America's Crime Lab

Elon Musk has spent his career turning improbable ideas into companies that reshape the world. To some, the entrepreneur behind Tesla and SpaceX is an engineering genius whose ambitions have transformed electric cars and space travel. To others, his politics and extraordinary influence raise serious questions about the future he is building. Either way, the world’s first trillionaire is betting Tesla’s future on AI and humanoid robots, and SpaceX’s on life beyond Earth. In this season’s debut episode, Walter asks Musk about DOGE regrets, why he believes robots will solve America’s national debt, and the dark politics that have consumed his own platform, X. Along the way, Musk shares why living in a simulation demands that we all be less boring. A candid conversation about the imagination, drive and contradictions of a man determined to turn his vision into our future. Interview taped August 6, 2026. And be sure to pick up Walter Isaacson’s The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution, wherever fine books are sold. ABOUT THE HOSTWalter Isaacson is the bestselling author of biographies of Elon Musk, Jennifer Doudna, Leonardo da Vinci, Steve Jobs, Benjamin Franklin, and Albert Einstein. He is a professor of history at Tulane University and previously served as CEO of the Aspen Institute, chair and CEO of CNN, and editor of Time. He was awarded the National Humanities Medal in 2023. IN THIS SEASONElon Musk (Tesla, SpaceX, xAI)Peter Thiel (Founders Fund, PayPal, Palantir)Mustafa Suleyman (Microsoft AI, DeepMind)Dario Amodei and Daniela Amodei (Anthropic)and more!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A trucker calls police to report seeing a body floating in a Mississippi River. When police arrive to investigate, they’re shocked to find a little girl dead in the river brush. They’re even more startled when they find the body of a young man down river a few days later.  America’s Crime Lab is a true crime podcast about how science solves cold cases, missing persons, and other unsolved cases. Hosted by journalist and clinical psychologist Elin Lantz Lesser, and powered by Othram’s forensic DNA lab, the show connects the science to the story, revealing what really happens in the lab and why it matters.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Othram began to realize that a lot of unidentified remains cases languishing on shelves in law enforcement offices belonged to children. Children that remained unidentified for decades. Meanwhile, loved ones never gave up hope. There is a solution to this issue, and it’s less of a lift than you would think. In this episode, families finally find answers, and get a chance to say goodbye. America’s Crime Lab is a true crime podcast about how science solves cold cases, missing persons, and other unsolved cases. Hosted by journalist and clinical psychologist Elin Lantz Lesser, and powered by Othram’s forensic DNA lab, the show connects the science to the story, revealing what really happens in the lab and why it matters.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Emergency crews responding to a boat fire discovered human remains, but the case quickly went cold. For decades, investigators had no answers. Using advanced forensic DNA, Othram scientists were able to identify the victim and reveal the truth behind the fire, finally giving a family long-delayed closure. America’s Crime Lab is a true crime podcast about how science solves cold cases, missing persons, and other unsolved cases. Hosted by journalist and clinical psychologist Elin Lantz Lesser, and powered by Othram’s forensic DNA lab, the show connects the science to the story, revealing what really happens in the lab and why it matters.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

People swept away by Hurricane Katrina, lone travelers who disappeared, and kids who never came home. Where are all of these missing people, and are their unidentified remains sitting in universities and law enforcement offices around the country?  America’s Crime Lab is a true crime podcast about how science solves cold cases, missing persons, and other unsolved cases. Hosted by journalist and clinical psychologist Elin Lantz Lesser, and powered by Othram’s forensic DNA lab, the show connects the science to the story, revealing what really happens in the lab and why it matters.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.