Capitalism (Taylor's Version) (25-minute Podcast Version)
Planet Money hands the episode over to Vox's Today Explained to examine how Taylor Swift and other pop stars use album variants and sales strategies to game music charts and monetize superfans. Music reporter Elias Light explains the mechanics and incentives behind physical and digital variants, while critic Ann Powers unpacks the backlash to Swift's latest album, fans' discomfort with her extreme wealth, and how she uses her music to control her public narrative. The episode situates Swift within broader industry practices and compares her autobiographical approach to Beyoncé's more representative storytelling.
AGI, Immortality, & Visions of the Future with Adam Becker
Neil deGrasse Tyson, Gary O'Reilly, and Chuck Nice talk with physicist and author Adam Becker about how tech billionaires envision the future through ideas like AGI, space colonization, transhumanism, and digital immortality. Becker explains why many of these visions are scientifically dubious or incoherent, how they misread science fiction as literal blueprints rather than cautionary tales, and how extreme wealth concentrates power over humanity's technological trajectory. The episode closes with a reflection on the need for wisdom and ethical guardrails alongside scientific and technological ingenuity.
BTC255: Bitcoin Is For Everyone w/ Natalie Brunell (Bitcoin Podcast)
Host Preston Pysh interviews journalist and educator Natalie Brunel about her book "Bitcoin Is for Everyone" and how her immigrant family's experience with the American dream and the 2008 financial crisis shaped her worldview. They discuss why the current fiat-based financial system feels broken, how inflation and debt erode savings and opportunity, and why Natalie believes Bitcoin is a hopeful, apolitical form of money that can restore property rights, enable low time preference, and counter systemic wealth concentration. The conversation also covers the challenge of explaining Bitcoin simply, its relationship to energy and human rights, and broader geopolitical and industrial vulnerabilities in the US.
X's Foreign Trolls, Google's AI Wins, and MTG's Resignation
Hosts Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway discuss foreign-operated troll accounts on X, broader Russian and other foreign influence operations on U.S. politics, and the GOP's shifting stance on Russia, including Marco Rubio's role in a controversial Ukraine peace plan. They analyze Google's new Gemini 3 model and Alphabet's AI strategy versus OpenAI, evaluate market jitters around the AI boom and crypto, and cover Marjorie Taylor Greene's announced resignation, Eli Lilly's GLP-1-fueled valuation, elite wealth and political power, and the importance of competent public servants and everyday gratitude practices.
The Consumer Sentiment vs. Consumer Spending Puzzle
The episode explores why U.S. consumer spending remains strong despite very low consumer sentiment and several economic headwinds like high interest rates, inflation, and tariffs. Using detailed credit card data, economist Dieran Patkey shows that high-income households are driving much of the growth in spending, effectively propping up the economy. Economist Peter Atwater argues that this creates a top-heavy, "K-shaped" economy and a fragile, illusionary sense of broad prosperity that is vulnerable to shocks in financial markets.
654. Is the Public Ready for Private Equity?
The episode examines the push to open private equity and other private markets to retail investors, especially through 401(k) plans, following a Trump administration executive order. Law professor Elizabeth DeFontenay and economist Steve Kaplan explain how private equity works, its historical outperformance versus public markets, and why that outperformance has likely diminished as the asset class has matured and become crowded. They warn that high fees, opaque pricing, illiquidity, and second-tier access mean that ordinary investors are unlikely to benefit from this shift, and that expanding retail exposure could change private markets themselves and increase systemic risks.
Meta Monopoly Verdict, Trump Signs the Epstein Bill, and Nvidia's Q3 Earnings
Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway discuss Nvidia's blowout Q3 earnings, the sustainability of the current AI boom, and the risks of having the broader economy so dependent on a handful of tech giants. They analyze the federal court ruling that Meta did not break antitrust law with its Instagram and WhatsApp acquisitions, Trump's signing of the bill to release the Jeffrey Epstein files, and the emerging cultural backlash against billionaire entitlement revealed in leaked Epstein-related emails. The conversation also covers Trump's fawning visit with Mohammed bin Salman, Elon Musk's presence at that dinner, the bidding war for Warner Bros. Discovery among Paramount, Comcast, and Netflix, and political implications including New York City Mayor-elect Zoran Mamdani's upcoming meeting with Trump and a possible progressive shift in U.S. politics.
Bezos's AI Start-up, Thiel's Nvidia Sell-off, and Trump-MTG Breakup
Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway recap their recent live tour and Scott's appearance on Bill Maher's show before diving into U.S. politics, including Donald Trump's push to release the Epstein files and his public break with Marjorie Taylor Greene. They analyze Greene's apparent pivot and apology, debate a new Republican health care proposal and broader healthcare reform, and then turn to concerns about an AI-driven market bubble, Peter Thiel's NVIDIA sell-off, OpenAI's economics, Jeff Bezos's new AI startup, the recent bond rally, and the fragility created by extreme stock market concentration. The episode closes with wins and fails focused on Seth Meyers vs. Trump, Tom Cruise's honorary Oscar, and worries about systemic financial risk.
Epstein Emails, Kennedy for Congress, and Guest Gov. JB Pritzker
At a live Pivot show in Chicago, Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway interview Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker about federal immigration enforcement operations in Chicago, Donald Trump's attacks on the city, crime trends, redistricting, the government shutdown fight, quantum computing, and his positions on issues like minimum wage, health care, Ukraine, and social media regulation. After the interview, Kara and Scott analyze newly released Jeffrey Epstein documents and what they could mean for Donald Trump, discuss Jack Schlossberg's run for Congress and the role of looks and sexism in politics, and break down Kim Kardashian's Skims valuation and celebrity entrepreneurship. They close with an extended audience Q&A on topics including the Fed and economic data, dating and life advice, housing and NIMBYism, and whether Scott would run for president.
Flight Cancellation Chaos, SNAP Ruling, and U.S.-Canada Trade War
In this live Pivot taping from Toronto, hosts Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway discuss escalating U.S. flight delays tied to FAA staffing and a government shutdown, using airline safety and history to illustrate how policy choices affect economic vitality and public trust. They examine the U.S. Supreme Court's handling of SNAP food benefits, child hunger, and what budget priorities reveal about American values, before turning to U.S.-Canada tariffs, asymmetric trade benefits, Canadian efforts to diversify away from the U.S., and missed innovation opportunities. The episode also explores progressive urban politics, models of modern masculinity, debates over state-run grocery stores versus higher minimum wage, falling cross-border tourism, and audience questions on defending democracy, advertising careers, and AI-driven disinformation.
Mamdani's Win, Palantir's Stock Slide, and Tesla's Pay Package
Hosts Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway discuss recent U.S. election results, including Zoran Mamdani's New York mayoral win and Democratic gains nationwide, and analyze generational and gender divides in voting alongside structural inequality in education and child poverty. They debate income-based affirmative action and tax enforcement, examine the Supreme Court case over Trump's tariffs and the investment implications of possible refunds, and explore the growing privatization of space, Palantir's soaring valuation versus Michael Burry's short, right‑wing flirtations with extremism, and the looming shareholder vote on Elon Musk's massive Tesla pay package.
TIP765: What the World's Great Philosophers Can Still Teach Us About Wealth and Wisdom w/ Kyle Grieve
Host Kyle Grieve explores how ideas from major philosophers can improve investing decisions, emotional control, and definitions of success. Drawing on Ethan Everett's book 'The Investment Philosophers', he connects thinkers like Spinoza, Nietzsche, Hume, Voltaire, Pascal, William James, Baudrillard, Schopenhauer, Montaigne, Kierkegaard, Camus, Martin Buber, and Bruce Lee to practical investing mindsets and behaviors. The episode blends philosophical concepts with real investing examples from Kyle and well-known investors such as Warren Buffett, Howard Marks, George Soros, and David Einhorn.
After the shutdown, SNAP will still be in trouble
The episode examines how a new federal law, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, ties states' costs for food stamps (SNAP) to their payment error rates, shifting part of the financial burden from the federal government to states. Reporters follow Oregon official Nate Singer as he works to reduce the state's high error rate without making it harder for people like Safeway cashier and SNAP recipient Vicki Aguilar to access benefits. The story also explores the auditing system, the tradeoff between accuracy and accessibility, the perspective of Governor Tina Kotek, and the added pressure from a federal government shutdown threatening to suspend SNAP payments.
651. The Ultimate Dance Partner
This episode explores the past and present of horses, from their central role in ancient empires and industrial America to their modern status as high-value sport animals in disciplines like dressage. Economist-equestrians and historians explain how horses evolved from "living machines" that powered cities to luxury goods shaped by opaque markets, billionaires, and specialized breeding. The host then visits a New Jersey dressage barn to see training up close and even rides a high-level sport horse himself to experience the human-horse partnership.
Nvidia Hits $5 Trillion, Elon Musk Launches Grokipedia, and OpenAI's IPO Future
Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway open with personal updates about travel, anxiety when far from home, co-sleeping and parenting, as well as Kara's visit to a Ken Burns screening and Scott receiving a Spirit of Hope award from the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Toronto. They then dive into OpenAI's shift to a public benefit corporation structure and potential IPO, AI's use in mental health and risks for minors, Nvidia's explosive valuation and Jensen Huang's praise of Donald Trump, Elon Musk's Grokpedia and Truth Social's prediction market, Tesla's proposed trillion‑dollar pay package, major tech earnings and AI-driven capex, CNN's new streaming strategy, and the broader impact of AI as a "corporate Ozempic" driving layoffs and inequality.
The remittance mystery
The episode investigates a puzzling surge in remittances flowing from the United States to several Central American and Caribbean countries, especially Honduras, despite heightened immigration enforcement and declining new immigration. Through interviews with a Honduran bank remittance manager, migrants, and economists, the reporters explore how fear of deportation, a looming remittance tax, and migrants' desire to build savings back home are driving this spike. They also examine how critical remittances are to economies like Honduras, the risks of over-dependence on this income, and the potential economic shock if these flows decline in the near future.
Tax the rich - and save the planet | Esther Duflo
Host Elise Hu introduces a TED Talk by economist Esther Duflo, who argues that the world's richest individuals and largest multinational corporations should fund climate damage costs through targeted taxes. Duflo quantifies the mortality and financial burden that greenhouse gas emissions from rich countries impose on low- and middle-income countries and proposes a global wealth and corporate tax to raise around $1.7 trillion annually. She advocates sending this money directly to people, especially in poorer nations, to build resilience and create a new grand bargain where rich countries pay climate damages and poorer countries commit to strong climate action.
Financial Expert: Passive Income Is A Scam! Post-Traumatic Broke Syndrome Is Controlling Millions!
Stephen and Morgan Housel discuss why most financial advice focuses on saving and investing while almost nothing is said about how to spend money in a way that actually improves life. Morgan explains the psychology behind spending, status, envy, trauma around money, and argues that true wealth is more about independence and contentment than income or possessions. They also challenge the myth of passive income, explore inequality and social media's impact on expectations, and examine how to minimize future regret through clearer values and better decisions.
Is the U.S. Really Less Corrupt Than China? (Update)
Stephen Dubner interviews political scientist Yuen Yuen Ong about her research on corruption in China and the United States, based on her book "China's Gilded Age." Ong explains her four-part typology of corruption, how certain types of corruption can coexist with rapid economic growth, and why she believes the U.S. and China are both experiencing different versions of a "Gilded Age." She also critiques common corruption metrics, discusses China's evolving political-economic model under Mao, Deng, and Xi, and reflects on the strengths and weaknesses of capitalist prosperity and democracy.