Podcast Episode · All-In with Chamath, Jason, Sacks & Friedberg · 09/18/2025 · 25m
Space isn’t just for lonely colonies—it’s for communities. Join us as we imagine constellations of space habitats bound by tethers, trade, and trust, building not just homes in the stars but entire civilizations.
Watch my exclusive video The Economics of Immortality: https://nebula.tv/videos/isaacarthur–…
Get Nebula using my link for 40% off an annual subscription: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur.
Get a Lifetime Membership to Nebula for only $300: https://go.nebula.tv/lifetime?ref=isa…
Use the link https://gift.nebula.tv/isaacarthur to give a year of Nebula to a friend for just $36.
Visit our Website: http://www.isaacarthur.net.
Join Nebula: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur.
Support us on Patreon: / isaacarthur.
Support us on Subscribestar: https://www.subscribestar.com/isaac-a…
Facebook Group: / 1583992725237264
Reddit: / isaacarthur.
Twitter: / isaac_a_arthur on Twitter and RT our future content.
SFIA Discord Server: / discord.
Credits:
Space Habitat Clusters & Conglomerations.
Written, Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur.
Graphics: Jarred Eagley, Jeremy Jozwik, Udo Schroeter.
Select imagery/video supplied by Getty Images.
Music Courtesy of Stellardrone and Epidemic Sound http://epidemicsound.com/creator.
Chapters.
0:00 Intro.
1:13 Why Clustered Habitats?
6:00 Habitat Types and Roles Within Clusters.
9:41 Mobility and Modularity – The Politics of Moveable Worlds.
14:02 Tethers, Transit, and Shared Infrastructure.
17:35 Shapes of Clusters and Dynamic Conglomerations.
23:43 Nebula.
25:21 Digital Ecosystems and Cultural Identity.
25:19 Economics and Trade in Habitat Constellations.
26:52 Education and Intergenerational Planning.
28:17 Security and Conflict Management.
29:10 A Tale of Unity.
32:29 Religion, Ritual, and Meaning.
33:19 The Long View: Legacy and Civilization.
34:07 Closing Reflections
Tesla’s new energy products, such as the Mega Pack and Megablock, have the potential to revolutionize energy storage and generation, drive decentralization and grid resilience, and support widespread AI adoption, potentially driving its energy business to $50 billion in revenue and generating $10 billion in annual gross margin ## Questions to inspire discussion.
Energy Storage and Grid Management.
🔋 Q: How does Tesla’s Mega Pack improve energy storage? A: Tesla’s Mega Pack offers 20% more energy density and 25% more energy per unit, providing 8 hours of storage to expand the total addressable market for renewable energy.
⚡ Q: What is the Mega Block and how does it enhance efficiency? A: The Mega Block is a transformer and switchgear all-in-one unit that simplifies processes, reduces cabling and on-site assembly, making the product more streamlined and efficient.
🔌 Q: How do battery storage systems compare to traditional grid power? A: Battery storage is significantly more capable at dumping power instantly compared to the grid, which needs to spool up and down, making it better for managing wild swings in data center load profiles.
Data centers and AI energy demands.
Researchers at the University of Maine are theorizing that human beings may be in the midst of a major evolutionary shift—driven not by genes, but by culture.
In a paper published in BioScience, Timothy M. Waring, an associate professor of economics and sustainability, and Zachary T. Wood, a researcher in ecology and environmental sciences, argue that culture is overtaking genetics as the main force shaping human evolution.
“Human evolution seems to be changing gears,” said Waring. “When we learn useful skills, institutions or technologies from each other, we are inheriting adaptive cultural practices. On reviewing the evidence, we find that culture solves problems much more rapidly than genetic evolution. This suggests our species is in the middle of a great evolutionary transition.”
To study such patterns of early AI adoption, we extend the Anthropic Economic Index along two important dimensions, introducing a geographic analysis of Claude.ai conversations and a first-of-its-kind examination of enterprise API use. We show how Claude usage has evolved over time, how adoption patterns differ across regions, and—for the first time—how firms are deploying frontier AI to solve business problems.
Feudalism once ruled Earth—could it rule the cosmos too? We dive into the strange but plausible world of space nobles, orbital dukes, and knights of the vacuum clad in power armor or piloting mecha.
Watch my exclusive video The Economics of Immortality: https://nebula.tv/videos/isaacarthur–…
Get Nebula using my link for 40% off an annual subscription: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur.
Get a Lifetime Membership to Nebula for only $300: https://go.nebula.tv/lifetime?ref=isa…
Use the link https://gift.nebula.tv/isaacarthur to give a year of Nebula to a friend for just $36.
Visit our Website: http://www.isaacarthur.net.
Join Nebula: https://go.nebula.tv/isaacarthur.
Support us on Patreon: / isaacarthur.
Support us on Subscribestar: https://www.subscribestar.com/isaac-a…
Facebook Group: / 1583992725237264
Reddit: / isaacarthur.
Twitter: / isaac_a_arthur on Twitter and RT our future content.
SFIA Discord Server: / discord.
Credits:
Feudal Futures — Knights & Nobles in the Space Age.
Written, Produced & Narrated by: Isaac Arthur.
Select imagery/video supplied by Getty Images.
Music Courtesy of Epidemic Sound http://epidemicsound.com/creator.
Chapters.
0:00 Intro.
0:12 Feudalism… IN SPACE!!!? Knights, Mechs, and Space Lords.
5:04 Lords of the Vacuum – Whoever Builds the Habitat, Owns the Habitat.
9:10 Feudal Claims on Natural Resources.
14:31 Vassalage in Vacuum – How Loyalty Could Work in Space.
18:20 Breaking the Mold – Alternative Models to Feudal Ownership.
20:52 Natural Armor.
22:12 Would It Work? Or Collapse Gloriously?
23:38 The Knight Reforged – Power Armor, Mechs, and Weapons of Mass Respect.
25:12 A New Middle Ages Among the Stars?
Mo Gawdat warns that AI will soon surpass human intelligence, fundamentally changing society, but also believes that with collective action, ethical development, and altruistic leadership, humans can ensure a beneficial future and potentially avoid losing control to AI
## Questions to inspire discussion.
AI’s Impact on Humanity.
🤖 Q: How soon will AI surpass human intelligence? A: According to Mo Gawdat, AI will reach AGI by 2026, with intelligence measured in thousands compared to humans, making human intelligence irrelevant within 3 years.
🌍 Q: What potential benefits could AI bring to global issues? A: 12% of world military spending redirected to AI could solve world hunger, provide universal healthcare, and end extreme poverty, creating a potential utopia.
Preparing for an AI-Driven Future.
Hans Nelson