Rational Optimization /w Elias Schlie

This month, I built AI agents, I moved, I fasted, and I hiked. In this podcast, I share the stories that I experienced and the insights I found.YouTube versionMy website: eliasschlie.comQuick Stats 📊⏱️ Total focused work: 288 hours and 46 minutes🗓️ That’s an average of 9 hours and 57 minutes every single day — weekends included!💾 Full breakdown publicly available here: eliasschlie.comWhat I spent my time on 🧠🚀 Deep dive into AI agents and language model tooling (esp. langchain + agents)🧪 Built a custom MCP server to connect LLMs with Obsidian for persistent memory scaffolding🧭 Personal reflection on direction, meaning, and intrinsic values (inspired by valuism)💬 Developing systems for better conversations and group dynamics📚 Listening to high-signal content during breaks to stay immersed in key problemsMain Achievements 🏆✅ Built and shipped my own MCP server — clean, simple, and powerful✅ Reached a new level of clarity on what I value and why it matters✅ Used fasting as a powerful tool to reset and return to deep focus✅ Refined my approach to learning through better break design and structured reflection✅ Pushed physical + mental boundaries with a 50h fast + night hike — reminder of agency over mind and body

**June 2025: The Month I Started Building**Quick Stats 📊⏱️ Total focused work: \~300 hours🗓️ That’s 9 hours and 49 minutes every day (including weekends)💾 Full work log published at [https://github.com/EliasSchlie/Working\_Hours](https://github.com/EliasSchlie/Working_Hours)What I spent my time on ⚡* Finished exams for 9 university courses in Cognitive Science & AI (across three different semesters)* Deep work on AI agents, automation, and building new tools* Built foundational scripts for automating my note-taking (Obsidian) with LLMs and tools* Explored and prototyped AI agents for science (especially agents to automate news & paper summarization)* Researched and learned more about AI agent architectures and how to use tools/APIs for automation* Started serious learning in JavaScript/TypeScript and web development (CS50 Web, JavaScript fundamentals course)* Continued refining systems for both learning and buildingMain Achievements 🏆✅ Completed 9 courses in about a month, with top or near-top grades in multiple cohorts✅ Built the first versions of AI agents to automate my note-taking and science workflows✅ Prototyped a system to automatically create and publish longevity science podcast episodes from new research papers✅ Developed and used structured note-taking, now over 10,000 notes (“second brain”)✅ Shifted from pure learning mode to building mode, exploring new personal systems for productivity✅ Stayed consistent with high work hours, while keeping balance with gym, sauna, and friends✅ Maintained strong intrinsic motivation—doing exactly what I’d do even if given €1 million⁠YouTube⁠ version

eliasschlie.com

eliasschlie.com

My website🐭 FDA Plans to Replace Animal Testing — A Roadmap to Reducing Animal Testing in Preclinical Safety Studies🤖 Why Didn't AI Discover a Bunch of Drugs Yet? — Progress, Pitfalls, and Impact of AI-driven Clinical Trials (Wilczok & Zhavoronkov, 2025)⏰ LinAge2 – Aging Clock Update — Providing actionable insights and benchmarking with epigenetic clocks (Fong et al., 2025)🚀 Frontier Tower — Permanent Longevity Hub in San Francisco🏝️ Vitalist Bay — Giant Longevity Pop-Up City

My website

1) 🐁 The Rodent Aging Interventions Database (RAID)2) 🧫 High-Throughput Yeast Aging Study3) 🤖 Metabolic Digital Twins4) 🏙️ How Cities Can Be Used to Learn About Aging and Exposome Influences5) 🐷 First-ever pig-human liver transplant

⁠⁠My Website

⁠My Website

My Website

My website

In this podcast, I share my experience from being in the core organizing team of Zelar.City, a Longevity Pop-up city Links: - ⁠Zelar.City 00:00 - Intro 00:55 - What is a Pop-up city? 04:06 - What makes Zelar.City special? 05:49 - How I came to work at Zelar 10:12 - Month leading up to Zelar 10:47 - At Zelar.city 12:41 - Daily experience at Zelar.city (Longevity pop-up City) 16:18 - Zelar.City weekend summits 19:20 - My main learning 22:49 - Future of Pop-up cities

Zelar.City is a Longevity pop-up city. In this episode, the team comes together, discusses longevity, it's bottlenecks and reflects on their experience in Berlin. Links: - Learn about Longevity - Sophia DAO - Zelar.City - Anatoly's blog

Links: - ⁠Learn about Longevity⁠ - ⁠Sophia DAO⁠ - ⁠Zelar.City⁠ - ⁠Anatoly's blog

Watch on YouTube Vipassana website

Summary In this conversation, Alan Graves, CEO of DoNotAge.org, discusses the current state of the longevity supplement industry, emphasizing the importance of research and transparency. He highlights the need for consumers to be informed about the quality of supplements and the potential for aging to be reversible. Alan shares insights from his experiences in the industry, including his participation in the Reverse Longevity documentary, and offers advice for aspiring professionals in the field. Links - ⁠DoNotAge.org⁠ - ⁠Zelar.City⁠ - YouTube Chapters 00:00 Introduction to DoNotAge.org and Alan Graves 03:10 Research and Development in Longevity 06:33 Challenges in the Supplement Industry 10:29 Consumer Awareness and Education 13:57 Reversibility of Aging 16:41 Personal Discoveries in Longevity 17:56 Experiences from the Reverse Longevity Documentary 19:49 Advice for Aspiring Longevity Professionals 21:54 Founding Story of DoNotAge.org 25:50 Links Keywords longevity, supplements, aging, health, research, DoNotAge.org, clinical trials, consumer awareness, NAD, rapamycin

Summary In this conversation, Professor Hans Meij discusses the importance of focusing on health span rather than just longevity. He emphasizes the need for early interventions in healthcare, the challenges posed by smoking, and the role of innovative initiatives like pop-up cities in advancing longevity research. He also highlights the significance of building networks among professionals in the field and offers advice for young individuals starting their careers in longevity. :) Links - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Zelar City Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠What is Zelar City?⁠⁠⁠⁠ Chapters 00:00 Who is Prof. Hans Meij 00:57 Introduction to Professor Hans Meij 02:20 The Importance of Self-Awareness in Longevity 04:13 Education and Longevity: A Global Perspective 05:54 Counterintuitive Insights on Aging 08:09 Health Span vs. Life Span: A Critical Discussion 09:23 The Future of Human Lifespan: Possibilities and Limits 13:53 Bottlenecks in Longevity Research 16:13 The Role of Pop-Up Initiatives in Longevity 19:26 Building a Global Longevity Network 24:20 Staying Updated in the Longevity Field 33:28 Advice for Young Professionals in Longevity 35:50 Reflections on Improvement in the Longevity Field 37:10 Links

Charles Mattocks Links - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Zelar City Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠What is Zelar City?⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠Reversed Longevity Trailer⁠⁠ - As soon as it's out, you will be able to find "Reversed Longevity" on Amazon Prime, Tubi, or Glue TV Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Rafid Fadul and Longevity 00:41 Introduction to Rafid and His Journey 03:33 What is Cenegenics? 05:07 What is Zivian health? 07:20 How to deal with the shrinking healthcare workforce 10:00 What idea in longevity gets less attention than it deserves? 13:30 Is radical life extension the right goal? 17:57 The Importance of Fulfillment in Longevity 20:58 Ethical Considerations in Longevity Science 28:29 Ethical Implications of Radical Life Extension 30:18 Counterintuitive Insights in Longevity 35:15 Experiences from the Reverse Longevity Documentary 36:56 Evolving Perspectives in Longevity Medicine 41:29 The Role of Psychedelics in Mental Health 43:43 Advice for Aspiring Longevity Leaders 48:26 Reflections on Personal Growth and Presence 51:23 Exploring Radical Longevity and Life Extension Summary In this conversation, Rafid Fadul discusses his journey in the field of longevity, the importance of mental health, and the evolving landscape of healthcare. He emphasizes the need for a holistic approach to health that includes not just physical well-being but also mental and emotional fulfillment. Rafid shares insights from his experiences, including his participation in the Reverse Longevity documentary, and offers advice for future leaders in the longevity space. Keywords longevity, health, radical life extension, mental health, healthcare system, performance health, psychedelics, healthcare compliance, aging, wellness Takeaways Sanogenics has been a pioneer in hormone replacement therapy for longevity. The US healthcare system faces significant challenges that need addressing. Fundamentals of health such as sleep, nutrition, and exercise are crucial for longevity. Radical life extension raises philosophical questions about the purpose of life. Mental health plays a critical role in overall health and longevity. Experiences from the Reverse Longevity documentary highlight the importance of collaboration in the field. The landscape of longevity research is constantly evolving, requiring adaptability. Psychedelics may have untapped potential in mental health treatment. Creating accessible platforms for sharing knowledge is essential in the longevity field. Being present and appreciating all moments can lead to a more fulfilled life.

Summary In this conversation, Charles discusses his latest documentary 'Reverse Longevity', exploring the concept of longevity and health interventions. He emphasizes the importance of making health information accessible to the general public and shares insights on the production process of health documentaries. Charles also reflects on the personal impact of longevity research on his life and the challenges of funding and distributing health content. He offers advice for aspiring content creators and shares his motivation for promoting longevity and health education. Links - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Zelar City Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠What is Zelar City?⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠Reversed Longevity Trailer⁠ - As soon as it's out, you will be able to find "Reversed Longevity" on Amazon Prime, Tubi, or Glue TV Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Charles and His Journey 01:50 Charles's Longevity Documentary 06:03 What did you learn from doing this documentary? 09:24 Where is the focus? Longevity present or future? 10:58 Why Charles not host his own longevity documentary? 14:11 Choosing Costa Rica: A Unique Filming Location 15:18 Did making a Longevity Documentary change your behavior? 16:50 Funding and Producing Health Documentaries 20:32 How Charles started his Media company 22:26 Lessons from Diabetes Documentaries 24:07 How to make people open up during interviews 25:21 Crafting Compelling Narratives in Filmmaking 29:10 Advice for Aspiring Filmmakers and Advocates 31:20 The Drive for Change and Future Aspirations 36:15 Exploring Longevity and Health Documentaries

Summary In this conversation, Andrea Maier, a prominent longevity advocate, discusses her work in the field of aging and health optimization. She emphasizes the importance of understanding organ-specific aging clocks, the need for evidence-based practices, and the significance of healthspan over lifespan. Andrea also highlights the challenges in longevity research, the role of pop-up cities in fostering innovation, and the potential of decentralized science. Throughout the discussion, she shares insights on personal approaches to longevity and the importance of mentorship for aspiring professionals in the field. Links - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Zelar City Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠What is Zelar City?⁠⁠⁠ Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Andrea Maier 01:04 Measuring Biological Age: A Missed Opportunity 01:33 Understanding Aging Clocks and Their Applications 07:52 Personal Approaches to Longevity 09:41 ls there a limit to how much we can increase lifespan? 11:13 Bottlenecks in Longevity Research 14:31 The Role of Pop-Up Cities in Longevity 16:11 Andrea Maiers opinion on Decentralized Science 17:11 How Andrea stays up to date in Longevity 18:10 Who does Andrea Maier look up to in longevity? 19:27 Counterintuitive learning 21:05 Advice for Aspiring Longevity Researchers 22:45 Outro

Kennedy Schaal is the CEO of Rejuve.bio, a biotech company with the goal of solving aging by building AGI for drug discovery. Summary In this episode, Kennedy Schaal introduces her company Rejuve.bio which comes out of the SingularityNet. Kennedy Schaal and I discuss the intersection of data, AI, and collaboration in the longevity sector. We explore the importance of community engagement, the potential for shared data to advance research, and the role of marketing in promoting longevity initiatives. Kennedy emphasizes the need for a collective approach to solving aging-related issues and shares her personal commitment to community service and the arts. Links - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Zelar City Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠What is Zelar City?⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠Rejuve.bio - ⁠This episode on YouTube Chapters 00:00 Intro to Rejuve.bio, Kennedy Schaal, and SingularityNet 00:38 The Methuselah Fruit Fly experiment 01:05 Why Kennedy Schaal is working in Longevity 05:38 Why Kennedy Schaal is working with SingularityNet 09:40 What is the scope of Rejuve Biotech? 10:44 Licensing model of the target discovery platform by Rejuve.bio 13:14 How does Rejuve.bio fit in SingularityNets vision of descentralization? (Rejuve.ai) 18:40 How are Rejuve.bio and Rejuve.ai connected? 20:05 How is it like to build a Biotech company 23:27 Kennedys experience with remote work in a biotech company 24:52 The hardest part of developing Rejuve.bio 27:22 The role of DeSci for solving aging 32:01 The role of Pop-up cities like Zelar for advancing longevity research 34:04 Kennedys advice to people starting out in longevity 36:56 Kennedy Schaals biggest learning from having a longevity company 38:28 What does Kennedy Schaal do in her free-time 41:29 How long do you want to live? @ Kennedy Schaal 43:28 Next interview and Links

Summary In this conversation, Jasmine Smith, CEO of Rejuve AI, discusses the decentralization of health data. She explains how their app incentivizes users with crypto tokens for contributing health data, the importance of personalized health insights, and the potential for longevity through scientific advancements. In the end, we get a bit personal, and you will learn about Jasmine's passion outside of her work Links - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Zelar City Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠What is Zelar City?⁠⁠ - Rejuve.ai - This episode on YouTube Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Jasmine Smith, Rejuve.ai, and SingularityNet 01:08 How is Jasmine Smith connected to SingularityNet? 02:03 What is the mission of SingularityNet? 03:07 Why Jasmine Smith is working at Singularity Net 04:47 What is Rejuve.AI? 06:04 Where is my Rejuve.AI data used? 07:06 When do I get RJV tokens? 07:45 How does the RJV token work? 08:27 How is it like to create an App like Rejuve.AI? 09:41 What are the main features of Rejuve.AI (hardest) 11:19 Where do the health recommendations of Rejuve.AI come from? 13:59 Why Jasmine Smith is working in Longevity 15:38 What are the biggest bottlenecks in Longevity? 18:01 Will we solve aging in our lifetimes? 19:25 The role of Pop-up cities towards solving aging 20:26 Jasmine Smith's biggest learning from building Rejuve.AI 21:32 Jasmine Smith's personal passion 22:50 How long do you want to live? 23:41 The Role of Network States in Aging Solutions 24:00 Links

Nathan is an investor in the longevity space and the co-founder of the Longevity Biotech Fellowship and Vitalism, the longevity community. In this conversation, Nathan Cheng discusses the vision and moral imperative behind the fight against aging and death. He emphasizes the importance of community, alignment, and innovative approaches to longevity, including the establishment of longevity states and pop-up cities. Nathan also shares insights on the current bottlenecks in longevity research and offers advice for aspiring innovators in the field. Links - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Zelar City Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠What is Zelar City?⁠⁠ - ⁠Vitalism website - Longevity Biotech Fellowship - VitalistBay Chapters 00:00 Who is Nathan Cheng (LBF and Vitalism founder) 01:16 How to invest in Longevity? 04:00 Counterintuitive Insights in Longevity Investing 06:27 Impactful areas of Longevity research? 10:11 Building a Community: The Vitalism Movement 15:21 Is Death really bad? 23:43 Longevity States: The Future of Collective Action 37:19 Bottlenecks in Longevity: Identifying Key Challenges 41:52 Advice for Aspiring Longevity Innovators 45:14 Imagining a World Without Aging 47:16 What to do now? 50:20 Links

In this episode, I sit down with Adam Gries to discuss the founding of Vitalism, a community dedicated to tackling aging through groundbreaking and innovative approaches. Together, we delve into the concept of network states and pop-up cities as revolutionary frameworks for collaboration and experimentation in the longevity space. Adam shares insights on how traditional approaches to aging are falling short, and why a shift in resource allocation and societal mindset is crucial for progress. We explore the role of supportive environments, like pop-up cities, in fostering innovation and accelerating breakthroughs in longevity research. Links - ⁠⁠⁠⁠Zelar City Website⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠What is Zelar City?⁠ - Vitalism website Chapters 00:00 What is Vitalism (Longevity Community) 00:38 What are Network States and Pop-up cities? 01:51 Why does Adam Gries work on Longevity? 03:53 Founding story of Vitalism 10:41 The Role of Longevity States 13:09 First benefit of Pop-up Cities - Artificial Majority 14:16 Second benefit of Pop-up Cities - Physical Location 15:18 Experiences in Pop-Up Cities 19:17 What is Vitalist Bay - The Pop-up city in San Francisco 21:01 What should I work on to contribute to Longevity? 24:19 Realization from Years of working in Longevity 35:54 Links to Vitalism.io and Zelar.City

Summary In this conversation, Judith Mueller discusses her extensive experience in the field of longevity and biohacking, particularly focusing on women's health. She shares insights on the importance of community, the role of clinics in longevity, and her vision for a biohacked village for entrepreneurs. Judith emphasizes the need for standardized offerings in longevity clinics and the significance of addressing basic health habits. She also touches on investment trends in the longevity sector and the potential of Zelar City as a prototype for future communities. Links - ⁠⁠⁠⁠Zelar City Website⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠What is Zelar City? Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Judith Mueller 01:40 Building Longevity Clinics and clinic protocols 06:47 The Spectrum of Longevity Treatments 09:35 The Role of Alternative Medicine in Longevity 11:56 Creating a Biohacked Village for Entrepreneurs 15:13 Investing in Longevity: Trends and Insights 18:38 The Bottlenecks in Longevity Research 20:46 The Importance of Basic Health Habits 23:46 Personalizing Health: Finding What Works for You 33:08 The Future of Longevity and Community Living 35:48 Outro

Links - ⁠⁠⁠Zelar City Website⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠What is Zelar City? Summary The conversation centers around Zelar City, a pop-up city in Berlin focused on longevity and community building. Victoria Forrest, the founder, discusses the motivation behind creating a collaborative space for individuals passionate about fighting aging. The dialogue explores the concept of network states, the challenges in aging research, and the importance of community engagement in advancing longevity science. Victoria shares her personal journey and the vision for Zelar City as a hub for innovation and collaboration in the longevity field. Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Background 01:57 Bridging the Gap: Funding Early Stage Longevity Research 03:37 Victorias first connections with Pop-up cities (Zuzalu...) 04:07 What are Pop-up Cities 04:56 The Birth of Zelar City and the Motivation Behind It 07:45 Challenges and Vision for Zelar City 09:16 The Concept of Pop-Up Cities and Network States 12:41 Zelar City in Berlin and Engaging the Local Community 15:57 How is it like to be at a Pop-Up City? 18:16 Victoria Forests Motivation to Work on Aging and Creating More Time 21:15 What Victoria would do if Aging is solved 22:07 Bottlenecks in the Longevity Field and the Need for Funding 23:55 What is Decentralized Science? 25:13 How to start contributing to the Longevity field 27:08 How will a day in Zelar City be like? 31:45 Victoria's final words 32:32 Links and Info

Laurence is the Co-Initiator of Vitalia city, a Funding Steward of Vita DAO, one of the Core Organizer of Zuzalu.city, and a Part of the Organizing Committee of Zellar City Today we talk about Crypto, longevity, and Network states. Links - ⁠⁠Zelar City Website⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠What is Zelar City? Chapters 00:00 Intro 02:21 Laurence's background 05:03 Funding longevity science with Crypto 06:49 Laurence on Pop-up cities 08:33 How does VitaDao work? 12:04 Zuzalu and the idea of Pop-up cities 20:22 Laurence's motivation to work in Longevity 21:19 What is the biggest bottleneck in longevity right now? 22:09 Where can a small group make an impact? 22:54 Thoughts on Zelar City 23:59 Advice for Young Individuals in the Longevity Field 25:15 Passion for Learning and Exploring the Future 28:29 Freedom of Choice: Including the Freedom to Die 29:43 Laurences message to the world 30:41 Outro

Alexey Strygin is working in the longevity industry for the last 10 years. He was part of the early days of Insilico Medicine and also worked as a Chief Digital Health Officer at Gero.ai. Links - ⁠Zelar City Website⁠ - ⁠What is Zelar City? Summary Alexey Strygin discusses the importance of Longevity Economics and the need for increased funding in the longevity industry. He suggests the creation of a Longevity Economics Think Tank or Advocacy Group to attract both governmental and private funding. He emphasizes the need for data collection on a large scale and proposes the establishment of a centralized or quasi-centralized effort, similar to the UK Biobank, to accelerate research. Alexey also highlights the importance of convincing resource allocators, such as billionaires and world leaders, to invest in aging research. He encourages individuals to switch careers, donate, and spread awareness about the industry. Takeaways Longevity Economics is an important field that can attract funding and increase the overall amount of funding in the longevity industry. Data collection on a large scale is crucial for advancing research on aging, and a centralized or quasi-centralized effort is needed to achieve this. Convincing resource allocators, such as billionaires and world leaders, to invest in aging research is essential for accelerating progress. Individuals can contribute to the field by switching careers, donating, and spreading awareness about the importance of extending healthy lifespan. Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Background 05:01 Alexey's future in longevity 06:41 Why we need Longevity Economics advocacy group 10:26 Why longevity pop-up cities are amazing 11:55 Why Alexey is excited for Zell City 15:34 How Alexey got into longevity 17:18 How to get into the longevity field 20:01 The best places to learn about longevity 23:34 Who do you look up to in the longevity field? 30:31 Identifying the Bottlenecks in the Longevity Field 31:12 First Bottleneck 31:35 Second Bottleneck 32:11 Third Bottleneck 37:06 How to solve the money bottleneck 43:17 Where can a tiny group of dedicated people make impact towards solving aging? 47:23 What everybody can do right now 49:04 Outro

Hi, I'm Elias, an AI student trying to solve aging.If you have the same goal, this podcast is for you.Here, I share what I learn on my journey, and interview people working on the same goal so they can share what they have learned.Let’s make more time. The motto is: "Live forever or die trying!"Previously, this was the Rational Optimization podcast. a philosophy podcast focused on the question "What is, all things considered, the most rational thing to do?". I don't know the answer jet, but if we solve aging we will have a lot of time to search for it :)

Mark Kagach studied the books of David Deutsch for 4 months straight with incredible intensity. Today he summarizes everything he learned in this time. ⁠⁠📹⁠⁠Watch on YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🏔️⁠⁠⁠⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠⁠⁠⁠ If you want to connect, shoot me an Email: [email protected] 𝕏 ⁠Mark's Twitter⁠ 🌐 ⁠Mark's Website⁠ 𝕏 ⁠My Twitter 🌐⁠⁠⁠⁠My Website⁠⁠⁠⁠ 📸⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://paypal.me/eliasschlie⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🫶 The books are: - The Beginning of Infinity - The Fabric of Reality Chapters 00:00 Intro 02:03 Main Theis - Fabric of Reality 06:05 Short peak into Beginning of Infinity 08:28 Epistemology 1:26:15 Quantum Physics 1:55:33 Computational Theory 2:16:25 Evolution Theory 2:30:47 Meta discussion 2:33:10 Evolution of Ideas and Memes 2:40:20 Why we shouldn't try to preserve resources 2:45:25 Politics 2:55:45 Final conclusion

Jeroen Kappen is a monk of the Krishna consciousness movement. He practices many hours of chanting every day. Additionally, he studied their scriptures meticulously and did a lot of Bhakti-yoga. Today, he is telling the story of how he got there ⁠📹⁠⁠Watch on YouTube⁠⁠⁠ 🏔️⁠⁠⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠⁠⁠ 🌐⁠⁠⁠My Website⁠⁠⁠ 📸⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠⁠⁠https://paypal.me/eliasschlie⁠⁠⁠ 🫶

⁠📹⁠⁠Watch on YouTube⁠⁠⁠ 🏔️⁠⁠⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠⁠⁠ 🌐⁠⁠⁠My Website⁠⁠⁠ 📸⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠⁠⁠https://paypal.me/eliasschlie⁠⁠⁠ 🫶

Jeroen Kappen is a monk of the Krishna consciousness movement. He practices many hours of chanting every day. Additionally, he studied their scriptures meticulously and did a lot of Bhakti-yoga. Today, we sat down and he explained to me what exactly he believes in. 📹⁠⁠Watch on YouTube⁠⁠ 🏔️⁠⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠⁠ 🌐⁠⁠My Website⁠⁠ 📸⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠⁠https://paypal.me/eliasschlie⁠⁠ 🫶

With 99% certainty, I would say that nothing matters. Udesh Habaraduwa, a master's student of Cognitive science and Artificial Intelligence and the host of the One-Deeper-Podcast, challenged this belief today. We went into a really deep discussion. This is easily one of the best episodes of the Rational Optimization podcast so far! 📹⁠Watch on YouTube⁠ 🏔️⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠ 🌐⁠My Website⁠ 📸⁠Instagram⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠https://paypal.me/eliasschlie⁠ 🫶 Chapters 00:00:00 - Intro 00:02:02 - Discussion

My guest today was a drug dealer for 8 years. He tells the story of his rise (making money, taking drugs) and fall (getting arrested, fighting addiction). It's really interesting to listen to him talk about a life that is so incredibly different from the average. 📹⁠Watch on YouTube⁠ 🏔️⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠ 🌐⁠My Website⁠ 📸⁠Instagram⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠https://paypal.me/eliasschlie⁠ 🫶

Toni Venema is a teacher who truly burns for god. Today, we discussed rational and emotional arguments for and against believing. 📹⁠Watch on YouTube⁠ 🏔️⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠ 🌐⁠My Website⁠ 📸⁠Instagram⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠https://paypal.me/eliasschlie⁠ 🫶

My guest today is a Christian who decided to go to America to tell people about god. He went there without money, contacts, or a place to sleep. Today, he tells the story of what he experienced there. We also start discussing about god a little ;)📹⁠Watch on YouTube⁠🏔️⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠🌐⁠My Website⁠📸⁠Instagram⁠❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠https://paypal.me/eliasschlie⁠ 🫶Chapters00:00:00 - Intro00:02:56 - Why did you go to America?00:49:56 - Why does god do miracles? But only sometimes?00:55:23 - Why I don't believe in God01:11:22 - Back to America

Eelco Roovers is an Ayurveda practitioner, a former ballet dancer, and a former biologist. When I presented him with the question of this podcast "What is, all things considered, the most rational thing to do" he told me that the question is inherently flawed. So today, I decided to talk to him about why he believes this.Before this podcast, he told me to read the book "I and Thou" by Martin Buber 📹⁠Watch on YouTube⁠ 🏔️⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠ 🌐⁠My Website⁠ 📸⁠Instagram⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠https://paypal.me/eliasschlie⁠ 🫶

Bjarne Dietrich is a German paramedic who decided to go help the civilians living on the frontlines in Ukraine. He brings them food and medical supplies. 📹⁠Watch on YouTube⁠ 🏔️⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠ 🌐⁠My Website⁠ 📸⁠Instagram⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠https://paypal.me/eliasschlie⁠ 🫶 Chapters 00:00:00 - Intro 00:01:44 - Why/How did you go to Ukraine? 00:39:37 - What was the most dangerous situation you encountered? 00:55:23 - Throwing hand granades 00:57:57 - How did the morale of the Ukranian's develop?

Udesh is a masters student of Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence. Today, we talked about good and bad vs. right and wrong. We also went into how personality influences our view of the world and Udesh gave me a new understanding of why so many people will never be able to believe that nothing matters. We also really went into arguments for why this whole thing that we do is kind of meaningless. So consume with care ;) Enjoy! 📹⁠Watch on YouTube⁠ 🏔️⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠ 🌐⁠My Website⁠ 📸⁠Instagram⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠https://paypal.me/eliasschlie⁠ 🫶 Chapters 00:00:00 - Teaser 00:00:36 - Intro 00:02:15 - AI differences around the world 00:05:24 - Why AI? 00:06:38 - Cesares Goals 00:09:16 - Why you should give your all 00:22:22 - 2. Goal: To create an environment in which humans have agency and responsibility 00:25:01 - On leardership 00:30:36 - How to bring forth the good as a leader 00:45:23 - Leadership 00:52:53 - The difference between general and specific ideas 01:04:14 - The value of wrong ideas 01:11:11 - There is no ultimate truth? 01:23:23 - The absurdity of it all 01:31:54 - Advice

Cesare Dalbagno is a student of Cognitive Science and Artificial Intelligence. Today, we talked about leadership and how you can leverage the group to determine what is good and bad. 📹Watch on YouTube 🏔️List of my favorite Episodes 🌐My Website 📸Instagram ❤️If you want to support this podcast: https://paypal.me/eliasschlie 🫶 Chapters 00:00:00 - Teaser 00:00:36 - Intro 00:02:15 - AI differences around the world 00:05:24 - Why AI? 00:06:38 - Cesares Goals 00:09:16 - Why you should give your all 00:22:22 - 2. Goal: To create an environment in which humans have agency and responsibility 00:25:01 - On leardership 00:30:36 - How to bring forth the good as a leader 00:45:23 - Leadership 00:52:53 - The difference between general and specific ideas 01:04:14 - The value of wrong ideas 01:11:11 - There is no ultimate truth? 01:23:23 - The absurdity of it all 01:31:54 - Advice

A few days ago, I understood that we (Humans) don't understand anything. We act like our goals are important while not understanding anything. So today I talked about this revelation with Andrei Lixandru. 00:00 - Intro 04:08 - Why I want to build AGI 13:10 - Humans understand nothing ⁠📹Watch on YouTube⁠⁠ ⁠ ⁠⁠🏔️⁠⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠🌐My Website⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠📸My Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Paypal.me⁠⁠⁠⁠ 🫶 This conversation is divided into two distinct parts. The first part delves into my personal motivations for wanting to build Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), with the ultimate goal of understanding life and finding its meaning. Here, I explore my passion and the reasons behind this ambitious pursuit. The second part focuses on a moment of revelation I experienced, a turning point where I truly understood how little I actually know. This episode might lead to serious existential contemplation and could trigger a meaning crisis. ;)

Andrei Lixandru is a Cognitive computing and Artificial intelligence master's student whom I questioned about the possibility of building an AI Oracle - basically a general reasoning machine capable of 'calculating' the best decision given specific information and goals. 📹Watch on YouTube⁠ ⁠ ⁠⁠🏔️⁠List of my favorite Episodes⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠🌐My Website⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠📸My Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠⁠⁠Paypal.me⁠⁠⁠ 🫶 Welcome to our fascinating episode where we delve into the possibility of building an AI oracle. Imagine a world where, fed with information and a goal, an AI could determine the most optimal action to take. I spend 10 hours each day striving to understand the world and make the best decisions based on available information. But could we create an AI that does this for us? A reasoning machine capable of 'calculating' the best decision given specific information and goals? During a cooking session, I posed this question to Andrei, a master's student in Cognitive Computing and Artificial Intelligence. He walked me through the concept of building an oracle, exploring various AI types currently in use, and discussing the potential and limitations of each

How do you build up/maintain the habit of working hard on what you want to achieve? What is the best way to prioritize and schedule your goals? Those are the questions Mark Kagach and I try to tackle today. Other Episode with Mark: YouTube ; Spotify 📹Watch on YouTube ⁠⁠🏔️List of my favorite Episodes⁠⁠ ⁠⁠🌐My Website⁠⁠ ⁠⁠📸My Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠⁠Paypal.me⁠⁠ 🫶 00:00 - Intro 01:54 - Falling of the streak 04:45 - On Dopamine 08:23 - 90min Focus Blocks 11:58 - Shallow vs. Deep tasks 14:42 - Scheduling - Using a Calendar 20:34 - High-focus vs. Low-focus work 26:38 - Why you should plan your week every Sunday 34:36 - The Meaning of Life

Sam Altman wrote an amazing article outlining 13 steps on "How to be Successful?". In this podcast, I summarize the important points for us to understand his ideas. The article I was talking about 📹Watch on YouTube⁠⁠ ⁠⁠🏔️List of my favorite Episodes⁠⁠ ⁠⁠🌐My Website⁠⁠ ⁠⁠📸My Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠⁠Paypal.me⁠⁠ 🫶 00:00 - Intro 00:58 - 1. Compound your self 02:26 - 2. Have Almost too much Self-belief 03:52 - 3. Learn to Think Independently 05:35 - 4. Get good at "Sales" 06:49 - 5. Make it easy to take risk 08:18 - 6. Focus 09:00 - 7. Work Hard 09:52 - 8. Be Bolt 11:06 - 9. Be willful 12:20 - 10. Be Hard to Compete with 13:13 - 11. Build a Network 15:22 - 12. You get rich by owning things 15:59 - 13. Be Internally Driven

In his Book "The Art of Impossible", Steven Kotler lays out a way for everyone to reach things that once seemed impossible. I read and was really impressed by this book, so I summarized the most important points for everyone who wants to find out "How To Reach The Impossible?" ⁠📹Watch on YouTube ⁠ ⁠🏔️List of my favorite Episodes⁠ ⁠🌐My Website⁠ ⁠📸My Instagram⁠⁠⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠Paypal.me⁠ 🫶 00:00 - Start 01:15 - About the Author 02:56 - Structure of the Book 04:24 - 1. Motivation: How to find your Passion? 10:53 - Setting goals in the right way 15:56 - 2. Learning 20:19 - 3. Creativity 21:18 - How to increase Creativity? 24:30 - 4. Flow

Nikhil Yadav REALLY doesn't believe in Free Will. He thought this through to a higher degree than any other person I have ever talked to. ⁠📹Watch on YouTube⁠ ⁠🏔️List of my favorite Episodes⁠ ⁠🌐My Website⁠ ⁠📸My Instagram⁠⁠⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: ⁠Paypal.me⁠ 🫶 Resources - Beginning of Infinity - David Deutsch - Fabric of reality - David Deutsch - Behave - Robert Zabulki - The road to reality - Roger Penrose Chapters 00:00:00 - Intro 00:01:52 - The belief in Determinism 00:03:31 - Why free will can't exist 00:06:15 - General Relativity and the Big Bang 00:10:10 - Why Wikipedia is better than you think 00:12:19 - Determinism and Morality 00:13:31 - Good and Bad vs. Good and Evil 00:25:12 - Morality 00:31:14 - Responsibility 00:35:39 - Why it feels like we have free will 00:36:56 - The benefit of not believing in free will 00:42:38 - Nikhil's goals 00:43:59 - Why? 00:45:49 - We can't decide what we want 00:47:38 - ...

Wouter Smeets is the founder of the Startup Mintrospect which sells psychedelic truffles with an integrated guide on how to use them on the internet. Today, we talked a lot about his product and the opportunities of microdosing. We also went deep into the philosophy of nonduality and wanting. 📹Watch on YouTube 🏔️List of my favorite Episodes 🌐My Website 📸My Instagram⁠⁠ ❤️If you want to support this podcast: Paypal.me 🫶 Resources - Mintrospect - Beyond Good and Evil - Friedrich Nietzsche Chapters 00:00:00 - Start 00:01:43 - What is Mintrospect? 00:05:07 - The story of Mintrospect 00:10:32 - My microdoses instead of full doses? 00:12:45 - The effects of Microdosing 00:17:02 - Instrumental vs. Experiential approach to life 00:19:05 - Experiences with Microdosing 00:21:12 - Is it all placebo? 00:23:57 - Scientific view on Microdosing 00:25:37 - Depression 00:27:14 - Experiences with Psychedelics 00:29:42 - Benefits of Microdosing 00:32:10 - The Philosophy of Mintrospect 00:34:53 - How to sell this? 00:39:59 - The process of creating the Product/Book 00:41:20 - LSD vs. Shrooms 00:44:29 - Ketamine 00:48:05 - Hope 00:50:21 - Nonduality and Philosophy of Life 00:59:51 - The Meaning of Life / Good and Bad - Psychology 01:06:21 - Nonduality is not better than anything else! 01:09:57 - Should we strive for Nonduality? 01:12:47 - The Will 01:30:49 - Closing question

Ansar Bajwa is a student of Cognitive science and Artificial Intelligence from Pakistan who has a deeply philosophical view of life and belief in god. Resources - Revelation, Rationality, Knowledge & Truth - Mirza Tahir Ahmad Chapters 00:00:00 - Intro 00:01:16 - Idea on how to find valid conclusions about life 00:03:16 - Ansar's Meaning of Life 00:04:48 - Ansar's thoughts on prayer 00:11:21 - Why getting closer to God is self-improvement 01:42:29 - Ansar's Book recommendation 01:46:15 - A final quote

I signed up for a 10-day Vipassana Meditation retreat. A retreat where you meditate for 10 days straight without any human interaction. In this podcast, I talk about what this is, it's rules, and what I fear and expect. 00:00 Intro 01:18 How I came to do this crazy thing? 02:50 What is it? 05:50 Doing NOTHING for 24 hours 08:35 Rules 11:07 My fears 11:53 My expectations