"Upstream" with Erik Torenberg

Latest Episodes:

E100: Marc Andreessen: How 2016 Broke My Mental Model of the World Dec 03, 2024

Show notes

Following Marc’s great discussion with Joe Rogan, we wanted to share our interview with Marc Andreessen, who recounts his intellectual evolution and his quest to discover how the world works from 2016 onwards. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/09f4b7dc-5fa8-4e0e-a2aa-87344c3db84b

—

🙏 Help shape our show by taking our quick listener survey at https://bit.ly/TurpentinePulse

—

SPONSORS:

🕵️‍♂️Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code UPSTREAM at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/upstream

💥 Head to Squad to access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com/ and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist.

—

X / Twitter:

@pmarca

@eriktorenberg

@turpentinemedia

—

TIMESTAMPS:

(00:00) Intro

(00:44) Mark's mental model shaken in 2015

(01:55) Historical context and media influence

(03:05) Trump's impact and political shifts

(04:05) Mark's reading journey to understand politics

(05:20) Intellectuals vs. mass movements

(06:28) The role of ideas in political change

(07:41) Hoffer's theory on mass movements

(10:07) Understanding left and right ideologies

(10:35) Historical evolution of political ideologies

(12:51) Sponsors: Incogni | Squad

(15:46) Good intentions and unintended consequences

(18:06) Nietzsche's master and slave morality

(21:16) Balancing merit and fairness in society

(28:37) Historical cycles and economic explanations

(32:52) The pendulum of societal change

(34:13) Introduction to Burnham's theories

(35:03) The managerial revolution

(39:19) The principal-agent problem

(47:29) Elon Musk and bourgeois capitalism

(55:10) The Machiavellians and political power

(58:56) Aristocratic and oligarchic rule

(59:55) The rise of tech founders

(01:00:14) Joining the elite circle

(01:01:28) The social and political network

(01:02:44) Circulation of elites

(01:06:51) Effective altruism and philanthropy

(01:13:39) Meritocracy and elite education

(01:25:31) Global governance and nationalism

(01:27:39) The process of finding answers

(01:28:30) The moral imperative of imposing answers

(01:28:56) Communism and the intellectual foundation

(01:29:30) The oligarchic elite and COVID-19

(01:30:34) The virtues of nationalism

(01:35:54) The iron law of oligarchy

(01:39:45) The need for a superior elite

(01:41:58) The role of competence and unifying ideas

(01:49:57) The internet and the current elite

(01:50:50) The bill comes due

(01:52:40) Wrap

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

E99: This Era’s Inflection Points with Byrne Hobart | DOGE, Elon, OpenAI Nov 30, 2024

Show notes

This week on Upstream, Byrne Hobart discusses the potential impacts of the Department of Government Efficiency, insights from leaked OpenAI emails, Trump's and Elon Musk's policies and their economic implications, and the future of prediction markets in organizational decision-making. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/279fae71-9087-46b7-a2e6-b6e17d8fdf6b

—

📰Be notified early when Turpentine's drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess

🙏Help shape our show by taking our quick listener survey at https://bit.ly/TurpentinePulse

—

SPONSORS:

🕵️‍♂️Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code UPSTREAM at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/upstream

💥 Head to Squad to access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com/ and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist.

—

LINKS:

Byrne’s writing: https://thediff.co

—

X / TWITTER:

@byrnehobart

@eriktorenberg

@turpentinemedia

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

E98: Solving America’s Problems with Joe Lonsdale Nov 28, 2024

Show notes

This week on Upstream, we’re releasing a conversation between Erik Torenberg and Joe Lonsdale, co-founder of Palantir and founder of the Cicero Institute, discusses his solutions for American healthcare, education, crime, homelessness, and inequality, emphasizing the need for accountability and nonpartisan approaches. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/f6eb1f43-6fe9-43cc-a95f-168655056447

—

📰Be notified early when Turpentine's drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess

🙏Help shape our show by taking our quick listener survey at https://bit.ly/TurpentinePulse

—

SPONSORS:

🕵️‍♂️Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code UPSTREAM at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/upstream

💥 Head to Squad to access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com/ and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist.

—

LINKS:

Cicero Institute: https://ciceroinstitute.org/

8VC: https://www.8vc.com/

Palantir: https://www.palantir.com/

Joe Lonsdale's blog: https://blog.joelonsdale.com

—

X / TWITTER:

@JTLonsdale

@eriktorenberg

@turpentinemedia

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

E97: Combining Biology and AI w/ Michael Levin and Dr. Leo Pio Lopez Nov 23, 2024

Show notes

This week we’re releasing an episode from the Cognitive Revolution, Nathan Labenz interviews Professor Michael Levin and Dr. Leo Pio Lopez about their groundbreaking research integrating multiple biological datasets using advanced AI techniques to predict new disease links, and discusses broader implications for AI in biology and future technologies. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/47dd68fb-1bea-43c0-809e-6a1a32c9cb48

—

📰Be notified early when Turpentine's drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess

🙏Help shape our show by taking our quick listener survey at https://bit.ly/TurpentinePulse

—

RECOMMENDED PODCAST:

🎙️The Cognitive Revolution Podcast

The Cognitive Revolution is a podcast about AI where hosts Nathan Labenz and Erik Torenberg interview the builders on the edge of AI and explore the dramatic shift it will unlock over the next decades.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6yHyok3M3BjqzR0VB5MSyk?si=7357ec31ac424043

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-cognitive-revolution-ai-builders-researchers-and/id1669813431

🎙️Unpack Pricing

Dive into the dark arts of SaaS pricing with Metronome CEO Scott Woody and tech leaders. Learn how strategic pricing drives explosive revenue growth in today's biggest companies like Snowflake, Cockroach Labs, Dropbox and more.

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1765716600

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/38DK3W1Fq1xxQalhDSueFg

—

SPONSORS:

🕵️‍♂️Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code UPSTREAM at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/upstream

🎙️Dealcraft | Insights from Great Negotiators https://link.chtbl.com/3CG3TbHY?sid=Turpentine is the brand new weekly podcast that features interviews with world’s greatest dealmakers and diplomats, including Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman, and music industry super-lawyer John Branca, on their most challenging negotiations. Each episode, host Jim Sebenius (Harvard Business School professor and renowned negotiation expert) relates fascinating deal stories and distills useful insights for listeners to apply in their toughest deals and disputes.

📝Notion offers powerful workflow and automation templates, perfect for streamlining processes and laying the groundwork for AI-driven automation. With Notion AI, you can search across thousands of documents from various platforms, generating highly relevant analysis and content tailored just for you - try it for free at notion.com/upstreampod

💥 Head to Squad to access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com/ and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist.

—

LINKS:

Prof. Levin's first appearance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LYyGG9xXpPA&t=0s

Universal Multilayer Network Embedding Reveals a Causal Link Between GABA Neurotransmitter and Cancer: https://osf.io/preprints/osf/d78wb

Collective intelligence: A unifying concept for integrating biology across scales and substrates: https://www.nature.com/articles/s42003-024-06037-4.pdf

—

X / TWITTER:

@drmichaellevin

@LPiolopez

@eriktorenberg

@turpentinemedia

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

E96: Rudyard Lynch and Samo Burja Talk The Left’s Future and Problems with Modernity Nov 21, 2024

Show notes

Today on Upstream, Rudyard Lynch and Samo Burja discuss the aftermath of the U.S. presidential election, the decline of French influence in Africa, the psychology of modernity, and the potential future of free versus controlled internet. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/d3195f8d-9dc3-4891-83d6-3354a83efbe9

—

📰Be notified early when Turpentine's drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess

—

RECOMMENDED PODCASTS:

🎙️Live Players

Samo Burja and Erik Torenberg provide analysis of the news and case studies of Live Players, as well as key institutions and technologies that make up the global power landscape.

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/live-players-with-samo-burja-and-erik-torenberg/id1718925188

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5fbMTkHBnom1JIBWYNVBK1?si=01ed191c74264f55

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@LivePlayerswithSamoBurja

🎙️History 102 with WhatifAltHist

Every week, creator of WhatifAltHist Rudyard Lynch and Erik Torenberg cover a major topic in history in depth -- in under an hour. This season will cover classical Greece, early America, the Vikings, medieval Islam, ancient China, the fall of the Roman Empire, and more.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/36Kqo3BMMUBGTDo1IEYihm

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/history-102-with-whatifalthists-rudyard-lynch-and/id1730633913

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@History102-qg5oj

🎙️Unpack Pricing

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1765716600

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/38DK3W1Fq1xxQalhDSueFg

—

SPONSORS:

🕵️‍♂️Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code UPSTREAM at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/upstream

💥 Head to Squad to access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com/ and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist.

—

LINKS:

Bismark Analysis: https://brief.bismarckanalysis.com/

Whatifalthist YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/Whatifalthist

—

X / TWITTER:

@eriktorenberg

@samoburja

@whatifalthist

@turpentinemedia

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

E95: Trump’s New Under Secretary of Defense for Research & Engineering on Growing Uber | Emil Michael on Growing Uber | Emil Michael Nov 16, 2024

Show notes

Emil Michael, formerly the Chief Business Officer of Uber, talked to Erik Torenberg and Jesse Genet about the most intense moments during Uber's meteoric rise. Its been reported that he's on the short list of Trump's picks for US Secretary of Transportation. For full shownotes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/f213f7ab-3627-4d15-b151-0238f9ebd159

—

📰Be notified early when Turpentine's drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess

—

RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Unpack Pricing

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1765716600

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/38DK3W1Fq1xxQalhDSueFg

—

SPONSORS:

💥 Head to Squad to access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com/ and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist.

—

X / TWITTER:

@jessegenet (Jesse)

@eriktorenberg (Erik)

@emilmichael (Emil)

@turpentinemedia

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

E94: Best of: AGI | Dario Amodei / Balaji Srinivasan / Marc Andreessen / Samo Burja / Michael Levin Nov 14, 2024

Show notes

This week, we’re featuring discussions with Dario Amodei, Balaji Srinivasan, Marc Andreessen, Michael Levin, and Samo Burja on AGI scaling laws, AI safety, and AI development, exploring themes such as the evolution of AI, economic implications, and philosophical aspects of intelligence. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/9192a95f-b467-47c1-9de0-827cae992d6b

—

📰Be notified early when Turpentine's drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess

—

RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Unpack Pricing

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1765716600

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/38DK3W1Fq1xxQalhDSueFg

—

SPONSORS:

💥 Head to Squad to access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com/ and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

E93: How Trump and Elon Could Rebuild the US Government Nov 09, 2024

Show notes

In this episode of Upstream, Samo Burja and Erik Torenberg discuss how Trump's victory signals a new alliance between right-wing politics and tech industry leaders like Elon Musk while exploring the challenges and opportunities of reforming government institutions through technological innovation. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/e4d3405e-6c8a-42ce-93f1-72caf85da775

—

📰Be notified early when Turpentine's drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess

—

RECOMMENDED PODCAST:

🎙️ Unpack Pricing - Dive into the dark arts of SaaS pricing with Metronome CEO Scott Woody and tech leaders. Learn how strategic pricing drives explosive revenue growth in today's biggest companies like Snowflake, Cockroach Labs, Dropbox and more.

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id1765716600

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/38DK3W1Fq1xxQalhDSueFg

—

SPONSORS:

💥 Head to Squad to access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com/ and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist.

—

LINKS:

Bismark Analysis: https://brief.bismarckanalysis.com/

—

X / TWITTER:

@samoburja

@eriktorenberg

@turpentinemedia

—

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

E92: Curtis Yarvin’s Pre-Election Advice to Elon Musk Nov 07, 2024

Show notes

In this episode, Erik and Yarvin discuss media, power, and what Elon should do with Twitter. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/b9c0012c-979b-441e-9fb3-6394bef6a7ad

—

📰Be notified early when Turpentine's drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess

—

RECOMMENDED PODCAST:

🎙️Moment of Zen

Every week, Erik Torenberg, Dan Romero, Antonio Garcia Martinez and frequent special guests discuss what's happening in technology, business, politics, and beyond.

Subscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/15KYOzvDzAQvqX0z0SpHEJ

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/moment-of-zen/id1661672738

—

SPONSORS:

💥 Head to Squad to access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com/ and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist.

—

LINKS:

Curtis Yarvin's Writing: https://graymirror.substack.com/

—

X / TWITTER:

@eriktorenberg (Erik)

@curtis_yarvin (Curtis)

@TurpentineMedia

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

E91: Why We Do Philosophy w/ Agnes Callard Nov 02, 2024

Show notes

In this episode, Erik sits down with Agnes Callard, a philosopher and essayist who specializes in ancient philosophy, ethics, and Socratic communication. For full show notes, visit: https://highlightai.com/share/cee0a35b-4a10-4c3a-a988-7d9b3d7b7db4

—

📰 Be notified early when Turpentine's drops new publication: https://www.turpentine.co/exclusiveaccess

—

SPONSORS:

🎙️Dealcraft | Insights from Great Negotiators

Explore the art of high-stakes negotiations through fascinating stories and practical insights from world-renowned dealmakers and diplomats in Dealcraft: Insights from Great Negotiators, hosted by Harvard Business School professor Jim Sebenius.

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1NdYGg0SgCwgBNMk7EHnB6

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dealcraft-insights-from-great-negotiators/id1723095052

📝 Notion offers powerful workflow and automation templates, perfect for streamlining processes and laying the groundwork for AI-driven automation. With Notion AI, you can search across thousands of documents from various platforms, generating highly relevant analysis and content tailored just for you - try it for free at notion.com/upstreampod

🛍️ Shopify is the world's leading e-commerce platform, offering a market-leading checkout system Shoppay and exclusive AI apps. Nobody does selling better than Shopify. Get a $1 per month trial at https://shopify.com/cognitive

💥 Head to Squad to access global engineering without the headache and at a fraction of the cost: head to https://choosesquad.com/ and mention “Turpentine” to skip the waitlist.

—

X / TWITTER:

@eriktorenberg

@AgnesCallard

@turpentinemedia

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.