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Making Sense with Sam Harris

Join neuroscientist, philosopher, and five-time New York Times best-selling author Sam Harris as he explores important and controversial questions about the mind, society, current events, moral philosophy, religion, and rationality—with an overarching focus on how a growing understanding of ourselves and the world is changing our sense of how we should live.

Sam is also the creator of the Waking Up app. Combining Sam’s decades of mindfulness practice, profound wisdom from varied philosophical and contemplative traditions, and a commitment to a secular, scientific worldview, Waking Up is a resource for anyone interested in living a more examined, fulfilling life—and a new operating system for the mind.

Waking Up offers free subscriptions to anyone who can’t afford one, and donates a minimum of 10% of profits to the most effective charities around the world. To learn more, please go to WakingUp.com.

Sam Harris received a degree in philosophy from Stanford University and a Ph.D. in neuroscience from UCLA.

Copyright: © All rights reserved

Latest Episodes:

#429 — The New World Order Aug 11, 2025

Show notes

Sam Harris speaks with Anne Applebaum about the erosion of democracy at home and abroad. They discuss the Sudanese civil war and the outside forces involved, America's retreat from global leadership, the impacts of USAID cuts, gerrymandering, the integrity of U.S. elections, the capitulation of Republican representatives to Trump, tariffs, what a post-Trump world could look like, JD Vance as a potential successor to the MAGA movement, Israel's actions in Gaza, and other topics.

If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe.

#428 — Political Extremism Aug 07, 2025

Show notes

Sam Harris speaks with Jonah Goldberg about Trump 2.0 and wealth inequality. They discuss the horseshoe theory, illiberalism on the Right and the Left, the fallout of the Trump-Epstein controversy, cracks in Trump's cult following, the difference between MAGA activists and average republican voters, why the Democrats still haven't course-corrected, problems with the "abundance agenda," socialism and economic populism, the pitfalls of the far-left's approach to solving wealth inequality, Israel's standing on the world stage, and other topics.

If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe.

#427 — AI Friends & Enemies Jul 25, 2025

Show notes

Sam Harris speaks with Paul Bloom about AI and current events. They discuss the state of LLMs, the risks and benefits of AI companionship, what it means to attribute consciousness to AI, relationships with AI as a form of psychosis, Trump's attacks on science and academia, what Trump may be trying to hide in the Epstein files, how damaging Trump's connections to Epstein might be, MAGA's obsession with conspiracy theories, questions surrounding Epstein's death, Paul's research on revenge, Sam's falling out with Elon Musk, where things went wrong for Elon, and other topics.

If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe.

#426 — How Bad Is It? Jul 23, 2025

Show notes

Sam Harris speaks with David Frum about the current state of American politics. They discuss the extent of Trump's corruption, his immigration crackdowns, what's going well under Trump 2.0, Trump's support for Ukraine and Israel, U.S. foreign policy, nuclear proliferation, Israel's security and internal political conflicts, perceptions of the war in Gaza, the Trump administration's professed support for Jews, the fallout of DOGE, Trump's friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, and other topics.

If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe.

#425 — Are We Prepared for the Next Pandemic? Jul 21, 2025

Show notes

Sam Harris speaks with Marc Lipsitch about pandemic preparedness. They discuss what we learned from Covid, loss of trust in institutions, how to effectively communicate scientific information in the current media landscape, vaccine hesitancy, the safety of mRNA vaccines, the origins of Covid, gain-of-function research, virus hunting, the Trump administration's assault on scientific research and universities, future pandemic threats, and other topics.

If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe.

Learning how to train your mind is the single greatest investment you can make in life. That's why Sam Harris created the Waking Up app. From rational mindfulness practice to lessons on some of life's most important topics, join Sam as he demystifies the practice of meditation and explores the theory behind it.

#424 — "More From Sam": Nazi Grok, ICE, Epstein, Social Media, Rapid Fire Questions Jul 16, 2025

Show notes

In this latest episode of the "More From Sam" series, Sam and Jaron talk about current events and answer some of the questions you all submitted on Substack. They discuss Nazi Grok, immigration, ICE raids, Jeffrey Epstein, how to stay focused in the age of distraction, and rapid fire questions.

Produced by Griffin Katz

#423 — "More From Sam": Democracy, Populism, Wealth Inequality, News-Induced Anxiety, & Rapid Fire Questions Jul 08, 2025

Show notes

In this latest episode of the "More From Sam" series, Sam and Jaron talk about current events and answer some of the questions you all submitted on Substack. They discuss Epstein's "client list," how to safeguard democracy, populism, wealth inequality, the allure of socialism, how to manage feeling overwhelmed by current events, and rapid fire questions.

Produced by Griffin Katz

#422 — Zionism & Jihadism Jun 19, 2025

Show notes

Sam Harris speaks with Haviv Rettig Gur about Israel and her enemies. They discuss Israel's war with Iran and America's role in the conflict, Israel's military capabilities, Iran's nuclear program, what a ground invasion of Iran could look like, how Iranians view the regime, antisemitism, the history of Zionism, Islam and jihadism, extremism on the Israeli far right, religious fanaticism, Israeli settlements in the West Bank, Ehud Olmert, the hostages in Gaza, and other topics.

If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe.

#421 — "More From Sam": Political Violence, Iran, Deportations, Protests, & Rapid Fire Questions Jun 17, 2025

Show notes

In this latest episode of the "More From Sam" series, Sam hopped back on with his manager and business partner, Jaron Lowenstein, to talk about current events and answer some of the questions you all submitted on Substack. They discuss the assassination of Minnesota state representative Melissa Hortman and the recent uptick in political violence, Elon's comments about Trump's involvement with Jeffrey Epstein, Iran, deportations, the LA protests, Sam's recent appearance on Jordan Peterson's podcast, and rapid fire questions.

Produced by Griffin Katz

#420 — Countdown to Superintelligence Jun 12, 2025

Show notes

Sam Harris speaks with Daniel Kokotajlo about the potential impacts of superintelligent AI over the next decade. They discuss Daniel's predictions in his essay "AI 2027," the alignment problem, what an intelligence explosion might look like, the capacity of LLMs to intentionally deceive, the economic implications of recent advances in AI, AI safety testing, the potential for governments to regulate AI development, AI coding capabilities, how we'll recognize the arrival of superintelligent AI, and other topics.

If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe.

Learning how to train your mind is the single greatest investment you can make in life. That's why Sam Harris created the Waking Up app. From rational mindfulness practice to lessons on some of life's most important topics, join Sam as he demystifies the practice of meditation and explores the theory behind it.

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