“I’m starting to believe more and more that trouble is actually one of those things that informs all the other things that we do.”
— Chris Sacca
Chris Sacca is the co-founder of Lowercarbon Capital and manages a portfolio of countless startups in energy, industrial materials, and carbon removal. If it’s unf**king the planet, he’s probably working on it. Previously, Chris founded Lowercase Capital, one of history’s most successful funds ever, primarily known for its very early investments in companies like Twitter, Uber, Instagram, Twilio, Docker, Optimizely, Blue Bottle Coffee, and Stripe. But you might just know him as the guy who wore those ridiculous cowboy shirts for a few seasons of Shark Tank.
To purchase Chris’s ranch, schedule a viewing at FivePondsRanch.com.
Please enjoy!
P.S. This episode features a special, one-of-a-kind introduction that Chris recorded of yours truly. 🙂
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, Audible, or on your favorite podcast platform. The transcript of this episode can be found here. Transcripts of all episodes can be found here.
This episode is brought to you by MUD\WTR! With only a fraction of the caffeine found in a cup of coffee, MUD\WTR gives me all the energy I need without the jitters or crash. Their original blend contains four different mushrooms: lion’s mane for focus, cordyceps to promote energy, and both chaga and reishi to support a healthy immune system.Now you can get 15% off plus a free rechargeable frother and free shipping by going to mudwtr.com/Tim.
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Want to hear the first time Chris Sacca was on this show? Listen to our conversation here, in which we discussed early-stage investing advice, traits of successful founders, two differentiators that shifted the nature of Chris’ business, what Chris looks for when hiring, and much more.
What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.
SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE
- Connect with Chris Sacca:
Website | Instagram | Five Ponds Ranch
- Chris Sacca on Being Different and Making Billions | The Tim Ferriss Show #79
- Chris Sacca on Shark Tank, Building Your Business, and Startup Mistakes | The Tim Ferriss Show #132
- Fixing the Planet Is Just Good Business | Lowercarbon Capital
- Among the Best Funds Ever | Lowercase Capital
- Shark Tank | ABC.com
- City of Lockport, New York
- Polarization, Democracy, and Political Violence in the United States: What the Research Says | Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- Boiler Room | Prime Video
- Trading Places | Prime Video
- Venture Capitalist (VC) | Investopedia
- WarGames | Prime Video
- What Is the Stochastic Oscillator and How Is It Used? | Investopedia
- Money Never Sleeps | Quotron
- Rich Dad Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money — That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not! by Robert T. Kiyosaki | Amazon
- Charms Blow Pops, Assorted Flavors | Amazon
- Meet the Mafia: Celebrating Bills Fanatics | WGRZ
- The Almanack of Naval Ravikant: A Guide to Wealth and Happiness by Eric Jorgenson
- How is the Democratic Party Different from the Republican Party? | Britannica
- Five Teachings from the Japanese Wabi-Sabi Philosophy That Can Drastically Improve Your Life | Omar Itani
- Another Seattle Power Couple Commits to Giving Away Their Fortune as Part of the Giving Pledge | GeekWire
- Creating Hope for People in Despair | Barton Family Foundation
- Ask Dr. Gramma Karen: The Secret Word to Avoid Spoiling Your Kids | Mommybites
- Kevin Rose: “Sadly Lost Everything…” | Instagram
- Spotlight on Wilson, Wyoming | Jackson Hole Traveler
- How Super Angel Chris Sacca Made Billions, Burned Bridges, and Crafted the Best Seed Portfolio Ever | Forbes
- The Jerk | Prime Video
- Zillow | Saturday Night Live
- The Latest Wild Zillow Listings | Zillow Gone Wild
- The Big Lebowski | Prime Video
- Amy Schumer Talks Being an Introvert | People
- The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo by Amy Schumer | Amazon
- The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness by Morgan Housel | Amazon
- The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America’s Wealthy by Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko | Amazon
- Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG)
- A Brief History of Forest Schools Around the World | Growing Wild Forest School
- What Is a 360 Review in the Workplace? | The Balance Careers
- Hang In There, Baby | Know Your Meme
- Kiss Off | Violent Femmes
- Gen X on the Edge: Surviving Childhood | Bridgeworks
- ‘It’s 10 P.M. Do You Know Where Your Children Are?’ | Fox 5 New York
- Why Gen Z Needs to Learn How to Negotiate | AACSB
- Stranger Things | Netflix
- H-1B Program | US Department of Labor
- I Didn’t Think I Was a ‘Free-Range’ Parent…Until the Police Called | Today
- Class C: The Only Game in Town | Montana PBS
- Why Do Cattle Produce Methane, and What Can We Do About it? | CLEAR Center
- America Has a Loneliness Epidemic. Here Are 6 Steps to Address It | NPR
- The Addictiveness of Social Media: How Teens Get Hooked | Jefferson Health
- ‘Rawdogging’: A Wildly Obscene Term’s Path to Mainstream Usage | The New York Times
- Rivers and Tides | Prime Video
- Leaning into the Wind — Andy Goldsworthy | Prime Video
- The Apprentice | IMDb
- I Seem to Be a Verb by R. Buckminster Fuller | Amazon
- A New Kind of AI Copy Can Fully Replicate Famous People. The Law Is Powerless. | Politico
- The Moth Podcast
- Mother American Night: My Life in Crazy Times by John Perry Barlow and Robert Greenfield | Amazon
- Gambledore: The Wizard Who Conquered Poker | PokerNews Podcast #866
- The Godmother of AI on What AGI Means for Humanity | Possible
- Will We Reach the Singularity by 2035? | Longevity Technology
- Scientists Use AI to Create Completely New Anti-Venom Proteins | Popular Science
- The Broken Social Contract | Harvard Magazine
- The 2008 Housing Crisis | Center for American Progress
- Companies Will Do Almost Anything to Stop Workers Unionizing | Time
- Them Belly Full (But We Hungry) | Bob Marley & The Wailers
- What White-Collar Jobs Are Safe from AI — And Which Professions Are Most at Risk? | Forbes
- Jobs of the Future: Jobs Lost, Jobs Gained | McKinsey
- Vinod Khosla: 12 Predictions for the Future of Technology | TED Talk
- The Real Human Network | World
- The Artificial Intelligence Revolution: Part 1 | Wait But Why
- The Artificial Intelligence Revolution: Part 2 | Wait But Why
- The Race to Q>1 | Lowercarbon Capital
- Claude AI | Anthropic
- The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Tim Ferriss | Amazon
- Interview: Tyler Cowen, Economist and Public Intellectual | Noahpinion
- We Tried a $60 Massage Done By AI Robots — It Felt Surprisingly Human | Fortune Magazine
- We’re Engineering the Humanoid to Make Humans Capable of More | Figure
- Is It Cancer? Artificial Intelligence Helps Doctors Get a Clearer Picture | AAMC
- Autonomous Vehicle Ride-Hailing | Waymo
- The First AI Legal Assistant, Made for Lawyers | CoCounsel
- Automatic Bullseye, Moving Dartboard | Mark Rober
- Eight Best Listening Bars in Tokyo for Vinyl Music | Time Out
- Five Key Findings from the 2022 UN Population Prospects | Our World in Data
- Yacht Rock | Spotify
- Billy Billy Billy Scene | Caddyshack
- “Old Tony’s” | Tony’s on the Pier
- Prefered Nomenclature (Clip) | The Big Lebowski
- The Extremely Offline Joy of the Board Game Club | The New York Times
- The Montana State Runout | Big Sky Conference
- What Makes TikTok so Addictive?: An Analysis of the Mechanisms Underlying the World’s Latest Social Media Craze | Brown Undergraduate Journal of Public Health
- GLP-1 Agonists | Cleveland Clinic
- CrossFit is for You | CrossFit
- How Copenhagen Became a Cycling City | Tools of Change
- We (Used to) Do It Late | Restaurant Barabba
- Homemade Limoncello | Justin Bariball via ARK Media
- Butlerian Jihad | Dune Wiki
- The Medium is the Massage by Marshall McLuhan and Quentin Fiore | Amazon
- Unfuck the Planet | Lowercarbon Capital
- A Guide to Talking to the Climate Change Deniers, Skeptics, Worriers, and Newbies in Your Life | Rare
- Protesters Throw Soup at Da Vinci Painting | BBC
- Protester Glues Himself to Floor at US Open | Newsweek
- Russia Tries to Use California Fires to Discredit Ukraine | NPR
- After the Fires: How to Rebuild Los Angeles | Council on Foreign Relations
- Not Your Typical Chemical Company | Solugen
- Wildfire Risk Reduction Solutions | BurnBot
- What is Prescribed Fire and Why is it Important for Forest Health? | National Forest Foundation
- Protecting the Grid Today, Preparing the Grid for Tomorrow | Gridware
- California Utility’s Role in Wildfires Under Scrutiny | CNN
- California Insurers Will Survive Fires — But FAIR Plan Faces Big Questions | Newsweek
- Rams Paid Tribute to Los Angeles While Taking over State Farm Stadium in Arizona | Sports Illustrated
- We Protect and Insure High-Value Property | Stand Insurance
- The AI Platform for Insuring Uncovered Flood Risk | Floodbase
- Jon Stewart Calls Out GOP Hypocrisy with L.A. Wildfire Disaster Relief | The Daily Show
- A Messy History of Egging and Toilet-Papering Houses | Mel Magazine
- Car Thief Gets Instant Karma (The Final Glitterbomb 6.0) | Mark Rober
- Martial Arts Supplies | AWMA
- McLovin Scene | Superbad
- Abandoned Places in Nevada: The Sundowner Motel | Living in Las Vegas
- Player’s Ball (Official HD Video) | Outkast
- Never Lose a Game of Rock Paper Scissors Again! | Abstract Away
- The Hangover | Prime Video
- Four Easy Magic Card Tricks for Kids | AboutMagic
- Seven Easy Magic Tricks for Kids | About Magic
- The Rise of the Rest: How Entrepreneurs in Surprising Places are Building the New American Dream by Steve Case | Amazon
- GOP Gets 85% of the Benefit of Climate Law. Some Still Hate It. | Investigate Midwest
- The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt | Amazon
- The Coddling of the American Mind: How Good Intentions and Bad Ideas Are Setting Up a Generation for Failure by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt | Amazon
- Generations: The Real Differences Between Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers, and Silents — And What They Mean for America’s Future by Jean M. Twenge | Amazon
- The Coming Wave by Mustafa Suleyman and Michael Bhaskar | Amazon
- The End of the World Is Just the Beginning: Mapping the Collapse of Globalization by Peter Zeihan | Amazon
- We Are in a “Fourth Turning.” What Does That Mean? | Van Neistat
- The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy — What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America’s Next Rendezvous with Destiny by William Strauss and Neil Howe | Amazon
- Homegrown: Timothy McVeigh and the Rise of Right-Wing Extremism by Jeffrey Toobin | Amazon
- Stolen Focus: Why You Can’t Pay Attention — And How to Think Deeply Again by Johann Hari | Amazon
- Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman | Amazon
- Rejection: Fiction by Tony Tulathimutte | Amazon
- The Every: A Novel by Dave Eggers | Amazon
- Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey | Amazon
- Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs by Johann Hari | Amazon
- Lost Connections: Uncovering the Real Causes of Depression — And the Unexpected Solutions by Johann Hari | Amazon
- Jon Ronson Four Books Bundle Collection Set | Amazon
- Moonbound: A Novel by Robin Sloan | Amazon
- Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan | Amazon
- Silo | Apple TV+
- Wool: Book One of the Silo Series by Hugh Howey | Amazon
- Hugh Howey, Author of Silo and Wool — A Masterclass on Writing, Unorthodox Self-Publishing, and Living in The AI Age | The Tim Ferriss Show #726
- Kelly Corrigan Wonders Podcast
- The Pirates! Series by Gideon Defoe | Amazon
- Stone Paper | Karst Goods
- The Elevated Aperitivo | Doladira
- Luxury Tequila, Refined | Tequila Komos
- Mullet Wigs | Amazon
- The Property | Five Ponds Ranch
- ZZ’s Clam Bar | Major Food Group
- Lord of the Flies by William Golding | Amazon
SHOW NOTES
- [00:06:47] Chris introduces me.
- [00:11:07] Some Sacca background.
- [00:18:32] Raising pre-teen gamblers and tailgating troublemakers.
- [00:19:54] Conscious changes and rethoughts since our first interview.
- [00:26:12] The personal and professional influence of Rich and Sarah Barton.
- [00:30:18] Property management and the Zen of Kevin Rose.
- [00:35:12] Zillow Gone Wild.
- [00:36:58] Simplifications.
- [00:45:03] Remaining optimistic despite being in the business of saying no.
- [00:51:33] Living in the finite without +1 obligations.
- [00:56:54] “Wait, what’s hustle culture?”
- [00:59:48] The (lack of) trouble with kids today.
- [01:09:53] Raising kids to solve problems and eschew smartphones.
- [01:14:15] Rawdogging? You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
- [01:16:05] An Andy Goldsworthy aside.
- [01:16:30] Taking advice from R. Buckminster Fuller GPT.
- [01:19:13] Assigned reading.
- [01:20:10] Humans vs. AI.
- [01:26:20] What happens to people stuck between AI job displacement and a broken social contract?
- [01:42:38] Counting on the human craving to convene and connect.
- [01:56:30] What kind of business would a younger Chris start today?
- [02:00:44] The prescience of The Medium is the Massage.
- [02:01:39] What does Lowercarbon Capital do?
- [02:08:44] Projects Chris is most excited about.
- [02:18:59] Youthful mischief and flim-flammery.
- [02:24:51] The premise for Chris’ upcoming No Permanent Record.
- [02:35:25] Cultivating the ability to face (and maybe win over) a tough crowd.
- [02:39:19] Chris expresses some concerns about this episode.
- [02:40:24] Recommended reading.
- [02:45:07] A worthwhile purchase of $100 or less.
- [02:48:03] Deez Crocs.
- [02:50:48] Sabotaging potential dates with authenticity.
- [02:59:11] Parting thoughts.
MORE CHRIS SACCA QUOTES FROM THE INTERVIEW
“I feel very lucky to have grown up in a place where I had opportunities to commit small misdemeanors. And I had more than one detention. I definitely appeared before the principals on many occasions. Just some light mischief.”
— Chris Sacca
“The American social contract is that if you show up, you will get yours. And when you don’t give somebody that opportunity or you take it away from them and you take that ownership away from them and you take their house or you take their store and you take their farm, then you get the pitchforks.”
— Chris Sacca
“The number one thing you can be in this business is unpredictable. … I am known as mercurial. I burn bridges. I will not hesitate to fucking fight you. I wear the stupid shirts. I don’t give a shit about much. I’ve been known to just light it on fire. And guess what? People take me seriously as a result.”
— Chris Sacca
“Most climate investing and green investing … had been basically charitable, concessionary … But we started to actually see the math change to where the unit economics of making shit in climate, making shit clean, were starting to pay off.”
— Chris Sacca
“I think the biggest danger of raising kids with privilege is that they turn out to be assholes.”
— Chris Sacca
“The shit you own does own you. Every single object, at some point, has commanded some of your attention.”
— Chris Sacca
“I’m starting to believe more and more that trouble is actually one of those things that informs all the other things that we do.”
— Chris Sacca
“It just turns out that digging up and burning old dinosaur bones is fucking expensive, and using the sun to power the economy is just fucking cheaper. And that’s not a political statement.”
— Chris Sacca
“Clean, abundant power that is almost free is single digit years away, so that’s fucking great. I don’t even bother fighting with the oil and gas people. It doesn’t fucking matter. In fact, I actually want them to work with us more on carbon capture and sequester, putting more carbon back into the ground. Because they’ve got the trucks and they’ve got the pipes and they’ve got the engineering know-how, and they’re great at it. And so we do a lot of work with oil and gas companies going in reverse. I don’t have political battles with those guys.”
— Chris Sacca
“When you take away agency from somebody, you back them into a corner. So now do that for all the fucking white collar employees. Do that for everyone who stayed in and did their fucking homework and went to college and took out all those fucking student loans and who feel like they have played by the rules. They are the pride and joy of their families, who actually got their degree—in some cases, a master’s degree—who saw their career path laid out for them. And now they see that their life’s work is obviated by a machine that’s just better than them this fucking fast and costs $20 a month.”
— Chris Sacca
PEOPLE MENTIONED
- Seneca the Younger
- Bob Haas
- Ken “Pinto Ron” Johnson
- Pete “Pizza Pete” Papagelis
- Oprah Winfrey
- Naval Ravikant
- Bill Gates
- Melinda French Gates
- Rich Barton
- Sarah Barton
- Crystal English Sacca
- Donald Trump
- Elon Musk
- Eric Schmidt
- Kevin Rose
- Steve Martin
- Amy Schumer
- Morgan Housel
- Paul Graham
- Jay-Z
- Ted Rheingold
- Harsh Dubey
- Santa Claus
- Jonathan Haidt
- Clay Dumas
- Barack Obama
- John Kerry
- Phil Jackson
- Andy Goldsworthy
- Chuck Klosterman
- R. Buckminster Fuller
- Billy Collins
- Garrison Keillor
- Kelly Corrigan
- John Perry Barlow
- Vladimir “Gambledore” Korzinin
- Bob Marley
- Vinod Khosla
- Sam Altman
- Tim Urban
- Judd Apatow
- Tyler Cowen
- Noah Smith
- Derek Thompson
- Ethan Mollick
- Brian Sacca
- Mark Rober
- Lamar Jackson
- Walter Sobchak
- Titian
- Diego Velázquez
- Riccardo Marcon
- Action Bronson
- Quentin Fiore
- Marshall McLuhan
- Kenny Chesney
- Chris Wright
- Jon Stewart
- Britney Spears
- Christina Aguilera
- Rudy Giuliani
- Michael Bloomberg
- Steve Case
- JD Vance
- Jean Twenge
- Mustafa Suleyman
- Peter Zeihan
- Van Neistat
- Jeffrey Toobin
- Timothy McVeigh
- Johann Hari
- Oliver Burkeman
- Tony Tulathimutte
- Dave Eggers
- Matthew McConaughey
- Jon Ronson
- Robin Sloan
- Richard Betts
- Joe Marchese
- Duane “Dog the Bounty Hunter” Chapman
- Willie Nelson
- Bob Ross
- Peter Pan
- Jesus




Comment Rules: Remember what Fonzie was like? Cool. That's how we're gonna be — cool. Critical is fine, but if you're rude, we'll delete your stuff. Please do not put your URL in the comment text and please use your PERSONAL name or initials and not your business name, as the latter comes off like spam. Have fun and thanks for adding to the conversation! (Thanks to Brian Oberkirch for the inspiration.)
I wish you had included the people Chris Sacca mentions he follows/reads in the show notes. “No Opinion” I’m assuming is Noahpinion, pretty sure Tyler Cowen is the guy writing on Marginal Revolution. “DK Thompson” I’m having trouble finding
Thanks, Larry. I’ll investigate! DK Thompson is Derek Thompson of The Atlantic: https://x.com/DKThomp
I suspect from the political context, Tyler Cohen referred to Brian Tyler Cohen, a popular left-wing YouTuber.
In the notes under “People Mentioned,” these are the three droids you’re looking for, Larry. 🙂
Loved this episode. Thank you.
Okay, this merits a comment: When you guys were talking about mullet wigs, I first thought I heard “Mullenwig” as in Matt Mullenweg. Someone should patent this. And the ad should include the words “Wherever fine wigs are sold.”
You’re welcome.
ahhh hahaha! I thought he said that too! And then I couldn’t stop thinking about what a Matt Mullenwig might look like
Now I understand why Chris receives “legend” status. He has great insights, is so down to earth and loves his life and family. Thanks for another great episode. I’ve learned a lot.
glad to see this episode
This was a fun one. In Chris’s “raw dog” challenge, I am acknowledging that I usually spend any or most flight time with no screens or inputs. The longest I did this was from US to Australia and back. Everyone thought I was completely nuts. I was so happy to have total peace. ✌🏼✨🤍
Thanks for this podcast. I was using it to procrastinate, but it was so insipid and insulting that I turned it off and got to work on what I had been avoiding. Just what I needed.
Love the episode and what you do! I think Joel Salatin from Polyface Farm would be a great guest for the show. Some of the environmental discussions with Chris reminded me of his work.
Beautiful conversation. Thank you both very much.
Why is Chris pushing so hard for folks to have kids when he’s despairing about what kind of lives/careers will be there for these same kids when they’re grown? Bit of a contradiction here. I’m in Tim’s boat, a couple years older, never married (10 yr relationship), no kids, wanting both, but am 100% torn about bringing a child into a world where AI rules and unless you’re already in the top 1%, you’re most likely going to be f’d. Tim’s kids will survive if they can’t find employment one day. Mine may not be as lucky. I’d love for Chris to explain why he wants us to be having children (other than it’s been a cool ride for him and that they’re his best friends – also not sure I agree with having your kids be your best friends, although sure, bonus) and how are these kids going to survive in an AI world? Government handouts?
I thought this was going to be really good and it wasn’t. The podcast meanders all over the place. Not in a good way. Chris seems to dodge most of Tim’s questions and redirects. As a conversation between two friends it’s easy to listen to. I like Chris as a speaker. Maybe 15-20 mins of useful meaningful conversation.
Interesting, I loved this conversation. Want to listen to it again. I always find it fascinating that we all have such different experiences with the same content. I think the best podcasts (and I include this one) are when Tim has a relationship with the person. Seth Godwin’s, Derek Sivers, Kevin Rose, and this one come to mind.
Tim, all of the “fucks” were so exhausting that I couldn’t hear the information he was sharing. I listened to the whole podcast, but the language wore me out. It distracted from what he was saying. Less “fucks”, more engagement. A comment for good. Love your show!
+1 🙂 . Tim patiently prodded Chris to try and answer what “Lower Carbon Capital” does. And probably gave up on that pursuit after a few tries. Concur on your point on Tim F — am a huge fan of the show and have gained a lot over the years!
The whole episode was fantastic. One of your best! “Hustle Culture” was my favorite. He is spot on and his approach to life and how he is raising his kids was super refreshing! Thanks
I like hearing from Chris Sacca and thanks for making this podcast—BUT let him know he has to be factual.
The claim that Sierra Club fights controlled burns and promotion of defensible space was off. They conducted public info events about both after the 2018 fires in Northern California.
It would have been so easy to check that.
And so that clouds his other comments.
Kids these days right? Obviously, we need the one-button phone with an AI assistant that can look things up, manage a calendar, take dictation for text/email, and a maps feature, that’s it, I can track my kid, and he can dictate a text to me. Everyone (not just kids) needs to get off these damn social apps and this is a brilliant solution. Hopefully, this would help resolve some of the isolation issues, get people interacting with each other, which then leads to skill-building through old-school conflict resolution (a punch in the face?)
Then I think Chris is right, the standards the left imposes on people to understand so many complex topics and behave accordingly is destroying everything. We need a platform for more inclusive leftist ideology where the discourse is respectful and mostly about caring for each other as a society on a planet. How are we supposed to sell being kind and open-minded when we are running around being the opposite toward anyone who thinks differently (even if it’s because they’re dumb)
Overall great episode, so relatable, I feel like I just went for drinks with old friends. 5 starssss
Great discussion; thank you both!
Did you see these two items?
Why kids need to take more risks: science reveals the benefits of wild, free play
Studies reveal how risky play can benefit child development. But encouraging it can be a challenge for parents.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-04215-2?WT.ec_id=NATURE-20250109
And from Phil Knight’s excellent book, “Shoe Dog.”
“I hadn’t smoked a cigarette, hadn’t tried a drug. I hadn’t broken a rule, let alone a low. The 1960s were just under way, the age of rebellion, and I was the only person in America who hasn’t yet rebelled.”
Been looking forward to this since I listened to the first collab (I was late to the TimTim party, found the OG episode around 2019). Chris, if you’re looking for a great book on rabblerousing, consider reading Bill Buford’s Among the Thugs. I enjoyed raising my hand to each degenerate experience you mentioned.
I loved your comment on discussing politics in a Bozeman bar without getting popped. Keep fighting the good fight, reaching across barriers, and staying true to your roots – not a lot of blue collar mentality on the podcast, awesome to have you in the mix.
I think Chris is a Prophet.
Loved this episode and the one with Seth Godin I just listened to. I am 99% engaged and appreciative of what they and you are sharing. That makes sense considering I am the 99%. Like when Chris talked about buying land in climate safe areas… guys, we can’t work at your hospitals and schools and utility companies and restaurants if you’re buying it up. The Seth Godin moment was somewhat similar. Anyhow, you are an insightful interviewer, have a great laugh, and seem like an actually nice guy. Your team is perfection. There was one other podcast I listened to regularly until one day he made a brief, dismissive comment and punched down. Either you don’t do that or you have excellent editors.
PS I used to follow you on Twitter but got kicked off. I guess that’s for the best. Join us at BlueSky!
I actually enjoyed this episode quite a bit. I do think Chris is being hypocritical when he loves to talk about all the data, he has to back up his climate change agenda, and he simply ignores the data when it comes to living together before marriage and how the statistics are clear that the divorce rate is higher than those who do not live together. I think he has a lot of insight, but it is hard to take him seriously when he doesn’t look at everything honestly and objectively.
I would be very curious to know Chris and Tim’s thoughts on WHY people should be having kids. It came up specifically related to Japan and Korea. Obviously, there is the cultural preservation component to ensure your entire country doesn’t cease to exist. However, with Chris’s focus on the environment, couldn’t there be an argument that not having children could be better for the planet by reducing the strain placed on all its resources?
In regards to Bourdain, always liked his TV and writing, but man, did he screw when it came to that Asia woman, I wrote on Medium, he should have put the Stones Let It Loose on repeat, great song about heartache and pain when a woman screws you, got plastered, woke up the next morning, shined her out of his life and got on with living.. cheers David
In this episode you made a couple references to Dune. I am rereading the series now and thinking alot about why the Duncan Idaho is brought to the forefront, in particular because he represents unpredictability and free-choice. That is what the Tyrant needed to retain humanity and what Chris recommends to retain innovation in the investment and innovation spaces. I couldn’t agree more and heard it over and over in this conversation. Thank you – was very interesting and a healthy dose of impertinence with a push forward with personal drive is exactly the right combination. Thanks as always to you both.
This show is the great oasis I crave, and this episode is yet another massive rehydration at that oasis. Sorry for the clumsy metaphor. I admire Tim Ferriss so much. He just steers the path, and it’s a miracle he’s protected himself from being siloed in the culture war that’s gobbled up so many other podcasters. (Tim is much more than a podcaster obviously). Anyway, what absolutely seals the deal for me is the quality of the show notes. They are peerless. But then again, so is Tim. Yes I love this show.
I’m adding one more specific comment. I am considering a move from London to rural Switzerland. And everything Chris says about community, smartphones etc rings true to me. Nagging question for me is what is going to fund me (I am a screenwriter and director) if the robots take over. I know I may have to reskill. I’ll never, ever stop writing, but to put bread on the table, I may have to pivot. But to what?
Hopefully I’m going to get myself into the “good trouble” with this comment..
I’ve been working on something that might be right up your alley—a bit futuristic, a bit absurd, and just this side of illegal 😅
It’s an experiment in AI authorship and creativity. I spent the past year refining a project that takes what GPT knows and pushes it to places it probably shouldn’t go.
Would love to hear your thoughts—want to see what AI you had to say?
Chris needs to read your book, The 4-Hour Workweek! It will give him 66 extra hours every week.
This guy! It’s so refreshing to hear someone share everything that crosses his mind without any filters. Not even for the fucks he doesn’t give! I’m from Europe, we still have some of the “politically incorrect” shit slip.
Thank you for letting him talk over 3h! It wasn’t an easy one for you Tim, too. To keep him on track and get your questions in, so kudos for that!
I sent it to all my friends already, especially the ones with kids. I have very similar observations about kids. Not to mention all the AI stuff – scary but I see it the same. In 2 years the world may change in an unrecognizable way.
PS. I just wanted to tell you (hope you read it) that I tried to help you with your family project a couple of times. Inviting you for a coffee when in Austin was one of those intents but of course, not an easy task to get your attention. So, I resorted to calling you an “asshole” and giving up. And then I thought about writing here lol…
As an experiment I am trying to get AI to pull out every book mentioned during this episode – even a few requests deep using the transcript (which I had to go find for it manually). Bots aren’t able to do it yet after testing three major models who should be half decent with research/analysis. So I am going to go back through, manually, with my real honest-to-goodness ears. I’m happy I get to do so.
Will be interesting to try again in a year.
Great episode, so engaging and thoughtful. Best episode of a podcast I’ve listened to in ages. Thanks!
Another interesting episode, although for me personally it induced anxiety on a scale I haven’t experienced before. I became worried by mention that we as humans are incapable of grasping exponential growth/change and that we’re just a few years before the point where the ‘curve of technological advancements’ starts forming a wall straight up. When researching this further via other media it became apparent that there is a lot of polarisation concerning the topic (which is not surprising). There seems to be little in between a very bright and a very dark future. I don’t want to be catastrophising, as I have experienced that doesn’t contribute to a healthy mind. So I’m interested in ways how we as humans can actively participate in shaping the future for the better, making technology work for all of us, as opposed to just big tech companies or a relatively small group of malicious people. Thank you so much for all your content. Cheers
I hope I’m not too late to the discussion here. I have two questions for Chris and the community:
1) How do you justify your daily chats with GPT while simultaneously emphasizing the need for more humanity and analog human experiences in our day to day life? It’s so easy and convenient to strike up a convo with the robot, so inconvenient, messy, and awkward to call up a human.
2) You call out South Korea and other societies with low birth rates to get busy, but simultaneously note that there will likely be serious medical advancements in the near future that could significantly/radically lengthen the human lifespan. Maybe they’re onto something?
Awesome episode. At least for Gen Xer’s. I literally sat down on the floor during my workout because I was laughing so hard during Chris’ riff on our “last feral generation.”
But some of Chris’ comments about the LA fires are misleading. We too knew someone who lost their house in the Eaton fire, so we’ve been focused on the issue. To paraphrase what Chris said (minus the F-bombs): They’re expediting the rebuilding of any of the houses that burned in those areas, but you can’t make any changes to them. …we just saw a bunch of tinderboxes burn up and it’s a great opportunity to build differently. Maybe different shapes, different ventilation, etc. More concrete, more shrubbery. But no. (And this is a direct quote: “Expedited permitting, if you build the exact same fucking thing you just had. ”
This just isn’t true.
The rebuilding limitations are:
I looked, and didn’t see anything on the city site saying you were forced to use the same building materials, same roof, etc. Or that you had to have the same ventilation mechanism. And there certainly wasn’t anything discussing landscaping.
Looks like you could replace a burned down rickety wood shack with a concrete bunker if you wanted. As long as it wasn’t a lot bigger.
I understand the general frustration with humans not changing building patterns. I live in rural No Cal. Lots of folk are culpable. Home owners, city permits, builders, etc.
But misrepresenting the intentions of municipal governments torn between the “FIX IT NOW” cries of folk who lost their homes and the “BUILD SMARTER” cries from us on the sidelines isn’t helpful.