In Episode 4 of Season 2 of The Future With Friends, Simon Waller is joined by long-time friend and acclaimed storyteller Yamini Naidu for a conversation that is equal parts thought-provoking and delightfully entertaining.

Inspired by the emerging idea of friction maxing, Yamini imagines a future where technology has removed almost every inconvenience from daily life. But what happens when a world without queues, awkward conversations or unexpected interruptions also becomes a world without spontaneity, resilience and genuine human connection?

Through humour, storytelling and plenty of laughs, Simon and Yamini explore whether our pursuit of convenience is quietly costing us something far more valuable. From surprise visits and chance encounters to endurance events, relationships and even the simple act of complimenting a stranger, they unpack why a little friction might be exactly what makes us human.

It's a warm, insightful conversation that will leave you questioning whether the future we're building is making life easier... or simply less alive.

We’re back for Episode 3 of Season 2 of The Future With Friends, and this time Simon Waller (or should we say Bigsy) is joined by his long-time friend Anthony “Richo” Richardson, one of the first people he met when he relocated to Melbourne. This isn’t a professional connection, more a camping and degustation buddy from years gone by. It’s a friendship that’s stretched across decades, which gives the conversation a very different kind of honesty and ease.

The theme of this episode is The Future of Regret, based on a scenario Richo has written, set 42 years into the future. It’s a deeply reflective exploration of what life, meaning, and responsibility might look like in a future shaped by radically extended lifespans, AI-driven education, and accelerating technological change.

Richo brings a grounded, human lens to the conversation, imagining everyday moments that make the future feel tangible, like a 94-year-old still cycling with friends, while also surfacing the emotional weight of what gets lost or left unresolved across such long lives.

The conversation moves beyond fascination with technology and into more uncomfortable territory. They explore how extended lifespans might reshape our relationship with purpose, regret, and legacy, and whether having “more time” actually makes us more fulfilled or simply delays the things we avoid confronting today.

Underneath it all is a quieter, more confronting question about inequality, opportunity, and what kind of future we are actually building for each other.

As always, the conversation is rooted in lived experience as much as it is in future thinking. Simon and Richo reflect on the choices we make now as parents, citizens, and professionals, and how those choices quietly shape the emotional and cultural inheritance we pass on to future generations.

We’re back for Episode 2 of Season 2 of The Future With Friends, and this time we’re exploring The Future of Analogue with Simon’s good friend, Colin D Ellis.

Colin shares a beautifully imagined future where society has consciously stepped away from smart technology and re-embraced the analogue world, from dumb phones and vinyl to simply noticing what’s happening around us.

His scenario paints a calm, intentional future, but the conversation quickly moves beyond the vision itself. Simon leans in to explore what would actually need to happen for such a significant cultural shift to take place, and whether a movement back to analogue living is truly possible in a hyper-connected world.

Together, they explore the impact of digital technology on our mental health, the growing appetite for disconnection, and the conditions required for meaningful societal change. They even begin to toy with the idea of creating their own social movement, grounded in simplicity, presence and human connection.

As two dads, they also don’t shy away from the role parents play in shaping the next generation’s relationship with technology, reflecting on the habits we model and the environments we create for our kids.

It’s a thoughtful, warm and quietly provocative conversation that feels like it’s only just getting started, and will leave you questioning your own relationship with technology and what kind of future you actually want to live in.