A Conversation with Professor Sir Paul Collier on Regional Inequality, Economic Despair, and the Path to Recovery

February 3rd, 2026 · by Dr. Vikas Shah MBE DL
World-renowned development economist Paul Collier has spent his life working in neglected communities. In this interview, we discuss his new book Left Behind, where he offers his candid diagnosis of why some regions and countries are falling further behind, and a new vision for how they can catch up. In…
03-02-2026 15:01:41
Thought Economics

 

The Brain on War: A Conversation with Pentagon adviser & neuroscientist, Dr. Nicholas Wright

December 12th, 2025 · by Dr. Vikas Shah MBE DL
Why did France lose to the Nazis, despite its defenders having more tanks, troops, and guns? How did Ukraine repel Russia’s initial onslaught? How do you know if you can trust an ally? How can we make clearer decisions under pressure? In this interview I speak to Dr. Nicholas Wright,…
12-12-2025 9:13:09
Thought Economics

 

How to Save the Internet: A Conversation with Sir Nick Clegg, Former UK Deputy Prime Minister

October 16th, 2025 · by Dr. Vikas Shah MBE DL
Sir Nick Clegg is the former UK Deputy Prime Minister (2010-2015) and former President, Global Affairs at Meta (2018-2025). Prior to being elected to the UK Parliament in 2005, he worked in the European Commission and served for five years as a member of the European Parliament. He became leader…
16-10-2025 11:07:11
Thought Economics

 

A Conversation with Professor César A. Hidalgo on The Laws of Knowledge

December 12th, 2025 · by Dr. Vikas Shah MBE DL
In this interview, I speak to Professor César A. Hidalgo, a physicist and global leader in the field of economic complexity. He leads the Center for Collective Learning at the Toulouse School of Economics and Corvinus University of Budapest, is the founder of DataWheel, and author of Why Information Grows.…
12-12-2025 9:21:29
Thought Economics

 

Making AI Safe: The Race to Control Humanity’s Most Important Invention.

December 12th, 2025 · by Dr. Vikas Shah MBE DL
In these conversations, I spoke with three of the world’s foremost thinkers on AI safety, risk & governance —Clark Barrett (Professor of Computer Science at Stanford and Co-Director of the Stanford Center for AI Safety), Nick Bostrom (Founder of the Future of Humanity Institute at Oxford University and the Macrostrategy…
12-12-2025 9:24:17
Thought Economics

 

The Revolution to Come: A Conversation with Professor Dan Edelstein on the History and Significance of Revolutions as Engines of Change.

September 17th, 2025 · by Dr. Vikas Shah MBE DL
In this interview I speak to Stanford Professor, Dan Edelstein. Dan is one of the world’s foremost experts on revolution, social change and political history- and in this wide ranging conversation, we discuss how the concept of revolution- once seen as the greatest of all political dangers, came to be…
17-09-2025 19:40:45
Thought Economics

 

On the Evolutionary Origins of the Modern World – A Conversation with Professor Harvey Whitehouse.

September 17th, 2025 · by Dr. Vikas Shah MBE DL
In this interview I speak to Professor Harvey Whitehouse, one of the world’s foremost anthropologists- whose research focuses on the evolution of social complexity. Harvey is one of the founders of the cognitive science of religion and has spent decades studying how beliefs and rituals have shaped, and reshaped human…
17-09-2025 19:40:58
Thought Economics

 

A Conversation with Sir Laurie Bristow, Former UK Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Russia and Afghanistan.

September 17th, 2025 · by Dr. Vikas Shah MBE DL
In this interview I speak to Sir Laurie Bristow, former UK Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Russia and Afghanistan. We discuss the role of diplomacy in our world, the role of diplomats in global peace and security, and what we can learn from when diplomacy goes right, and when it goes wrong.
17-09-2025 19:49:34
Thought Economics

 

What We Can Learn About the World Through the Eyes of a War Reporter – My Interview with Trey Yingst.

September 17th, 2025 · by Dr. Vikas Shah MBE DL
In this interview I speak to Trey Yingst, one of the world’s most accomplished foreign correspondents & war reporters who has covered the Israel-Hamas War, Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine and secured interviews with everyone from the leaders of Hamas, the Haqqani Terror Network and Islamic Jihad to the Presidents, Prime…
17-09-2025 19:49:47
Thought Economics

 

The Age of Outrage & How to Lead in a Polarised World – A Conversation with Professor Karthik Ramanna

September 17th, 2025 · by Dr. Vikas Shah MBE DL
In this interview, I speak to Professor Karthik Ramanna, one of the world’s foremost experts on governance and leadership in crisis. We discuss the reasons why our world feels so outraged- and how leaders can build resilient organisations which can make sense of outrage, turn down the temperature, progress through…
17-09-2025 19:50:58
Thought Economics

 

A Conversation with Renée DiResta, One of the World’s Foremost Experts in Online Manipulation, Disinformation, Conspiracy Theories & Scams.

September 17th, 2025 · by Dr. Vikas Shah MBE DL
Renée DiResta is a highly regarded expert and speaker on adversarial abuse online – in other words, on how bad actors manipulate the digital public square. From spammers and scammers to state sponsored trolls, she investigates how social media platforms and technologies (such as generative AI) are used for evil. Although…
17-09-2025 19:51:17
Thought Economics