Podcast
Brave New World
Hosted by Evening Standard · EN
Welcome to Brave New World, hosted by Evgeny Lebedev, for the London Standard. We dive deep into the ideas of thought leaders, scientists, and intellectuals who are shaping the future and transforming our culture.
Tune in each week for interviews with some of the brightest minds of our time, and explore the realms of longevity, neuroscience, biohacking, and psychedelics.
Join Evgeny as he leads thought-provoking conversations with guests such as Dame Helen Mirren, Wim Hof, Deepak Chopra and Sam Harris – and others who are driving change, thoughtful debate, and challenging our views and preconceptions.
Whether you're curious about the secrets to longer life, the mysteries of sleep, or the future of medical technology, it’s all here in Brave New World.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
19episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Michael Pollan on Consciousness, Psychedelics and the Fight for Free Thought
Apr 901:22:15Tap to summarizeFor Episode Nine, Evgeny is joined by Michael Pollan, journalist, author, and one of the leading voices exploring the human mind. Drawing on his new book A World Appears, Pollan makes an impassioned case for consciousness as something precious, private, and increasingly under threat. Together, they explore how social media and AI are not just competing for our attention, but beginning to shape attachment, emotion, and even our sense of self.The conversation ranges from chatbots and “AI psychosis” to meditation, psychedelics, and the idea of “consciousness hygiene” - the habits and practices that might help us protect our inner lives. Pollan also reflects on why writing is a form of thinking, why boredom and mind-wandering matter, and how experiences of ego dissolution, art, and nature can deepen our understanding of consciousness. The episode ends on a wider question: whether the real challenge is not only understanding consciousness, but learning how to practise it.This episode was produced by Message Heard and The Standard.Producer: Florence de SchlichtingProduction Coordinator: James CoxProduction Manager: Kirsty McLeanVideo Editor: Nani WenaniThe Standard team: Joe BromleyWill Rogers-Coltman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Carl Pei on Futurism, AI and the Prospect of Civil War
Mar 1000:47:38Tap to summarizeFor Episode Eight, Evgeny is joined by Carl Pei, founder and CEO of Nothing, the London-based consumer tech company trying to make devices feel fun. Carl explains how Nothing evolved from earbuds to smartphones, why he believes design and “focus-first” features can counter distraction, and what it means to build products with a distinct, instantly recognisable identity.Evgeny and Carl also explore the psychological cost of always-on devices, the battle for attention and consciousness, and what it might mean to build technology that helps people stay intentional. The episode ends on a wider view of the AI era: enormous promise for medicine and science, but serious unanswered questions about jobs, governance, and whether society is ready for what comes next.This episode was produced by Message Heard and The Standard. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Dr Sabine Donnai on Mapping the Microbiome and the Secrets to Longevity
Feb 1801:01:35Tap to summarizeFor this episode of Brave New World, Evgeny is joined by Dr Sabine Donnai, a physician specialising in precision medicine, preventive health and the founder of Viavi Healthcare. Together, they explore brain health beyond standard scans, discussing how gut function, inflammation, environmental exposure, and stress interact over time. Drawing on Evgeny’s own test results, Sabine uses her trademark pragmatism to explain why she believes long-term cognitive resilience starts with fixing the basics - particularly the gut – and gives the listener some touchstone takeaways to improve their daily health. For anyone interested in practical measures you can install in your day-to-day, this episode is for you.This episode was produced by Message Heard and The Standard.Producer: Florence de SchlichtingProduction Coordinator: James CoxProduction Manager: Kirsty McLeanVideo Editor: Nani WenaniThe London Standard team:Joe BromleyWill Rogers-Coltman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Dr Jim Fadiman: The 'Father of Microdosing' on Psychedelics’ Second Act
Feb 300:32:30Tap to summarizeFor this episode of Brave New World, Evgeny is joined by psychologist, author, and researcher Dr Jim Fadiman, a central figure in the modern understanding of psychedelics, who also goes by the “father of microdosing”.Drawing on decades of research and thousands of user reports, the conversation traces the history of psychedelics - from early scientific study in the 1950s and 60s, through prohibition, to today’s renewed interest in clinical and psychiatric settings. Jim discusses why most formal research has focused on high doses, how observational reports have shaped microdosing research, where evidence is strongest and still emerging.Evgeny and Jim look ahead to the future of psychedelics in medicine, the balance between scientific caution and public interest, and what a first step might look like for someone curious but sceptical.This episode was produced by Message Heard and The Standard.Producer: Florence de SchlichtingProduction Coordinator: James CoxProduction Manager: Kirsty McLeanVideo Editor: Nani WenaniThe Standard team: Joe Bromley Will Rogers-Coltman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Ben Lamm on Colossal's De-Extinction Mission — From Dire Wolves to Woolly Mammoths
Jan 2101:06:37Tap to summarizeDid you ever think you’d live to see woolly mammoths return? For Episode Five of Brave New World, Evgeny is joined by Ben Lamm, CEO and co-founder of the most forward thinking de-extinction company on the planet, Colossal Biosciences.Since Ben co-founded the Austin based biotech start-up with legendary geneticist George Church in 2021, Colossal has consistently made headlines with their Jurassic Park-esque breakthroughs. In this conversation, Ben goes into the science behind “bringing back” an extinct species, how sci-fi and speculative fiction has inspired Colossal’s work, and the incredible implications de-extinction could have for conservation and the planet.This episode was produced by Message Heard and The Standard.Producer: Florence de SchlichtingProduction Coordinator: James CoxProduction Manager: Kirsty McLeanVideo Editor: Nani WenaniThe Standard team:Joe BromleyWill Rogers-Coltman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Gary Brecka on What's Wrong with Modern Medicine and the Secrets to a Longer Life
Jan 600:45:57Tap to summarizeFor Episode Four, Evgeny is joined by human biologist, longevity science monolith and founder of The Ultimate Human, Gary Brecka. Together, they explore why so many people feel stuck at a “six out of ten,” what Gary believes to be the cause of fatigue, brain fog, poor sleep, soreness, low mood, and why poor exercise recovery is often driven by nutrient deficiencies.Gary shares his unconventional background as a mortality expert in life insurance, where he used massive datasets to predict lifespan with extreme accuracy. In the conversation, he challenges modern medicine’s tendency to label many chronic conditions as “familial” or “idiopathic” and details how to treat the most common gene mutation in the world, which is also Gary's bêtes noire: MHTF.We’d like to thank The Ultimate Human for providing the video clips featured in this episode. This episode was produced by Message Heard and The Standard.Producer: Florence de SchlichtingProduction Coordinator: James CoxProduction Manager: Kirsty McLeanVideo Editor: Nani WenaniThe Standard team: Joe BromleyWill Rogers-Coltman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Will Ahmed on Perfecting Your Sleep Routine and Analysis Paralysis
Dec 2300:37:55Tap to summarizeIn Episode Three of Brave New World, Evgeny is joined by Will Ahmed, founder and CEO of WHOOP. Together, they explore recovery, sleep, and the idea that “you can’t manage what you don’t measure.” Ahmed explains how overtraining as a Harvard athlete led him to build his own wearable, identifying a major gap in health diagnostics at the time: measuring recovery, not just performance.He explains what WHOOP tracks - sleep quality, strain, heart rate variability (HRV), recovery, and stress; dives into why seven hours in bed can still mean poor sleep; and why consistency of bedtime and wake time often matters more than raw hours.Evgeny and Ahmed get practical on health trends, address the criticism that wearables culture a state of analysis paralysis and how to use metrics as a tool, not a verdict.This episode was produced by Message Heard and The Standard.Producer: Florence de SchlichtingProduction Coordinator: James CoxProduction Manager: Kirsty McLeanVideo Editor: Nani WenaniThe Standard team:Joe BromleyWill Rogers-Coltman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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ZOE's Dr Federica Amati and Professor Tim Spector Debunk the Biggest Food Myths
Dec 900:48:00Tap to summarizeIn this episode, Evgeny sits down with Professor Tim Spector and Dr Federica Amati - two of the leading scientific voices behind personalised nutrition company ZOE - to rethink everything we’ve been told about food.From the myth of “good” and “bad” fats to calorie-counting obsessions, Tim and Federica uncover why so much of our nutritional advice is outdated, over-simplified - and in some cases, actively harmful. They unpack how ultra-processed foods and constant snacking damage our gut, why breakfast is not magically the most important meal of the day, and how time-restricted eating might be the key to optimising your daily health.At the core of their discussion is a simple idea: eat for your gut microbes. This episode was produced by Message Heard and The Standard.Producer: Florence de SchlichtingProduction Coordinator: James CoxProduction Manager: Kirsty McLeanVideo Editor: Nani WenaniThe Standard team: Joe BromleyWill Rogers-Coltman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Steven Bartlett on How to Supercharge Your Company and Why He's Scared of an AI Apocalypse
Nov 2501:24:16Tap to summarizeWelcome to the first episode of Season 4 of Brave New World.This time, Evgeny is joined by Steven Bartlett to talk about mindset, ambition and the future. He shares how he manages “a million tabs” without burning out, why self-empathy boosts performance, and how a humiliating paddle match taught him a breakthrough lesson on failure.He opens up about growing up in poverty and shame, the influence of his mum, and why the biggest entrepreneurial lesson he learned was simply: have an idea, then do it.Steven unpacks the thinking behind his book Just F**ing Do It, the neuroscience of hard things, his obsession with 1% gains, and why his company has a “Head of Failure.”The conversation expands to happiness, arrival fallacy, AI, humanoid robots, the future of work, the creator economy, and why he’d homeschool his future kids to double down on uniquely human skills.This episode was produced by Message Heard and The London Standard.Producer: Florence de SchlichtingProduction Coordinator: James CoxProduction Manager: Kirsty McLeanVideo Editor: Nani WenaniThe Standard team:Joe BromleyWill Rogers-Coltman Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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Dr John Krystal: Why ketamine can solve a mental health epidemic
Dec 5, 202401:13:35Tap to summarizeIn today’s episode, Evgeny Lebedev talks about the remarkable potential of ketamine with Dr John Krystal, Professor of neuroscience at the Yale School of Medicine. Their discussion delves into the world of neurology, what ketamine actually does to our brain and the importance of glutamate receptors in treating depression. Ketamine may have gotten bad press after Friends actor Matthew Perry died of an overdose while receiving treatment with the drug, but for Dr Krystal, it is a critically overlooked solution to the epidemic of mental illness.Also in this episode:Ketamine’s complicated history starting in the 1950sThe real reason depression leads to suicideWhy ketamine is effective at dealing with traumaThe detailed procedure of ketamine therapy The importance of ketamine’s “narrow window” dosageKetamine’s reputation and why it needs to change Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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