The Wright Show (audio)

0:28 Sneak peek: Danny finds flaw in Bob’s AI book 1:42 Is the Iran war fully back on? 6:23 What the war means for the future of US power 19:16 The problem with blaming Bibi 23:33 The push to intertwine the US and Israeli militaries 35:33 What’s Israel’s endgame for the Palestinians? 39:51 The Gulf States’ new reality 45:44 Iran’s plans for the Strait of Hormuz 52:18 Bob’s pitch to Derek—and his other pitch to listenersRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True), Derek Davison (Foreign Exchanges, American Prestige, Discontents), and Daniel Bessner (American Prestige, University of Washington). Recorded July 09, 2026.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Leonid’s journalistic work, past and present 1:32 Are Russia and NATO headed for war? 14:23 Decoding Putin’s recent signals 21:29 Do European leaders really want the Ukraine war to end? 22:42 Putin’s political psychology 37:11 Why the war matters more to Russia than to the West 39:50 Russia’s non-ethno nationalism 43:11 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Leonid Ragozin (Rest of World, West of Providence, Lonely Planet). Recorded July 06, 2026.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Preview: Skynet comes for Bob 5:34 Trump‘s endearing AI obsession 7:15 Are books dying? Is AI responsible? 18:52 Skynet (aka Amazon) vs Bob’s book 28:09 The problem with blurbs 33:49 Why Gad Saad’s mad 44:00 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded July 1, 2026. Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPodsJoin NonZero’s Discord server: https://discord.gg/Zy4jAhTQMF

0:28 Grandpa Bob and author Bob 3:54 Why Bob stopped being an AI doom skeptic 7:23 Can AI solve China’s demographic crisis? 14:33 The irony of China’s open-source AI strategy 17:36 Recursive self-improvement and the singularity 23:57 The Burkean conservative case against AI 38:24 Are we becoming AI meat puppets? 46:56 Google Maps, AI, and the death of interhuman reliance 51:48 Was Pete Hegseth’s military strategy written by a chatbot? 57:09 Trump and Iran: Peace? Wider war? Other? 1:10:58 The Rubio-Vance rivalry 1:17:46 Is Rubio sabotaging Iran peace talks?Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True), Andrew Day (The American Conservative), Curt Mills (The American Conservative). Recorded June 29, 2026.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.nonzero.org/subscribe

(Description via Executive Functions Chat podcast)Jack chats with Robert Wright about his forthcoming book, The God Test: Artificial Intelligence and Our Coming Cosmic Reckoning. They discuss why Wright views AI through an evolutionary lens, the promises and perils of increasingly capable AI systems, and the prospects for international cooperation—particularly between the U.S. and China—in managing AI-related risks. They also examine Wright’s argument that successfully governing AI may require a modest moral upgrade across society, including individual efforts to preserve cognitive sovereignty and mitigate the biases and tribal instincts that can hinder global cooperation.Mentioned:* Robert Wright, The God Test: Artificial Intelligence and Our Coming Cosmic Reckoning (2026)* “When AI Builds Itself” (Anthropic, June 4, 2026)* “US National Security Agency using Anthropic’s Mythos for cyber attacks,” by Cristina Criddle and Demetri Sevastopulo (Financial Times, June 4, 2026)* “Promoting Advanced Artificial Intel

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Bob’s pub-day pitch for his new book on AI, The God Test 1:28 Is AI killing the nonfiction star? 5:56 Geoffrey Hinton’s path from AI evangelist to doomer 9:51 The future of books 19:12 Trump vs Anthropic 23:27 Are Ukrainian drone strikes rattling Putin? 32:31 The multiple Putins theory 35:28 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Nikita Petrov (https://psychopolitica.substack.com). Recorded June 23, 2026. Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods Join NonZero's Discord server: https://discord.gg/Zy4jAhTQMF

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Was “losing” this war good for America? 6:26 Israel’s post-war situation 9:59 A more stable Middle East? Or less? 18:07 The impact on Iran’s strength 21:43 Has the war empowered Russia and China? 24:39 How modern warfare devalues American military power 27:41 Josh: The Gulf-state power struggle is just beginning 40:48 Are the Palestinians back in the spotlight? 45:35 Where do Israel-US relations go from here? 48:29 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Joshua Landis (University of Oklahoma, SyriaComment.com). Recorded June 17, 2026.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 A brief message from Bob 1:39 Ryan’s tech policy bona fides 4:17 Is true “recursive self-improvement” near? 9:04 AI agents as strategic empathy machines 15:15 Is a global AI pause possible? 23:29 Mutually assured destruction vs mutually assured AI malfunction 35:14 The case against global AI governance 38:53 Mythos as seen from China 50:39 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Ryan Fedasiuk (The American Enterprise Institute). Recorded June 08, 2026.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org2:21 The Midas Project and the OpenAI files 11:57 What’s “Build American AI” up to? 20:38 Nathan Leamer, astroturfer and sock puppeteer 28:42 Greg Brockman, AI lobby bankroller 34:51 Astroturfing the China panic 39:29 Is OpenAI an innocent bystander? 48:09 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Tyler Johnston (The Midas Project). Recorded June 09, 2026.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Whose baby is cuter? 3:13 Bob’s new book on AI, The God Test 10:16 Varieties of AI awe 13:47 Geoffrey Hinton’s vision 18:14 How LLMs do more than predict and parrot 21:44 How powerful will AI get? 26:20 Can AI’s impact be predicted? 31:12 Taking doomerism seriously 3817 The AI governance dilemma 49:06 Heading to Overtime Robert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Paul Bloom (https://smallpotatoes.paulbloom.net, University of Toronto, The Sweet Spot, Against Empathy). Recorded June 3, 2026.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 How Tianyu became a “China explainer” 2:59 American vs Chinese exceptionalism 7:53 What you can and can’t say in China 18:16 Is the government more accountable in the US or China? 26:47 How China sees America 36:16 The one-child policy and its consequences 42:37 Tianyu: The biggest misconception about China is… 46:04 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Tianyu Fang (New America). Recorded June 02, 2026. Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPodsJoin NonZero's Discord server: https://discord.gg/Zy4jAhTQMF

(Description via Increments Podcast:) Did you ever see the video of two regular people trying to fight Eddie Hall, the strongest man on earth? Ben and Vaden bring that same energy to this conversation, where they gang up on Robert Wright on the subject of his forthcoming book The God Test: Artificial Intelligence and Our Coming Cosmic Reckoning. Bob is a sport about it (well, there was no choice really: we have an advanced copy of his book that we’re holding hostage) and there are only one or two black eyes by the end.Subscribe to Robert Wright’s podcasting empire NonZero on youtube and substack. And go buy one of his many books.We discuss* Whether Bob was the OG podcaster* Is there a directionality to evolution?* Where Bob is on the AI fear and awe spectrum* Whether LLMs have decoded the meaning in language* Is AI best viewed as a tool or as superintelligence?* AI-as-slingshot analogyReferences* The God Test by Robert Wright* Nonzero by Robert Wright* William Paley and his pocket watch* The Blind Watchmaker

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Is NonZero or American Prestige the better podcast? AI weighs in 4:38 The state of the US-Iran war. Or is it peace? 18:16 Has Trump already lost the midterms? Does he care? 24:40 The Russia-Ukraine war (and Eric Schmidt) 29:47 What the latest Iran war strikes signal 31:28 Overtime preview: Nuland’s “monsters,” zombie blobsters, Barak Ravid, Bari Weiss, “killzones,” and the Pope vs AIRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True), Derek Davison (Foreign Exchanges, American Prestige, Discontents), and Daniel Bessner (American Prestige, University of Washington). Recorded May 28, 2026. Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 A Greek pilgrimage, a mystery guest, and a Discord revival 5:57 The first Papal encyclical devoted to AI 11:12 Pope Leo: just war theory is outdated, and AI lets humans dodge accountability 21:28 Anthropic tells the Pope about “mysterious, even unsettling” things inside AI 27:41 Inside the “Kill Zone”: How drones changed the Russia-Ukraine front 34:10 Who gets replaced first: the soldier or the commander? 38:47 Russia’s hypersonic missiles and nuclear signaling 48:25 Do drones favor the underdog? Plus a warning on Taiwan 50:44 The Iran ceasefire wobbles as Israel pushes back 52:23 Heading to Overtime: Greek mystery cults, Teilhard de Chardin, and Blade Runner 57:59 Enter the Mystery Guest: Jeremy Eliosoff, Pause AI CanadaRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Nikita Petrov (https://psychopolitica.substack.com). Recorded May 26, 2026.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:52 Bruce’s new book on ritual, A Time to Gather 2:48 The “Lifequake” that led Bruce to study ritual 7:46 The current “shadow ritual” renaissance 11:54 What is a ritual? 15:02 The origins of the shadow ritual renaissance 18:01 Forest bathing and the essence of ritual 25:47 Ritual as the original human algorithm 31:15 Honor walks: a quintessentially modern ritual 35:59 Rituals across Christianity 41:43 What rituals do 46:23 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Bruce Feiler (Council of Dads, Walking the Bible, A Time to Gather). Recorded April 21, 2026.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPodsJoin NonZero's Discord server: https://discord.gg/Zy4jAhTQMF

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Hamidreza’s background 8:33 A brief history of US-Iran relations 15:01 Understanding Iranian antipathy toward Israel 21:00 Islam vs Islamism 30:07 The Iran-Iraq security dilemma 35:56 The Iran-Israel security dilemma 44:39 Palestinian objectives and patrons 47:38 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Hamidreza Azizi (The Axis of Resistance, German Institute for International and Security Affairs). Recorded May 14, 2026. Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Zhengyu’s tech background and new book, Rethinking China 2:56 What kind of threat is China, really? 10:02 How trading with China transformed America 16:47 The stakes of the chip war 21:58 Will tech war lead to real war? 30:29 The US-China escalation spiral and Taiwan 39:09 “Researching while Chinese”: the new Red Scare? 49:42 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Zhengyu Huang (Rethinking China). Recorded May 13, 2026.Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Is AI a normal technology? 6:00 Mythos and the METR curve 15:53 The current state of coding agents 20:10 The total turbulence problem 23:11 Does Mythos favor offense or defense? 29:19 Mythos and hype 31:59 Regulating dangerous AI 38:17 The centralization problem 40:22 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Timothy B. Lee (Full Stack Economics, Understanding AI, AI Summer). Recorded May 11, 2026. Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Annelle’s Middle East bona fides 2:18 The state of play in Iran 7:37 A deepening fissure between Gulf Arab states 21:28 Explaining the Trump-Biden continuity on Middle East policy 26:08 Will the Middle East realign away from America? 34:09 Turkey and the moral hazard of US aid to Israel 39:23 Can Iran mend ties with the Gulf states? 47:03 Heading to OvertimeRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Annelle Sheline (The Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft). Recorded May 07, 2026. Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.nonzero.org0:28 Bob’s big personal news 3:37 The US counter-blockade backfires 10:20 Iran retains escalation dominance 16:19 Why the Iranian regime is built to absorb assassinations 22:39 “Donald, it’s too late for that.” Bob says Trump has to take the L 25:27 Putin’s Victory Day ceasefire (with a threat) 28:25 Russia’s vibe shift: drone attacks, airport shutdowns, Internet blackouts 32:05 Instagram influencer rants at the Tsar 39:00 Siloviki vs. civilian elites 48:12 Heading to Overtime: The Matrix, AI, DMT, interdimensional crocodilesRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Nikita Petrov (https://psychopolitica.substack.com). Recorded May 05, 2026. Twitter: https://twitter.com/NonzeroPods