Cognition’s Scott Wu on how Devin, the AI software engineer, will work for you

25:13

In this episode of No Priors , Sarah and Elad unpack the current state of the AI market - whether it’s consolidating, what’s enabling or blocking key mergers, and where the most promising untapped opportunities lie, particularly in biotech. They also explore the rise of world models and how AI’s novel methods for understanding complex systems may ultimately reshape how humans approach discovery and problem-solving. Show Notes: 0:00 Is the AI market consolidating into clear winners? + the physics of the current landscape 7:01 Why more companies don’t merge (even when it makes sense) 10:09 Exploring biotech’s biggest commercial opportunities and the challenges founders face 17:14 Building world models 21:34 How AI is expanding the way humans reason, design, and evolve systems…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

1
AI is Making Enterprise Search Relevant, with Arvind Jain of Glean 31:34

20 днів тому31:34

31:34

Arvind Jain joins Sarah and Elad on this episode of No Priors. Arvind is the founder and CEO of Glean, an AI-powered enterprise search platform. He previously co-founded Rubrik and spent over a decade as an engineering leader at Google. In this episode, Arvind shares how LLMs are transforming enterprise search, why most tools in the space have failed, and the opportunity to build apps powered by internal knowledge. He discusses how much customization is still needed on top of foundation models, what made building Glean uniquely challenging compared to Arvind’s previous ventures, and what’s next for the company. Sign up for new podcasts every week. Email feedback to show@no-priors.com Follow us on Twitter: @NoPriorsPod | @Saranormous | @EladGil | @jainarvind Show Notes: 0:00 Introduction 0:58 How LLMs are changing search 2:05 Building out Glean’s platform 5:09 Why most search companies failed 8:41 Out of the box vs. bespoke models 10:26 Creating apps on top of internal knowledge 15:34 User behaviors & insights 19:11 Unique challenges of building Glean 21:51 Product-led growth vs. enterprise sales 25:00 Succeeding in traditionally bad markets 27:08 What Glean is excited to build next…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

1
Gaming as the Future of Education with Duolingo CEO Luis von Ahn 32:14

27 днів тому32:14

32:14

On this episode of No Priors, Sarah talks to Luis von Ahn, founder and CEO of Duolingo, the world’s most popular education app with over 116 million monthly users and a market cap of approximately $17 billion. Controversially, it has recently committed to being “AI-first.” They discuss why motivation is the biggest challenge in education, how Duolingo harnesses game mechanics and behavioral insights to keep learners engaged, and the company’s efforts to leverage AI to personalize education at scale. Luis also shares thoughts on the Duolingo brand, courses beyond language (chess and math), and the broader impact of AI on content creation. Sign up for new podcasts every week. Email feedback to show@no-priors.com Follow us on Twitter: @NoPriorsPod | @Saranormous | @EladGil | @LuisvonAhn Links: Duolingo is now AI-First: http://bit.ly/3RQzny3 Show Notes: 0:00 Introduction 4:01 Optimizing learning behavior through tech 11:20 Adopting AI at Duolingo 17:25 AI’s threat to content companies 18:34 An unhinged corporate brand 21:28 How do people learn? 25:16 What people misunderstand about Duolingo? 26:24 How AI is transforming learning at scale 30:28 Leveraging AI across the business…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

1
O3 and the Next Leap in Reasoning with OpenAI’s Eric Mitchell and Brandon McKinzie 39:13

5 weeks тому39:13

39:13

This week on No Priors , Elad and Sarah sit down with Eric Mitchell and Brandon McKinzie, two of the minds behind OpenAI’s O3 model. They discuss what makes O3 unique, including its focus on reasoning, the role of reinforcement learning, and how tool use enables more powerful interactions. The conversation explores the unification of model capabilities, what the next generation of human-AI interfaces could look like, and how models will continue to advance in the years ahead. Sign up for new podcasts every week. Email feedback to show@no-priors.com Follow us on Twitter: @NoPriorsPod | @Saranormous | @EladGil | @mckbrando | @ericmitchellai Show Notes: 0:00 What is o3? 3:21 Reinforcement learning in o3 4:44 Unification of models 8:56 Why tool use helps test time scaling 11:10 Deep research 16:00 Future ways to interact with models 22:03 General purpose vs specialized models 25:30 Simulating AI interacting with the world 29:36 How will models advance?…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

1
Inside Deep Research with Isa Fulford: Building the Future of AI Agents 30:45

6 weeks тому30:45

30:45

On this episode of No Priors, Sarah sits down with Isa Fulford, one of the masterminds behind deep research. They unpack how the initiative began, the role of human expert data, and what it takes to build agents with real-world capability and even taste. Isa shares the differences between deep research and OpenAI’s o3 model, the challenges around latency, and how she sees agent capabilities evolving. Plus, OpenAI has announced that deep research is free for all US users starting today. Sign up for new podcasts every week. Email feedback to show@no-priors.com Follow us on Twitter: @NoPriorsPod | @Saranormous | @EladGil | @IsaFulf Show Notes: 0:00 Deep research’s inception & evolution 6:12 Data creation 7:20 Reinforcement fine-tuning 9:05 Why human expert data matters 11:23 Failure modes of agents 13:55 The roadmap ahead for Deep Research 18:32 How do agents develop taste? 19:29 Experience and path to building a broadly capable agent 22:03 Deep research vs. o3 25:55 Latency 27:56 Predictions for agent capabilities…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

1
Predicting the Earth with Josh Goldman: How KoBold Uses AI to Find Critical Minerals 40:53

7 weeks тому40:53

40:53

This week on No Priors, Sarah and Elad are joined by Josh Goldman, cofounder and president of KoBold Metals. KoBold is using AI to transform how we discover critical minerals like lithium and cobalt, making the exploration process faster, more precise, and more scalable than traditional methods. In this episode, Josh explains how KoBold is rethinking the fundamentals of mineral exploration by combining unique datasets, scientific modeling, and predictive algorithms. They dive into the company’s driving philosophy and technical approach, how they validate underground hypotheses, and why regulatory knowledge and a localized approach are crucial. Josh also discusses what success looks like in exploration today and the scarcity of world-class deposits. Sign up for new podcasts every week. Email feedback to show@no-priors.com Follow us on Twitter: @NoPriorsPod | @Saranormous | @EladGil | @KoBold_Metals Show Notes: 0:00 Introduction 0:29 KoBold Metals 3:14 Using unique datasets 6:20 Traditional methods of lithium exploration 8:38 Regulatory vs. rarity constraints 13:40 Technical approach 16:25 Validating hypotheses 23:56 Redefining success in mineral exploration 25:44 Scarcity of good projects and deposits 32:44 Philosophy behind prediction 36:46 KoBold’s origin story…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

1
From Job Displacement to AI Trainers, Brendan Foody on Work in the AI Age 41:52

8 weeks тому41:52

41:52

On this episode of No Priors , Sarah and Elad sit down with Brendan Foody, CEO and cofounder of Mercor, to discuss the company’s rapid growth and their vision for the future of the labor market. They dive into how AI is reshaping the workforce in real, tangible ways and what skills are worth investing in today. Brendan shares insights on evaluating talent in an AI-driven world, including how models might identify outlier or 10x candidates and even assess “taste.” The conversation also touches on the evolving role of human data, the future of hiring in fast-scaling startups, and whether AI will act as an individual contributor or a data-centric manager. Show Notes: 0:00 Introduction 0:16 Building Mercor 3:00 Identifying outlier talent with AI 9:07 How AI is reshaping the workforce: job displacement & evolution 11:18 What skills should we invest in now? 12:18 Verifiability 13:36 Evaluating models 16:07 What should kids learn today? 17:05 Evaluating taste in talent assessments 18:45 Future of data collection 26:07 Humans’ role in the AI economy 28:53 AI as a contributor vs. a manager 33:03 Mercor’s goals 34:50 Evolution of labor markets 36:00 Hiring advice…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

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Public Markets, Image Gen, and Specialized Models, with Sarah and Elad 27:44

9 weeks тому27:44

27:44

In this episode of No Priors, Sarah and Elad examine the current state of AI. They break down the recent dip in public markets, how tariffs could impact the tech industry, and where opportunities remain in large language models. They highlight the opportunities in more specialized models, new approaches to model development, and how the market is beginning to standardize with integrations like the Model Context Protocol (MCP). The episode ends with a look at early consumer AI applications and what types of expertise will matter most in the coming years. Show Notes: 0:00 Improvements in image gen 4:42 Public markets 8:08 Effects of tariffs on tech 9:42 Today’s large model market 11:34 Opportunities in specialized models 16:30 Research advances in model approaches 21:10 What expertise will matter? 24:30 Anthropic’s Model Context Protocol 26:30 Consumer applications…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

1
Conversations Are the Source of Truth in Healthcare with Abridge CEO Shiv Rao 38:42

10 weeks тому38:42

38:42

In this episode of No Priors , Elad and Sarah chat with Shiv Rao, MD, founder and CEO of Abridge. They dive into how Abridge is reshaping healthcare by creating AI tools that enhance clinical documentation and improve doctor-patient interactions. Shiv shares his thoughts on building trust with established healthcare systems, giving agency and time back to clinicians, and what makes the healthcare AI opportunity different today. They also discuss Abridge’s approach to developing and launching AI products, along with Shiv’s journey in founding Abridge. Sign up for new podcasts every week. Email feedback to show@no-priors.com Follow us on Twitter: @NoPriorsPod | @Saranormous | @EladGil | @ShivdevRao Show Notes: 0:00 Introduction 0:35 Abridge’s Story and Vision 5:30 Strategy for Customer Choice 7:41 Healthcare AI Opportunities 11:24 Navigating Incumbent Partnerships 14:26 Doctor-Centric AI Solutions 19:54 Abridge’s Future Plans 22:13 AI’s Impact on Healthcare 28:43 Shipping and Iterating Products 32:50 Shiv’s Journey to Abridge…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

1
The Robotics Revolution, with Physical Intelligence’s Cofounder Chelsea Finn 35:14

11 weeks тому35:14

35:14

This week on No Priors , Elad speaks with Chelsea Finn, cofounder of Physical Intelligence and currently Associate Professor at Stanford, leading the Intelligence through Learning and Interaction Lab. They dive into how robots learn, the challenges of training AI models for the physical world, and the importance of diverse data in reaching generalizable intelligence. Chelsea explains the evolving landscape of open-source vs. closed-source robotics and where AI models are likely to have the biggest impact first. They also compare the development of robotics to self-driving cars, explore the future of humanoid and non-humanoid robots, and discuss what’s still missing for AI to function effectively in the real world. If you’re curious about the next phase of AI beyond the digital space, this episode is a must-listen. Sign up for new podcasts every week. Email feedback to show@no-priors.com Follow us on Twitter: @NoPriorsPod | @Saranormous | @EladGil | @ChelseaFinn Show Notes: 0:00 Introduction 0:31 Chelsea’s background in robotics 3:10 Physical Intelligence 5:13 Defining their approach and model architecture 7:39 Reaching generalizability and diversifying robot data 9:46 Open source vs. closed source 12:32 Where will PI’s models integrate first? 14:34 Humanoid as a form factor 16:28 Embodied intelligence 17:36 Key turning points in robotics progress 20:05 Hierarchical interactive robot and decision-making 22:21 Choosing data inputs 26:25 Self driving vs robotics market 28:37 Advice to robotics founders 29:24 Observational data and data generation 31:57 Future robotic forms…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

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Copilot, Agent Mode, and the New World of Dev Tools with GitHub’s CEO Thomas Dohmke 50:34

12 weeks тому50:34

50:34

This week on No Priors, Sarah and Elad talk with GitHub CEO Thomas Dohmke about the rise of AI-powered software development and the success of Copilot. They discuss how Copilot is reshaping the developer workflow, GitHub’s new Agent Mode, and competition in the developer tooling market. They also explore how AI-driven coding impacts software pricing, the future of open source vs. proprietary APIs, and what Copilot’s success means for Microsoft. Plus, Thomas shares insights from his journey growing up in East Berlin and navigating rapidly changing worlds. Sign up for new podcasts every week. Email feedback to show@no-priors.com Follow us on Twitter: @ NoPriorsPod | @ Saranormous | @ EladGil | @ ThomasDohmke Show Notes: 0:00 Introduction 0:37 GitHub Copilot’s capabilities 4:12 Will agents replace developers? 6:04 Copilot’s development cycle 8:34 Winning the developer market 10:40 Agent mode 13:25 Where GitHub is headed 16:45 Building for the new challenges of AI 21:50 Dev tools market formation 29:56 Copilot’s broader impact 32:17 How AI changes software pricing 39:16 Open source vs. proprietary APIs 48:01 Growing up in East Berlin…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

1
National Security Strategy and AI Evals on the Eve of Superintelligence with Dan Hendrycks 36:24

13 weeks тому36:24

36:24

This week on No Priors , Sarah is joined by Dan Hendrycks, director of the Center of AI Safety. Dan serves as an advisor to xAI and Scale AI. He is a longtime AI researcher, publisher of interesting AI evals such as "Humanity's Last Exam," and co-author of a new paper on National Security " Superintelligence Strategy " along with Scale founder-CEO Alex Wang and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt. They explore AI safety, geopolitical implications, the potential weaponization of AI, along with policy recommendations. Sign up for new podcasts every week. Email feedback to show@no-priors.com Follow us on Twitter: @NoPriorsPod | @Saranormous | @EladGil | @DanHendrycks Show Notes: 0:00 Introduction 0:36 Dan’s path to focusing on AI Safety 1:25 Safety efforts in large labs 3:12 Distinguishing alignment and safety 4:48 AI’s impact on national security 9:59 How might AI be weaponized? 14:43 Immigration policies for AI talent 17:50 Mutually assured AI malfunction 22:54 Policy suggestions for current administration 25:34 Compute security 30:37 Current state of evals…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

1
Building the Platform for Scientific Breakthrough, with Noubar Afeyan of Moderna and Flagship Pioneering 40:32

14 weeks тому40:32

40:32

This week on No Priors , Sarah sits down with Noubar Afeyan, Co-founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering, the biotech firm behind groundbreaking companies like Moderna. They explore how Flagship creates the conditions for scientific breakthroughs, tackles regulatory uncertainty, and pushes the boundaries of discovery. Noubar shares insights on AI’s role in healthcare, the challenges of bringing new therapies to market, and lessons learned from past pandemics. He also discusses Flagship’s platform approach to biotech innovation and introduces the idea of polyintelligence. Sign up for new podcasts every week. Email feedback to show@no-priors.com Follow us on Twitter: @NoPriorsPod | @Saranormous | @EladGil | @NoubarAfeyan Show Notes: 0:00 Introduction 0:48 Founding Flagship 5:51 Fostering environments for emergence 11:17 Expanding into new frontiers 14:26 Developing technology amid regulatory uncertainty and risk 19:12 How Flagship has evolved 22:47 AI applications in healthcare 27:30 Bottlenecks in bringing new therapies to market 32:20 Lessons for the next pandemic 34:11 Building a platform 38:10 Polyintelligence…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

1
Virtual Cell Models, Tahoe-100 and Data for AI-in-Bio with Vevo Therapeutics and the Arc Institute 57:40

14 weeks тому57:40

57:40

On this week’s episode of No Priors , Sarah Guo is joined by leading members of the teams at Vevo Therapeutics and the Arc Institute – Nima Alidoust, CEO/Co-Founder at Vevo Therapeutics; Johnny Yu, CSO/Co-Founder at Vevo Therapeutics; Patrick Hsu, CEO/Co-Founder at Arc Institute; Dave Burke, CTO at Arc Institute; and Hani Goodarzi, Core Investigator at Arc Institute. Predicting protein structure (AlphaFold 3, Chai-1, Evo 2) was a big AI/biology breakthrough. The next big leap is modeling entire human cells—how they behave in disease, or how they respond to new therapeutics. The same way LLMs needed enormous text corpora to become truly powerful, Virtual Cell Models need massive, high-quality cellular datasets to train on. In this episode, the teams discuss the groundbreaking release of the Tahoe-100M single cell dataset, Arc Atlas, and how these advancements could transform drug discovery. Sign up for new podcasts every week. Email feedback to show@no-priors.com Follow us on Twitter: @NoPriorsPod | @Saranormous | @Nalidoust | @IAmJohnnyYu | @PDHsh | @Davey_Burke | @Genophoria Download the Tahoe Dataset Show Notes: 0:00 Introduction 1:40 Significance of Tahoe-100M dataset 4:22 Where we are with virtual cell models and protein language models 10:26 Significance of perturbational data 17:39 Challenges and innovations in data collection 24:42 Open sourcing and community collaboration 33:51 Predictive ability and importance of virtual cell models 35:27 Drug discovery and virtual cell models 44:27 Platform vs. single hypothesis companies 46:05 Rise of Chinese biotechs 51:36 AI in drug discovery…

No Priors: Artificial Intelligence | Technology | Startups

1
Building Hard Tech in Hard Markets: Kyle Vogt on Cruise, Twitch, and The Bot Company 38:14

15 weeks тому38:14