The Alien in the Room episode artwork

EPISODE · Dec 12, 2025 · 1H

The Alien in the Room

from Radiolab · host WNYC Studios

It’s faster than a speeding bullet. It’s smarter than a polymath genius. It’s everywhere but it’s invisible. It’s artificial intelligence. But what actually is it?Today we ask this simple question and explore why it’s so damn hard to answer.Special thanks to Stephanie Yin and the New York Institute of Go for teaching us the game. Mark, Daria and Levon Hoover Brauner for helping bring NETtalk to life. And a huge thank you to Grant Sanderson for his unending patience explaining the math of neural nets to us. To learn more about how these 'thinking machines' actually think, we highly recommend his wonderful youtube channel 3Blue1Brown (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aircAruvnKk).EPISODE CREDITS: Reported by - Simon AdlerProduced by - Simon AdlerOriginal music from - Simon AdlerSound design contributed by - Simon AdlerFact-checking by - Anna Pujol-Mazzini Sign up for our newsletter!! It includes short essays, recommendations, and details about other ways to interact with the show. Signup (https://radiolab.org/newsletter)!Radiolab is supported by listeners like you. Support Radiolab by becoming a member of The Lab (https://members.radiolab.org/) today.Follow our show on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook @radiolab, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected] support for Radiolab’s science programming is provided by the Gordon and Betty

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The Alien in the Room

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Trump, Inc. WNYC Studios He’s the President, yet we’re still trying to answer basic questions about how his business works: What deals are happening, who they’re happening with, and if the President and his family are keeping their promise to separate the Trump Organization from the Trump White House. “Trump, Inc.” is a joint reporting project from WNYC Studios and ProPublica that digs deep into these questions. We’ll be layout out what we know, what we don’t and how you can help us fill in the gaps. WNYC Studios is a listener-supported producer of other leading podcasts, including On the Media, Radiolab, Death, Sex & Money, Here’s the Thing with Alec Baldwin, Nancy and many others. ProPublica is a non-profit investigative newsroom.© WNYC Studios Pickle WNYC Studios Is it ever okay to tell a lie? What makes a real friend? And here’s a question: How much is a person’s life worth? Yikes, that’s a tough one! Join the cast of Pickle as we explore life’s stickiest wickets, with the help of curious kids – and the occasional elephant. It’s philosophy, made fun. WNYC Studios is a listener-supported producer of podcasts including Radiolab, Snap Judgment, On the Media, Death, Sex & Money and many others.© WNYC Studios Hunt Gather Talk with Hank Shaw Hank Shaw Wild foods expert and cookbook author Hank Shaw's audio adventures in foraging, fishing, hunting and cooking. You'll hears stories from the field, tips and tricks for working with wild foods, interviews with experts in fishing, foraging, cooking and hunting, as well as occasional "RadioLab" style audio stories. The Filter Podcast with Matt Asher The Filter The Filter is about how we perceive the world, the lenses through which we view our reality.The Filter is like: - Black Mirror but not fiction. - A darker version of Making Sense with Sam Harris - Radiolab minus the cool music and with 50% less storytelling - The Joe Rogan Experience minus stand-up comedians minus MMA minus about 12hrs per week of content - The Portal with Eric Weinstein but with Matt Asher - The Tom Woods Show but with 1600 fewer episodes

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This episode was published on December 12, 2025.

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It’s faster than a speeding bullet. It’s smarter than a polymath genius. It’s everywhere but it’s invisible. It’s artificial intelligence. But what actually is it?Today we ask this simple question and explore why it’s so damn hard to answer.Special...

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