The Look Up! Podcast with Marc Weinstein

The Most Important Thing The way we really grow and transcend, become better, people, companies, etc. We have to chase that discomfort, that’s how we get to the next level. About Guest Eric Pilon-Bignell is a pragmatic futurist and the best-selling author of “Surfing Rogue Waves”, a book that discusses the constant anomaly of change and how humanity is pushed to navigate through this exponential pace of disruption. About “Surfing Rogue Waves” “Surfing Rogue Waves” presented the idea of Disruption as a means of moving forward in the future rather than being overtaken by the “Waves”. In this book, Eric shares how we could shape our life and the future of humanity with our decisions amidst change. Episode Overview In this episode, Eric and I discuss the future and the fear it brings for most humans. We touch on certain emerging world conflicts and how we can engage with change at such a massive scale. We exchanged views of the world, happiness, and how we think it will progress after the changes that the pandemic brought. My Favorite Quotes: “We can't put a pin on any one of these because these waves are coming all over, but that kind of equal excitement and fear. I feel that’s where I’m at, I’m so excited about this, there's gonna be so many incredible things.” “My ego was “how do I always do more, how do I increase my peak performance?” “I'm getting my ass kicked on small waves. Right. But, but I'm in the zone. Like I'm locked in, I'm paddling, I'm focused, everything changes. I'm like, I'm intense and it's this really cool mix which we have in life.” “Happiness is how hard it is for you to achieve what you want to get." Episode Breakdown: 04:03 - Writing the book during Covid-19 Lockdown 05:37 - Eric looking back through his journey, life aspirations, and changes 07:35 - Perspective of the future, curiosity and what it could bring 14:30 - “A lot of our old fears are almost like, I guess the buzz word, like fake fears now.” The definition of fear in a modern age, violence, famine, etc 20:30 - The inequality of wealth and its history in relation to happiness 27:40 - South Korea, plastic surgery and the scale of happiness 32:25 - The Fourth Industrial Revolution and technological transformation, to do or to die 44:38 - What is happiness to Eric? Episode Links Eric's Info Website LinkedIn Facebook Twitter Project7 Episode References Surfing Rogue Waves by Eric Pilon Bignell Vaccine war in the US 3D printing organs Future-Proofing workspace and digital transformation Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-look-up-podcast-with-marc-weinstein. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Editors note: This is part 2 of our 2 part episode with Professor Jack Feldman, don’t forget to catch our first episode here. The Most Important Thing We continue our conversation with Professor Jack Feldman on how he revolutionized our understanding of the neural control of breathing. We dived deeper into the topic of breathing and how it has the ability to change our emotional state. I also get to run a few yoga teachings on the breath by Jack to see how they align (or don’t) with his scientific understanding. About the Guest Jack Feldman is a distinguished Professor of Neurobiology, he also holds a Ph.D. in Physics and is currently teaching at UCLA. His contributions to understanding the mechanisms of breathing and sighing include the pre-Bötzinger complex and demonstrating the essential role in generating respiratory rhythm in fetal, neonatal, and adult mammals. Jack Feldman’s influence is evident in numerous highly cited reviews, textbooks, and lectures. He was awarded the prestigious Hodgkin, Huxley, Katz Prize of The Physiological Society. Episode Overview In part two of this episode, Professor Jack Feldman shared his thoughts on living through the polio epidemic and broke down of the importance of a vaccine. Besides that, he also shared how his study finds that breathing could affect cognitive functions positively. Jack also took a few moments to highlight the differences in breathing between animals and humans in this episode. My Favorite Quotes “I've been wearing a seatbelt for ever since they became available. I've yet to get in a serious car accident. So you could argue why bother wearing a seatbelt? Well, you wear a seatbelt because the consequences of the rare possibility you get in an accident.” “if you weigh that against the possibility that the vaccine does something negative right now, that data is extremely small. I wouldn't say zero. It's extremely small. And certainly if the odds are 99.999999 in favor.” “One of the ways that the brain consolidates it's information is then when things repeat, it strengthens the connections between neurons.” “If you're less anxious, you're likely to have a longer lifespan if you could maintain it.” “When we think about how breath could be influencing higher function, cognition, or emotion, the signals that are related to breathing can arrive in the brain by a variety of pathways. Every time you expand your lungs, there are receptors in your lungs that become activated. They send signals up into the brainstem, through the vagus nerve.” Episode Breakdown (Part 1) 05:10 - Jack’s recollection of the Polio endemic 08:30 - Touching on vaccines and Covid-19 13:00 - Neuro scientist on brain functions 27:30 - Thoughts on elogating breathing extending lifespans 34:38 - How breathing affects our mental states 44:30 - Something that Jack still finds surprising from his research 48:06 - A research that Jack personally wants to test Episode Links Professor Jack Feldman’s Info Jack Feldman - Instagram Jack Feldman - LinkedIn Jack’s scientific journals - Google Scholar Jack Feldman’s UCLA Profile and Publications References made in the episode The Science of Breath, Swami Rama Box Breathing Technique Light on Yoga, BKS Iyengar Overview of Nadi Channels Alternate Nostril Breathing Marc’s Info Look Up! Patreon Community Look Up! Website Marc's Instagram Marc's Twitter Look Up! On iTunes Look Up! On Spotify Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-look-up-podcast-with-marc-weinstein. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Most Important Thing How can something as simple as breathing impact our health and optimize performance? Famous for his breakthrough contributions within the field of breathing, sighing, and discovering the pre-botzinger complex. Jack Feldman takes us through almost four decades of his career, researching and discovering a process we all take for granted, breathing. About the Guest Jack Feldman is a distinguished Professor of Neurobiology, he also holds a Ph.D. in Physics and is currently teaching at UCLA. His contributions to understanding the mechanisms of breathing and sighing include the pre-Bötzinger complex and demonstrating the essential role in generating respiratory rhythm in fetal, neonatal, and adult mammals. Jack Feldman’s influence is evident in numerous highly cited reviews, textbooks, and lectures. He was awarded the prestigious Hodgkin, Huxley, Katz Prize of The Physiological Society. About “what Jack Feldman does” Professor Feldman’s laboratory focuses on the central problem confronting neuroscientists: how molecular, synaptic, and cellular properties of individual neurons in densely interconnected networks result in behaviors ranging from playing the piano to writing a book. Through a unique model system that enables them to perform studies that address this issue, Feldman and his colleagues are able to test their current hypothesis: pacemaker neurons underlie the generation of respiratory rhythm Episode Overview In part one of this episode, we got to speak to Professor Jack Feldman about his research into the field of breathing, sighing, and developing the Pre-Botzinger Complex. Jack broke down his journey of how he got into the research, conducting crazy experiments and took almost a decade trying to convince people of the importance of breaths. Jack also took a few moments to highlight how a study into brain stems kickstarted his interest in the topic of the brain breath connection. My Favorite Quotes “You can't do anything interesting if you're afraid of failing and I'm willing to bet that that's something that people in your realm also follow.” “You make investments, but some of the best investments are the things that might ultimately fail, but they could be spectacular.” “One of the challenges in science is that the technology progresses and sometimes the technology allows you to answer questions that are very important. You can answer before. The problem with that is that we're under a lot of pressure as scientists to keep producing. And when a new technique comes along, you have to learn it sometimes have to spend a lot of money to get the equipment necessary to do that and that the tracks, your productivity.” “Just like your car has one engine. We thought there would be a single-engine for breathing. We discovered about 15 years later that there appears to be a second engine and one engine is devoted to generating the inspiratory rhythm and the other is involved in generating rhythm.” “I realized that the literature was just simply wrong and we embarked upon a series of crazy experiments to try and see if we could localize a site for generating breathing. I wouldn't say much to my surprise that we identified a relatively small spot in the brainstem that seemed to be critical for the generation.” “You have to be resilient and you have to be persistent. At some point, you have to believe that you have an idea that's worth pursuing. ” “You have to be careful where you become too much of a believer in an idea because things often, even good ideas get overturned as science progresses, and you have to be able to recognize it.” Episode Breakdown (Part 1) 03:17 - Jack’s most surprising discovery about brain + breath connection 08:30 - Closely held belief of how breath was generated 16:51 - When and why Jack started researching breathing 20:40 - How the study of breathing came about 33:00 - How a scientific peer review could make or break an experiment or theory Catch the rest...

The Most Important Thing How does one break away from their Mormon roots, become a millionaire, and lose it all at a very young age just to pick it right back again. Doug talks to us about his journey of reinventions and how changing his perspective in life has brought back positivity in his life. About the Guest Doug Cartwright is the Founder and CEO of The Daily Shifts, an online platform committed to lifelong transformation of the mind, body, and soul. Drawing from his personal experience of introspection and healing, The Daily Shifts is now an app, a master class, and blog that challenges you to be the best version of yourself. His new book “Holy Sh!t We’re Alive?” taps into his life story. A psychedelic journey into meditation, silent retreats, astrophysics, neuroscience, philosophy, and all forms of self-healing. About “Holy Sh!t We’re Alive?” “Holy Sh!t We’re Alive?” is the story of a psychedelic-sparked spiritual journey of an ex-Mormon millionaire. In this book, Doug broke down his journey into meditation, silent retreats, philosophy and all forms of self-healing. Through this journey, he learnt his mistakes, built a new reality and found the purpose of life by shifting his perspective, outlook and beliefs. In Holy Sh!t, We’re Alive, Doug shows you how to live with intention, trust yourself, and show up every day for a meaningful life. You’ll learn mind-blowing facts and important clues to understand your existence and unique contributions. Self-love can be your superpower. Episode Overview In this episode, we got to speak to Doug Cartwright about his book “Holy Sh!t We’re Alive?” and how his business, The Daily Shift, came to be. Doug deconstructs his two year journey into discovering spirituality, faith and the universe around him and how that changed his perspective in life. We also got to dive deeper into the chapters of his book to get a bigger picture of how and why it was written as is. Doug also took a few moments to highlight the importance of self love, finding faith and letting go. My Favorite Quotes “A major lesson I learned through it was the beauty of learning to trust my intuition..” “When we zoom out and just kind of realize that just being alive is the ultimate gift. It really takes the pressure off of our daily routine activities.” “If you look across the whole universe, there's nothing even remotely close to earth, but all the spots are a little tiny speck. We got dropped down here and it was like this really wow moment. “It's easier to be told by others what to think and to think for yourself. And it requires, you know, it, to be so vulnerable and kind of wipe your slate clean on. What's true and what's not true. Then rebuild it yourself.” “I'm truly committed to the higher path, to the spiritual path, to truly evolving my soul, to becoming the best version of myself.” “As long as I continue to put my best effort into the world, the universe will take care of me.” “Intuition is a tricky concept that you can’t measure. It’s this weird feeling, almost like a deep knowing feeling. But when you realize it and it opens up to you, you know you’re doing the right thing.” Episode Breakdown 05:28 - Trusting one’s intuition 08:40 - Doug thinking back at his previous job and the stress that follows 10:20 - Doug’s experience during the Ayahuasca ceremony 13:44 - Views of life and how every experience is an opportunity 17:45 - Turning a traumatic experience into a life-changing lesson 23:11 - Envy, jealousy and desires in a relationship 31:17 - To love yourself is to remove pieces that doesn’t fit anymore 37:00 - Doug’s view on philosophy and why he decided to write his book 41:25 - Managing expectations through gratitude 43:16 - How is success and happiness measured? Doug explained 47:14 - Growing up Mormon and leaving the religion 54:00 - Finding instant connection within a community 58:28 - Doug’s take on being committed to a higher path through spirituality Episode...

The Most Important Thing These days, manufacturing comes with numerous barriers: economic, environmental, and social. Ben talks to us about how Cellibre is revolutionizing the industry using “cellular agriculture” making supply chains efficient and affordable, and prioritising sustainability. About the Guest In his own words, Benjamin “Ben” Chiarelli is a “founder, investor, adviser, and connector.” Over the past decade, he has worked as a healthcare investment banker for the country’s biggest names, including Deloitte, Jefferies & Company, and J.P. Morgan. He has also been at the helm of teams at Millennium Health, ASCA Design LLC, and Synthetic Genomics, alongside working under movers and shakers in the science world. Drawing from his experience with healthcare investment banking, Ben has founded two of his own companies: private equity firm Divitempus Ventures, as well as cellular agriculture Cellibre. About Cellibre Founded in 2017, Cellibre develops cellular agriculture solutions for products that have traditionally had issues scaling production in a sustainable, economic, and high-quality way. Utilising the science of synthetic biology, Cellibre changes and optimizes the cells that produce the target natural product. The cellular agriculture company has pioneered breakthroughs in energy, ingredients, medicines, and more. Their current focus is to use their expertise in the production of pharmaceutical-grade cannabinoids, revolutionizing the way cannabinoid-based medicines are sourced, produced, and consumed. Episode Overview In this second half of our chat with Ben, we pick his brain about Cellibre, sustainability, and manufacturing technology that is revolutionizing the industry. Ben deconstructs the science behind cellular technology, particularly as it pertains to cannabinoids. Comparing it to computing, we also talked about the future of technology, genetics, and our instinct for adaptation. With expectations for Cellibre to go commercial later this year, Ben also takes a few moments to highlight the importance of work-life balance, putting people over the company, and how radical it is to have empathy for others. My Favorite Quotes “We have big visions of reinventing how we make things as humanity.” “Don’t think that you have to conquer the world every single day.” “We think about these things (sustainability) really superficially. So, if you think about what nature is, and more fundamentally, what biology is, it’s the world’s most elegant manufacturing tech.” “If you’re thinking about policy, or you’re thinking about business, try and think about it from the perspective of the person who has the least […] Think about it from the perspective of the guy in rural America or the kid in the inner city.” “I want to be able to deconstruct and reconstruct nature in a way that’s sustainable, where we’re not going into the ecosystem to provide human beings with benefit.” “How do we leverage nature to actually keep us sustainable, while at the same time, keeping the planet healthy?” “I always want to help. I always want to get an answer, but sometimes there’s just not one.” Episode Breakdown 03:54 - Surrounding yourself with knowledgeable people 07:02 - Connecting the technical with the business; hiring people with expertise 10:11 - Ben’s role at Cellibre as its founder 13:30 - Being a father and a founder: managing time and expectations, and being present 18:45 - Going beyond a superficial understanding of sustainability 24:11 - Decoding the astounding complexity of cannabis plants 26:47 - The state of technology, minimal cells, and the requirements for life 29:42 - Making supply chains more efficient, affordable, and sustainable at Cellibre 32:35 - Prioritising the accessibility of their product 35:16 - Facing legal barriers, focusing on CBG and CBD, and going commercial 37:04 - The limitless possibilities of cannabinoids 42:17 - Being adaptable and the future of manufacturing...

The Most Important Thing What is it for you that sparks joy? To Ben Chiarelli, it’s the act of connecting one person to another, adding value to each of their lives. Today, Ben reveals just how central relationship-building has been to both his career and life. About the Guest In his own words, Benjamin “Ben” Chiarelli is a “founder, investor, adviser, and connector.” Over the past decade, he has worked as a healthcare investment banker for the country’s biggest names, including Deloitte, Jefferies & Company, and J.P. Morgan. He has also been at the helm of teams at Millennium Health, ASCA Design LLC, and Synthetic Genomics, alongside working under movers and shakers in the science world. Drawing from his experience with healthcare investment banking, Ben has founded two of his own companies: private equity firm Divitempus Ventures, as well as cellular agriculture Cellibre. About Cellibre Founded in 2017, Cellibre develops cellular agriculture solutions for products that have traditionally had issues scaling production in a sustainable, economic, and high-quality way. Utilising the science of synthetic biology, Cellibre changes and optimizes the cells that produce the target natural product. The cellular agriculture company has pioneered breakthroughs in energy, ingredients, medicines, and more. Their current focus is to use their expertise in the production of pharmaceutical-grade cannabinoids, revolutionizing the way cannabinoid-based medicines are sourced, produced, and consumed. Episode Overview This week, Ben takes us on a decade-long journey through his career as an investment banker; how it exposed him to some really innovative people and taught him the value of relationship-building. We see how distinctly those formative years shaped Ben’s interests and practices, particularly with his latest endeavour into the cannabis industry. In this first part, we delve into Ben’s ability to give altruistically and his innate love for creating connections, even if it means replying to LinkedIn messages past midnight. We also touch on synthetic biology, reciprocity, and what it means to live in a global village. My Favorite Quotes “Our society is kind of dominated by tech, right? […] But the real next industrial revolution is biology.” “I think the legacy of real relationships, real connections is infinitely more valuable than a dollar.” “Being responsive is really just a reflection of being cognizant that someone’s time is the most important thing they have. And they’re trying to allocate that time to maximise their happiness.” “A lot of human beings have trouble giving credit to others. People tend to have an overinflated view of self.” “For me, it was much less about being my own boss, and being an entrepreneur, and being held on a pedestal, just more, this is a good idea and we’re going to help a lot of people with this.” “No matter where you go, you’ll meet really interesting people.” Episode Breakdown 00:51 - Introduction 05:46 - Ben’s foray into investment banking and experiencing culture shock 10:13 - Connecting with Dr. Craig Venter, who sequenced the first human genome 11:48 - Biology as a manufacturing technology and its impact on society 13:44 - Shifting to the cannabis sector after hearing of its medicinal qualities 15:57 - The value of investment banking: learning to add value to your clients 19:17 - What does being a “connector” mean to Ben? 24:43 - The psychology of reciprocity and giving altruistically 28:11 - Ben’s biggest pet peeve: lack of responsiveness 31:19 - Living in a global village and the joy of bringing people together 36:14 - Legacy as compensation and giving credit where credit is due 40:49 - Growing something tangible out of ideas 42:58 - Prioritising helping others over the glamour of being an entrepreneur 44:54 - Meeting fascinating people in the cannabis space 49:30 - Outro Episode Links Ben’s Info Ben’s LinkedIn Cellibre Website 83bar Website American Made...

Exciting news! This was my first in-person recording in nearly 1.5 years. However, I forgot a bit of the best practices I had learned from previous episodes, so the sound quality is not the best. I still think this episode is worth 1 or 2 listens if you're passionate about NFTs and the Metaverse. The Most Important Thing What is the significance of NFT? Why is it so expensive? How does it compare to other non-fungible items like branded apparel or even a Lamborghini? To answer these questions, GMoney spelled out his thoughts on how he sees the NFT supercycle and Blockchain metaverse in the decades to come. About Guest G started his career in traditional finance, trading in equities for over 15 years. In 2017, he learnt about cryptocurrencies, blockchain and the metaverse, and he never looked back. Today, he is better known in the crypto space as his online pseudonym, GMoney.NFT. GMoney.NFT is famous in the crypto space for becoming a pseudonymous identity represented by one of the 24 punk apes created by Larva Labs. He is most notoriously known for paying $150k for his NFT avatar, CryptoPunk 8219. A cautious looking ape wearing a bright orange knitted hat. This year, GMoney.NFT has started a new venture fund with the team behind Delphi Digital, creating a new NFT infrastructure beyond the digital art use of non fungible tokens and helping other NFT creators to become a core piece of the long-term NFT ecosystem. About Delphi InfiNFT Delphi Digital is an independent research & consulting boutique providing institutional-grade analysis on the digital asset market. Delphi’s broad vision is to advance the understanding and development of crypto space. They will be part of the broader Delphi organization, comprising three existing successful and synergistic business lines which are Research, Ventures and Labs. This year, GMoney has collaborated with Delphi Digital for the fund and they are planning to invest 80% of their fund capital into leading NFT networks that are creating NFTs and building new NFT tech to improve the ecosystem. Episode Overview In this episode, Marc and GMoney delved into the subject matter of non fungible tokens (NFT) space and the metaverse: what they are, why we should care and why GMoney thinks that NFTs are here to stay for the long run. GMoney spoke about how he learnt to understand the concept of NFT through Fortnite (yes, the video game), the different cycles of NFTs, and how the Delphi fund will be used to invest in the NFT infrastructure. My Favorite Quotes “There's going to be this massive Supercycle and visual ownership because that kid is 10 years old today, but in 10 years they're going to have their own disposable income and they're going to be totally okay with digital ownership” “Just because I have more money doesn't necessarily make me smarter.” “And now, people were spending eight figure on an NFT and nobody's questioning it for the most part” “If I'm a celebrity and I'm just going to do a drop and sell it, that's basically a cash grab. That's not really doing much for the community, right? Like for my fans, my number one, fans, the people that are most likely to buy my things are my biggest diehard fans.” “What is the escalation of the world that can afford to spend, you know, 15 to a hundred million dollars on a piece of art? It's very small, but what is the population of the world that will, that can band together and say, Hey, I want to own a piece of this. I can't afford it all on my own, but I'm willing to contribute X amount.” “Now it's like, I see something real. I see tech being built. I see people that are actively building in the space. To me is real. Like if I were to think about this in relation to the.com bubble, I think right now we're in like 2007. Right. Like the, the ICO boom was the nineties and the 2000 bubble bursts.” Episode Breakdown 03:52 - GMoney’s background and history 06:26 - His first dip into NFTs 10:24 - The potential of NFT and what...

The Most Important Thing Where do you find inspiration? And, once you do, how do you have the courage to follow it? Grappling with these questions, Marc and Light break down notions of success and reveal ways we can follow our hearts every day. Inspiration is the central pillar to Light’s book, Knowing Where To Look, which you can learn more about here. About Light Light Watkins is a renowned meditation teacher, inspirational speaker, and author. Once a model with aspirations to work in advertising, Light soon found himself traveling across the globe teaching thousands of people to meditate. He quickly became a popular teacher in the wellness space, leading to a viral TEDx talk, publishing three books (The Inner Gym, Bliss More, and Knowing Where To Look), founding a global movement, The Shine, and hosting his weekly inspirational podcast, At the End of the Tunnel. Through these endeavors, he hopes to continue spreading inspiration to others. About Knowing Where To Look A bestselling author, Light is back with his third book, Knowing Where To Look. In June 2016, Light decided to take the leap and began sending out a Daily Dose of Inspiration to his email list. Five years on and he’s compiled 108 of those powerful personal anecdotes, essays, exercises, as well as parables classically told in yoga classes and meditation circles, in this pocket-sized book. Read a page, turn the book upside down, or devour it cover to cover. Whichever way you chose to absorb it, Knowing Where To Look will have you recognizing inspiration, grappling with fear, and reflecting on your idea of success. Episode Overview In this episode, Light delves into inspiration and intuition: what they are and why we should cultivate the courage to act on them. With the release of Knowing Where To Look, Light debunks the discipline illusion and reveals how a $4,000 contract between friends led to the completion of his third book. He shares moments of inspiration (both his own and of celebrities), the time he was stronger than his greatest fear, and the time he wasn’t. Marc and Light also bond over meditative practices, spirituality, and identity. My Favorite Quotes “I like being very clear about the fact that I don’t have any more discipline than anyone else. What I do have though, what I have cultivated over the years is a stronger ability to be honest with myself about my shortcomings.” “I’ve run all the experiments. I’ve taken on too much. I've over-promised. I have overextended myself. I've swung back with a vengeance in the opposite direction… And then finally, I got to a point where it’s like, look, I just gotta be really honest with myself.” “The problem was not that I had writer’s block or any of that. The problem was I didn’t have any skin in the game. […] I had nothing to lose if I didn’t go through with it. So, once I checked all those boxes, I got the thing out.” “The ideas just started coming through me. […] And I realized it was happening because I kept showing up.” “If something’s wrong, chances are unplugging it; resetting it will cause it to work again.” “Grappling with those kinds of decisions on a day-to-day basis - it’s our heart; that’s our internal GPS that’s keeping us on track to our purpose, our passion, our destiny.” “I think we just have to have the courage to get a little bit stronger than the fear. And that’s what inspiration does.” Episode Breakdown 02:31 - The structure and inspiration behind Knowing Where To Look 07:26 - How honesty, accountability, and compassion lead to success 19:03 - Practicing meditation and acting on inspiration 23:59 - Getting comfortable with stepping outside your comfort zone 34:51 - Reflecting on hardships and understanding who you really are 38:42 - Do we ever overcome fear? 45:10 - The time Light went against his intuition Episode Links Light’s Info Light’s Website Order Knowing Where To Look Knowing Where To Look On Instagram Light’s Instagram Light’s Twitter Light’s...

The Most Important Thing The Open Metaverse is paving the way for labor equality by tearing down borders between different worlds. The future of work in the Open Metaverse will be full of opportunities for those in economically challenged nations. When Labor is as liquid as capital, more value will be captured by workers than investors. About Guest Being in the gaming industry for 18 years, Gabby Dizon is one of the first movers in the industry and one of the earliest members of the blockchain game developer community. Started in 2014, Gabby co-founder Altitude Games, a mobile and blockchain game developer that is based in Manila, Philippines. Today, they have developed and published games such as Battle Racers on Decentraland and Mushroom Mandia on Sandbox that is coming soon. Last year, he co-founded Yield Guild Games, a play-to-earn gaming guild that invests in NFT assets and aggregates players across the Metaverse. Gabby is a founding board member of the Blockchain Game Alliance. About Yield Guild Games Yield Guild Games (YGG) is a decentralized gaming guild of players and investors who generate yield from NFT-based blockchain games and virtual worlds. It is the largest guild within Axie Infinity and has assets in games such as The Sandbox, F1® Delta Time , Axie Infinity , and possibly others in future too. Yield Guild allows players to contribute their time and effort in virtual worlds to earn an income from these games, while the guild accumulates the best yield-bearing assets in the Metaverse. Episode Overview In this episode, Marc and Gabby touched on the future of the Metaverse and how blockchain technology is slowly closing the gap between the world around us with new infrastructure and technological revolutions such as Cryptocurrency and Non-Fungible Tokens (NFT). They also spoke about Gabby's company, Yield Guild Games, and how that opportunity is changing the Gig Economy in the Philippines and globally. My Favorite Quotes "This [Blockchain] is the most exciting thing I've seen in my entire career.". "A blockchain or non fungible tokens means that I own these items forever. I can trade them any time I can sell them, I can build things on top of them and this is a really new and exciting concept that I think people are only trying to re-understand how to take advantage of." “Blockchain games or virtual worlds that have crypto based economies you can earn through contributing your time and your skill to earn money." "You're starting a new country and then there's so much to build and so much to do. You just got to go out there and apply whatever skill you have to help build this new world and it creates an equal playing field in the metaverse perhaps more so than it is kind of in our physical reality." "[In the Philippines] Everyone is in the hospitality industry, a lot of people were laid off and a lot of these people found Axie infinity and the remarkable thing was, these people weren't crypto users. They're people who were really desperate. They knew how to play games and they were onboarded to the crypto [game] because they wanted to play these games to basically save their families." "I guess the biggest frustration of me being a technology entrepreneur in the Philippines is that the business environment and the investing environment here didn't understand what I wanted to do. I wanted to build intellectual property." Episode Breakdown 05:20 - Gabby's views of the Open Metaverse 07:00 - Why are NFT important? 14:50 - Gabby’s journey as a tech entrepreneur 20:25 - The current state of the Metaverse 22:00 - Explaining Yield Guild Games and the people behind it 33:30 - Gabby’s vision on the future of the Metaverse 42:57 - Will our lives be coupled into the Metaverse 47:00 - Growing up in the Philippines 53:00 - Outro Plugs Episode Links Gabby's Info Gabby’s Twitter Gabby’s LinkedIn Altitude Games Narra Art Gallery YGG Info Yield Guild Games YGG in VentureBeat YGG Medium YGG...

The Most Important Thing Marc and Ryan explored the concept that drives Crucible's team in high impact ways, toward the vision of forging the Open Metaverse. How does convergence technology combine our digital and physical lives together? To learn more about Crucible, click here. Or join the conversation on Clubhouse. About Guest Ryan Gill is an innovator who is constantly looking out for new trends. Being a neo-polymath, his knowledge and discipline covers many fields from finance, blockchain, technology to currently running his own company, Crucible. Prior to starting Crucible, Ryan was in the Los Angeles Venture Capital and Startup world, where he built companies with high-profile partners and made a living translating between founders and investors. About Crucible Crucible is working to create the universal open infrastructure that joins the worlds and economies of many talented game developers, web developers and artists without the “walled garden” or closed platform effects that have crippled our current social media and technology business models. In joining these systems together and empowering true user sovereignty and portable digital identity, we are working to prove the business cases behind the trillion dollar Open Metaverse. Episode Overview In this episode, Ryan dived into the third act of the internet and how we are interacting and adapting with the shift. What was once considered science fiction is now encompassing how we experience the world around us and how it is also contributing to the downfall of humanity. By opening up the Open Metaverse, Ryan and Cricuble are trying to connect creators into a common community that leans towards a nonprofit stance and to be more inclusive rather than exclusive. Marc and Ryan also touched on NTF, Tim Sweeney's stance on the metaverse, and Solar Punk. My Favorite Quotes "I just define the Meta Verse as the third act of the internet". "We're passing a point at which, uh, it's becoming toxic for the centralized companies, uh, and these giant servers to collect and own all of this. [Technology]" "You know, that is a fact. So, the internet runs off of data. Each person creates their exhaust trail of data, but the sort of the model of capitalism as it, as it exists today is very sort of data-driven on advertising and exponentially we're growing towards a future where that data is training models that do most of the work needed in the world better than human beings." "It's an interesting kind of battle, but truly, I think there's a war of paradigms between open and closed [boundaries]. That's taking place right now and I don't think the closed philosophy will win. And I hope it doesn't, it's great." "I'll say one thing I do believe in. The ingenuity of people and entrepreneurship and when there are problems, People will solve them and they'll probably create a great business around it." "I dropped out of college and wrote down that in my twenties would set up my thirties and by 30, I wanted to be in build mode. So I spent that 10 years in LA just trying everything." Episode Breakdown 01:19 - Mark and Ryan sharing their past 04:54 - Ryan explaining the Metaverse 14:07 - Philosophy and the foundations of the Metaverse 19:26 - Tim Sweeney and Epic’s position with the Metaverse 29:46 - Ryan talks about Web 3.0 and the tech behind it 43:32 - Crucible’s product vision and it’s sovereign identity 49:57 - Founding member of the open metadata 59:00 - Ryan’s struggles and pitfall with Crucible 01:03:00 - Outro Plugs Episode Links Ryan's Info Crucible Network The Open Metaverse Club Crucible’s Vision Crucible Substack Ryan’s Twitter Ryan’s LinkedIn Other Resources Epic Games Raises $1 Billion Roblox IPO Epic Games CEO, Tim Sweeny on the Future of Gaming SolarPunk Zucco's Triangle Buckminster Fuller Quote Who Owns the Future by Jerone Lenier The Sovereign Individual by James Dale Davidson Gamer Theory by Mackenzie Wark Marc's Info Look Up!...

The Most Important Thing Check out Gabrielle's investigation write-ups of the Fyre Festival, and also her upcoming book "Hype, How Scammers, Grifters, and Con Artists Are Taking Over the Internet―and Why We're Following" here. About Gabrielle Bluestone Gabrielle is an investigative journalist, a licensed attorney, an Emmy nominated producer, writer for New York Times, Washington Post, and Gawker Media among others. She has written extensively on the chaos that is the Fyre Festival frauds which led her to produce the Netflix documentary, Fyre, and she is also the author of “HYPE: How Scammers, Grifters, and Con Artists Are Taking Over the Internet―and Why We're Following” that was released recently in April. About "HYPE" Drawing from scientific research, marketing campaigns, and exclusive documents and interviews, Vice reporter Gabrielle Bluestone delves into the irresistible hype that fuels our social media ecosystem, whether it’s from the trusted influencers that peddled Fyre or the consumer reviews that sold Juicero. A cultural examination that is as revelatory as it is relevant, Hype! pulls back the curtain on the manipulation game behind the never-ending scam season—and how we as consumers can stop getting played. Episode Overview In this episode, Gabrielle talked about the fake it till you make it culture and how we are made to believe everything we see online, especially through the lens of social media. More often than not, we tend to fall into the FOMO trap through false marketing and what was actually being presented even if we know that we are being tricked, take Fyre Festival for example. She also highlighted that we need to be able to think critically and process the information we perceive, research the information and make our own decisions. My Favorite Quotes: "We fall for it because we want to. Either they're promising us something that we want or they're making it seem that other people want it and we want it because other people want it or we see the right people advertising the product. "I don't know if I'm doing my math correctly, I'm a writer, I'm not a mathematician" "what I found personally shocking is just, even though I'm writing about this and thinking about this all the time, I still fall for things that I see on social media." "I think it's just weighing constantly what you can see versus what you're promised." "I think social media changed everything to a certain degree. There are a lot of studies that show the influence that having all of this stuff in your pocket, the advent of Instagram being on your phone all the time, you're constantly seeing how other people are living. And I think it's very difficult not to compare yourself to that." "You hear people joke around about how Instagram or Twitter is such a health site. It is that way because of the people that you've chosen to follow. So you can control what you're seeing." Episode Breakdown 00:10 - Gabrielle's reason for writing her book "Hype" 05:00 - Key differences between a successful CEO and a con artist 13:45 - Why individuals make purchases from influencers recommendations 18:00 - Understanding social values through social media 31:00 - Think critically about how we process information online 36:50 - Marc's personal experience with COVID 42:00 - Discussing net worth, how much is too much? Episode Links: Gabrielle’s Info Gabrielle’s WebsiteGabrielle’s Investigative ReportsGabrielle's TwitterGabrielle’s InstagramGabrielle’s LinkedinMarc's Info Look Up! Patreon CommunityLook Up! WebsiteMarc's InstagramMarc's TwitterLook Up! On iTunesLook Up! On Spotify Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-look-up-podcast-with-marc-weinstein. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Most Important Thing Check out Axel’s music at Axel Mansoor Spotify and if you are keen on joining or performing at the Lullaby Club here is the link, Lullaby Club About Axel Mansoor You may have seen his face on Clubhouse app’s logo, Axel Mansoor is an upcoming recording artist out of Los Angeles. He is the creator of the Lullaby Club on the Clubhouse app and is well known for his creativity of using the app as a platform to spread his music On top of that, Axel Mansoor had been nominated for a Daytime Emmy for his song that he had written for “General Hospital” in 2018. Check out his latest tracks “ I wrote this when I was mad” and “Kids can be so stupid” which are available to download on Spotify. About Lullaby Club Dawning the warm vibes of soothing, soft and snuggly, Lullaby Club is a crowd of warm hearted souls that aims to immerse themselves in bliss tunes and soothing voices. Founded by Axel Mansoor, Lullaby Club pampers its audience with like minded tastes and the freedom of expression for their softer sides The environment of Lullaby Club is always safe and warm playing a variety of featured artists and MC’s. The club is always open to talents that are keen on lullaby style performances during their open mic nights on Fridays 9pm PST. Episode Overview In this episode, Axel Mansoor and I discussed the lessons that he learned as a third culture kid and rising musician. We chat about the creation of Lullaby Club and his journey to becoming the Icon of Clubhouse. Axel shared his upbringing, values and broke down his music describing what his thought process was when he composed his songs. My Favorite Quotes: “Life is hard but Lullaby Club is soft” “There are no such thing as a good emotion or a bad emotion...all emotions are important” “Expressing gratitude is one of the most powerful things I believe in life and it's one of the most connective things in life, between two people whether or not you’re strangers. Like when you’re truly expressing gratitude to somebody for something and they are able to receive it, it creates a sense of real connection even if you never met or won't meet again. As a performer, it feels so good to put something out into the world and have it reflect back to you as like “I am grateful that you did that” It gives you the energy you know... It makes you feel seen. And so it's a situation where it's just a total win-win because the artists are getting something and the people are getting something by saying thank you and it makes people feel connected.” “The quickest way to make somebody anxious or depressed or feel lost or feel unfulfilled is to tell them...here's an emotion that you’re not allowed to have“ Episode Breakdown: 5.00 Axel’s clubhouse experience 10.00 Lessons learnt and being independent 15.00 Axel’s criteria of answering Dm’s 20.00 Axel’s take on measuring success 25.00 Axel’s 5 values 30.00 Personal growth and leaning into trust 35.00 Axel discusses holding space and open mics 40.00 Expressing gratitude is powerful 45.00 Axel breaks down his music 55.00 Defining 3rd culture kid Episode Links Axel’s Info Spotify Apple MusicYoutubeDeezerAmazon MusicAxel’s InstagramLullaby ClubLullaby Club’s InstagramMarc's Info Look Up! Patreon Community Look Up! Website Marc's Instagram Marc's Twitter Look Up! On iTunes Look Up! On Spotify Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-look-up-podcast-with-marc-weinstein. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Most Important Thing Check out Aaron's work at the Align Podcast and grab his book, the Align Method About Aaron Alexander Aaron is a movement coach, physical therapist, author of The Align Method, and the host of the Align Podcast. His career as a movement coach started when he was working as a personal trainer in LA Fitness at the age of 16, today, he has worked with some of the best athletes and celebrities from around the world and has helped them relieve both their mental and physical discomfort through The Align Method. About The Align Method The Align Method is built upon mobility, confidence, and clarity. Through years of discomfort and pain, Aaron developed his method to overcome his insecurities and injuries. This method teaches people that the body is not at fault but what you're doing to your body is the problem. His mission is to re-inhabit people's bodies to be strong, flexible, and pain-free by educating them on movement and body functionality. Aaron's method is built to reverse the effects of our daily posture trap such as slouching and screen staring through your very own momentary physical practice. Episode Overview: In this episode, Aaron talked about his journey from a personal trainer, poking fun of self-identification and how it takes a very evolved mature perception of the human experience to be able to love oneself and later moving on to the processes of trusting the dogma of experiences. My Favourite Quotes: "I am ultimately connected with everything. You know, I, when I'm looking at another person, I'm looking at myself, looking back at myself, looking back at myself, like I am a continuation of the whole thing. So if I really deeply identify with, I am Jew, you are Christian. You are this, you are that. I think that idea, the premise of that idea is faulty in the first place. And instead of being able to come to a point where we can poke fun, and bring light to these separations and differences. I think it was actually incredibly healthy, but it takes a very evolved mature perception of the human experience to get to the point where you can start to be the first to kind of poke fun at yourself and not take it personally." "Sometimes there is value in just closing your eyes and saying cool: trust the teacher, trust the dogma trust that thousands of years have been handing down the different books and literature and such...close my eyes. Trust it. Go in (and) see what's on the other side of this." "Ultimately I think it's just being comfortable with whatever it is, whatever comes up and not trying too hard to be wrapped up in any one suit, but just being comfortable with, with, Oh, now this is coming up and I don't feel shame about it, you know? I think that's for me is like all the other people just want to be themselves, but I think we don't really know. Most people will know what it means to even be yourself. Cause we're so wrapped up in so many layers of who we think we're supposed to be. I'm in the process of it personally. Where are you at with your human suit?" Episode Breakdown Episode Links Aaron's Info Aaron's Instagram Twitter Listen to the Align Podcast Align Podcast Website The Align Method's Website Marc's Info Look Up! Patreon Community Look Up! Website Marc's Instagram Marc's Twitter Look Up! On iTunes Look Up! On Spotify Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-look-up-podcast-with-marc-weinstein. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Most Important Thing Check out Liberate Studio to start working on your mental fitness About Olivia Bowser Liv has a background in physical fitness and “better for you” start-ups. She began her career as employee #1 at a promising CPG start-up and spent the next 5 years working as a brand and digital marketer alongside the C Team of high-revenue start-ups. A Certified Meditation and Mindfulness Teacher, she ties together her deep knowledge of mind-body connection with her business acumen to drive Liberate growth at every level. About Liberate Liberate is founded on the belief that your health is multidimensional. They practice a flow of movement, reflection journaling, conversation, and meditation to help you live lightly and more fully in the present. Consider it the Working on Yourself Workout. With every class, they strengthen your mental well-being and enhance their students’ relationship with themselves and others. This is a space for human beings to openly transform their well-being, together. Episode Overview: In this episode, Olivia explains her journey to creating Liberate. Starting as a varsity skier in upstate New York, Liv then moved on to an intense career in digital marketing at a startup company. After struggling with personal anxiety for years, she took her mental fitness into her own hands and has developed a program for herself and others that highlights 5 important pillars of mental fitness: Presence, gratitude, pride, courage, and resilience. My Favorite Quotes: “Resilience is not about being perfect or never failing, it’s about getting up after you are knocked down.” “For a lot of us pride can be confused with bragging – you’re supposed to be humble and you’re not supposed to talk about yourself / the great things you’ve done.” “The first step to develop healthy pride is to ask people to what the like about themselves.” “Pride is essentially the definition of celebrating yourself.” “One benefit of COVID is that is has raised a broader awareness of mental health issues that need to be addressed.” “In high school, I was clocked at 65 miles per hour (skiing)” “I am often overthinking (to a fault), rather than staying present. I’m constantly trying to get ahead of myself.” “I love gratitude practice. I do it daily – every morning and night I say out loud three things that I am grateful for and I journal / write it down.” “What’s most important to me at Liberate is accessibility.” “I think every founder should practice mindfulness because it helps you stay focused and grateful throughout the day.” Episode Breakdown: 00:00 – What is mental Fitness? 4:00 – The 5 core themes of mental fitness 10:00 – Why Pride plays a positive role in mental fitness 15:00 – When Olivia decided to create Liberate 20:00 – Olivia’s experience as a varsity downhill skier in college 25:00 – Olivia’s explains the importance of presence and gratitude practice 30:00 – Olivia’s experience in digital marketing? 35:00 – How to get involved with Liberate 40:00 – Starting a company during COVID 45:00 – Olivia’s relationship to meditation Episode Links: Olivia’s Info Liv on Seek the Joy Podcast LinkedIn Syracuse Entrepreneurship Writeup Liberate Info www.liberatestudio.com Instagram Linktree Other Resources & References Our Deepest Fear by Marianne Williamson Ten Percent Happier App Marc’s Info: Marc Weinstein, host of the Look Up! Podcast is a public speaker for corporations, universities, and conferences. Click here to view past talks and to book Marc Look Up! Patreon Community Look Up! Website Marc's Instagram Marc's Twitter Look Up! On iTunes Look Up! On Spotify Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-look-up-podcast-with-marc-weinstein. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Most Important Thing Check out Listening to Ecstasy to learn more about this powerful substance and the positive impact it had on Charley’s life. About Charles Wininger Charles Wininger, LP, LMHC is a licensed psychoanalyst and mental health counselor specializing in relationships and communication skills. Recognized as the “Love Doctor” by the New York Times and Newsday, he’s been treating couples and individuals in his Manhattan and Brooklyn offices for 30 years. He sits o the board of advisors of the Psychedelic Education and Continuing Care Program at the Center for Optimal Living in New York. He lives with his wife, Shelley, in Brooklyn. About Listening to Ecstasy Listening to Ecstasy serves as both Charley’s memoir and a guide to the safe and effective use of MDMA. In this book, Charley details the countless ways that Ecstasy has helped him become a better therapist and husband. He recounts his coming of age in the 1960s counterculture, his 50 years of responsible experimentation with mind-altering substances, and his immersion in the new psychedelic renaissance. He explains how he and his wife found Ecstasy to be the key to renewing and enriching their lives as they entered their senior years. Countering the fearful propaganda that surrounds this drug, Winninger describes what the experience actually feels like and explores the value of Ecstasy and similar substances for potentially helping psychologically healthy individuals live a more fulfilling life. He provides guidelines for the responsible use of MDMA, including how to optimize the “roll” and hot it may not be for everyone. He reveals how MDMA has enhanced his marriage, both erotically and emotionally, and describes how pleasure, fun, and joy can lead to profound bonding and transformative experiences. Episode Overview: In this episode, Charley and I discuss the role of Ecstasy in his life and marriage. We identify the benefits and risks, as well as the negative propaganda against Ecstasy / MDMA. Charley shares his experience coming of age in the 60s, his use of psychedelic substances, and his becoming a therapist. We discuss love, politics, and the crises humanity currently encounters. Finally, we hone on the power of men’s work and compassion in building a healthy life and relationships. While the book is about his experience with Ecstasy, we talk about so much more. My Favorite Quotes: “I was tripping balls before you were even a twinkle in your father’s eye” “The best way to do MDMA, especially the first time, is at home when you have control over your immediate surroundings… start out in the safest place you know, which is usually the home.” “The Burner culture owes a lot to the original counter-culture of the 60s whether they know it or not, and I believe that they do.” “The Summer of Love was one of the most magical times of my life; the other most magical time of my life is NOW” “The 60s taught me that Utopia is possible - as funny as it might sound.” “The best way to live is not as an I, but part of a WE. As part of something, bigger than yourself – that’s the most meaningful way to live.” “It’s up to us, to fix all of the horrible problems that we face. To bring it back to MDMA, I believe these medicines can help to inform us and teach us. This is why I call the book Listening to Ecstasy.” “My generation really blew it – we made the world a little better, but not as much as we should have or could have” “Capitalism is an enormously powerful force with its own momentum and all the systems in place have their own momentum.” “The only true method of change is non-violent and massive – in order to delegitimize mainstream culture” “The way we feel on MDMA points to the way that we need to live – with an open heart and an open mind – seeing all the people on the planet as no different than us. That’s true revolution and it comes from these medicines and spiritual practice.” “I’m not happy unless she is – that’s one definition...

The Most Important Thing Mental models and principles are popular on social media but often fail to move beyond fortune cookie wisdom into sustainable execution. In that way, intelligence is directionless, but wisdom is guidance. Building an operating system for your life is about 1) knowing what you're working toward and 2) engineering daily systems and rituals to make progress through time, regardless of a particular week's or month's outcome. About Anthony Emtman Anthony Emtman is CEO of Ikigai, an investment and technology firm focused on Bitcoin and crypto-assets. As an entrepreneur, he's built businesses in FinTech, blockchain, real estate, transportation, and video intelligence spaces. Anthony was also an active duty Captain in the U.S. Air Force for 10 years, serving as a Contracting Officer and as a Software Engineer. About Ikigai Asset Management The world doesn't need another hedge fund. The world needs this technology. We're building Ikigai because the most significant investment opportunity of a generation is also one of the most potentially positive catalysts to human prosperity since antibiotics were invented in 1928. Half of the global population lives under an authoritarian regime and can’t trust their government to manage a sound economy and stable currency. A non-sovereign, hard-capped supply, global, immutable, decentralized, digital store of value is a vote for freedom. It’s a way out of that regime. It’s a path to prosperity for the Billions that aren’t blessed with the $, €, ¥, £, … For some, it’s a literal vote for freedom. For others, it’s an insurance policy against the devaluing of their fiat currency. For everyone, Bitcoin and crypto is a step toward a more meritocratic world. It's a key piece in the Trust Revolution. In the spirit of Ikigai, that sounds a lot like something the world needs. FinTech and Crypto broadly present a transformational opportunity to leverage technology to empower humanity — not the other way around ( our mission statement at Ikigai … i.e., not addictive, toxic, and identity-stealing). It could be almost like antibiotics for economic health and liberty. The potential for positive societal change is unrivaled. In the spirit of Ikigai, that sounds a lot like something the world needs. Episode Overview: In this episode, Anthony and I sat down to discuss various frameworks for building an operating system for your life. We discuss the importance of finding a North Star, knowing yourself and your Love Languages, determining your Ikigai, and building focus in life. We also speak about Anthony’s role at Ikigai Fund and the emergence of Bitcoin as the foundation of the Trust Revolution. My Favorite Quotes: “You’re about to join the United States Military and you want to start a business that mines magic internet money that people use to buy drugs online?!” “True leadership is service leadership.” “My Ikigai is to lead a global impactful organization rooted in technology and finance that has the specific mission of empowering and lifting up humanity.” “On social media, there’s a lot of fortune cookie wisdom. Intelligence or knowledge that is stated but directionless. There’s not a bunch of examples as to how to apply this to your life.” “Intelligence is directionless, but wisdom is guidance.” “An operating system is coordinating increasing and increasing stacks of complex systems – and that is how I think about building my life.” “If you are real deliberate about what you do with your time every day and you pay attention to it.” “The truth of something tends to lie in the feel of it, not the think of it.” “Distributed ledger technology (DLT) allows someone to write their own personal Bill of Rights in a way.” “If money were out of the picture, what would you spend your time doing? What’d you do in your free time? Who do you spend most of your time with? Where do you find your thoughts naturally drifting towards? When you had sleepless nights,...

The Most Important Thing Check out Alethea.AI to learn more about the future of creator-owned avatars in the Metaverse About Arif Khan Arif Khan is the CEO and Co-founder of Alethea AI. Arif’s prior executive leadership roles include managing the global blockchain-based AI marketplace SingularityNET where Arif was its CMO and popularized the Humanoid Robot Sophia. In his early career, Arif witnessed the disruptive transformation that digital platforms brought, where he led Growth and Business Development for LinkedIn in Asia. Arif has been regularly invited to speak at major global events like The World Economic Forum, World Web Forum, Consensus 2020, and has guest lectured at the Singapore Management University’s MBA program. He is a top writer for Artificial Intelligence on Medium.com and his work has been covered or featured in The Joe Rogan Show, CBS, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal & The New York Times. About Alethea AI Alethea AI is a protocol that empowers Creators to build photorealistic and intelligent AI Avatars. Alethea AI is part of a select few companies globally that is helping to test and refine Open AI’s state-of-the-art GPT-3 technology for photorealistic characters. Episode Overview: In this episode, I had the chance to sit down with the founder and CEO of Alethea AI, Arif Khan. Arif's previous company, SingularityNet were the creators of now famous, Sophia the Robot, and he’s taken his work there to new heights in building Alethea. Alethea is a platform for building AI Avatars whose mission is to democratize CGI and to enable creators, developers, and fans to create expressive, intelligent and interactive AI. I learned a ton from Arif on this episode as we explored the edges of the Metaverse, the philosophy and ethics around artificial intelligence, the meaning of human-level intelligence, consciousness, aliens, Karma and more. My Favorite Quotes: “We’re getting closer to that simulated reality where we won’t be able to distinguish what is real and what is fake, right? But then again, were we ever able to?” “If we look at the state of the world: our sensemaking and meaning-making capacities are under assault.” “The charismatic CEO character is embedded in our culture today, but pseudonymity (and Satoshi Nakomoto) has changed that” “There is significant humility today, that I had not seen before, around the uncertainty of our reality and what defines our consciousness. People are trying to answer the question: what does it mean to be human?” “We were experimenting recently with bringing back a character from a well-known movie series. You need to scan the data of this character’s past dialogues, but you’d also want to train it to interpret new data to form new meaning.” “Our desire for perfection is so strong and our desire to complete the cycle is so strong and our desire to attain that peace is so strong, but sometimes if that is the overriding the desire; that can be an extremely difficult thing to input into a system to optimize for.” “What if removing Karma is actually SUPPOSED to be a difficult thing to achieve.” “What are the levels of disconnection and addiction that are possible when a character becomes expressive, realistic, and emotive?” “The vision of Alethea is that we believe a metaverse will come to life with millions of these characters, but fundamentally the agency must go to each individual to chose. We need to design systems with individual agency in mind.” “I think that aspirational values can save us.” “Beauty will save the world – beauty, and art, and these higher order meaningful ideas can actually move us in the right direction.” Episode Breakdown: 00:00 – The current state of reality 2:00 – Synthetic media, the uncanny valley, and Open AI 8:00 – Turing test and understanding “human-level intelligence” 15:00 – Are we humans deterministic or can we alter our programming? 23:00 – Karma, programming, and the power of the human mind 30:00 – The CIA’s...

The Most Important Thing You can go to www.endingdisease.com to purchase a ticket for Ending Disease’s release. About Joe Gantz Joe Gantz is a documentary filmmaker, TV producer, author, and social activist. His HBO film American Winter, about the human impact of poverty and the shrinking middle class in America, had a big part in the movement across the country to raise the minimum wage. Joe is known for the 14 year-long, Emmy winning, HBO series Taxicab Confessions which revealed the voice and heart of people of every background, telling their stories simply and honestly in the backseat of a cab. The series celebrated our differences and our commonalities, inspiring people to call Taxicab Confessions the most authentic show on television. Joe is currently finishing a new documentary, The Race to Save the World, on people who are in the trenches fighting climate change, often at great personal risk, to fight for a livable future. Joe’s films have won the Sidney Award for excellence in journalism, the Bending Towards Justice award, the Best of Workers Unite Film Festival, and Best Doc at the Portland Film Festival. Joe was also short-listed for the Ridenhour prize which recognizes those who persevere in acts of truth-telling that protect the public interest or illuminate a more just vision of society. ​Find out more about American Winter here. Find out more about Race to Save the world here About Ending Disease Ending Disease is a documentary series that follows patients and their doctors in the first generation of FDA-approved clinical trials for stem cell, CAR-T cell, and antibody therapies. Granted unprecedented access to groundbreaking trials taking place at top research facilities in the United States, our crew filmed through the duration of ten clinical trials that used regenerative medicine to treat brain cancer, breast cancer, leukemia, lymphoma, HIV, spinal cord injury, eye disease, and SCID. Over the course of four episodes, the patients put their hope and their faith in the trials, and we witness as their illnesses are profoundly transformed by pioneering treatments.​ ​ Meanwhile, the scientists on the forefront of medical science must fight for those trials, as they know that medicine is on the cusp of a radical transformation where therapies will move away from chemo, radiation, surgeries, and a lifetime of treatment, and toward medicine that is less expensive, less toxic and most importantly, curative. ​Ending Disease establishes without a doubt that we are in a historical time in medicine, where regenerative medicine is changing therapies from treatments to cures. The series takes the viewer through a powerful emotional journey as it weaves human stories of patients and their doctor working together on the frontier of medical science. Episode Overview: On this episode, I sat down with Emmy-award winning director, Joe Gantz, to discuss his latest docuseries, Ending Disease. Ending Disease follows the lives of many of the families whose loved one is currently undergoing experimental stem cell therapy called CAR-T to treat or cure various chronic and terminal illness. The film highlights the power of the transformative medicine. This is personal for Joe as he was recently diagnosed and treated for bladder cancer. Joe and I discuss his journey to make this film, what he learned, and his experiences with these families. He educates me about the stigma around stem cell therapy and the pharmaceutical industry. We then finish the show chatting about the new media landscape and the challenges of creating social awareness documentaries in today’s streaming environment. My Favorite Quotes: “You have two jobs – one’s making the film, the other’s raising the funds.” “The polio vaccine used embryonic tissue; President Trump took that special medication for COVID-19 and that used fetal or embryonic tissue.” “Once this therapy becomes the norm, it’s going to cure a tremendous number of...

The Most Important Thing Learn how to enhance your empathy skills with Flourish in order to improve your life and the lives of those around you. Check them out here: https://flourishtech.us/home About Paul Chen Paul Chen (陈扬洋) was born in Chengdu, China, and immigrated to Norfolk, VA, as a teenager. Paul is the CEO and cofounder of Flourish Tech, a Silicon Valley venture-backed startup seeking to become the world’s best platform for mental and emotional fitness. Paul is also a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations, nominated by former Secretary of State Dr. Condi Rice. About Dr. Karen Yeh Dr. Karen Yeh, Psy.D., is a clinical psychologist with nearly 20 years of experience. In her practice, she has seen the power of empathy work for many individuals with relationship problems. In 2010 she started her training with Dr. David Burns, Stanford psychiatrist and bestselling author of Feeling Good: A New Mood Therapy, to specialize in his cognitive self-help approach to mental health. Dr. Yeh established a center in Fremont, CA, in 2014 to train other therapists and serve the larger community through public education programs and direct clinical services through in-person and teletherapy private sessions. Feeling Good Whole Health takes a holistic approach to psychotherapy, addressing patients’ mind, brain, body, and soul health, to support the work of cognitive behavioral therapy. Dr. Yeh holds a Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology from CSPP Alliant International University, an Ed.M. in Counseling & Consulting Psychology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and a B.S. in Biology from MIT. About Flourish Flourish Tech is building the world’s first expert guided peer coaching community to help people sharpen their relationship skills. Our methodology is evidence-based and comes from research at Stanford University. You can build and deepen trust with others by practicing role plays that simulate real life relationships. Episode Overview: In the last episode of Look Up! and first half of this conversation, we introduced the mental health crisis in America and evaluated some of the root causes behind it. We then began to discuss where we go from here. In this episode, I continue my conversation with Paul and Dr. Karen focusing first on the importance of empathy as a tool to combat the mental health crisis. We then dive into the ways in which empathy can be trained, the challenges that we face when dealing with someone who suffers from depression, and resetting the rules of engagement for our relationships. My Favorite Quotes: “One of the evaluations that we run at the clinic, we call it SPANS – we attend to the person’s spirituality, physical activity, nutrition, and sleep. All of these lend to an individual’s mental health.” “Having bad relationships is as likely to cause someone to be clinically depressed as is having a heart attack.” “Few people know that empathy can be trained AND empathy is best taught experientially.” “What is empathy? It’s really being able to join the person; to walk a mile in their shoes.” “Empathy is making that decision that you are going to jump in the well with them; get in there, get muddy and get dirty, but also know that that’s how you are going to get them out sooner.” “For the most part, you can’t really catch depression. But I say that lightly, because if being with someone who is depressed doesn’t affect you, then you aren’t connected. So it’s going to affect you, but not in the same way.” “Are we ready for a different vision of what technology can do for us?” “We’re trying to reset the initialization (the rules of engagement) for a group of people, so that before they actually engage, they have the right mindset, behavior, and habits to engage effectively.” “Empathy takes work because we like our point of view; we want someone to adopt our point of view before we adopt theirs, BUT is the relationship worth it?” Episode Breakdown: 00:00 – We are social animals – the...

The Most Important Thing Most people can significantly improve their relationship skills, which are trained, not born with. You can learn how to handle tricky relationship challenges by practicing with others in role plays regularly, like you would go to a gym to become physically fit. If someone close to you is feeling depressed or anxious, Flourish can help to train you with the skills of empathy in order to support this person. Check them out here: https://flourishtech.us/home About Paul Chen Paul Chen (陈扬洋) was born in Chengdu, China, and immigrated to Norfolk, VA, as a teenager. Paul is the CEO and cofounder of Flourish Tech, a Silicon Valley venture-backed startup seeking to become the world’s best platform for mental and emotional fitness. Paul is also a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations, nominated by former Secretary of State Dr. Condi Rice. About Dr. Karen Yeh Dr. Karen Yeh, Psy.D., is a clinical psychologist with nearly 20 years of experience. In her practice, she has seen the power of empathy work for many individuals with relationship problems. In 2010 she started her training with Dr. David Burns, Stanford psychiatrist and bestselling author of Feeling Good: A New Mood Therapy, to specialize in his cognitive self-help approach to mental health. Dr. Yeh established a center in Fremont, CA, in 2014 to train other therapists and serve the larger community through public education programs and direct clinical services through in-person and teletherapy private sessions. Feeling Good Whole Health takes a holistic approach to psychotherapy, addressing patients’ mind, brain, body, and soul health, to support the work of cognitive behavioral therapy. Dr. Yeh holds a Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology from CSPP Alliant International University, an Ed.M. in Counseling & Consulting Psychology from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and a B.S. in Biology from MIT About Flourish Flourish Tech is building the world’s first expert guided peer coaching community to help people sharpen their relationship skills. Our methodology is evidence-based and comes from research at Stanford University. You can build and deepen trust with others by practicing role plays that simulate real life relationships. Episode Overview In this episode, I begin my two part discussion with Paul Chen and Dr. Karen Yeh on the mental health crisis in America. One in four Americans suffers from clinical depression, the rate of anxiety and depression amongst young children is rapidly on the rise, most adults report feeling stressed or burnt out. How did we get here? What are some of the causes behind this mental health crisis in America and what are some common misconceptions? Can technology be refitted as a tool to help us as individuals and society thrive mentally, emotionally and spiritually? My Favorite Quotes “It would be a crime for me to say that we can’t make this better; as a founder, it’s in my blood to be optimistic. It’s not naïve to say that things can be better, but it certainly won’t happen if we do nothing about it.” “As psychologists, it’s not a rockstar model, we can’t reach 10,000 people with one go. We have to work closely one on one with the patients and the family.” “As a business-person, I love stigmatized industries because that means most people don’t dare to touch them. But if there’s actually fundamental reasons for why changes need to happen and you’re daring enough to get into some of these stigmatized fields then opportunities are tremendous.” “Mental health will be as normalized as physical health” “Lacking motivation is a SYMPTOM of depression, not a choice that a depressed person makes.” “How do we help them understand? It’s empathy” “We can see a physiological basis for depression, but that doesn’t mean that medication is the best solution for it. We haven’t yet gotten to a point where we understand what depression or anxiety is. To some extent, you can say the brain is still a black...