WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.620 There's about 100 members of the International 00:00:01.620 --> 00:00:03.839 Olympic Committee. They're a self -perpetuating 00:00:04.829 --> 00:00:07.450 aristocracy filled with European princes and 00:00:07.450 --> 00:00:10.070 royalty, and it is a corruption machine. Numerous 00:00:10.070 --> 00:00:12.810 members of the IOC are under active criminal 00:00:12.810 --> 00:00:15.689 investigation right now. Russia has a long -standing 00:00:15.689 --> 00:00:17.809 state -sponsored doping program, so much so that 00:00:17.809 --> 00:00:19.050 they've effectively been kicked out of the Olympic 00:00:19.050 --> 00:00:22.190 system for over a decade. China had 23 swimmers 00:00:22.190 --> 00:00:24.550 who were found to have used banned substances, 00:00:24.769 --> 00:00:26.750 yet this was covered up by the World Anti -Doping 00:00:26.750 --> 00:00:30.109 Agency. 44 % of elite track and field athletes 00:00:30.109 --> 00:00:33.689 admit themselves to using banned substances in 00:00:33.689 --> 00:00:35.590 the last year and only one percent get caught 00:00:35.590 --> 00:00:42.049 dr aaron de souza thank you for joining our show 00:00:43.370 --> 00:00:44.969 Thanks for having me on the show. Of course. 00:00:45.030 --> 00:00:47.950 I have a bunch of kids. One of them is a 23 -year 00:00:47.950 --> 00:00:51.289 -old young man, and I was telling him about that 00:00:51.289 --> 00:00:53.649 you were going to be on our show today, and he 00:00:53.649 --> 00:00:56.670 said, wow, I would totally watch that Enhanced 00:00:56.670 --> 00:00:58.649 Games, definitely over the Olympics. And everybody's 00:00:58.649 --> 00:01:00.490 doping anyway in the first place. It's kind of 00:01:00.490 --> 00:01:03.990 a scam. I bet that's a common refrain that you 00:01:03.990 --> 00:01:08.159 hear all the time from people. Well, you know, 00:01:08.180 --> 00:01:12.819 I like to base my arguments not on personal anecdotes, 00:01:12.819 --> 00:01:15.519 but based on scientific evidence. And according 00:01:15.519 --> 00:01:17.739 to research commissioned by the International 00:01:17.739 --> 00:01:19.379 Olympic Committee and the World Anti -Doping 00:01:19.379 --> 00:01:22.480 Agency, 44 % of elite track and field athletes 00:01:22.480 --> 00:01:26.040 admit themselves to using banned substances in 00:01:26.040 --> 00:01:28.980 the last year, and only 1 % get caught. And according 00:01:28.980 --> 00:01:32.000 to World Athletics, up to 99 % of male athletes 00:01:32.000 --> 00:01:35.219 have used EPO, which is a banned substance, at 00:01:35.219 --> 00:01:37.900 some point in their career. So instead of doing 00:01:37.900 --> 00:01:40.980 it in secret, let's do it all out in the open. 00:01:42.019 --> 00:01:44.840 We know that. It's like a dirty little secret, 00:01:44.900 --> 00:01:48.280 and entire countries are sponsoring doping as 00:01:48.280 --> 00:01:53.299 well. Was it Russia and China? Yeah, Russia has 00:01:53.299 --> 00:01:55.859 a longstanding state -sponsored doping program, 00:01:56.000 --> 00:01:57.540 so much so that they've effectively been kicked 00:01:57.540 --> 00:01:59.239 out of the Olympic system for over a decade. 00:02:00.269 --> 00:02:03.629 And China had 23 swimmers who were found to have 00:02:03.629 --> 00:02:05.629 used banned substances, yet this was covered 00:02:05.629 --> 00:02:08.490 up by the World Anti -Doping Agency as not to 00:02:08.490 --> 00:02:11.449 offend Chinese sponsors at the last Olympic Games. 00:02:11.889 --> 00:02:14.909 So who owns the Olympics? I mean, that's like 00:02:14.909 --> 00:02:17.250 one of those institutions that's been around, 00:02:17.289 --> 00:02:18.909 we take it for granted, but we don't really ask, 00:02:18.969 --> 00:02:21.189 like, who owns this? Is this a private institution? 00:02:22.789 --> 00:02:26.590 It is effectively a private institution. So there's 00:02:26.590 --> 00:02:28.289 about 100 members of the International Olympic 00:02:28.289 --> 00:02:31.270 Committee. And logically, they would be elected 00:02:31.270 --> 00:02:34.169 by Olympians. But in fact, they're not. They 00:02:34.169 --> 00:02:38.750 are selected by themselves. They're a self -perpetuating 00:02:38.750 --> 00:02:42.289 aristocracy filled with European princes and 00:02:42.289 --> 00:02:46.419 royalty. And it is a corruption machine. Numerous 00:02:46.419 --> 00:02:49.139 members of the IOC are under active criminal 00:02:49.139 --> 00:02:52.500 investigation right now. And they make FIFA look 00:02:52.500 --> 00:02:57.060 like saints. Here's the question for you. Who's 00:02:57.060 --> 00:02:59.759 writing your story? You or some random dude on 00:02:59.759 --> 00:03:02.680 the internet? If you're sick of Google, gossip 00:03:02.680 --> 00:03:05.680 blogs, or that one angry ex controlling how the 00:03:05.680 --> 00:03:07.979 world sees you, it's time to do something about 00:03:07.979 --> 00:03:36.340 it. Your future self will thank you. And... I 00:03:36.340 --> 00:03:38.000 can understand why they would want to keep the 00:03:38.000 --> 00:03:39.840 Enhanced Games from ever seeing the light of 00:03:39.840 --> 00:03:44.199 day. So what have they done to prevent you from 00:03:44.199 --> 00:03:47.020 having success with your vision? And share your 00:03:47.020 --> 00:03:49.419 vision as well. We might as well just share your 00:03:49.419 --> 00:03:51.439 vision for those who aren't familiar with you 00:03:51.439 --> 00:03:53.060 and the Enhanced Games and what you're trying 00:03:53.060 --> 00:03:57.240 to create. Yeah, so we are creating a new version 00:03:57.240 --> 00:04:00.150 of the Olympics, but for the future. one that 00:04:00.150 --> 00:04:03.569 uses science and technology at its core, in particular 00:04:03.569 --> 00:04:05.830 allowing performance enhancements so athletes 00:04:05.830 --> 00:04:09.370 can reach new heights. Usain Bolt's 100 -meter 00:04:09.370 --> 00:04:12.469 world record is 16 years old. The mile world 00:04:12.469 --> 00:04:15.810 record is 25 years old. And I think that is manifestly 00:04:15.810 --> 00:04:18.350 disappointing because 25 years ago, we didn't 00:04:18.350 --> 00:04:22.009 even have an iPhone. And I think that science 00:04:22.009 --> 00:04:25.339 is marching forward. and human performance should 00:04:25.339 --> 00:04:30.819 march forward. And so the IOC should have tried 00:04:30.819 --> 00:04:32.720 to fight us a bit harder. We announced the concept 00:04:32.720 --> 00:04:37.120 almost exactly two years ago today, and we were 00:04:37.120 --> 00:04:40.139 a fledgling little startup for a long time there. 00:04:41.199 --> 00:04:46.019 And if they fought us then, they would have had 00:04:46.019 --> 00:04:49.319 great success. But however, they ignored us, 00:04:49.459 --> 00:04:54.110 which is probably a good measure for them. Late 00:04:54.110 --> 00:04:57.009 last year, the Trump family invested in the enhanced 00:04:57.009 --> 00:04:59.769 games. Donald Trump Jr.'s venture capital fund, 00:04:59.829 --> 00:05:03.689 1789, let our series be. And this has created 00:05:03.689 --> 00:05:08.430 a political quagmire for the IOC because the 00:05:08.430 --> 00:05:11.750 L .A. 28 Olympics are three years away and they 00:05:11.750 --> 00:05:14.129 need the support of the U .S. government. And 00:05:14.129 --> 00:05:16.329 they're obviously deeply afraid about offending 00:05:16.329 --> 00:05:18.829 President Trump and his family. So they tend 00:05:18.829 --> 00:05:24.259 not to cause us much difficulty anymore. I personally 00:05:24.259 --> 00:05:27.839 believe in doing whatever it takes so you can 00:05:27.839 --> 00:05:32.000 be the best version of yourself. I like, I take 00:05:32.000 --> 00:05:34.720 supplements, I have peptizers, super hot right 00:05:34.720 --> 00:05:38.300 now, I take a couple of those things. I see no 00:05:38.300 --> 00:05:43.300 harm in having a competitive athletic event where 00:05:43.300 --> 00:05:45.839 people are taking things, as long as there's 00:05:45.839 --> 00:05:49.220 safety involved in it to be the best. versus 00:05:49.220 --> 00:05:51.740 themselves and outperform others. How do you 00:05:51.740 --> 00:05:55.660 keep the safety going though? Like dosages? Let's 00:05:55.660 --> 00:06:00.180 be very clear. The system of drug control that 00:06:00.180 --> 00:06:01.899 was invented by the International Olympic Committee 00:06:01.899 --> 00:06:05.399 is about fairness in competition. And in the 00:06:05.399 --> 00:06:07.139 integrity of the competition, it's not about 00:06:07.139 --> 00:06:13.600 athlete safety. And our system is about athlete 00:06:13.600 --> 00:06:16.860 safety. So what we do... is that every athlete 00:06:16.860 --> 00:06:19.120 who competes, whether they're natural or enhanced, 00:06:19.439 --> 00:06:22.379 has to have a full system health checkup before 00:06:22.379 --> 00:06:24.980 they compete. So that means an echocardiogram, 00:06:25.319 --> 00:06:28.220 blood work, an MRI, and they have to have ongoing 00:06:28.220 --> 00:06:32.399 clinical supervision. So we have the most comprehensive 00:06:32.399 --> 00:06:35.339 scientific apparatus ever assembled in performance 00:06:35.339 --> 00:06:38.180 medicine. We have a 38 -member scientific panel 00:06:38.180 --> 00:06:41.279 chaired by Professor Dr. Guido Piles, who is 00:06:41.279 --> 00:06:43.860 the chief doctor of FIFA. Professor George Church 00:06:43.860 --> 00:06:45.819 from Harvard University, the chairman of genetics, 00:06:46.019 --> 00:06:48.319 is one of the longest standing members of the 00:06:48.319 --> 00:06:52.240 advisory panel. And I always emphasize that this 00:06:52.240 --> 00:06:54.939 is a very rigorous scientific project because 00:06:54.939 --> 00:06:58.720 ultimately we make money not by selling ticket 00:06:58.720 --> 00:07:00.560 sales and media rights like a traditional sports 00:07:00.560 --> 00:07:03.620 property. We make money by selling drugs. We 00:07:03.620 --> 00:07:05.480 want to bring the next generation of performance 00:07:05.480 --> 00:07:08.939 medicines to market. We look at drugs like Ozempic 00:07:08.939 --> 00:07:10.819 and the GLP -1s, which have added a trillion 00:07:10.819 --> 00:07:13.120 dollars to the market capitalization of their 00:07:13.120 --> 00:07:16.259 owners. And we say this is the next big opportunity 00:07:16.259 --> 00:07:19.819 in medicine. Why should we have to go to the 00:07:19.819 --> 00:07:22.939 gym every day to be strong and healthy? Shouldn't 00:07:22.939 --> 00:07:27.220 we be able to supplement that? with high -quality, 00:07:27.339 --> 00:07:32.079 rigorous, safe performance medicine. So this 00:07:32.079 --> 00:07:36.800 show is all about cancellation. You had this 00:07:36.800 --> 00:07:40.699 idea, and at what point did you start to feel 00:07:40.699 --> 00:07:45.019 some pressure from outsiders, third parties, 00:07:45.060 --> 00:07:48.959 that wanted to make sure that your idea was not 00:07:48.959 --> 00:07:51.120 going to be successful? Once you first get a 00:07:51.120 --> 00:07:58.759 whiff of that. So for your readers or your listeners, 00:07:58.839 --> 00:08:01.600 I should say, who don't know about my background. 00:08:01.759 --> 00:08:04.720 So I'm a lawyer by training. I have a PhD in 00:08:04.720 --> 00:08:07.459 intellectual property law, and I have a law degree 00:08:07.459 --> 00:08:10.300 from the University of Oxford. After Oxford, 00:08:10.420 --> 00:08:12.620 I led Peter Thiel's litigation against Gawker 00:08:12.620 --> 00:08:15.139 Media involving the wrestler Hulk Hogan, where 00:08:15.139 --> 00:08:16.939 we won the largest invasion of privacy judgment 00:08:16.939 --> 00:08:19.720 in history. I've built 10 companies, including 00:08:19.720 --> 00:08:23.230 some of them. some very successful businesses 00:08:23.230 --> 00:08:27.189 in funds management and in venture capital. When 00:08:27.189 --> 00:08:30.129 I launched the Enhanced Games, everyone told 00:08:30.129 --> 00:08:32.429 me, Aaron, you're going to burn your entire professional 00:08:32.429 --> 00:08:35.049 reputation. No one will ever hire you ever again 00:08:35.049 --> 00:08:37.929 after announcing something so audacious and so 00:08:37.929 --> 00:08:42.409 crazy. But I knew that I was burning my professional 00:08:42.409 --> 00:08:45.049 reputation by launching the Enhanced Games. And 00:08:45.049 --> 00:08:48.179 I said to my assistant, you know when we were 00:08:48.179 --> 00:08:50.120 about to press go on the first press release 00:08:50.120 --> 00:08:52.860 that i was torching something that i had worked 00:08:52.860 --> 00:08:56.899 so hard to develop for 20 years however the most 00:08:56.899 --> 00:08:59.279 instructive conversation i've had in the last 00:08:59.279 --> 00:09:02.980 decade is with the nobel peace prize winner maria 00:09:02.980 --> 00:09:07.440 russo she is a filipino activist who used social 00:09:07.440 --> 00:09:11.879 media to fight the dictator robert duterte and 00:09:11.879 --> 00:09:14.919 she said to understand the world you have to 00:09:14.919 --> 00:09:17.379 understand just one thing which is social media. 00:09:17.879 --> 00:09:20.679 To understand social media, you only need to 00:09:20.679 --> 00:09:24.120 understand one fact, which is that controversy 00:09:24.120 --> 00:09:29.539 travels nine times faster than truth. The ideas 00:09:29.539 --> 00:09:33.659 that go the most viral are those that are controversial, 00:09:33.860 --> 00:09:37.559 they're thought -provoking. I knew on the 23rd 00:09:37.559 --> 00:09:40.799 of June, 2023, when we launched the concept of 00:09:40.799 --> 00:09:43.039 the Enhanced Games, that I was torching my professional 00:09:43.039 --> 00:09:47.080 reputation. But within 24 hours, I was validated 00:09:47.080 --> 00:09:50.639 because journalists were starting to reach out. 00:09:50.799 --> 00:09:52.899 They were starting to ask questions about what 00:09:52.899 --> 00:09:56.080 we were doing. And then it went viral. 600 news 00:09:56.080 --> 00:09:58.500 articles within a week. Venture capitalists started 00:09:58.500 --> 00:10:00.879 lining up to throw money at the project. And 00:10:00.879 --> 00:10:03.740 every time someone criticized us, it created 00:10:03.740 --> 00:10:06.419 more attention and more attention that drove 00:10:06.419 --> 00:10:09.259 more virality and has led to the success that 00:10:09.259 --> 00:10:11.700 we have today. Because ultimately, sports is 00:10:11.700 --> 00:10:17.549 an attention gathering machine. And the more 00:10:17.549 --> 00:10:19.870 attention we can get, the more validation we 00:10:19.870 --> 00:10:23.269 have and the more revenue we generate. But they're 00:10:23.269 --> 00:10:26.889 coming after you. It's not even the game so much. 00:10:26.929 --> 00:10:31.669 They're vilifying you as maybe a dangerous proselytizer 00:10:31.669 --> 00:10:34.529 or something like that. They're coming after 00:10:34.529 --> 00:10:38.740 you personally. No? Yes, but ultimately, the 00:10:38.740 --> 00:10:40.980 reason I picked this market structure to compete 00:10:40.980 --> 00:10:42.580 in, you know, I'm a professional entrepreneur. 00:10:42.759 --> 00:10:46.279 I built 10 companies is because the opposition 00:10:46.279 --> 00:10:49.600 is undefendable. No one can stand up and say, 00:10:49.620 --> 00:10:50.980 you know, the International Olympic Committee 00:10:50.980 --> 00:10:53.100 are a bunch of really great people. Like they're 00:10:53.100 --> 00:10:55.200 really effective at their work. No, there are 00:10:55.200 --> 00:10:58.460 a bunch of criminals who have bankrupted country 00:10:58.460 --> 00:11:01.539 and city after city. They've exploited athletes 00:11:01.539 --> 00:11:05.519 for generation. um and it's deeply problematic 00:11:05.519 --> 00:11:08.480 on so many levels so you know it's not like i 00:11:08.480 --> 00:11:12.679 was going against um uh you know unicorns or 00:11:12.679 --> 00:11:16.759 public libraries right uh these this is a really 00:11:16.759 --> 00:11:20.200 bad institution uh and very hard to morally defend 00:11:20.200 --> 00:11:24.080 and so you know i think of it's like they're 00:11:24.080 --> 00:11:27.159 the taxicabs and we're uber uh they're blockbuster 00:11:27.159 --> 00:11:30.700 and we're netflix and yes a lot of people love 00:11:30.700 --> 00:11:34.590 blockbuster right But the taxicabs were completely 00:11:34.590 --> 00:11:38.289 undefendable, an entrenched monopoly that was 00:11:38.289 --> 00:11:43.870 exploitative to the drivers, to citizens, to 00:11:43.870 --> 00:11:46.769 users. And Uber created something better. That's 00:11:46.769 --> 00:11:49.389 why they're a $200 billion company today. Yeah, 00:11:49.470 --> 00:11:53.990 the Uber example is really apropos. You know, 00:11:54.049 --> 00:11:58.789 Travis Kovanec, he was probably perfect for the 00:11:58.789 --> 00:12:03.259 job. I mean, I know he was a... The way he built 00:12:03.259 --> 00:12:06.759 that company was just brass knuckles. And I think 00:12:06.759 --> 00:12:09.179 that in hindsight is probably was exactly what 00:12:09.179 --> 00:12:12.379 needed to be done. Yeah. And so I've known Travis 00:12:12.379 --> 00:12:15.679 for a long time and I was an advisor to Uber 00:12:15.679 --> 00:12:19.740 just as they were launching in London. Right. 00:12:19.879 --> 00:12:21.480 So this is the first international expansion. 00:12:22.299 --> 00:12:24.580 And one thing that was really insightful about 00:12:24.580 --> 00:12:26.899 the Uber launch was that they loved getting sued 00:12:26.899 --> 00:12:30.279 because every time they got sued, it generated 00:12:30.279 --> 00:12:33.870 more attention. which caused more downloads of 00:12:33.870 --> 00:12:38.970 the app and also associated the Uber name with 00:12:38.970 --> 00:12:42.429 ride sharing. So city council members and corrupt 00:12:42.429 --> 00:12:45.889 taxi unionists would come out and say Uber is 00:12:45.889 --> 00:12:49.529 the worst thing ever. And that just built their 00:12:49.529 --> 00:12:52.370 brand. And it was a user acquisition strategy. 00:12:53.100 --> 00:12:54.980 obviously travis didn't admit this to like well 00:12:54.980 --> 00:12:57.799 after the ipo uh but you know he was threatened 00:12:57.799 --> 00:13:00.080 personally with a 15 000 year prison sentence 00:13:00.080 --> 00:13:03.799 by the city of new york and let's think about 00:13:03.799 --> 00:13:08.659 this think about how how crazy the idea of uber 00:13:08.659 --> 00:13:11.419 is like we take it as for granted today but it 00:13:11.419 --> 00:13:16.519 was like you used the internet to call a car 00:13:16.519 --> 00:13:18.879 and you would literally get in a stranger's car 00:13:19.440 --> 00:13:22.019 instead of getting into a safe government -regulated 00:13:22.019 --> 00:13:25.639 yellow taxi cab. Airbnb is an even crazier example. 00:13:25.840 --> 00:13:28.559 Instead of staying at a wonderful, nice Ritz 00:13:28.559 --> 00:13:31.059 -Carlton hotel, you'll sleep in someone else's 00:13:31.059 --> 00:13:34.659 house, maybe even while they're there. The idea 00:13:34.659 --> 00:13:39.019 of Airbnb, in particular for women, is an outrageous 00:13:39.019 --> 00:13:42.000 concept, and that's how far our culture has shifted. 00:13:42.279 --> 00:13:46.289 And so, yes, today it may be controversial. the 00:13:46.289 --> 00:13:49.990 idea of human enhancement. But I think in a few 00:13:49.990 --> 00:13:52.049 years time, we'll just take it for granted. You 00:13:52.049 --> 00:13:55.129 know, you walk down Miami Beach, Rodeo Drive 00:13:55.129 --> 00:13:57.029 in Beverly Hills or Fifth Avenue here in New 00:13:57.029 --> 00:14:03.350 York. Everyone is enhanced and we are aging differently. 00:14:03.830 --> 00:14:07.009 And this is just a cultural change that needs 00:14:07.009 --> 00:14:08.889 to be recognized. And it's one that, you know, 00:14:08.889 --> 00:14:10.730 of course, I recognize maybe a little bit earlier 00:14:10.730 --> 00:14:14.419 than most. And now that. We're building the games. 00:14:14.539 --> 00:14:18.500 We're showing that aging is a disease that we 00:14:18.500 --> 00:14:21.840 can treat, cure, and eventually solve. I'm totally 00:14:21.840 --> 00:14:25.299 on board. My wife and I actually have a 15 ,000 00:14:25.299 --> 00:14:28.500 square foot wellness clinic in Miami with all 00:14:28.500 --> 00:14:30.659 kinds of alternative modalities and the latest 00:14:30.659 --> 00:14:32.919 in stem cells and peptides. And we have a lot 00:14:32.919 --> 00:14:36.059 of athletes who are coming in and recovering. 00:14:37.179 --> 00:14:40.039 I'm doing rehab and so on. And personally, I 00:14:40.039 --> 00:14:43.000 love this stuff. I think I'm the healthiest that 00:14:43.000 --> 00:14:47.059 I've ever been in my life. I'm 59, so I'm doing 00:14:47.059 --> 00:14:50.879 okay. Yeah, you look great for 59. Yeah, thank 00:14:50.879 --> 00:14:53.980 you, buddy. Yeah, appreciate it. You know, I 00:14:53.980 --> 00:14:55.980 think it takes a special kind of person to do 00:14:55.980 --> 00:14:58.620 what you're doing. I mean, I haven't met Travis, 00:14:58.659 --> 00:15:01.320 but I can... Some people are up for the fight. 00:15:01.379 --> 00:15:04.559 I'm also a serial entrepreneur as well, but I'm 00:15:04.559 --> 00:15:06.860 not cut from the same cloth as you. I'm not a 00:15:06.860 --> 00:15:10.139 fighter. You went into this the day that you 00:15:10.139 --> 00:15:13.259 launched knowing I'm burning the boats and I 00:15:13.259 --> 00:15:15.399 may have to fight and I may be ruining my career, 00:15:15.519 --> 00:15:17.799 but I'm up for this. I believe in it so strongly. 00:15:18.259 --> 00:15:21.340 I think what you're doing actually requires that 00:15:21.340 --> 00:15:25.659 kind of mentality. Yeah, and the only causes 00:15:25.659 --> 00:15:28.159 worth believing in are those worth dying for. 00:15:29.769 --> 00:15:33.429 And if I, as the leader of this movement, don't 00:15:33.429 --> 00:15:36.549 100 % believe in what we are doing, then why 00:15:36.549 --> 00:15:39.570 would anyone else follow? And ultimately, the 00:15:39.570 --> 00:15:43.570 best companies in the world aren't just businesses 00:15:43.570 --> 00:15:45.529 designed to make more money. They're missions. 00:15:46.889 --> 00:15:49.970 And I always say, no one is going to write on 00:15:49.970 --> 00:15:51.889 their tombstone that they were a product manager 00:15:51.889 --> 00:15:54.379 at Microsoft. But there will be lots of people 00:15:54.379 --> 00:15:56.519 who will put the enhanced cross on their tombstone 00:15:56.519 --> 00:16:01.299 because it is a sign that they believe in human 00:16:01.299 --> 00:16:04.080 enhancement, that they are willing to take our 00:16:04.080 --> 00:16:06.419 species to the next level. And so what is our 00:16:06.419 --> 00:16:08.639 mission? If they even die. Yeah, if we die. Yeah, 00:16:08.679 --> 00:16:12.379 we may not. And ultimately, our mission is to 00:16:12.379 --> 00:16:14.980 create a world in which everyone has the opportunity 00:16:14.980 --> 00:16:18.679 to live enhanced, where we can all become superhuman. 00:16:19.519 --> 00:16:21.519 And I think that is comparable to the mission 00:16:21.519 --> 00:16:25.200 of... of OpenAI to make artificial general intelligence 00:16:25.200 --> 00:16:28.500 or Elon's mission to make humans interplanetary. 00:16:28.700 --> 00:16:32.519 This is something that is worth dedicating your 00:16:32.519 --> 00:16:37.220 whole life to. I built companies before. No one 00:16:37.220 --> 00:16:39.720 is going to dedicate their whole life to building 00:16:39.720 --> 00:16:44.639 DocuSign or an enterprise SaaS company. Work 00:16:44.639 --> 00:16:48.100 should be meaningful and it should be a joy and 00:16:48.100 --> 00:16:50.620 mission is the very core of creating that joy. 00:16:51.899 --> 00:16:57.220 So I don't know if it's a flaw or not. The athletes 00:16:57.220 --> 00:16:58.799 who are interested in participating in the enhanced 00:16:58.799 --> 00:17:03.000 games, correct me if I'm wrong, their career 00:17:03.000 --> 00:17:07.900 as a natural athlete is sort of past them, and 00:17:07.900 --> 00:17:14.240 so they're past their prime, and then they get 00:17:14.240 --> 00:17:17.579 involved with enhanced games in the hopes that 00:17:17.579 --> 00:17:21.819 they can not only surpass their previous, personal 00:17:21.819 --> 00:17:25.200 best, but actually a world record best. Is that 00:17:25.200 --> 00:17:30.279 an issue? No, it's not actually because we've 00:17:30.279 --> 00:17:33.039 proven that we can take an athlete who is a little 00:17:33.039 --> 00:17:36.400 past their prime and break a world record. So 00:17:36.400 --> 00:17:40.200 Christian Golomev of Greece broke the 50 freestyle 00:17:40.200 --> 00:17:41.920 world record. It's the most important record 00:17:41.920 --> 00:17:44.759 in swimming. He did this as an enhanced athlete 00:17:44.759 --> 00:17:50.059 at age 31. That is 10 years past the prime. of 00:17:50.059 --> 00:17:53.640 a competitive swimmer and he's not just faster 00:17:53.640 --> 00:17:56.640 than his previous personal fast he's faster than 00:17:56.640 --> 00:17:59.740 any athlete in human history beating a record 00:17:59.740 --> 00:18:03.880 that it stood for 16 years and so i think the 00:18:03.880 --> 00:18:06.259 greatest gift that we can give to the world is 00:18:06.259 --> 00:18:09.240 not a 21 year old who can run a 10 -second 100 00:18:09.240 --> 00:18:12.240 -meter, but it's rather a 40 -year -old or maybe 00:18:12.240 --> 00:18:14.380 even a 50 -year -old who can run faster than 00:18:14.380 --> 00:18:16.880 Usain Bolt. And imagine what that will do for 00:18:16.880 --> 00:18:19.400 our society, because one of the most intractable 00:18:19.400 --> 00:18:22.420 issues and the reason why the U .S. government 00:18:22.420 --> 00:18:26.640 is in such a financial deficit is because of 00:18:26.640 --> 00:18:29.400 entitlement spending in Social Security and Medicare. 00:18:29.880 --> 00:18:35.079 We've increased lifespans so dramatically, but 00:18:35.079 --> 00:18:38.390 the retirement age has not moved. It's been 65 00:18:38.390 --> 00:18:42.029 forever. It's been 65 since Napoleon, an arbitrary 00:18:42.029 --> 00:18:47.529 date picked over 300 years ago. And if a 65 -year 00:18:47.529 --> 00:18:50.029 -old could run faster than Usain Bolt, what would 00:18:50.029 --> 00:18:51.910 that do to our society? It would invite us to 00:18:51.910 --> 00:18:55.210 introspect, like, should the idea of being a 00:18:55.210 --> 00:18:58.450 senior citizen even be a thing anymore? Like 00:18:58.450 --> 00:19:00.549 the Golden Girls, you know, for that TV show 00:19:00.549 --> 00:19:03.289 from the 80s? They were in their 50s. I know. 00:19:03.450 --> 00:19:06.329 Right? It's crazy to think about how that was 00:19:06.329 --> 00:19:09.230 like the end of life. The golden era had begun. 00:19:09.670 --> 00:19:12.250 And now we don't even, I won't even consider 00:19:12.250 --> 00:19:17.609 50 middle -aged anymore. Yeah. Do you think that 00:19:17.609 --> 00:19:21.589 Bobby Kennedy and HHS and his leadership there 00:19:21.589 --> 00:19:25.829 is helpful to your cause at all politically? 00:19:27.109 --> 00:19:30.430 Oh, yeah. Yes. Secretary Kennedy is a huge supporter 00:19:30.430 --> 00:19:32.710 of human enhancement. He himself is an enhanced 00:19:32.710 --> 00:19:37.230 human. He takes TRT. And that's why he has, you 00:19:37.230 --> 00:19:39.650 know, amazing biceps and can do pull ups and, 00:19:39.710 --> 00:19:42.630 you know, his posting videos to his Instagram, 00:19:42.789 --> 00:19:46.630 working out shirtless, you know, when Joe Biden 00:19:46.630 --> 00:19:48.769 couldn't even walk up a flight of stairs or maybe 00:19:48.769 --> 00:19:52.819 not even was a cognizant human. And that's the 00:19:52.819 --> 00:19:54.660 promise of performance medicine. Imagine being 00:19:54.660 --> 00:19:57.559 in your 70s and maybe even into your 80s and 00:19:57.559 --> 00:20:00.960 still being a productive and extraordinary member 00:20:00.960 --> 00:20:04.460 of the workforce. And, you know, Secretary Kennedy 00:20:04.460 --> 00:20:07.640 does very much recognize that human enhancements 00:20:07.640 --> 00:20:12.079 may even become a necessary part of our medical 00:20:12.079 --> 00:20:15.720 system because what does the government want? 00:20:15.940 --> 00:20:19.539 The government wants citizens who are stronger. 00:20:20.190 --> 00:20:23.049 more productive, and can pay taxes for longer. 00:20:23.589 --> 00:20:27.410 And the central way to increase productivity 00:20:27.410 --> 00:20:31.789 is through human enhancement. He's a friend of 00:20:31.789 --> 00:20:34.150 mine, I'm proud to say, and I've been with him 00:20:34.150 --> 00:20:37.589 in the gym, and he's my hero in so many ways, 00:20:37.670 --> 00:20:41.490 but his physical fitness is, I mean, he just 00:20:41.490 --> 00:20:45.289 turned 71, I believe, and he could peel off over 00:20:45.289 --> 00:20:50.809 20 fairly clean pull -ups. It's unbelievable. 00:20:53.250 --> 00:20:56.670 But at the root of it is hormone optimization. 00:20:57.349 --> 00:21:04.349 And I believe that a multi -trillion dollar industry 00:21:04.349 --> 00:21:07.170 is going to rise from human enhancement because 00:21:07.170 --> 00:21:10.849 healthcare is extractive of all the profits of 00:21:10.849 --> 00:21:14.869 capitalism. So basically all the activities of 00:21:14.869 --> 00:21:17.430 our society are profit generative, whether it's 00:21:17.430 --> 00:21:21.039 banking, technology, or even building schools 00:21:21.039 --> 00:21:24.359 and freeways. And so where do those profits go? 00:21:24.660 --> 00:21:27.599 They go to making us healthier. And that's why 00:21:27.599 --> 00:21:29.880 America, the richest nation in the world, spends 00:21:29.880 --> 00:21:33.440 18 % of GDP on healthcare. And eventually, we'll 00:21:33.440 --> 00:21:36.259 realize that it's not just about making sick 00:21:36.259 --> 00:21:39.299 people less sick. Healthcare should also be about 00:21:39.299 --> 00:21:42.960 making ordinary people extraordinary. Because 00:21:42.960 --> 00:21:46.299 why should you be old and debilitated at 70? 00:21:46.859 --> 00:21:49.200 Or should you be doing 20 pull -ups? Should we 00:21:49.200 --> 00:21:51.680 all be able to do 20 pull -ups at 70 like Secretary 00:21:51.680 --> 00:21:54.740 Kennedy can? I'm on the same page. I mean, this 00:21:54.740 --> 00:21:57.400 is like the hottest topic amongst my community 00:21:57.400 --> 00:22:00.539 is, hey, have you looked at the peptides? Have 00:22:00.539 --> 00:22:03.119 you looked at the stem cells? You know, it's 00:22:03.119 --> 00:22:05.660 like where we're talking about all the time. 00:22:05.819 --> 00:22:08.799 It's fun. Like this is like right now. It's happening 00:22:08.799 --> 00:22:11.099 right now. Your timing couldn't be better probably 00:22:11.099 --> 00:22:15.079 to talk about peak human performance. Yeah, I 00:22:15.079 --> 00:22:18.980 think the... the convolution of social media. 00:22:19.519 --> 00:22:21.700 Like we would not have been able to pull this 00:22:21.700 --> 00:22:24.599 off without social media and that distribution 00:22:24.599 --> 00:22:29.599 mechanism, the Trump administration, the optimism 00:22:29.599 --> 00:22:34.359 about human enhancement technologies. And in 00:22:34.359 --> 00:22:39.460 a few years time, we will all be faster and stronger 00:22:39.460 --> 00:22:45.940 and younger for longer because there's been Because 00:22:45.940 --> 00:22:48.720 of the enhanced games. And we will say, why did 00:22:48.720 --> 00:22:51.839 it take so long? And it will be because there 00:22:51.839 --> 00:22:54.759 was this corrupt group of Swiss bureaucrats who 00:22:54.759 --> 00:22:58.500 were using drug control as a way of holding on 00:22:58.500 --> 00:23:01.579 to their hundred billion dollar monopoly. You 00:23:01.579 --> 00:23:04.380 know, the corrupt, supposedly corrupt institutions 00:23:04.380 --> 00:23:09.119 like big pharma, big oil, big food, big telco, 00:23:09.299 --> 00:23:15.559 just big sport in a way as well, you know. They're 00:23:15.559 --> 00:23:19.259 huge. I imagine they're huge, international. 00:23:21.079 --> 00:23:23.859 To go up against Big Pharma, for example, it's 00:23:23.859 --> 00:23:28.599 like, you know, forget about it. They're so institutionalized. 00:23:28.680 --> 00:23:32.799 How are you going to go against the IOC? They're 00:23:32.799 --> 00:23:34.220 going to get in the way. They're going to cockblock 00:23:34.220 --> 00:23:37.819 you probably, I assume, with network coverage. 00:23:38.599 --> 00:23:41.819 in every which way. What's your plan to, you 00:23:41.819 --> 00:23:43.980 can only almost predict the tactics that they 00:23:43.980 --> 00:23:46.339 might use to make sure the Hentz games never 00:23:46.339 --> 00:23:51.519 is successful? Well, we've politically checkmated 00:23:51.519 --> 00:23:54.619 them, you know, with the Trump presidency and 00:23:54.619 --> 00:23:57.799 the fact that the Trump family is investors of 00:23:57.799 --> 00:24:01.359 ours, that has significantly curtailed one of 00:24:01.359 --> 00:24:04.559 their strongest levers, which is political. I 00:24:04.559 --> 00:24:06.180 would say the Olympics are powerful not because 00:24:06.180 --> 00:24:07.619 they have all the athletes, it's because they 00:24:07.619 --> 00:24:10.059 have all the politicians. And now we've aligned 00:24:10.059 --> 00:24:12.839 the most important political family in the world 00:24:12.839 --> 00:24:16.000 to our cause. So that's one element of it. Another 00:24:16.000 --> 00:24:20.119 element is that their success is based on a legacy 00:24:20.119 --> 00:24:24.200 business model, broadcast television. Our success 00:24:24.200 --> 00:24:27.890 is based on social media. and i expect that by 00:24:27.890 --> 00:24:31.269 the end of 2026 we will in fact generate more 00:24:31.269 --> 00:24:33.170 revenue than the international olympic committee 00:24:33.170 --> 00:24:35.630 uh just because we have a better business model 00:24:35.630 --> 00:24:39.190 and we're run by smarter people uh in a new structure 00:24:39.190 --> 00:24:42.529 you know you come to my office you will see you 00:24:42.529 --> 00:24:45.630 know young graduates from mit and berkeley right 00:24:45.630 --> 00:24:48.470 it's their first jobs it's a tech startup it 00:24:48.470 --> 00:24:52.109 is not a legacy old politicized broken system 00:24:52.109 --> 00:24:56.099 yes they're very powerful but it's you know ask 00:24:56.099 --> 00:24:58.019 the question why has no one else done this before 00:24:58.019 --> 00:25:01.619 it's a very simple idea there are lots of very 00:25:01.619 --> 00:25:04.339 smart people who proposed an enhanced games most 00:25:04.339 --> 00:25:09.420 notably most notably the oxford professor julian 00:25:09.420 --> 00:25:13.900 saporescu he's a notable bioethicist but why 00:25:13.900 --> 00:25:16.299 did no one turn it into a reality because at 00:25:16.299 --> 00:25:19.640 the end of the day everyone who would have done 00:25:19.640 --> 00:25:22.460 so probably was in the sports world They were 00:25:22.460 --> 00:25:24.759 some kind of sports bureaucrat. That would be 00:25:24.759 --> 00:25:27.619 the logical kind of person who would start a 00:25:27.619 --> 00:25:29.900 competitor to the Olympics. I'm not in the sports 00:25:29.900 --> 00:25:33.200 world at all. I'm an entrepreneur and investor. 00:25:33.539 --> 00:25:36.680 And I just saw a broken market structure, just 00:25:36.680 --> 00:25:39.759 as Travis saw with the taxi cabs or Brian Chesky 00:25:39.759 --> 00:25:44.819 saw with hotels. And, you know, it's entirely 00:25:44.819 --> 00:25:48.099 possible to build something better because we 00:25:48.099 --> 00:25:51.309 live in the era of disruption. I agree. And, 00:25:51.349 --> 00:25:54.309 you know, I was thinking, you know, so you're 00:25:54.309 --> 00:25:56.750 going to focus on when you launch. It's in Las 00:25:56.750 --> 00:26:01.670 Vegas next year. Yeah, May 2026. May 2026. It's 00:26:01.670 --> 00:26:05.690 going to be swimming, weightlifting. What else? 00:26:05.950 --> 00:26:10.829 Track. And track. In my opinion, what it's worth. 00:26:11.309 --> 00:26:14.750 The weightlifting, I think that's a great area 00:26:14.750 --> 00:26:17.660 to exploit because I kind of sense that. People 00:26:17.660 --> 00:26:19.559 who do weightlifting might have already had a 00:26:19.559 --> 00:26:21.220 lot of experience with performance enhancing 00:26:21.220 --> 00:26:24.380 stuff in the first place. Yeah, the powerlifters 00:26:24.380 --> 00:26:26.720 in particular are all enhanced. They love us. 00:26:26.799 --> 00:26:30.380 There's no hiding that. And it's really fun to 00:26:30.380 --> 00:26:35.519 watch a world record in weightlifting. So tell 00:26:35.519 --> 00:26:38.380 us about your stable of athletes that have already 00:26:38.380 --> 00:26:41.319 signed up or expressed interest. How are things 00:26:41.319 --> 00:26:45.250 shipping up? Well, the average Olympian in the 00:26:45.250 --> 00:26:48.390 United States only earns about $30 ,000 a year. 00:26:48.710 --> 00:26:50.849 Yet the IOC president flies around the world 00:26:50.849 --> 00:26:52.789 in a private jet and literally lives in a palace. 00:26:53.069 --> 00:26:55.829 And so it's a highly unequal system. And that's 00:26:55.829 --> 00:26:57.809 one of those things, one of the market structure 00:26:57.809 --> 00:27:00.549 reasons why I thought it was so compelling to 00:27:00.549 --> 00:27:04.569 disrupt. And so we're offering six -figure base 00:27:04.569 --> 00:27:08.819 salaries to athletes. a million dollars for breaking 00:27:08.819 --> 00:27:11.900 a major world record and so the economics are 00:27:11.900 --> 00:27:14.400 really really compelling for the athletes and 00:27:14.400 --> 00:27:16.539 so they're lining up uh you know we've signed 00:27:16.539 --> 00:27:19.559 the current a world record holder in the 50 butterfly 00:27:19.559 --> 00:27:23.000 we have olympic medalists world champions um 00:27:23.000 --> 00:27:26.259 and they see this as a new opportunity to get 00:27:26.259 --> 00:27:29.519 on the ground floor of of changing the world 00:27:29.519 --> 00:27:31.740 and changing humanity writ large because this 00:27:31.740 --> 00:27:34.599 isn't about creating the next version of the 00:27:34.599 --> 00:27:36.839 olympics this is about creating the next version 00:27:36.839 --> 00:27:39.319 of mankind right we're going to create humans 00:27:39.319 --> 00:27:43.480 2 .0 and don't you want to be one the you know 00:27:43.480 --> 00:27:47.460 original apollo astronauts the first to to land 00:27:47.460 --> 00:27:50.880 on the moon, right? No one wants to be the hundredth 00:27:50.880 --> 00:27:53.539 man who climbed Everest, right? You want to be 00:27:53.539 --> 00:27:56.960 the first. And it takes that kind of heroic mindset. 00:27:57.920 --> 00:28:00.859 If I'm going to die, I'm going to die on horseback 00:28:00.859 --> 00:28:03.480 with a sword in my hand in the midst of battle, 00:28:03.619 --> 00:28:06.380 right? Because that is a bold and honorable way 00:28:06.380 --> 00:28:12.119 to go. And for all of human history, we have... 00:28:12.490 --> 00:28:15.910 taking great risks to climb mountains, go to 00:28:15.910 --> 00:28:19.049 the stars, explore the depths of the ocean. Why? 00:28:19.349 --> 00:28:22.490 Because it shows us that humans are even greater 00:28:22.490 --> 00:28:25.589 than we could have ever expected. And for athletes, 00:28:25.829 --> 00:28:28.950 breaking world records is so important. And I 00:28:28.950 --> 00:28:32.150 would point to the fact that no one watches Formula 00:28:32.150 --> 00:28:35.970 2. Everyone watches F1. No one watches minor 00:28:35.970 --> 00:28:38.269 league ball. Everyone watches major league ball. 00:28:38.759 --> 00:28:42.380 Why is that? Because human beings were hardwired 00:28:42.380 --> 00:28:45.359 to want to see only the best compete. And from 00:28:45.359 --> 00:28:49.440 1896 until 1992, amateur athletes were the only 00:28:49.440 --> 00:28:51.660 ones allowed to compete at the Olympics. Professionals 00:28:51.660 --> 00:28:54.400 were banned. It was seen as ungentlemanly, against 00:28:54.400 --> 00:28:58.160 the spirit of sport, etc. But it turned out that 00:28:58.160 --> 00:29:00.039 professional athletes were just a lot better 00:29:00.039 --> 00:29:02.619 than amateur athletes. And I think the same is 00:29:02.619 --> 00:29:05.099 going to happen here. We want to see the very 00:29:05.099 --> 00:29:08.019 best of human competition. Enhanced athletes? 00:29:08.569 --> 00:29:10.589 are going to have longer careers they're going 00:29:10.589 --> 00:29:13.549 to be faster they're going to be stronger they're 00:29:13.549 --> 00:29:15.630 going to be higher performing and who's going 00:29:15.630 --> 00:29:19.589 to want to then watch the old slow olympics and 00:29:19.589 --> 00:29:21.809 athletes certainly want to won't want to come 00:29:21.809 --> 00:29:25.789 compete in a second tier competition no one no 00:29:25.789 --> 00:29:28.869 one has ever woken up and said you know my dream 00:29:28.869 --> 00:29:32.210 in life is to be a formula 2 driver everyone 00:29:32.210 --> 00:29:35.519 wants to be a formula one driver Right. And no 00:29:35.519 --> 00:29:36.980 one's going to say, oh, yeah, I want to compete 00:29:36.980 --> 00:29:39.539 at the natural Olympics. No, I just want to be 00:29:39.539 --> 00:29:42.940 the fastest human that has ever existed. You 00:29:42.940 --> 00:29:44.740 know, I remember I don't remember what year it 00:29:44.740 --> 00:29:49.380 was, but the Olympics basketball, we the U .S. 00:29:49.380 --> 00:29:53.400 assembled a dream team like 1992 Barcelona. And 00:29:53.400 --> 00:29:55.299 it was like beating up a bunch of babies. Right. 00:29:55.400 --> 00:29:58.079 It was like it wasn't even close, you know. Well, 00:29:58.180 --> 00:30:00.799 so 1992 in Barcelona was the first year that 00:30:00.799 --> 00:30:03.140 professional athletes were allowed to compete. 00:30:03.660 --> 00:30:06.140 And that's why the US had the Dream Team, because 00:30:06.140 --> 00:30:07.160 that's where all the professional basketball 00:30:07.160 --> 00:30:10.259 players were. And they just wiped the floor with 00:30:10.259 --> 00:30:14.839 absolutely everyone. It was a joke. And it changed 00:30:14.839 --> 00:30:17.960 the entire structure of sports. And the fact 00:30:17.960 --> 00:30:21.400 that the NCAA college athletes today are allowed 00:30:21.400 --> 00:30:24.619 to be professional with NIL rights is a direct 00:30:24.619 --> 00:30:29.799 consequence of the Dream Team in 1992. So along 00:30:29.799 --> 00:30:33.509 the way, did you... Lose any friends or family. 00:30:33.849 --> 00:30:36.369 Did you ever second -guess yourself like maybe 00:30:36.369 --> 00:30:41.049 I've made a wrong decision here, you know Well, 00:30:41.170 --> 00:30:45.250 you know building a startup is hard and You know 00:30:45.250 --> 00:30:47.890 some days you wake up and you say wow I've had 00:30:47.890 --> 00:30:52.869 to sacrifice a lot for this But you know it is 00:30:54.109 --> 00:30:55.990 there have been some immense sacrifices along 00:30:55.990 --> 00:30:58.150 the way. I had a very successful career as a 00:30:58.150 --> 00:31:00.049 venture capitalist. I had a beautiful house in 00:31:00.049 --> 00:31:02.470 London, a Ferrari in the garage, and I probably 00:31:02.470 --> 00:31:05.650 should be there enjoying the fruits of many decades 00:31:05.650 --> 00:31:08.849 of work. Instead, I'm working 14 hours a day 00:31:08.849 --> 00:31:13.029 doing four or five media interviews and building 00:31:13.029 --> 00:31:15.809 a whole new organization. But why am I doing 00:31:15.809 --> 00:31:21.029 this? It's because I don't want to be old, feeble, 00:31:21.109 --> 00:31:24.500 and disabled. I don't want to... age suffer and 00:31:24.500 --> 00:31:29.299 die and i think i'm better placed to create the 00:31:29.299 --> 00:31:33.779 market structure where we can significantly cure 00:31:33.779 --> 00:31:39.019 aging than anyone else and so if i don't do this 00:31:39.019 --> 00:31:43.299 and one day i will be old and i will regret not 00:31:43.299 --> 00:31:47.599 not pursuing this because it will have a direct 00:31:47.599 --> 00:31:50.400 benefit to myself and my long -term health and 00:31:50.400 --> 00:31:53.400 so all the sacrifices that i have to make today 00:31:53.400 --> 00:31:59.099 i think are justified for um uh for the future 00:31:59.099 --> 00:32:01.500 for the future of me right i don't do this for 00:32:01.500 --> 00:32:05.000 or you know young aaron i do this for 70 80 90 00:32:05.000 --> 00:32:09.099 year old aaron and and the and the potential 00:32:09.099 --> 00:32:12.599 of human enhancement technology I think you're 00:32:12.599 --> 00:32:14.339 telling yourself, sure, I'm planning on living 00:32:14.339 --> 00:32:19.980 to 450. That's my goal, half -jokingly. I don't 00:32:19.980 --> 00:32:21.859 see why not, and I'm trying to convince my wife 00:32:21.859 --> 00:32:24.740 to go along, but she says she's only down for 00:32:24.740 --> 00:32:29.359 125. Well, I think we're going to pose some very 00:32:29.359 --> 00:32:32.200 interesting philosophical questions. I'm sitting 00:32:32.200 --> 00:32:35.579 here in my library in New York City, and all 00:32:35.579 --> 00:32:38.920 the books that surround me are about philosophy. 00:32:39.799 --> 00:32:42.059 and we're going to ask an important question 00:32:42.059 --> 00:32:44.819 is what is living because right now that that 00:32:44.819 --> 00:32:49.680 is a biological definition but very soon there 00:32:49.680 --> 00:32:52.660 will be brain computer interfaces artificial 00:32:52.660 --> 00:32:57.400 intelligence uh and you know you and i have generated 00:32:57.400 --> 00:32:59.759 so much video content that we could train an 00:32:59.759 --> 00:33:05.799 llm to imitate our personalities will we live 00:33:05.799 --> 00:33:09.140 through some kind of online avatar Or will we 00:33:09.140 --> 00:33:11.480 constantly upgrade our bodies and become some 00:33:11.480 --> 00:33:15.579 kind of cybernetic transhumanist? And what we 00:33:15.579 --> 00:33:17.619 are doing at the Enhance Games is not just creating 00:33:17.619 --> 00:33:21.140 a sporting event. We're also laying the regulatory 00:33:21.140 --> 00:33:25.880 and ethical framework for human enhancement. 00:33:26.140 --> 00:33:29.140 And I would recommend your listeners go to enhance 00:33:29.140 --> 00:33:32.960 .com and read the Declaration on Human Enhancement, 00:33:33.000 --> 00:33:35.599 which is our governing document and a set of 00:33:35.599 --> 00:33:40.049 principles outlining what... how human enhancement 00:33:40.049 --> 00:33:43.109 can be ethically brought to life. And I think 00:33:43.109 --> 00:33:47.089 this then poses a very interesting question about 00:33:47.089 --> 00:33:51.150 what is the next age of mankind? So it is said 00:33:51.150 --> 00:33:55.170 today that we live in the information age, but 00:33:55.170 --> 00:33:57.269 that feels very outdated to me. It feels like 00:33:57.269 --> 00:34:00.950 Bill Gates, 1980s, a PC on every desk, the information 00:34:00.950 --> 00:34:04.789 superhighway. And so then I ask the question, 00:34:04.950 --> 00:34:09.099 what should the next age of mankind be? And I 00:34:09.099 --> 00:34:11.579 think there are only two options. There's the 00:34:11.579 --> 00:34:16.199 artificial intelligence age, where the machines 00:34:16.199 --> 00:34:19.480 become superior to the humans and eventually 00:34:19.480 --> 00:34:25.059 us humans become irrelevant and disposable. Or 00:34:25.059 --> 00:34:28.340 we could live in the enhanced age, an age where 00:34:28.340 --> 00:34:31.840 technology's sole purpose is to enhance the human 00:34:31.840 --> 00:34:35.360 condition, to make us physically stronger. mentally 00:34:35.360 --> 00:34:39.000 more resilient, intellectually super intelligent, 00:34:39.260 --> 00:34:43.179 and so forth. And I will do everything in my 00:34:43.179 --> 00:34:46.099 power to make sure that we live in an enhanced 00:34:46.099 --> 00:34:50.239 age, not an artificial age. I think about, let's 00:34:50.239 --> 00:34:53.360 say I do accomplish my goals and I live to 150, 00:34:53.820 --> 00:34:56.639 200, and so on. Like, what am I going to do every 00:34:56.639 --> 00:35:02.039 day? Am I going to work out? I can obtain maximum 00:35:02.039 --> 00:35:06.199 peak performance. What is my role in life? I 00:35:06.199 --> 00:35:07.820 think there's going to be a bloodbath on the 00:35:07.820 --> 00:35:09.539 street with AI, by the way. I think people are 00:35:09.539 --> 00:35:12.460 going to be laid off by the droves. What's everybody 00:35:12.460 --> 00:35:13.840 going to do? Is it going to be a universal basic 00:35:13.840 --> 00:35:16.699 income? Is nobody going to be working? Are we 00:35:16.699 --> 00:35:19.559 just going to be going through life, being the 00:35:19.559 --> 00:35:22.119 best peak physical performance versions of ourselves? 00:35:22.420 --> 00:35:25.969 Do you have any thoughts on that? Well, I think 00:35:25.969 --> 00:35:28.409 this set of philosophical questions has been 00:35:28.409 --> 00:35:32.489 asked many times. There was the thesis of the 00:35:32.489 --> 00:35:35.389 Luddites in the Victorian era who were afraid 00:35:35.389 --> 00:35:37.610 that the machines are going to take all the agricultural 00:35:37.610 --> 00:35:41.889 jobs, which they did. You know, in 1850, I'd 00:35:41.889 --> 00:35:44.230 say 60 % of Americans worked in agriculture. 00:35:44.449 --> 00:35:47.190 Today, less than 1 % do. But we generate so much 00:35:47.190 --> 00:35:50.530 more. food and could feed the entire world. Why 00:35:50.530 --> 00:35:52.349 is that? Because technology has made us more 00:35:52.349 --> 00:35:56.449 productive. And for us knowledge economy workers, 00:35:56.710 --> 00:36:00.170 we effectively spend 30 years in training from 00:36:00.170 --> 00:36:04.010 school to university to early career apprenticeships. 00:36:04.769 --> 00:36:07.670 But we only really work for like 20, 25 years. 00:36:08.130 --> 00:36:11.570 And then we're retired for about 30 years. And 00:36:11.570 --> 00:36:14.800 so The economic productivity benefits of adding 00:36:14.800 --> 00:36:18.059 just one or two years, not to the front end of 00:36:18.059 --> 00:36:20.880 our careers, but to the back end is immense. 00:36:21.440 --> 00:36:23.400 That's where we have our highest income earning 00:36:23.400 --> 00:36:25.179 capabilities, particularly as knowledge workers. 00:36:26.139 --> 00:36:28.980 And so I don't have a dystopian view of the future. 00:36:29.000 --> 00:36:31.699 I have quite a utopian one. Because if we look 00:36:31.699 --> 00:36:34.969 at the U .S. federal budget right now. And I 00:36:34.969 --> 00:36:37.230 don't know the deficit numbers off my head because 00:36:37.230 --> 00:36:39.590 they're about to change. But we're talking about, 00:36:39.610 --> 00:36:41.969 you know, more than a trillion dollars a year 00:36:41.969 --> 00:36:46.550 in federal deficits. But if our society became 00:36:46.550 --> 00:36:49.349 more productive through human enhancement, pushed 00:36:49.349 --> 00:36:52.050 out the retirement age by just a few years, we 00:36:52.050 --> 00:36:54.329 could have a sustainable federal budget. We could 00:36:54.329 --> 00:36:57.230 have a sustainable European style welfare state. 00:36:57.590 --> 00:37:01.329 We could be a society where everyone is rich. 00:37:01.920 --> 00:37:05.159 And no one is poor. And that can be possible 00:37:05.159 --> 00:37:09.460 by making us as humans physically more productive 00:37:09.460 --> 00:37:13.420 for longer. So this criticism that the Enhanced 00:37:13.420 --> 00:37:17.840 Games is a clown show, you don't have a moment 00:37:17.840 --> 00:37:19.840 where it sounds like you believe you're doing 00:37:19.840 --> 00:37:22.440 a service to mankind. Is there ever a moment 00:37:22.440 --> 00:37:27.139 where you second guess yourself at all? You know, 00:37:27.239 --> 00:37:32.619 the job is hard. And sometimes I think, you know, 00:37:32.619 --> 00:37:35.000 maybe I should be retired and enjoying the fruits 00:37:35.000 --> 00:37:36.900 of my life. But that's generally when I'm like 00:37:36.900 --> 00:37:39.679 jet lagged and having to, you know, go to four 00:37:39.679 --> 00:37:42.460 cities in three days or something. But no, I 00:37:42.460 --> 00:37:45.119 never doubt myself. And, you know, my critics 00:37:45.119 --> 00:37:48.840 don't have a robust argument. I've invited the 00:37:48.840 --> 00:37:50.099 president of the International Olympic Committee, 00:37:50.300 --> 00:37:53.840 the World Ended Doping Agency and others to debate 00:37:53.840 --> 00:37:55.940 me live in person. I'll go anywhere in the world, 00:37:56.019 --> 00:37:59.949 but they never do. because they can't stand the 00:37:59.949 --> 00:38:04.289 marketplace of ideas. And this is, you know, 00:38:04.289 --> 00:38:07.210 the sign of our success. Every day they refuse 00:38:07.210 --> 00:38:10.690 to debate me is another day we gain traction, 00:38:10.889 --> 00:38:14.989 we generate more revenue, and eventually we will 00:38:14.989 --> 00:38:19.289 supplant them. And it will just be like Uber, 00:38:19.449 --> 00:38:22.929 right? Why would we ever take an old -fashioned, 00:38:23.269 --> 00:38:27.780 outdated... broken taxicab when there isn't a 00:38:27.780 --> 00:38:29.800 better, more efficient option in front of us. 00:38:30.199 --> 00:38:34.340 I'm rooting for you in a big way. I really want 00:38:34.340 --> 00:38:38.639 to see May 2026 happen in a very successful way. 00:38:38.820 --> 00:38:41.360 Where do you stand right now and what obstacles 00:38:41.360 --> 00:38:45.619 do you need to overcome in order to have a successful 00:38:45.619 --> 00:38:50.280 launch between now and then? I think we're pretty 00:38:50.280 --> 00:38:52.130 well set up. You know, we are backed by the biggest 00:38:52.130 --> 00:38:54.530 investors in the world. Peter Thiel led our Series 00:38:54.530 --> 00:38:58.389 A, the Trump family led our Series B. We have 00:38:58.389 --> 00:39:03.429 support from the scientific community. 74 % of 00:39:03.429 --> 00:39:05.849 the Olympics' own doctors say that they will 00:39:05.849 --> 00:39:07.650 treat an enhanced athlete, according to recent 00:39:07.650 --> 00:39:09.610 research published in the Journal of Sports Medicine. 00:39:10.610 --> 00:39:12.849 And I'd like to always, you know, it's not my 00:39:12.849 --> 00:39:14.670 line, it's actually my assistant Thomas' line. 00:39:16.429 --> 00:39:20.469 The enhanced games are inevitable. Now that we've 00:39:20.469 --> 00:39:22.070 laid out the business model, that we've done 00:39:22.070 --> 00:39:25.730 this, if I got hit by a bus tomorrow, it will 00:39:25.730 --> 00:39:29.670 still happen. And I do worry at times for my 00:39:29.670 --> 00:39:32.250 personal safety. I recognize that we're taking 00:39:32.250 --> 00:39:37.989 on a super corrupt incumbent monopoly, and they've 00:39:37.989 --> 00:39:42.530 turned to dirty tricks before. But ultimately, 00:39:42.769 --> 00:39:46.369 the movement doesn't rely upon me. I've laid 00:39:46.369 --> 00:39:49.289 the groundwork. We have an amazing team of 30 00:39:49.289 --> 00:39:51.909 professionals who go to work every day to make 00:39:51.909 --> 00:39:56.730 this happen. And so if someone killed me, the 00:39:56.730 --> 00:39:59.030 movement would still happen. We will still succeed. 00:39:59.710 --> 00:40:02.530 Have you had any kind of threats against yourself 00:40:02.530 --> 00:40:05.130 that you need to... Oh, they're crazy people 00:40:05.130 --> 00:40:09.599 all the time, right? A lot of people say very 00:40:09.599 --> 00:40:13.280 nasty things about me personally on the internet. 00:40:13.539 --> 00:40:17.960 But it's hard for trolls to get out of their 00:40:17.960 --> 00:40:22.460 parents' basement and actually take action. So 00:40:22.460 --> 00:40:28.000 I don't worry at all. I live quite a normal life. 00:40:28.360 --> 00:40:35.960 And I enjoy the sacrifice that is necessary to 00:40:35.960 --> 00:40:37.960 build something great. And I think that is an 00:40:37.960 --> 00:40:40.519 essential criteria of a great entrepreneur. You 00:40:40.519 --> 00:40:45.139 have to enjoy making sacrifice because you lose 00:40:45.139 --> 00:40:46.900 a little bit in the short term, but you gain 00:40:46.900 --> 00:40:49.440 a lot in the long term. I'm sure you're familiar 00:40:49.440 --> 00:40:52.519 with that old famous New York Magazine comic 00:40:52.519 --> 00:40:54.780 where there's a dog in front of the computer 00:40:54.780 --> 00:40:56.400 and it says on the Internet, nobody knows you're 00:40:56.400 --> 00:40:59.699 a dog. The Internet brings out the worst in people. 00:41:00.280 --> 00:41:02.699 What is maybe some of the worst things that you've 00:41:02.699 --> 00:41:06.059 heard directed towards you on the Internet? Are 00:41:06.059 --> 00:41:08.679 you able to share? You know, I just don't think 00:41:08.679 --> 00:41:11.440 they're very good. There's nothing worth repeating. 00:41:13.320 --> 00:41:15.280 And, you know, I've been through the ringer before. 00:41:15.400 --> 00:41:19.139 You know, I fought big litigation. You know, 00:41:19.139 --> 00:41:22.500 I'm a fighter from day one. You know, from the 00:41:22.500 --> 00:41:24.519 day I graduated from university, I have been 00:41:24.519 --> 00:41:27.960 fighting. I fought some of the most corrupt and 00:41:27.960 --> 00:41:30.300 dysfunctional institutions in the world. And 00:41:30.300 --> 00:41:33.639 I enjoy it because at the end. justice always 00:41:33.639 --> 00:41:37.219 prevails and i believe in science like science 00:41:37.219 --> 00:41:42.079 is truly the greatest uh leveler it's the greatest 00:41:42.079 --> 00:41:44.559 driver of productivity it's the greatest creator 00:41:44.559 --> 00:41:47.500 of happiness that has ever existed in human history 00:41:47.500 --> 00:41:51.440 and you should never you should never bet against 00:41:51.440 --> 00:41:54.500 science and that's what the olympics has have 00:41:54.500 --> 00:41:58.289 done for 50 years now they have been openly anti 00:41:58.289 --> 00:42:01.250 -science, anti -technology, and it would be like 00:42:01.250 --> 00:42:04.550 universities banning the typewriter, right? If 00:42:04.550 --> 00:42:05.969 we couldn't use the typewriter, we wouldn't have 00:42:05.969 --> 00:42:08.010 computers. If we didn't have computers, we wouldn't 00:42:08.010 --> 00:42:10.210 have artificial intelligence. And right now, 00:42:10.230 --> 00:42:13.710 a lot of universities are anti -AI, and they're 00:42:13.710 --> 00:42:16.170 going to go the way of the dodo because AI is 00:42:16.170 --> 00:42:19.369 going to become central to our society. And, 00:42:19.590 --> 00:42:22.829 you know, I've seen the rise of, you know, companies 00:42:22.829 --> 00:42:28.420 like OpenAI firsthand. um and uh you know we 00:42:28.420 --> 00:42:31.860 can build the future and you know maybe a concluding 00:42:31.860 --> 00:42:35.300 thought is that the future everything that exists 00:42:35.300 --> 00:42:39.019 today was built by someone the best example i 00:42:39.019 --> 00:42:42.460 can give is eleanor roosevelt 1947 she invented 00:42:42.460 --> 00:42:46.079 the idea of human rights right like she invented 00:42:46.079 --> 00:42:49.619 the phrase and now we consider that such a a 00:42:49.619 --> 00:42:52.619 touchstone of what it means to be human And so 00:42:52.619 --> 00:42:55.239 to your listeners out there, you can build the 00:42:55.239 --> 00:42:58.719 future. No one is stopping you. It just takes 00:42:58.719 --> 00:43:02.239 courage and conviction. And the things that take 00:43:02.239 --> 00:43:06.739 the most courage are the most valuable. Well, 00:43:06.800 --> 00:43:08.559 I appreciate you spending time with us, Dr. Aaron 00:43:08.559 --> 00:43:11.300 D'Souza. On that note, courage and conviction. 00:43:11.659 --> 00:43:15.460 I am counting on an invitation in May of 2026. 00:43:15.599 --> 00:43:17.719 I want to be there. I want to be there. I want 00:43:17.719 --> 00:43:20.059 to enjoy it and root for some world records, 00:43:20.139 --> 00:43:23.559 a whole basket of them. And I encourage you to 00:43:23.559 --> 00:43:26.400 keep going, keep fighting. And I wish you a lot 00:43:26.400 --> 00:43:29.900 of success. Thank you very much. And we look 00:43:29.900 --> 00:43:31.500 forward to having you at the first games. Thanks 00:43:31.500 --> 00:43:31.920 so much.