Intelligence Squared

‘It is vanishingly rare for a writer to both confront the ugliness of humanity and still search for its beauty. Roy is that rare writer.’ – Naomi Klein Arundhati Roy is one of today’s most esteemed public intellectuals. The author of novels including the Booker Prize-winning The God of Small Things, Roy is equally respected as a political essayist. Her words on topics from the COVID-19 pandemic to...

Nick Clegg has had a seat at the heart of power for nearly two decades. As leader of the Liberal Democrats he served as deputy Prime Minister from 2010 to 2015 in the coalition government with David Cameron. After losing his parliamentary seat in 2017 he became Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s right-hand man as President of Global Affairs at Meta. Throughout his time in politics and the private...

Nick Clegg has had a seat at the heart of power for nearly two decades. As leader of the Liberal Democrats he served as deputy Prime Minister from 2010 to 2015 in the coalition government with David Cameron. After losing his parliamentary seat in 2017 he became Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s right-hand man as President of Global Affairs at Meta. Throughout his time in politics and the private...

In November 2022, Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power in Israel after winning his sixth election. Propped up by a bloc of far-right and ultra-religious parties, Netanyahu’s government is seen by many as the most extreme in Israeli history. But he is also a remarkably successful politician: he first won power in 1996 and is Israel’s longest-serving prime minister. In September 2025 Anshel Pfeffer,...

In November 2022, Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power in Israel after winning his sixth election. Propped up by a bloc of far-right and ultra-religious parties, Netanyahu’s government is seen by many as the most extreme in Israeli history. But he is also a remarkably successful politician: he first won power in 1996 and is Israel’s longest-serving prime minister. In September 2025 Anshel Pfeffer,...

This is an episode of The Specialist, produced by Intelligence Squared in partnership with Sotheby's. In The Specialist, explore the significance and journey of an extraordinary work through the eyes of those that know it best. On today’s episode, Maurizio Cattelan’s Comedian - an artwork that provoked scandal, sparked imagination, and upended the very definition of contemporary art. David Galperi...

How can AI improve our healthcare industry? In this episode, Dr Emma Yhnell speaks to health informaticist and author Dr Charlotte Blease about the role AI could play in the future of medicine, from making it more accessible to helping lighten the hours of a burnt-out workforce.  Healthcare systems around the world are under mounting pressure. Healthcare professionals are amongst the most overwork...

This is an episode of Hotels with History, produced by Intelligence Squared on behalf of Perowne International⁠. In today’s episode, the rise of one of the most exclusive districts of London, the hotel that became the Annex to Buckingham Palace, and how it has maintained its status as one of the world’s most iconic hotels ever since. ⁠Follow on Instagram⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit po...

Why do we dream? Why do dreams go bad? And can we harness the science of dreams and nightmares to improve our health? Dr Michelle Carr is the Director of the Dream Engineering Laboratory at the University of Montreal and a researcher in the cutting edge field of dream engineering. Her new book, Into the Dream Lab, is a guide to the science of dreaming and nightmares, and the impact the dreaming br...

Pulitzer-prize winning journalist Tim Weiner has been chronicling the history of the CIA for more than two decades. His new book, The Mission charts the agency’s successes and failings, from 9-11 to the present day. In this episode, he sat down with Carl Miller to talk about the agency’s notorious post 9-11 torture programmes, its key role in supporting Ukraine, the threat posed by China and Russi...

In today's episode we’re joined today by journalist and author Catherine Belton to continue our discussion on whether President Trump can deliver a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. Belton speaks with Conor Boyle, Head of Programming at Intelligence Squared, about what Putin’s long-term ambitions really are, why sanctions are working, and what the future holds for Europe, Ukraine and the Unit...

How does the classical world shape our politics, culture, language and lives today? On today’s episode, we’re joined by two of the greatest names making classics accessible for the modern day. Dame Mary Beard is a classicist who taught at Cambridge for almost 40 years. She has close to 20 books to her name, including Pompeii, which won the Wolfson History Prize, SPQR and Emperor of Rome, both of w...

This is an episode of The Specialist, produced by Intelligence Squared in partnership with Sotheby's. In The Specialist, explore the significance and journey of an extraordinary work through the eyes of those that know it best. On today’s episode, the beauty of nature suspended for eternity. Helen Culver-Smith, Head of Decorative Arts Worldwide and Head of Fabergé and Russian works of Art, reveals...

How does the classical world shape our politics, culture, language and lives today? On today’s episode, we’re joined by two of the greatest names making classics accessible for the modern day. Dame Mary Beard is a classicist who taught at Cambridge for almost 40 years. She has close to 20 books to her name, including Pompeii, which won the Wolfson History Prize, SPQR and Emperor of Rome, both of w...

On today's episode we're joined by Mark Galeotti, security expert and author, to discuss Trump's recent efforts to reach a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. Galeotti speaks to Conor Boyle, Head of Programming at Intelligence Squared, about how Trump's strategy is different to previous U.S. administrations and whether security guarantees from Europe and the United States can really quell Putin...

How many female entrepreneurs, merchants and industrialists can you name? We all know the names Rockefeller, Medici and Ford, but what about Priscilla Wakefield, who founded the first bank for women and children? Or the businesswoman Julia Felix, who built a property empire in Ancient Rome? In her new book, Economica: A Global History of Women, Wealth and Power, Dr Victoria Bateman charts the vita...

America used to pride itself on ambition. Today, it looks stuck. Meanwhile, China has been busy building the future. In a new book, Breakneck, technology analyst Dan Wang provides a new framework for understanding China. It operates as an engineering state - which brings a sledgehammer to problems both physical and social, in contrast with America’s lawyerly society, rooted in its constitution, wh...

One of the greatest medical breakthroughs of the twentieth century is set to become one of the biggest threats of the twenty-first - but what can be done to stem the rising tide of antibiotic resistance? In this episode, host Caroline Dodds Pennock speaks with Liam Shaw, biologist and author of Dangerous Miracle: A Natural History of Antibiotics – and How We Burned Through Them. From the miraculou...

No one doubts the bravery of the thousands of men who flew and died in Bomber Command. The death rate was an appalling 44%. And yet until the opening of a monument in Green Park in 2012 they had received no official recognition, with many historians claiming that the offensive was immoral and unjustified. How can it be right, they argue, for the Allies to have deliberately targeted German cities c...

From ancient empires to modern metropolises, what do rivers tell us about the way humans build, worship, and fight for their worlds? In this episode, historian Vanessa Taylor joins host Caroline Dodds Pennock to explore the powerful role rivers have played in shaping human history, culture, and identity. Drawing from her new book, Seven Rivers, Vanessa takes us on a journey down the Nile, Danube,...

Did you know that women’s brains change during puberty, pregnancy and the menopause? That women are twice as likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer’s? Or that female athletes are more prone to certain injuries than their male counterparts?  In her book How The Female Body Works, journalist Polly Vernon sets out on a quest to understand the female body. She speaks with neuroscientists, academics, an...

In this episode, award-winning journalist Evan Osnos joins Carl Miller to discuss the lives of the Ultrarich and themes from his new book The Haves and the Have Yachts. Together, they explore the secretive world of the ultra-wealthy, the symbolism of superyachts, and what extreme luxury reveals about inequality, power, and the future of capitalism. ---  If you'd like to become a Member and get acc...

Use code SQUARED at the link below to get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan: https://incogni.com/squared --- Can ancient philosophy make sense of a modern life? In this episode, Sophie Scott-Brown speaks to academic philosopher and author Angie Hobbs about the enduring relevance of Plato and how his ideas continue to resonate in today’s world.  Plato’s Republic remains a foundational tex...

Use code SQUARED at the link below to get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan: https://incogni.com/squared --- How has the past thirty years of American politics impacted our present? In this episode, Atossa Araxia Abrahamian speaks to journalist and author John Ganz about how the 1990s were the perfect storm that created a new America that birthed the Donald Trump Era. Many today look bac...

Use code SQUARED at the link below to get an exclusive 60% off an annual Incogni plan: https://incogni.com/squared --- How did the most powerful force in history begin with a faint smudge on a photographic plate? In this episode, Adam McCauley speaks to physicist and award-winning science writer Frank Close about his new history of the development of nuclear power and the extraordinary minds behin...