Public Service Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Rohit Krishnan - Managing AI Agents Jun 01, 2026

Show notes

Rohit is one of the world’s most interesting researchers looking at the practical applications of modern AI agents and how they integrate with real-world systems. He works as the CPO at Bodo.AI, previously McKinsey’s European Lead for growth technology and a co-founder at Fab AI. We discuss using the latest generation of agents to accelerate science, how groups of agents can unintentionally commit fraud, Hayek’s critique of the machine god, and the future of professional expertise and knowledge work.

A full transcript, with links and helpful notes, is available at:

https://alethios.substack.com/p/rohit-krishnan-managing-ai-agents

Chinese Trade, Housing, and the Auckland Mayoralty - Hon Phil Goff Jan 19, 2026

Show notes

Hon Phil Goff is a former New Zealand Minister of Trade, Foreign Affairs, Defence, Education, Housing, and Justice. In 2016 he was elected mayor of the Auckland 'Supercity'. We discuss that experience, contrasting central and local government, as well as his role negotiating the first Western Free Trade Agreement with China in 2008.

Full transcript, with inline notes and links is available at alethios.substack.com

Auckland Skyline image from Ssiyamalan.

Smart Cities & Digital Governance, with Sean Audain Dec 22, 2025

Show notes

Presenting a discussion with Sean Audain, the former City Innovation Lead and now Strategic Planning Manager at Wellington City Council. We covered a wide array of topics, from how Wellington is using sensors at scale to improve earthquake resilience, to the implications of narrowing information asymmetries thanks to AI combined with data collection at unprecedented scale.

This recording is from the 2025 Sustainable Development Goals Summit at Massey University and is published here with the permission of the organising committee.

Auckland's Legendary Design Champion, Ludo Campbell-Reid Dec 03, 2025

Show notes

Ludo is one of the most interesting and successful public servants of the 21st Century, leading a radical transformation of Auckland’s urban design over his 13 years as the city’s ‘Design Champion’. YIMBY’s rightly celebrate the city’s upzoning successes and improving affordability, but it’s easy to forget how strong public opposition to ‘ugly’ tower blocks almost unraveled the movement before it started.

Delivering change is always challenging, particularly in the public sector. Ludo’s extraordinary efforts required building and managing a world-class team, maintaining political support, leading a relentless and incisive comms strategy, and coordinating the efforts of numerous public organisations all to deliver quality public spaces at such scale that it came to be expected, and therefore easy and unremarkable.

Patrick McKenzie - VaccinateCA and Institutional Dysfunction Oct 20, 2025

Show notes

Patrick McKenzie (aka patio11) is a strategic advisor at Stripe, an angel investor, writes the fortnightly newsletter ‘Bits About Money’ about financial infrastructure, and was CEO of the extraordinary VaccinateCA effort in 2021. Patrick and I previously spoke on his show ‘Complex Systems’ about system dynamics, local government challenges, and organisational scar tissue. Here we follow up on what the insane VaccinateCA saga tells us about modern institutional dysfunction, and how we might avoid repeating the terrible mistakes of 2021.

Read the full transcript with inline notes here:

https://alethios.substack.com/p/patrick-mckenzie-vaccinateca

Anish Tondwalkar - The Societal Implications of Reasoning Models Aug 14, 2025

Show notes

Anish Tondwalkar is a former employee of OpenAI and Google Brain, now the co-founder of Y-Combinator backed AI interpretability startup ‘dmodel.ai’. We sat down in June to discuss the underappreciated capabilities of the latest generation of AI models, and how individuals, institutions, and society is likely to respond, even if no further progress were made.

Full transcript with links and inline notes available here:

https://alethios.substack.com/p/anish-tondwalkar-the-societal-implications

Samo Burja - Live Players and Institutional Reform Aug 05, 2025

Show notes

Samo is an institutional theorist, the founder of Bismarck Analysis, and the editor of Palladium Magazine. We discuss why our political agreements are 80 years out of date, and how Estonia provides the same standard of public services at half the cost.

Full transcript with reference links and notes available here:

https://alethios.substack.com/p/samo-burja-live-players-and-institutional

Steve Hsu - In No.10 with Boris and Cummings Aug 01, 2025

Show notes

Steve Hsu completed his PhD in theoretical physics at age 24. He’s since made numerous contributions as a scientist, tech startup founder, professor, and institutional advisor. Little is known about the role he played during Boris Johnson’s ill-fated tenure as Prime Minister of the UK. In Steve’s first interview on the subject, he shares that hidden history, and what lessons can be drawn from it.

Later, we discuss the rapidly changing power dynamics of the Western Pacific, as China continues to flex its growing might.

Full transcript with links is available here:

https://alethios.substack.com/p/with-steve-hsu-in-no10-with-boris

TracingWoodgrains - Journalism, Education Policy, and Political Change Aug 01, 2025

Show notes

Jack Despain Zhou, aka ‘TracingWoodgrains’, is an independent investigative journalist, education campaigner, online community expert, and internet commentator. We discussed evolving cultural dynamics, leadership, and how to reform everything from dog control laws, to education, to the Democratic Party.

Full transcript available here:

https://alethios.substack.com/p/with-tracingwoodgrains-journalism

Nuño Sempere - Superforecasting and Global Risk Aug 01, 2025

Show notes

⁠Nuño Sempere⁠ is a founding member of the legendary forecasting group ‘Samotsvety’. His track record puts him at the top of the world’s most accurate predictors of the future. I sat down with him last month to discuss forecasting, global risk, and his new non-profit ‘⁠Sentinel⁠’, a free early-warning system for large-scale catastrophes like pandemics, wars, and financial turmoil.

Read the full transcript and more at ⁠alethios.substack.com

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