Deep Questions with Cal Newport

The conversation around AI harms has become incredibly heated in recent weeks. But it's also incredibly confusing. In this short explainer episode, Cal walks through the three major categories of beliefs around AI in the current moment and helps explain who belongs where and how they all relate to each other. If you're trying to keep up with AI news you have need to learn this framework.

Chapters:

(0:00) Intro

(1:01) Why the debate is so heated

(2:01) Group 1: The Doomers (rationalists and effective altruists)

(9:12) Anthropic, OpenAI, and the doomer civil war

(14:03) Group 2: The Accelerationists

(17:51) Group 3: The Centrists

(24:00) The full landscape and the fight over regulation

Links:

Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at ⁠www.calnewport.com/slow ⁠

Get a signed copy of Cal’s “Slow Productivity” at ⁠https://peoplesbooktakoma.com/event/cal-newport/⁠

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production and mastering, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Nate Mechler for research and newsletter.
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With all the recent discussion of the potential catastrophic impacts AI might cause in the future, we’re losing track of the significant harms it is already causing right now. In this episode, Cal goes deep into a serious and tragic topic that he recently learned about in a panel discussion about children and technology. He has an urgent warning for parents that has implications for all of us as well.

Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvo

Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia

(0:00) Kids should not use Chatbots

(39:52) What is Cal’s opinion of a recent NY Times article about dumb phones?

(45:04) How should I apply Slow Productivity when my company rewards quick email turnaround?

(51:00) What happens when the craftsman mindset doesn’t yield results?

(56:30) Cal’s reaction to Ezra Klein’s article on AI

(1:10:51) What Cal is up to

Links:

Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at www.calnewport.com/slow

Get a signed copy of Cal’s “Slow Productivity” at https://peoplesbooktakoma.com/event/cal-newport/

https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/09/19/nx-s1-5545749/ai-chatbots-safety-openai-meta-characterai-teens-suicide

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce3xgwyywe4o

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/parents-allege-harmful-character-ai-chatbot-content-60-minutes/

https://www.wwnytv.com/2026/04/08/alleged-florida-state-shooter-used-chatgpt-plan-attack-victims-attorneys-claim/

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12967755/

https://parentstogetheraction.org/character-ai/

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/16/opinion/dumbphone-smartphone-friendship.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/20/opinion/ai-ban-self-improvement-recursive-models.html?eafs_enabled=false



Thanks to our Sponsors:

https://www.masterclass.com/deep

https://www.calderalab.com/deep

https://www.vanta.com/deepquestions

https://www.pipedrive.com/deep

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production and mastering, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Nate Mechler for research and newsletter.
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A recent New York Times op-ed reveals the true nature of “brain rot,” and in doing so reveals a much larger problem affecting us all. In this episode, Cal explores this broader problem then draws from an unlikely source from his childhood to help identify a dramatic solution.

Below are the questions covered in today's episode (with their timestamps). Get your questions answered by Cal! Here’s the link: https://bit.ly/3U3sTvo

Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia

(0:00) The truth about brain rot

(31:31) Will you address Immanuale Kants “Critique of Pure Reason” in your upcoming book about thinking?

(33:42) What is the difference between the strategic plan and vision document?

(36:59) Can I buy the “Deep Life” on pre-order?

(39:30) Cal discusses his recent newsletters

(41:54) My small business uses Claude. Is that ok?

(44:45) Are any AI companies responsible to use?

(45:28) The truth about LLMs

(45:45) What are some AI book recommendations?

(46:42) AI and regulation

(50:25) What Cal is up to?

Links:

Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at www.calnewport.com/slow

Get a signed copy of Cal’s “Slow Productivity” at https://peoplesbooktakoma.com/event/cal-newport/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WePNs-G7puA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIeeDcnu9Ck

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/08/opinion/gen-z-tiktok-ig-reels.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlnmQbPGuls

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XRKcUtOkbs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_zYn-HHcyA



Thanks to our Sponsors:

https://www.cozyearth.com (Use code “DEEP”)

https://www.quo.com/deep

https://www.gusto.com/deep

https://www.drinklmnt.com/deep

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production and mastering, Jay Kerstens for the intro music, and Nate Mechler for research and newsletter.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After a week spent debating AI’s impact on humanity, Cal wants to turn his attention back to AI’s impact on humans. To support this shift, he brings on the writer Brad Stulberg who recently decided that he was “done” with AI. They explore whether this is a resistance movement in the making…

Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia

More from Cal

Download Cal’s FREE guide to cultivating a deeper life: calnewport.com/ideas
Learn more about Cal’s books: calnewport.com/books
Listen to Cal’s podcast: thedeeplife.com/listen

Chapters

(0:00) A new paper calls LLMs a "cognitive virus"

(4:03) Brad gave AI a real shot — then quit

(8:13) Why everything online now sounds the same

(13:22) Plank 1: Effort, struggle, and the click-of-a-button economy

(20:11) You can take a gondola to the summit, but you didn't climb it

(28:30) Plank 2: AI is an average maker

(33:39) AI swirl: pseudo-productivity turned up to 11

(49:40) Treat AI like ultra-processed food

(55:08) Getting it off your phone, and the lesson of sports analytics

(1:00:13) Team Human and the humanist resistance

Sponsors:

https://www.horizon3.com/deep

https://www.calderalab.com/deep

https://www.notion.com/cal

https://www.factormeals.com/deep50off (Use code "deep50off")

Credits:

Podcast Production: Jesse Miller
Newsletter/Research: Nate Mechler
Theme Music: Jay Kerstens
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Cal Newport takes a critical look at recent AI News.

Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia

(0:00) How Worrisome is GPT-6’s “Stealth Thinking”?

(8:58) Reasoning models

(15:30) Astra

(21:02) The Good

(24:48) The Bad

(28:28) The Hype

Links:

Buy Cal’s latest book, “Slow Productivity” at www.calnewport.com/slow

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QNsdr-Qx_I

https://www.theinformation.com/articles/secret-technique-behind-openais-astra-model-sparks-security-concerns?rc=1ycz3a

https://x.com/_NathanCalvin/status/2094957301564092914

https://x.com/sjgadler/status/2094959837691908214?s=61

https://x.com/merettm/status/2095023204993490967?s=20

https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.11473

Thanks to Jesse Miller for production and mastering and Nate Mechler for research and newsletter.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices