The Intelligence from The Economist

Latest Episodes:

Who wants to be a millennial? Generation comeback Oct 15, 2026

Show notes

Their struggles to get jobs or buy homes once propelled political movements. Now many millennials are out-earning their parents and in positions of power. Our correspondent explains the transformation. Sophisticated tech tools are being used to sway voters in Israel. And why you should hold your tongue to high standards.

Guests and host:

Callum Williams, senior economics writer
Anshel Pfeffer, Israel correspondent
Bella King, digital news editor
Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered:

Millennials, home ownership, unemployment
Israel, election, Netanyahu
Tongue-scrapers, dental hygiene

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Kicking Kyiv: Trump’s doubtful deals Oct 14, 2026

Show notes

Donald Trump claims to have brokered a deal to import Russian diesel and an energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. As attacks on Kyiv continue, our deputy editor says Trump is risking Ukraine’s future for a mid-term bounce. India’s government is failing to quell Gen Z protests. And how song binds us together and brings joy.

Guests and host:

Edward Carr, deputy editor of The Economist
Kira Huju, Asia correspondent
Joel Budd, Britain social affairs editor
Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered:

Ukraine, diesel, energy ceasefire, Starlink
Cockroach party, Modi, Abhijeet Dipke
Singing, Sacha Langton-Gilks, choir

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Unrest in peace: misery in Gaza Oct 13, 2026

Show notes

A year ago Donald Trump created the Board of Peace to rebuild Gaza. Yet for many Palestinians, life is even harder, as the ceasefire is repeatedly violated, crime is rising and poverty rife. Why record labels are in a spin over AI music. And Japan is struggling to benefit from the global matcha boom.

Guests and host:

Nicolas Pelham, Middle East correspondent
Henry Tricks, US technology and media editor
Moeka Iida, East Asia reporter
Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”
Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered:

Gaza, Board of Peace, Hamas
AI music, slop, Warner Music Group
Matcha, Japan, Kagoshima

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Saudi under siege: Houthis attack airport Oct 12, 2026

Show notes

This weekend, Yemeni rebels struck Saudi Arabia’s international airport in the deadliest attack on a Gulf Arab country since the Iran war began in February. Our correspondent reports from Riyadh. How European manufacturers are adjusting to high energy prices and war. And the revival of writing by hand.

Guests and host:

Gregg Carlstrom, Middle East correspondent
Guy Scriven, global business writer
Caitlin Talbot, culture correspondent
Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered:

Saudi Arabia, Houthis, Yemen, Riyadh airport
European carmakers, energy prices, tariffs
Cursive, handwriting

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Saving your bacon: healthy-eating policy evolves Oct 09, 2026

Show notes

Decades of messaging have not worked, so governments are trying new ways to get citizens to eat well, from scary labelling to taxing the junkiest foods. Will it work? The death of a plague researcher in Russia is made more mysterious by the government’s resolute lack of transparency. And a tribute to Cyril Hilsum, the inventor behind ubiquitous flat-screen displays.

Watch extended clips from Insider here.

Guests and host:

Slavea Chankova, health-care correspondent
Alex Turner, defence editor
Ann Wroe, obituaries editor
Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered:

diet, public health, health policy
Russia, plague, bioweapons
Cyril Hilsum, liquid crystals, flat-screen displays

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Valley of the shadow of debt: bond-market jitters Oct 08, 2026

Show notes

Bond yields across the rich world keep ticking up. We take a global look at where the risks are mounting most, and just how much worry is warranted. What might have once seemed fanciful is becoming real: delivering daylight to dark parts of the world using mirrors in space. And the fatal earnestness of “The Social Reckoning”.

Guests and host:

Alex Domash, economics correspondent
Tim Cross, senior science writer
Tom Wainwright, culture correspondent
Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”
Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered:

bond yields, monetary policy, animal spirits
satellite technology, darkness and light
“The Social Reckoning”, Aaron Sorkin

Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to The Economist.

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Gilets jeunes? France’s school protests Oct 07, 2026

Show notes

What started as a small protest about conditions of a school and of schooling has mushroomed, and tapped into national anxieties that may prove hard to tame. In the context of the “Cornell 7” case we examine Title IX, the statute that should protect students—but that is failing. And how peddling superstitions to financiers is big business in India.

Guests and host:

Sophie Pedder, Paris bureau chief
Stevie Hertz, US policy correspondent
Abhishek Kumar, India writer
Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered:

France protests, French politics
Cornell 7, Title IX, sexual assault
India, finance, astrology, superstition

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House call: Spain’s snap election Oct 06, 2026

Show notes

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is gambling that anger about housing might solidify his mandate in a snap poll. Most probably it will instead add to the rightward shift in European politics. America’s beef prices have never been higher, so why is it that the meatpackers have it so tough? And the battery technology to improve medical diagnostics you can swallow.

Listen to our episode of “Babbage” on edible electronics here.

Guests and host:

Michael Reid, Spain correspondent and writer at large
Bella King, news editor
David Adam, science writer
Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”
Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered:

Spanish politics, housing crisis, Pedro Sánchez
America’s meat industry, meatpackers
medical diagnostics, edible electronics, battery technology

Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to The Economist.

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Here comes the son? Brazil’s election tips rightward Oct 05, 2026

Show notes

Flávio Bolsonaro, populist-right son of the imprisoned coup architect Jair, received the most votes in the presidential first round. We ask why Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the incumbent, fell behind—and what is at stake when they go head-to-head. We examine Americans’ growing anger at automatic number-plate-reading cameras. And the demanding but lucrative business of nannying the children of the super-rich.

Guests and host:

Ana Lankes, Brazil bureau chief
Hollie Berman, news editor
Alice Fulwood, US business editor
Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”
Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered:

Brazilian election, Lula, Bolsonaro, populist-right politics
Flock cameras, American law enforcement, privacy, surveillance
childcare, plutocrats

Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to The Economist.

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Coffer stop: AI may shrink tax base Oct 02, 2026

Show notes

If Artificial Intelligence results in job losses or lower salaries, government revenues will fall. Our correspondent explains how best to tax the windfalls from AI. Paint is a surprisingly cheap way to cool buildings. And remembering the life of Stanislas Hutin, who revealed France’s barbarity in Algeria.

Watch extended clips from Insider here

Guests and host: