#839: Dr. Fei-Fei Li, The Godmother of AI — Asking Audacious Questions, Civilizational Technology, and Finding Your North Star

The Tim Ferriss Show

Tim Ferriss: Bestselling Author, Human Guinea Pig

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4.6 • 17.4K Ratings

🗓️ 9 December 2025

⏱️ 79 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Dr. Fei-Fei Li (@drfeifei) is the inaugural Sequoia Professor in the Computer Science Department at Stanford University, a founding co-director of Stanford’s Human-Centered AI Institute, and the co-founder and CEO of World Labs, a generative AI company focusing on Spatial Intelligence. She is the author of The Worlds I See: Curiosity, Exploration, and Discovery at the Dawn of AI, her memoir and one of Barack Obama’s recommended books on AI and a Financial Times best book of 2023.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, boys and girls, ladies and germs. This is Tim Ferriss. Welcome to another episode of the
0:04.7	Tim Ferriss Show, where is my job to deconstruct world-class performers. I interviewed them
0:10.3	to tease out the habits, routines, frameworks, etc. that you can apply to your own lives.
0:14.8	My guest today is Dr. Fay-Fa-Lee. She is the inaugural Sequoia Professor in the Computer
0:19.9	Science Department at Stanford University.
0:22.3	She's been called the godmother of AI.
0:24.8	She's a founding co-director of Stanford's Human-Centered AI Institute and the co-founder and CEO of World Labs,
0:32.0	a generative AI company focusing on spatial intelligence.
0:35.6	She's also the author of The World's I See, Curiosity, Exploration, and Discovery at the
0:40.7	Dawn of AI.
0:41.8	Her memoir in one of Barack Obama's recommended books on AI and a Financial Times best book
0:48.0	of 2023.
0:49.9	Her story is incredible.
0:50.9	It is one of beating the odds on so many different levels.
0:55.8	And let's get straight to it. Dr. Fayfay Lee. At this altitude, I can run flat out for a half mile before my
1:02.5	hands start shaking. Can I answer your personal question? Now we'll have seen an appropriate time.
1:07.9	What if I did the opposite? I'm a cybernetic organism, living tissue over metal anthorescology.
1:13.6	Lee Tim Ferriss Show.
1:22.0	Dr. Lee, it is nice to see you.
1:24.2	Thanks for making the time.
1:25.6	Hi, Tim.
1:26.2	Very nice to be here.
	...

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