Making Sense with Sam Harris - Subscriber Content

In this latest episode of the “More From Sam” series, Sam and Jaron talk about current events and answer some of the questions you all submitted on Substack. They discuss the Israel-Hamas peace deal, the plans to build a Qatari air force facility in Idaho, why Trump lies about golf, the assassination of Charlie Kirk and the reactions from the Left and the Right, what Ezra Klein got wrong in his piece about Kirk, Sam’s relationship with Christopher Hitchens, Bari Weiss and The Free Press, and rapid fire questions. Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/438-more-from-sam-israel-hamas-deal-qatari-air-force-base-trump-charlie-kirk-ezra-klein-rapid-fire-questions

Sam Harris speaks with Dan Senor about the state of the world two years after the October 7th attacks. They discuss the rise of global antisemitism, immigration and the failure of Western nations to contend with the spread of Islam, the dramatic reshaping of the Middle East, the ongoing war in Gaza, Trump's proposed peace plan, criticism of Prime Minister Netanyahu, Israel’s biggest military and public relations mistakes during the war, President Trump’s surprising reliability as an ally to Israel, antisemitism on the Left and the Right, Tucker Carlson, Zohran Mamdani, and other topics. Dan Senor is a foreign policy expert and host of the Call Me Back podcast. He is the co-author of two New York Times-bestselling books: Start-Up Nation: The Story of Israel’s Economic Miracle (2009) and The Genius of Israel: The Surprising Resilience of a Divided Nation in a Turbulent World (2023). Senor served as a senior Department of Defense official and chief spokesperson for the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq, for which he was awarded the Pentagon’s highest civilian honor. He has also served as a foreign policy advisor for multiple Republican presidential campaigns and in the U.S. Senate.   Website: https://arkmedia.org/call-me-back/ X: https://x.com/dansenor Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/437-two-years-since-10-7

Sam Harris speaks with Michael Osterholm about his new book, The Big One: How We Must Prepare for Future Deadly Pandemics. They discuss the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, the major mistakes made in the public health response—including lockdowns, school closures, and border policies—the science of airborne versus droplet transmission, the promise and controversy of mRNA vaccines, the reality of vaccine adverse events, the politicization of vaccine hesitancy, and the erosion of scientific institutions like the CDC and HHS under the Trump administration. Looking forward, they explore the characteristics of a future, more deadly pandemic—what Osterholm calls “The Big One”—and what we should be doing to prepare for it. Michael Osterholm, PhD, MPH, is Regents Professor, McKnight Presidential Endowed Chair in Public Health, the director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP), Distinguished Teaching Professor in the Division of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, a professor in the Technological Leadership Institute, College of Science and Engineering, and an adjunct professor in the Medical School, all at the University of Minnesota. In early 2025, Dr. Osterholm and colleagues founded the Vaccine Integrity Project, a key initiative dedicated to safeguarding vaccine use in the US. He is also author of the new book, The Big One: How We Must Prepare for Future Deadly Pandemics.   Website: https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/ X: @mtosterholm Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/436-a-crisis-of-trust

Sam Harris introduces the first episode of The Last Invention, a new podcast series on the hype and fear about the AI revolution, reported by Gregory Warner and Andy Mills. Gregory Warner was a foreign correspondent in Russia and Afghanistan, and the East Africa bureau chief for NPR. He created and hosted the podcast Rough Translation. He also publishes stories on This American Life and in The New York Times. Andy Mills is a reporter and editor, formerly of The New York Times, where he helped create their audio department and shows like The Daily and Rabbit Hole.  The Last Invention is a limited run series with eight total episodes. You can find it anywhere you listen to podcasts, where episodes will be released weekly. You can sign up for their mailing list on Substack at https://longviewinvestigations.substack.com/, and you can also subscribe on their website at longviewinvestigations.com. Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/435-the-last-invention

Sam Harris speaks with Eliezer Yudkowsky and Nate Soares about their new book, If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies: The Case Against Superintelligent AI. They discuss the alignment problem, ChatGPT and recent advances in AI, the Turing Test, the possibility of AI developing survival instincts, hallucinations and deception in LLMs, why many prominent voices in tech remain skeptical of the dangers of superintelligent AI, the timeline for superintelligence, real-world consequences of current AI systems, the imaginary line between the internet and reality, why Eliezer and Nate believe superintelligent AI would necessarily end humanity, how we might avoid an AI-driven catastrophe, the Fermi paradox, and other topics. Eliezer Yudkowsky is a founding researcher in the field of AI alignment and the co-founder of the Machine Intelligence Research Institute. With influential work spanning more than twenty years, Yudkowsky has played a major role in shaping the public conversation about smarter-than-human AI. He appeared on Time magazine's 2023 list of the 100 Most Influential People in AI, and has been discussed or interviewed in The New Yorker, Newsweek, Forbes, Wired, Bloomberg, The Atlantic, The Economist, the Washington Post, and other outlets. Website: https://ifanyonebuildsit.com/ X: @ESYudkowsky   Nate Soares is the president of the Machine Intelligence Research Institute. He has worked in the AI alignment field for over a decade, and previously held positions at Microsoft and Google. Soares is the author of a substantial body of technical and semi-technical writing on AI alignment, including foundational work on value learning, decision theory, and power-seeking incentives in smarter-than-human AIs. Website: https://ifanyonebuildsit.com/ X: @So8res   Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/434-can-we-survive-ai

Sam Harris speaks with Dan Carlin about the decades-long buildup to our current political moment. They discuss the growing powers of the presidency, executive orders, different factions within the Republican Party, the fragmentation of our society, Libertarianism, the growing prospect of political violence, racism and scapegoating, foreign interference in American politics, immigration, global trends towards autocracy, whether “gatekeepers” in the media are necessary, holocaust denialism, and other topics. Dan Carlin is a podcast host and journalist. He is best known for hosting the shows Hardcore History and Common Sense. Formerly a radio host and television news reporter, Carlin is renowned for his in-depth historical analysis and accessible storytelling approach. He is also the author of The New York Times bestseller The End Is Always Near: Apocalyptic Moments from the Bronze Age Collapse to Nuclear Near Misses (2019).    Website: https://www.dancarlin.com/ X: @hardcorehistory Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/433-how-did-we-get-here

Sam Harris speaks with David French about Trump’s assault on American democracy. They discuss Trump’s persecution of political opponents, abuse of the pardon power, Congress’s ineffectiveness, David’s proposed change to Article II of the Constitution, whether democracy in the U.S. has passed the point of no return, the future of election integrity, Trump’s threats against Elon Musk, the weaponization of ICE, the dangers of deploying the National Guard in American cities, white evangelical support for Trump, Republican infighting and why only Trump can hold the MAGA coalition together, Trump’s unique political talents, the prospect of him remaining in power beyond two terms, and other topics. David French is a columnist for the New York Times, co-host of the Advisory Opinions podcast, and a visiting professor at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee. He is a constitutional lawyer and the former president of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. He is a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, where he earned a Bronze Star. His most recent book is Divided We Fall: America's Secession Threat and How to Restore Our Nation.   Website: https://www.nytimes.com/by/david-french X: @DavidAFrench Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/432-the-undoing-of-america

Sam Harris speaks with Michael Roth about the state of higher education in the U.S. They discuss whether concerns about wokeness were overblown, how colleges should handle campus protests, where universities should draw the line on extreme political views, DEI, why Jews should be wary of Trump’s proclaimed protections, perceptions of Israel, how the Trump administration is attempting to ideologically control institutions, diversifying viewpoints at universities, and other topics. Michael S. Roth is the president of Wesleyan University, where he has overseen major campus improvements—including the soon-to-be completed life sciences building—and launched interdisciplinary programs spanning public life, creative writing and criticism, the environment, film, East Asian studies, integrative sciences, and design and engineering. Under his leadership, Wesleyan completed a record-breaking fundraising campaign of more than $482 million, primarily for financial aid. An intellectual historian, Roth is also the author of several books, including Beyond the University: Why Liberal Education Matters (2014), which won the AAC&U’s Frederic W. Ness Award; Safe Enough Spaces: A Pragmatist’s Approach to Inclusion, Free Speech, and Political Correctness (2019); and most recently The Student: A Short History (2023). Website: https://www.wesleyan.edu/president/ X: @mroth78 Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/431-what-is-happening-on-college-campuses

In this latest episode of the “More From Sam” series, Sam and Jaron talk about current events and answer some of the questions you all submitted on Substack. They discuss Trump and his attempts at peace deals, Gavin Newsom as the potential 2028 Democratic nominee, rising class tensions and the ethical responsibilities of the ultra-wealthy, DOGE, & rapid fire questions. Produced by Griffin Katz Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/430-more-from-sam-trump-gavin-newsom-class-war-doge-rapid-fire-questions

Sam Harris speaks with Anne Applebaum about the erosion of democracy at home and abroad. They discuss the Sudanese civil war and the outside forces involved, America’s retreat from global leadership, the impacts of USAID cuts, gerrymandering, the integrity of U.S. elections, the capitulation of Republican representatives to Trump, tariffs, what a post-Trump world could look like, JD Vance as a potential successor to the MAGA movement, Israel’s actions in Gaza, and other topics. Anne Applebaum is a historian, journalist, and staff writer at The Atlantic. She is also a Senior Fellow at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and the SNF Agora Institute. She was a columnist for The Washington Post for more than fifteen years. She is the author of five critically acclaimed books: Twilight of Democracy, Red Famine, Iron Curtain, Between East and West, and Gulag, for which she won the Pulitzer Prize. She divides her time between Poland, where her husband is foreign minister, and Washington, D.C. Her latest book is Autocracy, Inc.: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World.    Website: https://www.anneapplebaum.com/ X: @anneapplebaum https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/429-the-new-world-order

Sam Harris speaks with Jonah Goldberg about Trump 2.0 and wealth inequality. They discuss the horseshoe theory, illiberalism on the Right and the Left, the fallout of the Trump-Epstein controversy, cracks in Trump’s cult following, the difference between MAGA activists and average republican voters, why the Democrats still haven’t course-corrected, problems with the “abundance agenda,” socialism and economic populism, the pitfalls of the far-left’s approach to solving wealth inequality, Israel’s standing on the world stage, and other topics. Jonah Goldberg is the cofounder and editor-in-chief of The Dispatch. A Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, Goldberg is also an LA Times columnist, CNN contributor, and three-time bestselling author.  Website: TheDispatch.com X: @JonahDispatch Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/428-political-extremism

Sam Harris speaks with Paul Bloom about AI and current events. They discuss the state of LLMs, the risks and benefits of AI companionship, what it means to attribute consciousness to AI, relationships with AI as a form of psychosis, Trump’s attacks on science and academia, what Trump may be trying to hide in the Epstein files, how damaging Trump’s connections to Epstein might be, MAGA’s obsession with conspiracy theories, questions surrounding Epstein’s death, Paul’s research on revenge, Sam’s falling out with Elon Musk, where things went wrong for Elon, and other topics. Paul Bloom is a professor of psychology at the University of Toronto and the Brooks and Suzanne Ragen Professor Emeritus of Psychology at Yale University. He studies how children and adults make sense of the world, with a special focus on pleasure, morality, religion, fiction, and art. He has won numerous awards for his research and teaching. He is the former president of the Society for Philosophy and Psychology, and the co-editor of Behavioral and Brain Sciences. He has written for scientific journals such as Nature and Science, and for popular outlets such as The New York Times, The Guardian, The New Yorker, and The Atlantic Monthly. He is the author of seven books, including his latest, Psych: The Story of the Human Mind. Website: paulbloom.net X: @paulbloomatyale Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/427-ai-friends-enemies  

Sam Harris speaks with David Frum about the current state of American politics. They discuss the extent of Trump’s corruption, his immigration crackdowns, what’s going well under Trump 2.0, Trump’s support for Ukraine and Israel, U.S. foreign policy, nuclear proliferation, Israel’s security and internal political conflicts, perceptions of the war in Gaza, the Trump administration’s professed support for Jews, the fallout of DOGE, Trump’s friendship with Jeffrey Epstein, and other topics. David Frum is a staff writer at The Atlantic and the host of The David Frum Show. He is the author of 10 books, most recently Trumpocracy (2018) and Trumpocalypse (2020). In 2001 and 2002, David was a speechwriter for President George W. Bush. From 2014 to 2017, he chaired the prominent U.K. center-right think tank Policy Exchange. He writes for The Atlantic on topics including politics, policy, art, literature, and history. Website: https://davidfrum.com/ X: @davidfrum Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/426-how-bad-is-it

Sam Harris speaks with Marc Lipsitch about pandemic preparedness. They discuss what we learned from Covid, loss of trust in institutions, how to effectively communicate scientific information in the current media landscape, vaccine hesitancy, the safety of mRNA vaccines, the origins of Covid, gain-of-function research, virus hunting, the Trump administration’s assault on scientific research and universities, future pandemic threats, and other topics. Marc Lipsitch is an infectious disease epidemiologist and microbiologist who leads the Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics (CCDD) at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His research for three decades has focused on how to use vaccines, antibiotics, and other measures to protect public health as efficiently as possible, and has spanned experimental microbiology, evolutionary biology, and epidemiological approaches. For over a decade he has been advocating for stringent limits on experiments that could create pandemic pathogens in the lab. During COVID-19, he led both CCDD's research response on characterizing the threat, evaluating interventions (including vaccines), prioritizing the distribution of vaccines, and evaluating long-term scenarios, as well as CCDD's communications effort that held 150 Zoom-based press conferences to share insights with the public. In 2021, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky appointed him as founding co-director of CDC's Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics, where he served until recently as Senior Advisor. X: @mlipsitch For more information about CCDD: https://hsph.harvard.edu/research/communicable-disease-ccdd/ To donate: https://hsph.me/CCDDfund For more information and to donate to the Botswana Harvard Partnership: https://bhp.org.bw/ Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/425-are-we-prepared-for-the-next-pandemic   Learning how to train your mind is the single greatest investment you can make in life. That’s why Sam Harris created the Waking Up app. From rational mindfulness practice to lessons on some of life’s most important topics, join Sam as he demystifies the practice of meditation and explores the theory behind it.

In this latest episode of the “More From Sam” series, Sam and Jaron talk about current events and answer some of the questions you all submitted on Substack. They discuss Nazi Grok, immigration, ICE raids, Jeffrey Epstein, how to stay focused in the age of distraction, and rapid fire questions. Produced by Griffin Katz

In this latest episode of the “More From Sam” series, Sam and Jaron talk about current events and answer some of the questions you all submitted on Substack. They discuss Epstein’s “client list,” how to safeguard democracy, populism, wealth inequality, the allure of socialism, how to manage feeling overwhelmed by current events, and rapid fire questions. Produced by Griffin Katz  

Sam Harris speaks with Haviv Rettig Gur about Israel and her enemies. They discuss Israel’s war with Iran and America’s role in the conflict, Israel’s military capabilities, Iran’s nuclear program, what a ground invasion of Iran could look like, how Iranians view the regime, antisemitism, the history of Zionism, Islam and jihadism, extremism on the Israeli far right, religious fanaticism, Israeli settlements in the West Bank, Ehud Olmert, the hostages in Gaza, and other topics. Haviv Rettig Gur is a veteran Israeli journalist who serves as the senior analyst at The Times of Israel. He has covered Israel's politics, foreign policy, and relationship with the U.S. and Jewish diaspora since 2005, reporting from over 20 countries. Since October 7, he has been touring the English-speaking world — the U.S., Canada, Australia, and the U.K. — to discuss the war in Gaza, resilience, and antisemitism. X: @havivrettiggur Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/422-zionism-jihadism

In this latest episode of the “More From Sam” series, Sam hopped back on with his manager and business partner, Jaron Lowenstein, to talk about current events and answer some of the questions you all submitted on Substack. They discuss the assassination of Minnesota state representative Melissa Hortman and the recent uptick in political violence, Elon’s comments about Trump’s involvement with Jeffrey Epstein, Iran, deportations, the LA protests, Sam’s recent appearance on Jordan Peterson’s podcast, and rapid fire questions. Produced by Griffin Katz Share this episode: hhttps://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/421-more-from-sam-political-violence-iran-deportations-protests-rapid-fire-questions

Sam Harris speaks with Daniel Kokotajlo about the potential impacts of superintelligent AI over the next decade. They discuss Daniel’s predictions in his essay “AI 2027,” the alignment problem, what an intelligence explosion might look like, the capacity of LLMs to intentionally deceive, the economic implications of recent advances in AI, AI safety testing, the potential for governments to regulate AI development, AI coding capabilities, how we’ll recognize the arrival of superintelligent AI, and other topics. Daniel Kokotajlo is the Executive Director at the AI Futures Project, where he oversees its research and policy recommendations. He previously worked as a governance researcher at OpenAI on scenario planning. In 2021, he predicted the rise of chatbots, chain-of-thought, inference scaling, sweeping AI chip export controls, and $100 million training runs—all more than a year before the launch of ChatGPT. He was profiled in The New York Times and was named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in AI. Website: https://ai-2027.com/ X: @DKokotajlo Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/420-countdown-to-superintelligence   Learning how to train your mind is the single greatest investment you can make in life. That’s why Sam Harris created the Waking Up app. From rational mindfulness practice to lessons on some of life’s most important topics, join Sam as he demystifies the practice of meditation and explores the theory behind it.

Sam hopped back on with his manager and business partner, Jaron Lowenstein, to talk about current events and answer some of the questions you all submitted on Substack. This episode was originally recorded on June 4th, but in light of today's events, Sam and Jaron recorded an additional segment (on June 5) about the latest news on Trump and Musk's fallout, which is included at the end of this episode. They also discuss the real results of DOGE, the Big Beautiful Bill, Jordan Peterson, the role of religion in modern society, and other topics. Produced by Griffin Katz Share this episode: https://www.samharris.org/podcasts/making-sense-episodes/419-more-from-sam-elon-vs-trump-religion-jordan-peterson-rapid-fire-questions