Shows / The Intelligence from The Economist
The Intelligence from The Economist
Join Jason Palmer and Rosie Blau for noise-cancelling news and analysis from The Economist's global network of correspondents. Every weekday the winner of "Best Daily Show" at the 2026 British Podcast Awards, picks three stories shaping your world—the big shifts in politics, business and culture, plus things you never knew you needed to know. On Saturdays, download The Weekend Intelligence to dive deep into a single story, vividly told.
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Episodes
The Intelligence from The EconomistEffective non-altruism: Elon Musk’s foundation
The world’s richest person does not say much nice about philanthropy, and his foundation does not say much about itself. Our correspondent digs deeper. The…
The Intelligence from The EconomistBye bye Bibi? Israel’s election results
Binyamin Netanyahu has underperformed but so has his main opponent, Gadi Eisenkot. Who will form a government? We decipher what the messy results mean for…
The Intelligence from The EconomistAct of Claude: Anthropic’s IPO bid
It would be the first public listing from a frontier-AI firm—and perhaps the largest IPO of all time. We comb through the filing to understand how the company…
The Intelligence from The EconomistFrom this day, fourth: Lula’s surprise win
Brazil’s president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, staged a historic comeback to win a fourth term. We ask how he did it, and what he must do next. Each day this…
The Intelligence from The EconomistSongs of disenchantment: the sorrow of Nigeria
Nigeria is suffering a worsening security crisis, compounded by a lean harvest, global aid cuts and rising energy prices. So why is President Bola Tinubu…
The Intelligence from The EconomistDunes and gloom: MBS’s annus horribilis
This week, Muhammad bin Salman, crown prince of Saudi Arabia, was forced to postpone his annual investment summit. His other big bets on the kingdom’s future…
The Intelligence from The EconomistCash test: can Europe support Ukraine alone?
Donald Trump’s administration is turning against Ukraine. But as European powers confront trouble at home, they are struggling to replace American support. Are…
The Intelligence from The EconomistDisorder of magnitude: France’s riots
What started as student protests ballooned into national lawlessness. The disorder plays into the hands of France’s political extremes; expect more of it. In…
The Intelligence from The EconomistIndependence eh? Canada’s referendum
The province of Alberta will vote on secession today. It is unlikely to go ahead, but the separatist vibe is just one of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s many…
The Intelligence from The EconomistSchrödinger’s chat: can AI and scientists co-exist?
In recent weeks, AI has solved hundreds of previously unanswered maths problems. Our correspondents ask if machines can do the same in other areas of science…
The Intelligence from The EconomistAn interview with Alice Weidel
Under Alice Weidel’s leadership the Alternative for Germany (AfD), a right-wing populist party, has been riding high. A series of successes in state elections…
The Intelligence from The EconomistWho wants to be a millennial? Generation comeback
Their struggles to get jobs or buy homes once propelled political movements. Now many millennials are out-earning their parents and in positions of power. Our…
The Intelligence from The EconomistKicking Kyiv: Trump’s doubtful deals
Donald Trump claims to have brokered a deal to import Russian diesel and an energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. As attacks on Kyiv continue, our…
The Intelligence from The EconomistUnrest in peace: misery in Gaza
A year ago Donald Trump created the Board of Peace to rebuild Gaza. Yet for many Palestinians, life is even harder, as the ceasefire is repeatedly violated…
The Intelligence from The EconomistSaudi under siege: Houthis attack airport
This weekend, Yemeni rebels struck Saudi Arabia’s international airport in the deadliest attack on a Gulf Arab country since the Iran war began in February…
The Intelligence from The EconomistSaving your bacon: healthy-eating policy evolves
Decades of messaging have not worked, so governments are trying new ways to get citizens to eat well, from scary labelling to taxing the junkiest foods. Will…
The Intelligence from The EconomistValley of the shadow of debt: bond-market jitters
Bond yields across the rich world keep ticking up. We take a global look at where the risks are mounting most, and just how much worry is warranted. What might…
The Intelligence from The EconomistGilets jeunes? France’s school protests
What started as a small protest about conditions of a school and of schooling has mushroomed, and tapped into national anxieties that may prove hard to tame…
The Intelligence from The EconomistHouse call: Spain’s snap election
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is gambling that anger about housing might solidify his mandate in a snap poll. Most probably it will instead add to the rightward…
The Intelligence from The EconomistHere comes the son? Brazil’s election tips rightward
Flávio Bolsonaro, populist-right son of the imprisoned coup architect Jair, received the most votes in the presidential first round. We ask why Luiz Inácio…
The Intelligence from The EconomistCoffer stop: AI may shrink tax base
If Artificial Intelligence results in job losses or lower salaries, government revenues will fall. Our correspondent explains how best to tax the windfalls…
The Intelligence from The EconomistTrial and terror: Russia escalates Kyiv campaign
Russia has embarked on a new campaign to quell Ukraine, focused on supermarkets, playgrounds and other civilian targets. Our correspondent reports on the toll…
The Intelligence from The EconomistCheques and the City: Premier League disgrace
An independent commission has found Manchester City guilty of breaching over 100 rules. What penalty will the Premier League exact? Russia’s increasingly…
The Intelligence from The EconomistBrazil rut: Lula v Bolsonaro, again
On October 4th, Brazil faces a polarising general election: re-elect the octogenarian incumbent or pick the son of a former president jailed for attempting a…
The Intelligence from The EconomistFoiled plot: did Iran plan British base attack?
Five men are in custody under suspicion of explosives and terrorism offences after being arrested near a British military base used by American aircraft. This…
The Intelligence from The EconomistBig meet, little meat: the Trump-Xi summit
Not much of real substance appears to have emerged from the get-together. But our correspondent says there are clues of how both sides view an evolving…
The Intelligence from The EconomistHome disadvantage: risks in housing markets
Rich-world house prices survived the last fit of interest-rate rises; our correspondent lays out why they may not this time. Nine months after Australia banned…
The Intelligence from The EconomistNational front-runner: who can beat Le Pen?
Marine Le Pen, party leader of France’s populist-right National Rally, starts her fourth presidential bid with a commanding lead. The country’s political…
The Intelligence from The EconomistThe mob rule: criminality consumes South Africa
An illicit shadow economy, rampant extortion and the capture of the criminal justice system: mafia members and tactics are eating away at the state. Oura seems…
The Intelligence from The EconomistCentre punch: Germany’s state-election shocker
Two more state-election results reveal surging support for both the far-right AfD and the populist-left Die Linke parties. Chancellor Friedrich Merz himself…
The Intelligence from The EconomistDrone truth: Russia has the upper hand
After a visit to Ukraine last week, our defence editor reports on a new phase of the war as Kyiv and other civilian targets are bombarded by Russian missiles…
The Intelligence from The EconomistRise and shine: Warsh’s Fed rate test
The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates for the first time since July 2023. For the central bank’s new chair Kevin Warsh, that decision was a test both…
The Intelligence from The EconomistThe end of the world is AI? An existential threat
Is artificial intelligence becoming uncontrollably powerful? Our correspondent analyses whether a pause to breakneck development is possible or feasible. We…
The Intelligence from The EconomistIslamism in Britain: what is the threat?
Though a growing share of the British population is anxious about Islam, they have no reason to be. Islamism, a fringe ideology that believes government and…
The Intelligence from The EconomistStrait and narrowing: the Houthis’ striking advance
After years of stalemate, Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis are taking territory, including on a Red Sea strait. We ask what has changed, and how the shift fits into…
The Intelligence from The EconomistThe Weekend Intelligence: Shire folk - Episode 1: Tommy's Town
For 15 years, the British media dismissed Tommy Robinson as a far-right extremist. We kept him off our televisions, and out of our newspapers. Today his…
The Intelligence from The EconomistOut-numbered: AI’s contentious maths milestone
OpenAI’s claim to have solved one of the great problems in mathematics has itself created problems. We ask why the breakthrough has shaken the field. On the…
The Intelligence from The EconomistWorking through it: the AI jobs boom dawns
The labour data are in from America and a trend is becoming clearer: on balance AI is starting to create more jobs than it hoovers up. Despite advancements of…
The Intelligence from The EconomistChainsaw sputtering: Milei’s experiment falters
President Javier Milei has tamed inflation and improved the lot of many Argentines. But an election season approaches, and the promised economic and wage…
The Intelligence from The EconomistSchool of shock: teenagers get dimmer
International tests in maths and reading show that 15-year-olds today score what 14-year-olds would have done a decade ago. Our correspondent explains the…
The Intelligence from The EconomistAll right on the night: AfD’s victory
Alternative for Germany won an even larger share of the vote than expected in yesterday’s state election. What does the far-right nationalist party’s success…
The Intelligence from The EconomistBargaining chips: Nvidia is the bank of AI
Nvidia, the world’s most valuable company, has shifted strategy to boost demand for its chips. Our correspondent assesses the opportunities and risks. Knife…
The Intelligence from The EconomistIre and ICE: the toll of America’s deportations
Donald Trump’s stance on immigration helped him win the presidency. Our correspondent asks if a backlash against the campaign could damage Republican midterm…
The Intelligence from The EconomistRight in front: AfD could win German state
On Sunday, Alternative for Germany could become the first far-right nationalist party to win a state election since the end of the second world war. Is Britain…
The Intelligence from The EconomistAfter the flood: Nepal’s ongoing rescue
After the devastating flash flood last week, our correspondent explains why the country is so ill-equipped to deal with the crisis. Does AI stop children from…
The Intelligence from The EconomistStars in their AIs: tech is changing Hollywood
Behind the scenes, Artificial Intelligence is playing a growing role in every aspect of film-making, from script-writing and production-planning to…
The Intelligence from The EconomistBots on the ground: China leads humanoid race
Our correspondent goes inside a Chinese robot facility to see thousands of droids being taught to complete useful tasks. Is it worth the time and money? How…
The Intelligence from The EconomistBig shot: does a cancer vaccine work?
Personalised vaccines could offer a breakthrough in the fight against cancer. Our correspondent analyses the latest trial. Canada’s oil market is flourishing…
The Intelligence from The EconomistSlip the surly bonds? Scott Bessent goes on a yield trip
Amid record-tickling yields, the bond markets are now trying to make sense of what Scott Bessent, America’s Treasury secretary, has announced—a move that might…
The Intelligence from The EconomistEven-more-maximum pressure: sanctions on Iran
After much hullabaloo America announced its “Operation Economic Outcast”, a new tranche of sanctions. It is thin gruel, and might in fact invite military…
The Intelligence from The EconomistElbows up, again: a US-Canada trade flare-up
Promising trade talks imploded after a literal 11th-hour change from the American side. We examine the new trade barriers being erected, and the complex…
The Intelligence from The EconomistI, robot? AI and consciousness
The rise of generative AI has put new urgency into ancient questions. What is consciousness, and can machines ever have it? We dive into the data that reveal a…
The Intelligence from The EconomistAn interview with Yuval Noah Harari
Yuval Noah Harari is a big-ideas guy. Known for penning tomes that tackle broad sweeps of history, the historian-cum-philosopher has now turned his attention…
The Intelligence from The EconomistBombs and bombshells: Zelensky under pressure
From anti-corruption probes to a disgruntled ex-minister calling for elections to disrupted grain shipments, headaches are mounting for Ukraine’s President…
The Intelligence from The EconomistWake-up haul: an Ozempic moment for the brain
Orexins are peptides involved in the body’s sleep-wake system—and are big pharma’s next big thing. Like multi-purpose GLPs, they may have far more uses than…
The Intelligence from The EconomistSettler bet: a West Bank flashpoint
Israeli settlers have been clashing more and more with Palestinians in the West Bank, often with government backing. We examine the forces at play in what…
The Intelligence from The EconomistIt’s not easy being Green: Zack Polanski
To critics, the Green Party leader is dangerous, even a con man. To fans, he is a national saviour-in-waiting. Our correspondent meets him to see what is…
The Intelligence from The EconomistAfghanistan, five years on: our correspondent visits
Five years after the American withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Taliban show little sign of moderation. Our correspondent reports from the country on what life…
The Intelligence from The EconomistCaracas under pressure: democracy in Venezuela
After American troops snatched Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro in a dawn raid in January, democracy did not seem like a priority. Yet this week, talks…
The Intelligence from The EconomistPump and circumstance: is China the new OPEC?
The Iran war triggered the largest supply shock in the history of petroleum, yet prices never rose as high as feared. Our correspondent explains how action…