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June 2023

Episode #446: On Why AI Will Save the World by Marc Andreessen

In this episode Ron and Ed dissected a recent blog post by Marc Andreessen entitled "Why AI Will Save the World." It is a deep and thoughtful piece by someone who has done some very deep thinking. We discussed the items upon which agree and those with which we quibble. The post can be found here.

Use these show notes to follow along with the audio.

Segment one:

Segment two:

Segment three:

Segment four:

Bonus Content is Available As Well

Did you know that each week after our live show, Ron and Ed take to the microphone for a bonus show? Typically, this bonus show is an extension of the live show topic (sometimes even with the same guest) and a few other pieces of news, current events, or things that have caught our attention.

Click the “FANATIC” image to learn more about pricing and member benefits. 

Episode #445: Second interview with Peter Block

Ron and Ed welcomed back the Godfather of modern consulting, Peter Block, for his second appearance. This episode is dedicated to the possibility that human beings are better served when we confront our freedom (the title of Peter's new book). Doing so, is difficult, challenging, and not for everyone. If you want to begin the process of confronting your own freedom, you are invited to participate in this episode. Safe return doubtful!

About Peter Block

Peter Block is an author and citizen of Cincinnati, Ohio. He is a partner in Designed Learning, a training company that offers workshops designed to build the skills outlined in his books. His books include Flawless Consulting, Stewardship, The Answer to How Is Yes, Community, The Abundant Community, and An Other Kingdom. Peter is a founder of the Common Good Collective, is part of the Common Good Alliance of Greater Cincinnati, and was a member of his local neighborhood council. Peter’s work is in the restoration of the common good and creating a world that reclaims our humanity from the onslaught of modernism.

To find out more, see: www.peterblock.com

Designed Learning, Inc. (www.designedlearning.com) offers training and consulting in Flawless Consulting and Community: The Structure of Belonging or Leader as Convener.

Use these show notes to follow along with the audio.

Segment one:

  • Peter Block mentions in his new book, “The cost of freedom is anxiety. This is not a great value proposition.” The traditional professional contract effectively says, “You work for us and we will keep you safe. We will take care of you.” https://www.amazon.com/Confronting-Our-Freedom-Accountability-Belonging/dp/139415609X

  • “The annual performance appraisal is control masquerading with an incentive to make things better.” —Peter Block

  • Why do leaders think accountability is reluctantly chosen? “It shows that evidence is not persuasive.” —Peter Block

  • Question to an employer: “What do you do?” Employer: “I grow people.” Peter Block: “Really? So you’re a gardener and I’m a weed?”

  • “The wish for safety [in an organization] is an illusion. Why not choose an illusion that better serves you.” —Peter Block

  • “When you’re sitting in a dentist chair how long is a minute? Too long. When you’re in love how long is a week? Too short.” —Peter Block

Segment two:

  • “Philosophy offers the possibility of providing new ways to explore old ground.” —Peter Block. This is not the language of the engineer or economist. It places meaning first.

  • Anxiety is the price you pay for your freedom. Peter Block takes this great quote further in his most recent book. More here https://www.amazon.com/Confronting-Our-Freedom-Accountability-Belonging/dp/139415609X 

  • “Businesses — organizations — are human systems. Even if it’s 98% AI. Artificial Intelligence is interesting but it doesn’t mean it solves anything fundamental.” —Peter Block

  • We shouldn’t avoid these topics. In business you should ask, “What doubts do you have about what you are doing? What anxiety do you have?” —Peter Block

  • “Depression is looking backwards. Anxiety is looking forward.” —Peter Block

Segment three:

  • On entrepreneurship being risk, “One of the gifts of the scientific method is that it teaches us that failure is as valuable as success.” —Peter Block

  • As a leader, “You don’t demand predictability. There is nothing more frightening than predictability.” —Peter Block

  • “If I can’t say no, my ‘yes’ doesn’t mean anything.” —Peter Block

  • On gifts and finding purpose in an organization, “You shouldn’t have to retire to find out what you meant to this place.” —Peter Block

  • “If ever there was a moment when the imposter syndrome came true, it’s in the publishing of a book.” —Peter Block (and his NEW BOOK in the link) https://www.amazon.com/Confronting-Our-Freedom-Accountability-Belonging/dp/139415609X

Segment four:

  • On Peter’s general philosophy on solving problems “I don’t want to argue against problem solving. I just don’t want it to define who I am.”

  • “The enemy of aliveness is likemindedness.” —Peter Block 

  • On the obscenity of corporate culture, Peter Block says (with enthusiasm), “To leave a meeting without a list! My God. You can go to hell for leaving a meeting without a list.”

  • “As soon as you take something to scale, you force it to be the same no matter where it goes.” —Peter Block

  • A big THANK YOU to Peter Block for joining us today. Please check out Designed Learning at @dl_global and his new book https://www.amazon.com/Confronting-Our-Freedom-Accountability-Belonging/dp/139415609X

Bonus Content is Available As Well

Did you know that each week after our live show, Ron and Ed take to the microphone for a bonus show? Typically, this bonus show is an extension of the live show topic (sometimes even with the same guest) and a few other pieces of news, current events, or things that have caught our attention.

Click the “FANATIC” image to learn more about pricing and member benefits. 

Episode #444: The ESG Illusion

Another deep dive into the perils of ESG. This is based on Vivek Ramaswamy's latest book, Capitalist Punishment: How Wall Street Is Using Your Money to Create a Country You Didn't Vote For. Ed and Ron will provide the main points from this critical look at ESG. If you've wondered how FTX can achieve a higher score on its "G" (Governance) than did Exxon-Mobil, you won't want to miss this show.

Use these show notes to follow along with the audio.

Segment one:

  • Have you read Capitalist Punishment yet by Vivek Ramaswamy yet? One of the things Ron and Ed loved about the book is that Vivek backs it up with evidence and examples from multiple sources. https://www.amazon.com/Capitalist-Punishment-Street-Create-Country/dp/0063337754 

  • Greenwashing is fraudulent. The SEC has sued several investment firms for greenwashing. Green SMUGGLING occurs when a non-ESG fund smuggles ESG policies into their investment practices.

  • The levels of complexity in the book Capitalist Punishment make talking about the topic difficult. It’s not 2D or 3-dimensional but rather a series of tentacles that provide for an intense level of complexity. However, it is NOT conspiracy theory

  • “ESG is the traffic cop that writes tickets to enforce stakeholder capitalism” —Vivek Ramaswamy https://www.amazon.com/Capitalist-Punishment-Street-Create-Country/dp/0063337754 

  • Both CSR and SRI make no pretenses about maximizing returns but ESG does. ESG claims a higher level of return while solving all of the world’s injustices.

Segment two:

Segment three:

  • We are going to be live at Scaling New Heights in two weeks. If you will be there, check us out on the main stage! #SNH23

  • In China, the E stands for “E”nergy supply, S is all about the “S”uggestion, and G is the most fun. In the US, good “G”overnance means not being owned by a single, autocratic dictator. (Are we banned in China yet?)

  • Regarding ESG, “This is politics. It belongs in the political realm. It doesn’t belong in the C-suite. Nobody elected Larry Fink.” —Ron Baker

  • What we commonly hear is, “When the accountants get ahold of ESG they will be able to put standards in place.” Ron and Ed would like to know, “Based on what?” It’s a genuine question to the community.

  • Sam Bankman-Fried was able to get FTX a higher ESG score than Exxon-Mobil. 

Segment four:

  • Great background on ESG from the show today. What can you do? Start asking questions of your money managers and investment funds.

  • Based on the book Capitalist Punishment by Vivek Ramaswamy, funds are pouring out of ESG. The trend is shifting based on investment activity. https://www.amazon.com/Capitalist-Punishment-Street-Create-Country/dp/0063337754 

  • “At least with David Copperfield making the Statue of Liberty disappear, he is entertaining me. [The ESG Illusion] is not entertaining me.” —Ron Baker

Bonus Content is Available As Well

Did you know that each week after our live show, Ron and Ed take to the microphone for a bonus show? Typically, this bonus show is an extension of the live show topic (sometimes even with the same guest) and a few other pieces of news, current events, or things that have caught our attention.

Click the “FANATIC” image to learn more about pricing and member benefits. 

Episode #443: Interview with Robin Hanson

Joining Ed and Ron this week is Robin D. Hanson of associate professor of economics at George Mason University. Robin is the author of two fascinating books, The Age of Em and The Elephant in the Brain. He has worked with the Foresight Institute and DARPA, but perhaps his colleague at George Mason Bryan Caplan put it best: "When the typical economist tells me about his latest research, my standard reaction is 'Eh, maybe.' Then I forget about it. When Robin Hanson tells me about his latest research, my standard reaction is 'No way! Impossible!' Then I think about it for years."

About Robin Hanson

Robin Dale Hanson is an associate professor of economics at George Mason University and a research associate at the Future of Humanity Institute of Oxford University. He is known for his work on idea futures and markets, and he was involved in the creation of the Foresight Institute's Foresight Exchange and DARPA's FutureMAP project. He invented market scoring rules like LMSR (Logarithmic Market Scoring Rule) used by prediction markets such as Consensus Point (where Hanson is Chief Scientist), and has conducted research on signaling.

Use these AI generated show notes to follow along with the audio.

  • Start of the show.
    Meet Robin.
    Welcome to the show, Robin.
    Easier with wires instead of hands.
    Andrew from voice america.

  • Interview begins.
    Interview with Robin D Hanson, associate professor of economics..
    Interview begins with a quick bio.
    Concerns about the emergence of LLM/AI.

  • Why we’re scared of ai.
    The visceral reaction to AI.
    Sensible regulation for AI vs AI.
    Creating a financial asset based on global assets.
    Robots taking over the world.

  • Selling insurance to buy insurance.
    Selling insurance to people who buy the second asset.
    College professor's thoughts on weird questions.
    How Robin generates his weird questions.
    How to get more information about Robin.

  • What is the difference between the elephant in the room and the brain?
    The old economics joke about the kid visiting his economics professor.
    The elephant in the brain.
    Part one, the elephant in the room vs the brain.
    Part two, the introspective taboo.

  • Why do people consume so much medicine?
    People in developed world consume way too much medicine.
    The booboo theory.
    The hidden motives of other people.
    Signaling the deeper logic of unique behaviors.

  • Looking good to people around you.
    Selfish reasons for wanting to look good to others.
    The case against education.
    The story of the New Zealand Maori villager.
    Laughter and having fun.

  • Why did you laugh?
    Laughing is a way of checking that humans are still playing.
    Laughter is a play signal.
    How to get more information about robin.
    A word from 90 minds.

  • Corporal punishment vs. jail.
    Jail is expensive and corporal punishment is cheaper.
    The Age of Em.

  • A way to make smart robots.
    The age of AI and brain emulation.
    The future is different from us.
    The two contrasting ideas in the book.
    The new world of emulated humans.

  • Has AI progress sped up?
    Has AI progress sped up in the last eight years.
    Retirement of AI.
    Why AI will save the world. Marc Andreessen.
    The soul of enterprise podcast.

  • Worried about the worst case scenarios.
    People are constructing worst-case scenarios.
    The first message, nothing is happening right now.
    Main issue for most people is the otherness of ai.
    The us vs them thing.

  • Big player insiders asking for regulation.
    Big player insiders asking for regulation.
    Poverty insurance and basic income guarantee.
    Unconditional money vs unconditional money.

Bonus Content is Available As Well

Did you know that each week after our live show, Ron and Ed take to the microphone for a bonus show? Typically, this bonus show is an extension of the live show topic (sometimes even with the same guest) and a few other pieces of news, current events, or things that have caught our attention.

Click the “FANATIC” image to learn more about pricing and member benefits. 

Episode #442: Life After Capitalism — George Gilder

Ed and Ron were excited for their interview with George Gilder, author of the brand new book, Life After Capitalism: The Meaning of Wealth, the Future of the Economy, and the Time Theory of Money, published May 30, 2023. This was George’s fourth appearance on The Soul of Enterprise. He is Ron’s 42-year mentor, since his publication of Wealth & Poverty in 1981, which changed Ron’s life forever after. His latest book is a groundbreaking new theory of economics that, at last, explains capitalism as a knowledge-based system, not one revolving around incentives, greed, or materialism. It is truly groundbreaking, and you will want to hear what George has to say about how it will change our way of understanding economics, wealth, growth, technology, our standard of living, and the future of human flourishing.

About George Gilder

GEORGE GILDER, one of America’s leading economic and technological thinkers, is the author of many groundbreaking books, including Wealth and Poverty, Knowledge and Power, The Scandal of Money, and Life after Google. A founding fellow of the Discovery Institute, where he began his study of information theory, and an influential venture capitalist. He lives with his wife on his family farm in western Massachusetts.

Use these show notes to follow along with the audio. George’s quotes are in bold and they are GREAT.

Segment one:

  • Fun fact: Our show, The Soul of Enterprise, is named based on George Gilder’s book, The Spirit of Enterprise. https://www.amazon.com/Spirit-Enterprise-George-Gilder/dp/0786100532 

  • George’s new book, Life After Capitalism, is really a new economic theory based on information theory. It overturns the conventional wisdom based on economics. https://www.amazon.com/Life-after-Capitalism-George-Gilder/dp/1684512247 

  • “Wealth is knowledge” is a key principal in George Gilder’s new book, Life After Capitalism. With every doubling of total units sold costs tend to drop between 20-30%. That’s a well documented learning curve across all industries.

  • “Entrepreneurship is the process of creating new information adding to the tapestry of knowledge that comprises all wealth.” —George Gilder

  • “Money is what remains scarce when everything else grows abundant” —George Gilder

Segment two:

  • “Wealth is knowledge and the only way we can distribute wealth is to teach people.” —George Gilder

  • For people who create (entrepreneurs), George Gilder says today not he show, “The more possibilities [based on creation] the larger the portfolio of ideas.”

  • George blew our mind today with a discussion on Gödel's incompleteness theorems: Any logical system is necessarily dependent on axioms outside of the system that can’t be proven within the system. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G%C3%B6del%27s_incompleteness_theorems

  • “There is no necessary connection between symbols and objects. You need to interpret them. Reality is triadic.” —George Gilder

Segment three:

  • George Gilder was really delighted to read the book “The Box” which tells the history of containerization of all of the ports and trade in the world. https://www.amazon.com/Box-Shipping-Container-Smaller-Economy/dp/0691136408

  • “The transmission of anything is essentially an information problem rather than a material problem.” —George Gilder

  • Packet shipping (physical goods) and packet switching (data) are effectively the same thing when George Gilder thinks about it. It’s the transfer of discrete, containerized items or data.

  • Graphene is a key element discovery that will drive future innovation. It’s effectively a single layer of carbon atoms that is 200x stronger than steel, as flexible as rubber, and 1000x more conductive as copper.  

Segment four:

  • Related to Graphene, George Gilder mentioned a company called Universal Matter. You can check them out here https://www.universalmatter.com/ 

  • “Money needs to be a measuring stick and not a magic wand.” —George Gilder

  • “Bitcoin is a speculative asset rather than a currency. With a HODL strategy (Hold On for Dear Life)” —George Gilder

  • The four pillars of George GIlder’s new book, Life After Capitalism, are: Wealth is knowledge, Growth is learning, Information is surprise, Money is time. Check it out here https://www.amazon.com/Life-after-Capitalism-George-Gilder/dp/1684512247 

Bonus Content is Available As Well

Did you know that each week after our live show, Ron and Ed take to the microphone for a bonus show? Typically, this bonus show is an extension of the live show topic (sometimes even with the same guest) and a few other pieces of news, current events, or things that have caught our attention.

Click the “FANATIC” image to learn more about pricing and member benefits.