Will the Future Be Abundant?

Open to Debate

News, Society & Culture, Education

4.5 • 2.1K Ratings

🗓️ 17 October 2025

⏱️ 52 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Today, humanity is thriving, but there are fears the good times will not last. Will tomorrow be better than today? Those arguing “yes” say people have better access to resources and technological advances are making us more prosperous. Those arguing “no” say there are widening socio-economic disparities, our globalized world is bound to collapse, and we’re not doing enough to fight climate change. Now we debate: Will the Future Be Abundant? Arguing Yes: Peter Diamandis, Founder and Executive Chairman of the XPRIZE Foundation Arguing No: Peter Zeihan, Geopolitical Strategist Xenia Wickett, Geopolitical strategist and moderator at Wickett Advisory and Trustee of Transparency International UK, is the guest moderator. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	300 sensors.
0:03.0	Over a million data points per second.
0:06.0	How does F1 update their fans with every stat in real time?
0:10.0	AWS is how.
0:13.0	From fastest laps to strategy calls,
0:15.0	AWS puts fans in the pit.
0:19.0	It's not just racing, it's data-driven innovation at 200 miles per hour.
0:25.4	AWS is how leading businesses power next-level innovation.
0:30.4	Welcome to Open to Debate. I'm John Donvan, and this week we are revisiting one of our favorite debates,
0:35.2	one that zooms out a bit and looks at where both as a
0:38.4	planet and as a species we are heading. The question is, will the future be abundant? Taking that
0:44.2	longer view is also an overall optimistic one, a bit of fresh air amid some of the heavier topics
0:50.3	we've been taking on here lately. This debate predicts as you'll hear how the pace of AI
0:54.3	will continue to accelerate into everything. Oh, and stay tuned for Peter Bot. A quick note,
1:00.6	Biden was president when this was originally recorded, and you might hear a reference or two
1:04.4	alluding to that. I'm handing off the reins for this one to our esteemed guest moderator,
1:08.7	Zena Wicket. Zena is an expert in international affairs.
1:11.9	She worked in the White House and the State Department, and this day, she runs her own business
1:15.6	called Wicked Advisory. Wicked Advisory offers geopolitical strategy and coaching to organizations
1:20.8	and executives. We're glad to have her for this one. So, here she is, Zena Wicket.
1:25.6	In 2011, the Pew Research Center conducted a study that showed, for the first time, that more Americans thought that their children were going to be worse off than themselves than thought otherwise.
1:36.8	That trend has continued.
	...

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