[klelatti]

The thing that completely invalidates what you’re saying here is that very little of the actual talking is done by Lex. I’m not an unqualified fan but he does at least create the space for knowledgeable guests to talk at length about their subjects - or put another way he generally gets out of the way.

[caslon]

I listen to a lot of his interviews, actually. A lot more of the talking is done by him than you're implying, and the questions he asks occasionally derail really interesting tangents a guest is on in favor of really dull, extremely generic questions you could get from anywhere. The Lenat interview, for example, was full of him doing it.

[janderson215]

I agree he interrupts his guests, and he admits as much on almost every podcast. I also agree that sometimes it detracts from the conversation and it is a net negative, but you must also recognize the times that his interruption fills in gaps, as well.

[caslon]

When does it fill gaps? The only way I could possibly see it filling gaps would be for completely non-technical people.

[janderson215]

Correct, and is that unimportant? Or do you think your level of competency is the lowest that Lex should cater to?

[caslon]

Honestly? If a podcast sells itself as being an "AI" podcast, and the creator doesn't expect the audience to know what a computer is, I really do think that it is unimportant.

[janderson215]

I think he pivoted from AI-specific content long ago. He may have started in that niche, but he’s expanded to include such a broad range of guests.

That said, this is a valid criticism, although a gross exaggeration of what the reality is. Sticking with the computer example, he digs in deeper on abstractions most people have zero knowledge about (RISC vs CISC, levels of caching in RAM, etc). He also talks about different kinds of computation.

You’re right to want him to do better, but I don’t think he will ever cater to you again. Even when he has people you might find interesting on his show (Jim Keller, Joscha Bach), he will still stick to a level that makes these geniuses works more accessible to the public. Broadening the appeal of complex topics isn’t a waste, although it may be for you. I ask that you reconsider your position and say that the show just isn’t for you and hope that you recognize the value he provides in introducing others to these fields. This is the pinnacle of podcasts, IMO

I’m curious, what shows do you like to listen to? I’d like to hear some examples of shows where there is a high expectation of the listener and people are discussing things so far over my head that it forces me to learn more.

[klelatti]

We’ll have to disagree then. Not sure why you’re listening to so many of his interviews if you find the questions extremely dull and generic. Insomnia?

[caslon]

The questions are dull and generic, but the people come onto the show with an agenda. I like hearing about what they're wanting to talk about, between instances of boring questions.