I set aside time to learn every day and I'm always looking for ways to improve myself both personally and professionally.
Blog / Newsletter Recommendations
A handful of the resources that I take the time to read regularly and strongly recommend:- A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry (ACOUP)
- Astral Codex Ten
- Austin Vernon
- Benedict Evans
- Byrne Hobart (The Diff)
- Casey Handmer
- Chris Dixon
- Eli Dourado
- Fabricated Knowledge
- Gwern
- Jack Clark (Import AI)
- Matt Levine (Money Stuff)
- Matt Turck
- Patrick McKenzie (Bits About Money, @patio11)
- SemiAnalysis
- Slow Boring
- Zvi Mowshowitz
The Pocket app has dramatically boosted my reading volume and quality (over 6 million words in the last five years). See my recommendations by clicking on the image below:
Otherwise, navigate over to the Book Reviews tab to see summaries and analysis of the books I've read.
Podcasts
Dwarkesh Patel has proven himself to be the best tech interviewer of this generation. For every episode, he seems to do a Ph.D.-level deep dive into the reference material to be able to investigate more deeply than any other host. He's simultaneously kept the focus on tech (especially AI) and history without getting sucked into the all-consuming black hole of politics.
Favorite Episodes:
The 80,000 Hours Podcast features in-depth conversations about the world’s most pressing problems and how you can use your career to solve them. Highly recommended.
Favorite Episodes:
- #44 - Dr Paul Christiano on how OpenAI is developing real solutions to the 'AI alignment problem', and his vision of how humanity will progressively hand over decision-making to AI systems
- #17 – Prof Will MacAskill on moral uncertainty, utilitarianism & how to avoid being a moral monster
- #31 – Prof Allan Dafoe on defusing the political and economic risks posed by existing AI capabilities
- #25 - Prof Robin Hanson on why we have to lie to ourselves about why we do what we do
The Gradient: Interviews with various people who research, build, or use AI, including academics, engineers, artists, entrepreneurs, and more.
Favorite Episodes:
An incredibly deep, honest, and unique podcast by Phil Klay and Jake Siegel. Episodes blend together the hosts' deep knowledge of art, philosophy, history, and literature to discuss the history of ideas and their influences on culture.
Favorite Episodes:
Foreign Policy’s The Editor’s Roundtable: For sharp, witty commentary on foreign policy and policy issues more broadly, look no further. The podcast brings together 4-5 foreign policy experts in a roundtable discussion format to explore topics that are often too complex to be reliably conveyed in news blurbs and headlines.
Regrettably, the podcast has lost much of its charm after an executive/leadership shake-up, but some of the old episodes continue to influence my thinking on policy.
Favorite Episodes:
How to Start a Startup: This is required listening for anyone who has flirted with the idea of becoming an entrepreneur. This lecture series is also available in video form.
Favorite Episodes:
- 03 - Paul Graham - Before the Startup
- 10 - Brian Chesky and Alfred Lin - Culture
- 12 - Aaron Levie - Building for the Enterprise
- 01 - Sam Altman and Dustin Moskovitz