Josh Tyrangiel is the author of “AI for Good: How Real People Are Using Artificial Intelligence to Fix Things That Matter.” On today’s show, Josh talks about some of these real people and the problems they’re working on: a professor trying to understand her nonverbal son, a general who delivered millions of Covid vaccines in 2021, and a hospital CEO trying to reduce the rate of deadly infections.

In this episode, Josh explains:

• Where AI is helping to reduce hospital infections (and where it’s struggling)
• Why distributing the Covid vaccine was almost as hard as creating it
• Why convincing people to use AI is often the hardest problem to solve
• Why we should use nuclear weapons as a model for regulating AI

Connect with us:

• Follow Jacob Goldstein on LinkedIn, X and Instagram
• Email us at problem@pushkin.fm
• Follow Pushkin on Instagram, LinkedIn or X
• Listen to Jacob’s other show, Business History
• To listen to the show early and ad free, sign up for Pushkin+

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Betsey Stevenson is a labor economist at the University of Michigan, and she was an economic adviser to President Obama. Betsey’s problem is this: How can we create a world where the benefits of AI are broadly shared?

Betsey draws on history – including how the invention of household appliances created a crisis of meaning for American women – to understand how we should respond to the challenge of AI. And she suggests policies to help spread the wealth AI could bring.

In this episode, Betsey explains:

• How Engels’ Pause serves as a warning for workers
• How 20th century women adapted to automation
• How AI has changed life for college students
• The argument for taxing AI firms and distributing the proceeds to the public

Connect with us:

• Follow Jacob Goldstein on LinkedIn, X and Instagram
• Email us at problem@pushkin.fm
• Follow Pushkin on Instagram, LinkedIn or X
• Listen to Jacob’s other show, Business History
• To listen to the show early and ad free, sign up for Pushkin+

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Maps have gotten much better over the past few decades. But they're still mostly two dimensional, and they struggle to keep up with a world that is always changing. Brian McClendon is the Chief Technology Officer of Niantic Spatial, a spinout of the company that makes Pokémon Go. Brian's problem is this: How do you build a three-dimensional map of the world that both robots and humans can use to find their way?

In this episode, Brian explains:

• What he learned building Google Earth
• How Pokémon Go players helped build the foundation for robot navigation
• What it will take to teach AI to understand the physical world.
• Why GPS is so bad in cities
•  Why trees are such a big problem for digital mapmakers

Connect with us:

• Follow Jacob Goldstein on LinkedIn, X and Instagram
• Email us at problem@pushkin.fm
• Follow Pushkin on Instagram, LinkedIn or X
• Listen to Jacob’s other show, Business History
• To listen to the show early and ad free, sign up for Pushkin+

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.