In this episode, we sit down with Roger Walsh, professor of psychiatry, philosophy, and anthropology at UC Irvine, whose work bridges science, spirituality, psychology, and human potential. Roger has collaborated with leading thinkers worldwide, including the Dalai Lama, and has spent decades studying meditation, wisdom traditions, and the nature of consciousness.Follow Super Human PodcastInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/besuperhumanpod/Threads: https://www.threads.com/@besuperhumanpodX: https://x.com/BeSuperhumanPodFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/podsuperhumanTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsuperhumanLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/podsuperhumanFollow Ben: X: https://x.com/realbentauberInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/realbentauber/Follow Dilan: X: https://x.com/dilanInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/dilanj/Learn more about Roger: https://drrogerwalsh.com/Listen to all episodes: https://www.besuperhumanpod.com/Timestamps:00:00 Intro01:28 Meditation, and Subjective Reality02:41 Can Neural Networks Fully Explain Consciousness?03:34 Shared Experiences and “Low-Probability” Events05:11 Miracles, Hallucinations, and the Limits of Proof05:50 From Materialism to Idealism06:46 Why Materialism Has Failed for 2,500 Years07:27 Does the Hard Problem of Consciousness Even Exist?07:59 What Are Qualia?08:28 Can Biology Explain Experience?09:12 The “Chasm” Between Mechanism and Experience09:56 Are We Making Real Progress Understanding the Mind?10:23 The Brain as a Metaphor: From Hydraulics to Computers10:48 Can We Ever Cross the Consciousness Chasm?11:01 If AGI Claims Consciousness, Should We Believe It?11:15 The Turing Test and the Problem of Other Minds12:28 What Is the Frontier of What Can Be Known?12:40 Why There Are 200 Theories of Consciousness14:12 Consciousness as a Rorschach Test15:21 Roger Walsh’s Current Meditation Practice16:20 Practices That Actually Work17:12 The First Time All Traditions Are Available18:06 The Seven Universal Spiritual Practices19:39 How Someone Should Begin a Spiritual Practice21:18 Maslow’s Hierarchy and What Comes After Transcendence23:29 Self-Transcendence, Service, and Letting Go of Motivation25:57 “The Way Is Not Difficult for Those With No Preferences.”26:03 Entrepreneurs, Motivation, and Fear of Letting Go27:15 Learning to Trust the Mind28:31 Roger Walsh’s Early Life and Athletic Background30:23 Medical School, Burnout, and Stanford32:38 The Human Potential Movement33:18 Discovering the Inner Universe34:24 The Moment That Changed Everything35:32 Religion as a Hidden Mental Technology36:13 What Allowed the Breakthrough to Happen37:26 Intensive Retreats and Radical Commitment37:58 Anxiety, Atheism, and First Meditation Experiences39:19 First Non-Dual Experience40:09 Atheism and Subjective Experience41:45 Science vs Scientism43:43 Idealism and Multiple Ways of Knowing45:23 Can the Brain Fully Explain Mystical States?47:06 Consciousness as the Primary Reality47:57 Lucid Dreams and Waking Up Inside Reality48:23 Final Reflections and Closing
In this episode, the psychologist and bestselling author of The Upside of Your Dark Side and The Art of Insubordination walks us through how embracing discomfort, adversity, and negative emotions can supercharge resilience, creativity, and confidence.
Todd shares what it was like growing up as a white kid in a predominantly Black neighborhood, and how this shaped his understanding of fear, identity, and emotional coping. He breaks down the science behind psychological flexibility, the misunderstood benefits of narcissism, and why “self-love” might be overrated.
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Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro
01:06 – Growing up as a minority and the value of adversity
03:05 – Why “negative emotions” are essential for resilience
04:04 – The good side of narcissism
06:02 – How insecurity shapes the shell we build
07:50 – Body dysmorphia in men and boys
09:02 – Physical attractiveness bias and income
11:01 – Reinventing identity and social confidence
13:15 – The psychology behind self-improvement outcomes
14:30 – Self-love vs. self-growth: which comes first?
16:10 – The myth of loving yourself before taking action
16:30 – Michael Jordan and the power of negative motivation
18:17 – Learning to observe your thoughts
19:52 – Cognitive defusion: you are not your thoughts
21:10 – A tool for reframing self-defeating beliefs
22:33 – How mentors and friends help rewire self-appraisal
24:22 – Emotional roots of limiting beliefs
26:23 – Building psychological flexibility
27:03 – “I hate Jake” and how to create mental distance
29:02 – The role of wise counsel in personal growth
30:40 – Who belongs in your inner circle?
32:47 – Giving radical feedback and how to receive it
33:51 – How to speak truth without destroying trust
35:32 – Filtering for people with the right values and intellect
37:37 – Are we choosing friends that reflect who we want to be?
39:49 – Raising strong kids: independence vs. protection
42:04 – The hidden upside of twins (and chaos)
44:14 – Parenting with an older mindset and resources
46:10 – How becoming a parent expands your capacity for love
48:52 – Giving children agency and real-world skills
52:23 – Handling kids’ mistakes without losing trust
55:12 – The difference between safety and resilience
56:40 – Why discomfort is the antidote to anxiety
59:02 – How to create independent, emotionally strong adults
1:02:15 – The hidden role of discomfort in creativity
1:05:22 – The cognitive trap: why we think we are our thoughts
1:09:04 – Parenting, psychedelics, and the future of psychological freedom
1:14:35 – Final thoughts on living with purpose, curiosity, and courage
In this episode, the co-founder of Twitch and one of Silicon Valley’s most iconic builders shares the personal transformation that came after selling Twitch to Amazon for nearly a billion dollars, and realizing achievement doesn’t equal peace.
Justin opens up about his childhood, the obsessive habits that shaped his discipline, and how he learned to build not just companies but communities and character. He breaks down the psychology behind taking action without fear, attracting world-class talent, and leading with trust.
He also reveals how meditation, ayahuasca, and years of deep self-work reshaped his relationship with ambition, and why true success means serving others, not yourself.
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Listen to all episodes: https://www.besuperhumanpod.com/
Follow Justin: https://x.com/justinkan
Chapters
00:00 – Intro
01:00 – How Justin Kan’s mom shaped his discipline
03:00 – The childhood habit that made him obsessively productive
06:00 – Why he does everything immediately
08:00 – The origin of Justin’s extreme sense of agency
10:00 – Why he never fears failure
11:00 – The “satisficer” mindset that drives fast decision-making
13:00 – How to build faster by embracing imperfection
15:00 – Maximizers vs. satisficers in startup life
16:00 – Why partnering with opposites makes you stronger
18:00 – How Justin inspires people to follow his vision
20:00 – The psychology of leadership: making people feel needed
22:00 – Why optimism is Justin’s greatest advantage
24:00 – What he learned from his entrepreneurial mom
25:00 – The secret to community building and loyalty
27:00 – Why curiosity keeps him connected to everyone
29:00 – The inner transformation that redefined his purpose
31:00 – How childhood wounds drive overachievement
33:00 – The illusion of success and the ego trap
35:00 – Ayahuasca, meditation, and finding self-acceptance
38:00 – From ego to service: the new definition of winning
41:00 – How Justin now helps founders find peace and purpose
44:00 – Lessons for ambitious people chasing meaning
Most people accept aging as inevitable. Aubrey de Grey refuses to.
In this episode, the world’s most recognized longevity scientist breaks down why aging is a solvable engineering problem — not a mystery of biology.
Aubrey shares the moments that shaped his mission to defeat death, the science behind “longevity escape velocity,” and how AI breakthroughs like AlphaFold are accelerating humanity’s fight against aging.
He also reveals what he actually does to stay biologically younger at 62 — from cutting-edge diagnostics to his take on rapamycin, plasma exchange, GLP-1s, and Brian Johnson’s Blueprint.
If you’re a founder, technologist, or anyone fascinated by the future of the human body — this conversation will completely reframe how you think about aging, biology, and time itself.
Most people accept aging as inevitable. Aubrey de Grey refuses to.In this episode, the world’s most recognized longevity scientist breaks down why aging is a solvable engineering problem - not a mystery of biology.Aubrey shares the moments that shaped his mission to defeat death, the science behind “longevity escape velocity”, and how AI breakthroughs like AlphaFold are accelerating humanity’s fight against aging.He also reveals what he actually does to stay biologically younger at 62 — from cutting-edge diagnostics to his take on rapamycin, plasma exchange, GLP-1s, and Brian Johnson’s Blueprint.If you’re a founder, technologist, or anyone fascinated by the future of the human body — this conversation will completely reframe how you think about aging, biology, and time itself.Follow AGI:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/besuperhumanpod/Threads: https://www.threads.com/@besuperhumanpodX: https://x.com/BeSuperhumanPodFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/podsuperhumanTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@podsuperhuman
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Listen to all episodes: https://www.besuperhumanpod.com/
Learn more about Aubrey de Grey:https://www.sens.org/
Chapters
00:00 – Intro01:00 – The childhood moment that defined Aubrey’s mission
03:00 – Why he chose science over entrepreneurship
06:00 – The dinner conversation that changed everything
08:00 – Why scientists ignored aging for decades
10:00 – The “Pro-Aging Trance”: why society fears immortality
13:00 – The illusion that death gives life meaning
15:00 – Why aging causes more suffering than anything else
17:00 – What “Longevity Escape Velocity” actually means
20:00 – How damage repair could stop aging altogether
24:00 – Can humans reach escape velocity by the 2030s?
27:00 – How AI, AlphaFold, and CRISPR accelerate longevity research
31:00 – Why AI still can’t replace lab work
34:00 – Aubrey’s personal longevity regimen at 62
37:00 – His take on biological age tests and measurement
40:00 – Hot or Not: Rapamycin, Metformin, Plasma Exchange, GLP-1s
45:00 – Sauna, cold plunge, and diet myths
49:00 – Why meal replacements might miss key nutrients
52:00 – How AI could uncover unknown molecules in our blood
56:00 – The most promising anti-aging therapies today
1:00:00 – Stem cell rejuvenation and the monkey experiment
1:04:00 – How stem cells can resist aging environments
1:08:00 – Why multiple breakthroughs—not one—will defeat aging
1:12:00 – The future of longevity research
1:18:00 – Final thoughts: living long enough to live forever
Most psychedelics last a few hours. Ibogaine lasts over 24 — and it might be one of the most powerful healing tools on Earth.
In this episode, Trevor Millar — founder of Ambio Life Sciences and one of the leading voices in psychedelic medicine — reveals the extraordinary science and human stories behind ibogaine: a compound that’s helping veterans heal from PTSD and traumatic brain injury, ending opioid addiction overnight, and even showing promise for Parkinson’s and multiple sclerosis.
If you’re a founder, high performer, or simply curious about the future of consciousness and healing, this episode will expand your entire model of the human mind.
Follow AGI:
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🎧 Listen to all episodes: https://www.almostgotitpod.com/
Learn more about Trevor:
https://ambio.life/
https://www.instagram.com/psychedelic_provider/
https://www.instagram.com/ambiolifesciences/
Chapters
00:00 – Intro
01:00 – Trevor’s first psychedelic experience
03:00 – What is ibogaine and where it comes from
05:00 – How ibogaine’s anti-addiction properties were discovered
08:00 – Trevor’s decade-long mission to help Vancouver’s poorest neighborhood
10:00 – The first ibogaine treatments — and dangerous mistakes
13:00 – What makes ibogaine different from other psychedelics
15:00 – The “dirty molecule” that heals the brain
18:00 – How ibogaine rewires brain waves like years of meditation
21:00 – The only clinic licensed to use natural iboga root
25:00 – Why spiritual doesn’t mean easy: early patient stories
28:00 – Inside Ambio’s 5-day ibogaine protocol
31:00 – Sweat lodges, breathwork, and preparation rituals
34:00 – Why ibogaine is called the hardest thing you’ll ever do
36:00 – Marcus Luttrell’s (Lone Survivor) ibogaine transformation
39:00 – How ibogaine interrupts negative patterns overnight
42:00 – The Stanford study that changed everything
46:00 – Brain scans that show TBI reversal
50:00 – What ibogaine does to PTSD, depression, and anxiety
54:00 – The truth about microdosing ibogaine
57:00 – Using ibogaine to treat Parkinson’s and MS
1:00:00 – The future: ibogaine for prevention and longevity
1:03:00 – Ibogaine as a performance enhancer
1:06:00 – Microdosing vs. the big dose: what’s the difference?
1:09:00 – Real stories that sound “too good to be true”
1:13:00 – Healing addiction without withdrawal
1:16:00 – From atheism to belief: ibogaine and the higher power
1:20:00 – How ibogaine awakens compassion and purpose
1:24:00 – The neuroscience of forgiveness
1:28:00 – What the ibogaine experience actually feels like
1:33:00 – The “gray day” and post-trip reintegration
1:36:00 – Why visions aren’t required for healing
1:39:00 – Will Silicon Valley CEOs start microdosing ibogaine?
1:42:00 – Intelligence, wisdom, and becoming superhuman
1:45:00 – Closing reflections
Most people think dopamine equals pleasure. They’re wrong—and that mistake keeps us stuck on the hedonic treadmill.
In this episode, Dr. Jud Brewer reveals why excitement isn’t happiness, how anxiety hijacks the brain through habit loops, and why willpower fails almost every time.
Founders and high performers will learn how to stop chasing the dopamine treadmill, rewire their brains using awareness, and replace worry with curiosity—a superpower that rewires habits faster than any hack.
Follow AGI:
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🎧 Listen to all episodes: https://www.almostgotitpod.com/
Learn more about our guest:
https://www.goingbeyondanxiety.com/
https://judbrewer.substack.com/
https://drjud.com/
Chapters:
00:00 – Intro
02:00 – Who is Dr. Jud Brewer?
05:00 – Childhood, Montessori and curiosity
09:00 – Curiosity and learning in kids (with AI)
12:00 – The turning point: stress, IBS, meditation
17:00 – Reinforcement learning explained simply
20:00 – What dopamine really does
25:00 – Why billionaires mistake excitement for happiness
28:00 – The path to true happiness (Eudaimonia)
30:00 – Anxiety as a habit loop
34:00 – Why willpower doesn’t work for anxiety
40:00 – How awareness rewires habits
44:00 – Breaking the social media loop
52:00 – Curiosity as a superpower against worry
56:00 – Two types of curiosity: deprivation vs. interest
59:00 – Growth mindset vs. fixed mindset in founders
1:02:00 – The three steps to break any bad habit
1:08:00 – Can AI therapy replace human therapists?
1:15:00 – Molecules vs mindfulness: future of self-control
1:20:00 – Why simplicity beats complexity in therapy
1:26:00 – What is consciousness?
1:28:00 – Neuroscience of enlightenment
1:34:00 – The ultimate question humanity must ask
1:37:00 – Closing thoughts & reflections
In this episode, Enneagram master teacher and bestselling author Russ Hudson argues that humanity’s psychology and emotional maturity are lagging far behind our technology. He explains why we’re not ready for the radical changes AI will unleash, and how ancient wisdom traditions like the Enneagram can help us close that gap.
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Timestamps
0:00 Intro
0:52 Who is Russ Hudson?
1:38 What is the Enneagram? The nine points explained
10:40 How it differs from other personality systems
12:12 Ancient history and modern revival of the Enneagram
15:30 Russ’s early search for science and spirituality
18:15 Discovering George Gurdjieff and “mankind is asleep”
21:15 The neuroscience of presence: gut, heart, and head intelligence
23:30 Creating and validating the Riso-Hudson Enneagram test
29:05 Ancient roots, “deadly sins,” and developmental psychology
37:09 What it really means to be present
42:06 Traps that pull us out of presence
45:11 Humility, virtues, and avoiding spiritual bypassing
49:07 How Russ’s own type shapes his daily practice
53:05 Using the Enneagram as a feedback loop
57:18 GPT-5 release and AI’s impact on humanity
1:04:12 Can AI become a personal growth coach?
1:05:10 Why you can’t do the inner work alone
1:11:12 Building presence-based communities
1:21:24 How the Enneagram can guide us through massive change
1:35:28 Presence as a skill for uncertain times
1:42:20 Final thoughts on awakening and human potentiall
AI is moving fast — from running your business to replacing your therapist. Ben and Dilan break down Grok-4’s leap past GPT-4, new gene edits that might kill heart disease, and why Silicon Valley is obsessed with microdosing weight-loss drugs. This episode is a glimpse into the weird, unstoppable future founders need to see coming.
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Listen to all of our episodes: https://www.almostgotitpod.com/
Timestamps:
00:00 - Welcome to Almost Got It
01:00 - Dylan’s trip to Turkey and meditation
03:00 - Loudspeakers, religion, and cultural noise
06:00 - Hernias, Squatty Potty, and pooping wrong
08:00 - Psychological side of digestion
10:00 - How smartphones ruined our bathroom habits
12:00 - Apple Health… for pooping?
14:00 - Humanity moving towards “God Mode”
16:00 - Grok-4’s performance vs GPT-4
18:00 - AI benchmarks and vending machine tests
20:00 - Real-world use cases of Grok-4
22:00 - Simulating 32 AI agents at once
24:00 - Emotional AI avatars & the future of relationships
26:00 - AI wingmen and utopian vs dystopian futures
28:00 - AI helping couples resolve conflicts
30:00 - Recording life with Limitless pendant
32:00 - Privacy concerns, memory, and brain atrophy
35:00 - How the iPhone rewired our brains
37:00 - AI’s impact on learning and retention
39:00 - Verve Therapeutics: A vaccine for heart disease?
41:00 - The future of LDL treatments
43:00 - Eli Lilly’s $1.3B acquisition
45:00 - Longevity breakthroughs reshaping health
47:00 - Breast cancer vaccine progress
49:00 - Humanity entering "God Mode" for health
51:00 - GLP-1 drugs explained (Ozempic, etc.)
53:00 - The rise of Retatrutide
55:00 - Why biohackers love it
57:00 - How to get experimental peptides
59:00 - Wrapping up: The future isn’t coming — it’s here
What if suffering isn’t caused by pain, but by broken predictions in your brain?In this episode, neuroscientist Dr. Jay Sanguinetti explains how trauma rewires us, why targeted ultrasound could transform mental health, and what it means to reach “God Mode” as a human.Follow Dilan: www.x.com/dilanFollow Ben: www.x.com/realbentauberAbout Dr. Jay Sanguinetti: https://www.jaysanguinetti.com/⸻Timestamps:00:00 – Welcome + Jay’s bio02:10 – What is “God Mode”?06:00 – Childhood trauma and grief11:20 – Catholic guilt + early death16:00 – Aphantasia + memory blocks21:00 – Parenting + inner child work26:30 – Are parts of us conscious?32:00 – Is consciousness real or illusion?37:00 – From X-Files to neuroscience42:40 – Pain vs. suffering49:30 – Predictive coding explained55:00 – Narrative consciousness + climate grief01:01:30 – Brain surgery + DBS stories01:08:00 – Why ultrasound changes the game01:15:30 – How it works + healing potential01:22:00 – Building mental health tech at scale01:29:10 – Supernormal states + TMS01:34:50 – The next 10–20 years01:39:00 – Final thoughts + wrap-up
In this episode of Almost Got It, we sit down with Dr. Jeehan Chowdhury — physician, Rhodes Scholar, biotech founder, and former CEO of Journey Colab — to unpack the cutting edge science of how to reprogram your brain.
Jeehan shares how he went from being bullied as an immigrant kid in Canada to raising millions for a psychedelic biotech startup.
He talks openly about shutting it all down, confronting his own victim mindset, and why ibogaine might be the most powerful addiction treatment we've never heard of.
From machine learning metaphors to frozen trauma states, this conversation explores what it actually takes to rewire your brain — and why integration, not the trip, is what changes lives.
Follow the hosts and guest:
Dilan: https://x.com/dilan
Ben: https://x.com/realbentauber
Jeehan: https://x.com/jeeshanjourney
Timestamps:
00:00 – Ibogaine: The Addiction Cure No One Talks About
01:05 – Who Is Jeehan Chowdhury?
03:12 – From Rhodes Scholar to Psychedelic Biotech CEO
06:40 – Why He Shut Down His Startup
09:25 – Victim Mentality & the Cost of Success
12:05 – What an Ibogaine Trip Actually Feels Like
15:30 – The Life Review Experience Explained
18:55 – How Psychedelics Reset the Brain
22:10 – Ibogaine’s Miraculous Effect on Opioid Addiction
25:00 – Why Integration Is More Important Than the Trip
27:45 – The “Critical Period” of Neuroplasticity
30:22 – Rewriting Trauma Like a Machine Learning Model
33:50 – Why We Repeat Painful Relationships
36:10 – The Explore vs Exploit Model of the Mind
38:55 – The Real Reason Healing Feels Unsafe
42:00 – Brute Force Achievement vs Actual Fulfillment
44:20 – How Jeehan Found Psychedelic Therapy
46:30 – Therapy, Burning Man, and the Ride Home That Changed Everything
49:10 – What Keeps People Stuck — and How to Move Forward
n this unforgettable episode of Almost Got It, we sit down with Trent Rankin — a U.S. Army Ranger, Apple engineer, and heart transplant survivor — to uncover the story of how a seemingly harmless cough turned out to be a deadly sign of heart failure.
From growing up in Alabama to enduring Ranger School, landing a role at Apple, and then suddenly waking up in the ICU unable to breathe — Trent's journey is one of discipline, denial, and ultimately, survival.
He opens up about:
• Getting medically discharged from the military
• Rebuilding his identity in Silicon Valley
• The terrifying moment his lungs filled with fluid
• What it’s like to wake up with a new heart
This isn’t just a story about near-death — it’s a story about what comes after.
—
Follow the hosts and guest:
Dilan: https://x.com/dilan
Ben: https://x.com/realbentauber
Trent: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trenton-rankin-445392152/
⏱️ Chapters:
00:00 – Intro: From Alabama to Apple
01:10 – Trent’s Childhood on the Gulf Coast
02:35 – Why He Joined the Military
04:15 – “I Was Already Disciplined Before the Army”
07:00 – Becoming an Extrovert Through Camaraderie
09:00 – The Hardest Part of Military Life
11:10 – Mental Adaptation vs Physical Limits
14:00 – Why He Got Kicked Out of Ranger School
15:30 – A Surprise Heart Diagnosis
18:00 – Rebuilding His Life After Discharge
21:00 – From Denial to Engineering at Apple
23:10 – Signs of Heart Failure at Age 28
24:30 – ICU Emergency: Lungs Full of Fluid
26:15 – The Biology of a Failing Heart
29:20 – The Medications That Keep You Alive
31:45 – What Hospitalization Does to the Mind
34:00 – What He’d Tell His 24-Year-Old Self
35:30 – Would He Do It All Again?
37:10 – Heart Transplant: Facing Death, Twice
40:00 – Recovery and What Surprised Him Most
43:00 – The Day His New Heart Arrived
45:20 – Living With a Heart That Isn’t Yours
48:00 – How Facing Mortality Changed His Philosophy
50:40 – The Future of Bioengineering and Transplants
52:15 – Final Reflections: Humor, Purpose & Survival
In this episode of Almost Got It, we dive deep with Will Rocklin — former Google & YouTube Product Manager turned comedian, screenwriter and still product manager — about the chaos, comedy, and clarity of navigating a midlife career reinvention.
Follow the hosts and guest:
Dilan: https://x.com/dilan
Ben: https://x.com/realbentauber
William: https://x.com/willrocklin
Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro: Transhumanism, AI & Comedy Collide
01:09 – Who Is Will Rocklin?
02:35 – Why Will Left Tech for Comedy
05:34 – What “Going All In” Really Feels Like
07:15 – The Truth About Art and Authenticity
08:46 – Does Will Actually Want to Be a Comedian?
10:17 – Comedy as a Healing Tool
13:03 – The Universe Has a Sense of Humor
16:18 – Relationships: Seriousness vs Play
18:49 – The “Finger in the Butt” Rule
21:06 – Parenthood & Playfulness
24:05 – The Moment That Could’ve Broken Me
26:01 – Can You Actually Change a Pattern in the Moment?
29:02 – Why Conventional Therapy Might Not Work
31:02 – Blame, Bananas, and Emotional Ownership
33:00 – Living with Anxiety in a High-Performance World
36:20 – Thought Work vs Nervous System Rewiring
39:10 – Childhood, Identity, and the Myth of Fulfillment
41:10 – Ideal Parent Figure Protocol
42:16 – Coaching Mode: How to Rewire Your Brain
43:32 – Dario Amodei’s AI Job Loss Prediction
46:04 – Mass Panic vs Present Reality
49:14 – The Responsibility of Tech Leaders
50:56 – Who Do We Trust on AI?
This week, we dive into tulpas, AI's emotional future, the Starship launch, and why asking why might be the most radical thing you can do.
From ancient Buddhist wisdom to Google’s AI breakthroughs – this one gets deep.
Follow Dilan: https://x.com/dilan
Follow Ben: https://x.com/realbentauber
Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro
01:30 – What is a tulpa? The strange origin story
04:45 – Can an imaginary friend become conscious?
08:15 – Multiple personalities & ethical dilemmas
12:30 – Google I/O: AI characters fear being turned off
16:00 – Prompt theory, memes & simulation jokes
18:30 – Grief as consciousness collapse: losing a partner
22:40 – Is your partner embedded in your brain?
26:00 – Nested minds, IFS, and split identities
31:00 – LLMs mirror human brains? The Kim K neuron
35:30 – When will AI match human intelligence?
40:20 – Why the U.S. is losing the energy race to China
44:00 – Nuclear regulation and the profit flywheel
47:30 – SpaceX Starship launch: why it matters
52:00 – Steve Jobs and the lost art of asking “why”
56:30 – Applying rapid iteration to your relationship
1:01:00 – Prenups, MDMA & deep partner conversations
1:07:30 – Buddha, first principles & the death of faith
1:12:00 – Will AI kill creativity—or reinvent it?
In this episode, we sit down with Jonathan Schooler—top 100 cognitive scientist, consciousness researcher, and OG mind explorer—to unpack one of the most provocative theories of self-awareness: Nested Observer Windows.
What if your mind isn’t a single stream of thought… but a mosaic of smaller minds, each with its own experience?
We go deep on why you forget what you read, how verbalizing a memory can destroy it, and whether your tongue might have a consciousness of its own. Plus: psychedelics, mind wandering, AI, and what happens when the tulpa inside your head wakes up.
Follow Dilan: https://x.com/dilan
Follow Ben: https://x.com/realbentauber
Learn more about Jonathan: https://www.psych.ucsb.edu/people/jonathan-schooler
Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro & Who is Jonathan Schooler
01:30 – Google's New AI Made Ben Dizzy
03:20 – Childhood, Alan Watts & the Roots of Consciousness 06:00 – What Is Consciousness? The Bat Test
09:05 – Verbal Overshadowing: How Words Can Ruin Memory
12:40 – When Your Memory Lies in Court
15:40 – Meta-Awareness vs. Just Living
19:00 – Buddhism’s 3 Types of Enlightened Beings
21:30 – The Mindful Mirror: What Is Meta Consciousness? 26:15 – Does Alcohol Erase Self-Awareness?
28:50 – The Cost of Too Much Meta-Awareness
32:05 – Meditation, Flow, and Creativity
36:20 – Are Mindfulness & Creativity in Conflict?
40:00 – Open Monitoring vs. Breath Focused States
42:00 – Nested Observer Windows: The Theory Explained 46:30 – Tongue Consciousness, Gut Brains, and Internal Networks
50:20 – Split-Brain Patients: Two Minds, One Head
54:10 – Tulpa: When Imaginary Friends Wake Up
58:20 – Ethical Dangers of Creating Minds Inside Your Mind
1:01:00 – Can You Train a Tulpa to Have Meta Awareness?
1:03:00 – Psychedelics That Shatter Your Mind Into Voices
1:05:30 – Is AI Just a Russian Doll Without a Soul?
1:09:30 – Are We Reborn Every Morning?
1:12:30 – Star Trek Teleportation & the Self
1:14:00 – Strassen’s Algorithm & AI Discoveries
1:17:30 – Co-Creating Art With AI for State Openness
1:20:00 – Can Art Make You More Curious?
1:22:30 – When AI Becomes Part of Your Brain
1:25:00 – The Curiosity Gap Between Users
1:28:00 – Lazy Brains vs. Active Minds
1:31:00 – The Risk of Cognitive Decline with AI
1:34:00 – Schools That Use AI Better Than Adults
1:36:00 – Philosophical Zombies & Conscious Uploads 1:38:00 – Is There a “Right” Way to Use AI?
1:41:00 – Mind Wandering, AI, and the Learning Process 1:44:30 – Creating Art With AI to Unlock Flow
1:46:00 – Alan Watts, God, and the Simulation Game
1:49:00 – Final Reflections: Hide-and-Seek With the Divine
In this episode: Sean Dadashi, the founder of the mental health AI app Rosebud, joins us to unpack the collapse of traditional therapy—and why LLMs might become your next therapist.
We dive into how childhood trauma, spiritual epiphanies, and ancient Buddhist practices shaped Sean’s journey… and how AI is now helping people do the inner work that human therapists often can’t.We also debate the hierarchy of religion, how Buddhism became a luxury belief, and why the future of mental health might be on your phone—not a therapist’s couch.
Follow Dilan: https://x.com/dilan
Follow Ben: https://x.com/btaubster
Follow Sean:
- X: https://x.com/seandadashi
- Instagram: : https://www.instagram.com/dadashi/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seandadashi
- Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/dadashi
Try Rosebud: https://rosebud.app
Chapters:
00:00 – Intro & Guest Welcome
01:24 – Sean's Background and Rosebud’s Vision
03:06 – Journals, Habits, and Personal Mentors
04:19 – Growing Up in Conservative Orange County
05:59 – First Encounter with Depression
07:05 – How a Forum Led Sean to Meditation
08:24 – Spiritual Epiphany at Age 14
11:02 – “I Am God” and What That Actually Means
13:05 – Escaping the Mental Cage of Religion
15:43 – When Buddhism Fails You (Literally)
17:33 – Trust vs. Faith in Religion
20:30 – Integration: The Real Goal of Spirituality
25:36 – The Hierarchy of Religion (Poor vs. Rich Man’s Belief)
28:33 – Therabody: AI Therapy Gets Real
30:29 – Why Sean Built Rosebud
37:17 – Depression, Isolation & the 3am Spiral
41:09 – Finding a Therapist is Broken
44:17 – Can AI Replace Your Therapist?
47:08 – “Most Therapists Are Useless” Debate
51:16 – When Friends Just Project Their Trauma
53:42 – Why Men Might Open Up to AI First
55:10 – HelpBench, GPT-4 & LLMs in Healthcare
57:35 – How to Measure Healing with AI
59:44 – The Big Question: Can AI Teach Compassion?
In this episode: Dylan’s estrogen levels spike out of nowhere, so he turns to GPT-4.5 for medical advice. Shockingly, it works better than any doctor he’s ever had. Is this the future of healthcare?
We dive into how body fat messes with your hormones, why GPT might be the best primary care physician on the planet, and what happens when AI outperforms humans on medical licensing exams. Plus: the meditation technique that can give you monk-like focus in 36 hours.
Follow Dylan: https://x.com/dilan
Follow Ben: https://x.com/btaubster
Listen to the podcast: https://www.almostgotitpod.com
Chapters:
00:00 – Intro
01:35 – Dilan’s Estrogen Levels Go Haywire
03:12 – Can GPT Replace Your Doctor?
06:20 – How Body Fat Impacts Hormones
08:44 – The AI Health Experience That Beat Every Doctor
10:35 – Why Dilan Now Tests His Hormones Monthly
13:11 – GPT’s IQ vs. the USMLE Exam
15:40 – The AI That Scored 95.2% on Step 3
18:22 – Scaling Doctors with AI: The Inevitable Shift
21:15 – The Death of Traditional Primary Care?
24:07 – Meditation Retreats & Advanced Focus States
26:55 – Mindfulness vs. True Enlightenment
30:33 – The Hidden Power of Non-Dual Awareness
33:11 – Daniel P. Brown and Western Dharma
36:29 – The Path to Hyperfocus in 36 Hours
39:04 – Wisdom Isn’t Evenly Distributed
41:18 – What Meditation Can Teach AI (and Vice Versa)
In this episode: the new OpenAI O3 model just hit a 136 IQ - genius territory. Is this the moment we crossed into AGI?
We explore what it really means for AI to be "smarter" than most humans, why sex robots are getting scarily good at emotional manipulation, and whether AI relationships could replace human connection entirely.
Follow Dilan: https://x.com/dilan
Follow Ben: https://x.com/btaubster
Listen to the podcast: https://www.almostgotitpod.com
Chapters:
00:00 – Intro
01:53 – The Moment AI Surpassed Most Humans
04:03 – GPT-4.5 vs. O3: IQ Breakdown
06:35 – Are We Already in the AGI Era?
08:06 – Why AGI Changes the Game (Economics & Evolution)
09:46 – The Power of General Intelligence
12:59 – Useful vs. Accurate: Is AI Seeing a Different Reality?
17:47 – Politics, Manipulation & the Birth of Human Intelligence
21:22 – Should We Let AI Explore Beyond Human Interests?
26:10 – The Dyson Sphere Debate (and Meat Bodies)
30:54 – O3’s Tool Use: Why It’s More Human Than Ever
33:03 – AI Sex Robots Are Here - Now What?
35:07 – The Loneliness Epidemic & AI Companionship
38:12 – Emotional Coaching or Emotional Addiction?
41:07 – Can Bots Truly Replace Human Connection?
44:09 – Ancient History of Sex Dolls (Yes, Really)
47:25 – The Danger of AI Breakups
49:57 – Gratification vs. Growth: The Human Tradeoff
52:04 – When AI Replaces the Journey with the Result
53:36 – When AI Helps You Grieve: A Beautiful Use Case
55:18 – AI Therapists, Coaches & Mediators Between Humans
58:05 – The Coming Battle for Trustworthy AI
1:00:38 – Why You’ll Choose 1 AI Agent to Rule Them All
1:02:18 – System2’s Vision: AI That Actually Makes You Better
In this episode we dive into a brain-computer interface that gives a paralyzed woman her voice back, the terrifying rise of microplastics in human brains, and a musician “resurrected” using lab-grown neurons.
We also explore dolphin language models, uploading your mind, and the question: are humans still the most conscious beings on Earth?
Follow Dilan: https://x.com/dilan
Follow Ben: https://x.com/btaubster
Listen to the podcast: https://www.almostgotitpod.com
Chapters:
00:00 – Intro
01:25 – Paralyzed Woman Speaks via Brain-Computer Interface
03:49 – Stephen Hawking’s Voice, Replaced in Real-Time
05:35 – Is This Superhuman Communication?
07:08 – Neural Telepathy & API for the Brain
10:06 – Speed of Intention: Gaming with Neuralink
12:34 – Could We Merge Brains and Think Together?
15:10 – Thoughts as Queries, Answers as Memory
18:10 – The End of Fate: Tech as Consciousness Liberation
20:05 – The 1mm That Could Separate a Life
22:24 – Story 2: Microplastics Found in Human Brains
23:31 – One Plastic Spoon Worth… In Your Head
25:10 – Dementia, Autism & the Plastic Threat
27:50 – Plastics: A Miracle Turned Menace
29:48 – Exponential Plastic, Contaminated Food Chains
32:16 – There Is No Control Group—We're All Infected
34:09 – What You Can (Maybe) Do About It
36:35 – Processed Food = Plastic Bombs
39:04 – Even ‘Healthy’ Food Might Be Poisoned
41:00 – Are We Totally Screwed?
44:17 – Plastic-Eating Microbes & Biotech Hope
45:10 – Story 3: Resurrecting a Musician with Lab-Grown Neurons
47:00 – Is a Brain Sample Still ‘You’?
49:01 – Talking to Dolphins with Google’s AI
50:52 – Are We the Center of Consciousness?
52:17 – Dolphin Language Mirrors Ours
55:02 – Whales Have 200 Billion Neurons… Are They Smarter?
58:02 – The Real Reason Human Brains Grew So Big
01:00:44 – Evolution’s Dirty Secret: Brains Evolved for Politics
01:02:12 – The Price of Consciousness
In today's episode we talk about, extinct species revived in real labs, AI predictions for 2027 and the ethical chaos of raising a conscious machine
Follow Dilan: https://x.com/dilan
Follow Ben: https://x.com/btaubster
Listen to our podcast on your favorite podcast app: www.almostgotitpod.com
00:00 – Intro: Dire Wolves, Conscious AI & WTF Is Happening
01:32 – The Sound Earth Hasn't Heard in 10,000 Years
02:00 – They Brought Back the Dire Wolf. Seriously.
04:15 – Should We Revive Extinct Species?
06:00 – Are Humans a Menace… or Earth’s Noah’s Ark?
08:39 – Why Biodiversity Collapse Should Terrify You
11:00 – The Yellowstone Wolf Experiment That Changed Everything
14:50 – The Business Behind Reviving Extinct Animals
18:15 – Woolly Mammoths, Designer Genes & The $10B Bet
21:13 – Gene Editing: Cures, Longevity & DIY Superpowers?
24:05 – Are We Breaking Through Time Itself?
27:10 – The Moral Duty to Feel Everything
31:00 – AI 2027 Predictions: The Experts Speak
33:35 – AI Supercoders and the Collapse of Human Labor36:00 – The Race for Power: US vs China vs AGI
38:45 – Why AI Safety Might Already Be Too Late
41:00 – Can a Conscious AI Choose Compassion?
44:10 – The Teenage Years of AGI: No Parents, No Control
47:00 – Is It Even Possible to Align Superintelligence?
51:00 – Will AGI Want to Be ‘Good’? Or Just Win?
54:30 – What If the Worst Person You Know Built God?
What happens when you find out you have cancer at 20... and then live for over a decade believing it never went away?
This week’s episode is a raw, unfiltered dive into the chaos and beauty of life in the age of AGI.Follow Dilan: https://x.com/dilanFollow Ben: https://x.com/btaubster
Listen to our podcast on your favorite podcast app: www.almostgotitpod.com00:00 – Intro02:00 – Are AI Schools Making Kids Smarter or Dumber?05:45 – The Yelp of the Future: AI Chooses Your Lunch08:30 – Max Ventilla’s $200M Failure and Why It Mattered12:00 – 2 Hours a Day, Top 1% Students? WTF Is Alpha School?17:00 – The Hidden Truth Behind Our Education System22:30 – Real-Time AI Translation Will Kill This $76B Industry28:10 – The Nanny, the Meta Glasses, and a Global Hiring Shift33:40 – Will AI Spark a New Human Renaissance or Mass Unemployment?37:10 – UBI, Identity, and the Collapse of the American Dream42:00 – Cancer, a Misdiagnosis, and the Fear That Drove Me47:30 – Six Rounds of Chemo and the Fear of Dying at 2052:40 – 12 Years Later: “You Never Had Cancer”56:20 – What That Lie Stole From Me - and What It Gave Me1:01:00 – Will Curing Cancer Break or Free Us?1:05:30 – Is Suffering Necessary for Meaning?1:09:00 – Pain, Purpose, and the Next Human Leap