Best Joe Thurston Podcasts (2025)

1
Mark Cuban’s investment strategy in the world of AI 40:09

Play Pause

4d ago40:09

40:09

Mark Cuban has spent decades as a serial entrepreneur and investor, with one of the best track records on the planet (including celebrity status on ABC’s Shark Tank). His success stems in part from an ability to spot opportunity early — and now he’s bringing that approach to AI. Cuban is backing AI companies that he sees taking bold swings and reim…

1
Like a Diamond 24:58

5h ago24:58

24:58

I’ve always really liked this song as part of the album but never really listened to it closely until sitting down to write this episode. And that has happened a lot over the course of the last four and a bit years of recording this show. Songs you don’t necessarily expect to reveal hidden depths do so with startling regularity. Does this song have…

1
Tom Petty Weekend 2025 with Pete Nester 1:40:58

7h ago1:40:58

1:40:58

I'm joined today by good pal Pete Nester. We're officially ACTUAL friends now, not just Facebook friends, because we've hung out, broken bread together, stood in a crowd and sung our hearts out, and hugged! I thought it would be fun to recap the weekend with Pete to get his thoughts as well as mine. Also included in the episode are chats I had with…

1
Possible: Lisa Su on semiconductors, compute, and big bets 42:40

8d ago42:40

42:40

What’s the role of semiconductors—and the companies that make them—in powering human progress? What does it look like to innovate thoughtfully in a landscape where the demand for power may be higher than the supply? With AI evolving faster and faster, how can we keep up? Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) CEO Lisa Su joins the show to talk about hardware…

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How AI can unlock life-saving cures, with Siddhartha Mukherjee 28:58

11d ago28:58

28:58

Discovering new medicines has long been a slow, inefficient, and expensive process. Siddhartha Mukherjee, esteemed cancer biologist and author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning book The Emperor of All Maladies, is looking to change that. That’s why he partnered with Reid Hoffman to found Manas AI, a company that uses AI to accelerate drug discovery and…

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Tom Petty Weekend 2025 - Day Three 14:42

5d ago14:42

14:42

Day Three of the Tom Petty Weekend in Gainesville was a perfect way to end a perfect weekend. I can't begin to tell you how much fun I had with the most amazing bunch of people you'll ever be lucky enough to meet. The energy at the Heartwood was electric again and was added to by the arrival of Keith Eveland. We also had some top tier musical perfo…

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Tom Petty Weekend 2025 - Day Two 13:28

1d ago13:28

13:28

Day Two of the Tom Petty Weekend in Gainesville was an absolutely sensational day of music, laughter, friendship, food, surprises, and warm, warm, warm temperatures!!! I hung out with Maggie Clifford, Shine, Jake Thistle, Jeff Slate, Pete Nester, Brad Gould, and a broad, brilliant cast of characters that are making this weekend so much fun. On and …

1
Tom Petty Weekend 2025 - Day One 9:23

5h ago9:23

9:23

Day One of the Tom Petty Weekend in Gainesville is in the books and man, it was a scorcher! Jake and Jeff, Shine, Nolia Joy and the Ramblers and so many other fantastic musical acts and I met a ton of super friendly, enthusiastic people who were a blast to hang out with and talk to. Being on stage in Gainesville still feels surreal but I enjoyed ev…

1
Designing AI for people and the planet, with Aza Raskin 44:34

18d ago44:34

44:34

AI is rapidly changing what it means to be human, but is AI development truly human-centered? According to Aza Raskin, co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology, the answer is largely “no.” The man who invented the “infinite scroll” is now working to understand why the most powerful technology so often fails to prioritize the human experience …

1
Six Degrees of Tom Petty - Chapter One 34:08

7d ago34:08

34:08

Inspired by the wonderful Brian Colburn from the My Weekly Mixtape podcast, I decided to take a hard left turn this week, as I prepare to fly down to Gainesville, and do something a little different! We're going to take listener suggestions for artists to use as a starting point from which we'll attempt to link our way back to Tom Petty within six …

1
Baratunde Thurston wants us to reimagine our relationship with AI 36:47

25d ago36:47

36:47

How we decide to live with AI, at home or at work, will greatly impact our personal and professional futures. Baratunde Thurston, a comedian, writer, and commentator, has had a long career exploring what a harmonious relationship between human beings and our machines could look like. Now, as host and co-creator of the podcast Life with Machines, he…

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When a Kid Goes Bad 23:17

19d ago23:17

23:17

In 2013, the Heartbreakers played a five night mini-residency at the Beacon Theatre in New York city. Among the tracks from the archives that the band pulled out during that run was today’s song, When a Kid Goes Bad. In an interview with Relix magazine, Tom says “I will make a point of playing that song because they didn’t listen to me the first ti…

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Could this be the future of K-12 education?, with Alpha School’s Joe Liemandt 24:39

1M ago24:39

24:39

Educators around the world are wrangling with AI in learning. At Alpha School, a private K-12 school based in Texas, students use AI-driven software to complete core subjects in about two hours’ time. They spend the rest of the school day with guides for social-emotional learning, project-based work, and life skills. Joe Liemandt, longtime software…

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Dan Spiess - Tom Petty Weekend 2025 33:13

1M ago33:13

33:13

The incomparable Dan Spiess is back to talk about the upcoming Tom Petty Weekend in Gainesville, from November 7-9! We talk about the lineup for this year's shows including the two brilliant headline acts for Saturday and Sunday. We chat about how organizing for this year has been different from previous years, especially the complications the fest…

1
Joe 24:41

22d ago24:41

24:41

This is top tier songwriting for me. When you have a platform and you can take a risk by punching up at people who have power, I think it’s good to do it now and again. If you can take that polemic and wrap it in a powerful, simple, stomping track like Joe, then I’m all in. There’s a theatrical element to the song that you could easily imagine fitt…

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Vibe coding and the one-person start-up, with Lovable's Anton Osika 21:27

1M ago21:27

21:27

“Vibe coding” is taking software development by storm, allowing users to build apps by simply chatting with AI. These tools will transform how digital products and companies are created – and who gets to create them. Anton Osika is the co-founder and CEO of Lovable, a vibe coding platform that’s garnered a reported $4 billion valuation since its fo…

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Rapid Response: Hollywood’s hottest AI partner, with Runway’s Cristóbal Valenzuela 33:11

2M ago33:11

33:11

AI tools are disrupting all types of creative content, and Runway AI is a pioneer making major waves in Hollywood. In this episode of Rapid Response, Runway’s co-founder & CEO Cristóbal Valenzuela dissects the company’s breakneck growth, the risks and responsibilities of AI tool makers, and how AI is redefining both business expectations and our no…

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Dreamville 24:45

29d ago24:45

24:45

Tom is hugely proud of this song. In Conversations with Tom Petty, he tells author Paul Zollo, “Dreamville” is one of the best songs I ever wrote. That was about innocence.” And it’s this innocence that contrasts so starkly and so effectively with the corporate interference in The Last DJ, or the commodification of Johnny’s art in Money Becomes Kin…

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Money Becomes King 30:18

2M ago30:18

30:18

This disconnect between the artist and the audience is one of the subjects that Tom uses to explore the theme of greed that was the overarching construct behind the album. So this leads me to another quote from Tom in that 2002 interview that really does just get down to the nub of the matter. He asks; “How much money do you need?” And yes, I know …

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How Harvey is reinventing legal work with AI 34:19

2M ago34:19

34:19

Law is one of the oldest professions in the world, a storied occupation steeped in traditions, where innovation can be challenging. Gabe Pereyra wants to change that with the power of AI. As Co-founder and President of Harvey, he’s creating legal AI tools that augment lawyers in their daily work, from drafting proposals to conducting research. Pere…

1
The Last DJ 24:04

2M ago24:04

24:04

The specificity of the song got Tom into a little bit of trouble and the single was banned on a lot of stations who didn’t reach for the deeper meaning and saw it as a direct attack on radio itself. In 2010, Tom told Mojo UK, “Radio was just a metaphor. ‘The Last DJ’ was really about losing our moral compass, our moral centre. We don’t care who get…

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Arianna Huffington thinks AI could be a GPS for the soul 36:40

2M ago36:40

36:40

Personal health and wellness tools are on the rise as more people take ownership of their physical and mental well-being. Arianna Huffington, co-founder of The Huffington Post, believes AI is the key to unlocking small behavior changes for healthier living. As CEO and founder of Thrive Global, she has partnered with Sam Altman to launch Thrive AI H…

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How Microsoft is democratizing safe AI 36:21

2M ago36:21

36:21

Responsible AI is more than a buzzword, it’s a guiding principle at Microsoft. Sarah Bird, Chief Product Officer of Responsible AI, leads the company’s efforts to build and deploy AI products with responsibility at the core. She and her team bring standards across the company’s AI efforts, and have played a central role in building Microsoft Copilo…

1
Live at the Olympic 32:43

2M ago32:43

32:43

I didn’t want to start the new season in earnest while I was away as I knew I wouldn’t have as much time to prep and barely any to record and edit, so I wanted to get a special episode and was trying to think of what to do to ease into the season. These two dates in 2002 completely destroy the conventional wisdom that you don’t go to see a "legacy …

1
Radio (with Eric Senich) 1:23:33

2M ago1:23:33

1:23:33

Today’s episode is a fantastic chat I had with my friend Eric Senich, who has been on the show previously, back in October of last year. As well as being an outstanding podcaster and rock historian, Eric also spent a large part of his early career as a DJ, so I thought it would be interesting to talk to him about the nature of the industry and how …

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The power of storytelling in VCs, with Jeffrey Katzenberg and ChenLi Wang 44:56

2M ago44:56

44:56

WndrCo is a venture capital firm that views storytelling as the foundation of every successful business, and for good reason. Its founding partner, Jeffrey Katzenberg, helped build DreamWorks into one of the most celebrated animation studios in the world. He is joined at the helm by ChenLi Wang, WndrCo’s managing partner and one of the earliest hir…

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Replay: How AI is shaping the job market, with Hilke Schellmann 31:15

3M ago31:15

31:15

This week, Pioneers of AI is bringing back one of our most thought-provoking conversations: How AI is transforming the job market. Hilke Schellmann, journalist and author of “The Algorithm,” has spent years diving into the impact of AI on who gets hired and moves up – or doesn’t. Revisit this episode where we talk about how and why she began report…

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10 Questions with Rich Gibson 30:09

2M ago30:09

30:09

Rich is back to share his answers to my 10 questions? He's in cover bands that deal with Tom, Jeff Lynne, and George Harrison's musical output, so that question is a slam dunk, right? Which gig will he want to travel back in time to see? And which song is he going to duet on? It isn't one that's been picked thus far! You can find Rich's music and b…

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Inside how The New York Times leverages AI 38:02

3M ago38:02

38:02

For years, news organizations have walked a fine line between embracing new and emerging technologies and safeguarding their IP and content from those same technologies. The New York Times is no exception when it comes to its relationship with AI. Alex Hardiman, Chief Product Officer of The New York Times, is leading the storied news organization’s…

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Rich Gibson 1:06:12

3M ago1:06:12

1:06:12

Today’s episode is a fan chat with a musician who’s be following along with the podcast for a while now and is a fellow Northern Englishman. Rich Gibson is a singer, songwriter, and musician as a solo artist and with the bands Spring and Indigo Slink, as well as being part of three different Wilbury’s-related tribute acts, The Petty Heartbreakers, …

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Back to school: How AI is transforming the classroom, with Sal Khan 42:13

3M ago42:13

42:13

It’s back-to-school season and questions about how AI is changing the classroom are top of mind for parents, students, and teachers. Sal Khan, the founder of Khan Academy, an education platform that pioneered online learning, is one of the leading voices in the conversation about how AI is shaping education. He joins Pioneers of AI to discuss how A…

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Echo (with John Paulsen) 1:06:23

3M ago1:06:23

1:06:23

Well, we've covered all the songs on Echo now, so that can only mean one thing! That's right. It's time for John Paulsen to join me again to wrap up the twelfth album and dig into the vinyl age, whether fifteen songs is too many, and of course, a whole lot of back and forth about the album! As always, it was great to hang with John for an hour and …

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Can artists and AI coexist? 38:40

3M ago38:40

38:40

Award-winning visual artist Shantell Martin has made a name for herself through her signature black-line, graphic drawings that have scaled gallery walls and traced paths across Times Square. She's collaborated with iconic brands like Tiffany & Co, as well as leading artists like Kendrick Lamar. For the past ten years, Martin has also been at the f…

1
One More Day, One More Night 17:49

3M ago17:49

17:49

“One more night, God I've had to fight. To keep my line of sight on what's real”. That opening line really acts as a double underline on the pain and weariness that Tom has explored lyrically throughout much of his twelfth album. When author Paul Zollo mentions this in Conversations with Tom Petty, asking “Can you keep some perspective, being withi…

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Does OpenAI’s new model deliver on the hype? Inside GPT-5 with Jeremy Kahn 23:08

4M ago23:08

23:08

OpenAI has released the latest iteration of its flagship product, GPT-5. It arrives after much anticipation, but does it live up to the hype? Jeremy Khan, AI Editor at Fortune, returns to the show to break down what this new model can do. We’ll explore how it performs compared to past iterations, what OpenAI decided to improve and why, and what GPT…

1
10 Questions with Greg Wolfe 36:08

4M ago36:08

36:08

Wolfie is back to answer my ten "quick fire" questions, which seem to be taking longer and longer! His pick for favourite Heartbreaker came as a surprise but his three words to describe Tom Petty are pretty fantastic! Don't forget to go check out Greg's music on Soundcloud (links below) and if you're in the Connecticut area, make sure you check out…

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Greg Wolfe 1:30:39

4M ago1:30:39

1:30:39

Today’s episode is a fan chat with a musician and podcaster who I’ve gotten to know a little over the last 12 months or so and wanted to learn more about. Greg Wolfe, or Wolfie as he’s more commonly known in the podcast universe, is a bass player and band leader for the Connecticut-based band Accidental Breakdown. He’s also one of the co-hosts of t…

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Possible: Alexis Ohanian on the future of online and offline communities 53:31

4M ago53:31

53:31

How do we build products and platforms that support a healthy, prosperous future? What will it take to “make the internet fun again?” Should kids be using AI? This week, serial entrepreneur and investor Alexis Ohanian—who co-founded Reddit two decades ago and is currently working to reinvent the social news aggregator Digg—joins Reid and Aria to ta…

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How Writer is helping Fortune 500 companies become AI-forward 32:43

4M ago32:43

32:43

As AI becomes a bigger part of the modern workplace, more companies are integrating agents into their workflows, redefining how employees and technology collaborate. At the forefront of this shift is Writer, a company deploying AI agents to take on time consuming tasks, from analyzing customer feedback to drafting business proposals. In this episod…

1
Rhino Skin 21:01

4M ago21:01

21:01

There’s a weight to the arrangement of this song, accentuated by that heavy kick pattern that Steve Ferrone opts for, along with Tom’s deliberate persistence in landing on the root note at the end of his phrases that makes this one compelling. It’s also noteworthy in not really having a defined chorus. We do have that A section and B section, but I…

1
Ozzy 26:18

4M ago26:18

26:18

Welcome to a special episode of the Tom Petty Project where I’m going to take a break from our usual scheduling to pay tribute to one of the most influential performers of all time. I am your host and today’s episode is dedicated to the life and work of Ozzy Osbourne. NOTE: There is some profanity in this episode, when quoting Ozzy. Don't forget to…

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How Google DeepMind is building AI that can help humanity 38:47

4M ago38:47

38:47

Google DeepMind is the powerhouse artificial intelligence lab behind Google’s AI assistant, Gemini. It’s also behind the groundbreaking AI tool, AlphaFold, that can predict a protein’s 3D structure. DeepMind’s COO, Lila Ibrahim, who’s the former COO and President of Coursera, has built her career on exploring how technology can benefit humanity. Sh…

1
Can AI talk us out of conspiracy theories? 30:37

4M ago30:37

30:37

From deepfakes to fabricated news, AI has been shown to generate convincing deceptive images and videos, increasing the spread of misinformation. David Rand, a professor of Information Science and marketing at Cornell University, is using the same technology for a different purpose: debunking those very same conspiracy theories. In a recent and gro…

1
About to Give Out 21:14

4M ago21:14

21:14

It’s often been remarked that Mike sometimes sounds like Tom when he sings. If you listen to the Dirty Knobs albums you do hear some of those inflections peeking out from time to time, as you’d expect. But this goes both ways and I think Tom actually sounds a lot like Mike on About to Give Out - particularly in the verses. If you heard this on a Di…

1
Will Porteous Returns 1:25:09

4M ago1:25:09

1:25:09

"Pharmacists aren't here to save rock and roll. They don't have the budget, or the jackets. But they are *trying*, in a landscape where most bands are too busy refreshing their socials to finish a bridge. Rock music doesn't die - it just downsizes. And Pharmacists are out here propping it up with their own shoulders, one open wound at a time." Thos…

1
How today’s AI giants mirror global empires of the past, with journalist Karen Hao 38:16

5M ago38:16

38:16

In her New York Times bestseller “Empire of AI,” journalist Karen Hao traces the rise of an intriguing and controversial tech giant: OpenAI. In years spent chronicling the company, she came to a theory of how OpenAI’s operating model mimics imperialist empires of the past – and how other major AI players have followed suit. Hao’s history and analys…

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What humans get (and don’t get) from AI, with MIT’s Pattie Maes 37:23

5M ago37:23

37:23

Artificial general intelligence, or AGI, is the next horizon that could match or surpass human thinking. Companies are investing billions in it, but not necessarily in projects to help humans with our memory, health, or well-being. MIT Media Lab professor Pattie Maes believes a different approach to how we advance AI could center and even re-define…

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No More 22:55

5M ago22:55

22:55

It’s an affirmation that after thinking about this problem, there’s a conviction to follow an ideal, if not a known direction yet. Whatever the direction we end up taking, it has to be something that we have certainty of authenticity. We’re not going to take a chance on something that feels half-dressed or unfinished, or flimsy in its intent. This …

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Possible: Latanya Sweeney on AI, trust, and privacy 54:55

5M ago54:55

54:55

How does the rise of AI impact our sense of what’s true? How can humans maintain a degree of individual privacy and unlock the benefits of AI while mitigating potential harms? In this episode, Reid and Aria sit down with data privacy pioneer Latanya Sweeney, Professor of Government and Technology at Harvard; former Chief Technology Officer at the U…

1
This One's for Me 18:55

5M ago18:55

18:55

I think this is a perfectly neat, tidy, compact, fun little bouncy piece of music, with a nicely constructed, easy to remember lyric. The problem is, this one has always felt to me like Tom could crank out something like this on the way to the grocery store in about 5 minutes, on any given day of the week. It’s pretty much the only song on this alb…