Episode 279: Ft. Zacharias Beck - Marathons, Bees, Leaving Computer Science, and the Future of Software

This week, Nathan and Tim welcome Zach to the guest chair for a wide-ranging conversation that somehow manages to connect marathon training, bees, college regrets, and the future of software. The episode kicks off with Zach’s current goal: training for a half marathon with his sights set on a full marathon not long after. That opens the door for Nathan to revisit his own marathon experience—what went right, what went very wrong, and the mistakes he’d absolutely avoid if he ever did it again. Tim chimes in with his perspective from the sidelines, reflecting on what it was like watching Nathan run a marathon all those years ago. From there, things take an unexpected turn as Zach explains how bees have impacted his running routine—and how one bad experience during marathon training didn’t just derail that attempt, but still affects his workouts today. The conversation then shifts to college paths and hard pivots, with Zach sharing how he left computer science to major in something completely different—an experience Tim deeply relates to (and Nathan, quietly, does too). They wrap things up by zooming out to the bigger picture: the recent tech market sell-off, investor anxiety around AI, and the question everyone seems to be asking—are fears that AI will make software as a business obsolete actually justified, or is this just another cycle of tech panic?