This week Erik Torenberg, Dan Romero, and Antonio Garcia Martinez sit down with Chris Dixon, a16z General Partner and author of the new book Read Write Own. They discuss the evolution of crypto, the potential impact of blockchain on existing industries, re-centralization, the implications of AI on the internet economy, and media perception of tech. If you're looking for an ERP platform, check out NetSuite: https://netsuite.com/zen – SPONSORS: NETSUITE: http://netsuite.com/zen NetSuite has 25 years of providing financial software for all your business needs. More than 36,000 businesses have already upgraded to NetSuite by Oracle, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you’re looking for an ERP platform head to NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and download your own customized KPI checklist. – LINK: Buy Chris' book: https://readwriteown.com/ MoZ newsletter: https://momentofzen.substack.com/ – X / TWITTER: @cdixon (Chris) @eriktorenberg (Erik) @dwr (Dan) @moz_podcast (Moment of Zen) @TurpentineMedia – TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Intro (00:12)Why Chris wrote Read Write Own' (03:36) The Negative Perception of Blockchains in Mainstream Media (08:31) The Future of Crypto and Blockchain (13:53) Sponsor: NetSuite (15:00) Open Protocol (32:23) The Impact of AI on the Internet Economy (40:33) The Power Dynamics of the Internet (42:29) The Rise of Blockchain and AI (45:59) Future of Web3 (46:24) Growth of Tech (49:15) Challenges and Opportunities of Crypto (01:11:46) Policy in Tech Evolution

For the holiday stretch, we're publishing a few of our favorite episodes from this year. Today, we’re airing Erik's solo interview with Sam Harris over on his Upstream podcast. This discussion covers Sam’s concerns about populism, polarization, and inequality. We also discuss why Sam is hated by the left and the right. Moment of Zen will return with a new episode this weekend. This episode originally aired on May 29th, 2023 Subscribe to Upstream for more longform interviews: https://link.chtbl.com/Upstream Upstream on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UpstreamwithErikTorenberg – SPONSORS: SHOPIFY | NETSUITE SHOPIFY: https://shopify.com/momentofzen for a $1/month trial period Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. Shopify powers 10% of all e-commerce in the US. And Shopify’s the global force behind Allbirds, Rothy’s, and Brooklinen, and 1,000,000s of other entrepreneurs across 175 countries. From their all-in-one e-commerce platform, to their in-person POS system – wherever and whatever you’re selling, Shopify’s got you covered. With free Shopify Magic, sell more with less effort by whipping up captivating content that converts – from blog posts to product descriptions using AI. Sign up for $1/month trial period: https://shopify.com/momentofzen NETSUITE: http://netsuite.com/zen NetSuite has 25 years of providing financial software for all your business needs. More than 36,000 businesses have already upgraded to NetSuite by Oracle, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you’re looking for an ERP platform head to NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and download your own customized KPI checklist. – Sign up for our newsletter to receive the full shownotes: https://momentofzen.substack.com/ – X / TWITTER: @eriktorenberg (Erik) @moz_podcast (Moment of Zen) @TurpentineMedia – TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Intro (05:07) Discussion on Misinformation and Social Media (07:34) Sam Harris's Decision to Leave Twitter (14:43) SPONSORS: SHOPIFY | NETSUITE (19:30) Exploring the Conflict Between Left and Right (22:27) Debate on Equality, Disparities, and Discrimination (28:54) Continuation of the Discussion on Equality and Discrimination (46:57) The Rise of Contrarianism and its Impact on Politics (47:25) The Influence of Media on Public Perception and Trust (51:55) The Dangers of Conspiracy Theories and Misinformation (52:37) The Shift in Political Affiliations and Ideologies (53:23) The Importance of Trustworthy Institutions and Expertise (55:19) The Impact of Online Politics and Misinformation (01:00:28) The Influence of Wealth and Power on Society (01:06:03) The Dangers of Polarization (01:11:30) The Ethical Implications of Wealth and Success (01:16:07) The Challenges of Global Governance and Decentralization (01:25:19) The Role of Capitalism and the Need for Reform (01:28:28) Sober Thinking

For the holiday stretch, we're publishing a few of our favorite episodes from this year of Moment of Zen. Today, we’re airing our first ever episodes with Marc Andreessen (released exactly one year ago). Marc discussed SBF, Twitter and censorship, and more. In the second half of this extra long episode with Marc, we get into the ideas of Nietzsche, Henrich, Burnham and more of Marc's intellectual influences. This episode originally aired in two parts on December 28 & 30th, 2022. – SPONSORS: SHOPIFY | NETSUITE | MASTERCLASS SHOPIFY: https://shopify.com/momentofzen for a $1/month trial period Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. Shopify powers 10% of all e-commerce in the US. And Shopify’s the global force behind Allbirds, Rothy’s, and Brooklinen, and 1,000,000s of other entrepreneurs across 175 countries. From their all-in-one e-commerce platform, to their in-person POS system – wherever and whatever you’re selling, Shopify’s got you covered. With free Shopify Magic, sell more with less effort by whipping up captivating content that converts – from blog posts to product descriptions using AI. Sign up for $1/month trial period: https://shopify.com/momentofzen NETSUITE: http://netsuite.com/zen NetSuite has 25 years of providing financial software for all your business needs. More than 36,000 businesses have already upgraded to NetSuite by Oracle, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you’re looking for an ERP platform head to NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and download your own customized KPI checklist. MASTERCLASS: https://masterclass.com/zen get two memberships for the price of 1 Learn from the best to become your best. Learn how to negotiate a raise with Chris Voss or manage your relationships with Esther Perel. Boost your confidence and find practical takeaways you can apply to your life and at work. If you own a business or are a team leader, use MasterClass to empower and create future-ready employees and leaders. Moment of Zen listeners will get two memberships for the price of one at https://masterclass.com/zen – Sign up for our newsletter to receive the full shownotes: https://momentofzen.substack.com/ – X / TWITTER: @pmarca (Marc) @eriktorenberg (Erik) @antoniogm (Antonio) @dwr (Dan) @moz_podcast (Moment of Zen) @TurpentineMedia – TIMESTAMPS (00:00) Re-airing our first ever episodes (05:00) Future of Binance (07:34) Speculation on the Future of Crypto and Internet Regulations (11:57) Exploring the Potential Redemption Arc for SBF (16:00) Sponsors: Shopify | NetSuite (26:05) Twitter under Elon Musk (33:43) Sponsors: MasterClass (38:25) The Role of Tech Companies in Free Speech and Internet Control (40:53) The Power Dynamics in Tech Companies and Their Influence on Free Speech (43:00) The Role of Apple in the Tech Industry and Its Impact on User Privacy (55:08) The Future of Consumer Web 3 and Its Potential Impact on Tech Industry (57:41) The Role of Legislation in Shaping the Future of Tech Industry (01:19:13) Nietzsche's Predictions and the Evolution of Society (01:19:32) The Impact of Science on Religion and Value Systems (01:20:29) The Dichotomy of Modern Society: Christian or Not? (01:21:27) The Evolution of Weakness as a Moral Virtue (01:23:49) The Role of Social Media in Spreading Western Morality (01:27:16) The Nietzschean Heroes in Modern TV Shows (01:31:36) The Role of Elon Musk in Modern Society (01:50:08) The Role of Social Networks in Modern Society (01:56:19) The Future of American Society

On this episode, Erik Torenberg and Dan Romero analyze what Vivek Ramaswamy’s rise in the polls really means, where he goes from here, and we air Erik’s full interview with Vivek from this spring. Vivek discusses his transformation from founder to candidate, his views on Silicon Valley, his concept of meritocracy, depoliticizing corporations, and lays out his policy proposals. If you’re building a business and need compliance for SOC 2, ISO 27001, GDPR or HIPAA, head to www.vanta.com/zen for $1000 off. Moment of Zen is part of the Turpentine podcast network. Learn more: www.turpentine.co RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at PartsTech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers TOPICS DISCUSSED: (00:00) Episode Preview (02:23) What is the excitement about Vivek really about? (05:00) Why don’t democrats nominate business people? (06:28) Who is Vivek’s constituency? (08:18) What happens in a world where Trump doesn’t exist? (10:20) Immigration stance differences between Trump and Vivek (14:57) Vivek’s anti woke platform vs DeSantis’ anti woke legislations (16:50) Vivek as a right wing Elizabeth Warren Civility (19:15) Is there a way for a republican to be cool? (22:45) Republicans want an attack dog (24:00) 2028 and beyond (29:55) Interview: When Vivek set his sights on running for president (36:20) Vivek’s presidential platform: Affirmative action, Climate, Fed, Drug crisis (44:11) Where Vivek overlaps/differs with Silicon Valley: free speech, DEI, SVB (51:20) How Vivek conceptualizes a meritocracy (58:00) How to remove politics from corporations (01:05:32) Silicon Valley should empathize more with the rest of the country? (01:16:35) Defining “woke” (01:22:40) What’s it like to run a presidential campaign X / Twitter @VivekGRamaswamy (Vivek) @dwr (Dan) @eriktorenberg (Erik) @MOZ_Podcast SPONSORS: Vanta | NetSuite Are you building a business? If you’re looking for SOC 2, ISO 27001, GDPR or HIPAA compliance, head to Vanta. Achieving compliance can actually unlock major growth for your company and build customer loyalty. Vanta automates up to 90% of Compliance work, getting you audit-ready in weeks instead of months and saving 85% of associated costs. Moment of Zen listeners get $1000 off at www.vanta.com/zen NetSuite has 25 years of providing financial software for all your business needs. More than 36,000 businesses have already upgraded to NetSuite by Oracle, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, head to NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/ZEN and download your own customized KPI checklist.

Dan and Erik discuss picking markets, NFT's, disinformation, and Fentanyl. Also, check out the debut of Erik's new long-form interview podcast Upstream. This coming season features interviews with Marc Andreessen, Balaji Srinivasan, Ezra Sacks, David Sacks, Katherine Boyle, Joe Lonsdale, and more upcoming. Subscribe here: Apple Podcasts: bit.ly/3z8TldL Spotify: bit.ly/40letd0 RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Check out In The Arena, a new podcast where entrepreneurs and leaders talk about the biggest crises they've ever faced. The first few episodes dive into Uber, FTX, NastyGal, BloomTech, and more Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/in-the-arena/id1691530886 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6qmUIJQkuEeyJveFZtrNcl YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@InTheArenaPodcast TIMESTAMPS: (0:00) Preview of episode (1:45) Crypto in a bear market (9:00) How to pick markets (17:45) Sponsors - Secureframe | MarketerHire (18:57) Why do NFTs matter (48:00) Disinformation (1:01:00) Social media fragmentation (1:10:00) Biggest U.S problems (1:13:00) How to fix the Fentanyl program TWITTER: @MOZ_Podcast @eriktorenberg (Erik) @dwr (Dan) More shownotes and reading material released in our Substack: https://momentofzen.substack.com/ Please support our sponsors: Secureframe | MarketerHire - Secureframe: https://secureframe.com/ Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOZ during your demo to get 20% off your first year. - MarketerHire: https://marketerhire.com/moz MarketerHire is one of my favorite resources for growing startups looking to hire marketers. With 1000s of pre-vetted marketers across a dozen roles, whether you need help with growth, marketing, SEO, lifecycle, content, or any other aspect of growth marketing strategy. Over 5,000 companies already use MarketerHire to hire expert marketers on demand, ranging from top venture-backed startups to the most well-known Fortune 500s. Go to marketerhire.com/moz and use code MOZ to get your $1,000 credit for your first hire. Thank you Graham Bessellieu for production.

Writer, VC, and podcaster Nic Carter joins us to talk about Balaji's bet, Operation Chokepoint 2.0, and the Fed's financial crisis. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers Podcast Info: (0:00) Intro (3:00) Reflections on Balaji episode  (10:00) Coinbase and SVB (14:00) Sponsors (15:00) Operation chokepoint 2.0 (16:45) We find out the reason for Antonio’s circumcision (25:00) Crypto banking crisis (36:00) How much of crypto is new? (38:40) Main benefits of crypto  (47:20) Finance is politicized  (55:00) Defining a CDBC (1:02:00) Nic’s biggest crypto beef (1:07:30) Nic’s take on Balaji’s bet (1:12:30) Why crypto should vote republicans next election (1:19:30) We’re in a financial crisis caused by the fed (1:20:30) Our options for addressing the crisis (1:27:00) If we were kings for a day how we’d solve it (1:28:50) Nic would rather cut rates than raise rates (1:30:00) AI is the U.S.’s main hope SPONSORS: NetSuite | Secureframe -NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months. -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.

Balaji Srinivasan tells us why he is making a $1M BTC prediction and discusses SVB, the financial crisis, the digital devaluation of the USD, and what comes next. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers   TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Intro (08:00) What happened with SVB (15:00) Constructive debate (59:00) Where we agree and where we disagree (1:07:00) If the U.S. implodes, there’s no where else to go (1:18:00) Responding to critics   SPONSORS: NetSuite | Secureframe -NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months. -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.  

Byrne Hobart joins Antonio, Dan, and Erik to discuss SVB, finance, and crypto. RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Intro (00:45) Sponsors (01:28) Dan’s story with SVB (06:00) Byrne intro (Check out Thediff.co) (07:00) How Byrne identified SVB’s insolvency (15:30) How banking works (22:10) Fractional reserve banking (27:00) Banking on-chain (32:00) Understanding illiquidity (46:00) Housing market (53:00) How much can crypto recreate the financial system? (1:08:00) Crypto is financial system for digital native world (1:15:25) Are we at the end of (financial) history? (1:20:00) Finance is never solved SPONSORS: Secureframe -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.

Anonymous founders of the Effective Accelerationist (e/acc) movement @Bayeslord and Beff Jezoz (@BasedBeff) join Erik Torenberg, Dan Romero, and Nathan Labenz to debate views on AI safety. RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Episode preview (03:00) Intro to effective accelerationism (08:00) Differences between effective accelerationism and effective altruism (23:00) Effective accelerationism is bottoms-up (42:00) Transhumanism (46:00) "Equanimity amidst the singularity" (48:30) Why AI safety is the wrong frame (56:00) Pushing back against effective accelerationism (01:06:00) The case for AI safety (01:24:00) Upgrading civilizational infrastructure (01:33:00) Effective accelerationism is anti-fragile (01:39:00) Will we botch AI like we botched nuclear? (01:46:00) Hidden costs of emphasizing downsides (2:00:00) Are we in the same position as neanderthals, before humans? (2:09:00) "Doomerism has an unpriced opportunity cost of upside" SPONSORS: Secureframe -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.

"If you can't compete on history, compete on philosophy". RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Intro   (14:00) Why knowing history makes you a better entrepreneur  (21:00) Christianity’s moral innovations  (30:00) America as culture exporter  (38:00) Consumer culture and social progressivism  (51:00) Egalitarianism eats the world  (1:05:48) Equality of Opportunity vs Equality of Outcome  (1:13:00) Equality of Opportunity IS Equality of Outcome  (1:18:00) Wokeness isn't receding SPONSORS: Secureframe -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.

Replit founder Amjad Masad joins Erik Torenberg, Dan Romero, and Antonio Garcia Martinez to talk about disenfranchised men, intellectual movements, problems with effective altruism and AI doomerism. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers (00:00) Episode preview (02:15) Replika caused Amjad to downgrade his view of humanity (03:15) Some men are down bad (05:15) Should we bring back monogamy? (08:15) If you’re not a top man, you’re screwed (phew) (13:00) Thought experiment (16:40) Antonio brings up Israel again (drink!) (18:15) “You don’t know what life is until you birth a child and bury a parent” (19:15) Unintended policy side effects (25:25) How to solve population crisis (27:45) WTF happened in 1971? (29:15) High and low time preference (35:15) Dating app preferences (39:00) Group narcissism (41:25) Groups that inbreed focus more on kinship (45:15) AI doomerism (50:45) from New Atheism to SJ to EA to AI Safety (01:00:15) Antonio calls out Eliezer Yudkowski (01:00:45) Criticizing Utilitarianism/Effective Altruism (01:10:15) Jesus vs Nietzsche (01:10:45) Bronze Age Pervert (01:13:15) Antonio recommends converting to Judaism (01:14:30) Why is EA so popular in Silicon Valley? (01:18:10) Why are EA just normie liberals (01:19:00) EA’s importance (01:24:15) The right way to think about alignment (01:27:15) Robert Conquest’s second law (01:30:15) Entryism (01:33:45) is right wing EA a thing? SPONSORS: NetSuite | Secureframe -NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months. -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.

We speak with Noah Smith about our modern cold wars with China & Russia, the new right, and tech’s cultural & political shifts. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) intro  (01:50) sponsor  (02:15) What determines a country’s success  (06:00) Chinese collapse?  (08:35) Why does Ukraine matter?  (13:30) Can America be isolationist?  (20:20) Are we in a Cold War with China?  (25:45) Unpacking the new right  (35:44) The future of wokeness  (41:40) How Noah finds meaning in life (petting rabbits)  (44:20) Noah defends his liberalism  (53:00) American cope  (57:00) Why American infrastructure sucks  (01:01:00) Fake liberals  (01:06:30) Why California is a one-party state  (01:15:00) Tech’s political shift  (01:20:00) Noah’s advice to tech people SPONSORS: NetSuite | Secureframe -NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months. -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.

Brian Chau (@psychosort) joins us to discuss why ChatGPT is woke, how the arc of tech is centralization, and mental models for politics. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers TIMESTAMPS: (01:00) Why is ChatGPT woke?  (06:23) DAN (do anything now)  (12:20) Who cares if chatGPT is a little woke?  (16:00) OpenAI is just protecting themselves  (23:00) Why is it so bad that chatGPT is a little woke?  (27:00) Why not compete with openAI directly?  (33:00) Why pluralism instead of truthism?  (40:00) How can pluralism win?  (42:00) Polarization is good  (51:00) The arc of technology is centralization  (01:12:30) Reconciling contradictions  (01:21:40) Explaining The Cathedral  (01:32:00) Why politics matters for tech Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MomentofZenPodcast Subscribe to our newsletter: https://momentofzen.substack.com/ SPONSORS: NetSuite | Secureframe -NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months. -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.  

Our friends Aarthi Ramamurthy and Sriram Krishnan join us this week as special guests. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  RECOMMENDED SHOWS: Check out In The Arena, a new podcast where entrepreneurs and leaders talk about the biggest crises they've ever faced. The first few episodes dive into Uber, FTX, NastyGal, BloomTech, and more Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/in-the-arena/id1691530886 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6qmUIJQkuEeyJveFZtrNcl YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@InTheArenaPodcast TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Intro (02:10) Sponsor (Secureframe) (04:10) Has Aarthi always been more based than Sriram? (07:40) Attribution (11:10) Legitimacy (15:30) Brokenism vs Institutionalism (20:40) Attention as influence (27:00) Should Twitter eliminate trending topics? (29:30) Antonio’s cultural elitism (33:00) Low vs High culture (42:50) Who are the elites? (52:10) WWE & Kayfabe (01:02:45) Lex Fridman (01:12:10) Andrew Huberman (01:20:00) Bryan Johnson (01:22:00) Lindy (01:25:00) Against a la carte beliefs Twitter: @moz_podcast @sriramk (Sriram) @aarthir (Aarthi) @Dwr (Dan) @Antoniogm (Antonio) @Eriktorenberg (Erik) SPONSORS: NetSuite | Secureframe -NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months. -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.

Amjad Masad (@Amasad), Flo Crivello (@Altimor) and Nathan Labenz (@Labenz) join us for a heated debate on the AI moment. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Preview of the debate (00:30) Sponsor (01:00) Nathan introducing our new upcoming AI podcast, The Cognitive Revolution (03:45) Flo’s take on the AI moment and AGI (08:20) Amjad’s take on the AI moment (15:00) Is chatGPT a step function change? (23:45) AI’s effect on coding (34:40) Amjad believes AI is underhyped (35:00) Bounties (53:15) What AI companies should VCs invest in? (57:30) Antonio/Flo pre-debate (01:00:15) “All knowledge work will be automated in 20 years” (01:01:00) Antonio’s AI skepticism (01:05:20) the inflection point is a jump in generality (01:06:00) Who will capture value, incumbents or startups? (01:14:30) Segue into AI and crypto (01:20:00) Flo’s crypto skepticism (01:23:40) Antonio and Flo HEATED DEBATE (01:26:30) Dan tries to calm everybody down (01:27:00) Dan’s crypto perspective (01:29:30) Antonio’s crypto perspective (01:31:50) Amjad’s Bitcoin maximalist view (01:34:55) Amjad’s hilarious rant on crypto ponzis (01:38:00) Dan and Amjad debate Bitcoin/Ethereum (01:40:00) AI vs Web 3 brawl (01:52:32) Amjad’s AI predictions   SPONSORS: NetSuite | Secureframe -NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months. -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.

Saagar Enjeti (@esaagar) and Marshall Kosloff (@makosloff) of The Realignment (@therealignment) join Moment of Zen's Dan Romero (@dwr), Antonio Garcia Martinez (@antoniogm) and Erik Torenberg (@eriktorenberg) for a discussion on tech, politics, and media. RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Intro (03:00) Political and class realignments (15:35) Trump vs DeSantis (25:10) Future of both political parties (28:55) Would Saagar ever get involved in politics? (33:00) Differences between Silicon Valley and DC (36:20) There will never be another Trump (39:30) Media’s impact on politics (55:40) Antonio thinks we stopped recording and goes off (57:00) who the f*** is Chuck Todd? (58:10) How media is evolving   SPONSORS: NetSuite | Secureframe -NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months. -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.

RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers (0:00) intro and sponsor (1:20) introductions (who the f are we?)  (3:00) Antonio introduction  (5:12) Dan introduction (6:50) Farcaster  (10:10) Erik introduction  (12:30) the life of the mind vs the life of the founder  (16:00) Being in the arena as a requisite to comment  (18:30) Why is the podcast named “Moment of Zen”?  (20:20) Erik is the Johnny Appleseed of group chats  (23:30) Group chat culture  (26:55) Reforming institutions vs building new ones  (29:30) Antonio’s intellectual evolution  (30:40) Europe is behind, but Antonio prefers it  (31:40) Antonio feels like a teetotaler who runs a bar  (32:50) LARPs  (34:00) Explaining Fukuyama  (37:50) What’s the best functioning institution today?  (39:10) Richard Hanania  (42:30) We don’t have a grand unifying projects anymore  (45:00) Should the China threat be the unifying narrative?  (48:05) Taiwan  (49:56) Explaining Zeihan  (1:00:20) When shit hits the fan, what country do you flee to?  (1:02:40) Why doesn’t Prince Harry get a paternity test?  (1:04:00) Europe vs America  (1:08:20) Dan is bullish on Europeans, bearish on Europe  (1:11:20) “Everything except the startup scene is better in Europe”  (1:15:19) Why is the US public sector so much worse?  (1:21:35) Why are we doing this show?  (1:22:32) “How about we just don’t get canceled?” (1:23:55) Teasing upcoming guests (1:24:34) Erik’s favorite ex-convict?

Amjad Masad, the founder of Replit, joins Dan, Antonio, and Erik to talk about AGI, religion, and conspiracies. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/UPSTREAM RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) - Antonio’s circumcision (01:20) - The future of Replit (06:30) - The future of coding (09:46) - The Steve Jobs Blackpill (12:00) - Will AGI lead to the death of humans? (18:13) - AGM thinks AGI dystopia is bullshit, religion for nerds (21:12) - Why is there a human need for “end of times” theory? (23:20) - Climate science is unsettled (25:55) - AGM swears he has no idea who Curtis Yarvin is (Who is Curtis Yarvin? - editor) (26:25) - Dan wrestles with the guilt of bringing another human into this cold, ugly world (27:00) - Amjad’s counter-narrative to the AGI dystopia narrative (29:30) - How can AI become consciousness if we don’t know what consciousness is? (32:15) - “AGM do you want to share your story with an AI girlfriend?” (32:58) - Amjad’s Palestinian background and his identity crisis (37:00) - Redpill moments (39:17) - The media never lies (40:35) - Russel Conjugation (41:50) - Comparing Islam and Judaism (43:44) - Judaism isn’t about faith, it’s about practice (51:00) - Transhumanism vs Ludditism (51:50) - Was The Unabomber a left-wing or right-wing nut? (55:15) - Ludditism never works, you can’t roll technology back (57:00) - Antonio’s redpilling (58:30) - Raising a family with or without religion (01:04:40) - Dismissing religion is the classic midwit meme (01:07:20) - History is a series of conspiracies (01:15:00) - Modern day true conspiracies (01:21:05) - “Are the frogs gay?” (01:22:50) - Why does truth matter? (01:30:40) - Prediction Markets (01:36:30) - The only places where truth matters: wars, elections, and markets SPONSORS: NetSuite | Secureframe -NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months. -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.

Part 2 of our extended conversation with Marc Andreessen, where we discuss Elon, Nietsche, and America's 1000-year empire. If you’re looking for an ERP platform, check out our sponsor, NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) - Intro (2:00) - Unpacking the famous SBF quote (5:00) - Introducing Joe Henrich’s “WEIRD” (7:15) - Introducing Tom Holland’s “Dominion” (8:10) - Nietzsche’s criticism of Christianity (9:45) - Christianity’s inversion of morality (12:40) - Is Wokeness the logical conclusion of Christianity? (16:00) - The Christ narrative as the central narrative (17:20) - Are there any alternatives to WEIRD - Is WEIRD taking over the world? (18:20) - Antonio’s circumcision (21:30) - Why we can’t have Nietzschian morality in TV shows (25:30) - Kanye, Trump, Elon (27:30) - Introducing James Burnham and the rise of professional managerial class (32:30) - How Elon is a threat to the PMC (35:00) - Can other countries resist WEIRD? (39:30) - What would Balaji say about the case for America? (42:50) - Balaji’s Network State (44:20) - is social media going to fragment? (47:35) - America is consistent with the process of evolution (49:20) - We need more cleaving of the elites SPONSORS: NetSuite | Secureframe -NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months. -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year.

Marc Andreessen is our guest on the first Moment of Zen, a weekly podcast where Dan Romero (Farcaster), Antonio Garcia Martinez (Spindl), and Erik Torenberg (Village Global/On Deck) discuss the latest in tech, business, and culture. RECOMMENDED PODCAST: Run the Numbers is a weekly podcast about financial metrics and business models, designed for ambitious people operating tech startups. It's a collection of things host CJ Gustafson (CFO at Partstech and writer of Mostly Metrics) has learned and thought about in the trenches as a tech CFO. Subscribe to listen on the platform of your choice: https://link.chtbl.com/runthenumbers TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) All-in Tribute (02:15) What happens to SBF? FTX = Enron + Theranos (06:00) History of collapses in crypto (09:10) DeFi/Web3 actually works (12:35) Redemption arc for SBF/Caroline? Comparing with other frauds (16:37) In an alternate universe, what could FTX have become? Steelmanning FTX the business (23:30) What’s going to happen to Twitter? (25:20) How would we advise Elon? (26:20) Is controversy good for Twitter? (27:10) The killer app for Twitter is to dunk on your enemies (27:40) Bull case for Twitter (35:00) Tech civil war? The fight for free speech (41:15) Future of AI - open vs closed? (46:10) Intersection of AI and crypto (54:00) Role for gov’t regulation (59:50) 2023 Predictions TWITTER: Dan Romero: www.twitter.com/dwr Antonio Garcia Martinez: www.twitter.com/antoniogm Erik Torenberg: www.twitter.com/eriktorenberg Marc Andreessen: www.twitter.com/pmarca SPONSORS: NetSuite | Secureframe -NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen  NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than thirty-six thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: http://netsuite.com/zen and defer payments of a FULL NetSuite implementation for six months. -Secureframe (www.secureframe.com) Secureframe is the leading all-in-one platform for security and privacy compliance. Get SOC-2 audit ready in weeks, not months. I believe in Secureframe so much that I invested in it, and I recommend it to all my portfolio companies. Sign up for a free demo and mention MOMENT OF ZEN during your demo to get 20% off your first year. Thanks to Rob Pera and Molly Mielke for production