Podcast Summary: The MeidasTouch Podcast

Episode: Bernie Sanders Warns How AI Could Upend America as We Know It

Date: November 17, 2025
Host: Ben Meiselas (with Brett and Jordy Meiselas, but interview led by Ben)
Guest: Senator Bernie Sanders

Episode Overview

In this episode, Senator Bernie Sanders joins Ben Meiselas to delve into the disruptive potential of artificial intelligence (AI) and automation on American society. Sanders articulates the urgent, yet under-reported, threat AI and automation pose to the workforce, the environment, democracy, and social stability. He challenges both the lack of mainstream media coverage and government inaction, while arguing for robust, worker-focused policies and public conversations to shape the future of technology in America.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Current Political and Economic Moment

• Sanders frames the era as "unprecedented," comparable only to the Civil War (02:07).
  • Highlights deepening inequality: "The people on top have never, ever had it so good. The musks of the world making money hand over fist. Meanwhile, 60% of our people live in paycheck to paycheck." (02:19, Sanders)
  • Critiques bipartisan corruption: Big money and billionaires hold massive sway not only over the GOP, but over Democrats, leading to popular frustration.

2. AI as the "Don't Look Up" Crisis

• Sanders draws a parallel to the film “Don’t Look Up” (04:06):
  • "It's about a meteor coming down to Earth...But nobody wants to talk about it. AI is not going to destroy Earth, but it’s going to have a profound, profound impact on every aspect of our lives." (04:07, Sanders)
  • Cites major technologists (Elon Musk, Dario Amodai, Bill Gates) raising alarms about mass job loss—up to 100 million jobs at risk over the coming decade.

3. AI, Corporate Power, and Oligarchy

• Wealth concentration and corporate motives:
  • Sanders is blunt: “You think they're doing that [investing billions in AI] because they're thinking, oh man, this is going to be something that will improve life for working people, for low income people? That’s why we are investing many hundreds of billions of dollars. Ben, you think that's their motive?” (06:03, Sanders)
  • Sanders links AI expansion to rising inequality, emphasizing that tech oligarchs stand to consolidate even more wealth and power unless checked.

4. Public Anxiety vs. Media and Policy Apathy

• Ben observes a disconnect:
  • “When I watch your rallies...[people] pour their hearts out about these topics...but I never see it ever covered on the news....young people are very worried...” (08:07, Ben)
  • Sanders notes, from audience feedback at rallies, almost no one believes AI will benefit the working class: “In a room of well over 2,000 people, two hands went up.” (09:35, Sanders)
• Lack of government and media attention:
  • Ben laments, “...at the administration regime level, zero discussion about the consequences that people are worried about. All the focus is on how the billionaires can just have unfettered, unrestrained development...” (10:40, Ben)

5. Environmental and Social Costs of AI

• Data centers' impact:
  • Sanders: “This thing consumes an unbelievable amount of electricity and water....communities all over this country [are] saying excuse us, we don't want to see a significant increase in our electric bills in order to pay for some huge data center which will probably result in AI taking our jobs.” (11:44 & 11:44, Sanders)
  • Detrimental to local infrastructure and environments—especially water usage.
• Disinformation and loneliness:
  • Expanding on social risks, Sanders raises deepfakes and fake personas: “AI will have the capability of having somebody perfectly sound like that person and it’s not that person. What does that mean for politics in this country?” (12:44, Sanders)
  • Concerns about youth and isolation: “A lot of people, especially younger people, are turning to AI for companionship. What are the long term implications if my best friend is an AI?” (13:30, Sanders)

6. Charting a Path Forward: Solutions

• Sanders’s 25-page report: “The Big Tech Oligarchs War Against Workers”
  • Focuses not just on diagnosing the problem, but proposing worker-friendly responses (13:46, Ben; 15:00, Sanders)
  • Potential solutions include:
    • Profit-sharing mandates for corporations using AI technology.
    • Substantially reducing the workweek—down to 32 hours with no loss of pay (“If we say to people...we're going to 32 hours...What will people think? That is a good idea.” – 15:50, Sanders)
    • Worker ownership and worker input in decisions about AI implementation.
    • Government must ensure tech advances benefit everyone, not just the rich:
      "A revolutionary technology requires a revolutionary response." (16:53, Sanders)

7. The Moral and Democratic Imperative

• Ben stresses the fundamental role of government: "Why else do we have a government? It’s not to hurt people and send them into detention centers and camps like Trump’s big focus appears to be." (17:53, Ben)
• Sanders: "Trump is working hand and glove with the oligarchs, enriching them and giving them more power. That is essentially what the Trump administration is all about." (19:05, Sanders)

8. Trump’s “Golden Age” as a Con

• Ben critiques Trump’s rhetoric on the “Golden Age”—calling it “one of the biggest Ponzi schemes in history.” (20:02, Ben)
• Sanders: “It is not an accident much of his administration are people who are very good communicators, good looking people who are on Fox....But I think you can lie to people 24/7, but when people walk into a grocery store...Trump can say anything he wants about a golden age. But people are saying, and the polling indicates, hey, Mr. Trump, maybe it's a golden age for you and your friends. You're making billions. It ain't a golden age for us.” (21:18–22:20, Sanders)

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• On the scale of the crisis:
  “We are living in an unprecedented moment in American history, maybe going back to the 1860s and the Civil War.” (02:07, Sanders)

• AI and job loss existential threat:
  "Elon Musk just said recently, and I quote, AI and robots will replace all jobs. Working will be optional." (05:00, Sanders quoting Musk)

• Public sentiment at a town hall:
  “In a room of well over 2,000 people, two hands went up that they thought it would be possible for working class people [to benefit from AI].” (09:35, Sanders)

• Environmental impact:
  “This thing consumes an unbelievable amount of electricity and water." (11:44, Sanders)

• On government’s role:
  "A revolutionary technology requires a revolutionary response. The goal should be that AI and robotics benefit all of our people, not just making the oligarchs even richer." (16:53, Sanders)

• On Trump’s economic rhetoric:
  “Hey, Mr. Trump, maybe it's a golden age for you and your friends. You're making billions. It ain't a golden age for us.” (22:20, Sanders)

Key Timestamps

• 02:07 – Sanders compares the magnitude of this moment to the Civil War.
• 03:52–05:30 – Discussion of Sanders’s AI/automation report; quotes from Musk, Amodai, Gates on job loss.
• 09:35 – Davenport, IA rally moment: only 2 out of 2,000+ working-class attendees believed AI would benefit them.
• 11:44 – Sanders on environmental costs of data centers and community backlash.
• 13:30 – Concerns about loneliness, AI companionship, and human wellbeing.
• 15:00–16:53 – Sanders lays out specific policy responses and the need for transformative change.
• 21:18–22:20 – Sanders debunks Trump’s “golden age” claim with a reality check on economic conditions.

Additional Resources & Closing

• Sanders announces an upcoming event with Dr. Geoffrey Hinton (the “godfather of AI”) at Georgetown on November 18th, to further explore AI’s societal implications. (23:10, Ben)
• Encouragement from both parties to follow, subscribe, and stay involved in these urgent democratic discussions.

Tone & Language:
The episode is dynamic and forthright, blending the MeidasTouch signature brotherly conversational style with Sanders’s urgent, populist rhetoric. The conversation is accessible yet deep, often peppered with sharp criticisms of both political parties, big tech, and media apathy, while focusing on solutions and democratic engagement.