Shows / Intelligence Squared
Intelligence Squared
Ideas shape the world. Intelligence Squared brings you the conversations that explain them. In every episode, we bring together leading thinkers, writers, scientists, policymakers and entrepreneurs, to challenge assumptions, test ideas and debate the questions shaping our future. If you want to think more clearly about the world and where it's heading, you're in the right place. If you’d like to support our mission to foster honest debate and compelling conversations, as well as ad-free…
Episodes
Intelligence SquaredAn Evening with Maggie O’Farrell: Land (Part Two)
Maggie O’Farrell is the award-winning author of nine novels, including Hamnet, a breathtaking fictional retelling of the death of Shakespeare’s only son from…
Intelligence SquaredAn Evening with Maggie O’Farrell: Land (Part One)
Maggie O’Farrell is the award-winning author of nine novels, including Hamnet, a breathtaking fictional retelling of the death of Shakespeare’s only son from…
Intelligence SquaredCan We Make the Internet Safe for Children? With Baroness Beeban Kidron
Filmmaker and activist Baroness Beeban Kidron has been warning of the digital dangers facing young people for over a decade, and has played a central role in…
Intelligence SquaredHotels with History | Copacabana Palace, Rio De Janeiro
This is an episode of Hotels with History, produced by Intelligence Squared on behalf of Perowne International. Picture being on a sweep of white sand where…
Intelligence SquaredAndrew Ross Sorkin and Zanny Minton Beddoes on Markets, Crashes and The Future of The Global Economy (Part Two)
Andrew Ross Sorkin began his career at the forefront of Wall Street news, reporting extensively for The New York Times on the financial crash of 2008 and its…
Intelligence SquaredAndrew Ross Sorkin and Zanny Minton Beddoes on Markets, Crashes and The Future of The Global Economy (Part One)
Andrew Ross Sorkin began his career at the forefront of Wall Street news, reporting extensively for The New York Times on the financial crash of 2008 and its…
Intelligence SquaredIs Our Justice System Failing Women? With Barrister Charlotte Proudman
Recent high-profile legal disputes with Johnny Depp and Amber Heard and Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni have renewed public debate about gender, power and…
Intelligence SquaredHow Should We Prepare for the Unknown? With Statistician David Spiegelhalter
In a world of economic shocks, geopolitical crises and constant predictions about the future, how should we make decisions when certainty is impossible? And…
Intelligence SquaredWas George Forster the Enlightenment’s Lost Visionary? With Andrea Wulf
In this episode, historian and philosopher Sophie Scott Brown speaks with writer Andrea Wulf about her new book The Traveller: The Revolutionary Life of George…
Intelligence SquaredReasons for Hope in Turbulent Times, with Rebecca Solnit
Rebecca Solnit is an award-winning American writer and activist whose incisive work explores feminism, democracy, climate change and social justice. In this…
Intelligence SquaredThe Intelligence Squared Economic Outlook: Leadership Special, with Francine Lacqua (Part Two)
Emmanuel Macron. Demis Hassabis. Volodymyr Zelenskiy. George Soros. Mark Carney. Christine Lagarde. Ray Dalio. Leena Nair. Few journalists have spent more time…
Intelligence SquaredThe Intelligence Squared Economic Outlook: Leadership Special, with Francine Lacqua (Part One)
Emmanuel Macron. Demis Hassabis. Volodymyr Zelenskiy. George Soros. Mark Carney. Christine Lagarde. Ray Dalio. Leena Nair. Few journalists have spent more time…
Intelligence SquaredHow Did the Americas Transform Renaissance England? With Lauren Working
The English Renaissance is often remembered as an age of Shakespeare, exploration and cultural flourishing. But it was also shaped by encounters with the…
Intelligence SquaredWho Really Blew Up the Nord Stream Pipeline? With Bojan Pancevski
In September 2022, a series of underwater explosions tore through the Nord Stream pipelines beneath the Baltic Sea. The destruction of this $20 billion…
Intelligence SquaredWhat Can Europe's Borderlands Tell Us About Its Future? With Hannah Lucinda Smith
Long before Putin's invasion of Ukraine, conflict was simmering on Europe's borders. In overlooked territories in eastern Europe, the eastern Mediterranean and…
Intelligence SquaredHotels with History | Waldorf Astoria, New York
This is an episode of Hotels with History, produced by Intelligence Squared on behalf of Perowne International. We’re in midtown Manhattan to kick off Series…
Intelligence SquaredLife and Death in the KGB, with The Rest is Classified’s Gordon Corera (Part Two)
As the main intelligence and security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 to 1991, the KGB instilled fear across Russia and sought to sow discord abroad. This…
Intelligence SquaredLife and Death in the KGB, with The Rest is Classified’s Gordon Corera (Part One)
As the main intelligence and security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 to 1991, the KGB instilled fear across Russia and sought to sow discord abroad. This…
Intelligence SquaredHow Will a New Era of Drugs Shape Our World? With Kojo Koram
From cannabis legalisation in the United States to the rise of psychedelics as wellness and productivity tools, the global politics of drugs is being rapidly…
Intelligence SquaredThe Age of Intelligence: Live in Partnership with IBM
In this episode, journalist Kamal Ahmed was joined by Jon Sopel, Dimple Ahluwalia and Matt Rowe to explore how cybersecurity has moved from a technical concern…
Intelligence SquaredHow Do Hormones Shape the Way We Feel, Think and Age? With Dr Saira Hameed
In this episode, science broadcaster Dr Güneş Taylor speaks with endocrinologist Dr Saira Hameed about her new book Signals: The Inside Story of Our Hormones…
Intelligence SquaredWhy Does It Sometimes Pay to Be a Chicken? With Professor Michael Wooldridge
From Brexit negotiations and the Cuban Missile Crisis to elections, auctions and everyday decision-making, game theory can offer powerful insights into how we…
Intelligence SquaredHow does DNA Shape Our World? With Professor Turi King
Professor Turi King, Director of the Milner Centre for Evolution at the University of Bath, is known for leading the genetic investigation identifying Richard…
Intelligence SquaredDo We Have The Right To Die? With Lady Hale and Rowan Williams (Part Two)
This debate was part of the ‘Think Again’ series in which two leading thinkers present alternative answers to a difficult societal question. The book and…
Intelligence SquaredDo We Have The Right To Die? With Lady Hale and Rowan Williams (Part One)
This debate was part of the ‘Think Again’ series in which two leading thinkers present alternative answers to a difficult societal question. The book and…
Intelligence SquaredAn Evening with Douglas Stuart (Part Two)
Douglas Stuart is one of the most successful writers in Britain today. He is celebrated globally for his honest portrayals of human relationships and…
Intelligence SquaredAn Evening with Douglas Stuart (Part One)
Douglas Stuart is one of the most successful writers in Britain today. He is celebrated globally for his honest portrayals of human relationships and…
Intelligence SquaredHow To Win a Trade War, with Soumaya Keynes and Chad Bown
In this episode, journalist Hannah Lucinda Smith speaks with economists Soumaya Keynes and Chad Bown about our new era of global trade wars. Drawing on their…
Intelligence SquaredHow To Kill A Language, with Sophia Smith Galer (Part Two)
What do we lose when a language dies? Roughly 7,000 languages are spoken around the world today. Over half of them are expected to vanish in the next century –…
Intelligence SquaredHow To Kill A Language, with Sophia Smith Galer (Part One)
What do we lose when a language dies? Roughly 7,000 languages are spoken around the world today. Over half of them are expected to vanish in the next century –…
Intelligence SquaredThe Secret Life of Our Organs and How They Keep us Healthy, with Dr Giulia Enders
How can changing the way we breathe lower stress and blood pressure? Why is touch so important for premature babies and ICU patients? And what can our organs…
Intelligence SquaredChasing Aliens, with Jon Ronson and Daniel Lavelle (Part Two)
Are we really alone in the universe? The question of whether there is extraterrestrial life is one of our oldest questions. And few nations on Earth are more…
Intelligence SquaredChasing Aliens, with Jon Ronson and Daniel Lavelle (Part One)
Are we really alone in the universe? The question of whether there is extraterrestrial life is one of our oldest questions. And few nations on Earth are more…
Intelligence SquaredHas Far-Right Politics Entered The Mainstream in the UK? With Daniel Trilling
Has far-right thinking entered mainstream politics in the UK? In 2025, Britain saw its largest-ever far-right rally, following a summer of flag-waving…
Intelligence SquaredLove, Loss and Mourning Paul Auster, with Siri Hustvedt
What does it mean to mourn a shared life? In this episode, essayist and novelist Siri Hustvedt speaks to book critic Mythili Rao about Ghost Stories. Her most…
Intelligence SquaredWhat Would Happen If We Met Aliens? With Neil deGrasse Tyson
World famous astronomer Neil deGrasse Tyson joins Dr Radha Modgil to discuss his new book Take Me to Your Leader, exploring the science of alien life…
Intelligence SquaredLondon Falling: Patrick Radden Keefe on How Money, Power and Corruption Shape Our City, with Emily Maitlis (Part Two)
Patrick Radden Keefe is an award winning writer known for his ability to tell complex stories in ways that are compelling and revealing. Author of the…
Intelligence SquaredLondon Falling: Patrick Radden Keefe on How Money, Power and Corruption Shape Our City, with Emily Maitlis (Part One)
Patrick Radden Keefe is an award winning writer known for his ability to tell complex stories in ways that are compelling and revealing. Author of the…
Intelligence SquaredWhat Do We Ask Google, and What Does It Tell Us About Human Nature? With Simon Rogers
What do our Google searches reveal about who we really are? For a new book, What We Ask Google, data analyst Simon Rogers explores the world’s biggest dataset…
Intelligence SquaredHow Is Predictive AI Shaping Our World? With AI Philosopher Carissa Véliz
AI models now advise on everything from war, crop output, and marriages. Algorithms determine whether we can get a loan, a job, an apartment, or an organ…
Intelligence SquaredWeimar and Hitler: How did fascism take hold in Germany’s historic town? With Katja Hoyer
The town of Weimar looms large in German history. This ancient town nestled in the heart of the country was home to some of Europe's greatest thinkers, Goethe…
Intelligence SquaredAn Evening with Kae Tempest (Part Two)
Kae Tempest is widely regarded as one of Britain’s greatest wordsmiths. In a career of ferocious creativity, he has received multiple prizes and critical…
Intelligence SquaredAn Evening with Kae Tempest (Part One)
Kae Tempest is widely regarded as one of Britain’s greatest wordsmiths. In a career of ferocious creativity, he has received multiple prizes and critical…
Intelligence SquaredWhat Will Trigger the Next World War? With Peter Apps
How close are we to a new global conflict? In this episode, journalist Hannah Lucinda Smith speaks with global defence commentator Peter Apps about his new…
Intelligence SquaredLena Dunham: Famesick, with Dolly Alderton (Part Two)
According to award-winning actor, writer, director and producer Lena Dunham, we’re now too invested in having a good relationship with our ex. Best known for…
Intelligence SquaredLena Dunham: Famesick, with Dolly Alderton (Part One)
According to award-winning actor, writer, director and producer Lena Dunham, we’re now too invested in having a good relationship with our ex. Best known for…
Intelligence SquaredThe Age of Growth: Live in Partnership with IBM
In this episode, journalist Kamal Ahmed explores how innovation is the driving force behind meaningful growth, not simply through capital investment, but by…
Intelligence SquaredDemis Hassabis and Sebastian Mallaby on The Quest for Artificial General Intelligence (Part Two)
Demis Hassabis – CEO and co-founder of Google DeepMind – is one of the world’s most visionary technologists. A child chess prodigy from North London, Hassabis…
Intelligence SquaredDemis Hassabis and Sebastian Mallaby on The Quest for Artificial General Intelligence (Part One)
Demis Hassabis – CEO and co-founder of Google DeepMind – is one of the world’s most visionary technologists. A child chess prodigy from North London, Hassabis…
Intelligence SquaredHow Does Chemistry Shape our World? With Professor Dame Ijeoma Uchegbu
Chemistry is everywhere. From cosmetics and the clothes we wear to life-saving medicines and kitchen experiments, chemical processes are all around us…
Intelligence SquaredWhy Did Elite Cambridge Graduates Become Soviet Spies? Revisiting the Cambridge Five, with Antonia Senior
The Cambridge Five - Donald Maclean, Guy Burgess, Kim Philby, John Cairncross and Keeper of the Queen's Pictures Anthony Blunt - made up one of the most…
Intelligence SquaredHow Will the Climate Crisis Reshape Global Politics? With Former Diplomat and Author, Arthur Snell
Our changing climate is accelerating conflict and migration, with the potential to drive political instability from the Sahel to Saudi Arabia to Siberia. From…
Intelligence SquaredIs There a Crisis of Overdiagnosis in Modern Medicine? With Dr Suzanne O’Sullivan
More people are being labelled with medical conditions than ever before. Diagnoses of autism, ADHD, allergies, and long COVID have skyrocketed - but are we…
Intelligence SquaredHow Has Translation Transformed Shakespeare? With Daniel Hahn
What does it mean to translate some of the most recognisable and revered works in the English language? When the wordplay, poetry, and syntax of Shakespeare…
Intelligence SquaredShould You Be Talking To AI? with Jamie Bartlett
Hundreds of millions of people now talk to AI, such as ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini every day. They organise their finances and holidays, ask advice, seek therapy…
Intelligence SquaredWho Are Renoir’s Mystery Girls? With Catherine Ostler
Could one of Renoir’s most iconic paintings conceal one of the most astonishing true stories of scandal and tragedy in Golden Age Paris? In 1881…
Intelligence SquaredStalin vs Trotsky: The Assassination That Changed History, with Josh Ireland
On August 20, 1940, in a quiet study in Mexico, one of the 20th century’s most consequential political exiles was assassinated with an ice pick. The killing of…
Intelligence SquaredCan Discomfort Be the Key to a Better Life? With Ken Rideout
Dr Radha Modgil is joined by endurance athlete, investor and author Ken Rideout for an inspiring Intelligence Squared conversation on what it really takes to…
Intelligence SquaredHow and Why did Sexual Reproduction Evolve on our Planet? With Dr Lixing Sun
Before sex evolved on our planet, two billion years ago, all reproduction happened asexually. So why and how did sexual reproduction evolve? Dr Lixing Sun is…
Intelligence SquaredHungry for Life! An Evening with Prue Leith (Part Two)
According to Great British Bake Off judge and national treasure Prue Leith the secret to a happy life lies in embracing everyday with joy while accepting our…