Possible
What if, in the future, everything breaks humanity's way? Possible is an award-winning, weekly podcast that sketches out the brightest version of the future—and what it will take to get there. Hosts Reid Hoffman and Aria Finger explore what’s possible with forward-thinking leaders, deep thinkers, and ambitious builders across many fields, such as technology, art, education and healthcare. These conversations center on the ways technology—and, in particular, AI—is shaping the future. In episodes, AI tools such as OpenAI’s GPT-4 and Inflection’s Pi are at work, offering informational asides, prompting guests, or demoing what they can do. Lastly, between guest episodes, Aria interviews her co-host Reid on his latest takes on what’s possible if we use technology—and our collective effort—effectively.
Episodes
September 11, 2024 • 10 mins
Reid reflects on his early exposure to AI as an undergraduate at Stanford and on navigating the space between academia and industry. Plus, he and Aria discuss human outcomes of technology—and how human-centered technologists such as Fei-Fei Li, Mustafa Suleyman, and Kevin Scott have helped him keep those outcomes top of mind.
For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
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September 4, 2024 • 60 mins
How can scientists leverage AI and machine learning to more effectively research, develop, and deliver new drugs? This week, Reid and Aria talk drug development with renowned computer scientist and executive Dr. Daphne Koller, whose company, insitro, uses machine learning to improve the quality and speed of drug discovery. She addresses several ways AI and ML are already being used to redefine diseases and create better therapeutic...
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August 28, 2024 • 8 mins
This week, Reid veers toward science fiction, tackling big questions including: Is a single mentally-linked network in our future? Can and should humans create other sentient beings?
Select mentions:
David Brin
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August 21, 2024 • 53 mins
What might it look like if we used AI to make democracy work better and to make society more equal? In this special live recording of Possible, Aria turns the tables on her co-host, interviewing Reid alongside Atlantic CEO Nick Thompson. They discuss AI-native generations, the future of friendship and social connections, media, data, privacy, and democracy in the age of AI. To kick off the episode, Reid’s avatar makes a cameo.
Re...
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August 14, 2024 • 13 mins
This week, Aria asks Reid about government regulation of AI, including where the U.S. fits in on the global stage and how America can learn from where the early regulation of social media fell short.
For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
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August 7, 2024 • 33 mins
How can the U.S. government support the use of AI to stimulate innovation, bring healthcare to people more effectively, and educate people more equitably—all while thoughtfully navigating technology’s impact on people’s way of life?
On this week’s episode, Reid and Aria sit down with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo to discuss her work leading the government’s efforts to minimize the risks and maximize the benefits of AI ...
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July 31, 2024 • 14 mins
In this episode, Aria asks Reid about his general and AI-specific investment philosophies, including what draws him to a pitch and what raises red flags. They discuss agentic AI, robots, and hardware.
For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
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July 24, 2024 • 41 mins
This week, Reid and Aria are joined by Ashton Kutcher. While you might know him as the actor and producer who rose to fame on That ‘70s Show, Dude, Where’s My Car, and MTV’s Punk’d, Ashton is also an accomplished venture capitalist. He is co-founder of the VC firm Sound Ventures, and he has been investing in AI for more than a decade. Ashton, Reid, and Aria discuss the future of AI software and hardware, startups, and the AI revolu...
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July 17, 2024 • 10 mins
Reid discusses what aspects of urban planning need to be reimagined. He advocates that prioritizing smart technology, clean energy, and data can vastly improve residents’ quality of life. Plus, Aria asks Reid about the potential of technologies existent and forthcoming—including self-flying cars.
For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
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July 10, 2024 • 52 mins
What if we built cities focused around community, leveraging technology to actually increase human connection, health, and fulfillment? Devon Zuegel, the leader of Edge Esmeralda—a pop-up village that took place in June 2024—joins Possible to discuss how she is reimagining cities to optimize for community. In this episode, Devon, Aria, and Reid get into why designing cities with intention can impact quality of life and strengthen c...
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July 3, 2024 • 13 mins
Reid talks about why he invested in California Forever, the ambitious sustainable city project in Solano County, California. He contends with some of the concerns that have been raised about the initiative and states his case for the best way to fix the affordable housing crisis. The answer just might be surprisingly simple. Aria also asks Reid about exciting sustainability projects that aren’t getting the attention they deserve.
...
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June 26, 2024 • 52 mins
What if we could build the ideal sustainable city from scratch? This week’s guest is aiming to do that, and he has unique insight into what making that dream a reality can look like. Jan Sramek is the founder of California Forever, a company aiming to build an affordable, urban community in Solano County, California. Reid—an investor in California Forever—and Aria sat down with Jan to talk about the vision for the city, where it dr...
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June 19, 2024 • 11 mins
In this episode, Aria asks Reid about the path from idea to execution—and Reid draws from LinkedIn to share his launch lessons. Plus, Reid predicts how AI will—and won’t—impact food, dining, and restaurants.
For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
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June 12, 2024 • 46 mins
What role might artificial intelligence play in making the perfect meal? How will AI transform food creation—and creation more generally? Massimo Bottura—legendary Italian chef and entrepreneur—joins Possible to talk about the future of food, human creativity, and how technology factors in. Massimo, Aria, and Reid discuss the roles of joy and innovation in fine dining, technology’s potential to enhance human connection, and Food Fo...
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June 5, 2024 • 10 mins
What will being a software engineer look like in the future, when the predominant coding language is English—or whatever language you speak—instead of JavaScript? In this episode, Reid reflects on his own education, including the value of studying philosophy. Plus, he shares what he’d prioritize in designing kids' classroom experiences today and gets into AI’s potential to help customize lessons to align with students’ curiosities ...
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May 29, 2024 • 48 mins
What does AI literacy mean for students and their teachers? Code.org Chief Academic Officer Pat Yongpradit—himself a former middle school computer science teacher—joins Reid and Aria for the first-ever live-taping of Possible, recorded at the ASU+GSV Summit in San Diego.
In this episode, they discuss why school-wide bans on AI are a terrible idea and what “always be learning” refers to in an age of AI. Plus, Pat unveils, for the ...
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May 24, 2024 • 31 mins
What should we keep in mind as we venture into this new AI era? Reid Hoffman delivers a speech, entitled Humanity’s Hegelian Golden Braid, to address this question. The speech offers six guiding maxims related to AI, humanity, and technology—and weaves through Hegel and Hofstadter, cathedrals and griffins, T.S. Elliot and Hyman Minsky, and more.
This speech was originally given by Reid Hoffman in English on May 24, 2024 after acce...
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May 22, 2024 • 14 mins
In this episode, Aria asks Reid about the roles and responsibilities of technology journalists, along with his thoughts on the TikTok ban (recorded before President Biden signed the TikTok Ban bill into law).
For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all the episodes, visit https://www.possible.fm/podcast/
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May 22, 2024 • 43 mins
Alongside this week’s riff from Reid on tech journalism and last week’s episode with Kara Swisher, we’re bringing you a conversation between Reid and Kara that originally dropped as a March 2023 episode of “On with Kara Swisher.” This duo has known each other since the 90s, when Reid was fresh off the sale of PayPal and before he co-founded LinkedIn. On this episode, they discuss Reid’s donations to Biden and other Democrats, how h...
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May 15, 2024 • 57 mins
What will the media landscape look like as tech companies, as opposed to traditional media, own increasingly more ink? And who better to offer an optimistic take on the news industry’s future than…Kara Swisher?!
Reid and Aria speak with the famous—and famously direct—tech journalist, author, and podcast host about the roles and responsibilities of journalists covering rapidly developing innovations, along with those of the techno...
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