The first episode of Slate’s new podcast, The Secret History of the Future, delves into artificial intelligence by first telling the story of the original Mechanical Turk. A 17th century Parisian machine that could play and beat most humans in chess.
No one could figure out how it worked. But that’s because it was driven by a hidden person.
Modern day AI isn’t much different. Turns out.
This’ll be a good one to subscribe to.
In one of my first classes this semester, I was asked by a student if there were any podcasts that I’d recommend. He was probably hoping for access to a super secret world of strategy podcasts that only real strategists know about.
I didn’t name any names. Most marketing/business podcasts feel like listening to people (who are cosplaying as business gurus) network with each other.
Just awful. And probably the result of setting out to make “content.”
Remember that content is a synonym for “filler.”
Most podcasts that I listen to these days fall into one of three genres:
All of them tend to be under-produced. Unscripted. Conversations that explore topics and evolve naturally.
If it sounds like it’s trying too hard to seem professional, it’s out.
If it sounds like a morning zoo, it’s out.
If it involves Joe Rogan, it’s out.
The Good Stuff:
1. Interesting conversations.
2. Interesting people.
3. Occasionally something that applies to my life or job.
That’ll be different for everyone.
But 99% Invisible is pretty good.
