#240 – Neal Stephenson: Sci-Fi, Space, Aliens, AI, VR & the Future of Humanity

Neal Stephenson is a sci-fi writer (Snow Crash, Cryptonomicon, and new book Termination Shock), former Chief Futurist at Magic Leap and first employee of Blue Origin. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors: – Mizzen+Main : https://mizzenandmain.com and use code LEX to get $35 off – InsideTracker : https://insidetracker.com/lex and use code Lex25 to get 25% off – Athletic Greens : https://athleticgreens.com/lex and use code LEX to get 1 month of fish oil – Grammarly : https://grammarly.com/lex to get 20% off premium – ExpressVPN : https://expressvpn.com/lexpod and use code LexPod to get 3 months free EPISODE LINKS: Neal’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/nealstephenson Neal’s Website: https://www.nealstephenson.com/ Termination Shock (book): https://amzn.to/3HhmDKi Snow Crash (book): https://amzn.to/3H7yFFW Cryptonomicon (book): https://amzn.to/3C01HDF The Diamond Age (book): https://amzn.to/3wxUF83 Seveneves (book): https://amzn.to/3kkhveg The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 1 (book): https://amzn.to/3koMW7n Innovation Starvation (article): https://bit.ly/3mYLSJ2 PODCAST INFO: Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2lwqZIr Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2nEwCF8 RSS: https://lexfridman.com/feed/podcast/ YouTube Full Episodes: https://youtube.com/lexfridman YouTube Clips: https://youtube.com/lexclips SUPPORT & CONNECT: – Check out the sponsors above, it’s the best way to support this podcast – Support on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/lexfridman – Twitter: https://twitter.com/lexfridman – Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lexfridman – LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lexfridman – Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman – Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman OUTLINE: Here’s the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time. (00:00) – Introduction (08:34) – WWII and human nature (17:20) – Search engine morality (21:58) – Space exploration (38:59) – Aliens and UFOs (47:21) – SpaceX and Blue Origin (54:43) – Social media (59:11) – Climate change (1:11:00) – Consequences of big ideas (1:15:42) – Virtual reality (1:38:50) – Artificial intelligence (1:53:49) – Cryptocurrency (2:06:26) – Writing, storytelling, and books (2:29:05) – Martial arts (2:38:23) – Final thoughts