchers studying DNA to understand the mysteries of life, seeking new ways to use nuclear energy, or putting AI to the test in mind-bending areas of maths. In this episode, Hannah meets Pushmeet Kohli, the head of science at DeepMind, to understand how AI is accelerating scientific progress. Listeners also join Hannah on a [virtual] safari in the Serengeti in East Africa to find out how researchers are using AI to conserve wildlife in one of the world’s most spectacular ecosystems.  For questions or feedback on the series, message us on Twitter @DeepMind or email podcast@deepmind.com.  Interviewees: DeepMind’s Demis Hassabis, Pushmeet Kohli & Sarah Jane Dunn; Meredith Palmer of the Princeton University CreditsPresenter: Hannah FrySeries Producer: Dan HardoonProduction support: Jill AchinekuSounds design: Emma BarnabyMusic composition: Eleni ShawSound Engineer: Nigel AppletonEditor: David PrestCommissioned by DeepMind Thank you to everyone who made this season possible!  Further reading:Using AI for scientific discovery, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/AlphaFold-Using-AI-for-scientific-discoveryDeepMind’s Demis Hassabis on its breakthrough scientific discoveries, WIRED: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WRow9FqUbwThe AI revolution in scientific research, The Royal Society: https://royalsociety.org/-/media/policy/projects/ai-and-society/AI-revolution-in-science.pdfDOE Explains...Tokamaks, Office of Science: https://www.energy.gov/science/doe-explainstokamaksHow AI Accidentally Learned Ecology by Playing StarCraft, Discover: https://www.discovermagazine.com/technology/how-ai-accidentally-learned-ecology-by-playing-starcraftGoogle AI can identify wildlife from trap-camera footage, VentureBeat:https://venturebeat.com/2019/12/17/googles-ai-can-identify-wildlife-from-trap-camera-footage-with-up-to-98-6-accuracy/Snapshot Serengeti, Zooniverse:https://www.zooniverse.org/projects/zooniverse/snapshot-serengetiThe Human Genome Project, National Human Genome Research Institute: https://www.genome.gov/human-genome-projectExploring the beauty of pure mathematics in novel ways, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/exploring-the-beauty-of-pure-mathematics-in-novel-waysPredicting gene expression with AI, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/enformerUsing machine learning to accelerate ecological research, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/using-machine-learning-to-accelerate-ecological-researchAccelerating fusion science through learned plasma control, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/Accelerating-fusion-science-through-learned-plasma-controlSimulating matter on the quantum scale with AI, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/Simulating-matter-on-the-quantum-scale-with-AIHow AI is helping the natural sciences, Nature: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-02762-6Inside DeepMind's epic mission to solve science's trickiest problem, WIRED: https://www.wired.co.uk/article/deepmind-protein-foldingHow Artificial Intelligence Is Changing Science, Quanta: https://www.quantamagazine.org/how-artificial-intelligence-is-changing-science-20190311/ Please leave us a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts if you enjoyed this episode. We always want to hear from our audience whether that's in the form of feedback, new idea or a guest recommendation!  

Hannah meets DeepMind co-founder and chief scientist Shane Legg, the man who coined the phrase ‘artificial general intelligence’, and explores how it might be built. Why does Shane think AGI is possible? When will it be realised? And what could it look like? Hannah also explores a simple theory of using trial and error to reach AGI and takes a deep dive into MuZero, an AI system which mastered complex board games from chess to Go, and is now generalising to solve a range of important tasks in the real world. For questions or feedback on the series, message us on Twitter @DeepMind or email podcast@deepmind.com.  Interviewees: DeepMind’s Shane Legg, Doina Precup, Dave Silver & Jackson Broshear CreditsPresenter: Hannah FrySeries Producer: Dan HardoonProduction support: Jill AchinekuSounds design: Emma BarnabyMusic composition: Eleni ShawSound Engineer: Nigel AppletonEditor: David PrestCommissioned by DeepMind Thank you to everyone who made this season possible!  Further reading: Real-world challenges for AGI, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/real-world-challenges-for-agiAn executive primer on artificial general intelligence, McKinsey: https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/operations/our-insights/an-executive-primer-on-artificial-general-intelligenceMastering Go, chess, shogi and Atari without rules, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/muzero-mastering-go-chess-shogi-and-atari-without-rulesWhat is AGI?, Medium: https://medium.com/intuitionmachine/what-is-agi-99cdb671c88eA Definition of Machine Intelligence by Shane Legg, arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/0712.3329Reward is enough by David Silver, ScienceDirect: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0004370221000862 Please leave us a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts if you enjoyed this episode. We always want to hear from our audience whether that's in the form of feedback, new idea or a guest recommendation!  

Do you need a body to have intelligence? And can one exist without the other? Hannah takes listeners behind the scenes of DeepMind's robotics lab in London where she meets robots that are trying to independently learn new skills, and explores why physical intelligence is a necessary part of intelligence. Along the way, she finds out how researchers trained their robots at home during lockdown, uncovers why so many robotics demonstrations are faking it, and what it takes to train a robotic football team.  For questions or feedback on the series, message us on Twitter @DeepMind or email podcast@deepmind.com.  Interviewees: DeepMind’s Raia Hadsell, Viorica Patraucean, Jan Humplik, Akhil Raju & Doina Precup CreditsPresenter: Hannah FrySeries Producer: Dan HardoonProduction support: Jill AchinekuSounds design: Emma BarnabyMusic composition: Eleni ShawSound Engineer: Nigel AppletonEditor: David PrestCommissioned by DeepMind Thank you to everyone who made this season possible!  Further reading: Stacking our way to more general robots, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/stacking-our-way-to-more-general-robotsResearchers Propose Physical AI As Key To Lifelike Robots, Forbes: ​​https://www.forbes.com/sites/simonchandler/2020/11/11/researchers-propose-physical-ai-as-key-to-lifelike-robots/The robots going where no human can, BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/technology-41584738The Robot Assault On Fukushima, WIRED: https://www.wired.com/story/fukushima-robot-cleanup/Leaps, Bounds, and Backflips, Boston Dynamics: http://blog.bostondynamics.com/atlas-leaps-bounds-and-backflipsNow DeepMind is using AI to transform football, WIRED: https://www.wired.co.uk/article/deepmind-football-liverpool-ai Please leave us a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts if you enjoyed this episode. We always want to hear from our audience whether that's in the form of feedback, new idea or a guest recommendation!  

Cooperation is at the heart of our society. Inventing the railway, giving birth to the Renaissance, and creating the Covid-19 vaccine all required people to combine efforts. But cooperation is so much more. It governs our education systems, healthcare, and food production. In this episode, Hannah meets the researchers working on cooperative AI, and hears about their work and influences from the famous American psychologist - and pigeon trainer -  BF Skinner to the strategic board game Diplomacy. For questions or feedback on the series, message us on Twitter @DeepMind or email podcast@deepmind.com Interviewees: DeepMind’s Thore Graepel, Kevin Mckee, Doina Precup & Laura Weidinger CreditsPresenter: Hannah FrySeries Producer: Dan HardoonProduction support: Jill AchinekuSounds design: Emma BarnabyMusic composition: Eleni ShawSound Engineer: Nigel AppletonEditor: David PrestCommissioned by DeepMind Thank you to everyone who made this season possible!  Further reading: Machines must learn to find common ground, Nature: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-01170-0Introduction to Reinforcement Learning, DeepMind: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pWv7GOvuf0B.F. Skinner, Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B._F._SkinnerThe Tragedy of the Commons, Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tragedy_of_the_commonsStaving Off The Ultimate Tragedy Of The Commons, Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/georgebradt/2021/11/02/staving-off-the-ultimate-tragedy-of-the-commons-by-making-better-complex-decisions-cooperatively-in-glasgow/Understanding Agent Cooperation, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/understanding-agent-cooperationThe emergence of complex cooperative agents, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/capture-the-flag-science Please leave us a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts if you enjoyed this episode. We always want to hear from our audience whether that's in the form of feedback, new idea or a guest recommendation!  

In December 2019, DeepMind’s AI system, AlphaFold, solved a 50-year-old grand challenge in biology, known as the protein-folding problem. A headline in the journal Nature read, “It will change everything” and the President of the UK's Royal Society called it a “stunning advance [that arrived] decades before many in the field would have predicted”. In this episode, Hannah uncovers the inside story of AlphaFold from the people who made it happen and finds out how it could help transform the future of healthcare and medicine.For questions or feedback on the series, message us on Twitter @DeepMind or email podcast@deepmind.com. Interviewees: DeepMind’s Demis Hassabis, John Jumper, Kathryn Tunyasunakool and Sasha Brown; Charles Mowbray and Monique Wasuna of the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi]) & John McGeehan of the Centre for Enzyme Innovation at the University of Portsmouth CreditsPresenter: Hannah FrySeries Producer: Dan HardoonProduction support: Jill AchinekuSounds design: Emma BarnabyMusic composition: Eleni ShawSound Engineer: Nigel AppletonEditor: David PrestCommissioned by DeepMind Thank you to everyone who made this season possible!  Further reading: AlphaFold blog, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/alphafold-a-solution-to-a-50-year-old-grand-challenge-in-biologyAlphaFold case study, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/research/case-studies/alphafoldIt will change everything, Nature: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-03348-4AlphaFold Is The Most Important Achievement In AI—Ever, Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/robtoews/2021/10/03/alphafold-is-the-most-important-achievement-in-ai-ever/?sh=359278426e0aBacteria found to eat PET plastics, NewScientist: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2080279-bacteria-found-to-eat-pet-plastics-could-help-do-the-recycling/Protein Structure Prediction Center: https://predictioncenter.org/An interview with Professor John McGeehan, BBSRC: https://bbsrc.ukri.org/news/features/enzyme-science/an-interview-with-professor-john-mcgeehan/John McGeehan profile, University of Portsmouth: https://researchportal.port.ac.uk/en/persons/john-mcgeehanDrugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi): https://dndi.org/A doctor’s dream, DNDi: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tk31iucWYdEThe Curious Cases of Rutherford and Fry, BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b07dx75g/episodes/downloadsHannah Fry: https://hannahfry.co.uk/ Please leave us a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts if you enjoyed this episode. We always want to hear from our audience whether that's in the form of feedback, new idea or a guest recommendation!  

Hannah explores the potential of language models, the questions they raise, and if teaching a computer about language is enough to create artificial general intelligence (AGI). Beyond helping us communicate ideas, language plays a crucial role in memory, cooperation, and thinking – which is why AI researchers have long aimed to communicate with computers using natural language. Recently, there has been extraordinary progress using large-language models (LLM), which learn how to speak by processing huge amounts of data from the internet. The results can be very convincing, but pose significant ethical challenges.  For questions or feedback on the series, message us on Twitter @DeepMind or email podcast@deepmind.com.  Interviewees: DeepMind’s Geoffrey Irving, Chris Dyer, Angeliki Lazaridou, Lisa-Anne Hendriks & Laura Weidinger  CreditsPresenter: Hannah FrySeries Producer: Dan HardoonProduction support: Jill AchinekuSounds design: Emma BarnabyMusic composition: Eleni ShawSound Engineer: Nigel AppletonEditor: David PrestCommissioned by DeepMind Thank you to everyone who made this season possible!  Further reading: GPT-3 Powers the Next Generation of Apps, OpenAI: https://openai.com/blog/gpt-3-apps/https://web.stanford.edu/class/linguist238/p36-weizenabaum.pdfNever Mind the Computer 1983 about the ELIZA program, BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p023kpf8How Large Language Models Will Transform Science, Society, and AI, Stanford University: https://hai.stanford.edu/news/how-large-language-models-will-transform-science-society-and-aiChallenges in Detoxifying Language Models, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/research/publications/2021/Challenges-in-Detoxifying-Language-ModelsExtending Machine Language Models toward Human-Level Language Understanding, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/research/publications/2020/Extending-Machine-Language-Models-toward-Human-Level-Language-UnderstandingLanguage modelling at scale, DeepMind: https://deepmind.com/blog/article/language-modelling-at-scaleArtificial general intelligence, Technology Review: https://www.technologyreview.com/2020/10/15/1010461/artificial-general-intelligence-robots-ai-agi-deepmind-google-openai/A Definition of Machine Intelligence by Shane Legg, arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/0712.3329Stuart Russell - Living With Artificial Intelligence, BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001216k/episodes/player Please leave us a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts if you enjoyed this episode. We always want to hear from our audience whether that's in the form of feedback, new idea or a guest recommendation!  

The chart-topping podcast which uncovers the extraordinary ways artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming our world is back for a second season. Join mathematician and broadcaster Professor Hannah Fry behind the scenes of world-leading AI research lab DeepMind to get the inside story of how AI is being created – and how it can benefit our lives and the society we live in.Recorded over six months and featuring over 30 original interviews, including DeepMind co-founders Demis Hassabis and Shane Legg, the podcast gives listeners exclusive access to the brilliant people building the technology of the future. Throughout nine original episodes, Hannah discovers how DeepMind is using AI to advance science in critical areas, like solving a 50-year-old grand challenge in biology and developing nuclear fusion.Listeners hear stories of teaching robots to walk at home during lockdown, as well as using AI to forecast weather, help people regain their voices, and enhance game strategies with Liverpool Football Club. Hannah also takes an in-depth look at the challenges and potential of building artificial general intelligence (AGI) and explores what it takes to ensure AI is built to benefit society.“I hope this series gives people a better understanding of AI and a feeling for just how exhilarating an endeavour it is.” – Demis Hassabis, CEO and Co-Founder of DeepMindFor questions or feedback on the series, message us on Twitter @DeepMind or email podcast@deepmind.com.CreditsPresenter: Hannah FrySeries Producer: Dan HardoonProduction support: Jill AchinekuSounds design: Emma BarnabyMusic composition: Eleni ShawSound Engineer: Nigel AppletonEditor: David PrestCommissioned by DeepMind Please leave us a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts if you enjoyed this episode. We always want to hear from our audience whether that's in the form of feedback, new idea or a guest recommendation!  

In this special extended episode, Hannah Fry meets Demis Hassabis, the CEO and co-founder of DeepMind. She digs into his former life as a chess player, games designer and neuroscientist and explores how his love of chess helped him to get start-up funding, what drives him and his vision, and why AI keeps him up at night.If you have a question or feedback on the series, message us on Twitter (@DeepMind using the hashtag #DMpodcast) or email us at podcast@deepmind.com.Further reading:Wired: Inside DeepMind's epic mission to solve science's trickiest problemQuanta magazine: How Artificial Intelligence Is Changing ScienceDemis Hassabis: A systems neuroscience approach to building AGI. Talk at the 2010 Singularity Summit Demis Hassabis: The power of self-learning systems. Talk at MIT 2019Demis Hassabis: Talk on Creativity and AI Financial Times: The mind in the machine: Demis Hassabis on artificial intelligence (2017)The Times: Interview with Demis HassabisThe Economist Babbage podcast: DeepMind GamesInterview with Demis Hassabis from the book Game Changer, which also features an introduction from DemisInterviewees: Deepmind CEO and co-founder, Demis HassabisCredits:Presenter: Hannah FryEditor: David PrestSenior Producer: Louisa FieldProducers: Amy Racs, Dan HardoonBinaural Sound: Lucinda Mason-BrownMusic composition: Eleni Shaw (with help from Sander Dieleman and WaveNet)Commissioned by DeepMind Please leave us a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts if you enjoyed this episode. We always want to hear from our audience whether that's in the form of feedback, new idea or a guest recommendation!  

AI researchers around the world are trying to create a general purpose learning system that can learn to solve a broad range of problems without being taught how. Koray Kavukcuoglu, DeepMind’s Director of Research, describes the journey to get there, and takes Hannah on a whistle-stop tour of DeepMind’s HQ and its research.If you have a question or feedback on the series, message us on Twitter (@DeepMind using the hashtag #DMpodcast) or email us at podcast@deepmind.com.Further reading:OpenAI: An overview of neural networks and the progress that has been made in AIShane Legg, DeepMind co-founder: Measuring machine intelligence at the 2010 Singularity SummitShane Legg and Marcus Hutter: Paper on defining machine intelligenceDemis Hassabis: Talk on the history, frontiers and capabilities of AIRobert Wiblin: Positively shaping the development of artificial intelligenceAsilomar AI PrinciplesRichard S. Sutton and Andrew G. Barto: Reinforcement Learning: An IntroductionInterviewees: Koray Kavukcuoglu, Director of Research; Trevor Back, Product Manager for DeepMind’s science research; research scientists Raia Hadsell and Murray Shanahan; and DeepMind CEO and co-founder, Demis Hassabis.Credits:Presenter: Hannah FryEditor: David PrestSenior Producer: Louisa FieldProducers: Amy Racs, Dan HardoonBinaural Sound: Lucinda Mason-BrownMusic composition: Eleni Shaw (with help from Sander Dieleman and WaveNet)Commissioned by DeepMind Please leave us a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts if you enjoyed this episode. We always want to hear from our audience whether that's in the form of feedback, new idea or a guest recommendation!