Income inequality abounds and today’s rich are staggeringly rich, implying that tax regimes are giving the wealthy more and more of a pass. Our dig into the numbers suggests the opposite. We ask why so many of the world’s international mercenaries hail from Colombia. And despite the signs, Spanish may be reaching its peak in America.

Guests and hosts:

• Callum Williams, senior economics writer
• Carla Subirana, news editor
• Lane Greene, senior digital editor
• Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”
• Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered: 

• Taxation, welfare state, inequality
• Colombia, international mercenaries
• Spanish

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Many scientists are considering the notion of actively cooling the region that is warming fastest. We examine the merits and the risks—both environmental and geopolitical—of messing with the polar climate. We ask why the kind of gig economy that has struggled in many markets is booming in India. And an unsettling peek into the first social network for AI agents.

Guests and hosts:

• Oliver Morton, senior editor
• Catherine Brahic, environment editor
• Kira Huju, Asia correspondent
• Alex Hern, AI writer
• Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”
• Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered: 

• The Arctic, climate change, geoengineering
• India, gig economy
• Agentic AI, social networking, Moltbook

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Our data journalists trawled through the vast email archive of Jeffrey Epstein, a dead sex offender. It is a revealing look at how and with whom he communicated. As interest grows in banning young people’s use of social media, we argue there are better ways to mitigate harms. And a blindfolded introduction to “blouge”, a new, more climate-resilient wine variety.

Guests and host:

• Rosie Blau, host of “The Intelligence”
• Dan Rosenheck, data editor
• Tom Wainwright, media editor
• Tom Standage, deputy editor of The Economist

Topics covered: 

• The Epstein files
• Social-media bans
• “Blouge” wine

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Tech firms are spending so much on artificial intelligence that investors are getting nervous. Our correspondent explains whether it is possible to protect your portfolio from a crash. Turkey’s ruler has become increasingly autocratic–and increasingly old. Who might succeed him? And celebrating the life of literary agent Georges Borchardt.   

Guests and host:

• Rosie Blau, host of “The Intelligence”
• Josh Roberts, capital markets correspondent
• Piotr Zalewski, Turkey correspondent
• Jon Fasman, senior culture correspondent

Topics covered: 

• Hedging against an AI bubble
• Turkey after Erdogan
• Obituary of literary agent Georges Borchardt

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As Russia’s war in Ukraine nears four years, there has been no let up in the fighting on the battlefield. Yet there is some optimism that negotiations could yield a ceasefire. Our correspondent joins a Colombian drug raid to destroy a cocaine laboratory in the Amazon. And is crime in London really soaring? 

Guests and host:

• Rosie Blau, host of “The Intelligence”
• Oliver Carroll, Ukraine correspondent
• Claire McQue, Latin America writer
• Sonny Loughran, Britain writer

Topics covered: 

• Ukraine peace prospects
• Colombia’s war on drugs
• Crime in London

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The toppling of authoritarian leader Sheikh Hassina in Bangladesh in 2024 was celebrated as a triumph for democracy. Tomorrow the country finally heads to the polls. Our correspondent weighs the choice. Can Mars and other bleak planets be made fit for human habitation? And why AI bots are applying for human jobs. 

To find out how to have sex in space, listen to this episode of “The Weekend Intelligence”. 

Guests and host:

• Rosie Blau and Jason Palmer, co-hosts of “The Intelligence”
• Mark Johnson, senior writer
• Oliver Morton, senior editor
• Shera Avi-Yonah, business writer

Topics covered: 

• Bangladesh’s election
• Astrobiology
• How AI changes job recruitment

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Sir Keir Starmer has faced calls for his resignation from a senior party member. He has survived – but Britain’s prime minister is now fighting for his political survival. Assisted dying legislation is catching up with public opinion in America. And what happens when skiing meets rodeo? 

Guests and host:

• Rosie Blau, host of “The Intelligence”
• Sacha Nauta, Britain editor
• Stevie Hertz, US policy correspondent
• Aryn Braun, West Coast corrrespondent

Topics covered: 

• Keir Starmer’s political future
• Assisted dying in America
• The sport of skijoring  

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Takaichi Sanae’s gamble to call a general election has paid off. How will the prime minister’s thumping victory change Japan? New legislation in Republican states could imperil academic freedom. And why “Taxi Driver” resonates 50 years after the film’s release.

Guests and host:

• Rosie Blau, host of “The Intelligence”
• Noah Sneider, East Asia bureau chief
• Rebecca Jackson, Southern correspondent
• Andrew Miller, author of The Economist’s Back Story column on culture

Topics covered: 

• Japan’s election
• University censorship in America
• Fifty years of “Taxi Driver”

For more on Japan’s economy, listen to last week’s episode of Money Talks

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This week Elon Musk announced the merger of two of his companies: SpaceX and xAI, which makes chatbots. Is the new firm viable? As migrant workers return home for lunar new year, the Chinese Communist Party tells migrant workers not to stay for too long. And our culture editor’s hot take on “Heated Rivalry”.

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The New START nuclear deal was signed in 2010 to restrict the number of strategic warheads and missiles America and Russia could amass. Will there be a new deal – and what will happen if not? How social media has helped fuel recruitment to cults. And our baldness correspondent bristles at some hairy questions.

Listen back to "The Bomb", our Babbage series on America's quest to modernise its nuclear arsenal.  

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Peter Mandelson was a totem of Britain’s Labour party for decades. The newest Epstein files mark the end of his political career. What are the consequences for the country’s prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer? Ryanair is controversial and widely hated—yet strangely successful. And why so many animals engage in same-sex relationships.

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