logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2021
27m 18s

Babbage: Clash of the titans

The Economist
About this episode

As Facebook and Apple go head-to-head over privacy, the impact could be felt across the digital world. We ask Michael Wooldridge, a leading AI researcher, whether artificial intelligence is the answer to the world’s problems, the seed of humanity’s eventual destruction—or neither. And the world would look very different without the LED: we speak to one of the engineers behind this illuminating technology. Kenneth Cukier hosts 


Please subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions:

www.economist.com/podcastoffer



Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Today
Dune raider: Saudi is a video-game superpower
Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, is a huge video-game fan. Now his hobby is becoming a multi-billion-dollar industry for the kingdom, which is acquiring some of the world’s biggest gaming firms. How Finnish icebreakers became a focus for polar power politics. And ... Show More
19m 57s
Yesterday
Finally, a deal: the fragile peace in Gaza
Donald Trump has brokered an agreement between Israel’s government and Hamas. It’s a momentous breakthrough. Our correspondent analyses what comes next. We launch “The Economist Insider”, our new TV show for subscribers, where senior editors debate the news. And, do red-light mas ... Show More
23m 25s
Oct 8
Liberté, égalité, désordre: chaos in France
France’s newly-appointed prime minister has resigned only weeks into the job. Now President Emmanual Macron has given him 48 hours to come up with a plan for next year’s budget. Can Macron survive the turmoil? As driverless taxis take over San Francisco, what will happen to the h ... Show More
21m 3s
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2022
Babbage: The tech behind ChatGPT—an episode from our archive
ChatGPT is just one example of a new type of artificial intelligence, which could become the next major general-purpose technology. This week, we revisit one of our favourite episodes of 2022, which explains why "foundational AI" promises to be so transformative. The Economist’s ... Show More
44m 52s
Mar 2024
Babbage: The science that built the AI revolution—part one
What is intelligence? In the middle of the 20th century, the inner workings of the human brain inspired computer scientists to build the first “thinking machines”. But how does human intelligence actually relate to the artificial kind? This is the first episode in a four-part ser ... Show More
42m 57s
Feb 2024
The Intelligence: Out-of-this-world war
This is not science fiction. Space is already a part of modern warfare and as technology advances, it will be an even more crucial sphere. What will extraterrestrial conflict look like? A look at the latest Democracy Index as conflict continues to dent freedoms across the globe ( ... Show More
27m 19s
Mar 2024
The Intelligence: Bad Apple?
The case against the tech giant has been brewing since 2019 and while the smartphone maker is usually well-equipped to bat away regulators, this fight could bruise. Why Jimmy “Barbecue” Chérizier, Haiti’s most prominent warlord, could play a key role in the country’s future (09:4 ... Show More
25m 2s
May 2021
In Machines We Trust: Land of a Billion Faces (Encore)
Clearview AI has built one of the most comprehensive databases of people’s faces in the world. Your picture is probably in there (our host Jennifer Strong’s was). In the second of a four-part series on facial recognition, we meet the CEO of the controversial company who tells us ... Show More
20m 47s
May 2024
William Hague on Taiwan and the fight for the world’s most critical technology
Our modern world is built on chips; they control everything from our cars to the stock market, dishwashers to missile systems, computers to - potentially soon - augmented humans. But with China and America battling for control over production - and about ninety percent of advance ... Show More
25m 55s