Christopher Kirchhoff helped launch a Defense Department office that aimed to bring Silicon Valley technology to the US military. Christopher’s problem is this: How can the giant bureaucracy that is the US military keep up with technological change?
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Making Immigration Cheaper & Easier
Xiao Wang is the founder of a company called Boundless. Xiao’s problem is this: How do you make it cheaper and easier for people to navigate the U.S. immigration system? Xiao moved to the U.S.…
The Wind Power Pioneer Still Pushing the Frontier
Henrik Stiesdal got his start in wind power back in the 70s. The price of oil had gone way up, and he wanted to help his parents figure out a cheaper source of electricity for…
The Mystery at the Heart of ChatGPT
One of the most amazing things about ChatGPT and other, similar AI models: Nobody really understands what they can do. Not even the people who build them. On today’s show, we talk with Sam Bowman…
Scrubbing Carbon from the Air
Dan Friedmann is the CEO of Carbon Engineering. The company is at the frontier of a new industry, direct air capture. They just broke ground on a big plant in Texas that will pull carbon…
Building a Plane to Help Save the World
Does flying have to be bad for the environment? Val Miftakhov, the founder and CEO of ZeroAvia, doesn’t think so. His company built a plane that’s powered by hydrogen fuel, which produces zero carbon emissions.…
The AI that Might Take My Job (And Yours)
Andrew Mason is the founder and CEO of Descript. Descript’s software has made editing audio and video much simpler. The company recently received a large investment from OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT. It’s a sign that…
The Hottest Thing In Energy Storage
Andrew Ponec is co-founder and CEO of the energy storage company Antora Energy. Andrew’s problem is this: How can you store renewable energy in a way that is cheap enough and reliable enough for industrial…
Using Bacteria to Dye Jeans
Tammy Hsu and Michelle Zhu are the cofounders of Huue. Their problem is this: how do you get bacteria to produce indigo dye? And how do you do it cheaply and reliably enough to replace…
The Quest for the Factory-Built House
Today’s show is about a problem people have been trying to solve for a hundred years: how can we mass produce houses, like we do cars? Listen for a house that looks like a UFO,…
Building Houses Like Tesla Builds Cars
Alexis Rivas is the co-founder and CEO of Cover. His problem is: How do you build houses in a factory, the way you build cars? And how do you do it so they’re cheaper and…