This episode unpacks cohost Sebastian Mallaby’s new book The Infinity Machine and answers audience questions on AI, dollar dominance, the impact of Trump’s foreign policy on midterm elections, and more.

Hosts:

Sebastian Mallaby, Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics, Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)

Rebecca Patterson, Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations (CFR)

We discuss:

Demis Hassabis as a key architect of modern AI and the force behind DeepMind.
AI’s upside in medicine and science, especially through AlphaFold and faster drug discovery.
The tension between building powerful AI quickly and making it safe.
Why the biggest AI winners may be the ones that turn models into useful products.
Why the dollar still dominates, even as China and Europe look for ways to challenge it.
How Trump’s foreign policy decisions on the Middle East and immigration could sway voters in the upcoming midterm elections.
How drones and supply chain choke points are reshaping global conflict.

Mentioned on the Episode:

Sebastian Mallaby, The Infinity Machine: Demis Hassabis, DeepMind, and the Quest for Superintelligence, Penguin Random House

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The Spillover is a production of the Council on Foreign Relations. The opinions expressed on the show are solely those of the hosts and guests, not of the Council, which takes no institutional positions on matters of policy.

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