What if the biggest mistake in AI safety is believing that laws, treaties, and regulations will save us?In this episode of For Humanity, John sits down with Peter Sparber, a former architect of Big Tobacco’s successful war against regulation, to confront a deeply uncomfortable truth: the AI industry is using the exact same playbook—and it’s working. Drawing on decades of experience inside Washington’s most effective lobbying operations, Peter explains why regulation almost always fails against powerful industries, how AI companies are already neutralizing political pressure, and why real change will never come from lawmakers alone. Instead, he argues that the only path to meaningful AI safety is making unsafe AI bad for business—by injecting risk, liability, and uncertainty directly into boardrooms and C-suites. Peter reveals why AI doesn’t need to outsmart humanity to defeat regulation, it only needs money, time, and political cover. By exposing how industries evade oversight, delay enforcement, and co-opt regulators, this conversation re-frames AI safety around power, incentives, and accountability.

Together, they explore:

* Why laws, treaties, and regulations repeatedly fail against powerful industries

* How Big AI is following Big Tobacco’s exact regulatory playbook

* Why public outrage rarely translates into effective policy

* How companies neutralize enforcement without breaking the law

* Why third-party standards may matter more than legislation

* How local resistance, liability, and investor pressure can change behavior

* Why making unsafe AI bad for business is the only strategy with teeth

📺 Subscribe to The AI Risk Network for weekly conversations on how we can confront the AI extinction threat.

What if the greatest danger of AI isn’t extinction — but the quiet loss of our ability to think and choose for ourselves? In this episode of For Humanity, John sits down with journalist and author Jacob Ward (CNN, PBS, Al Jazeera; The Loop) to unpack the most under-discussed risk of artificial intelligence: decision erosion.

Jacob explains why AI doesn’t need to become sentient to be dangerous — it only needs to be convenient. Drawing from neuroscience, behavioral psychology, and real-world reporting, he reveals how systems designed to “help” us are slowly pushing humans into cognitive autopilot.

Together, they explore:

* Why AI threatens near-term human agency more than long-term sci-fi extinction

* How Google Maps offers a chilling preview of AI’s effect on the human brain

* The difference between fast-thinking and slow-thinking — and why AI exploits it

* Why persuasive AI may outperform humans politically and psychologically

* How profit incentives, not intelligence, are driving the most dangerous outcomes

* Why focusing only on extinction risk alienates the public — and weakens AI safety efforts

👉 Follow More of Jacob Ward’s Work:

📺 Subscribe to The AI Risk Network for weekly conversations on how we can confront the AI extinction threat.

#AISafety #AIAlignment #ForHumanityPodcast #AIRisk #ForHumanity #JacobWard #AIandSociety #ArtificialIntelligence #HumanAgency #TechEthics #AIResponsibility

In this episode of For Humanity, John Sherman sits down with Congressman Bill Foster — the only PhD scientist in Congress, a former Fermilab physicist, and one of the few lawmakers deeply engaged with advanced AI risks. Together, they dive into a wide-ranging conversation about the accelerating capabilities of AI, the systemic vulnerabilities inside Congress, and why the next few years may determine the fate of our species.

Foster unpacks why AI risk mirrors nuclear risk in scale, how interpretability is collapsing as models evolve, why Congress is structurally incapable of responding fast enough, and how geopolitical pressures distort every conversation on safety. They also explore the looming financial bubble around AI, the coming energy crunch from massive data centers, and the emerging threat of anonymous encrypted compute — a pathway that could enable rogue actors or rogue AIs to operate undetected.

If you want a deeper understanding of how AI intersects with power, geopolitics, compute, regulation, and existential risk, this conversation is essential.

Together, they explore:

* • The real risks emerging from today’s AI systems — and what’s coming next

* Why Congress is unprepared for AGI-level threats

* How compute verification could become humanity’s safety net

* Why data centers may reshape energy, economics, and local politics

* How scientific literacy in government could redefine AI governance

👉 Follow More of Congressman Foster’s Work:

📺 Subscribe to The AI Risk Network for weekly conversations on how we can confront the AI extinction threat.

#AISafety #AIAlignment #ForHumanityPodcast #AIRisk #FutureOfAI #AIandWarfare #AutonomousWeapons #AIEthics #TechForGood #ArtificialIntelligence

In this episode of For Humanity, John sits down with Liv Boeree — poker champion, systems thinker, and longtime AI risk advocate — for a candid conversation about where we truly stand in the race toward advanced AI. Liv breaks down why public understanding of superintelligence is so uneven, how misaligned incentives shape the entire ecosystem, and why issues like surveillance, culture, and gender dynamics matter more than people realize.

They explore the emotional realities of working on existential risk, the impact of doomscrolling, and how mindset and intuition keep people grounded in such turbulent times. The result is a clear, grounded, and surprisingly hopeful look at the future of technology, power, and responsibility. If you’re passionate about understanding AI’s real impacts (today and tomorrow), this is a must-watch.

Together, they explore:

* The real risks we face from AI — today and in the coming years

* Why public understanding of superintelligence is so fractured

* How incentives, competition, and culture misalign technology with human flourishing

* What poker teaches us about deception, risk, and reading motives

* The role of women, intuition, and “mama bear energy” in the AI safety movement

👉 Follow More of Liv Boeree’s Work:

📺 Subscribe to The AI Risk Network for weekly conversations on how we can confront the AI extinction threat.

#AISafety #AIAlignment #ForHumanityPodcast #AIRisk #FutureOfAI #AIandWarfare #AutonomousWeapons #AIEthics #TechForGood #ArtificialIntelligence

In this episode of For Humanity, host John Sherman speaks with Esben Kran, one of the leading figures in the for-profit AI safety movement, joining live from Ukraine — where he’s exploring the intersection of AI safety, autonomous drones, and the defense tech boom.

🔎 They discuss:

* The rise of for-profit AI safety startups and why technology must lead regulation.

* How Ukraine’s drone industry became the frontline of autonomous warfare.

* What happens when AI gains control — and how we might still shut it down.

* The chilling concept of a global “AI kill chain” and what humanity must do now.

Esben also shares insights from companies like Lucid Computing and Workshop Labs, the growing global coordination challenges, and why the next AI safety breakthroughs may not come from labs in Berkeley — but from battlefields and builders abroad.

🔗 Subscribe for more conversations about AI risk, ethics, and the fight to build a safe future for humanity.

📺 Watch more episodes

#AISafety #AIAlignment #ForHumanityPodcast #AIRisk #FutureOfAI #AIandWarfare #AutonomousWeapons #AIEthics #TechForGood #ArtificialIntelligence

Let’s face it: in the long run, there’s either going to be safe AI or no AI. There is no future with powerful unsafe AI and human beings. In this episode of For Humanity, John Sherman speaks with Professor Stuart Russell — one of the world’s foremost AI pioneers and co-author of Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach — about the terrifying honesty of today’s AI leaders.

Russell reveals that the CEO of a major AI company told him his best hope for a good future is a “Chernobyl-scale AI disaster.” Yes — one of the people building advanced AI believes only a catastrophic warning shot could wake up the world in time. John and Stuart dive deep into the psychology, politics, and incentives driving this suicidal race toward AGI.

They discuss:

* Why even AI insiders are losing faith in control

* What a “Chernobyl moment” could actually look like

* Why regulation isn’t anti-innovation — it’s survival

* The myth that America is “allergic” to AI rules

* How liability, accountability, and provable safety could still save us

* Whether we can ever truly coexist with a superintelligence

This is one of the most urgent conversations ever hosted on For Humanity. If you care about your kids’ future — or humanity’s — don’t miss this one.

🎙️ About For Humanity A podcast from the AI Risk Network, hosted by John Sherman, making AI extinction risk kitchen-table conversation on every street.

📺 Subscribe for weekly conversations with leading scientists, policymakers, and ethicists confronting the AI extinction threat.

#AIRisk #ForHumanity #StuartRussell #AIEthics #AIExtinction #AIGovernance #ArtificialIntelligence #AIDisaster #GuardRailNow

In this episode of For Humanity, John speaks with New York Assemblymember Alex Bores, sponsor of the groundbreaking RAISE Act, one of the first state-level bills in the U.S. designed to regulate frontier AI systems.

They discuss:

* Why AI poses an existential risk, with researchers estimating up to a 10% chance of extinction.

* The political challenges of passing meaningful AI regulation at the state and federal level.

* How the RAISE Act could require safety plans, transparency, and limits on catastrophic risks.

* The looming jobs crisis as AI accelerates disruption across industries.

* Why politicians are only beginning to grapple with AI’s dangers — and why the public must speak up now.

This is a candid, urgent conversation about AI risk, regulation, and what it will take to secure humanity’s future.

📌 Learn more about the RAISE Act.

👉 Subscribe for more conversations on AI risk and the future of humanity.

What happens when AI collides with the next generation? In this episode of For Humanity #70 — Young People vs. Advancing AI, host John Sherman sits down with Emma Corbett, Ava Smithing, and Sam Heiner from the Young People’s Alliance to explore how artificial intelligence is already shaping the lives of students and young leaders.

From classrooms to job applications to AI “companions,” the next generation is facing challenges that older policymakers often don’t even see. This episode digs into what young people really think about AI—and why their voices are critical in the fight for a safe and human future.

In this episode we cover:

* Students’ on-the-ground views of AI in education and daily life

* How AI is fueling job loss, hiring barriers, and rising anxiety about the future

* The hidden dangers of AI companions and the erosion of real community

* Why young people feel abandoned by “adults in the room”

* The path from existential dread → civic action → hope

🎯 Why watch?

Because if AI defines the future, young people will inherit it first. Their voices, fears, and leadership could decide whether AI remains a tool—or becomes an existential threat.

👉 Subscribe for more conversations on AI, humanity, and the choices that will shape our future.

#AI #AIsafety #ForHumanityPodcast #YoungPeople #FutureofWork