Silicon Zombies

David Pogue spent years covering Apple from the outside, and in this one he pulls back the curtain on Steve Jobs, the Titan submersible, and what it’s like to be a journalist who gets screamed at by one of the most demanding CEOs in tech. He talks about the screenshot feature Apple refused to hand him, the 400-screenshot favor that followed, and why he thinks Tim Cook has quietly turned the Apple Watch into a medical device. He also shares what it was like to ride the Titan down to the wreck site, why he’s not convinced being a jerk is necessary to succeed, and a few stories about Steve’s private kindness that never made it into the mythology.This one is for anyone who’s ever wondered what Apple was really like behind the keynote, and for founders trying to figure out whether they need to be the toughest person in the room to win.Thanks to our sponsors: TUOM, Necodex, and Truebinding and WinstonTaylor.⏱️ Timestamps00:00 – Trailer01:36 – Welcome to Silicon Zombies & Introducing David Pogue02:00 – Apple’s 50th Anniversary & the Book Launch03:05 – Signed Bookplates for Viewers03:15 – David’s Background: From Broadway Dreams to Tech Reviewer05:05 – CBS Sunday Morning & Twenty Years on Air06:08 – Apple Book Access: Why Apple Said Yes07:05 – The iPhone Screenshot Feature & the 400-Screenshot Favor09:02 – The Secret Behind Apple’s “David Pogue Feature”09:15 – Are Steve Jobs-Style CEOs Necessary to Succeed?10:47 – The Titan Submersible: Three Strikes and a Dive Aborted13:01 – Inside the Countdown Rituals & the Stop Check14:24 – Tim Cook: Nerdy Number Cruncher or Product Guy?16:02 – Services, Growth, and Apple’s Business Scale16:31 – Apple Watch as a Medical Device: Atrial Fibrillation17:12 – Audience Show of Hands: Lives Saved by Apple Watch18:04 – Sleep Apnea, Hypertension, and Snoring Features18:08 – Why David Got the iPhone Wrong in 200619:17 – Singular Carrier, Secret Prototypes & the iPhone Launch20:03 – The Movie Critic’s Question: Steve Jobs on Screen21:21 – The Famous Imposter Keynote & “One More Thing”22:05 – Wi-Fi, Mouse, and Forgotten Apple Firsts23:22 – Inside Apple: Trust, Access & Culture24:29 – Face ID Testing: Masks, Twins & Makeup Mondays26:21 – Steve’s Phone Call Over iMovie27:50 – Apple’s Hidden Workforce & Alumni in the Crowd28:18 – Live Performance: Song Parodies About Apple35:38 – Q&A Begins: Steve Jobs’s Temper & Journalism37:03 – What the Smartphone Looks Like in 10 Years39:40 – Should We Be Concerned About AI?42:23 – Empathy in Steve Jobs & the Products of Tomorrow44:31 – Secret Acts of Kindness: Bill Atkinson, Pixar, Scott Forstall46:42 – The Last Conversation With Steve Jobs47:24 – Books, Reading & the Magic Trick49:11 – Where to Buy the Book49:37 – Closing Song & Goodbye📍 About Silicon Zombies:Silicon Zombies is a Top 5% global podcast for AI, Venture Capital & Tech Innovation, hosted by Nick Larson. 🧟 Straight from the heart of Silicon Valley, we bring you weekly deep-dives with elite AI engineers, VCs, and longevity innovators shaping the next decade. We cut through the hype vs. reality of emerging tech, SaaS, biohacking, and start-up investing, no fluff, just real insight. Whether you're a founder building your network, an engineer chasing technical depth, or simply staying ahead of the curve, we bridge the gap. Insider access to the world's brightest tech minds. Weekly live streams with a global community across 100+ countries.🚀 Connect with Us:Instagram: @siliconzombiesX (Twitter): @siliconzombiesTikTok: @siliconzombiesSpotify: @siliconzombiesNewsletter: https://shorturl.at/31mUxSubscribe so you don't miss the conversations defining what comes next.

Mike Maples passed on Airbnb because of a cereal box meeting, and he’s still thinking about it. His fund, Floodgate, has backed Twitter, Lyft, and a long list of companies that looked like bad bets at the time. In this one he breaks down why he deliberately aims for 100x outcomes, why most of his best returns came from pivots nobody predicted, and why a startup wins by turning the incumbent’s greatest strength into its weakness. He also gets into what he looks for in a founder, how AI is changing the way he evaluates deals, and why the best startup ideas make some people angry.This one is for founders trying to stand out in a crowded market, and for anyone who has ever second-guessed a decision they could have made differently.Thanks to our sponsors: TUOM, Necodex, and Truebinding.⏱️ Timestamps00:00 – Trailer01:05 – Welcome to Silicon Zombies & Introducing Mike Maples01:30 – Mike’s Background: Calligrapher to Floodgate02:17 – Twitter, Podcasting & the Early Bet03:16 – Voicemail 2.0 & Why Twitter Had No Business Model04:19 – Getting In at South by Southwest05:02 – Lyft’s Illegal Launch & Why Asking Permission Would Have Killed It07:05 – The Airbnb Cereal Box Meeting09:05 – Why Passing on Airbnb Cost 6000x10:03 – Floodgate’s Rule: Being Wrong Is the Price of Admission11:08 – The Power Law: 85% Miss Rate12:03 – Floodgate’s Math: 20x and 100x Targets13:04 – Startups Win by Changing the Subject14:11 – Four Seasons vs. Airbnb: Turning Strength Into Weakness15:11 – Inflections: Why Timing Is Everything17:00 – Why Now? The iPhone 4S and Lyft18:05 – Pattern Breakers: Limits in Your Own Head20:07 – Be Different, Not Better: The Cybertruck Lesson21:16 – Force a Choice, Don’t Invite a Comparison22:21 – Remembering Mike’s Father & the Fishing Lesson24:29 – Q&A Begins: AI and Startup Acceleration25:23 – Why AI Startups Don’t Fit Floodgate’s Thesis26:21 – AI as a Force Multiplier for Small Funds27:17 – Time Capsules: What Did Airbnb’s Signal Look Like?29:01 – Disagreement Is a Feature, Not a Bug30:31 – Nurturing Early True Believers33:04 – Founders Need Co-Conspirators, Not Customers35:05 – Does Business Model Matter?36:14 – The Founder as Artist37:30 – Coachable vs. Disagreeable Founders & Mike’s Law39:00 – Turning Strength Into Weakness: Microsoft Example41:01 – Nurturing Contrarian Thinkers43:15 – Handling Being Wrong 85% of the Time44:31 – Current Inflections: Vertical Software & Mass Cognition46:35 – Live Pitch: The Outdoor Gear Rental Platform49:01 – Specificity Is a Superpower50:59 – The Thunder Lizard Concept52:59 – How the Community Can Help53:36 – Closing📍 About Silicon Zombies:Silicon Zombies is a Top 5% global podcast for AI, Venture Capital & Tech Innovation, hosted by Nick Larson. 🧟 Straight from the heart of Silicon Valley, we bring you weekly deep-dives with elite AI engineers, VCs, and longevity innovators shaping the next decade. We cut through the hype vs. reality of emerging tech, SaaS, biohacking, and start-up investing, no fluff, just real insight. Whether you're a founder building your network, an engineer chasing technical depth, or simply staying ahead of the curve, we bridge the gap. Insider access to the world's brightest tech minds. Weekly live streams with a global community across 100+ countries.🚀 Connect with Us:Instagram: @siliconzombiesX (Twitter): @siliconzombiesTikTok: @siliconzombiesSpotify: @siliconzombiesSubscribe so you don't miss the conversations defining what comes next.

The Real Reason Your Brain Makes You Dream Every Night | Dr. David EaglemanDr. David Eagleman is a Stanford neuroscientist, author, and host of the Intercosmos podcast. He explains why your brain is a team of rivals and not one single you. He covers why time seems to slow down in a crash, and why dreams exist at all. His theory is that dreaming protects your visual cortex from being taken over by the other senses.He also talks about brain-computer interfaces, new senses for deaf people, and rehabilitation over punishment in the courts. He gets into sleepwalking murders, lucid dreaming, Alzheimer's, psychics, and the biggest open mystery in neuroscience: consciousness. The episode ends with audience Q&A from the live room.A big thank you to our sponsors for making this one possible:@truebindinginc@necodex@tuomglobal⏰ Timestamps00:00 Trailer01:08 Welcome to episode 19701:45 Who is David Eagleman02:26 The brain as a team of rivals03:56 The Ulysses contract05:00 Brain-computer interfaces06:29 Can bad decision makers change07:22 Why time slows down in a crash10:15 Sleep and memory11:15 Brain fog12:17 How he hacks his own brain13:30 Creating new senses for humans15:01 The brain and the law17:08 Hallucinogens without the drug18:38 Why prison reform is stuck19:40 The brain and literature21:07 Why we dream24:26 Lucid dreaming25:07 Murder while sleepwalking26:31 Why everyone hates Zoom27:16 Audience Q&A begins31:04 Neurofeedback and magnetic stimulation39:00 The biggest mystery: consciousness40:05 Alzheimer's and living longer41:46 Old ideas about the brain44:49 Psychics and the brain45:27 Consciousness Explained46:53 Monks and party tricks49:23 Social media and polarization51:02 Does the heart think52:33 Locked-in syndrome56:33 Near-death experiences58:01 Where to find David📍 About Silicon Zombies:Silicon Zombies is a Top 5% global podcast for AI, Venture Capital & Tech Innovation, hosted by Nick Larson. 🧟 Straight from the heart of Silicon Valley, we bring you weekly deep-dives with elite AI engineers, VCs, and longevity innovators shaping the next decade. We cut through the hype vs. reality of emerging tech, SaaS, biohacking, and start-up investing, no fluff, just real insight. Whether you're a founder building your network, an engineer chasing technical depth, or simply staying ahead of the curve, we bridge the gap. Insider access to the world's brightest tech minds. Weekly live streams with a global community across 100+ countries.🚀 Connect with Us:Instagram: @siliconzombiesX (Twitter): @siliconzombiesTikTok: @siliconzombiesSpotify: @siliconzombiesSubscribe so you don't miss the conversations defining what comes next.

Dr. Hillary Lin is calling out the longevity world. Smart, driven people are the worst at health because they defend bad decisions harder than anyone else. They measure everything. They chase peptides and NAD. They copy whatever Bryan Johnson or Andrew Huberman does without thinking.Here's what actually matters: the basics. Sleep enough. Move enough. Know your numbers. That's 80% of the work. Everything else is noise.Then she walks you through the four traps that kill your protocol. Measurement obsession. Majoring in minors. Copying someone else's homework. And protocol inertia — doing the same thing in your 50s that worked in your 30s.She gives you the CORE framework to evaluate any longevity intervention before you waste time or money on it.A big thank you to our sponsors for making this one possible:@tuomglobal@necodex@truebindinginc⏰ Timestamps00:00 Trailer01:15 Welcome to Dr. Hillary Lin03:36 The four traps05:59 Trap #3 deep dive (copying homework)06:00 Trap #4 (protocol inertia)08:09 What actually works (first principles)08:32 The longevity hierarchy09:42 Tier 1: preventative care (the 80%)10:31 Tier 2 & 3: where most people fail10:52 The CORE framework (how to evaluate anything)14:03 NAD: is it worth it?15:50 Final message: stop rearranging deck chairs📍 About Silicon Zombies:Silicon Zombies is a Top 5% global podcast for AI, Venture Capital & Tech Innovation, hosted by Nick Larson. 🧟 Straight from the heart of Silicon Valley, we bring you weekly deep-dives with elite AI engineers, VCs, and longevity innovators shaping the next decade. We cut through the hype vs. reality of emerging tech, SaaS, biohacking, and start-up investing, no fluff, just real insight. Whether you're a founder building your network, an engineer chasing technical depth, or simply staying ahead of the curve, we bridge the gap. Insider access to the world's brightest tech minds. Weekly live streams with a global community across 100+ countries.🚀 Connect with Us:Instagram: @siliconzombiesX (Twitter): @siliconzombiesTikTok: @siliconzombiesSpotify: @siliconzombiesSubscribe so you don't miss the conversations defining what comes next.

Dr. Vint Cerf is the closest thing tech has to a founding father. Along with Bob Kahn, he co-designed the actual protocols the Internet runs on, back in the 1970s, long before any of us were born into it. These days he's Google's Chief Internet Evangelist, but in this one he's just talking, openly, with host Nick Larson, alongside Chris Kelly and Human Khalili, in DC. He gets into the mistakes he'd fix if he could go back (IPv6 address space, mainly), the time he did a striptease down to a T-shirt that said "IP on everything" to settle an argument at a standards meeting, and why he thinks privacy might just be a side effect of small towns not existing anymore. Then it gets personal: he grew up with hearing loss, his wife Sigrid has been deaf since childhood, and he tells the story of the moment her cochlear implant let them talk on the phone for the first time in 30 years of marriage. From there the conversation moves into AI, where Cerf is genuinely optimistic but also blunt about the risks, especially around AI agents acting on their own with nobody able to trace who's accountable when things go wrong.Part history lesson, part love story, part "here's what actually worries the guy who built the thing." Worth your full attention on this one.A big thank you to our sponsors for making this one possible:@bancofcalifornia@truebindinginc@necodex@tuomglobal🕒 Timestamps00:00 – Trailer01:26 – Welcome to Silicon Zombies with Nick Larson01:37 – Introducing Dr. Vint Cerf, "Father of the Internet"02:11 – Is Privacy Just an Anomaly? Revisiting the 2013 Quote06:11 – The Security Trade-offs Cerf Wishes He'd Made Differently10:17 – ARPANET vs. Internet: Setting the Record Straight13:49 – The IPv6 Address Space Regret16:17 – The "IP on Everything" T-Shirt Story18:40 – Growing Up With Hearing Loss19:59 – How Vint Met Sigrid23:58 – Sigrid's Cochlear Implant and the First Phone Call in 30 Years27:43 – Why Email Became an Obsession29:02 – What Sigrid Would Say the World Misunderstands About Vint30:10 – When Cerf Knew the Internet Would Be Monumental37:04 – Joining Google: The "Archduke" Job Title Story39:08 – Is AI Going to Kill Us All? Cerf's Honest Take41:42 – Why AI Agents Need Audit Trails and Accountability46:47 – Should the Government Nationalize Frontier AI Labs?50:48 – AI, Trust, and Teaching People to Think Critically57:58 – Cyber-Physical Systems and the Future of Agent Autonomy60:39 – Nation-States, Borders, and the Internet's Limits65:28 – Building the Interplanetary Internet66:25 – Vint Cerf's Career Advice After 65 Years📍 About Silicon Zombies:Silicon Zombies is a Top 5% global podcast for AI, Venture Capital & Tech Innovation, hosted by Nick Larson. 🧟 Straight from the heart of Silicon Valley, we bring you weekly deep-dives with elite AI engineers, VCs, and longevity innovators shaping the next decade. We cut through the hype vs. reality of emerging tech, SaaS, biohacking, and startup investing — no fluff, just real insight. Whether you're a founder building your network, an engineer chasing technical depth, or simply staying ahead of the curve, we bridge the gap. Insider access to the world's brightest tech minds. Weekly live streams with a global community across 100+ countries.🚀 Connect with Us:Instagram: @siliconzombiesX (Twitter): @siliconzombiesTikTok: @siliconzombiesSpotify: @siliconzombiesSubscribe so you don't miss the conversations defining what comes next.