The Cal Newport Show

Advice on focus, productivity and meaningful work in a distracted world AI summary

Cal Newport Visit website › Technology · EN · 469 episodes · latest 2026-11-12

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What it is about

A podcast about human flourishing in a technological world. Hosted by Cal Newport, an MIT-trained computer professor and bestselling author of numerous books on technology and its impacts, including DEEP WORK, DIGITAL MINIMALISM, A WORLD WITHOUT EMAIL, and SLOW PRODUCTIVITY. New episodes weekly.

Publisher’s own description, taken unchanged from the podcast feed.
© Cal Newport

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Latest episodes

  1. Why is Google Holding Schools Hostage?

    2026-11-12 · 20 min

    Last week, Google announced that, in response to pressure from parents and educators, it would allow schools to turn off AI tools in their widely used education apps. Cal Newport analyzes this announcement and provides…

  2. Can We Escape Our Internet Hell?

    2026-11-09 · 1 hr 7 min

    It’s becoming increasingly clear that the negative impact of phones on our lives is larger than we’d like to admit. Maybe it’s time to move beyond tips and hacks to explore more serious interventions. But what would…

  3. Reading As an Act of Resistance (Notes on Harvard’s Hum 10)

    2026-11-05 · 20 min

    Two years ago, The Atlantic featured a distressing story about elite college students who could no longer read books. Last week, The Wall Street Journal offered some hope that things are getting better. An article by…

  4. A Better Way to Think About Tech

    2026-11-02 · 58 min

    It’s become hard to talk about technology. Commentators have split themselves into two increasingly extreme teams: the pessimists and the optimists. But what about the rest of us who don’t hate technology but are wary…

  5. Do Hard Things (Featuring: Jerry Seinfeld)

    2026-10-30 · 15 min

    The most recent episode of the Acquired podcast featured a story about Jerry Seinfeld that provides a critical lesson for succeeding in our current AI moment. Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia…

  6. When Productivity Theory Meets Practice

    2026-10-26 · 1 hr 6 min

    What happens when neat theoretical ideas about productivity are deployed in the messy real world? In this episode, Cal is joined by Haley Pulli, a productivity coach from the company DoneDaily, to discuss case studies…

  7. Why Did Big Tech Stop Building Useful Products?

    2026-10-22 · 14 min

    Tesla’s recent demo of a rocket-powered Roadster doing a kick-flick over a parked car touched a nerve in me. It seemed to epitomize changes to the tech sector in recent years that have been largely negative. In this…

  8. “Rogue” AI Not Inevitable. It’s a Choice.

    2026-10-19 · 1 hr 18 min

    A lot of attention has been paid recently to examples of AI going “rogue.” What’s missing from this discussion, however, is a more detailed explanation of what specific types of systems are causing problems. Taking a…

  9. An Unlikely Team Tackles AI Brain Rot

    2026-10-12 · 1 hr 6 min

    How do we stop from becoming so reliant on LLMs that we lose our ability to think. A new paper explores answers based on an unlikely source: rigorous mathematical models. In this episode, Cal explains the paper and its…

  10. A Stark Warning From a Former AI Doomer

    2026-10-08 · 1 hr 18 min

    Cal Newport takes a critical look at recent AI News. Cal interviews Emile Torres who provides a stark warning about AI. Video from today’s episode: youtube.com/calnewportmedia (0:00) A stark warning from a former AI…

Episode details from the publisher’s feed. Playback happens at the publisher.

Publisher details

Oldest episode in feed
05/2020 · over 6 years
Typical length
1 hr 10 min
Format
Episodic Newest first, episodes stand alone

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