Thinking On Paper: Code, Culture, and Control

The singularity hype is deafening. Sentient AI is always 'just around the corner'. But what separates genuine consciousness from sophisticated mimicry? And how can you gain intellectual control in a world drowning in computational noise?  

Federico Faggin, inventor of the microprocessor, draws a hard line in his book "Irreducible." In this Thinking On Paper Book Club session, Mark and Jeremy dissect Chapters 4 ...

Could placing massive solar farms in orbit solve Earth's energy crisis and combat climate change? In this episode of Thinking On Paper, hosts Mark Fielding and Jeremy Gilbertson speak with Sanjay Vijendran, Director of Space Energy Insights and former lead at the European Space Agency (ESA) for SBSP initiatives.

Sanjay breaks down the reality behind Space-Based Solar Power (SBSP): harvesting intense, 24/7 sunlight above the clouds a...

OpenAI & Google just upgraded their arsenals, feasting on public data. Feeling powerless? You should. Your digital life fuels their dominance, and privacy feels like a forgotten joke. But what if the model was flipped?

Enter Flock.io. Co-founder Jihao Sun sits down with Thinking on Paper to reveal a different path: Decentralized AI. This isn't theory; it's a potential blueprint for training powerful AI without surren...

Is that random thought flashing through your mind the quantum wave function collapsing? It's a wild idea, but it gets to the heart of Federico Faggin's challenge in "Irreducible": If consciousness is fundamentally quantum, can machines built on classical logic ever truly possess it?  

The Machine vs. Life DivideComputers process symbols using deterministic rules, even with trillions of transistors. Humans? We oper...

They told him no. Hollywood's gates were closed. So David Bianchi – veteran actor and filmmaker – turned to the bleeding edge: Blockchain, NFTs, and AI. The result? RZR, a sci-fi series funded and distributed entirely outside the studio system, earning a Primetime Emmy nomination and proving a new path is possible.

Tired of studios owning your IP like Miramax owned Pulp Fiction? Frustrated by endless approvals killing your visio...

Federico Faggin invented the world's first microprocessor – the engine AI runs on. So why does he now question if machines can ever be truly conscious? His book "Irreducible" throws down a fundamental challenge, rooted in the quantum nature of reality.

Is consciousness just complex computation? Or is our "classical" understanding of physics, the one that declared itself "complete" just before being ...

Sick of squinting at fuzzy CAPTCHAs? Annoyed when websites demand your passport just to verify your age? This friction isn't random – it's a symptom of a broken system: the internet increasingly can't tell if you're human or a sophisticated AI.

Deepfakes, automated bots, and AI-generated content are flooding the digital world, making online trust a scarce commodity. Good users pay the price with constant verification...

"Whatever this book has taught us, there's a pre-AI world and a post-AI world. However it plays out, nothing will ever be the same."

The future isn't unified. AI is splitting the world into competing digital empires. In the final chapter of Nexus, Yuval Noah Harari explores how nations are building separate AI ecosystems, using different hardware, software, and data to shape their own technological realities. 

The Silicon Curtain is ...

AI doesn’t just automate oppression—it might also destabilize the very regimes that rely on it.

In this episode of Thinking on Paper Book Club, we break down Chapter 10 of Nexus by Yuval Noah Harari and explore the uneasy relationship between artificial intelligence and authoritarianism.

Will AI give dictators absolute control, or will it expose the cracks in their systems?

AI changes the game. Unlike humans, algorithms do...

Let's be honest: most Web3 marketing has been a dumpster fire. Hype cycles over strategy, confusing tech jargon over clear value, and NFT cash grabs instead of real community building. Diego Borgo, who shaped Web3 strategies for giants like Adidas, Porsche, and Mastercard, is here to explain why it failed and how brands can actually succeed.

Are you tired of seeing brands treat NFTs as just another product to shill? Frustrated b...

The race for quantum supremacy is heating up. IBM, Microsoft, Google, D-Wave, and IonQ are betting billions on different paths – superconducting, annealing, topological, trapped ions. Who holds the real advantage beyond the marketing hype, and what approach will unlock quantum's true potential first?

Hype, Complexity & Competing Claims: Forget simplistic qubit counts. The path to useful quantum computing is fraught with chal...

Elon Musk warns of an imminent electricity shortage driven by AI. Others predict AI compute could consume Earth's entire current power output by 2045. As AI's energy appetite explodes, are data centers in space the only viable path forward?

Building AI infrastructure terrestrially is hitting fundamental walls. We're running out of power, land for massive facilities, and sustainable ways to cool heat-belching servers. Continuing on t...

Will AI take over intellectual jobs? Will it take your job? Can democracy survive in a world controlled by data? So many questions, so little time. Chapter 9 of Nexus by Yuval Noah Harari raises some pretty scary questions about the future of automation, governance, and human agency.

You listen to Thinking on Paper because you're not afraid to face the difficult questions about the nefarious side of AI. And Nexus might just be the ...

Disruptors & Curious Minds. In this episode of Thinking on Paper, we talk with Fintan Buckley, CEO of Ubotica, about how AI-powered satellites could transform disaster response, national security, and environmental monitoring. Could AI have stopped the LA wildfires?

AI in space has the potential to cut disaster response times from days to minutes. It could improve wildfire prediction, maritime security, and urban planning. But ...

Could AI's quest to help us lead to our destruction? In this episode, we dive into Chapter 8 of Harari's 'Nexus' to explore the chilling parallels between Stalin's loyalty tests and the potential dangers of AI.

From Napoleon's fatal victories to the infamous paperclip paradox, you'll learn how even well-intentioned AI could spiral beyond human control and pose an existential risk to humanity.

Yes disrupto...

1 in 5 Ethereum transactions fail. What if you could make mistakes a memory, automate payments, and make crypto as seamless as a credit card? What if you could time travel on Ethereum?

Theis week's guests are STXN founders Boris Mamlyuk & Anuj Dasgupta, and they're eliminating failed transactions, reducing costs, and making blockchain work for the real world.

Hurrah!

You'll learn why Ethereum is broken and how smart t...

Your phone is listening. Your apps are watching. 1 billion CCTV cameras monitor your every step. Everywhere you go, everything you buy, every interaction you have is recorded. This isn't new. But now A.I can analyse it. Governments and your enemies can find the patterns and manipulate you without your knowing. And you help them. Mark and Jeremy rip into Chapter 7 of Yuval Noah Harari's "Nexus" and uncover how modern surveillance ma...

What would it mean for humans to live in a world where catchy melodies, scientific theories, political manifestos, and even religious myths are shaped by a non-human intelligence that knows how to exploit with superhuman efficiency the weaknesses, biases, and addictions of the human mind?

Mark and Jeremy tackle Chapter 6 of Nexus by Yuval Noah Harari, unpacking how AI, algorithms, and social media reshape our world, and what that co...

Is AI about to commoditize creativity? In this episode, we break down Packy McCormick's 'Not Boring' newsletter and his urgent Memorandum On Human Strategy to help you thrive in the age of AI.We explore the big question: Will AI truly commoditize creativity? And if so, what can you do to stay relevant, future-proof your career, and flourish when everyone else is struggling?Key Takeaways:Understanding AI's Impact: Le...