Peter Thiel: The Real Danger of AI Isn't What You Think

[music] >> The Builders is a production of Kaleidoscope and iHeart, presented by Ramp. I'm Walter Isaacson. Welcome to The Builders, my new series of interviews featuring the most consequential minds shaping our future. In doing this series, I wanted to understand the values and the moral [music] views of the builders. And I came to realize, better and for

worse, they were often quite unusual. Some were strongly libertarian, others were Nietzschean or dismissive of empathy. Some also had a very dark view of [music] humanity. I felt maybe they should touch grass every now and then, get out of their billionaire bubbles and understand [music] what the rest of us feel like. We may want these people to build, but

especially with powerful [music] technology, we need to make sure that we all have a say. >> [music] >> And that begins with understanding what they are doing and why. And so today I'm speaking with Peter Thiel. >> Billionaire Silicon Valley investor Peter Thiel. >> Peter Thiel is a high-profile figure in Silicon Valley.

>> Peter Thiel is one of the most respected names in the world of venture capital, in addition to his co-founding of PayPal. He was also an early investor in companies such as Facebook and LinkedIn. >> Peter Thiel occupies a different role. He's a builder of builders. >> [music] >> He makes bets on people. Elon Musk at

PayPal, Alex Karp at Palantir, Sam Altman and the founders of OpenAI. And he backed politicians such as J.D. Vance. [music] >> There's two reasons that Senator Rand could be a heartbeat [music] from presidency. And basically, the president versus Peter, the second is Thiel. To some, he's a visionary investor. >> I think Peter is one of the most