The human story of technology. Every week, technology writer and parent Mark Fielding and musician turned data centre builder Jeremy Gilbertson speak with the founders, CEOs, scientists, engineers, writers and philosophers building our collective future. From AI and space tech to quantum computing, they get angry, passionate, defensive and deep. The question underlying it all? What's the impact of technology on you, me and the rest of humanity. All human. No hype. No BS.
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October 24, 20266 min
The Only Way To Write The Next Space Treaty
Who writes the next space treaty? We put the question to Harvard economist Matthew Weinzierl and Blue Origin's Brendan Rosseau, co-authors of Space to Grow. Neither wants a master plan. Weinzierl would start by gathering 25 to 30 leading thinkers from start-ups, government and non-profits. Yet he is sceptical that any room can design the future of space from the top down. He prefers order that emerges on its own. Rosseau begins with the end state: competition that drives progress, no military conflict, and rules of the road like those that govern the sea. He doubts one grand treaty could deliver that, and suggests a little strategic ambiguity may even help. Please enjoy the show. And subscribe if you do. Full Episode & Links • Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnInzxdiFkk&t=1363s Connect with Thinking on Paper 🌐 Website: https://www.thinkingonpaper.xyz 📷 Instagram: @toptechpodcast 🎧 Listen on Spotify: Listen on Spotify 🍎 Listen on Apple Podcasts: Listen on Apple Podcasts Chapters (00:00) You're in charge of space. Now what? (01:04) Matt: "I like emergent order" (02:39) Brendan: competition yes, war no (04:41) Why not one grand treaty? (05:22) The four-word rule for space #SpaceTreaty #SpaceToGrow #ThinkingOnPaper
October 22, 202613 min
The Bruce Lee Writer Who Refuses To Use AI
"AI is a very poor writer," says celebrated author, hip-hop historian, and Bruce Lee biographer Jeff Chang. While large language models can mirror sentence structures or copy paragraphs, Chang argues that the raw output is garbage. He also shares insights from his interview with legendary hip-hop producer DJ Shadow on his KALW radio show, Notes from the Edge . Shadow calls generative AI music "corny" and warns that those hyping artificial intelligence tools are usually the ones profiting from them. This leads to the ultimate question for modern creators: If you rely on AI for ideation, are you actually being creative? In this episode, we cover: • Why Jeff Chang writes every word himself and limits AI to research • The craft of revision: Why great non-fiction requires four drafts • Insights from Karen Hao, DJ Shadow, and the commercial hype around AI tools • How analog constraints, turntables, and four-track recording built modern sampling culture • The difference between machine-generated ideas and human artistic judgment • Could an 18-year-old produce the next Endtroducing..... using generative AI models? Please enjoy the show. Connect with Thinking on Paper 🌐 Website & Show Notes: thinkingonpaper.xyz 📷 Instagram: @toptechpodcast 🎧 Spotify: Listen on Spotify 🍎 Apple Podcasts: Listen on Apple Podcasts Chapters (00:00) Does Jeff Chang Use AI to Write? (01:33) The Revision Process: Why Great Writing Takes Four Drafts (04:51) Karen Hao, DJ Shadow, and Why AI Music Feels "Corny" (07:18) What Analog Sampling Culture Teaches Us About AI (11:32) Ideation vs. Artistry: Can You Be Creative If AI Does the Thinking? (13:20) Could an 18-Year-Old Make the Next Endtroducing..... with Generative AI? .. #jeffchang #djshadow #generativeai #hiphopculture #sampling #writingcraft #creativity #thinkingonpaper
October 20, 20267 min
What Are AI World Models? Part 1
If you want superintelligence inside robots and autonomous agents, a Large Language Model (LLM) isn't enough, AI needs a true world model . In this episode of Thinking On Paper , Mark and Jeremy get their heads around world models, how they work, and why they represent the next frontier of superintelligence. Pim de Witte , CEO of General Intuition, recently sat down with Meta Chief AI Scientist Yann LeCun at Station F in Paris to frame the limits of current AI. De Witte compared LLMs to a snowball rolling downhill: it can't see the crash coming because "its entire world is just itself." Meanwhile, traditional video generation models act like a dream, you watch the frames unfold, but you can't interact or change the outcome. A true world model acts like a lucid dream : an interactive simulation where the agent acts, and the model accurately predicts what happens next. Jeremy also explains why game studios still struggle to code believable stadium crowd physics fan-by-fan, and how spatial-temporal world models can learn emergent crowd dynamics instead. We discuss: • Video Models vs. World Models: Why visual generation is passive "dreaming" while world modeling is interactive "lucid dreaming" • The Snowball Metaphor: Why LLMs lack true physical perception and spatial reasoning • Epistemic Uncertainty: How AI handles what it hasn't seen in its training data • Aleatoric Uncertainty: Managing real-world randomness that can never be eliminated • Diffusion vs. V-JEPA: Comparing image-based diffusion predictors to Yann LeCun's Joint-Embedding Predictive Architecture • The Backrooms Effect: Why AI video models generate blurry faces and show visual doubt when predicting futures Please enjoy the show. Connect with Thinking on Paper 🌐 Website & Show Notes: thinkingonpaper.xyz 📷 Instagram: @toptechpodcast 🎧 Spotify: Listen on Spotify 🍎 Apple Podcasts: Listen on Apple Podcasts Chapters (00:00) Video Models vs. World Models: Dreaming vs. Lucid Dreaming (00:41) Why Video Game Stadium Crowds Still Look Fake (01:44) Can Compute Alone Recreate Realistic Stadium Crowds? (02:09) Predicting Multi-Agent Outcomes with Spatial AI (02:55) LLMs as Snowballs: The Lack of Physical Perception (04:00) Epistemic Uncertainty: What the Model Hasn't Seen (04:35) Aleatoric Uncertainty: Managing Inherent Randomness (05:16) The Backrooms & Blurry Visuals: How Models Express Doubt (06:24) Diffusion vs. JEPA: Two Architectures for Predicting the Future (06:55) How Generative Image Models Turn Noise into Reality #worldmodels #artificialintelligence #yannlecun #pimdewitte #robotics #generalintuition #spatialai #jepa #thinkingonpaper
October 15, 202654 min
Helium Is The Only Element That Never Freezes
You don't need a PhD to enjoy learning about quantum computing. This is the proof. Johannes Pollanen, CTO of EeroQ, thinks on paper about quantum computing, electron spin qubits, and scaling the future of quantum technology. EeroQ has its chips made in commercial semiconductor foundries, coats them in a thin layer of superfluid helium, and floats single electrons about 10 nanometres above the surface. Without a PhD, you'll learn: • Why quantum computers already exist, and why they aren't the machines we need yet • Superconducting circuits, trapped ions, neutral atoms, silicon spins, photons and electrons on helium • Why helium never freezes, and why Johannes calls it "the cleanest system" for electron qubits • Why wiring together lots of dilution refrigerators sounds hard to a low-temperature physicist • What nature's identical particles teach engineers Please enjoy the show. 📚 EeroQ: https://www.eeroq.com/ 🌐 Thinking On Paper: https://www.thinkingonpaper.xyz 📷 Instagram: toptechpodcast 🎧 Watch On YouTube: https://youtu.be/Veyc5Vf6sSI 🍎 Listen on Apple Podcasts: Apple Podcasts Chapters (00:00) Quantum computing at a wedding (03:57) Reverse engineering quantum computing (05:15) Quality or quantity of qubits (06:23) The modalities of quantum computing (12:36) You'll need liquid helium (19:01) Transistors and silicon (20:21) Is that thing behind you using helium-3? (26:15) How do you cool quantum systems? (31:08) How do you make more qubits? (35:15) How do you do a computation on a qubit? (40:05) Faster quantum computers (43:45) Can IBM make a useful quantum computer? (46:00) The quantum lessons of nature (48:33) Carry over question #quantumcomputing #quantumphysics #technologynews
October 10, 202655 min
Bruce Lee (Kick) Started The Self-Help Industry │ Jeff Chang
Bruce Lee’s cultural legacy shapes modern world culture like few others. Alongside icons like Bob Marley and Muhammad Ali, his legend continues to influence action cinema, hip-hop, and martial arts philosophy. In Water Mirror Echo: Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America , celebrated cultural biographer Jeff Chang joins Thinking On Paper to explore kung fu, mindset, Asian American empowerment, and the pop-culture history behind the man. In the second half of the show, we shift to artificial intelligence, music sampling, and the creative act. How does Jeff Chang view generative AI? What does his close friend, legendary hip-hop producer DJ Shadow , think about AI tools, sampling ethics, and machine-made music? (Spoiler: Shadow tried AI, and he thinks it's corny). How do you explain Bruce Lee to a generation raised on John Wick and The Matrix ? Chang starts simply: "He’s the guy who made all of that possible." In this episode, you’ll learn: • How Bruce Lee evolved from a war baby in occupied Hong Kong and child star to cha-cha champion and Hollywood pioneer • His struggle with racism in Seattle, his role as Kato in The Green Hornet , and the famous letter he wrote promising himself $10M and global fame • The cinematic evolution between The Big Boss , Fist of Fury , and Enter the Dragon • The deeper meaning behind "Be Water" and the title Water Mirror Echo • How DJ Shadow and Jeff Chang view AI, sampling culture, and the legacy of Endtroducing • Autonomous media, machine creativity, and whether humans can truly love art created by an algorithm Please enjoy the show. Links & Resources 📚 Jeff Chang’s books & bio: jeffchang.net 📷 Jeff Chang on Instagram: @zentronix 🖊️ Read Jeff's Substack: zentronix.substack.com Connect with Thinking on Paper 🌐 Website & Show Notes: thinkingonpaper.xyz 📷 Instagram: @toptechpodcast 🎧 Spotify: Listen on Spotify 🍎 Apple Podcasts: Listen on Apple Podcasts Chapters (00:00) Bruce Lee, AI, and the First Draft (02:06) Who Was Bruce Lee? Defining a Legend (05:15) How Bruce Lee Made Zen Pop Culture (10:05) The Letter to Himself and Napoleon Hill's Mindset (15:33) Wartime Hong Kong & Martial Arts Origins (18:37) Seattle, Early Racism, and Cha-Cha Champion (21:19) The Big Boss, Fist of Fury, and Enter the Dragon (28:17) Be Water: Bruce Lee's Philosophy & Real Fighting (32:21) Water, Mirror, Echo: Meaning Behind the Book Title (34:25) Does Jeff Chang Use AI? (40:24) DJ Shadow on AI, Sampling, and Endtroducing (48:26) Generative Art: Could You Love Machine-Made Music? (54:28) Single-Mindedness and Bruce Lee's Final Legacy #brucelee #jeffchang #djshadow #ai #generativeai #watermirrorecho #asianamericanhistory #hiphopculture #thinkingonpaper
October 7, 202647 min
The Future Of Quantum Computing Is Gaming
What would a gamer do with a quantum computer? Or a musician? Harry Kumar, co-founder of Moth Quantum , argues that quantum computing needs creativity and art to push the industry forward, so we’re going to find out. Moth built Quantum Backrooms , a video game where a quantum computer builds the maze. Each tile on the map is a qubit, and the correlation between two neighbouring qubits decides whether a wall stands between them. The game shows no quantum advantage and runs no faster than a classical computer. It certainly isn’t GTA 6. So why build it? Look at early AI: image generation was no better than a child’s drawing, yet millions signed up. That is the step before commercial value. People are creative and want creative tools. While using quantum mechanics for material science and protein folding is incredible, it doesn’t bring in the masses—which is why Harry is waiting for quantum computing's "Dylan-goes-electric" moment. In this episode of Thinking On Paper , we cover: • How Atlas, Moth's platform, lets you run images through a quantum computer without writing code • Whether a musician could hear the difference between quantum and classical randomness • Quantum shaders, artistic expression, and potential in music and visual effects • Why Richard Feynman's idea of a computer that works like nature excites artists • The intersection of quantum computing, AI, and autonomous media Please enjoy the show. Links & Resources • Try Atlas: platform.mothquantum.com • Moth Quantum: mothquantum.com • More quantum episodes: Watch on YouTube Thinking on Paper is a long-form interview podcast with Mark Fielding and Jeremy Gilbertson exploring the human story of technology, AI, quantum computing, and science. Chapters (00:00) Introduction to the episode and guests (01:32) Who is Harry Kumar and what is Moth Quantum? (04:18) The concept behind Quantum Backrooms and its inspiration (06:06) The end state in quantum game mechanics and creative mapping (09:58) Quantum advantage and hardware considerations (10:31) Using games to explore quantum mechanics (12:52) Target audience for quantum creative platforms (17:02) Comparison to Unreal Engine and platform versatility (20:33) Quantum shaders and potential in music and visual effects (28:27) Quantum as a new form of artistic expression (36:04) Quantum computing and the nature of creativity (44:52) Autonomous media and AI in creative processes (45:48) How to access and experiment with Moth Quantum's platform Connect with Thinking on Paper ◼ Choose your own technology adventure: https://www.thinkingonpaper.xyz ◼ Running a tech conference? Book us to host: Conference Hosting ◼ Listen on Apple Podcasts: Apple Podcasts ◼ Follow Mark: LinkedIn ◼ Follow Jeremy: LinkedIn #quantumcomputing #quantumgames #mothquantum #quantumphysics #creativeai #technology #podcast
September 28, 202641 min
AI Data Centers Could Use Far Less Water │ Simon Jesenko, Iceotope
Data centers use vast amounts of water primarily to cool air, not chips. Evaporative cooling systems chill the air that gets blown across server racks—and that evaporation is where the water loss occurs. Remove the air, and you eliminate the majority of water consumption. In this episode of Thinking On Paper , Simon Jesenko , CEO of Iceotope , explains how fanless, precision liquid cooling is revolutionizing AI data center infrastructure. By circulating 15 to 20 liters of dielectric fluid—a highly refined, safe liquid—inside a sealed chassis, Iceotope cools every single component directly without relying on air or external fans. Jesenko addresses the sensational headlines surrounding AI's water footprint, noting that critics are describing legacy air-cooled facilities. Once data centers transition to fully sealed liquid-cooled architectures, water and energy consumption drop dramatically. We discuss: • Why direct-to-chip cooling only solves 80% of server heat, and what components stay hot • What dielectric coolant liquid actually is, where it comes from, and why major energy companies like Shell and Exxon produce it • The early history of liquid cooling leaks and how it shaped the data center industry's risk aversion • Why cooling the Power Supply Unit (PSU) and memory—not just the GPU—is critical for efficiency and AI compute density • How crypto miners proved immersion cooling years before enterprise data centers • Optimizing tokens-per-watt and deploying silent edge AI infrastructure in offices and extreme environments Please enjoy the show. Links & Resources • Learn more about Iceotope: https://www.iceotope.com/ Connect with Thinking on Paper ◼ Choose your own technology adventure: https://www.thinkingonpaper.xyz ◼ Running a tech conference? Book us to host: Conference Hosting ◼ Listen on Spotify: Listen on Spotify ◼ Listen on Apple Podcasts: Listen on Apple Podcasts ◼ Follow Mark: LinkedIn ◼ Follow Jeremy: LinkedIn Chapters (00:00) Introduction to Data Center Cooling Challenges (01:07) Data Center Water Usage vs. Agriculture & Industry (03:00) Open Loop vs. Closed Loop Cooling Systems (04:18) Guest Introduction: Simon Jesenko (CEO, Iceotope) (05:02) Misconceptions About Data Center Water & Power Consumption (06:08) The Evolution From Legacy Air Cooling to Liquid Cooling (07:31) Direct-to-Chip Liquid Cooling Explained (08:40) Water Consumption: Traditional vs. Fully Liquid-Cooled Facilities (10:29) Market Transition Toward Total Liquid Cooling (12:23) Airflow Elimination & System-Level Thermal Management (13:34) Environmental Factors & Geographic Placement of AI Workloads (15:50) Integrating Precision Liquid Cooling into OEM Hardware (19:02) Future-Proofing Next-Gen High-Density GPU Clusters (22:02) Immersion Cooling History & Lessons from Crypto Mining (23:25) What is Dielectric Fluid? Safety & Environmental Impact (26:50) Market Adoption & Enterprise Opportunities for Iceotope (30:56) Optimizing PSU Thermal Efficiency & Tokens per Watt (34:15) Industry Trends in Next-Gen High Performance Computing (HPC) (37:24) Thermal Limits & Capacities of Current Liquid Cooling Tech (40:26) Daily AI Workflows & Closing Thoughts #datacenters #liquidcooling #iceotope #aiinfrastructure #gpus #sustainability #greentech #thinkingonpaper
September 16, 202648 min
He Quit SpaceX To Build Houses From Grass │Nathan Silvernail, Plantd
Nathan Silvernail quit SpaceX to make wood from grass. Building the first part of a rocket SpaceX ever reused—the nose cone—wasn’t enough. After a decade working for Elon Musk, he quit, took everything he had learned, and started Plantd. The plan? Make carbon-negative engineered lumber from fast-growing perennial grass. Climate tech meets space tech. Wood, without trees. Plantd's panels replace OSB, the oriented strand board that sheathes the floors, walls, and roofs of almost every new American home. In this hotly anticipated episode, Nathan joins Thinking On Paper to talk about his SpaceX journey, why he thinks Mars is a distraction from the work in front of us, how the lumber industry accounts for the wood it burns, and why building a material stronger than steel turned out to be wrong. You’ll get insight into the nine-month harvest cycle, what it takes to change the culture of an industry without letting it notice, and why he believes the unit economics that let SpaceX displace ULA will do the same to timber. Please enjoy the show. Thinking on Paper connects the dots between technology and what it means to be human. New episodes every week. 🏠 Buy us a beer on Substack 🫵 Choose your own technology adventure 📺 Watch our beautiful faces on YouTube 🎧 Remember Steve Jobs on APPLE 📺 Get clips and exclusive videos on Instagram Chapters (00:00) Grass building panels that replace wood (04:10) SpaceX: what the job actually cost him (07:56) What a payload fairing is and how SpaceX recovers it (11:52) Lumber: why anger put him in this industry (24:02) OSB alternative: a drop-in structural panel (28:00) Carbon negative building materials explained (29:50) SpaceX and ULA: the same playbook for lumber (35:55) Why hemp, bamboo and mycelium fail as building materials (40:14) Harvest: nine months against fifteen years (46:00) Why the Space Shuttle was retired
September 4, 202622 min
The US Space Transportation Policy: 1,000 Launches a Year or Pure Fantasy?
We read the new National Space Transportation Policy (NSPM-17) in full. Signed on August 20, 2026, this landmark directive shreds the 2013 space framework and rewrites how the U.S. approaches space launch, orbital logistics, range infrastructure, and point-to-point reentry. The War Department and U.S. Space Force are deeply embedded in this update—from expanding launch ranges and securing radio spectrum to enforcing a clause for rapid, responsive launch capabilities within 48 hours of need. You don't build a 48-hour launch mandate purely for scientific research; it signals a critical push for tactical space defense and fast satellite constellation replenishment. In this episode of Thinking On Paper , we analyze what could bottleneck this strategy. Is it rockets? Spaceports? Or market demand? With a White House target of 1,000 launches and reentries annually by 2030, current commercial demand—dominated by Starlink and smallsat rideshares—requires a 5x growth in orbital economics. Is this policy a realistic roadmap or a government-backed sales pitch? We also break down: • The National Space Transportation Policy (2026) vs. the 2013 directive • Tactical responsive space launch and 48-hour military deployment mandates • The target of 1,000 launches per year by 2030 and commercial market demand • The Mars exploration carve-outs and who America relies on for deep space • The International Space Station (ISS) 2030 retirement vs. China's lunar base plans • Commercial spaceports, federal reentry sites, and orbital infrastructure bottlenecks Thinking on Paper is a technology podcast exploring AI, space tech, quantum computing, commercial spaceflight, and the systems shaping the future. 🏠 Buy us a beer on Substack 🫵 Choose your own technology adventure 📺 Watch our beautiful faces on YouTube 🎧 Remember Steve Jobs on Apple Podcasts 📺 Get clips and exclusive videos on Instagram Chapters (00:00) Introduction to the US Space Transportation Policy (03:20) US Launch Frequency: 2025 vs 2026 (04:45) Commercial Space Industry & Market Demand Gap (06:24) US vs China Space Race & Global Competition (07:55) Launch Range Infrastructure & 48-Hour Responsive Space (10:00) Regulatory Frameworks, FAA & Spectrum Allocation (12:02) Smallsat Rideshare Economics & Market Opportunities (15:13) NASA Mars Carve-Out & Artemis Lunar Surface Goals (18:43) The Geopolitical Race to Mars & Commercial Landers (20:48) ISS Deorbiting & Realism of the 2030 1,000-Launch Target (23:22) Key Takeaways for Commercial Space Tech #spacetech #spacepolicy #nationalspacetransportationpolicy #commercialspace #spaceforce #astronomy #aerospace #spacex #thinkingonpaper
August 3, 20264 min
Stop Being Scared Of Your Curiosity
Why do we stop asking questions as adults? Philosopher and researcher Pia Lauritzen has analyzed over 30,000 questions and discovered a striking reality: our innate curiosity never actually disappears. The ability to wonder stays intact. What changes as we grow up is the social price tag. Every question requires you to admit you don't know something, and in corporate culture, nobody gets promoted for sounding ignorant. Ask the wrong question in the wrong room, and harmless curiosity starts to feel like a high-stakes interrogation—which is why most of us learn to keep our thoughts to ourselves. Lauritzen proves that our questioning instinct is only suppressed, not lost. In her keynotes, she gives audiences just one minute and two simple rules, resulting in everyone writing a thoughtful question instantly. They could do it the whole time; they just needed permission. In this episode of Thinking On Paper , we explore the philosophy of questions, why workplace structures punish curiosity, and whether artificial intelligence is actually capable of genuine thought. Be curious, stay disruptive. Thinking on Paper is a technology podcast about AI, Space, quantum computing, science, and the systems shaping your life. 🏠 Buy us a beer on Substack 🫵 Choose your own technology adventure 📺 Watch our beautiful faces on YouTube 🎧 Remember Steve Jobs on Apple Podcasts 📺 Get clips and exclusive videos on Instagram #philosophy #curiosity #criticalthinking #artificialintelligence #pialauritzen #workplaceculture #thinkingonpaper #podcast
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