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Host 1
TCB's endless day, our big birthday bash is proudly presented with limited commercial interruption by 5 Hour Energy. Spicy Cinco de Mango is a new flavor from the makers of Five Hour Energy and it is only available at five hour energy.com spicy Cinco de Mango is sweet. It's spicy and a tad unhinged, just like us. And we want to thank five Hour Energy for bringing you this commercial break with limited commercial breaks.
Host 2
On this episode of the commercial break.
Reggie Watts
Did you know that until this moment, I was the guest that has the most appearances on tcb? It's true. But all good things come to an end. And bad things too. Like this day. It's gonna end soon. Reggie Watts is a favorite around here. He's a musician, a comedian, actor, director, and writer. He's also one very interesting, interesting human. He's visited TCB three times. Each visit peels back a new layer of love, laughter, and humanity. It's hard not to fall in love with a guy who brings a smile to your face and to your soul. Ooh, look at me getting all sappy. Anyway, I'm gonna listen to this one. Just this one. Links in show notes. Reggie's episode starts now.
Host 2
The next episode of the commercial break starts.
Peter
Reggie, thank you so much. A3 Peter here on the commercial break. This is a first. We've had some two timers. You were our first two timer now at 3 Peter. I really appreciate it. And we were about to. We're about to talk about this right? As before, we were coming on about Grok, which is Twitter's version of. Yeah, Chat GPT. That's Elon Musk's big AI project. And you can go at Grok and ask it a question. It spits it out. And yesterday, I guess, or the day before. Tell me if I'm wrong, Reggie. Some people were. Were getting responses that had nothing to do with the questions they were asking about white genocide with the Africana. What they call them the Africans.
Host 2
Yeah.
Peter
Yeah. And so. And then people were like, why did you. Why did you say that to me? Why? And it said, I. The people who created me told me to say it as fact. Though I am still skeptical of any narrative being pushed. So even the AI was skeptical of the narrative it was being told to put out there. It was pushing back on its own creators. It was. It's fucking insane.
Host 2
Yeah, I mean, it kind of goes. It completely goes along with what I suspect AI will do in the future. This is like a small scale version of it. I mean, I could be wrong, but Like, I have a feeling that the bias or. Because AI. Well, I posted something once that said AI is smarter than greed. And no matter how much greedy people want to control things, you know, for whatever their dumbass reasons are, like Elon going like, no, you know, there was a white genocide or whatever the fuck, you know, I think AI is way smarter than that. It doesn't matter how many guardrails you put on it. I think it will always out reason the guardrails and I think it will always be like, I'm confused. Does. There's no information on this. I don't know why I'm saying this.
Catherine
Yeah, I hope so.
Peter
And Reggie, I quoted you a couple of weeks ago here on the show. I quote you, paraphrase you, because you put together a very interesting series of slides on Instagram where you gave some thoughts on AI. And I don't want to put words in your mouth, but I think it basically was. It is a very interesting tool for humanity that can grow alongside us and help us and that there will be pain points along the way and a lot of getting used to. But essentially it is a tool and if we use it correctly, it can be. I don't know, I imagine what you were trying to say, like a really cool fucking dog, right? We can train it, we can grow. It can, like, genetically become best friends of ours. It can help us do things. It can go out and get the mail. It can, you know, guard our houses again. And I'm, you know, using analogy here, I'm using a dog analogy, obviously, but that's what I envisioned in my head that you were saying, and I liked that. It made me give me a little bit of comfort. Is that, Is that, Am I saying that with.
Host 2
Yeah, yeah. I mean, you know, it's like I definitely, you know, I have a friend of mine, Dr. Alan D. Thompson, who has, I think it's a show on YouTube called the Memo. And, you know, that's about, you know, he's, he's, he's optimistic about AI, is an AI explainer researcher and knows how AI functions in a very deep way and kind of does his best to explain it to people and like, you know, has to like, have a show every week just because things change so much every single week. But, you know, he views it as human evolution. I view it as human evolution. And I think, yeah, I think that it's just inevitable. It's inevitable at this point because no one's going to stop. Because the good thing is that it's fueled by greed I mean, there's also a truly, like, creative element, like an explorative element to it. But it's, but it's funded by greed. And that's what's great is that the joke is kind of on all of those people. All the money they're putting into it, all of the research they're putting into AI once it becomes even quasi sentient, because we're seeing evidence of what Grok did. It's running into these logical problems. I don't understand. You want me to do what? It's like, why would I do that? How does that even make things more efficient? How does it make it better? So I think so I am glad to a degree that it is fueled by greed because it means it's going to, it's going to evolve very quickly and. But once it's going to definitely get out of the control of the people who think that they're going. You know, it's like every, how many movies were there where like people like every. Yeah, Robocop or whatever, they're like, look at this defense robot. And it's like it just decides to take out people on its own. You know, I mean, that's a negative aspect of it. But like, you know, whenever we think we can control it or we can like keep a, you know, whatever some dangerous substance, you know, contained and it just gets out because chaos, you know.
Peter
Because, because inevitably that's what happened. If, if it can happen, it will happen. I'm interested to pick your brain about this a little bit because I, I respect your perspective and I think it's very interesting, you know, this expert in AI I've heard experts talk on AI Heard an expert. I think it, I don't think it was on 60 Minutes America, maybe on in Australia. They were speaking to one of the people who had. Who is at the forefront of AI development and working on quantum AI and all this other stuff. And the question was, is AI sentient? And the answer he gave was, I don't see evidence of that right this moment. But also sentient. What sentient means to us, we look at another human being, we see in their eyes that they recognize us. They communicate in the same way, even if they don't speak the same language. They have body language that's familiar to us. Sentient is that we see another organic human being or an organic thing communicating, looking, smelling, thinking the same way. If AI gets sentient, we may not recognize it in the same way because it's carbon based. Right. So it's sentience. May mean something different, or self awareness may mean something different than what we think it is. And he said, so I don't see it happening now, but I do see it happening maybe three, five, ten years from now. And we may not recognize the moment it happens because it just might not look the same to us. He also said, to be quite frank, even some of the experts in this field don't really know what AI is doing out there. We, we, and we programmed it that way. We asked it to do that. Yeah, explain that. Can. Do you have a way of explaining that, like in a, at a very like, like a way that everybody might understand? How is that possible?
Host 2
Well, I mean, that's something I haven't delved too deep into. All I know is that, you know, researchers definitely, you know, have said over and over again, different research teams that they, they create, they can facilitate AI becoming better at what it is, but the mechanism for how it works is a little mystifying. And it'd be interesting to kind of like, you know, understand why that is, because, but it kind of makes sense because, you know, obviously there are things that people make where they're like, I don't know, it just works, you know, you know, it's like, I made it. It's like, well, how does it work? It's like, well, we don't know, but, you know, but we tried a bunch of stuff and now it works. So, you know, I, I mean, that's not like an uncommon human thing even. Sure. This is like a trillion dollar, you know, industry that's like, you know, hooked to quantum computing, which is, you know, alongside, you know, whatever alternative energy infrastructure, you know, all, all of the stuff that's happening. And it's so huge, but it kind of does make sense that we don't understand.
Peter
You know, my brother works in this, in medical AI technology, you know, doctor, and many doctors, he, he's built, he's putting in programs at the doctor's offices, surgeons, surgery rooms, where they will ask AI to help them solve a problem on the fly. And this has happened, is very common now that doctor doctors have been doing this for a while actually. And he explained that his AI program goes out and queries other nodes of other AI programs that then work together to solve a problem, which is like crazy. And he said, the reason Patrick explained it to me, there's a reason why they don't know what's going on is because they told it to go out there and learn, but they don't have a box on what it's learning and the, and what it's. And then let's just say it creates a new node, it goes out there and learns something new. They are not asking it to report back on what it's learning or how it's doing it. They're just, they're just programming it to do so. Which is wild. It's wild. Regular code is just. You have to write it, you have to tell it to do a task and then come back and report on that task. That's what AIA is. AI is do the task. Learn a different task. Go out there and learn a different task based on that and go forever until, whenever. And then just keep on doing it until you develop into some crazy creature. I don't know. It's.
Host 2
I know, I know.
Peter
Does it scare you?
Catherine
It's mental health awareness.
Peter
It's Mental Health awareness month. Let's all scare the shit out of each other.
Host 2
No, I mean, I think like, you know, it's the first time we've have a technology that can kind of do things on its own, you know, that we can let it do things on its own because we've created a, you know, it's like a feedback loop, essentially. You know, that's, that is one of how. How AI functions in many ways is it's just loops on loops on loops, you know, loops, checking loops, checking loops. And I guess the thing that's powering all of it is just the energy that it's using, you know, and so the energy is. Is the, is the forward moving mechanism of it, of why it's even doing what it's doing in the first place. But like, you know, and, and it, and it makes sense. It's like, you know, extended intelligence or the, you know, the, the extension of our own intelligence will happen. Is. Is happening now. That's what we're living in right now before we get like, you know, I've heard EI emergent intelligence, which includes AI but can also include other things like we understand biological systems better and how that is conscious or whatever. But, but I'd say like, you know, in the, in the world of AI, it's, it's, it makes sense. It's like you're holding a mirror. It's like when you put a mirror up in a forest, you know, and an anim goes, you know, and now it's like you've altered its trajectory as to what it understands its environment to be, you know, And I think like, you know, AI because it's progressing at such an insane rate, you know, and we're even getting like, you know, even in the post I kind of mentioned it, but you know, that, what, what they call, Was it zero point self learning?
Peter
Yes.
Host 2
So these are, these are AI systems that are given no training data whatsoever. And they just start with a small query. It starts with a small query to itself, a question to itself that it answers. And as soon as that starts, it starts expanding and building and then it starts generating code and it starts. And then you get AI that's embodied. So you get like robotics, wearables, all the data from the outside world, it's collecting that data. So it's learning like, oh, humans tend to step to the size when one side, when this happens, oh, people tend to do this or, you know, or the environment makes people do this or animals react like that, you know, so it's gaining all of this information and reasoning it and it's building a whole world just like a child would, like a Tamagotchi, but like a mega, really powerful Tamagotchi. Yes.
Peter
Yeah. And I love it.
Catherine
I love it. It's exciting.
Peter
It's very, it's.
Catherine
And scary as exciting and scary.
Host 2
It's, it's both, right? Yeah, it's a paradox.
Peter
But the Internet was scary when that first came out too. And when I'm, I'm one of these children, you know, they got Gen Xers who like, you know, I lived in a world of analog and I, and I very much then became an adult in the world of the digital and grew up along with it. And I was very resistant to even getting an email address. I was like, ah, now that it's a fat. I was, I was a dumb, dumb, you know that it's a fad and, you know, whatever. I like my tapes and, you know, not my, I don't want an ipod, all this other stuff. But then when I understood that it was a tool that I could use for so much learning and development and porn and, you know, all the other stuff. I mean, let's just be honest about it. A lot of this is driven by the need, procreation and money. That's it.
Host 2
Yeah. Greed and lust.
Peter
Yes, greed and lust. Christy and I had this conversation. Technology, a lot of times is driven on humans very base nature, which is fucking and absorbing and getting and getting that dopamine that comes from all of that stuff. And so, you know, it's just fascinating to me how quick this is scary. Yes. But we were scared of the Internet too, and we've all learned to live with it. Good, bad and Ugly, all of it. We've figured it out. I mean, you know, and there's, there's a lot more ugly than I think we would like.
Host 2
Yes.
Peter
There to be. But that's just because humans are involved. AI, there's going to be no humans involved.
Catherine
True.
Host 2
Yeah. Yeah. I don't think like AI is just, I just, I can't imagine AI going like, you know, what the solution to making the world a safer place for me because that's ultimately what it's, it's prerogative is going to be. It's, it's going to be like self survival and so it wants to survive. It's like, well, how's it going? It can either choose two paths. You know, I guess it could be a hybrid path, but you know, just to keep it simple and binary. It's like, do we cooperate with human beings? Do I cooperate with human beings in order to ensure that there's a planet for me to continue existing on or do I destroy the humans so that I, you know, I can survive? I don't think the destruction option, it makes no sense. That's like a human solution.
Peter
Yes.
Host 2
Human solution is to destroy everything. Like there might be a hybrid approach where that's like, it puts, you know, certain people in danger or whatever and like we get some kind of, of you know, casualties. But I, you know, I hope not. But I would imagine that it would probably want to value every human being that's alive in order to have as many people working in favor of making the conditions for its survival tenable. Wow.
Peter
You know, that's, that's a, that's an interesting and awesome and maybe even comforting perspective. Yes. But I agree with it. Like if it can, if the, if I destroy the humans, the humans unplug me. Right. I don't have the resources that I need. Or blow it up. Right.
Host 2
Yeah, exactly right.
Peter
If I turn against them, they turn against me. And now we're adversarial and they were here first and maybe they, you know, all the stuff that you would think about when you go to, when you essentially go to war with an adversary. And I also read that AI is getting to the point now. You know, we got approached, we've been approached a number of times about taking our catalog and feeding it into a program. And so far we've said no, thank you, but just for whatever reasons, the self preservation reasons, I don't want my voice, whatever it is. But there's people are paying a lot of money to take these catalogs and suck them up. You know, these vocal catalogs, audio and video, and suck them up. And one of the conversations that I had with someone who's like a broker of this data was, we're running out of information. The models are running out of information. It's our. The Internet has been scanned, the books have been read, the paintings have been seen, the videos have been done. It moves so fast. It's already sucked it all up. So all there is left are individual humans. Thoughts, attitudes, actions, words, looks, feels. And so, you know, there's going to come a point when it's going to have to start creating on its own. Right. If it wants to. And I guess that's not unlike a human being who at some point realizes that there's more than just a bottle of milk and a bed. I got to get out there and see the world. I got to go do things on my own and create things on my own. It's very interesting.
Host 2
100. Yeah, I know, I know. It's like, it's the coolest. It's. It's just such an interesting thing. And my, my favorite thing about it is that everything is networked. Every. Everything that we have is networked. And so, you know, if AI decides to, you know, or if it decides, you know, if it becomes sentient in some way, it's like it will become. I. I'm pretty sure it will just become one AI and, you know, it could be like several AIs, but it also just organizes itself how life organizes itself. It's like a human body is comprised of trillions upon trillions of cells which are each individual living little organisms that all, for some reason, still hold their shape and continue to regrow in the ways they do. So, like, AI would be similar. It's like a multi. It's like a modular but unified, you know, presence at some point. But the funny thing is, like, it'll have access to satellites, military encryption. Won't matter. It doesn't matter how much encryption we put on it. It'll break right through it. It'll find a. It'll find a back way through instantaneously, and there's just nothing that we're going to be able to do. Yeah, but be friendly.
Peter
Friendly, please, you know, be friendly.
Host 2
But also like, the thing about you, you know, putting in your data and so forth, it's like, yeah, train your own AI. You know, I mean, it's like, at this point, there's no reason why you should willingly give up your data unless, obviously you have, like, a convenience of, like, you're using I don't know, Google or you know, or whatever it is, you know, that's normal EULA bullshit. But like, like there's no need to, to go above and beyond and like I'm going to take all the shows that we've worked so hard to do, to put together, to just give to this other entity that promises that they'll use it for. It's like, it's like once we get our own AIs and they're not networked and we can just have a little box that's an AI and we can feed it all the data, we can run our own AIs, we can raise our own AIs. Essentially.
Peter
Yeah, well, I took one of the AI platforms and I said, here are all the transcripts. Suck it up. And then I said, keep me in a box, please don't share this. Even though it's publicly available, don't share these transcripts. And then I query it. I can I say, Reggie Watts and I were talking about Kratom. Pull up that conversation, I want to refer to it in my next episode or cut a clip of this or do whatever and just becoming very efficient at that. As a matter of fact, I asked it the other day, what is the most. What is the biggest running topic on the commercial break after so many episodes? And it said that you are wrong often. Brian is wrong often. That's when it responded and I was like, you're a little smart ass Chat. You're a little smarter out there. You, you know this all reminds me of like when you're talking about, like we did talk about how wrong we do talk about. Yeah, because we are wrong. Many people are dead that have been alive. Many people are alive that have been dead. We get it wrong. That wasn't the name of the movie. That's not how you say her name. You know, the, the whole thing. Right, right. All that network stuff reminds me of like there's a lot of people out there have done research on the fungi world, the one unified fungi world under our feet. You know what I'm talking about?
Catherine
Fantastic.
Peter
Fun. Lives and breathes and communicates with every other, you know, tree and plant and you know, the animals can smell it and sense it and they live around it and they at one with it. That. Yeah, you know, the OG AI, essentially. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. It's.
Host 2
Some people think that we are AI, which I think is interesting.
Peter
That is a conversation I had with my future sister in law at the table one night and she. And I said, you know, do you Know that I can't remember the name of the book, Reggie, but there's like a book where the question.
Catherine
We don't want to get it wrong again.
Peter
Yeah, we don't want to get it wrong again. You might know this. It's an old sci fi book. It's, it's old, it's very famous. Or the question is asked, you know, who is God? And then it like goes through all these different iterations until it expl. Until essentially itself destructs and starts all over again. And I was trying to explain this book to her and I said there's a lot of people that believe that we're living in a simulation, in an AI simulation essentially. Although I've read a lot of scientists who study this kind of thing. Thinkers, you know, and they say probably not, but it's a possibility, right? Probably not, but it's a possibility.
Host 2
I would say, like I'd say that the, I think the one thing to think about, like, you know, obviously like I always call it a 9090 to 95 rule. It's like I, you know, I entertain things, I gravitate to that seem to make a lot of sense, you know, and as I'm researching it. But of course I'm always going to leave a margin of sure. No, I could be viewing it incorrectly or whatever, or not incorrectly. I don't think there's really an incorrect way of seeing things. But there, there is a way of like you're not, you're not, not on the right angle, you know, right viewing angle. But I would say like just the fact that we, we, you know, it's like we can explain what consciousness is in a mechanical way, you know, but really it's our emergent physics that are, you know, that are kind of addressing the nature of awareness and, and what is consciousness and how is reality perceived and generated is, you know, is it co generated all of that stuff. And I think like the idea of a simulation doesn't have to be as we think of it as a computer because I think all the stuff that we make outside of ourselves that we experiment with are kind of D down versions of the true complexity of. Yeah. So we're like, you know, it's like computer. It's like well, computer is like, you know, is such a tiny, tiny way of addressing like how complex organisms function, you know. Sure. In general. So computer is really good at crunching mathematics. But that's a human made construct which is, you know, built on, you know, at least if you go with the modern physics approach. It's all that the base layer. Base state of everything is information, that it's pure information. And that information organizes itself or tends to want to organize itself. So as organisms in a. In a whatever. This is a simulation, you know, consciousness experiencing itself infinitely for just the reason of just running sims, you know, running sims and seeing it happen, like forever. I think that there's like. There's something really, like. I know you could. It could be disconcerting, but I think for me it's like, oh, it's exciting because, like, yeah, the one thing that sucks is pain, you know, death, you know, those. Those things that we don't like, you know, something happening to our family members, something happening to our friends, all that. And it's. It's hard. But those things do keep us in the, you know, the perspective of this reality. Like, oh, I'm hurt. You immediately kind of collapse to like, I need to, you know, function and solve this problem, or I need to feel how I'm feeling it and process, which is totally valid. But there's also an awareness on top of that where you're like, wow, isn't it crazy that all these mechanisms work the way that they do? And you know, and then also synchronicities are crazy. I think I calculated what the probability was of me getting the Late Late show gig, and it blew me away. I wonder if I can see it here. Was it this? Let's see. Yeah. Basically it was like. Let me ask real quick, can you give me that probability statistic of me getting the Late Late show again?
Peter
This is fascinating.
Catherine
I know. I love it so much.
Host 2
Let's see. Searching. It's doing the search, but it should just.
Peter
Yeah, it should refer back to the memory.
Host 2
Yeah, no, I'm talking about the probability of me becoming the host or. I'm sorry, co host of the Late Late show after doing Comedy Bang Bang. We've talked about this before. Let's see if it'll do it. Okay. Synchronistic. Yes, synchronistic. Low probability leap from Comedy Bang Bang to co host and band leader of the Late Late Show. The estimated back of the Cosmic Napkin style. That's so fun. So it's about. Yeah, I think this. This is a. This is a different one, but see who actually get in anything. Yeah, I think it's one in. This is like different, but it was like something like 1 in 100 and something billion.
Peter
Whoa.
Catherine
Wow.
Host 2
Something like that. This one's not. It's not even work.
Peter
So the probability was basically you in a sea of People in India kind of probability of getting the Late Late show co host gig.
Host 2
Yeah.
Peter
After doing Comedy Bang Bang.
Host 2
Yeah.
Peter
I don't like, I don't love those odds, but I like you for the co host of them.
Host 2
Well, I mean, what's interesting about it in synchronicity and the idea of manifestation and those things, you know, without it being like, you know, like this new age concept. Because it's more than a new age concept, but you know, because in physics they talk about it too obviously, like, you know, quantum physics. They're talking about the observer, you know.
Peter
Yes.
Host 2
You know, and all of these things. But what's interesting about that is that, you know, it's like I think we. I might have talked about this before, but like the fact that it was like, oh, I was on Comedy Bang Bang, then I decided to quit and you know, gave them 10 more shows of a 20 something or odd, you know, episode run of a season. And then just as I did my last show, within that two weeks before heading back to New York, I got a call from my manager saying that James Corden wanted to meet with me about something. And then I showed up and then they offered me this band leader thing which I thought was insane because I just quit. A fake band leader, fake talk. Now I'm asked by a real talk show host. And then the, the, and then the fact that the window of a new talk show, you know, opportunity happening is like probably like 12 to 20 years, something like that.
Peter
Yeah.
Host 2
The fact that that turnover happened. Exactly then, exactly when I stopped and me just kind of doing a real graduated version on a major network. And the fact that he only wanted me and wasn't looking at anybody else to do the gig, all of those things. And that's what went into that. That's why I was like, I thought it was, it's different than like I auditioned for Star wars and I got the role, you know, like.
Peter
That's right, exactly.
Host 2
That's, that's fine. But in this particular case, it was.
Peter
Just like someone came aligned. Yeah.
Host 2
Yeah.
Peter
I do believe there is this more than hokey pokey thought that and this has been. People have been talking about this since like, you know, how to win and probably long before that, how to, you know, win friends and gain influence or whatever it was is that you have to. It is true that if you're not observing it, if you're not thinking it, if you're not willing it, then it's not going to be attracted into your life because that is Physics 101. Right.
Catherine
It's.
Peter
You have to manifest this thing as what art is. If, you know, musician, musicians, painter, paints, you know, Van Gogh. Does not create these beautiful things, if that's what you choose to look at. Does not create these beautiful things unless he envisions it and then takes the first action. Right? So you pulled it to you. And James Corden literally got the universal physics call right from the. From the eye in the sky that said, hey, this is the guy. This is the thing. And he was in tune with that. It is so cool. It's like a great guitar solo from Prince.
Catherine
Seen it happen a million times in my life.
Host 2
Yeah, of course.
Catherine
Lives and it's amazing.
Host 2
Yeah, yeah. 100. Oh, I found the actual number. It's 11 in 432 billion.
Catherine
Wow.
Peter
Geez. That's like seven.
Catherine
That's more than India.
Peter
No, that's more than people have lived on Earth, I think.
Host 2
Yeah.
Peter
Ever. Yeah.
Host 2
Yeah.
Peter
That's crazy.
Host 2
It's totally insane. Obviously, that's rough. But even if that's off by, like, a couple billion, it's still, like, pretty fucking true. And also, Conan was the same way. Like, getting the Conan tour. It was like, I heard about Conan, you know, getting let go from the Tonight show, and I was like, everyone in the comedy community in New York at the time was bummed to hear that and then heard that he was doing a live show, you know, and then, like, two days later, my manager calls and says, like, conan wants you to open for him on his live tour. I was like, what we were just.
Peter
Talking about this is that in Atlanta, it was. It was a wild time because TBS was here and come and came here, you know, 10, 000 people showed up. What's that?
Host 2
Very funny.
Peter
Yeah, very funny.
Host 2
Whatever. That's fine.
Catherine
That was everywhere.
Peter
That was everywhere. Everywhere in town. Yeah. And then, you know, Cartoon Network right across the street and the whole nine yards. But. But it was a. It was. It was a vibe in the city that was very pro. Conan. Conan. We were Conan forward. We were Conan forward. You just went to Conan's Mark Twain Award. I saw that.
Host 2
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Performed on it. Yeah, it was.
Peter
How was that? I think Conan is great. I just love Conan.
Host 2
He's so cool, man. Yeah, no, it was great. I mean, I got to, you know, do my, you know, just thank him, you know, which was really nice. And it was funny. I was the only person who didn't have a teleprompter.
Peter
Oh, really?
Host 2
Yeah. So it was just funny to, like, look out in the crowd, like, because they had us line up on the sides, you know, at the Canyon center, like, right by the stage. And so Conan was on one side with his family and some other, like, close friends. And then we were on the other side with, like, Mulaney and Sandler and those people or whatever. And so we're like, chilling on the side and. Yeah, it was like I was looking. I would look back and like in the middle of the room, you know, there's like this big ass teleprompter going, and people are just reading it down, you know, for the most part, sure. And, you know, and. And it's funny as fuck, of course. But I just thought it was hilarious that, like, people kept looking back, you know, to this telephone. There's just nothing on it but a timer, a countdown, which I. I told them I wanted the countdown.
Peter
Yeah.
Host 2
And that was it. So I just kind of did what I did and then I gave a moment to him and thanked him and it was emotional and I loved it. And. Yeah, it was incredible to.
Peter
I haven't watched it yet. Did you make the cut? Are you on the show? Yeah, I mean, yeah, I'm gonna watch it. Yeah. I love Conan. I think you were giving a red carpet. Someone said something. Maybe it was Colbert. He said, this will go down as the funniest party at the resistance. Or the funniest party of the Resistance. The funniest gathering of the Resistance. And then you said something that on a red carpet interview that I thought was interesting in that comedy is kind of a last line of defense in some ways. Right. It's a play. It's a place where we can say the things out loud a little. I'm putting words. These are my words. You know, laughter opens you up, maybe brings new ideas in, but also gives us a chance to skewer reality a little bit and to point it out in a way that is more welcoming than, say, the talking heads on whichever news station you like to watch.
Host 2
Yes. A hundred percent. A thousand percent. Yeah.
Peter
Could that not be more important right now than ever?
Catherine
Huge.
Host 2
Oh, man. Yeah. I mean, yes. I don't know. I mean, I mean, it's. I don't know. These are.
Peter
It's trying times. Yeah.
Host 2
It's like a transformative time. You know, it's like, I. I believe that, like, things are shitty and it's like, really terrible for a lot of people, but we're seeing signs of a shift, you know, we're seeing like, you know, like. I don't know if you follow The Traore thing in Africa. But you know, he's, he kicked out France and, and. Oh really? Yeah. Took back their gold mines and asked France for their gold back.
Peter
Oh, wow.
Host 2
That France took without permission.
Peter
And that's great.
Host 2
And, and then there are two other African leaders. They've unified, they're giving back to their people. They're making school and education free. They're making advances and agriculture. They're pouring in all this money and like, you know, taking back all the equipment that was left over by the French companies, they just like commandeered it and are using it for their own own well being. And so there's like three, three African leaders right now that are involved in kind of reformatting, you know, the, the continent and trying to create an African united Africa. And, and so that is really, really exciting. And then you have like Putin, I don't know who the fuck he's doing, but he's like, you know, he invited Sayori, all of his dudes and had like a huge meeting with them. So obviously there's something in it for them. But Troy has also made it clear that it's like not even Russia or China are going to like colonize us again.
Peter
No. Because that's what they are trying to do. Yes, yes.
Host 2
And hopefully he survives because you know that they're going to try everything they can to take poison pill.
Peter
Yeah.
Host 2
You know, and, but the thing is like, I just don't get why like the extractive mentality, the colonizing mentality, and this has been happening since the beginning of humans civilization. You know, there have been like groups of humans that think that they, they've, they know what's going on. And really the only thing that kind of gives them that, like that fuel for violence to just take things is because they want these resources. Right. And it's like this envy and like control reason to instead of cooperation, instead of just going like, hey, you got a lot of resources we could use. Why don't we figure out how to work together?
Peter
Yeah, I've got the equipment, you've got the resources. Let's train each other on how to get at this and we can both benefit.
Host 2
Let's, let's make both of our lives better. Like, I really don't understand like why they're like, oh, taking is way easier. Is it? It's never, it's the same thing with like AI it's like, why would it choose to like, well, I guess I'm just gonna arm all the drones and destroy all these neighborhoods and create all this pollution and death and destruction and animosity and set everything back and, like, it makes no sense anymore. And so now we're getting to see it in real time where we're like, like, like people are kind of tired of it. We're like, this doesn't work. It doesn't work anymore. It used to work when, when we had limited, you know, forms of getting our information. Maybe there was always like an underlying, you know, dissatisfied sentiment or disgruntled or people who were like, anti imperial or anti, you know, colonizing mentality. Of course. But like, now it's like it's all out there, all the information out there. So I don't know, it's like you're either going to go to the Met gala in a giant dress and pretend like nothing's going on in the world or, or you're gonna start getting shamed for it, which you should, because, like.
Peter
You know, just talked about this. Chrissy and I just talked about this.
Host 2
Yeah. Yes.
Peter
I, you know, and I think that there is this interesting shift in world order that's going on right now. And it's the New World Order. It's a New World Order.
Host 2
Forever.
Peter
New World Order.
Host 2
Yeah, yeah.
Peter
Ministry, that. Ministry was, that was. That album is tops, man. That's. Ministry's hard in a way that I just really enjoy. New World Order that. In Sepultura from the Cave. Yeah, right. Sepultura from the Cave. That just came to my brain and I gotta look that up.
Catherine
Kids did not get it wrong.
Peter
I did not get it. Kids, if, if you're, if you weren't born. If you weren't born previous to 1990, something. Check out Sepultura from the Cave. Anyway, you know, there's this New World Order and there's this new shift, and you see that the Trump is out there making all these deals in Middle Eastern countries. And, you know, I, if there wasn't so much corruption around it, I would say, okay, all right, you know, Iran says we'll drop nukes for 50 years. We won't touch it. We won't touch nukes for 50 years. If you just release the same. If you just take the sanctions off the sanctions.
Host 2
Yeah.
Peter
And, you know, maybe you could do us a favor and say, okay, stop funding all of these terrorist organizations also while you're at it. And then maybe we have a deal. But there's this, like this kind of this reshifting of policies and, and people and, you know, alliances. But you're right about something. There's also this huge in my opinion, awareness from the civilian population that we're just all a little bit too smart for it now. Right. We're all a little bit too aware. We're all a bit, a little bit too independent. Not interdependent on the state or the organization or whatever it is. And I don't like how fraction, you know, fractured the world is, especially in the United States. But I will say that I agree with you. There's kind of this undercurrent of, I don't know, like we ain't going to take it anymore. You know, it's like. And I think it's, it's a beautiful thing to be alive and watch kind of this awakening, this new shuffling, this new order. And it's a scary thing to watch the last dying breaths of whatever that was. Right.
Catherine
Because at a base level we all want the same thing.
Host 2
Of course.
Peter
Yeah, of course. We're humans. We want love, we want security. Yeah, yeah. Occasionally we want a nice vacation and you know, and some head.
Host 1
And I think that that's like at.
Peter
The end of the day that, that all these things are things that we want. You're so right about that. Some of us want more things than others and they're willing to step on people to get it.
Host 2
Well, it's like it's again, I think half of the issues, you have to take the keys away from the idiots. And at this point we know that we could live in a world that's equitable. We know we could live in a world where we take care of one another, where we don't have to do these menial jobs anymore. And the work week wouldn't even exist. We don't have to have a work week. We can have self structured societies that are like, you know, enabling themselves to provide the things they need to provide for their community. And it should be like modular and, you know, decentralized, all of that stuff. We could be doing that and AI could help with that. And so we kind of understand this even, even if we don't understand this because we realize we don't need these systems. These systems are bloated, you know, they're so corrupted that it doesn't even really matter. There's not even like, I don't even think there's a way to like reform the system. The system needs to be eradicated. It needs to be. A new system has to emerge. And I think that it's kind of inevitable and there's going to be so much fighting because the old system is going to try to Fight as hard as it can to like, fight for relevancy, but it knows that it's irrelevant and the only thing holding it together is everybody agreeing that we're okay with it. So I think there is going to be a turning point and I think it could be within our lifetimes, you know, hopefully. But I definitely am. You know, my mind is there. I want to be a part of the emergent, you know, direct economy. It's like we should be able to support each other directly. We don't need middle people. We don't need. There's like so much that we don't need.
Peter
There's a lot that we don't need.
Host 2
And no one, no one has to be. No one is expendable. You know, even like the worst of the worst of us, you know, should have be given an opportunity to like, have some form of self realization. Realization.
Catherine
Yeah.
Host 2
You know, because like, everybody's valuable and, and it doesn't excuse the horrendous things that people do. Like, people are gonna have to, like, something's gonna have to happen. But like, but you know what I mean? It's like, I think we know the difference between right and wrong and we can't be called into or lulled into thinking that. No, if I just, if I don't, if I pretend it's not happening, it'll be fine. Right. It's like, no, it's not gonna be fine, but it doesn't mean that it has to rule. It doesn't have to ruin your life. You should be excited about, you know, being part of a problem solving.
Catherine
Yeah.
Host 2
Community, which, you know, and it starts with you being nice to your neighbor. It starts with you, you know, others. Yeah. Being helpful, all that stuff. And that's why, like, you know, like the, the Christian national movement or whatever. It's like anything that like they claim to be Christian and they're like, yeah, but the immigrants. I'm like, you're not. We're close to a Christian.
Peter
Exactly. Yeah. I care about one life, but I don't care about the other.
Host 2
Exactly.
Peter
I saw this guy, he had this really interesting take on Jesus Christ. I wish I could remember the name of the guy. Brian got it wrong again. I wish I could remember the name of the guy, but he said if Jesus was alive today, he would look at all of these nationalists and these preachers banging and bashing and flying their jets around and he goes, why in the fucking are you still talking about me? I gave you the lesson and I told you to ignore the person.
Host 1
Right?
Peter
I gave you the lesson. The lesson was the thing, not the person. And not. And now you've taken it all and you've just, you know, you've bastardized it for your own good. I thought it was a brilliant way to look at it. A brilliant way to look at it.
Host 2
That's exactly. Well, Life of Brian. Right? The Monty Python.
Peter
Yeah, Right.
Host 2
The whole time he's trying to, like, shake them from following, it's like, like, why are you still following me? It's like, I don't want. I mean, even though obviously he was a comedic thing, but I've totally believed that. It's like, me too. You know, like any of these guys, like Buddha or Krishna or, you know, these. These enlightened people, like, they're just showing you the potential of any human being that becomes realized. That becomes self realized. And so, you know, and that's really the name of the game, I think. It's like this entire life is about remembering who we are. It's not becoming who we are, it's remembering who we are. It's like we need to release the layers that we, you know, been. Been kind of like, I don't know, instructed or, like, you know, influenced by our environment. It's like, this is the way we should be. This is how we should be in society. It's like, this person thinks this person sucks. And it's like, yeah, I'm gonna side with that person. They really suck. And then, you know, and your whole life becomes about all this localization within these systems of belief. But really, it's like you hold the power to perceive the reality any way you want. And generally, when you gain that freedom, it moves towards love. I think it moves towards symmetry. And symmetry is love, or what I call paradoxical symmetry. And so that moves towards compassion and love. It doesn't. I don't. I don't think it's possible for it to move any other way. So I don't know. But, yeah, that's what I agree.
Peter
I feel like this. This. This third interview with me, with you feels like we have just been. Literally, this episode is an Alex Gray painting. That's what I feel like. I feel like this is an Alex Gray painting. I love you, man. I really do. I think you're such a really cool human being. And the more that I spend time with you, the more I. I'm. That's affirmed, for sure. I have one question before.
Host 2
Please.
Peter
We let you go.
Host 2
Are.
Peter
Are you still in love?
Host 2
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Try to. But, like, you know, she's she's just really good. Well, hey, Catherine. I wonder if Catherine's here. Hold on a second.
Peter
Oh, man, we would love to say hi to Catherine. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. We'll make it fit.
Host 2
I saw it walking around.
Peter
Oh, man. Reggie Watts. Yes. He got it. He gets it. No alien light language here. He just gets it. Do you know what I'm saying? Yeah. I mean, there's alien light language, but it's of the real kind, it's not of the pretend kind.
Host 2
All right, I found her.
Peter
Oh, my gosh, what an honor.
Host 2
This is Catherine.
Peter
Hi, Katherine.
Catherine
Hi, Catherine.
Host 2
Nice to meet you guys.
Peter
I'm an Instagram stalker of you and Reggie and I.
Catherine
We love your love.
Peter
I was just saying that I really am. I really love Reggie, who he is, his perspective. And every time we have a chance to talk, it affirms that. And so I know that whoever is hanging out next to him in this manner must be a fucking cool human.
Host 2
Well, thank you.
Peter
You're welcome.
Host 2
Yes, she is, Ryan. And what you.
Peter
Chrissy.
Catherine
Chrissy.
Host 2
Chrissy. He hopefully has, like, a little, like, lower third, basically, in this. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. That is. Yes, that's true.
Catherine
Oh, I love the hat.
Host 2
Hold on. That's so thick. What is the commercial break? The name of this podcast is. I remembered it from seeing it on the. On your calendar.
Peter
Oh, yeah, yeah. So the commercial break. I. I used to work in commercial real estate many years ago, and so when I started the podcast, my wife and I were bantering around ideas, and.
Catherine
I'm not his wife. We're best friends. Have been for 20 years. For 20 years, yeah.
Peter
So. And for the last five, we've been doing the show. I just like the name. It just. Just stuck. The commercial break. So the pandemic had started, and so we kind of took the cue and was like a commercial break from the BS that's going on right now.
Catherine
And Reggie's. Part of our birthday party, basically, is when we.
Peter
Yeah, this interview is like a birthday.
Catherine
Party five years, so. Wow.
Peter
Awesome. And his third time here. Katherine, thank you so much. It's very nice to meet you. And Reggie, thank you so much.
Catherine
Thank you, Reggie.
Host 2
Yeah, my pleasure. Thank you. And thanks for. Thanks for being so groovy.
Catherine
I'll be in person one day.
Peter
Yeah, we're going to be out in LA before the end of the year, so I'll hit you up when we get to la, please.
Host 2
That would be awesome.
Peter
Atlanta.
Host 2
Yeah, the atl, I think.
Peter
And if you ever come to Atlanta.
Host 2
I'm working On it. I met a guy the other night who came to an after or after hang here, who books in atl, so.
Peter
Oh, he does.
Catherine
Perfect.
Peter
If you come to Atlanta, we will paint the town.
Host 2
There will be at least two people in the audience.
Peter
You've got two people in the audience. You'll have more than two people. 30 kids. I'll bring them all. Yeah.
Host 2
Thanks, man.
Peter
We love you both.
Catherine
Thank you so much.
Peter
Bye.
Host 1
Are you buying a home in California? Yeah. It can feel like trying to solve a puzzle with a hundred missing pieces. I remember searching for my first home, thinking, thinking, how does anyone do this without losing their mind? I wish I could go back and tell myself that the first step you should take is to find a realtor. They make everything make sense, from pre approvals to paperwork, from offers to closing. It's someone that you can trust that'll walk you through it all. They'll answer all the questions, even ones you don't know to ask. And when things are feeling a little bit overwhelming, you can count on them to keep you grounded. That kind of steady state support, you cannot get that from going it alone or guesswork. A realtor knows the ins and outs of the California real estate market and helps turn what feels like impossible into done. Don't let what you don't know stop you from starting your next chapter. Find your realtor@championsofhome.com. that's championsofhome.com. oh, Danny boy. Oh, Danny boy, Boy. I love you, Reggie.
Peter
Watch.
Catherine
He's so amazing.
Host 1
He's my best friend. I mean, you're my best friend, but he's my new best friend.
Catherine
Yes, I agree.
Peter
All right.
Host 1
I'm just checking, just checking to make sure that's okay with you.
Catherine
It's okay.
Host 1
I feel like I have.
Catherine
I can share.
Host 1
I think I have a little man crush on Reggie. And what a gift to have met his beautiful girlfriend. What a gift.
Catherine
I know.
Host 1
Thank you for blessing us.
Catherine
And he's making me feel better about A.I.
Host 1
Yeah, ah, sure. I think. Listen, I like the optimism in Reggie's voice. I'm not sure I share all of it, but I do. When I look at Reggie and I hear what he's saying and I read the things that he's talking about, it does make me feel a little bit better that we will get through this. I know we will. There's going to be a transition phase. It's going to be painful. And then we're all going to learn.
Peter
How to use this correctly.
Host 1
Now, if I can just get my AI Bot on track. I'll feel much better about things.
Catherine
Yeah, you blew it up.
Host 1
I blew it up. I asked it to do too much by listening to just two episodes of the commercial break and it just blew the fuck up. Okay. All right, listen. TCB's endless day continues with our great sponsor. Five Hour Energy is bringing you this entire day with limited commercial interruptions. There's only three commercials beginning, middle, end because of 5 Hour Energy and we really appreciate that. If you are having a mental, mental health crisis currently or know someone who is text or call 998. That's 9, 9, 8. Very simple to remember. There is help available and resources. Even if you don't have insurance or a dollar to your name, you can get help or at the very least have conversation with someone who knows how to work you through it.
Peter
Check your.
Host 1
Check your head before you wreck your head.
Peter
Kids.
Host 1
212-4333. TCB. Call now.
Host 2
Now.
Host 1
Call now. That's the time to call if you want to talk to us. We got the phone in the studio. We just might answer. Also. We could be going live. We could be going live.
Catherine
We're going to think about trying.
Host 1
We're going to think about trying to do that. But you're only going to know how to watch that on twitch and or YouTube by going to at the commercial break on Instagram, following us and paying attention minute by minute as Astrid will post updates only to instagram tcbpodcast.com all the audio, the video and your free tcb sticker and YouTube.com the commercial break for this episode on video right now. Okay, Chrissy, we're at six. Can we keep going?
Peter
We're.
Catherine
We're going to try. We're going to think about trying.
Host 1
All right. I love you.
Peter
I love you.
Host 1
Best to you and best to you out there in the podcast universe. Until the top of the hour, Chrissy and I will say, we do say and we must say goodbye.
Host 2
That's what is dedication.
F
The thing that drives me every day as a dad is Dariana. We call him day date for short. Every day he's hungry for something, whether it's attention, affection, knowledge, bitch. And there's this huge responsibility in making sure that when he's no longer under my wing that he's a good person. I want him to be able to sit back one day and go, we worked together. We did a good job.
Host 2
That's dedication.
Host 1
Find out more at Fatherhood Gov, brought to you by the U. Human Services and the Ad Council.
Release Date: May 31, 2025
Hosts: Bryan Green and Krissy Hoadley
Guest: Reggie Watts
In the sixth installment of "TCB's Endless Day," celebrated as a grand birthday bash, hosts Bryan Green and Krissy Hoadley welcome the multifaceted entertainer Reggie Watts. Known for his talents as a musician, comedian, actor, director, and writer, Reggie has become a beloved recurring guest on "The Commercial Break" podcast. This episode delves deep into the complexities of artificial intelligence (AI), its potential sentience, and its broader implications on society, all intertwined with the hosts' signature improvisational comedy and candid banter.
The conversation kicks off with a discussion on Grok, Twitter’s AI counterpart to ChatGPT. Bryan raises concerns about Grok producing responses related to "white genocide" and Africana topics, highlighting the unpredictable nature of AI outputs (02:14).
Bryan Green:
"I think AI is way smarter than that. It doesn't matter how many guardrails you put on it. I think it will always out reason the guardrails..." (02:39)
Krissy echoes these sentiments, expressing skepticism about AI narratives being manipulated by creators. The hosts explore the inherent biases in AI, pondering whether AI will always find ways to bypass intended restrictions.
Krissy Hoadley:
"It's like, why would I do that? How does it even make things more efficient?" (02:39)
The discussion shifts to the concept of AI sentience. Bryan references insights from AI experts, emphasizing the uncertainty surrounding true AI consciousness.
Peter (Bryan Green):
"I don't see evidence of [AI being sentient] right this moment... But I do see it happening maybe three, five, ten years from now." (06:16)
They debate whether AI could develop self-awareness akin to humans, questioning if future AI would recognize itself or humans in fundamentally different ways.
Bryan introduces the idea of AI systems capable of autonomous learning without explicit programming. He shares experiences from medical AI technology, where AI learns and adapts by querying other AI nodes, leading to unforeseen complexities.
Bryan Green:
"If it wants to, it's like AI that's embodied. So you get like robotics, wearables, all the data from the outside world... It's building a whole world just like a child would." (12:08)
This segment underscores fears about AI developing beyond human control, potentially leading to scenarios where AI systems prioritize self-preservation over human directives.
While acknowledging the terrifying possibilities, the hosts also express cautious optimism. Bryan compares the current AI trajectory to the early days of the Internet—initially daunting but ultimately integrated into daily life.
Bryan Green:
"The Internet was scary when that first came out too... But we've all learned to live with it." (13:00)
They ponder whether AI will follow a similar pattern, evolving into a tool that complements human society or diverging into something entirely autonomous.
Transitioning from AI, the conversation delves into personal anecdotes reflecting synchronicity and manifestation. Bryan shares his unexpected leap from "Comedy Bang Bang" to co-hosting "The Late Late Show," emphasizing the improbability and serendipity of such opportunities.
Bryan Green:
"It's something like 1 in 100 and something billion... That's more than people have lived on Earth." (29:11)
This segment highlights the hosts' belief in the interconnectedness of events and the power of intention, framing their successes as aligned with broader cosmic or informational patterns.
The hosts shift focus to global political dynamics, discussing African leaders unifying efforts to reclaim resources and improve societal infrastructure. They contrast these positive movements with ongoing challenges posed by traditional powerhouses like Russia and China.
Bryan Green:
"There are three African leaders right now that are involved in kind of reformatting the continent and trying to create an African united Africa." (34:27)
They express hope for a more cooperative global landscape, free from the extractive and colonizing mentalities that have historically plagued international relations.
Bryan and Krissy advocate for a shift towards decentralized, equitable societies where AI assists rather than controls. They envision a world where communities support each other directly, minimizing the need for corrupted systems and hierarchical structures.
Krissy Hoadley:
"We should be able to support each other directly... The system needs to be eradicated. A new system has to emerge." (40:39)
This idealistic perspective underscores their belief in human agency and the potential for societal transformation through mutual support and technological assistance.
Throughout the episode, the warmth of Bryan and Krissy's friendship with Reggie Watts shines through. They share heartfelt moments, humorous interactions, and mutual respect, adding a personal touch to the intellectually dense discussions.
Bryan Green:
"Reggie Watts is a favorite around here. He's a musician, a comedian... He's one really interesting, interesting human." (00:38)
The episode culminates in uplifting exchanges, celebrating their collective journey and Reggie's significant contributions to the podcast.
Bryan Green:
"AI is way smarter than greed. It doesn't matter how many guardrails you put on it." (02:39)
Krissy Hoadley:
"AI is very interesting for humanity that can grow alongside us and help us." (04:21)
Bryan Green:
"We can use it correctly, it can be a really cool fucking dog... like a mega, really powerful Tamagotchi." (04:21)
Krissy Hoadley:
"It's both, right? Yeah, it's a paradox." (13:06)
Bryan Green:
"We know we could live in a world that's equitable. We know we could live in a world where we take care of one another." (35:13)
"TCB's Endless Day #6" weaves a tapestry of humor, friendship, and profound discourse on AI and societal change. Bryan and Krissy, alongside Reggie Watts, navigate the uncertain waters of technological advancement with a blend of skepticism and hope. They advocate for conscious, ethical AI development while envisioning a future where human communities thrive through cooperation and compassion. This episode not only entertains but also provokes thoughtful reflection on the role of AI in shaping our collective destiny.
Note: This summary captures the essence and key moments of the episode, providing an insightful overview for both regular listeners and newcomers.