Peter Diamandis on Universal Basic Income with Andrew Yang 

Peter Diamandis and Andrew Yang discuss the challenges and potential solutions for modern democracy, including reinventing voting systems, potential threats from AI in the upcoming presidential elections, and UBI (Universal Basic Income). 

Topics:
0:00 - AI & The Next Election Cycle
0:54 - Reinventing Democracy With Yang
1:57 - The Moonshot Movement With Andrew Yang
3:13 - AI vs. Democracy in 2024 5:51 - Reforming Our Political System
8:55 - Election Education With AI
11:59 - Saving U.S. Democracy With Tech
16:05 - Saving Democracy With Innovation
19:58 - Moving Past Party Politics
25:34 - Fixing American Democracy
28:59 - Swing Voters to Decide 2022?
37:05 - Elon For President?
44:59 - Reducing Fear: UBI Explored
54:04 - Taxing AI: The Possibility?
1:02:30 - Navigating The Human/AI Divide
1:08:04 - Preparing For Abundance
1:10:06 - The Purpose of UBI 

In this episode, Peter and Andrew delve into modern democracy's challenges, exploring revamped voting systems, AI's potential influence on future presidential races, and the concept of UBI (Universal Basic Income).

Andrew Yang, an American entrepreneur, lawyer, and politician, ran for the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries and the 2021 NYC Democratic mayoral race. He's now the co-chair of the Campaign for a Human-Centered Economy. Yang's standout proposal was a monthly UBI of $1,000, addressing job losses due to automation. His campaigns and advocacy have brought UBI to the forefront of discussions.

Explore more:

• Andrew's website: http://andrewyang.com/

• Forward Party: http://forwardparty.com/

Universal Basic Income and Political Change

• 🗳️ "You run the same ballot initiative that won in Alaska Nevada. In 10 states. It fails in five of them but that's okay you succeed in five and then you liberate 10 U.S senators to do whatever they think is best and not be enthralled to their parties on either side that changes the nature of American politics and that's very very real that's very very doable that's huge." - Andrew Yang proposes a strategy to change

• 🗳️ "Imagine an independent presidential primary where it's Mark Cuban, The Rock, Oprah, Matthew McConaughey, Justin Amash, Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, Tony Robbins, and Jeff Bezos, and we can all vote in this primary on our smartphones."

• 💰 The data shows that when people receive a basic income, they tend to spend it on necessities for themselves and their children, effectively lifting them out of poverty.

• 💰 Giving people a certain amount of money with no strings attached can lead to positive outcomes such as improved education, mental health, and decreased addiction and crime rates.

• 💰 Andrew Yang praises the effectiveness of direct cash transfers, such as GiveDirectly, in improving lives and bypassing inefficient government bureaucracies.

• 🧠 Dean Kamen, creator of the Segway, is also a brilliant inventor with numerous patents and is currently involved in regrowing organs, showcasing the potential of technology in healthcare.

• 🤖 The use of AI in surgery could potentially surpass human performance, as robots can perform surgeries more accurately and consistently without the influence of human biases or personal issues.

• 💡 The goal is to make meaningful work accessible to more people, whether it's through societal-wide efforts or simple acts of helping neighbors, and AI can play a critical role in empowering individuals to educate themselves and achieve things they didn't think they could.

Economic Scarcity vs. Future Abundance

• 💡 "The Challenge is trying to prepare us for abundance in a time when scarcity actually unfortunately is the lived experience of many of our fellow Americans and humans." - Andrew Yang highlights the need to address economic scarcity while preparing for a future of abundance.

• 🌍 The rise of AI in the next few years will bring about significant fear, and it is crucial to address this fear by implementing measures like universal basic income to support individuals affected by job displacement.

• 🌍 The mindset of abundance, possibility, and optimism in embracing technology and entrepreneurship needs to prevail over the mindset of scarcity, fear, and negativity towards technology.

• 🌍 Addressing insecurity and inequality is crucial for creating a society where advancements benefit everyone, rather than fostering resentment towards those who succeed.

• 💰 "Taxing AI makes a lot of sense...use that tax base to fund a UBI program."

• 💰 "We're heading towards a world of massive demonetization, where the cost of living should go down while the standard of living goes up."

• 🌍 Yang emphasizes the need to appreciate the abundance of resources and opportunities in the current era, rather than focusing on scarcity and insecurity.

AI and Misinformation in Politics

• 🤖 AI generative technology has the potential to create convincing and fabricated images and videos, leading to misinformation and manipulation in the upcoming U.S. election.

The key idea of the video is that the implementation of AI and the rise of automation necessitate the need for Universal Basic Income (UBI) and a reimagining of democracy to address the potential threats and challenges posed by these advancements.

• Andrew Yang discusses the impact of AI on politics, the need for UBI, and the potential threats to democracy, while highlighting the lack of preparation and proactive measures by the US government to defend against AI manipulation in elections.

  • AI is being used to manipulate elections, and the US government is not prepared to defend against it, while Andrew Yang discusses the need for Universal Basic Income and his ideas for reinventing democracy.

  • Andrew Yang, a politician and entrepreneur, discusses the impact of AI on politics and the need for universal basic income (UBI) due to technological unemployment.

  • AI-generated content, such as deep fakes, will likely play a significant and potentially harmful role in the upcoming U.S. election, leading to the recommendation of avoiding social media feeds.

  • AI could potentially threaten democracy in the near future, particularly in the 2024 presidential elections, but it also has the potential to greatly improve the human condition by addressing issues like Alzheimer's and cancer.

  • Most politicians are more focused on maintaining their position and popularity rather than addressing the systemic issues and erosion of trust in American democracy caused by the impact of AI on politics.

  • Most elected officials in DC spend a significant amount of time dialing for dollars, leaving little time to address the potential impact of AI on politics, and the US government is unprepared and reactive rather than proactive in defending against AI manipulation in elections.

• AI can educate voters and address the issues of the current political system, which is uncompetitive and unrepresentative, by comparing political situations; technology can also make direct democracy more feasible and UBI is needed in the age of AI and robotics.

  • AI can play a role in educating voters by using generative AI to compare and contrast political situations, as the current system lacks sufficient information and is uncompetitive and unrepresentative.

  • The American political system was originally designed as a representative democracy, but technology has the potential to make direct democracy more feasible and address the issues caused by the dominance of political parties.

  • Over the past few decades, the two major political parties in the US have become increasingly polarized, leading to frustration among Americans as politicians only need to please a small percentage of extreme party members to secure re-election.

  • The speaker discusses the importance of technology in finding solutions for democracy and the need for UBI in the age of AI and robotics, while also mentioning their book "The Last Election" and the role of entrepreneurs in problem-solving.

  • The current political system is stacked against rational and accomplished individuals, and in order to make change, it is necessary to challenge the two-party system and make the fiction of representing the majority a reality by changing party mechanisms at the state level.

  • In a democratic process in Alaska, the elimination of party primaries and the implementation of ranked choice voting allowed candidates like Mary Paltola and Lisa Murkowski to win despite not being favored by their party's base, demonstrating the potential for improved decision-making and representation in politics.

• Alaska and Nevada are leading the way in fighting for the right to vote in primaries for independent voters, with a movement to change the primary system state by state, costing approximately $200 million, in order to fix American democracy and move towards a true democracy.

  • Alaska was able to put forward a ballot initiative to get rid of the primaries because it is a cheap media state, costing only six million dollars, and it is a cost-effective way to remove certain politicians from office.

  • Alaska and Nevada have led the way in fighting for the right to vote in primaries for independent voters, with a winning advertisement in Nevada featuring a military veteran advocating for the ability to vote for whomever they want, leading to a movement to change the primary system state by state.

  • Fixing American democracy by eliminating bad incentives in the political system through a ballot initiative in multiple states, costing approximately $200 million, can lead to a significant change in American politics and move towards a true democracy.

  • The possibility of a Joe Biden and Donald Trump rematch in the 2024 election highlights the dysfunction of the two-party system and the need for a new independent political movement.

  • In the future, there could be an independent presidential primary where various figures like Mark Cuban, The Rock, Oprah, Matthew McConaughey, Justin Amash, Liz Cheney, Adam Kinzinger, Tony Robbins, and Jeff Bezos can be voted for via smartphones with verified votes, leading to a more inclusive and democratic system.

  • The speaker questions the significance of the opinions of a small percentage of Iowans in the political process and suggests that their views should not hold more weight than those of other states.

• The current political nomination process is outdated and controlled by the media, but with technology, a new process can be designed to support independent candidates and address the need for popular and intelligent candidates with good policies.

  • The current nomination process for political parties is outdated and controlled by the media, but with the use of technology, a new process can be designed that allows independent candidates to compete and be supported by real Americans.

  • The speaker discusses the need for heavyweights to run in politics with ballot access in all 50 states, highlighting the importance of the Forward Party and the potential involvement of Mark Cuban, emphasizing the importance of popular and intelligent candidates with good policies.

  • Most Americans are fed up with the current political system and would be open to a non-establishment candidate, but they believe it is not possible due to media conditioning and the perception that there are only two options.

  • The podcast discusses the impact of AI on politics, the need for UBI, and the potential for Elon Musk to run for office if the rules about being born in the US were changed.

  • If an independent primary were to happen and the speaker were to lose, they would endorse the winner and campaign for them, creating a team of high-powered surrogates that the American people would trust more than the current politicians.

  • The speaker discusses the importance of the forward party and their plans for independent primaries and ranked choice voting, while also emphasizing the need to focus on organizing swing voters in swing states to prevent the current system from collapsing.

• AI is accelerating the need for UBI, which provides reliable income to those who lose their jobs to technology, alleviating fear and promoting abundance, while addressing insecurity and inequality.

  • AI is impacting politics and accelerating the need for UBI, and Andrew Yang discusses his desire to make things work better and his belief in the importance of a functional public sector.

  • The speaker focuses on consuming news about the world's breakthroughs in science and technology, rather than watching crisis news networks like CNN or Fox.

  • The idea of universal basic income is to provide reliable income to individuals who lose their jobs to technology, allowing them to meet their basic needs, invest in education or start a small business, and alleviate fear and maintain human dignity in the face of AI advancements.

  • Universal basic income has been implemented and tested in numerous experiments worldwide, and it is necessary to counter the fear of job loss and promote a mindset of abundance and optimism towards technology.

  • Americans on Aid programs are motivated by fear of losing their benefits, leading to a dehumanizing system that prevents them from living better lives, and we need to create a more trustworthy and compassionate system.

  • Insecurity and inequality are the main issues people face, and by addressing them, we can create a society where advancements benefit everyone instead of causing envy.

• Giving people a monthly income has positive effects on poverty, education, mental health, and crime rates, and can be funded by taxing AI and robots, leading to a future where AI takes care of various roles and healthcare and education are free.

  • The data shows that when people receive a monthly income, they tend to spend it on essential needs for themselves and their children, leading to positive outcomes such as lifting children out of poverty and reducing domestic violence and child abuse.

  • Giving people a certain amount of money with no strings attached has been shown to have positive effects on education, mental health, and crime rates, and has been implemented in various places around the world.

  • Investing in direct money transfers to people in need, such as through organizations like GiveDirectly, is more effective and efficient than creating new bureaucracies or relying on government administrations to improve lives.

  • Taxing AI and robots that replace jobs and implementing a data dividend could provide the funding for a Universal Basic Income program.

  • AI replacing human workers in call centers could result in a loss of tax revenue unless the system is changed, leading to a future of technological socialism where AI takes care of various roles such as physicians, educators, and surgeons.

  • The best healthcare and education will eventually be free as technology advances.

• The implementation of AI will lead to a decrease in the cost of living and an increase in the standard of living, but regulatory capture and resistance from certain sectors may hinder its progress.

  • The cost of living will decrease and the standard of living will increase due to the efficiency and demonetization brought about by AI, but regulatory capture and the resistance of certain sectors may hinder its implementation.

  • In the absence of regulatory capture, the future described involves the displacement of certain individuals due to the implementation of AI, and it is crucial to manage this transition for both groups affected.

  • Dean Kamen, the creator of the Segway and numerous other inventions, including regrowing organs, is a genius and a force for good in the world.

  • AI will eventually surpass human surgeons in terms of accuracy and cost-effectiveness, as humans are prone to making mistakes due to personal issues, and the need for data-driven decision-making will become crucial.

  • The speaker discusses the demonetization of certain aspects of life due to advancements in technology and proposes the idea of basic living as a service, where technology can meet our basic needs and allow us to save and invest money.

  • People will be able to create and share artwork, some of which will be awesome and some terrible, due to the availability of free time enabled by AI.

• Andrew Yang discusses the need for Universal Basic Income (UBI) and the impact of AI on jobs, emphasizing the importance of purpose and structure in people's lives, especially for men, and the need for alternative political candidates and a reinvention of democracy.

  • Technology allows humanity to take a vacation from survival, but we are not prepared for abundance and need to address the challenge of scarcity and the need for purpose in implementing UBI.

  • Andrew Yang discusses his vision of an American Exchange program and the need for structure, purpose, and community in people's lives.

  • The goal is to enable individuals to pursue meaningful work and fulfill their dreams by allowing AI to take over dull, dangerous, or dirty jobs and serve as a co-pilot to help them educate themselves and achieve things they didn't think they could do.

  • Men and boys need a sense of purpose and usefulness to prevent self-destruction, as shown by studies that reveal higher levels of deaths of despair among men, and there needs to be a significant investment in measures to help them find a way forward, especially considering the asymmetry in college enrollment and the negative impact on younger men.

  • Andrew Yang discusses the need for alternative political candidates and the potential for a reality TV-style election funded by TV rights, in order to provide more options and appeal to the majority of Americans who want an alternative to the two-party system.

  • The speaker discusses the need to reinvent democracy and implement universal basic income (UBI) globally, emphasizing the importance of creating a better future for children and encouraging support for his vision through social media and his new book.