Big Picture Science – Sunday 8 AM
Skeptic Check: Into the DeepSeek
Has it really changed everything?
When the Chinese developer of DeepSeek released its model R1, a rift opened up in Silicon Valley. The company, a relatively unknown player, appeared to have created a better and cheaper model than its American competitors. Some big voices in the tech world called it a “Sputnik moment.” Others worried that the open-source model would allow malicious actors to harness the power of this AI technology. But did the arrival of DeepSeek significantly change how artificial intelligence will unfold? We explore that question and ask whether one particular sci-fi franchise got it right when portraying our anxiety about runaway AI.
Guests:
Alex Kantrowitz – Tech journalist and founder of the podcast and newsletter Big Technology
Kristian Hammond – Professor of computer science at Northwestern University and Director of the Center for Advancing Safety of Machine Intelligence
Dorian Lynskey – podcaster and author of “Everything Must Go: The Stories We Tell About the End of the World”
Featuring music by Dewey Dellay and Jun Miyake
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Your Big Picture Science Hosts:
Seth Shostak Host and Producer, Big Picture Science – Senior Astronomer, SETI Institute
Molly Bentley Executive Producer and Co-Host, Big Picture Science
About Big Picture Science:
Big Picture Science is a weekly, one-hour radio show and podcast produced at the SETI Institute. Hosted by Seth Shostak, SETI Institute Fellow and Senior Astronomer, and science journalist Molly Bentley, Big Picture Science reports on modern science and technology with smart and humorous storytelling.
Themed episodes feature interviews with top scientists and technology innovators. All episodes try to answer the question, “so what?” Why does this research matter?
Big Picture Science topics range from the microbiome to virtual reality, from the physics of motion to the intelligence of animals. Every month one episode is devoted to critical thinking in “Skeptic Check”, which separates fact from fiction in topics such as Bigfoot and UFOs.
And of course we cover science related to the work of the SETI Institute.