An Inside Look at America’s Pandemic Response — with Andy Slavitt

Andy Slavitt, President Biden’s former White House senior advisor for the Covid team, updates us on COVID-19 and vaccine hesitancy. He also shares how to think about the various leadership responses we saw, and why certain countries handled the pandemic better than others. Follow him on Twitter, @ASlavitt. (18:22)

Andy’s book, PREVENTABLE: The Inside Story of How Leadership Failures, Politics, and Selfishness Doomed the U.S. Coronavirus Response, is out now. 

Scott opens with a discussion on space tourism with Bloomberg aviation and aerospace reporter, Justin Bachman. 

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Office Hours: Fintech IPOs, Apple’s Search Game, Checking Your Morals, and Dating Post-Covid

Scott answers a question on SoFi’s IPO, plus the record number of Fintech companies going public. He also shares his thoughts on whether Apple should acquire Neeva and make it its default search engine. Scott then gives dating advice to the young and single in an era of dating apps, and tells us how to navigate working in an industry that challenges our values.

Music: https://www.davidcuttermusic.com / @dcuttermusic

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Racism is Costing Us All — with Heather McGhee

Heather McGhee, the author of The Sum of Us, tells us her definition of zero-sum thinking and how racist policy decisions have left us all worse off. Heather is also the chair of the board of Color of Change, the nation’s largest online racial justice organization. Follow her on Twitter, @hmcghee. (17:53)

Scott opens with why he’s feeling optimistic at the moment. We also hear from a previous Prof G Pod guest, Joost van Dreunen on Netflix’s potential entrance into the gaming space (9:00). 

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Office Hours: Tesla’s Competition, Identity Verification, the Scam of Tenure, and Public vs. Private Companies

Scott shares his thoughts on Tesla’s future in a more saturated EV market. He also answers questions on investing in the identity verification market, whether employee-owned businesses could replace publicly traded companies, and how to become a more active member of academia.

Music: https://www.davidcuttermusic.com / @dcuttermusic

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Future of Search — with Sridhar Ramaswamy

Sridhar Ramaswamy, the CEO and cofounder of Neeva, tells us how the company — an ad-free, private search engine — is differentiating itself in the search market. Sridhar also shares the leadership lessons he’s learned from running a team of 10,000 people during his fifteen and a half years at Google. Follow on Sridhar Twitter, @RamaswmySridhar.

Scott opens with how a lack of corporate governance could lead us to a market crash. 

Related Reading: Coinbase Independent Directors Have Close Company Ties

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Office Hours: Robo-advisors, Team Design, and the Consequences of Innovation

Dr. Sara Beckman of UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business joins Scott to answer a question about innovation in the robo-advisor space. They also share their thoughts on the costs and benefits of blockchain, how to structure successful teams, and why it’s crucial to have mentors you trust. 

Music: https://www.davidcuttermusic.com / @dcuttermusic

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Amazon Unbound — with Brad Stone

Brad Stone, the senior executive editor for Global Technology at Bloomberg News, joins to discuss his latest book: Amazon Unbound: Jeff Bezos and the Invention of a Global Empire. We hear how the company has transformed under Jeff Bezos’s leadership and the existential threats coming for its market dominance. Follow Brad on Twitter, @BradStone. 

Scott opens with his thoughts on “burning benjamins” — AKA what happens when billionaires lose other people’s money. 

Additional Reading: MeWork

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State of Play: Supply Chain & Logistics — with Hamid Moghadam

Hamid Moghadam, the CEO of Prologis, a logistics real estate business, breaks down how warehouses have evolved to meet the demand for speedy deliveries, how the pandemic expedited trends in the supply chain space, and how a booming era of e-commerce is driving this sector. He also reflects on his career path as an Iranian-American and a leader of a nearly $90 billion company.

Scott opens with Snap’s investments in augmented reality and explores how the broader social commerce space is shaping up as social media companies battle it out for shoppers’ attention — and wallets.  

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Office Hours: eBay’s Brand Bust, VC Geography, Public Service, and Home Buying Advice

Scott answers a question about where eBay stands in the Amazon era. He also shares his thoughts on the concentration of venture capital investments in California, Massachusetts, and New York, why it can be worth it to lose money in the housing market, and why the world needs young Americans to participate in public service.

Music: https://www.davidcuttermusic.com / @dcuttermusic

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The Geopolitics of Cryptocurrencies — with Niall Ferguson

Niall Ferguson returns to the pod for a discussion about his latest book, Doom: The Politics of Catastrophe. Niall shares why “all disasters are in some sense man-made” and what history can teach us about handling crises. Niall also explains the state of play around digital currencies from a geopolitical perspective. Follow Niall on Twitter, @nfergus. 

Scott opens with his thoughts on AT&T’s reverse merger with Discovery, and what it means for the streaming wars. He also discusses the implications of stock buybacks and dividends. 

Related Reading: Companies Are Flush With Cash—and Ready to Pad Shareholder Pockets

Algebra of Happiness: Find moments of engagement.

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