EAG Talks

Watch on YouTube What will it take to stop the next pandemic and save lives from diseases we can already prevent? This session explores cost-effective, scalable solutions in global health and biosecurity, and how strategic action today can protect millions tomorrow. Learn more about effective altruism at: www.effectivealtruism.org Find out more about EA Global conferences at: www.effectivealtruism...

Watch on YouTube This session explore how the health of humans, animals, and the environment are deeply linked and why addressing one often requires considering the others. This session highlights the importance of systems thinking in building a more compassionate, sustainable, and effective future. Learn more about effective altruism at: www.effectivealtruism.org Find out more about EA Global con...

Watch on YouTube Zach Robinson is CEO of the Centre for Effective Altruism, where he helps build a movement of people using their time, money, and resources to make the world measurably better. Previously, he worked as a researcher at Open Philanthropy and as a management consultant at Bain. Zach Robinson always questioned why arbitrary factors like geography or appearance determine who people car...

Watch on YouTube Sjir Hoeijmakers is the CEO of Giving What We Can, the global organization promoting effective giving and the 10% Pledge, which recently celebrated the 10,000 10% Pledger mark. He has a background in impact evaluation and non-profit entrepreneurship, and served as GWWC’s Director of Research immediately prior to becoming their CEO. Sjir is a long-time pledger himself as well, and...

Watch on YouTube Julia Wise is the Community Health Lead at the Centre for Effective Altruism, where she helps support a global movement of people using their time and resources to improve the world. She was president of Giving What We Can from 2017–2020 and serves on the board of GiveWell. ——— Julia recognized early that she wanted to use her resources to address global inequity, but she lacked b...

Watch on YouTube How health is financed in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) determines the effectiveness and reach of global health efforts. In this talk, Peter Koziol explores the key dynamics of health financing—from the scale of different funding sources and the roles of major actors, to how these factors impact specific diseases—revealing what this means for those aiming to maximize th...

Watch on YouTube Lewis Bollard leads Open Philanthropy's Farm Animal Welfare program, where he recommends grants to reduce the suffering of animals on factory farms. Before joining Open Philanthropy, he worked as a corporate attorney. ——— As a teenager, Lewis felt helpless in the face of factory farming. Then he discovered effective altruism: a framework for stepping back and asking which app...

Watch on YouTube Join us for an opening talk from Kelsey Piper. Kelsey is a senior writer at Vox's Future Perfect, where she writes about global health, science, and tech.

Watch on YouTube Which nonhumans matter, how much do they matter, and what do we owe them in a world reshaped by human activity? In this talk, Jeff Sebo argues that humanity should include all potentially significant beings in our moral community, with transformative implications for our lives and societies. He then examines a variety of questions that humanity will confront regarding creation eth...

Watch on YouTube Join Marcus Davis as he examines how Rethink Priorities has refined its research methodology and theory of change over time. Drawing from concrete examples, he'll share key insights for researchers and organizations aiming to maximize their impact through systematic investigation. This session will offer practical takeaways for conducting and structuring research that drives m...

Watch on YouTube AI could enable a tiny group of humans, or just one human, to take over a country and even the world. This risk is ballpark similar probability to AI takeover, and would be similarly bad if it happened. But there's been significantly (10X) less effort to reduce it. This talk aims to raise awareness and understanding of the risk, and discuss counter-measures. Tom is a Senior Re...

Watch on YouTube Consciousness in contemporary or near-future AI systems is becoming a matter of practical concern. To make wise decisions about such systems, it will be important to have a model of their probabilities of consciousness and how those probabilities will change with new advancements. In this talk, Hayley and Derek will delve into an ongoing Rethink Priorities project: a framework for...

Watch on YouTube Factory farming, the industrial-scale harming of animals raised for food, is arguably the greatest moral atrocity of our time. Every year, 91 billion land animals, 124 billion finfishes, and trillions of crustaceans are farmed globally, with the vast majority suffering from psychological and physical harms. Despite the “David and Goliath” nature of a $300 million global animal mov...

Watch on YouTube In this fireside chat, Tom Davidson and William MacAskill will discuss whether AI could help a small group of humans seize power, how to get to the best possible future, and other neglected topics in AGI preparedness. William MacAskill is an associate professor in philosophy at the University of Oxford. At the time of his appointment, he was the youngest associate professor of phi...

Watch on YouTube Policymaker decisions can be very consequential, and in recent years many have been interested in ensuring that these decisions are evidence-based. However, there are several barriers to evidence-based decision-making. This talk discusses barriers in generating evidence, interpreting evidence, and acting on evidence, drawing on work from several papers on stumbling blocks in the e...

Watch on YouTube It's hard to know what to think about lots of foundational moral questions. As a result, it's hard to know how to prioritize among the various giving opportunities available to us. The goal of this talk is to show people how Rethink Priorities' Moral Parliament Tool can help you think through some of the tricky questions associated with building a giving portfolio unde...

Watch on YouTube James Rayton, Giving What We Can's Head of Community, gives an inside view of their organisational strategy and a chance to feed into the thinking on how to achieve their bold plans for the future.

Watch on YouTube A human challenge model (where volunteers are deliberately infected with a pathogen) may represent the only way to advance hepatitis C vaccine development in the foreseeable future. A foundational hepatitis C challenge study will likely begin in Toronto in 2025. This session discusses the proposed hepatitis C study, participation in a high-impact medical trials more generally, and...

Watch on YouTube Nutrition International's Vitamin A Supplementation (VAS) program is a life-saving nutrition intervention that has reached more than 150 million children per year, with more than 10 billion capsules provided globally since 1998. It is both high impact and incredibly low cost. For the last two years, GiveWell has recommended a grant for Nutrition International's VAS program...

Watch on YouTube This talk discusses the relationships between two important cause areas: wild animal welfare and farmed animal welfare. The talk covera various considerations relevant to cause prioritization, but does not argue that one area warrants a higher level of priority than the other. Regardless of which area you work in, what matters most is doing activism that's sensitive to the imp...

Watch on YouTube Everyone will be affected by increasingly powerful AI systems, so everyone should be empowered to understand AI risks. This talk explores how to make AI risk and safety ideas more accessible through the use of engaging analogies. The goal is to provide interesting ways of framing AI risk and safety for both the audience and to share with others.

Watch on YouTube Matt from 80,000 Hours offers reflections on hundreds of career conversations he's had. He speaks to some of the core assumptions behind 80k's career recommendations that often go overlooked with special focus on the talent bar in EA direct work and how people should be orienting towards it and pushing themselves to clear it.

Watch on YouTube What are the Nordic & Baltic comparative advantages to have a positive impact in the world? This talk explores the unique strengths and opportunities of the Nordic effective altruism community to do good. Drawing on insights from workshops with community builders in the Nordics & Baltic countries, Maria Bækkelie and Laura M. Kull shares patterns, challenges, and ideas for...

Watch on YouTube What if your work could help billions and still feel like a privilege? In this talk, Niklas Fjeldberg explores why animal advocacy is one of the most impactful, neglected, and purpose-driven fields you can enter today. Drawing from his own journey — going from concerned citizen to full-time campaigner at Anima International — he illustrates how accessible and meaningful this path...

Watch on YouTube Join Einar Urdshals as he introduces how Singular Learning Theory (SLT) can help advance AI safety. As AI systems grow more powerful, we need to understand how they learn and generalize to ensure they remain aligned. Einar shares how Timaeus applies mathematical frameworks to connect training data, model structure and behavior. Discover why "you are what you eat" applies...