The Prof G Pod with Scott Galloway

Episode: Why Scott Shut Down His AI Persona, His Daily Routine, and When to Give Kids Money
Release Date: January 9, 2026

Episode Overview

In this Office Hours episode, Scott Galloway responds to three listener questions, covering:

1. Why he shut down his Google/AI persona and his views on character AIs
2. An honest breakdown of his daily routine when not on book tour
3. His take on the best ways—and pitfalls—of giving money to your children, including commentary on inheritance strategies

The tone is classic Galloway: candid, introspective, practical, and at times self-deprecating.

1. Why Scott Shut Down His AI Persona

[01:31 – 06:35]

Background and Intentions

• Origin: A former student, now at Google, invited Scott to take part in a project creating AI versions of prominent people, so users could interact with their “character.”
• Scott’s Motivation:

  “I get between 20 and 30, that's conservative, outreaches a day—from single mothers, from young men, from people in the mental health profession, from high school teachers looking for help, advice, insight… and I can't get to 1% of them. So I thought, how could I come up with something that would say, hey, here's my character AI, ask it the same question and there's an 80% probability it'll get it 80% right.” (Scott Galloway, 02:54)

• No money was involved; it was about helping more people than he could personally.

Why He Pulled the Plug

• Changes in AI: During the year-long development, “character AIs became a thing,” and it emerged that minors (especially young men) were building intense, sometimes unhealthy, relationships with these AI personas.
• Ethical Concerns:

  “I just was so uncomfortable with the idea of contributing to the sequestration of young men from their parents, their mentors and their friends. And I thought, if I'm in any way giving a young man an excuse to spend less time pursuing offline relationships, then that is bad and I don't want to engage in it.” (Scott Galloway, 04:02)

• Quote on Decision:

  “If you're having trouble making a decision, the answer is usually no.” (Citing Naval, 04:24)

• Was live for only four hours before Scott asked Google to take it down.
• Key Stand: He will not do character AIs again unless there is verified age gating.

  “I don't think anyone under the age of 18 should be in a synthetic relationship. And supposedly three quarters are already in some sort of synthetic relationship.” (Scott Galloway, 05:16)

• In summary: Potential upside exists, but the downside is “unknown.” The issue needs more guardrails and ethical scrutiny.

Notable Moment

• Memorable line:

  “Started out as a good idea… but increasingly uncomfortable with the development and evolution of character AIs and decided to pull it down.” (Scott Galloway, 05:48)

2. Scott’s Real Daily Routine

[06:36 – 09:36]

Initial Joke

• Scott sarcastically describes an absurd influencer-style morning routine (“cold plunge… sheep oil… serum mined from algae off the coast of Sri Lanka”), then debunks it:

  “None of this is true. Alright, let's start with night…” (Scott Galloway, 06:40)

Actual Daily Rhythm

• Nights:
  • Evenings are spent with friends, family, watching TV, writing, with his dogs on the couch.
  • Used to drink, but no longer—citing both health and concerns about the anti-alcohol movement.
  • Sometimes takes an edible, stays up working or thinking until 2 or 3 am.
  • Self-aware joke:

    “So I can… I'd like to think I'm creative. I can definitely confirm I'm not that productive.” (Scott Galloway, 07:46)

• Mornings:
  • Sleeps in—gets up around 10:00 or, if he feels like it, 10:30.
  • Nothing is scheduled before noon (helped by London/New York time difference).
  • Quick coffee, then breakfast and a workout (free weights, rowing machine, a tonal-equivalent device).
• Daytime:
  • Podcasting, writing, meetings, interviews run from noon to 8 or 9 pm.
• Late Evening:
  • Goes out to dinner, socializes, then works late again from 11pm–2am.

Struggles & Honesty

• Mentions dealing with anxiety or fear lately; needs to get outside more (hates the London weather:

  “It's dark at 4pm right now, so I don't go outside as much as I should, which is a really bad thing. All the things I preach to people… cobbler's kids have no shoes.” (Scott Galloway, 08:49)

• Important advice:

  “I keep very odd hours and I don't. I've been struggling a little bit lately… I would not recommend this to anybody. I'm not saying it's the right way, it's just my way.” (Scott Galloway, 09:19)

Summary Table of His Routine

| Time | Activity | |----------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 10am | Wakes up, coffee, breakfast, works out | | Noon–8pm | Podcasting, writing, meetings | | 8pm–11pm | Dinner/social time | | 11pm–2am | Thinking, writing, relaxing (TV/internet/dogs/edibles) |

3. When—and How—to Give Kids Money

[12:28 – 16:53]

Listener Question

• Charles from Texas asks: Instead of giving a big inheritance at 70, what about earlier staged gifts: $25k at 18, $100k at 30, $1 million at 40, and then cut them off? “Genius or financial cosplay?”
  (Listener Email, 12:28)

Scott’s Analysis

• When inheritance usually arrives: Median age is around 49–50. This is likely to get later as people live longer.
  • Younger people spend windfalls on life necessities; older inheritors often spend on “discretionary spending.”
• Benefit of Early, Targeted Gifts:
  Lump sums for housing, business seed capital, or education “can be more financially productive than inheriting money late for discretionary spending.”
• Key Principle:

  “You want to give your kids enough money so they can do anything, but not enough money so they can do nothing. That's a Warren Buffett quote.” (Scott Galloway, 14:38)

Personal Plan & Flexibility

• Scott prefers flexibility and ongoing assessment over rigid formulas.
• If a kid works hard (nonprofit, teaching) but makes little money, he’ll help. If a kid is just partying, he’ll withhold:

  “If my kid is not doing a whole lot of anything but partying and I keep seeing on his Instagram he's in Ibiza… I'm not going to give him dick.” (Scott Galloway, 15:23)

• Adapt support to the child’s conduct, not just their age.
• Also suggests possibly limiting what money can be used for (e.g., education, primary residence under 40).
• Doesn’t believe anyone has “figured this out.” Strongly advises not to “lock yourself into anything.”

Closing Thoughts

• Contrasts two examples: friends who totally cut kids off after college vs. those whose kids never fly commercial.
• Advocates for a tailored, ongoing approach, with the only strong advice being:

  “My only advice is not to lock yourself into a construction.” (Scott Galloway, 16:42)

Notable Quotes

• On ethical ambiguity of AI personas:

  “If I'm in any way giving a young man an excuse to spend less time pursuing offline relationships, then that is bad and I don't want to engage in it.” (Scott Galloway, 04:02)

• On routines and productivity:

  “I keep very odd hours... I would not recommend this to anybody. I'm not saying it's the right way, it's just my way.” (Scott Galloway, 09:19)

• On inheritance philosophy:

  “You want to give your kids enough money so they can do anything, but not enough money so they can do nothing.” (Scott Galloway, quoting Buffett, 14:38)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:31] – Scott’s AI Persona and why he killed it
• [06:36] – Scott’s real daily routine, personal struggles, and sleep schedule
• [12:28] – Inheritance strategies: How and when to help your kids financially

Summary Takeaways

• Scott Galloway is uncomfortable with current character AIs and withdrew his involvement to avoid unintended harm—especially to young people.
• His routine is honest, unconventional, and not an ideal to copy (late nights, late mornings, lots of podcasting, and candid self-reflection).
• On giving kids money: flexibility and responsiveness to character matter more than formulas or fixed schedules. Don’t “lock yourself in.”

For more, reach out to officehours@profgmedia.com or the Scott Galloway subreddit with your questions.