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Poor countries could be the first to replace their governments with AI - Garett Jones
ABOUT THE EPISODE
Garett Jones is a Professor of Economics at George Mason University and author of The Singapore Trilogy, which is what he very aptly calls his three major works - Hive Mind, 10% Less Democracy, and The Culture Transplant. Life in Singapore can sometimes feel like the movie adaptation of Garett's books, and as in many other cases, the books are a lot more fun than the movie. He also previously worked in the US Senate and is now the Chief Economist at Bluechip, a stablecoin rating agency. Garett's pointed arguments on intelligence, immigration and democracy might test the relationship between how we think the world works and our favourite political positions, but we should take this test seriously because, in true Singaporean fashion, it is a difficult test and one that many fail.
In this episode, we talk about why the people around you matter more for your income than you do, why poor countries should be recruiting migrants instead of losing them, and what happens to all of it once thinking gets cheap. Also: why you can fake your resume but never your country's, whether enough AI could turn Lagos into San Francisco, why democracy is a civil war where we all know which day to show up and so much more.
ABOUT SECOND ORDERS
Second Orders is a series of conversations with thinkers, tinkerers and theorists about pivotal changes in science, technology, law and culture, their unintended consequences and what they reveal about how we live and cooperate at every scale.
Website: http://secondorders.co
Become a guest or suggest a topic: http://secondorders.co/hello
Chapters:
00:05 Coming up...
02:01 How does migration 500 years ago predict your country's income today?
04:11 Is there such a thing as an ideal migrant?
09:32 Do better ingredients (people) make better pizza (policies)?
15:06 Does IQ predict everything else that's good?
21:04 Will countries start using their diaspora as spies?
24:44 Countries competing for the best migrants?
28:30 Should poor countries engineer their own great replacement?
31:24 Why can't you fake your country's resume?
40:32 Does AI sever the link between IQ and wealth?
46:55 Could poor states use AI governance to attract migrants?
51:27 Can enough AI simulate San Francisco in Lagos?
58:21 After ASI, does IQ still matter?
01:08:44 Will AI change how democracies work?
01:12:23 Is there any technological cure for our short-sightedness?
01:14:42 Election campaigns, voting and promises in the age of AI
01:20:21 New chapter
01:26:53 Democracy is ritualised civil war
01:27:53 Can stablecoins be used to discipline failing governments?
01:33:48 Will AI agents pay each other in crypto?
01:37:49 What excites you about the future?
01:39:31 The future of economics research
View all episodes
By ShaneABOUT THE EPISODE
Garett Jones is a Professor of Economics at George Mason University and author of The Singapore Trilogy, which is what he very aptly calls his three major works - Hive Mind, 10% Less Democracy, and The Culture Transplant. Life in Singapore can sometimes feel like the movie adaptation of Garett's books, and as in many other cases, the books are a lot more fun than the movie. He also previously worked in the US Senate and is now the Chief Economist at Bluechip, a stablecoin rating agency. Garett's pointed arguments on intelligence, immigration and democracy might test the relationship between how we think the world works and our favourite political positions, but we should take this test seriously because, in true Singaporean fashion, it is a difficult test and one that many fail.
In this episode, we talk about why the people around you matter more for your income than you do, why poor countries should be recruiting migrants instead of losing them, and what happens to all of it once thinking gets cheap. Also: why you can fake your resume but never your country's, whether enough AI could turn Lagos into San Francisco, why democracy is a civil war where we all know which day to show up and so much more.
ABOUT SECOND ORDERS
Second Orders is a series of conversations with thinkers, tinkerers and theorists about pivotal changes in science, technology, law and culture, their unintended consequences and what they reveal about how we live and cooperate at every scale.
Website: http://secondorders.co
Become a guest or suggest a topic: http://secondorders.co/hello
Chapters:
00:05 Coming up...
02:01 How does migration 500 years ago predict your country's income today?
04:11 Is there such a thing as an ideal migrant?
09:32 Do better ingredients (people) make better pizza (policies)?
15:06 Does IQ predict everything else that's good?
21:04 Will countries start using their diaspora as spies?
24:44 Countries competing for the best migrants?
28:30 Should poor countries engineer their own great replacement?
31:24 Why can't you fake your country's resume?
40:32 Does AI sever the link between IQ and wealth?
46:55 Could poor states use AI governance to attract migrants?
51:27 Can enough AI simulate San Francisco in Lagos?
58:21 After ASI, does IQ still matter?
01:08:44 Will AI change how democracies work?
01:12:23 Is there any technological cure for our short-sightedness?
01:14:42 Election campaigns, voting and promises in the age of AI
01:20:21 New chapter
01:26:53 Democracy is ritualised civil war
01:27:53 Can stablecoins be used to discipline failing governments?
01:33:48 Will AI agents pay each other in crypto?
01:37:49 What excites you about the future?
01:39:31 The future of economics research