The News Items Podcast

Last May, John talked with Josh Tyrangiel about his book, 'AI for Good'. A lot has happened since then. The pace of AI's development has accelerated dramatically. The Hugging Face Hack and the PHP vulnerability revelations became major stories and reiterated for all of us just how treacherous AI can and will be.

So we called him up and asked him to do another podcast about those two stories and the AI "story" more generally. Like all the good podcasts, it's really good when the guest is great. Josh is great.

Profile: Josh Tyrangiel is a writer for The Atlantic. He was previously the editor of Bloomberg Businessweek and chief content officer for Bloomberg Media. A twelve-time Emmy and Peabody Award–winning producer, he created Vice News Tonight on HBO and has produced numerous feature-length documentaries for HBO, Netflix, and Apple TV. These days, when he's not writing for The Atlantic, he oversees the production of "Instadocs" on Netflix. The one on the Hugging Face Hack is terrific.

Hosted by John Ellis
News Items on Substack
Produced by Katerina Barton

Charlie Cook, founder of the Cook Political Report, joins The News Items Podcast to discuss the upcoming midterm elections and the phenomenon he describes as the "red undertow,” why Democrats shouldn’t be too quick to celebrate on election night, and key races to watch.

Jim Messina, former White House Deputy Chief of Staff to President Obama and the manager of his re-election campaign in 2012, joins The News Items Podcast to discuss the midterm elections. From the the "macro" political environment to the rural vote in the critical Senate races, to the map that leans Republican to a referendum to outlaw "dark money" in Montana, it's a "wide-ranging" conversation, well worth your time.

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John Heilemann joins the News Items podcast to discuss the upcoming midterm elections. The conversation focuses on the challenges facing Republican candidates across the country. Heilemann notes that Republicans are actively "trimming" their electoral Congressional map, pulling resources from districts they once considered competitive. Meanwhile, Democrats are expanding their map of House, Senate and gubernatorial races. The big question is whether the GOP can hold the Senate in a very tough political environment. The conversation then moves on to discuss what the political environment might look like after the mid-terms.

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Benn Steil, director of international economics at the Council on Foreign Relations, joins John Ellis to examine why the postwar global economic order is under growing strain, and how China sits at the center of that story. Steil traces the evolution from Bretton Woods and GATT to the WTO, arguing that China’s integration into the global trading system created enormous benefits while also exposing deep tensions between different economic models. The conversation covers the first “China shock,” tariffs, cheap Chinese steel, and the difficulty of economically disentangling the United States and China. Steil also explains why the dollar remains dominant, how stablecoins could actually reinforce that dominance, and why Chinese subsidies in EVs and artificial intelligence present a new competitive challenge. Finally, Ellis and Steil discuss what it really means to “win” the AI race—and whether U.S. trade and economic policy has a coherent strategy for getting there.

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Perry Boyle, co-founder and CEO of MITS Capital, joins John Ellis from Kyiv to discuss how the war in Ukraine is reshaping modern warfare, and why he believes the West is not adapting fast enough. Boyle, a former Wall Street executive, explains how he went from retirement to investing in Ukrainian defense technology, backing startups working on drones, autonomous systems, AI, and battlefield components. He describes a war increasingly fought through sensors, robotics, data, and unmanned systems rather than traditional weapons, and argues that NATO doctrine and training remain badly behind Ukraine’s battlefield experience. Boyle also paints a stark picture of Ukraine’s financial and military position, warning that without substantially greater European support, the country could face severe difficulties sustaining the war. The conversation closes with his argument that Ukraine’s defense-tech ecosystem could become critical not only to Ukraine’s survival, but to Europe’s future security.

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MIT political scientist Adam Berinsky joins John Ellis to examine why modern polling is harder to trust and what that means for politics. They discuss collapsing response rates, the limits of margin-of-error claims, online surveys, media incentives, and why “accuracy” can be a misleading way to rank pollsters. The conversation then turns to partisan media, negative advertising, voter turnout, political fragmentation, and the persistence of conspiracy theories. Berinsky explains why misinformation is so difficult to correct, who is most susceptible to political rumors, and why trusted messengers matter. Finally, they consider how artificial intelligence could reshape evidence, persuasion, and political decision-making.

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Rebecca Patterson, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and former chief investment strategist at Bridgewater Associates, joins John Ellis to explain why the U.S. and Japan intervened jointly to support the yen, and why Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is so focused on keeping U.S. yields under control. Patterson traces the risks from currency weakness, Treasury selling, and financial contagion, while arguing that today’s conditions are far from a repeat of the Asian financial crisis. The conversation then turns to prediction markets, where Patterson sees both useful forecasting signals and growing evidence of gambling-style behavior among younger users. Finally, Ellis and Patterson examine how AI could reshape finance, employment, and corporate costs, with open-source models, especially cheaper Chinese alternatives, putting pressure on the economics of the current AI boom. The result is a wide-ranging discussion of currencies, markets, political incentives, and the next phase of artificial intelligence over the coming two years.

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John Ellis talks with AI researcher Alan D. Thompson about the rapid advance of artificial intelligence and the prospect of artificial superintelligence. Thompson explains his methods for tracking progress toward AGI, the growth of trillion-parameter models, and the narrowing gap between leading American and Chinese systems. They discuss the enormous capital investment in data centers, the economics of AI infrastructure, and the sectors most likely to be transformed first, including healthcare and mental health. The conversation also covers job displacement, the difficulty of managing the economic transition, the emergence of autonomous humanoid robots, and the possibility that increasingly capable systems could reshape governance and social institutions. Thompson argues that continued scaling remains the central force driving AI progress and that the next advances may arrive faster than expected.

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John Ellis talks with MIT political scientist Charles Stewart III about the mechanics, vulnerabilities and public perception of American elections. They revisit the disputed 2000 contest, the administration of the 2020 vote, and the reasons false claims of fraud gained traction despite extensive verification. Stewart explains why machine counting is generally more reliable than hand counts, why California takes longer to certify results, and how election officials measure performance. The conversation then turns to the 2026 midterms, including federal efforts involving voter files, mail ballots, and identification requirements. Stewart warns that close races could produce widespread challenges, pressure on local officials and disputes over seating members of Congress. He also discusses AI, election funding, and why he remains confident in the country’s fact-based institutions today.

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John Ellis talks with The New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan about their book, Regime Change, an account of Donald Trump’s second presidency. They discuss how power operates inside a White House built around speed, instinct, and direct access to the president, often with little traditional process. The conversation covers Stephen Miller’s influence, Trump’s tariff decisions, the role of tech executives, the administration’s handling of the Epstein files, and the path to war with Iran. Haberman and Swan also describe the unusual figures who shape Trump’s information flow, the limits of internal dissent, and the tension between his visible stamina and questions about his age and health. It is a detailed look at an administration moving quickly, personally, and with few institutional brakes.

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John Ellis talks with Richard Rushfield, founder of The Ankler, about a Hollywood business model under stress. Rushfield traces the industry’s troubles back to the end of fin-syn rules, the rise of Netflix, and a wave of consolidation that has left studios bigger, safer, and more risk-averse. They discuss Disney’s parks-first future, Paramount’s high-stakes tie-up with Warner Bros. Discovery, Fox’s Roku bet, YouTube’s dominance, AI anxiety, China’s fading promise, and why horror still works while comedy has nearly disappeared. It’s a tour through Hollywood’s money, politics, technology, and creative exhaustion.

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The Ankler

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John Ellis talks with historian David Blackbourn, author of Germany in the World: A Global History, 1500-2000, about five centuries of German history viewed through a global lens. They discuss Germany before there was a German state; the role of merchants, soldiers, missionaries, commodities and culture; the rupture of 1914; the rise of Nazism and the Holocaust’s international machinery; and the country’s postwar rebuilding, division and reunification. The conversation then turns to the German model today: dependence on America, Russia and China, Merkel’s legacy, Ukraine, the AfD, Europe’s economic sclerosis, and whether Germany can still attract talent and reinvent itself.

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Hosted by John Ellis

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John Ellis talks with retired Brigadier General Russ Howard about the wars in Iran and Ukraine, why modern warfare is changing faster than most militaries can adapt, and a much bigger problem that could be coming down the road. Howard argues that food, fertilizer, water, and supply chains are becoming national security issues in their own right. They discuss the real-world effects of conflict on agriculture, growing concerns over global water shortages, and a project at Arizona State University that asks what the world might look like in 2040 if current trends continue. A conversation about the risks that sit just beneath the headlines.

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Hosted by John Ellis

Produced by Dale Eisinger

California's primaries may be local elections, but Jeff Greenfield argues they're offering an early glimpse of the political battles that could define the next presidential cycle. Joining John Ellis, the veteran political analyst breaks down the chaotic races for governor and mayor of Los Angeles, the surprising rise of reality-TV candidate Spencer Pratt, and why vast campaign spending isn't always enough to buy momentum. The conversation then widens to the national landscape, from the emerging Democratic field, to the Republican succession fight that could follow Donald Trump. Along the way, Greenfield and Ellis explore why figures like Rahm Emanuel and Gina Raimondo may be better positioned than conventional wisdom suggests. The episode closes with a deep dive into artificial intelligence as a political issue. As Silicon Valley leaders openly discuss building a "machine god," Greenfield and Ellis examine whether public anxiety over AI could become the defining fault line of the 2028 election.

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Hosted by John Ellis

Produced by Dale Eisinger

In this episode of the News Items podcast, Josh Tyrangiel joins John Ellis for a wide-ranging conversation about the promises, dangers, and strange human realities of artificial intelligence. Drawing from his new book, AI for Good, Tyrangiel argues that the most important breakthroughs in AI are not happening inside Silicon Valley boardrooms, but among stubborn doctors, educators, and public servants quietly trying to solve impossible problems. The discussion moves from Palantir Technologies and Operation Warp Speed to the modernization of the IRS, AI tutors in classrooms, and new tools helping doctors reduce burnout and improve patient care. Along the way, Tyrangiel explores the political future of AI, the collapse of public trust in institutions, and why the next generation of leaders may be judged less on ideology than on whether they can understand (and govern) the most powerful technology of the century.

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Hosted by John Ellis

Produced by Dale Eisinger

In this episode of News Items, John Ellis sits down with author and Council on Foreign Relations fellow Sebastian Mallaby to unpack the astonishing rise of Demis Hassabis and the race to build artificial general intelligence. From Hassabis’s childhood as a chess prodigy to the creation of Google DeepMind, the conversation traces how a London-born gamer and coder became one of the most consequential scientists alive. Mallaby explains the breakthroughs behind AlphaGo and AlphaFold, why AI may soon revolutionize medicine faster than the human genome project transformed biology, and why the technology’s dangers are no longer theoretical. The discussion moves from Hassabi’s Nobel Prizes to rogue states, AI arms races, cyberwarfare, and the unsettling possibility that machines may soon improve themselves faster than humans can understand them. It is a fascinating, occasionally terrifying portrait of a future arriving far sooner than most people realize.

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Hosted by John Ellis

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On this episode of the News Items Podcast, John Ellis sits down with economist and longtime China watcher Stephen Roach for a sweeping conversation about the uneasy future of the U.S.-China relationship. Roach reflects on three decades of watching China evolve from an open, fast-rising economic experiment into a far more centralized and controlled superpower under Xi Jinping. The discussion ranges from AI, semiconductors, and electric vehicles to Taiwan, Evergrande, COVID lockdowns, and the mounting global debt crisis. Roach argues that China’s technological rise is real and underestimated, but warns that both Beijing and Washington are trapped in a cycle of suspicion that makes meaningful cooperation increasingly difficult. Along the way, he offers rare firsthand insight into China’s political culture, the collapse of open debate inside the country, and why he still believes some form of U.S.-China collaboration remains possible before economic rivalry hardens into something far more dangerous

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Hosted by John Ellis

Produced by Dale Eisinger

In this episode of the News Items podcast, John Ellis sits down with Taegan Goddard, the founder of Political Wire, for a sprawling conversation about the chaos engine that is modern American politics. Goddard traces the unlikely origins of Political Wire, from downloading newspaper front pages at 4 a.m. on a commuter train, to building one of the internet’s earliest and most influential political blogs. From there, the discussion turns to Trump’s collapsing approval numbers, Democratic momentum heading into the midterms, and the Senate races that could decide control of Washington. They dissect everything from AI data-center revolts in rural America to the future of MAGA after Trump, while gaming out whether figures like Gavin Newsom, JD Vance, or a dark horse nobody sees coming will dominate 2028. It’s equal parts campaign autopsy, media criticism, and insider shop talk from two veteran political obsessives.

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Hosted by John Ellis

Produced by Dale Eisinger

In this episode of the News Items Podcast, John Ellis speaks with venture capitalist Daniel Adamson about investing at the cutting edge of global innovation. Adamson explains his “network model,” partnering with elite investors worldwide to access breakthroughs across AI, biotech, robotics, and even fashion. The conversation cuts through AI hype, arguing for a more nuanced view of its strengths, particularly in solving complex, data-heavy, rule-based problems like drug discovery. Adamson highlights transformative opportunities, from automated science labs to humanitarian applications, while warning of disruption across sectors like infrastructure and real estate. Ultimately, the episode explores how rapid technological change is reshaping markets, portfolios, and even our understanding of what it means to be human.

Daniel Adamson operates as a network-driven investor rather than a traditional venture capitalist. Instead of selecting individual startups, he invests in leading venture capital firms and partners with major global institutions such as pensions and sovereign funds. His approach centers on identifying top investors across industries like biotech, fintech, and energy, then aligning with them by taking stakes in their firms and co-investing in their strongest opportunities.

This model provides access to high-quality deals, diversified exposure, and a steady flow of insight from experienced managers. By connecting capital with specialized expertise, it leverages collective knowledge rather than relying on a single viewpoint.

The advantage is early access to innovation and efficient deployment of capital. Rather than trying to outperform specialists directly, his role is to build and manage a system that consistently directs investment toward the most promising opportunities worldwide.

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Hosted by John Ellis

Produced by Dale Eisinger