Ice, ice, maybe: should the Arctic be refrozen?
The Intelligence from The Economist
The Economist
4.5 • 3.7K Ratings
🗓️ 17 February 2026
⏱️ 22 minutes
🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS
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Summary
Many scientists are considering the notion of actively cooling the region that is warming fastest. We examine the merits and the risks—both environmental and geopolitical—of messing with the polar climate. We ask why the kind of gig economy that has struggled in many markets is booming in India. And an unsettling peek into the first social network for AI agents.
Guests and hosts:
- Oliver Morton, senior editor
- Catherine Brahic, environment editor
- Kira Huju, Asia correspondent
- Alex Hern, AI writer
- Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”
- Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”
Topics covered:
- The Arctic, climate change, geoengineering
- India, gig economy
- Agentic AI, social networking, Moltbook
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The Economist |
| 0:02.0 | Hello and welcome to the intelligence from The Economist. |
| 0:12.0 | I'm Rosie Bloor |
| 0:15.0 | and I'm Jason Palmer. |
| 0:17.0 | Every weekday we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world. |
| 0:21.6 | These days in India, you can order street snacks, household appliances or a single bar of soap to arrive at your door within minutes. |
| 0:31.6 | But what of the delivery drivers racing through the crazy traffic to meet those whims? |
| 0:36.6 | Our correspondent reports. |
| 0:40.3 | And we've talked a lot recently about independent AI agents. |
| 0:44.3 | And we've talked a lot about the weird and troubling things that arise on social networks. |
| 0:50.3 | Now, what happens when a bunch of AI agents are cut loose on their very own social network? |
| 1:01.7 | First up, though. |
| 1:16.4 | As more and more of the Arctic disappears, the debate around it is getting louder. |
| 1:20.8 | Climate change is transforming the Arctic faster than any other place. If you take a look outside of Greenland right now, there are Russian destroyed. |
| 1:25.3 | Making clear, our commitment to ensuring Arctic security. |
| 1:29.9 | For some leaders, the problem is less environmental than geopolitical. |
| 1:34.5 | Donald Trump worries that the Great Thor is a threat to America's security, |
| 1:38.9 | allowing Russia and China access to new routes, new resources and new influence. |
| 1:44.4 | Yet America's president has shown little interest in stopping the melting in the first |
| 1:48.6 | place. The U.S. officially left the Paris Agreement again in January. |
| 1:53.5 | Last week, Trump repealed a key ruling that greenhouse gases harm public health, |
| 1:57.7 | a judgment that has underpinned all federal actions to curb them since 2009. |
... |
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