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 SquaredArundhati Roy on Storytelling, Memory and The Human Condition (Part Two)
‘It is vanishingly rare for a writer to both confront the ugliness of humanity and still search for its beauty. Roy is that rare writer.’ – Naomi Klein…
Intelligence SquaredArundhati Roy on Storytelling, Memory and The Human Condition (Part One)
‘It is vanishingly rare for a writer to both confront the ugliness of humanity and still search for its beauty. Roy is that rare writer.’ – Naomi Klein…
Intelligence SquaredNick Clegg on Meta, AI and the Battle for Big Tech (Part Two)
Nick Clegg has had a seat at the heart of power for nearly two decades. As leader of the Liberal Democrats he served as deputy Prime Minister from 2010 to 2015…
Intelligence SquaredNick Clegg on Meta, AI and the Battle for Big Tech (Part One)
Nick Clegg has had a seat at the heart of power for nearly two decades. As leader of the Liberal Democrats he served as deputy Prime Minister from 2010 to 2015…
Intelligence SquaredThe Age of the Strongman: Understanding Netanyahu, with Anshel Pfeffer (Part Two)
In November 2022, Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power in Israel after winning his sixth election. Propped up by a bloc of far-right and ultra-religious…
Intelligence SquaredThe Age of the Strongman: Understanding Netanyahu, with Anshel Pfeffer (Part One)
In November 2022, Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power in Israel after winning his sixth election. Propped up by a bloc of far-right and ultra-religious…
Intelligence SquaredThe Specialist | The Multi-Million Dollar Banana, with David Galperin
This is an episode of The Specialist, produced by Intelligence Squared in partnership with Sotheby's. In The Specialist, explore the significance and journey…
Intelligence SquaredCould AI Help Save Lives? With Dr Charlotte Blease
How can AI improve our healthcare industry? In this episode, Dr Emma Yhnell speaks to health informaticist and author Dr Charlotte Blease about the role AI…
Intelligence SquaredHotels with History | Claridge's, London
This is an episode of Hotels with History, produced by Intelligence Squared on behalf of Perowne International. In today’s episode, the rise of one of the…
Intelligence SquaredThe science of dreams: why do we dream, and can we learn to control them? With Dr Michelle Carr
Why do we dream? Why do dreams go bad? And can we harness the science of dreams and nightmares to improve our health? Dr Michelle Carr is the Director of the…
Intelligence SquaredWhat will become of the CIA under President Trump? With Tim Wiener
Pulitzer-prize winning journalist Tim Weiner has been chronicling the history of the CIA for more than two decades. His new book, The Mission charts the…
Intelligence SquaredCan Trump Deliver Peace in Ukraine? With Catherine Belton
In today's episode we’re joined today by journalist and author Catherine Belton to continue our discussion on whether President Trump can deliver a peace deal…
Intelligence SquaredMary Beard and Charlotte Higgins on how antiquity shapes the modern world (Part Two)
How does the classical world shape our politics, culture, language and lives today? On today’s episode, we’re joined by two of the greatest names making…
Intelligence SquaredThe Specialist | Fabergé’s Rediscovered Imperial Flower, with Helen Culver-Smith
This is an episode of The Specialist, produced by Intelligence Squared in partnership with Sotheby's. In The Specialist, explore the significance and journey…
Intelligence SquaredMary Beard and Charlotte Higgins on how antiquity shapes the modern world (Part One)
How does the classical world shape our politics, culture, language and lives today? On today’s episode, we’re joined by two of the greatest names making…
Intelligence SquaredCan Trump Deliver Peace in Ukraine? With Mark Galeotti
On today's episode we're joined by Mark Galeotti, security expert and author, to discuss Trump's recent efforts to reach a peace deal between Russia and…
Intelligence SquaredWho are the Hidden Women who Shaped our Economic History? With Victoria Bateman
How many female entrepreneurs, merchants and industrialists can you name? We all know the names Rockefeller, Medici and Ford, but what about Priscilla…
Intelligence SquaredWhat Does China's Seismic Economic Progress Mean for the USA? With Dan Wang
America used to pride itself on ambition. Today, it looks stuck. Meanwhile, China has been busy building the future. In a new book, Breakneck, technology…
Intelligence SquaredHow can we win the battle against antibiotic resistance? With Liam Shaw
One of the greatest medical breakthroughs of the twentieth century is set to become one of the biggest threats of the twenty-first - but what can be done to…
Intelligence SquaredClassic Debate: The Allied bombing of German cities in World War II was unjustifiable
No one doubts the bravery of the thousands of men who flew and died in Bomber Command. The death rate was an appalling 44%. And yet until the opening of a…
Intelligence SquaredHow have rivers shaped human existence? With Vanessa Taylor
From ancient empires to modern metropolises, what do rivers tell us about the way humans build, worship, and fight for their worlds? In this episode, historian…
Intelligence SquaredHow Well do we Understand the Female Body? With Polly Vernon
Did you know that women’s brains change during puberty, pregnancy and the menopause? That women are twice as likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s? Or that…
Intelligence SquaredAre the Rich Preparing for Civilisational Collapse? With Evan Osnos
In this episode, award-winning journalist Evan Osnos joins Carl Miller to discuss the lives of the Ultrarich and themes from his new book The Haves and the…
- Intelligence Squared
Does Plato Still Matter Today? with Angie Hobbs
Use code SQUARED at the link below to get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan: https://incogni.com/squared --- Can ancient philosophy make sense of a…
Intelligence SquaredDid the Road to Trump Start in the 90’s? with John Ganz
Use code SQUARED at the link below to get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan: https://incogni.com/squared --- How has the past thirty years of…
Intelligence SquaredWas the Nuclear Bomb Inevitable? With Frank Close
Use code SQUARED at the link below to get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan: https://incogni.com/squared --- How did the most powerful force in…
Intelligence SquaredAn African History of Africa, with Zeinab Badawi (Part Two)
Use code SQUARED at the link below to get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan:https://incogni.com/squared ----- ‘Everyone is originally from Africa…
Intelligence SquaredAn African History of Africa, with Zeinab Badawi (Part One)
‘Everyone is originally from Africa, and this book is therefore for everyone.’ – Zeinab Badawi Too often historians have told the history of Africa through the…
Intelligence SquaredThe Specialist | The Greatest Persian Manuscript: A Story Fit For Kings, with Benedict Carter
This is an episode of The Specialist, produced by Intelligence Squared in partnership with Sotheby's. In The Specialist, explore the significance and journey…
Intelligence SquaredClassic Debate: To Stop Climate Collapse, We Must End Capitalism
Capitalism is driving us to disaster. Our planet is heading for a terrifying environmental cataclysm – and our economic system is responsible. The defining…
Intelligence SquaredDid Apple’s Rise Fuel China’s Fight for Tech Supremacy? With Patrick McGee
How did Apple, the world’s most valuable company and creator of the defining product of the 21st century, end up so deeply entangled with China’s authoritarian…
Intelligence SquaredHow did the fourteenth century shape England? With Helen Carr
The death of Edward I in 1307 marked the beginning of a period of intense turmoil and change in England. The fourteenth century ushered in the beginning of the…
Intelligence SquaredHow will Taiwan shape Asia’s future? With Chris Horton
The issue of Taiwan is a constant background hum in today’s news cycle. Perched precariously on the fault-lines of global power, the fate of this vibrant…
Intelligence SquaredWhere Will the Next Tech Superpower Emerge? With Mehran Gul
For the past fifty years, Silicon Valley has led the world in developing cutting-edge technologies and spawning high-growth, billion-dollar tech companies…
Intelligence SquaredThe Safekeep, with Women’s Prize-winner Yael van der Wouden
It’s been a remarkable eighteen months for Dutch-Israeli author Yael van der Wouden. Her debut novel, The Safekeep, was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, and…
Intelligence SquaredThe Specialist | The Untold Story of the Shredded Banksy, with Alex Branczik
This is an episode of The Specialist, produced by Intelligence Squared in partnership with Sotheby's. In The Specialist, explore the significance and journey…
Intelligence SquaredThe Specialist | The Rediscovery of Rubens’ The Massacre of the Innocents, with George Gordon
This is an episode of The Specialist, produced by Intelligence Squared in partnership with Sotheby's. In The Specialist, explore the significance and journey…
Intelligence SquaredHow Can Football Shirts Explain Money, Power and Politics?
In today’s episode, journalist and author Joey D'Urso joins us to discuss the themes of his new book More Than A Shirt: How Football Shirts Explain Global…
Intelligence SquaredHow Geography Explains Our World, with Tim Marshall
Tim Marshall is one of the world’s most successful authors on foreign affairs. He’s the writer who put the ‘geo’ into geopolitics with his multi-million…
Intelligence SquaredHow will Trump’s tariff war impact the global economy? With Philip Coggan
What happens when the world’s biggest economy turns its back on global trade? In today's episode, host Adam McCauley is joined by renowned financial journalist…
Intelligence SquaredThe Search for a Jewish Homeland in Texas, with Rachel Cockerell and James McAuley
On June 7th 1907, a ship packed with Russian Jews sets sail not to Jerusalem or New York, as many on board have dreamt, but to Texas. The man who persuades the…
Intelligence SquaredWhat can Charlottesville teach us about America’s national story? With Deborah Baker
In August 2017, over a thousand neo-Nazis, fascists, Klan members, and neo-Confederates descended on a small southern city to protest the pending removal of a…
Intelligence SquaredWhy does nobody understand quantum physics? With Frank Verstraete and Céline Broeckaert
Why does the universe behave in ways that defy logic - and can anyone truly understand it? In this episode, we’re joined by physicist Frank Verstraete and…
- Intelligence Squared
What if Globalisation Fails? with Ben Chu
What happens if globalisation fails? Can nations truly stand alone in an interconnected world? Is the new race for national self-sufficiency a path to real…
Intelligence SquaredClassic Debate: Neville Chamberlain Did The Right Thing
If ever a politician got a bum rap it’s Neville Chamberlain. He has gone down in history as the British prime minster whose policy of appeasement in the 1930s…
Intelligence SquaredAre bureaucrats a force for good? With Michael Lewis and Gillian Tett (Part Two)
The concept of government is under attack. In the United States, Donald Trump has fired tens of thousands of federal workers; ignored congressional statutes…
Intelligence SquaredAre bureaucrats a force for good? With Michael Lewis and Gillian Tett (Part One)
The concept of government is under attack. In the United States, Donald Trump has fired tens of thousands of federal workers; ignored congressional statutes…
- Intelligence Squared
Ctrl, Alt, Delusion: Resetting Reality in the Manosphere
Today’s episode is the recording of our recent panel Ctrl, Alt, Delusion: Resetting Reality in the Manosphere, live at SXSW London, in partnership with Sage &…
- Intelligence Squared
The Genius Myth, with Helen Lewis and Armando Iannucci (Part Two)
The tortured poet. The rebellious scientist. The monstrous artist. The tech disruptor. You can tell what a society values by who it labels as a genius. You can…
- Intelligence Squared
The Genius Myth, with Helen Lewis and Armando Iannucci (Part One)
The tortured poet. The rebellious scientist. The monstrous artist. The tech disruptor. You can tell what a society values by who it labels as a genius. You can…
- Intelligence Squared
Yardsticks For Failure, with Ivo Graham (Part Two)
After coming last by quite such a distance on Taskmaster Series 15, and seeing his emotional frailties laid bare in a series of memes of him with his head in…
- Intelligence Squared
Yardsticks For Failure, with Ivo Graham (Part One)
After coming last by quite such a distance on Taskmaster Series 15, and seeing his emotional frailties laid bare in a series of memes of him with his head in…
- Intelligence Squared
An Evening with Matt Haig: Embracing Hope, Wonder and the Power of the Imagination (Part Two)
‘A beautiful novel full of life-affirming wonder and imagination’ Benedict Cumberbatch Matt Haig is one of Britain’s most celebrated authors, best known for…
- Intelligence Squared
An Evening with Matt Haig: Embracing Hope, Wonder and the Power of the Imagination (Part One)
‘A beautiful novel full of life-affirming wonder and imagination’ Benedict Cumberbatch Matt Haig is one of Britain’s most celebrated authors, best known for…
- Intelligence Squared
An Evening with Deborah Frances-White and David Tennant (Part Two)
Deborah Frances-White is the writer and comedian best known for hosting The Guilty Feminist podcast. David Tennant is the multi-award-winning actor who has…
- Intelligence Squared
An Evening with Deborah Frances-White and David Tennant (Part One)
Deborah Frances-White is the writer and comedian best known for hosting The Guilty Feminist podcast. David Tennant is the multi-award-winning actor who has…
- Intelligence Squared
Is Britain in Denial About the Far Right? With Harry Shukman
What is happening behind closed doors in Britain’s far right movement? On today’s episode, we’re joined by journalist Harry Shukman, the journalist who spent…
- Intelligence Squared
The Power of Good Conversation, with Jefferson Fisher (Part Two)
‘Embracing the knowledge in The Next Conversation will vastly improve your life.’ – Andrew Huberman, creator of the Huberman Lab Podcast ‘ The Next…
- Intelligence Squared
The Power of Good Conversation, with Jefferson Fisher (Part One)
‘Embracing the knowledge in The Next Conversation will vastly improve your life.’ – Andrew Huberman, creator of the Huberman Lab Podcast ‘ The Next…
- Intelligence Squared
Sotheby's Talks | Shakespeare: A Man For All Time, with Tracy-Ann Oberman
On today’s episode, an episode from our friends at Sotheby's, exploring the world of Shakespeare. Sam Leith, author, journalist and literary editor of The…