Best Jacob Goldstein Podcasts (2026)

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From Part-Time Genius: 9 Wonderful Wintertime Inventions 16:52

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3d ago16:52

16:52

Today, we're sharing an episode of a show that loves asking questions just as much as we do. It's called Part-Time Genius and it's hosted by fellow knowledge junkies, Will Pearson and Mangesh Hattikudur. The episode you're about to hear delves into the surprising origins of 9 wintertime inventions. Did a 15-year-old really invent the snowmobile? Wh…

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From Kill Switch: The Glassholes Are Back 39:39

9d ago39:39

39:39

Today, we're sharing an episode of a show that explores the problems that new technology is creating and how we navigate living in the future. It's called Kill Switch, and it's hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, Dexter Thomas. The episode you're about to hear is about the latest in wearable tech—stuff like smart glasses, pendants, watches…

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Old Warren Buffett: "Never Invest in a Business You Cannot Understand" 40:53

10d ago40:53

40:53

Young Warren Buffett became rich in anonymity - but in the 1980s he became a global star. During the excesses of 1980s Wall Street the middle-aged investor was reluctantly drawn into the spotlight to save troubled companies. And then came tech - which suited Buffett's style even less. Warren Buffett couldn't even use a computer - but everyone was t…

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Building a Self-Driving Tractor to Change the Future of Food 43:21

16d ago43:21

43:21

Please take our survey https://tinyurl.com/wyplistenersurvey about the show! Tell us what you want to hear, and what would make it better. Tim Bucher is a farmer, and the founder and CEO of Agtonomy. Tim's problem is this: How do you build an autonomous tractor that can work for specialty crops like grapes, olives, apples, and almonds? On today’s s…

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Young Warren Buffett: How to Find Value No One Else Can See 43:49

17d ago43:49

43:49

Warren Buffett rose from obscurity to become the richest person in the world - and he did it in a unique way. As a boy in Omaha he collected information obsessively - writing down car license numbers and hoarding bottle caps. As a young man, Buffett turned his focus on scouring business accounts to find companies that had hidden value no one else c…

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We’re Going to Need a Better Boat 35:53

23d ago35:53

35:53

Mitch Lee is the co-founder and CEO of Arc Boats. Mitch's problem is this: How do you build competitively priced electric boats? On today’s show, Mitch explains why water makes electrification so hard, the techno-economic puzzle of building giant battery packs, and how Arc’s high-end wake sport boat opened the door for a new generation of hybrid-el…

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How to Make Billions When the Bubble Bursts: Lessons from 1929 47:58

24d ago47:58

47:58

The stock market was once a Wild West free-for-all. There were few rules or regulations. Investors were more or less gambling, or manipulating stocks to make a profit. This is the world Jesse Livermore came to dominate. He would often bet against the market, making money when businesses failed. By 1929, Livermore was rich and famous. And then the W…

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The Man who Sued Major League Baseball (Rather than go to Philly) 51:33

1M ago51:33

51:33

Curt Flood was the best center fielder in baseball and one of the game's highest payed players. He helped the St Louis Cardinals reach the 1968 World Series... but then got traded. The rules said he had no say in the decision. He either could go to Philly, or quit the sport. So Curt decided to sue. Curt argued that Major League Baseball should act …

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Edison and the Movie Murder Mystery (The Edison Story Part 3) 53:07

1M ago53:07

53:07

The man who invented the movie camera got on a train in France in 1890 and was never seen again. The wife of Louis Le Prince thought she knew who’d ordered her husband’s disappearance and presumed murder - Thomas Alva Edison. Many people were simultaneously racing to develop moving pictures - so had Edison decided to bump off his closest rival so h…

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The App Where Strangers Lend Each Other Money 45:14

1M ago45:14

45:14

Nina Mohanty is the founder and CEO of Bloom Money. Nina’s problem is this: How do you build an app to help immigrants manage their money? On today’s show, Nina talks about bringing a saving and lending practice into the 21st century, navigating regulators who’ve never seen anything like it, and what global traditions can teach us about the future …

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Edison, Tesla and the Electric Chair (The Edison Story Part 2) 46:36

2M ago46:36

46:36

Thomas Edison didn’t invent the lightbulb, but he created something more important: the grid. Edison's system of power plants and wires brought lightbulbs to homes and offices and revolutionized modern life. Edison was adamant that direct current (DC) should power America, and attacked competitors who said that alternating current (AC) was better. …

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Introducing Business History: The Edison Invention People Don't Talk About 49:42

2M ago49:42

49:42

What's Your Problem? host Jacob Goldstein has a new show: Business History. How did Hitler’s favorite car become synonymous with hippies? What got Thomas Edison tangled up with the electric chair? Did someone murder the guy who invented the movies? On Business History, Jacob and fellow former Planet Money host Robert Smith examine the surprising st…

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Using Sound Waves to Destroy Tumors 34:07

2M ago34:07

34:07

Mike Blue is the CEO of HistoSonics. The company recently developed a device that uses ultrasound to destroy tumors. On today’s show, Mike talks about how a garage-built prototype became an FDA-approved machine; changing the company’s story after a failed clinical trial; and why he loves being a salesman but hates most sales pitches. See omnystudi…

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The Edison Invention People Don't Talk About (The Edison Story Part 1) 49:36

2M ago49:36

49:36

Thomas Alva Edison helped transform America and the world. He registered over one thousand patents before he died in 1931 - and we can thank him for advances in electric power, communications technology, music recording and even the movies. But his biggest breakthrough doesn't get nearly enough attention. In many ways, Edison invented modern invent…

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From Desert Robots to Driverless Trucks 44:00

2M ago44:00

44:00

Chris Urmson is the co-founder and CEO of Aurora, a company trying to bring autonomous driving to commercial trucking. Chris led a team at the 2004 DARPA challenge that launched the autonomous vehicle industry. Then he held a senior role at Google’s self-driving car project, which later became Waymo. On the show today, he talks about the long arc o…

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The Secret of Southwest's Success: Free Whisky, Hot Pants and Low, Low Fares 52:33

2M ago52:33

52:33

It's hard to make money running an airline - but Southwest was profitable every year for nearly five decades. How did it manage it? Business History hosts Jacob Goldstein and Robert Smith explore how a carrier with just four airplanes shuttling across Texas revolutionized flying by offering free whisky, cheap late-night tickets and free-for-all sea…

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Is the Future of Fresh Water Under the Sea? 31:55

2M ago31:55

31:55

Michael Porter is the Chief Technology Officer of OceanWell. Michael's problem is this: How can you desalinate water at the bottom of the ocean – and deliver it to land at a cost that’s competitive with other sources of fresh water? On today’s show, Michael explains how he built OceanWell’s prototype in his kitchen, what it takes to make a system t…

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Coming Soon: Business History with Robert Smith and Jacob Goldstein 2:27

2M ago2:27

2:27

Was the world's most lovable car originally made just to please Hitler? And what links Thomas Edison and the electric chair? From Jacob Goldstein and Robert Smith of Planet Money fame comes Business History, a new show uncovering amazing stories from the history of business. From sandals to suits, Business History brings to life the greatest innova…

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Could Home Batteries Save the Grid? 30:40

2M ago30:40

30:40

Justin Lopas is the COO and co-founder of Base Power, a battery and power company based in Texas. Justin’s problem is this: How can you deliver more energy to more people without having to build so much more grid? On today’s show, Justin explains why the grid needs a major upgrade, and how putting batteries next to homes could help. Also: what Tex…

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Building a Better Public Bathroom 38:15

3M ago38:15

38:15

Fletcher Wilson is the CEO and co-founder of Throne Labs. Fletcher’s problem is this: How can you create public toilets that people actually want to use? On today’s show, Fletcher explains how his company is trying to make public bathrooms cleaner, safer and more accessible. The conversation also points to a bigger idea: why it’s so hard for citie…

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Could Autonomous Diggers Unleash a Building Boom? 31:13

3M ago31:13

31:13

Boris Sofman is the co-founder and CEO of Bedrock Robotics. Boris' problem is this: How do you teach machines not just to drive, but also to work: to grade roads, move heavy objects and dig big holes at construction sites. On today’s show, Boris talks about how his work at Waymo led him to found Bedrock, and he explains how autonomous construction…

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Growing Meat from Cells 47:35

3M ago47:35

47:35

Justin Kolbeck is the co-founder and CEO of Wildtype, a company making seafood without killing fish. Their first product is cultivated salmon, which is made from real salmon cells that are grown in a stainless steel vat. Justin's problem is this: How to sell no-kill, vat-grown salmon for the same price, or better, as wild-caught salmon? On today’s …

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The Ordinary Stuff Behind Technological Breakthroughs 44:03

4M ago44:03

44:03

Ed Conway is an economics journalist and author of the book “Material World: The Six Raw Materials that Shape Modern Civilization.” On today’s show, Ed reveals how three of those often-overlooked materials—iron, copper, and sand—shaped human advancement from the Renaissance to the Industrial Revolution to the digital age. And he talks about what t…

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Carbon Capture at Rock-Bottom Prices 38:13

4M ago38:13

38:13

Shashank Samala is the CEO and co-founder of Heirloom, a carbon capture start-up. His problem is this: Can you use crushed up rocks to permanently suck carbon out of the atmosphere? And can you do it cheaply enough to have a global impact? On today’s show, Shashank explains why he believes rocks could be the backbone of carbon capture, how his chil…

Jacob Goldstein Podcasts

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Business History

Pushkin Industries

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What's Your Problem?

iHeartPodcasts and Pushkin Industries

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Jacob Goldstein

Jacob Goldstein

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Book Society

Lucas Cantor

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From Part-Time Genius: 9 Wonderful Wintertime Inventions 16:52

1
From Kill Switch: The Glassholes Are Back 39:39

1
Old Warren Buffett: "Never Invest in a Business You Cannot Understand" 40:53

1
Building a Self-Driving Tractor to Change the Future of Food 43:21

1
Young Warren Buffett: How to Find Value No One Else Can See 43:49

1
We’re Going to Need a Better Boat 35:53

1
How to Make Billions When the Bubble Bursts: Lessons from 1929 47:58

1
The Man who Sued Major League Baseball (Rather than go to Philly) 51:33

1
Edison and the Movie Murder Mystery (The Edison Story Part 3) 53:07

1
The App Where Strangers Lend Each Other Money 45:14

1
Edison, Tesla and the Electric Chair (The Edison Story Part 2) 46:36

1
Introducing Business History: The Edison Invention People Don't Talk About 49:42

1
Using Sound Waves to Destroy Tumors 34:07

1
The Edison Invention People Don't Talk About (The Edison Story Part 1) 49:36

1
From Desert Robots to Driverless Trucks 44:00

1
The Secret of Southwest's Success: Free Whisky, Hot Pants and Low, Low Fares 52:33

1
Is the Future of Fresh Water Under the Sea? 31:55

1
Coming Soon: Business History with Robert Smith and Jacob Goldstein 2:27

1
Could Home Batteries Save the Grid? 30:40

1
Building a Better Public Bathroom 38:15

1
Could Autonomous Diggers Unleash a Building Boom? 31:13

1
Growing Meat from Cells 47:35

1
The Ordinary Stuff Behind Technological Breakthroughs 44:03

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Carbon Capture at Rock-Bottom Prices 38:13