The Karol Markowicz Show: Ben Ferguson on Media, AI, Family & Life Beyond Politics

Summary

Podcast Summary

Podcast: The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show – The Karol Markowicz Show
Guest: Ben Ferguson, host of The Ben Ferguson Podcast and co-host of Verdict with Ted Cruz
Date: February 13, 2026
Host: Karol Markowicz
Platform: iHeartPodcasts

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Overview

This episode of The Karol Markowicz Show takes a step away from the usual heated political debates and dives into the personal, professional, and philosophical life of Ben Ferguson. Well-known for his work as a conservative commentator and as the host of popular podcasts, Ferguson shares stories from his early start in media, his approach to family, business ventures beyond politics, reflections on media culture, and optimistic thoughts on the transformative power of AI. The episode is engaging, conversational, and sprinkled with humorous anecdotes and candid advice.

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Key Themes & Discussion Points

1. Life in Media & Early Start in Talk Radio

• Ben’s reputation as someone who “schools the libs” during his CNN appearances is acknowledged humorously by Karol.
• Ferguson began his career in radio at just 12 years old, an early start prompted by an on-air debate about the school lunch program.
  • Ben describes his first call:

  “Don’t yell at a kid whose voice hasn’t changed. It just sounds bad. Life Advice 101.” – Ben (06:09)

• He recounts how he read the actual bill about school lunches as a child, leading to his first on-air schooling of adults on political facts (06:49).
• His first TV appearance at 17 was on The O’Reilly Factor, with a memorable, if unexpected, introductory question from Bill O’Reilly (03:13):

  “The first question he asked me was, by the way, do your friends think you’re a dork?” – Ben (03:20)

2. The Culture of Conservative Media & Experience at CNN

• Ferguson recalls his seven-year stint at CNN as “fighting the commies,” often under fire, and dealing with everything from nightly friction with Don Lemon to death threats (01:49).
• He discusses how being a conservative at CNN was, at the time, fraught with hostility—a landscape that’s since shifted:

  “Now it’s changed, where it’s like you’re a hero for going there and fighting the commies... I tell Scott [Jennings], I warmed it up for you for seven years.” – Ben (12:13, 12:24)

3. Diversifying Beyond Broadcasting: Food & Firearms

• Ferguson opened a barbecue restaurant and gun range in Memphis as an antidote to the toxic atmosphere of cable news (11:07).

  “There’s nothing more fun than cooking for people. Because politics doesn’t matter when you cook. It’s either good food or bad.” – Ben (11:46)

• He continues his food ventures in North Carolina, emphasizing how food brings people together, irrespective of politics.

4. The ‘Verdict’ Podcast with Ted Cruz

• Karol asks how the partnership with Ted Cruz came about, and Ben explains the organic development and long-standing relationship (13:38).

  “He’s one of my best friends. We spend a ton of time together—five, six hours a week. That’s a lot of time.” – Ben (13:47)

• The show offers behind-the-scenes insights into the Senate and significant political events. Notably, they’ve hosted high-profile guests including Elon Musk (15:01), discussing topics ranging from confirmation hearings to the Israeli conflict.

5. Family, Fatherhood, and Priorities

• Ben’s greatest pride is his role as a father to three sons, aged nine and six (with twins). He prioritizes family, often turning down professional opportunities in favor of parenting (15:53).

  “I love what I do. I absolutely love being a dad. It is, no doubt, my number one priority.” – Ben (15:56)

• He shares the remarkable achievements of his sons in youth golf—one ranked as high as second in the world, another currently top ten (16:46).
• The family legacy of working hard and loving what you do is important to him, passed from his own father to his boys.

6. AI, Technology, and The Future

• On five-year predictions, Ben is optimistic about the transformative potential of artificial intelligence, particularly in healthcare (18:48):

  “A CEO told me, he believes AI will save more lives than all doctors in history combined.” – Ben (19:45)

• Ferguson stresses embracing technology, acknowledging potential misuse but expressing faith that its benefits—especially in medicine—will outweigh the negatives (20:49).

7. Advice and Reflections on Presence & Relationships

• As closing advice, Ferguson urges listeners to put down their smartphones and spend present, quality time with friends and family (21:06):

  “Put this stupid thing down. It makes me so sad to see how many lives have been ruined in families and relationships because you go out to dinner and you see four people at the table doing this.” – Ben (21:06)

• He challenges listeners to try a ‘phone stack’ dinner to see how dependent they are on their devices, drawing from personal experiences of loss to stress the importance of meaningful connection (22:56).

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On political debate as a child:

  “Have you read the bill? ...No one reads the bill... Well, that's also a lie. I read the bill.” – Ben recalling his first radio moment (06:09)

• On the CNN experience:

  “There’s things I would totally take out, like the ridiculous amount of death threats… Having to deal with Don Lemon on almost a nightly basis.” – Ben (01:50)

• On being present:

  “Go to dinner with your friends and everybody put their phone in the middle of the table and the first person to look at their phone has to pay for dinner.” – Ben (21:23)

• On AI and medicine:

  “He [a CEO] said he believes AI will save more lives than all doctors in history combined… totally revolutionize medicine.” – Ben (19:45)

• On fatherhood and legacy:

  “I love what I do. I absolutely love being a dad. It is, no doubt, my number one priority.” – Ben (15:56)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:11] – Ben recounts his first TV appearance and origins in talk radio
• [06:49] – The school lunch radio call that started Ben’s career
• [10:55] – Opening the barbecue restaurant and gun range as a break from politics
• [13:38] – How Ben teamed up with Ted Cruz for ‘Verdict’
• [15:53] – Ben on raising his kids and his approach to fatherhood
• [18:48] – Five-year prediction: AI’s impact on the future and medicine
• [21:06] – Parting advice: Be present, put down the phone, value real-life connection

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Conclusion

This episode offers a refreshing, humanizing portrait of Ben Ferguson. Listeners get a behind-the-scenes look at the personal experiences, struggles, and joys that shape the lives of public figures. Through stories of career, parenthood, business ventures, and musings on technology and society, Ferguson delivers relatable wisdom and an optimism grounded in experience. The tone is candid, often humorous, and always grounded in a genuine love for people and connection.

Recommended for anyone interested in media, parenting, or the future of technology—and for those looking for practical inspiration on living a more present and meaningful life.

Transcript

[Carol Markowitz]

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[Ben Ferguson]

Run a business and not thinking about podcasting, Think again. More Americans listen to podcasts than ad supported streaming music from Spotify and Pandora. And as the number one podcaster, iHeart's twice as large as the next two combined.

[Grainger Announcer]

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[Ben Ferguson]

Call 844-84-4, iHeart.

[Carol Markowitz]

Hi, and welcome back Carol Markowitz show on iheartradio. My guest today is Ben Ferguson. Ben is host of the Ben Ferguson podcast and co host of Verdict podcast with Ted Cruz. Hi, Ben. So nice to have you on.

[Ben Ferguson]

It's so good to be here. And like, I get to talk about life today and not so much politics. This is like a, this is the best break ever.

[Carol Markowitz]

This is what this is all about. You know, we bring you on and we don't ask you what, what you thought about what Donald Trump said today. It's, it actually confuses some people. They don't know how to get off that, like thinking where they have to news.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, yeah, exactly.

[Carol Markowitz]

So your bio actually leaves out something very important, which is you are known for schooling the libs in your CNN appearances.

[Ben Ferguson]

That's. That is, that is true. That is a hard fought battle. For seven years, I call it that I was there fighting the commies and I enjoyed not every minute of it. I'm not gonna lie.

[Carol Markowitz]

Right.

[Ben Ferguson]

There's, there's things that I would totally take out, like the ridiculous amount of death threats, for example. Like, we could leave that. Having to deal with Don Lemon on almost a nightly basis. I would love to be able to get rid of that as well.

[Carol Markowitz]

So how did you become the guy that argues with the liberals on cnn? How did you get to do this thing of ours?

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, no. So I started in radio when I was 12 by accident. And then I started in TV when I was 17. The pitch was actually funny. It was a guy calls and he's like, hey, I am the producer of this TV show. It's not available for you to watch in Memphis yet on cable. This is the real pitch. And he said, he goes, anyway, the host, though, is really dynamic. He is the former host of Inside Edition. Now, if you're real astute, you're going to know who I'm talking about with that tidbit. He goes, so the show's called the O'Reilly Factor, and the host is Bill O'Reilly. Would you come on?

[Carol Markowitz]

And so wait, Bill O'Reilly hosted Inside Edition? I didn't know that.

[Ben Ferguson]

So that was the pitch. They were not pitching Fox at that point because FOX had just begun. And they were right. They sent me my first appearance on Bill O'Reilly show on a beta tape, I kid you not. So I had to find someone with a beta player to even play the appearance when I was 17 on a show.

[Carol Markowitz]

How did they find you?

[Ben Ferguson]

They'd seen me on CNN in a clip that had gone viral already.

[Carol Markowitz]

Wow. I'm gonna have to look that up.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, it was really funny. And his politically astute question, which I give him hell about every time I talk to him, he comes on my show, like, every year when he has his new bestseller that comes out, you know, around Christmas. And his first question he asked me was after, like, asked me, like, by the way, do your friends think you're a dork? And I'm like, seriously, like, that's what you're going to come at? And I'm like, no, they actually don't.

[Carol Markowitz]

Think you're a dork.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, exactly. And he's like, no, no. But like, do they think you're kind of a dork? Like, you talk politics. I'm like, well, I also play basketball at the varsity team and I play tennis. I'm going to go play in college. Like, but yeah, that was my, that was my, my, my first big question from a guy named Bill O'Reilly. So if you've never watched the clip, have you ever seen the clip where Bill goes, we're going to do it live. Eff it.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Ben Ferguson]

Go back and watch the clip that is on the set of Inside Edition. That was not at Fox.

[Carol Markowitz]

Okay. Yeah.

[Ben Ferguson]

No, full circle for you, Carol. Full circle.

[Carol Markowitz]

I feel like I've already learned a lot. And we just kicked this off.

[Ben Ferguson]

I love.

[Carol Markowitz]

Amazing. So you've always wanted to do this. This was, I mean, since you were basically a child, was there even a plan B? Like, what, what were you thinking?

[Ben Ferguson]

So I started when I was 12. I'll tell you that story very quickly. My mom was listening to talk radio. Now, this is before, talk radio stations were mainly conservative talk. It was just new. Rush Limbaugh was new. And there was a station in Memphis, and it was a smorgasbord of shows. There was a liberal from the city council. There was another liberal from the county commission. Then, like, the mayor had a show, and it was just kind of like they were figuring out what talk radio was. And a lot of people don't realize this. Like, there were stations in America where Limbaugh and Howard Stern were on the same station. Wow. It's crazy. So I was 12, and in 1993, 94, they were talking about the school lunch program. I was in the backseat. My mom was listening, and Richard Gephardt held up bottle of ketchup. It was a famous moment. And he said, is this what the Republicans are going to call a vegetable? Now, Now, I didn't understand Republican or Democrat then. I. I just understood right and wrong. And I said to my mom, I was like, mom, there's no way somebody would do that to kids. And she was a school teacher, so her thing was, yes, this is a way for him to learn. She goes, well, why don't you find out if you're right? So I called our congressman at the time, a guy named Ed Bryant, his local office. I asked if they could send me the bill.

[Carol Markowitz]

Tennessee. In Memphis.

[Ben Ferguson]

In Memphis, Tennessee. Yeah. And so they sent me a copy of the bill where they FedEx it, actually, my dad's office on that old roll paper. The old roll fax paper. And so. Oh, yeah, like a scroll. Right. So I, like, literally read the whole bill, and I found out that what Richard Gephardt. The Democrats were calling a cut was the difference between Republicans. They want to increase school lunch funding by 3.6%, and the Democrats wanted it by 4.1. Both were increases. But Democrats are calling the difference between the 3.6 and the 4.1 a cut, even though they're both increasing at significantly hammers higher.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yeah.

[Ben Ferguson]

Than the cost of living increase. And so I read it, and I asked my mom, I said, can I call into this lady's show?

[Carol Markowitz]

Wow.

[Ben Ferguson]

She said, yes. And so this is the next day. So I called. I was on hold. She finally put me on the air. And I said to the lady, her name was Janice Fully Love. And I said she was a city council member. And I said, ma', am, I said, I just want to call, and I think you need to apologize to your audience for lying to them yesterday. And she started yelling at me, well, don't yell at A kid whose voice hasn't changed. It just sounds bad. It's just like Life Advice 101. Just don't. And I said to her, I said, have you read the bill? And she said, no, no one reads the bill. And I said, well, that's also a lie. I read the bill. And maybe before you on the radio and act like you're an expert, you should probably read the bill.

[Carol Markowitz]

Wow, that is cool.

[Ben Ferguson]

It was a fun moment, but I was doing it in a respectful way. I wasn't there to be a jerk. Like, it was just honest, raw, back and forth. And I read the bill part to her and basically schooled her. I didn't even know what that meant. And another show heard it. They put. They played that audio clip on their show that afternoon and they said, if anyone knows who this Ben kid is, tell them we're talking about him and please call in. My parents phone started blowing up. The landline at home. People that were hearing this, I called into that show. They interviewed me and asked if I'd ever seen a radio studio. I said no. They asked me to come down the next day. I did. The phone lines were jammed when I was there, and I was supposed to be on for 15 minutes. Ended up being on for about an hour and a half. And they said, could you come back tomorrow? I said, I have to ask my parents. They're in the minivan outside. So my parents said yes. I came back the next day. And then a week later, I came back again. They hired me a week after that. And the rest, as they say, is history.

[Carol Markowitz]

That is incredible. Incredible.

[Ben Ferguson]

But I didn't. And I never really thought I was going to do this. I actually. So I played tennis in college, and I was convinced I was going to go pro in tennis. Like, that was my. That if you asked me what was my dream, that was my dream. And then in 20. Gosh, what was that? 22,000. No, 2003. HarperCollins and Simon Schuster had reached out about me writing a book. I was doing a lot of TV then. I was still in college, so I didn't play tennis anymore. I wrote a book going my senior. The summer going into my senior year, took a semester off, wrote a book and then went straight to the Bush campaign in 04 and then to D.C. white House, et cetera.

[Carol Markowitz]

I mean, I've heard stories about people starting young, but this is like, really young.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, it was young. It was young. So I laugh now because, man, you're having a good career. And I'm like, I'd hope so. I've been doing it for 40 years. Almost like I feel like I'm ready for a party. So, yeah, I'm like, I'm ready for retirement. Like, I feel like I've been working longer than my adult life, literally.

[Carol Markowitz]

Right. So were your parents political at all?

[Ben Ferguson]

No, like, not at all. Like, I mean, no more than anybody else. Like, it was not like a center point. I mean, it was truly, I would say, God thing that she happened to be listening that day that I was paying attention in the back of the car. And then what I fell in love with was I always love to talk and I like to have an opinion. And radio was the great way for someone younger to have an opinion and be taken seriously based on the words you're saying, not based on your appearance. Because if it was on TV or in person, like, what do you know, kid? Go play with your friends at the playground. But I could have an opinion on the radio and people would actually listen to me and what I was saying and judge me on my words, not based on my looks or appearance of being a kid.

[Carol Markowitz]

So are you still thinking about a second career in tennis?

[Ben Ferguson]

No, I, yeah, I wish. That would be amazing. I, I, I, I've finally given it up. No, I had a lot of friends. I was very blessed that made it onto the pro tour. I got to live vicariously through them for years and, and go to tournaments and watch them. Most of them have now all retired. I've got a couple of friends who's actually one of my friends little brothers is in the semifinals at the Australian Open right now. In doubles, Christian Harrison from, from down in Florida. So if you, it's a really cool story. He had a bunch of surgeries, bunch of injuries and kind of his last chance at it and is now ranked top 10 in the world in double. So like you, I still hold on a little bit to, you know, those types, but most of my friends now are commentators on ESPN or Tennis Channel. So that's when you know you're getting old.

[Carol Markowitz]

Well, I don't know. You know, Buck Sexton had a whole thing where he was going to hit 100 mile an hour tennis ball.

[Ben Ferguson]

I was instrumental in teaching you how to use your legs. And he did it. Yeah, no, he did it exactly right.

[Carol Markowitz]

I think if Buck Sexton can, you know, wake up one day and hit 100 miles, mile an hour tennis ball, I think it's not too late for that tennis career. Not want to get rid of you, you know?

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, exactly.

[Carol Markowitz]

Just you've been. Do you've been doing this a while. You know, when I.

[Ben Ferguson]

Everybody says, like, what are you going to do when you retire? So my, like when, when radio and TV and commentating got so toxic. And I was at CNN at the end. It was when Bush. His first term, excuse me, Trump's first term was going on. I'd been there seven years. I actually just wanted something to get away from the political world. So I love barbecue. I'm from Ms. I started a barbecue restau.

[Carol Markowitz]

Oh, wow. In Tennessee.

[Ben Ferguson]

In Memphis. Yeah. Because if you can't make it in Memphis, you can't make it. Right. That's the best in the world. And so I had a gun range, gun store and a barbecue restaurant all under one roof.

[Carol Markowitz]

So where do you find the time? What is it?

[Ben Ferguson]

It was awesome. And so I had that for. I owned that for four plus years. Sold it last January. But then I opened with one of my best friends, another one called Blue Suede Barbecue in Pinehurst, South Carolina. So it's really cool. North Carolina. Excuse me. So, yeah, it's really. Yeah, I'm still in that. It's just a way food brings people together. And it was a great outlet for me just to not be in such a toxic environment where it was just. It gotten so nasty being at CNN and everybody hating on you and yelling at you every day that you're racist, homophobe, all the name calling, you know how it was.

[Carol Markowitz]

Right.

[Ben Ferguson]

And so that was my outlet. So I look, I don't know.

[Carol Markowitz]

You enjoyed that.

[Ben Ferguson]

I love. Oh, my gosh. There's nothing more fun than cooking for people. Because politics doesn't matter when you cook. It's either good food or bad.

[Carol Markowitz]

I meant you enjoyed being called all those names.

[Ben Ferguson]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly. You have to get numb to it at some point, that's for sure. But there's also just a fatigue. I think it was just such a pressure cooker then. It's better now. Like, you know, you look at Scott Jennings, for example, a good friend of mine, he's now a hero of the right. But when I was there, people were yelling at me, you're fake news.

[Carol Markowitz]

For being on.

[Ben Ferguson]

For being on. And now it's changed where it's like you're a hero for going there and fighting the commies. And so that's nice. I. I tell Scott, I'm like, dude, I warmed it up for you for seven years.

[Carol Markowitz]

You really did.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, I took all the hell. Now you're the hero. Like, I feel like I need a 10% from your career earnings.

[Carol Markowitz]

Now, I think that's fair, really.

[Ben Ferguson]

You're right. Exactly.

[Carol Markowitz]

How did you get into doing a show with Ted Cruz? Were you just natural, like, fit together?

[Ben Ferguson]

No. So he started that show originally with Michael Knowles, who's a good friend over at the Daily Wire, and, and they were doing it once a week. And, and they wanted to expand it and make it, like, kind of bigger, and they needed there to be more days to grow it. And so I was approached and asked about it. I live in Houston. I've known Ted for, gosh, a long time, since he ran for Senate his first time around against David Dewhurst. And so I was doing mornings in Dallas at that time. We got to know each other. I Ice Bucket challenged him, for example, and he accepted. I mean, that's how far back we go. And so, yeah, so I've, I've, I've, I've witnessed him throw a bucket of water that was freezing cold on him. I enjoyed every moment of that. And so we had a meeting and a conversation and they wanted to expand it, and so we talked and it ended up working out where we've been able to do the show three days a week now. It's a, it's a really a big priority of his. We do it on video, which also makes it really fun. And, and now we've got into a radio show where it's syndicated around the country as well on a bunch of. We're on over 200 stations around the country as well on the weekend. So it just kind of grew. I mean, he's one of my best friends. We spend a ton of time together. I mean, five, six hours a week. That's a lot of time.

[Carol Markowitz]

Yeah.

[Ben Ferguson]

And so, yeah, I enjoy every moment of it.

[Carol Markowitz]

Is it specifically on legal topics? Like, I've listened to your, your show, but I have to admit I haven't heard the verdict, even though Ted Cruz has been on this show, which I really, I have to rectify that.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, we, I, you know what? I know a guy. We can probably make that happen. We can work on that. No, it, we talk honestly a lot about politics, but from a very different perspective. Like what's happening in D.C. what's happening in the hearings? What's happen happening in the, in the, at the Republican Senate luncheon that they have every week. What are they talking about with confirmation hearings? It really kind of takes you behind the curtain. It's, I call it the wizard of Oz moment, where instead of hearing, you know, anonymous sources and speculation, you're really getting like the facts. Like we were able to talk about confirmation hearings in a way that no one else was because he's voting on it and he's in the committee and he's like, this one's going to work. Like when they were saying that, you know, Pete Hedge, Seth, for example, may not make it. That was a great example. Cash Patel, he's like, no, he's going to make it. Like, okay. Like, like I had zero worries because he's in the room. He's like, no, he's going to make it. Like, I'm not worried about this one. Let's move on to the next one. You know, and it's cool because we get to have conversations. Like early on we had Elon Musk on for over an hour.

[Carol Markowitz]

Wow.

[Ben Ferguson]

At the White House, in his office, in the eob, at the Doge office, talking about all the corruption he had found. And so that's one of the big perks of it is, you know, when Senator Cruz asks you to come on, you're probably going to say yes. We've gotten to have some really fun and big conversations. Some aren't even political. Like we had Bruce Pearl who's the former basketball coach, as you know, Tennessee and then ended his career at Auburn. And we, he's talking about the nil, but he's also Jewish and he was talking a lot about what's going on in Israel. And so that's one of those really fun episodes that is not, I say it's non political. It's more of a human being having a conversation, talking about what makes someone like that tick.

[Carol Markowitz]

I love human beings having conversations. That's what it's all about. Really.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, it really is.

[Carol Markowitz]

We're going to take a quick break and be right back on the Carol Markowitz Show. What are you most proud of in your life?

[Ben Ferguson]

I mean, no doubt. My boys.

[Carol Markowitz]

How old?

[Ben Ferguson]

I've got three boys. I've got a nine year old and twins that are six, about to be seven. And they're the most fun. I mean I, I love what I do. I absolutely love being a dad. It's, it is no doubt, I would say my number one priority. I've said no to some really cool things. Not thought twice about saying no to spend time with them. I think in life it's funny, I have friends or dads, you either love it and embrace it or you kind of don't. I don't see a lot of in between. And like I wanted to be a dad. I had, I was Lucky. I grew up with a dad that loved being a dad as well and was very present. And so that was kind of my goal is to be the same thing. And they love sports, so that also makes it really easy to spend time together. Like, one of my sons has been ranked as high as second in the world in golf, and my six year old is ranked seventh in the world right now.

[Carol Markowitz]

In golf.

[Ben Ferguson]

In golf, yeah.

[Carol Markowitz]

Wow.

[Ben Ferguson]

And so they're kind of, they're kind of freaks. They. They beat their dad legitimately. It's very annoying to hear your 6 year old and 9 year old trash talk you. And they can back it up, but it's fun to watch. So I get to caddy for them. They get to go to tournaments all over the country. They get invited to go to tournaments all over the world. We just don't travel internationally yet because they're nine and six and that's insane to me. But it's cool they get invited. So, yeah, they get free stuff sent to her house. So, like, I try to steal some of their golf balls that get sent and things like that, which is pretty fun.

[Carol Markowitz]

Awesome. That is so cool. Do you show videos of Ben Ferguson, owns Libs on cnn?

[Ben Ferguson]

Like, you know, it's funny.

[Carol Markowitz]

Respect, you know, Right?

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, no, it's funny. What they care about is hilarious. Like, they'll watch sometimes for like three or four minutes and then they're done. They move on. But there's like little things that are fun. So my, my oldest, he got sponsored by Adidas. And that was like a full circle moment because I was sponsored by Adidas for like, I don't know, four or five years.

[Carol Markowitz]

Crazy. These young kids sponsored by Adidas. You have a radio show when you're 12. Like, I know, like, such a loser.

[Ben Ferguson]

Please start him young. But, like, that was a moment where I told my son, I was like, look, I'm not going to pull any strings. You got to earn it. Whatever comes, comes. And so the, the guy with Adidas was like, hey, we'd love to, you know, help him with shoes and, and gear.

[Carol Markowitz]

So cool.

[Ben Ferguson]

And I was like, all right, well, now that you're asking. And then I sent him a picture of me at a national tournament with my coaches all wearing Ardida stuff from, you know, 30 years ago. And that was a cool moment. Like when things like that, like, like, I do think the cool thing is they have, they, they work really hard and they love it. And that's kind of when you see that DNA. Like, I, I had to work extremely Hard to play college tennis and put in ridiculous hours. I wasn't fast. I always have struggled with my weight and so like I've had to like, I just had to work really hard on speed and agility to even like hang and, and it's fun to see them not struggle with as many things and just get to watch them perform. So it's pretty awesome.

[Carol Markowitz]

That's awesome. Really, really cool. Give us a five year out prediction. Could be about anything at all.

[Ben Ferguson]

I think AI is going to change the world. I think five years from now, for.

[Carol Markowitz]

The better or for the worse.

[Ben Ferguson]

I think probably for the better. I think there's going to be growing pains of job sectors where jobs are lost, but there's always been that. I mean manufacturing is a great example of that and different things that have changed in this country. I'm not afraid of it. I think you embrace it and I think there's always going to. You're still going to need human beings. But I do think I'm still amazed by this stupid thing in my hand. We're all walking around with a super computer in our hands. Just insane to me. Like the amount of knowledge that we have, the amount of information that we have for me is just like, I'm still in awe. I think we take it for granted like what you have in your hand and like. So I think AI is going to just fundamentally change things. I think it's going to do amazing work in the medical field. I was talking to a CEO the other day. He said he believes AI will save more lives than all doctors in history combined.

[Carol Markowitz]

Wow.

[Ben Ferguson]

And he said because what AI can connect dots and can connect symptoms and connect family histories and tell you what to look for. He said when we get it down where we can basically load in your medical history, your family's medical history, your blood work and different things that have happened and be able to see what you're at risk of and then what these doctors can really look for. He was saying it's going to totally revolutionize medicine. He also thinks we'll be able to cure cancer and things like that because of AI and things that we may not have even seen are different treatments that can work and how fast it can help people around the world. So I, I think probably five years from now I am, I'm optimistic. Every, every technology has always been used for evil too. I'm a realist in that I don't think you stop technology or stop learning because of fear. I think you're going to have limitations. I think there's going to be bad things that happen because of I, no doubt about it. But I also think the upside of it, I think there's more good people in the world than bad. That's part of, like, I have faith in humanity that we're going to be okay.

[Carol Markowitz]

I love that. Ben, this has been so much fun. I have loved getting to know you more. Really one of my favorite episodes because, wow, did I not know enough about you before this started?

[Ben Ferguson]

You're sweet. Thank you for having me on. I was so excited.

[Carol Markowitz]

Leave us here with your best tip for my listeners on how they can.

[Ben Ferguson]

Improve their lives if Spend time with your friends and with your family. Put this stupid thing down. That supercomputer down. It makes me so sad to see how many lives have been ruined in families and relationships because you go out to dinner and you see four people at the table doing this.

[Carol Markowitz]

The worst.

[Ben Ferguson]

Yeah, I hate it. I one of my favorite things, I challenge people to do this. So you see how addicted you are to your phone is go to dinner with your friends and everybody put their phone in the middle of the table and the first person to look at their phone has to pay for dinner. And you will realize how addicted you are to checking the buzz and the ping and the ding and how unpresent you are with your friends and with your family. Like, I would challenge people to do that. I think, you know, for me, just being present and spending time with your family and your friends, you don't know when it's over. I've lost a couple of friends to suicide, unfortunately. Dear friends. One of them was my college roommate. One was one of my dear friends that was, it was a, it was a public case. He was a PGA Tour golfer. He's a dear friend of mine, Grayson Murray, that took his own life a little over a year now. And I, well, thank you, but I, I, I, I challenge people to not take your kids for granted, not take your friends for granted. Ask them the tough questions, how are you doing? And mean it when you ask it. Be, be cheerleaders for your people. Show up for your people. I, I try to be really present with my kids. I try to spend quality time with them. But, like, put the phone down and I, I, look, I work on my phone. My phone's my office. And, and sometimes I have to remind myself. But I think this thing ruins people's, it ruins great conversations and it ruins getting to know a human being as a human being. So my biggest challenge to people is spend quality time with your kids. You only get them for a couple years and check on your family and your friends because if they're struggling and hurting right now, a lot of people keep it internally and that can turn into terrible things. So check on them.

[Carol Markowitz]

Such good advice. Thank you so much. He is Ben Ferguson. Check out the Ben Ferguson podcast. Thank you. Thank you so much for coming on. Ben.

[Ben Ferguson]

Thanks for having me. Good to see you.

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[Ben Ferguson]

This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.