Big Questions with Cal Fussman
Episodes
The AI Argument: 2026
16 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
There are those believe artificial intelligence will cure cancer, reverse global warming, and unlock human potential. There are others who believe it ...
Cal Finds His Destiny
09 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When Cal returns to Tampa's Ybor City to speak, he keeps a ritual that's become almost sacred: a meal at the legendary 120-year-old Columbia Restauran...
AI Job Advice: Look Back, Leap Forward
02 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The future may not be hiding in Silicon Valley. It could be hidden in your childhood. When a bright young grad sits down at Cal's Thanksgiving table...
Till Tech Do Us Part
25 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Here is a question Cal never thought he'd ask. Let's just say a human marries an AI and they get divorced. Does ChatGPT get the alimony? This is the w...
Boredom Never Stood A Chance
18 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When Cal looks back on his life, he sees a relentless drive that's guided him to his 69th birthday: Never be bored. His past reveals a simple truth. B...
Your Best Thanksgiving
11 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cal looks over a bountiful breakfast menu and remembers the statistics he heard about kids going hungry in Tampa Bay — a city that, through his tr...
Turning Fandom Into Family
04 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When Kobe Bryant watched the Eagles win Super Bowl 52 on television, he wasn't alone — he was holding his 1-year-old daughter, Bianka, in his arms. ...
Your Future Life: When Love Outlives Death
28 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After actress and author Suzanne Somers passed away, her husband couldn't let go — so he brought her back. Not in memory. But as an AI twin. He crea...
Johnny Depp, Hemingway, And The Question That Changes
21 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Everything An unexpected e-mail sends Cal spiraling back to a conversation with the actor Johnny Depp — and to Ernest Hemingway's brush with death i...
The Future Of Policing Has Four Wheels – And No Cops
14 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A police van that drives itself, launches drones, reads license plates, and streams live infrared video straight to headquarters. Miami-Dade just unve...
Sam Altman Shoplifting & Other Strange Sights
07 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In a week when companies propose growing human eggs from male skin and gestating babies inside robots, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman is seen in a viral video ...
Don't Be 1 in 93
30 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Roughly 1 in 93 Americans will die in a car accident. According to the National Safety Council, that's the math—even after seatbelts, airbags, senso...
Turbulence, Tranquility & Central Park
23 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cal comes upon a book called The Fourth Turning Is Here which suggests that we're in a historical cycle of crisis when institutions collapse and a new...
April 20, 1999, September 10, 2025, And The Future
16 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Two dates. Separated by decades. Bound by a thread we'd all prefer didn't exist. Cal revisits the first—a day etched in memory that too many now tre...
Great Advice From George Raveling
09 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Raveling passed away early this month at 88 after living a life shaped by being in the right place at the right time — and knowing what to do when h...
Billie Eilish & My Friend Phillip
02 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Billie Eilish was just 13 when she recorded the song Ocean Eyes in the bedroom of her home and her brother Finneas uploaded it to SoundCloud. Within w...
Old Is New In The Age of AI
26 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cal was ready to dump his storage bins of CDs, tape cassettes, and DVDs — until he discovered a twist: the world is racing back to the very things h...
The Last Book Written By A Human
19 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cal sits down with Jeff Burningham, author of The Last Book Written by a Human, to unpack the AI tidal wave about to hit classrooms, boardrooms, gover...
If The NFL Can Overlook Shedeur Sanders, What Are Algorithms Doing To You?
12 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The NFL passed on Shedeur Sanders — son of Deion "Prime Time" Sanders — through the first four rounds of its 2025 draft, despite the quarterbac...
Jim Carrey's $10 Million Lesson
05 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Jim Carrey's $10 Million Lesson Cal has an epiphany as he's giving one of his storytelling workshops. He's able to tie the thought to the moment in...
First A Scam, Then The Future Of Trust
29 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
On a sunny Sunday morning, Cal shares breakfast with friends—when a woman reveals how a shady third-party travel site jacked up her airline ticket p...
Your New Therapist: Talk To Ash
22 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It was during the pandemic when Cal first realized how many people were searching for mental health professionals and couldn't find them. Cal wished...
De Niro And A Day Of No Regrets
15 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cal has long believed the best way to avoid regret is to really listen when someone talks about theirs. One answer came to him during an interview w...
Mr. Wonderful, Bill Gates & Free Money
08 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cal hears an interview with Kevin O'Leary – Mr. Wonderful on Shark Tank -- that puts into focus the loss of jobs coming with the onset of AI. Then h...
Then I Look At AI . . . And The World's Alright With Me
01 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cal reads a Wall Street Journal story about a graduation speech that ends with the audience asked to sing Bill Withers' Lean On Me—a soulful anthem ...
AI & Your Job
24 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After speaking at a CREW conference in Texas, Cal meets a smart young Uber driver who was curious about the number of jobs that we can anticipate losi...
Elon, AI & The Curious Key To Peace
17 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
When an interview on AI and the future of warfare gets postponed by the birth of a child,Cal turns to the web to satisfy his curiosity on the topic —...
AI & The Great Photographer
10 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cal reads about artificial intelligence models that have written their own code in order to escape being shut down. He ponders the friction between ...
A Breath Of The Future
03 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cal takes a breath of fresh air after a friend goes through double lung-transplant surgery and comes out with a new life. This story will make anyone ...
Two Marathons A Day For 12 Days — And A Bold Question About AI
27 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What kind of person runs 1,000 kilometers in 12 days – twice? Meet Natalie Dau, a Guinness World Record holder who doesn't just push the limits of...
Education, Cheating & AI
20 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In times when college students are using artificial intelligence to answer even introductory course questions like: "Briefly introduce yourself and sa...
Our AI Evolution
13 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In ten years, we'll create content as fast as we can think it. That's what the owner of a cutting-edge AI studio told Cal—and something clicked. T...
From Paralyzed To Powerful
06 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After a devastating rugby injury to his spine seven years ago to this day, Robert Paylor was told he'd never walk again and the best he could hope for...
How 2025 Will Shape History Forever
29 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A single year can easily get lost in time or echo for centuries. A thought-provoking conversation with Simon Sinek makes Cal take a look back at 1925,...
Learning From Weight Loss Drugs
22 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
For decades, Cal steered clear of pharmaceuticals. But after assembling a new team of doctors and stepping on the scale and noticing a few extra pound...
Learning From Cooper Flagg
15 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What would you choose: A shot at March Madness glory or a massive NBA contract? Cal dives into the $100 billion-dollar question facing Cooper Flagg—...
Ozan Ozkural: What's REALLY Behind Trump's Tariffs?
08 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ever wonder what's truly behind President Trump's controversial tariffs? Cal turns to his go-to expert—Ozan Ozkural, the astute international banke...
Learning From JFK
01 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if you could talk to John F. Kennedy today? In this episode, Cal sits down with an AI recreation of the 35th president for a conversation that's ...
Learning from George Foreman
25 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cal reflects deeply on a man known by millions as the smiling face behind the grill—and the heavyweight champion who stunned the world by reclaimin...
Cal Interviews AI John Lennon: A Mind-Bending Conversation Across Time
18 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if you could sit down and talk to John Lennon today? In this one-of-a-kind episode, Cal has an astonishing conversation with an AI-powered person...
The Luck We Find
11 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Cal draws pocket aces and wins big in the first hand of a charity poker night raising money for the fight against cancer. The surge of luck makes it f...
The Academy Awards, Leo, and the Magic of Movie Theaters
04 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As Cal watches the Academy Awards, he has a startling realization—he's barely stepped inside a movie theater all year. Then, host Conan O'Brien deli...
AI, War & Peace
25 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Technology, history, and global politics collide in this episode after Cal asks ChatGPT if there is a way that he can stop a war. The question unexpe...
AI & Comedy on SNL's 50th Anniversary
18 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
After reading about Saturday Night Live's 50th anniversary, Cal turns to one of his AI assistants, Arbor, for recommendations on the freshest new come...
AI & Your Therapist: Can AI Help You Overcome Your Biggest Roadblocks?
11 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Marketing guru Seth Godin recently shared on The Tim Ferriss Show that people often ask AI simple questions—missing out on the real value of deepe...
The Visionary Behind Siri: AI's Past, Present & Future
04 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Siri didn't emerge from a single mind—it was the product of many brilliant innovators. But in this episode, Cal talks with one of the key founders ...
President Trump & AI
28 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Donald Trump divides opinions like few others—some love him, others loathe him. But over the next four years, his most impactful decisions might not...
Kobe, Claude AI & The Nature Of Competition
21 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
As we approach the fifth anniversary of Kobe Bryant's passing, Cal dives deep into a fascinating discussion with Claude AI about the relentless spirit...
Muhammad Ali & AI: Lessons From A Hero's Birthday
14 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
January 17th marks what would have been Muhammad Ali's 83rd birthday. To honor his legacy, Cal embarks on a unique journey—reconnecting with his c...
Sandra Matz: Your Data And Your Future
07 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Discover the astonishing ways your daily life reveals more about you than you could ever imagine. Columbia University professor Sandra Matz takes you ...
Immortality & AI
31 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Quincy Jones, Toby Keith, David Sanborn and others passed on in the last year – but their music lives on. Which makes Cal wonder if we all have a sh...
Thomas Panek: Your Holiday Gift
24 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The remarkable story of a boy who once dove into a swimming pool that didn't have any water in it because he couldn't admit that he was going blind an...
Sandro Corsaro: Bridging Humanity & Technology
17 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Emmy nominated Producer, Author, Animator and Creative Executive for Disney, NBCUniversal and Wayfair has a fascinating conversation with Cal about th...
Matt Mahurin: An Artist In The Age of AI
10 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when an artist at the peak of his craft—known for iconic Time Magazine covers, music videos for legends like U2 and Metallica, Sundanc...
YUKA: Transforms How You Shop For Food
03 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Feeling stuffed after Thanksgiving? Meet YUKA, the revolutionary app with over 64 million users worldwide. Just scan a product's barcode, and YUKA ins...
Jared Zelman: Do Math With Einstein
26 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal talks with the founder of Cicero – a company that uses artificial intelligence to allow you to have conversations with Aristotle, Abraham Lincol...
Jehan Luth: AI & Tesla
19 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Yes, we all know about cars that drive themselves. But how did it happen that the CEO and founder of Banyan can get in his Tesla on the Jersey Shore a...
Election Analysis From Down Under
12 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Looking for a fresh point of view on the recent U.S. presidential election, Cal reaches out to his Australian friend, Holly Ransom, who gives leadersh...
Election Day Closing Argument
05 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal looks back on the few days before November 5, 2024, and realizes how all the people who were so kind and cordial around him are divided nearly 50/...
Ozan Ozkural: A World View As Election Nears
29 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
With the potential for increased violence around the world, Cal reaches out to an old friend from Larry King's breakfast table for a look at the glo...
Lindsey Cormack: Take Your Kids To Vote
22 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It may be too late for Cal. His kids are 30, 27 and 22 years old. But it may not be too late for you or your friends to take your kids with you to vot...
Dave Clark: Make An AI Movie
15 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This podcast is like a walk on the red carpet into the world of AI filmmaking with one of its leaders. The message here is clear. By trying out these ...
Eric Leidtke: Responding To A Problem
08 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
After hearing how traces of plastic are now being found in hearts that are being examined in autopsies, Cal plays a conversation with a man who has d...
AI And Your Heart
01 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal learns from a cardiologist who cared for President George Bush 41 that artificial intelligence is at the point where it can tell us how long we'r...
Ravin Jesuthasan: AI And Your Job
24 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal comes across a survey that indicates that six out of every 10 workers will require AI training before 2027. And that only half of those workers ma...
Sabaa Quao: The Power of 1 Minute
17 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Some of Cal's favorite conversations have come after a friend of his has started a sentence with these four words: "You've got to meet . . ." The trus...
Michael Wright: Surviving 9/11
10 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal replays one of the most amazing conversations he's ever had -- with a man who was in the bathroom on the 81 st Floor of the World Trade Center bef...
The US Open: A Player To Root For
03 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal continues a summer of storytelling by passing on one about a player you might like to root for in this year's U.S. Open. The backstory of Taylor T...
Creating A Life Of Deep Connections
27 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal gets an unexpected e-mail asking about the feeling behind making a deep connection. It compels him to think back through a career of experiences w...
NFL Rule Change Will Do You Good
20 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The change in the opening kickoff of National Football League games may seem inconsequential when compared to other developments in the world. As Cal ...
Santana's Michael Shrieve: Acid to AI
13 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Hall of Fame drummer looks back at the band's iconic performance at Woodstock in 1969 when Carlos Santana dropped some LSD shortly before being su...
The Tie That Binds
06 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal finds out lots of things he never knew about someone he thought he knew . . . at that person's funeral. It got him to think about how well we know...
The Olympics And The Great Race
30 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal looks at the word inclusion through the controversy at the Olympics opening ceremony last week. And what a diverse message really looks like throu...
Election Of The Ages
23 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal describes how listener reaction to last week's podcast about the attempted assassination on Donald Trump influenced his decision to speak out on B...
The Trump Assassination Attempt
16 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal looks at the attempt on the former president's life in a way that you won't find anywhere else. This podcast is not red vs. blue. It's not politic...
Damon Burton: Think Twice About Your AI Content
09 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal continues his journey into the world of artificial intelligence when he talks with the SEO guru. The Big Question is how the AI digital content no...
Jamie Metzl: Seeing AI Like Electricity
02 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal talks with the futurist who tells us that artificial intelligence is going to be embedded in everything we do -- and that means many aspects of th...
How To Talk To AI
25 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In his quest to go deep into artificial intelligence, Cal comes across a most unusual guest. Theresa Fesinstine speaks to AI in a most uncommon way –...
Jairek Robbins: Finding Your Path
18 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The son of self-help guru Tony Robbins has become a coach with clients in 133 countries around the world. You'll see why when you listen to this conve...
Matt Thomas: Mind, Body & Chessboxing
11 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Chessboxing? What? Do the competitors pound each other in the head as they move pieces on the chessboard? It's actually a sport that is going to be on...
Linus Eckenstam: An AI Conversation
04 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal realizes that for the first time he is not feeling behind in technology because he has thrown himself into understanding AI. Conversations with ex...
Ben Albert: Gamefy Your Connections
28 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When Cal went on Ben's podcast, the marketer confided to him that he was supposed to host a party that evening to bring people who didn't know each ...
John Mackey: From LSD trip to The Whole Story
21 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal talks with the co-founder and former CEO of Whole Foods about the journey he took from shirtless 22-year-old hippie hitchhiking in Austin on acid ...
Matt Beane: Skills You'll Need In The Age Of AI
14 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal converses with the author of The Skill Code: How To Save Human Ability in an Age of Intelligent Machines, and learns how experts in their fields a...
Hala Taha: Your Podcast & Social Media Coach
07 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal gets social media strategies from the Podcast Princess, who grew a team of unpaid interns into her own highly successful agency – YAP (Young and...
Simon Severino: How To Sell
30 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When Cal was young, he was educated as a journalist not to sell. He was taught to interview and write and stay on the editorial side of the wall that ...
Steve Dennis: Leaders Leap, And So Must You
23 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The world has never moved faster than it's about to with the emergence of AI. What does this mean for all of us? So many businesses in the past didn't...
Esco Eats: What A Mistake Can Do For You!
16 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal learns about the creation of Esco's World Famous Apple Cobbler Pie through a story that showcases how we can all get the most out of our errors. E...
Eric Potterat: Your Learned Excellence Coach
09 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal talks with a man who has worked to bring the best out of Navy Seals, neurosurgeons, Los Angeles Dodgers, U.S. Women's Soccer Team players and Cirq...
Alan Stein Jr.: Kobe, Steph Curry And Success Simplified
02 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal talks with a coach who has turned his love for basketball into guidance for all of us in our work and personal lives. After learning from, and coa...
Chester Elton: Improve Your Work Connections
26 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal sits down with Chester at a long table of Chief Human Resource Officers to explore the power of bonding at work. The author of Leading with Gratit...
Guy Kawasaki: Discipline Will Set You Free
19 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
While speaking at a TEDx event in Sonoma, Cal meets the former Apple evangelist (and current Canva evangelist) and they immediately hit it off. Guy co...
Breakfast with Jeremy Ryan Slate
12 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
As Cal speaks with the leading podcaster and marketer, he channels the 12 years that he had breakfast with CNN broadcast icon Larry King almost every ...
Spartan's Joe DeSena: Your Resilience Coach
05 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How can I guy who built an obstacle racing empire ever give up? That was the question when Spartan hovered near bankruptcy when its events were cancel...
Shane Balkowitsch: Protect Your Digital Photos
27 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A series of connections leads Cal to a conversation with a master of wet plate photography – created around 1850. But the talk about photos that can...
Kevin Surace: 2050 & The End Of Work
20 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal speaks with the man who is the father of the virtual assistant and who predicted ten years ago that most work would be automated and out of human'...
A Valentine's Day Lesson
13 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Not many Valentine Day stories start with a line like: "When he first came out of prison . . ." This conversation brings you the full rollercoaster r...
Tom Kemp: Your Privacy Coach
06 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal has been told that privacy disappeared more than twenty years ago with the emergence of the internet. But the emergence of artificial intelligence...
Andre Martin: Finding The Right Job Fit
30 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal has an impactful talk with the author of the book: Wrong Fit, Right Fit: Why How We Work Matters More Than Ever. Martin points out a Gallup study ...
Peter McGraw: Benefits of Going Solo
23 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cal became very curious after reading that women in Japan were staging elaborate wedding ceremonies to marry themselves. Cal also heard projections th...