Podcast appearances and mentions of michael safi

In 2019, before most of the world had heard of the company, the technology journalist Karen Hao spent three days embedded in the offices of OpenAI. What she saw, she tells Michael Safi, was a company vastly at odds with its public image: that of a transparent non-profit developing artificial intelligence technology purely for the benefit of humanity. ‘They said that they were transparent. They said that they were collaborative. They were actually very secretive,' she says. Hao spent the next five years following the growth of OpenAI, as it shifted to pursue – in her words – a growth-at-all-costs model. On the one hand, it has been spectacularly successful, with OpenAI now one of the largest companies in the world. On the other, she argues, it has come at a severe cost – to the people whose labour it relies on to operate, and to the planet. In fact, as she describes in her new book, Empire of AI: Inside the reckless race for total domination, it makes sense to think of OpenAI not as a company, but more akin to empires of old

Michael Safi travelled to north-east Syria to speak to IS foreign fighters imprisoned there. He discovered that a change in the US administration, and USAid funding cuts, means there is a growing fear of prison breaks

Michael Safi travelled to north-east Syria to speak to IS foreign fighters imprisoned there. And discovered that a change in the US administration, and USAid funding cuts, means there is a growing fear of prison breaks. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Syria has a new leader, and for thousands it is a time of celebration and optimism. But old enmities and fears about what comes next haunt the country. Michael Safi reports. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Israel's war has left many Lebanese people contemplating what once seemed unimaginable: is Hezbollah finished? Michael Safi reports from Beirut. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

This episode originally ran on Monday 19 June 2023. Theodore ‘Ted' Kaczynski died at the federal prison in Butner, North Carolina, last year at the age of 81. Known as the Unabomber, Kaczynski waged a 17-year bombing campaign from an isolated shack in the Montana wilderness before finally being caught in 1996. One of those who helped apprehend Kaczynski was former FBI agent Jim Fitzgerald. He tells Michael Safi that the arrest was only possible after the publication of the bomber's manifesto in the Washington Post. It was those words that were recognised by Kaczynski's brother, who took his concerns to the authorities

It's the most consequential presidential election in decades. So when will we know the results? Michael Safi reports. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

From traditional rural Republicans who won't vote for Trump to Latino voters who will, Michael Safi finds voters taking surprising stances as he embarks on a road trip through the biggest swing state in the US. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Harry Shukman of the anti-racism group Hope Not Hate went undercover to expose how some of the wealthiest and most powerful people see race. He tells Michael Safi what he found

Harry Shukman of the anti-racism group Hope Not Hate went undercover to expose how some of the wealthiest and most powerful people see race. He tells Michael Safi what he found Read: the Guardian's full investigation Watch: Undercover: Exposing the Far Right. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Peter Beaumont joins Michael Safi from Jerusalem to discuss the unprecedented attack on Israel by Iran – and what may come next. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

William Christou and Michael Safi speak to people affected by Israel's intense bombing campaign in Lebanon. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Revisited: Guardian journalist Michael Safi delves into the world of artificial intelligence, exploring the dangers and promises it holds for society. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Revisited: Guardian journalist Michael Safi delves into the world of artificial intelligence, exploring the dangers and promises it holds for society. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Revisited: Guardian journalist Michael Safi delves into the world of artificial intelligence, exploring the dangers and promises it holds for society. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Revisited: Guardian journalist Michael Safi delves into the world of artificial intelligence, exploring the dangers and promises it holds for society. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Revisited: Guardian journalist Michael Safi delves into the world of artificial intelligence, exploring the dangers and promises it holds for society. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Revisited: Guardian journalist Michael Safi delves into the world of artificial intelligence, exploring the dangers and promises it holds for society. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Revisited: Guardian journalist Michael Safi delves into the world of artificial intelligence, exploring the dangers and promises it holds for society. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Michael Safi travels to southern Lebanon where Hezbollah is trading strikes with Israeli forces and one misstep could result in all-out conflict. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Lauren Layfield introduces Black Box on the podcast recommendation podcast - Your Next Podcast. At some point in the past few years, humanity collided with a new kind of intelligence. And things are getting strange. People are being accused of crimes by algorithms; falling in love with digital beings; pioneering new ways to fight old diseases; turning to machines for comfort in their worst moments, and using artificial intelligence to commit - and hide from - terrible crimes. The Guardian's Michael Safi investigates the story of a technology so complex that its own creators have no idea what it is thinking, and captures a snapshot of the era when people first made contact with AI.You can follow Black Box and listen to all of the episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts.

For the past six months, the Guardian journalist Michael Safi has been trying to find out who is behind an AI company that creates deepfakes. Deepfakes that are causing havoc around the world, with police and lawmakers baffled about how to deal with them. And in trying to answer one question, he has been left with a bigger one: is AI going to make it impossible to sort fact from fiction? Subscribe to Black Box, a new Guardian audio series on artificial intelligence, for all the remaining episodes. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

For the past six months, Guardian journalist Michael Safi has been trying to find out who is behind an AI company that creates deepfakes. Deepfakes are causing havoc around the world, with police and lawmakers baffled about how to deal with them. And in trying to answer one question, he has been left with a bigger one: is AI going to make it impossible to sort fact from fiction?

For the past six months, Guardian journalist Michael Safi has been trying to find out who is behind an AI company that creates deepfakes. Deepfakes that are causing havoc around the world, with police and lawmakers baffled about how to deal with them. And in trying to answer one question, he has been left with a bigger one: is AI going to make it impossible to sort fact from fiction?

We wanted to bring you this episode from our new series, Black Box. In it, Michael Safi explores seven stories and the thread that ties them together: artificial intelligence. In this prologue, Hannah (not her real name) has met Noah and he has changed her life for the better. So why does she have concerns about him? If you like what you hear, make sure to search and subscribe to Black Box, with new episodes every Monday and Thursday.. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/footballweeklypod

We wanted to bring you this episode from our new series, Black Box. In it, Michael Safi explores seven stories and the thread that ties them together: artificial intelligence. In this prologue, Hannah (not her real name) has met Noah and he has changed her life for the better. So why does she have concerns about him? If you like what you hear, make sure to search and subscribe to Black Box, with new episodes every Monday and Thursday.. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/longreadpod

We wanted to bring you this episode from our new series, Black Box. In it, Michael Safi explores seven stories and the thread that ties them together: artificial intelligence. In this prologue, Hannah (not her real name) has met Noah and he has changed her life for the better. So why does she have concerns about him? If you like what you hear, make sure to search and subscribe to Black Box, with new episodes every Monday and Thursday.. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/sciencepod

We wanted to bring you this episode from our new series, Black Box. In it, Michael Safi explores seven stories and the thread that ties them together: artificial intelligence. In this prologue, Hannah (not her real name) has met Noah and he has changed her life for the better. So why does she have concerns about him? If you like what you hear, make sure to search and subscribe to Black Box, with new episodes every Monday and Thursday.. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/politicspod

We wanted to bring you this episode from our new series, Black Box. In it, Michael Safi explores seven stories and the thread that ties them together: artificial intelligence. In this prologue, Hannah (not her real name) has met Noah and he has changed her life for the better. So why does she have concerns about him? If you like what you hear, make sure to search and subscribe to Black Box, with new episodes every Monday and Thursday.

We wanted to bring you this episode from our new series, Black Box. In it, Michael Safi explores seven stories and the thread that ties them together: artificial intelligence. In this prologue, Hannah (not her real name) has met Noah and he has changed her life for the better. So why does she have concerns about him? If you like what you hear, make sure to search and subscribe to Black Box, with new episodes every Monday and Thursday.

We wanted to bring you this episode from our new series, Black Box. In it, Michael Safi explores seven stories and the thread that ties them together: artificial intelligence. In this prologue, Hannah (not her real name) has met Noah and he has changed her life for the better. So why does she have concerns about him? If you like what you hear, make sure to search and subscribe to Black Box, with new episodes every Monday and Thursday.

We wanted to bring you this episode from our new series, Black Box. In it, Michael Safi explores seven stories and the thread that ties them together: artificial intelligence. In this prologue, Hannah (not her real name) has met Noah and he has changed her life for the better. So why does she have concerns about him? If you like what you hear, make sure to search and subscribe to Black Box, with new episodes every Monday and Thursday.. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/chipspod

He is a writer, an actor, a poet, a storyteller, an anti-storyteller -- and he cares about both the world outside and the one inside. Danish Husain joins Amit Varma in episode 359 of The Seen and the Unseen to talk about his life and learnings. (FOR FULL LINKED SHOW NOTES, GO TO SEENUNSEEN.IN.) Also check out: 1. Danish Husain on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Wikipedia and IMDb. 2. TheHoshrubaRepertory, Qissebaazi and Poetrification. 3. Danish Husain interviewed by Irfan for Jashn-e-Rekhta. 4. The art of storytelling -- Danish Husain interviewed by Purva Naresh. 5. 'Becoming the story when performing it' -- Danish Husain interviewed by Roanna Gonsalves. 6. The 27 Club. 7. Self-Portrait — AK Ramanujan. 8. The Mysterious Arrival of an Unusual Letter -- Mark Strand. 9. Collected Poems — Mark Strand. 10. Man's Search For Meaning -- Viktor E Frankl. 11. The Importance of Satya — Episode 241 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Uday Bhatia). 12. Amitava Kumar Finds the Breath of Life — Episode 265 of The Seen and the Unseen. 13. Aadha Gaon — Rahi Masoom Raza. 14. Out of Place: A Memoir -- Edward Said. 15. The Incredible Insights of Timur Kuran — Episode 349 of The Seen and the Unseen. 16. Private Truths, Public Lies — Timur Kuran. 17. Varun Grover Is in the House — Episode 292 of The Seen and the Unseen. 18. The Gita Press and Hindu Nationalism — Episode 139 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Akshaya Mukul). 19. Gita Press and the Making of Hindu India — Akshaya Mukul. 20. Where Have All The Leaders Gone? — Amit Varma. 21. Santosh Desai is Watching You -- Episode 356 of The Seen and the Unseen. 22. The Life and Times of Nilanjana Roy — Episode 284 of The Seen and the Unseen. 23. Bombay--London--New York -- Amitava Kumar. 24. Fighting Fake News — Episode 133 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Pratik Sinha). 25. Sample SSR conspiracy theory: He's alive! 26. Life is Elsewhere -- Milan Kundera. 27. The Four Quadrants of Conformism — Paul Graham. 28. Ignaz Semmelweis on Britannica and Wikipedia. 29. India's Tryst With Pandemics -- Episode 205 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Chinmay Tumbe). 30. Age of Pandemics — Chinmay Tumbe. 31. Kashi Ka Assi — Kashinath Singh. 32. A Meditation on Form — Amit Varma. 33. Scene: 75 -- Rahi Masoom Raza (translated by Poonam Saxena). 34. Folktales From India — Edited by AK Ramanujan. 35. The Indianness of Indian Food — Episode 95 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Vikram Doctor). 36. The Refreshing Audacity of Vinay Singhal — Episode 291 of The Seen and the Unseen. 37. Stage.in. 38. The Age of Average -- Alex Murrell. 39. Nothing is Indian! Everything is Indian! -- Episode 12 of Everything is Everything. 40. Wanderers, Kings, Merchants: The Story of India through Its Languages — Peggy Mohan. 41. Understanding India Through Its Languages — Episode 232 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Peggy Mohan). 42. Early Indians — Tony Joseph. 43. Early Indians — Episode 112 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Tony Joseph). 44. Caste, Capitalism and Chandra Bhan Prasad — Episode 296 of The Seen and the Unseen. 45. ‘Indian languages carry the legacy of caste' — Chandra Bhan Prasad interviewed by Sheela Bhatt. 46. The Loneliness of the Indian Woman — Episode 259 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Shrayana Bhattacharya). 47. Premchand, Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew and Agatha Christie on Amazon. 48. Milan Kundera, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Saul Bellow, Henry Miller and Octavio Paz on Amazon.. 49. Midnight's Children -- Salman Rushdie. 50. Selected Poems -- Dom Moraes. 51. Theatres of Independence -- Aparna Bhargava Dharwadker. 52. Saadat Hasan Manto and Ismat Chugtai on Amazon. 53. Toba Tek Singh -- Saadat Hasan Manto. 55. How Music Works -- David Byrne. 56. Danish Husain's anecdote about Mahatma Gandhi and Bade Ghulam Ali Khan. 57. Poems -- Louise Glück. 58. Harmony in the Boudoir -- Mark Strand. 59. And Then One Day: A Memoir -- Naseeruddin Shah. 60. Kohrra -- Created by Sudip Sharma and directed by Randeep Jha.. 61. If You Are a Creator, This Is Your Time -- Amit Varma. 62. Make Me a Canteen for My Soul — Episode 304 of The Seen and the Unseen (w Sameer Seth and Yash Bhanage). 63.  The Aaron Levie tweet on the market for cars. 64. 'A feeble no may mean yes': Indian court overturns rape conviction -- Michael Safi. 65. Grace is Poetry -- Danish Husain.  66. Train-Track Figure -- Kay Ryan. 67. अंधा कबाड़ी -- नून मीम राशिद. 68. The Conjurer of Meaning -- Danish Husain. 69. Converse: Contemporary English Poetry by Indians -- Edited by Sudeep Sen. 67. Yearbook of Indian Poetry in English: 2022 -- Edited by Sukrita Paul Kumar & Vinita Agrawal. 68. मत बुरा उस को कहो गरचे वो अच्छा भी नहीं -- कलीम आजिज़. 69. शम्-ए-तन्हा की तरह सुब्ह के तारे जैसे -- इरफ़ान सिद्दीक़ी.. 70. हुस्न-ए-मह गरचे ब-हंगाम-ए-कमाल अच्छा है -- मिर्ज़ा ग़ालिब. 71. हिरास -- साहिर लुधियानवी. 72. Separation -- WS Merwin 73. वो जो इक शर्त थी वहशत की उठा दी गई क्या -- इरफ़ान सिद्दीक़ी. 74. तुम्हें डर है. -- गोरख पाण्डेय. 75. शायद कि ये ज़माना उन्हें पूजने लगे -- अब्दुल वहाब सुख़न. 76. Kya sitam hai waqt ka -- Madan Mohan Danish. 77. फ़राज़ अब कोई सौदा कोई जुनूँ भी नहीं -- फ़राज़. 78. कौन-सी बात कहाँ , कैसे कही जाती है -- वसीम बरेलवी. 79. A Plain Landscape -- Danish Husain. 80. इतिहास की कगार -- दानिश हुसैन. 81. Jawaab -- Kumar Ambuj (translated by Danish Husain). 82. Your Touch -- Danish Husain. 83. The Joke -- Milan Kundera. 84. Herzog -- Saul Bellow. 85. Edward Said, Mary Oliver and Toni Morrison on Amazon. 86. Step Across This Line -- Salman Rushdie. 87. Harishankar Parsai, John Kenneth Galbraith and AS Byatt on Amazon. 88. Garam Hawa -- MS Sathyu. 89. Shatranj Ke Khilari -- Satyajit Ray. 90. The Godfather -- Francis Ford Coppolla. 91. Do Ankhen Barah Haath -- V Shantaram. 92. Mandi -- Shyam Benegal. 93. Party -- Govind Nihalani. 94. Khosla Ka Ghosla! -- Dibakar Banerjee. This episode is sponsored by the Pune Public Policy Festival 2024, which takes place on January 19 & 20, 2024. The theme this year is Trade-offs! Amit Varma and Ajay Shah have launched a new video podcast. Check out Everything is Everything on YouTube. Check out Amit's online course, The Art of Clear Writing. And subscribe to The India Uncut Newsletter. It's free! Episode art: ‘The Actor as a Builder of Worlds' by Simahina.

As Germany heads into a recession, tensions over its migration policy and its national identity are throwing up unusual results in local elections. Michael Safi reports View the front page of the Guardian's newly launched Europe edition. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

For many people, alternative therapies and wellness routines provide comfort and pleasure. For others, they can be a pathway to far-right conspiracies. Author and journalist James Ball speaks to Michael Safi about the connection between wellness and conspiracy theories.

Production on Hollywood films and hit TV shows has ground to a halt because of the Sag-Aftra strike. Apart from the stars on the picket line, how is this strike different from other labour disputes? Michael Safi speaks to Lois Beckett, a senior reporter with Guardian US, and Brian Cox, who played media boss Logan Roy in the TV series Succession, on why writers and actors can no longer make a living

Orcas, also known as killer whales, rarely interfere with boats. But since May 2020 there have been hundreds of reports of orcas breaking rudders and even sinking yachts and boats in the strait of Gibraltar, behaviour which seems to be spreading. Michael Safi speaks to journalist and author Phillip Hoare about the theories scientists have for why this might be happening

In recent weeks the US supreme court ended affirmative action, ruled in favour of a web designer who does not want to serve gay clients and blocked Joe Biden's student debt forgiveness plan. Michael Safi speaks with Sam Levine, a voting rights reporter with Guardian US, to learn the stories behind these decisions, and what president Biden can do about them

The end of the line for Matteo Messina Denaro came in mundane fashion. On a Monday morning the mafia boss was waiting in a queue for a Covid vaccine in Palermo when police closed in. A colonel from the carabinieri, Italy's militarised police, asked him: “Are you Matteo Messina Denaro?” “You know who I am,” came the reply. The Guardian's Lorenzo Tondo and Clare Longrigg tell Michael Safi that the capture of such a high-ranking mafia boss is significant but does not kill off the organisation, which has evolved into a different proposition for authorities than it once was. Police hope it will allow them to solve murders stretching back decades. The last confirmed sighting of Denaro before his arrest was in Tuscany in 1993, around the time explosives in a parked Fiat were detonated outside the Uffizi gallery, killing three people, injuring more than 40 and damaging priceless works of art

Football's governing body Fifa has tried to keep politics out of the World Cup – but there has never been a more political tournament, reports Michael Safi in Doha. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

A spate of bank robberies has hit Beirut in recent weeks but they are heists with a twist: people are demanding – at gunpoint – that staff hand them their own money. Michael Safi reports. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

There is a prison in Syria holding hundreds of children who have never been convicted of any crime. Michael Safi tells the story of one of them

There's a Syrian prison, holding hundreds of children who have never been convicted of any crime. Michael Safi tells the story of one of them.. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

On 24 February Russia began its assault on Ukraine. The explosions that day marked the end of an era in Europe and changed the lives of millions. Michael Safi talks to Vlodomor Ksienich and Kyrylo Demchenko, two of thousands of young Ukrainians who answered a call to protect their country, as well as hearing from Guardian correspondents Emma Graham-Harrison and Shaun Walker, who have been reporting on the ground

On 24 February Russia began its assault on Ukraine. The explosions that day marked the end of an era in Europe and changed the lives of millions for ever. Michael Safi talks to Vlodomor Ksienich and Kyrylo Demchenko, two of thousands of young Ukrainians who answered a call to protect their country, as well as hearing from Guardian correspondents Emma Graham-Harrison and Shaun Walker, who have been reporting on the ground. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Volodymyr Ksienich, 22, has returned to Ukraine to join the defence of Kyiv. He tells Michael Safi how his life changed forever after last week's Russian invasion

Volodymyr Ksienich, 22, has returned to Ukraine to join the defence of Kyiv. He tells Michael Safi how his life changed forever after last week's Russian invasion. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Two princesses from the United Arab Emirates show up in our leaked records – and we look at whether powerful spyware is being used against UK citizens In 2018, Princess Latifa, a daughter of Dubai's ruler, made a bid for freedom. Together with a Finnish fitness instructor and a French former spy, she fled the United Arab Emirates. The Guardian's Dan Sabbagh tells Michael Safi that at the height of the escape drama, it can now be revealed, the mobile numbers for Latifa and some of her friends back home appeared on a database at the heart of the Pegasus project data investigation. Latifa was ultimately captured by Indian special forces and returned to Dubai. The UAE described it not as an escape attempt but as a kidnapping. The controversial incident was one of the final straws for Princess Haya, the sixth wife of Dubai's ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum. She left the UAE after the couple divorced and soon became enmeshed in a protracted and acrimonious legal battle in the UK courts for custody of their children. As the Guardian's David Pegg reports, the phone numbers of Haya, and eight of her close associates, appear in a dataset believed to indicate people of interest to a government client of NSO. NSO Group says it cannot see how its customers, which are all governments, use its military-grade spyware Pegasus, which is capable of secretly infecting a mobile phone and then extracting massive amounts of data from it. It says Pegasus is only supposed to be used to prevent terrorism and serious crime, and that its clients sign contracts agreeing to these terms when they purchase a licence. There were British numbers in the records, too. One of those was of the human rights lawyer Rodney Dixon QC, and we were able to check his phone. The results were not conclusive – there was no successful infection – but we did find suspicious activity. NSO says it wasn't technically possible for this phone to have been targeted. But if people in London are finding possible signs of Pegasus activity on their phones, is being in the UK any protection? Source: The Pegasus project part 4: runaway princesses and the UK connection Today in Focus | The Guardian | July 21, 2021

Two princesses from the United Arab Emirates show up in our leaked records – and we look at whether powerful spyware is being used against UK citizens. In 2018, Princess Latifa, a daughter of Dubai's ruler, made a bid for freedom. Together with a Finnish fitness instructor and a French former spy, she fled the United Arab Emirates. The Guardian's Dan Sabbagh tells Michael Safi that at the height of the escape drama, it can now be revealed, the mobile numbers for Latifa and some of her friends back home appeared on a database at the heart of the Pegasus project data investigation. Latifa was ultimately captured by Indian special forces and returned to Dubai. The UAE described it not as an escape attempt but as a kidnapping. The controversial incident was one of the final straws for Princess Haya, the sixth wife of Dubai's ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum. She left the UAE after the couple divorced and soon became enmeshed in a protracted and acrimonious legal battle in the UK courts for custody of their children. As the Guardian's David Pegg reports, the phone numbers of Haya, and eight of her close associates, appear in a dataset believed to indicate people of interest to a government client of NSO. NSO Group says it cannot see how its customers, which are all governments, use its military-grade spyware Pegasus, which is capable of secretly infecting a mobile phone and then extracting massive amounts of data from it. It says Pegasus is only supposed to be used to prevent terrorism and serious crime, and that its clients sign contracts agreeing to these terms when they purchase a licence. There were British numbers in the records, too. One of those was of the human rights lawyer Rodney Dixon QC, and we were able to check his phone. The results were not conclusive – there was no successful infection – but we did find suspicious activity. NSO says it wasn't technically possible for this phone to have been targeted. But if people in London are finding possible signs of Pegasus activity on their phones, is being in the UK any protection? Source: The Pegasus project part 4: runaway princesses and the UK connection Today in Focus | The Guardian | July 21, 2021

Monica Tan and Michael Safi talk over recent unrest in Melbourne and why an anti-halal app has become a smash-hit with Muslim shoppers. Plus: what happened when a famous writer asked Monica if she was ‘from mainland China'?