Eavesdrop LIVE Podcast

Kevin never voted in his life.A year and a half ago Yana thought the Democrats were finished, because of Russiagate, COVID, identity politics. Unelectable. Then the Trump coalition lost Texas. And Kansas. How big do you need to screw up to lose THAT BIG?In this episode of Eavesdrop.live, Kevin and Yana sit down 1:1 after the midterms. Kevin trades markets and has never voted in his life. Yana is not a US voter, but she thinks voting still matters as a signal that people in power can’t ignore. We did not agree.We talk about why the markets pumped and then dumped right on schedule, why the Democrats are masquerading as a peace party, whether Trump has real agency or is just a very big puppet, and why a man who hates losing is suddenly so calm about losing. Kevin thinks there is a bigger play. Plus the Air Force One story Kevin heard in an Estonian sauna house, the Swiss stranger at the Munich opera who apologized to the wrong American, and why Yana doesn’t trust Anthropic ahead of its IPO.Make your bets. Then listen. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit eavesdroplive.substack.com

Kevin and Yana had one job this week - to make an agenda. We failed miserablyKevin admitted there’s a to do list somewhere, but he doesn’t know where it is. Yana bravely volunteered to be the organized one for the day, which in practice meant having a few random thoughts. So we did what any responsible podcast would do. We hit record and trusted the chaos.This is what came out of Episode 4 of Eavesdrop.The Bitcoin soft fork that wanted to ban monkey JPEGsYana just got back from the Plan B conference in Lugano. Everyone there was still talking about the failed Bitcoin soft fork (BIP 110), which tried to limit how much data can go into a block. In plain words, some developers wanted memes and NFTs off the Bitcoin blockchain. We argued about whether it was a bad idea or just a badly sold one. Yana heard from plenty of people in Lugano who said they might have voted for it if someone had explained it properly. Kevin thinks the problem went deeper. We both agree that calling something spam because of its file size is about as scientific as judging a book by its page count.A market indicator BlackRock doesn’t know aboutKevin shared something no analyst will tell you. For years, you could tell whether Bitcoin was up or down by looking at Tone Vays’ haircut. The bowl cut marked peak bear market.Tone is bald now. The oracle is gone. We’re all trading blind.Bitcoin maximalists vs crypto maximalistsStablecoins, the GENIUS Act, and TradFi moving into crypto. Crypto maximalists see a bigger market. Bitcoin maximalists see dollar depository receipts wearing a hoodie. Kevin calls it dancing with the devil to get the capital you need so you never have to dance with the devil again.Yana brought a question back from the conference. If everyone knows your wallet holds 100 bitcoin, is that really so different from owning SpaceX shares? Does Bitcoin lose value when it loses privacy?Kevin’s answer includes the time he was the villain of the day on a stage in Amsterdam full of hardcore maximalists. It also includes one of our favorite lines of the episode: Theory is really easy when you have a lot of money.Is something about to break?Yana lived through the collapse of the Soviet Union, so she has trust issues with any institution that calls itself permanent. Kevin sees the US dollar as a case of mutually assured destruction. On air, we accidentally renamed it “mutually enjoyed destruction.” We’re keeping that.Substack, Instagram, and lost brain cellsWhy Substack is growing so fast?Meanwhile, Kevin recently opened Instagram for the first time. The algorithm showed him, in this order, 3 butts and a man kicking a dog. He scrolled for 4 seconds and felt dumber. There’s also a man at the airport who disappeared into TikTok and never came back, and a WALL-E reference that Yana completely missed because she grew up behind the Iron Curtain.AI made us faster. So why are we more anxious?Yana confesses she recently asked Claude to put her restorative habits in her calendar. Deep breath. Face massage. Ask someone for help. Kevin explains why AI productivity can feel like a treadmill that keeps speeding up, and admits he yells at his AI: “I said ONLY change this.”The parking lot ruleYana once worked at ArcelorMittal, and she still thinks about something Lakshmi Mittal said: you decide to buy a factory in 15 minutes, then spend 6 months arguing about the parking lot. Kevin has his own version: the 7-hour meeting about whether the water cooler goes on the 4th floor or the eighth. And the Netflix version, where you fall asleep holding the remote.We finish with luxury beliefs, theory vs reality, and why you still need idealists in the room, even if someone has to poke holes in their ideas afterwards.🎧 Listen to the full episode above. Then tell us in the comments: what’s the biggest decision you made in 15 minutes, and what’s the smallest thing you’ve argued about for months?If you like conversations that run longer than a hook, subscribe. We promise to make an agenda next time. (We won’t.) This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit eavesdroplive.substack.com

Welcome back to Eavesdrop, the show where the mic is on, and Kevin and I say things we probably shouldn’t.This time we brought a whole deck of conspiracy theories about money and power. Kevin was fine going in. He said he wasn’t sure he’d be fine coming out.We started strong. Kevin still remembers exactly where he was when Macron got slapped on a plane, the way other people remember the moon landing. Then he came up with his own cover story for when things get awkward. He’s a lizard person sent to slow down the missiles in Iran. He says it’s been going great.After that it got serious, sort of. Are all wars bankers’ wars? Kevin thinks Trump’s strategy is to ask for something completely ridiculous like Greenland, wait while everyone tries to figure out why he’s such a moron, and then walk away with what he actually wanted. He rates it “well played, if it was a board game.” I disagree, and I brought Professor Jiang theory that the Iran war isn’t meant to be won, it’s meant to last.I also dug up my own master’s thesis from 2003. In Finland. The topic was how governments use military force to fix their budget problems. Jeffrey Sacks inspired me back then, Apparently I’ve been in the conspiracy business for 23 years and didn’t know it.Some other highlights.Why is Bulgaria on the list and Saudi Arabia isn’t? Kevin answered in one word. Money.Europe just finished its 22nd sanctions package against Russia. Thank God, because the first 21 worked so well. Number 23 is already in the works.Kevin has thoughts on the EU bottle caps that won’t come off. He travels to other countries now, opens a bottle, and wonders what third world place doesn’t have this figured out yet.There’s the story of 4 Navy SEALs with ray guns that froze Maduro’s 200 guards in place and made them sick. Kevin knows it’s nonsense. He still felt patriotic for about half a second, and he’s a little embarrassed about it. His advice is to buy dollars, because nobody wants the ray gun guys showing up.I came up with my own conspiracy theory live on air, tech bros versus bankers in a fight over who gets to print money. Trademark pending.Then we asked whether democracy was a scam from the start. Kevin voted for a benevolent kingdom, or maybe letting a machine pick who’s in charge. He also thinks if there were an interspecies Olympics for messing things up, humans would take gold every 4 years.And we finished with “own nothing and be happy.” Our version is own debt and pretend to be happy. Kevin read that people in their 20s don’t want pets anymore, they want plants, because plants are easier. So now somebody is buying a ficus on a 6 month payment plan and it dies in week 6.Next time we might bring a Gen Z guest on, disguise their voice like on those old investigative TV shows, and argue with them for an hour.The mic is on. Come eavesdrop. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit eavesdroplive.substack.com

First things first. The show has a name now. It’s called Eavesdrop, and you can take that literally. Kevin and I talk the way we always do, someone leaves the mic on and you’re just listening in on a conversation you probably weren’t supposed to hear.Kevin and I finally did it. We’ve been ranting about the world to each other for a few months and decided it was time to embarrass ourselves in public.The plan was that Kevin takes the dark side and I take the light side. That lasted about 10 minutes. By the end I was the one predicting Hunger Games and begging him to say something nice.Kevin joined from what looked like a bunker and immediately complained he didn’t have a cat to stroke. Very Dr. Evil. Then he told us his grandmother bought a generator for Y2K because planes were going to fall out of the sky. They didn’t. Grandma kept the generator.We talked about the thing everyone is quietly doing now. Someone sends you an email written by AI, you ask AI to summarize it, then you ask AI to answer it. 2 grown adults, zero thoughts exchanged. Kevin admits he’s been part of this loop. I’m not saying I have.I also made a public confession. I’m addicted to online courses. If I sign up for one more, please call social services. In my defense, the last one taught me to do my tax declaration in thirty minutes, so that one stays.Halfway through, Kevin read a Trump tweet saying anyone who calls it “artificial intelligence” is an enemy of the state. So congratulations to us, we became enemies of the state on a live stream.Then it got properly unhinged. Kevin once went on stage at Bitcoin Amsterdam and told a room full of Bitcoiners that Bitcoin isn’t a layer one. He survived, but it was Amsterdam, so nobody really remembers. We came up with a new theory of who created Bitcoin (a government side project that lost its funding, so some guy finished it on his own). It was the first lab leak. And we reviewed Europe’s energy strategy and concluded we’re diversification maximalists. We diversified ourselves right out of Russia, China and the US. For good.The compliance people will enjoy the bit about why asking AI to polish your letter to the regulator might be the fastest way to confess everything you were trying to keep quiet.Does it end on a positive note? Kind of. Kevin’s take is that AI is like a drill. Hand it to the wrong person and he puts a hole in his head. Hand it to the right one and he builds a house. The mic is still on. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit eavesdroplive.substack.com

Kevin and Yana have a 1:1 every week. Somebody forgot to make it private. Again.This week started with both of us convinced it was Thursday. It was Tuesday. Kevin was proud he at least got the first letter right. Yana was ready to throw in the white towel by minute two. Things only got more dramatic from there.What you’ll overhear:Europe is on fire, and the elites have tickets. The French are rioting again, but this time Yana thinks it’s not theater. Meanwhile Macron is dancing at a Céline Dion concert. In fairness, the tickets were non-refundable. What was he supposed to do? The 4% tea tax. Americans once fought a revolution over 4% on tea. Europeans now pay 60% income tax plus 24% VAT and respond with “OK, cool.” Today’s version of revolution would be a Lipton logo with a line through it in your Instagram bio. Brave.Sanctions package number 67. This is the one that will finally break down the Russian economy. Or so they hope.Pareto was not a math guy. Turns out the 80/20 rule comes from a sociologist who thought 80% of people are followers. He didn’t say “NPCs”, but he meant it.Kevin vs. the condo board. 22 yes or no votes. 6 hours. 3 votes done. One neighbor’s cousin Marshall had feelings about parking. Kevin grabbed the mic. Nobody cares what Greta in 7B thinks, and if they say they do, they’re lying to your face.Why Yana doesn’t work with big banks: “By the time they decide to hire me, I already hate them.”The black coffee cup story. Kevin gives a friend advice. The friend ignores it, then follows it, then explains it back to Kevin as his own genius idea a month later. Every consultant alive just felt that.How to kill your darlings. When do you quit a project, and when are you giving up too soon? Fail fast, don’t marry the idea, and pivoting isn’t quitting. Also: two years, a €37 workshop, one Thanksgiving in Costa Rica, and €12,000 in three days.The stretch goal. Why we both do what we do: people should own their money, and no bank, regulator or passport office should get a vote.We were an hour and four minutes in before either of us noticed. Sorry to whoever had the next call.Your turn: what’s the hardest thing you ever killed? Or the thing you should have killed six months ago and still haven’t? Tell us in the comments. We’re eavesdropping. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit eavesdroplive.substack.com

Kevin and Yana have a 1:1 every week. Somebody forgot to make it private. Again.This week started with both of us convinced it was Thursday. It was Tuesday. Kevin was proud he at least got the first letter right. Yana was ready to throw in the white towel by minute two. Things only got more dramatic from there.What you’ll overhear:Europe is on fire, and the elites have tickets. The French are rioting again, but this time Yana thinks it’s not theater. Meanwhile Macron is dancing at a Céline Dion concert. In fairness, the tickets were non-refundable. What was he supposed to do? The 4% tea tax. Americans once fought a revolution over 4% on tea. Europeans now pay 60% income tax plus 24% VAT and respond with “OK, cool.” Today’s version of revolution would be a Lipton logo with a line through it in your Instagram bio. Brave.Sanctions package number 67. This is the one that will finally break down the Russian economy. Or so they hope.Pareto was not a math guy. Turns out the 80/20 rule comes from a sociologist who thought 80% of people are followers. He didn’t say “NPCs”, but he meant it.Kevin vs. the condo board. 22 yes or no votes. 6 hours. 3 votes done. One neighbor’s cousin Marshall had feelings about parking. Kevin grabbed the mic. Nobody cares what Greta in 7B thinks, and if they say they do, they’re lying to your face.Why Yana doesn’t work with big banks: “By the time they decide to hire me, I already hate them.”The black coffee cup story. Kevin gives a friend advice. The friend ignores it, then follows it, then explains it back to Kevin as his own genius idea a month later. Every consultant alive just felt that.How to kill your darlings. When do you quit a project, and when are you giving up too soon? Fail fast, don’t marry the idea, and pivoting isn’t quitting. Also: two years, a €37 workshop, one Thanksgiving in Costa Rica, and €12,000 in three days.The stretch goal. Why we both do what we do: people should own their money, and no bank, regulator or passport office should get a vote.We were an hour and four minutes in before either of us noticed. Sorry to whoever had the next call.Your turn: what’s the hardest thing you ever killed? Or the thing you should have killed six months ago and still haven’t? Tell us in the comments. We’re eavesdropping. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit eavesdroplive.substack.com

I'm excited to explore the psychology of second chances, why we're so skeptical when people change their minds, and if public opinion ever actually reflects personal beliefs. We'll discuss Mark Zuckerberg's apparent about-face on censorship, corporate flip-flops on diversity programs and the underlying forces behind those reversals. We'll also cover the concept of preference falsification and why people often say one thing publicly and believe something entirely different privately. Then we'll get into meme coins, the risks of hype-driven investing and why some tokens are just digital gambling dressed up as innovation. Finally we'll talk about risk assessment, and I'll share a weird tidbit about how martial arts training may have influenced some of the biggest business leaders today. If you found value in this episode, I would really appreciate it if you could leave a review! My mission is to help and support as many FinTech startups as possible, and when you leave a positive review, more people can find this podcast and help their companies! If you are on Apple, just click here to review, select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" and tell me what your favorite part of the podcast is.   Today's episode: [00:57] Today I'm going to talk about second chances and why I'm very skeptical about giving people chances. [01:24] Recently, a lot of people have been changing their minds. Mark Zuckerberg has changed his mind on censorship. [02:50] For many people, public opinion and private opinion are not the same. [04:14] Social change happens when other people see people saying their private opinion out loud. Preference falsification is where people might falsify their public opinion for the sake of being accepted. [06:01] Dana White was having a conversation with Tucker Carlson about how he was invited to be a board member for Facebook. [07:31] He was invited to be a countering voice and will share his opinion if he feels the compass is off. [10:00] People rarely change and usually go back to their true self. [11:08] A meme coin launched by an African country to collect funds to support their government initiatives.  After people bought it the price dropped close to 100x. [12:48] A meme coin is like a token that represents an initiative that clearly states what they're going to do with the funds. A classic example of this is Dogecoin. [14:27] They may not necessarily be illegal, but there's a lot of incentive to manipulate it. [15:42] Risk and what it means to be skeptical or risk averse. Less is more when it comes to risk assessment. Identify the risk and how you're going to address them. [18:51] Seeing risk everywhere and trying to disclose everything that could go wrong is not necessarily being responsible.   Show links: Join my free workshop focused on building a successful year here! Interested in FinTech compliance? - consider investing in the FinTech Compliance Self-Starter Package! I would love to invite you to sign up for my newsletter. If you are interested, please click here. Follow My Vlog on LinkedIn Private Truths, Public Lies: The Social Consequences of Preference Falsification How Self-Censorship Works: Preference Falsification Explained | Marc Andreessen And Lex Fridman Dana White: Joining the Board at Meta, the Bryce Mitchell Controversy, and His Friendship With Trump This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit eavesdroplive.substack.com

I'm excited to dive into the Deepseek hype, the Chinese AI startup that claims to have a model as good as ChatGPT for a fraction of the cost. We'll talk about what that means for the future of AI, national AI models and censorship, and why every country will soon have its own "filtered" version. Then we'll switch gears to Piers Morgan and Tucker Carlson's fascinating exchange, unpacking the art of debate and intellectual sparring. We'll also look at Saudi Arabia's plan to reshape sports by buying up global superstars and creating role models for future generations. And for those who love power and influence, I have a must-listen for you: Candace Owens' latest series on Emmanuel Macron. If you found value in this episode, I would really appreciate it if you could leave a review! My mission is to help and support as many FinTech startups as possible, and when you leave a positive review, more people can find this podcast and help their companies! If you are on Apple, just click here to review, select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" and tell me what your favorite part of the podcast is.   Today's episode: [00:41] Let's talk about the most important conversations that happened over the last 7 days. [01:02] Deepseek is a Chinese startup that developed an AI model.  [02:07] The stock market goes up and down. Is deepseek a big deal? [03:03] If something is prohibited, greedy players always find a way to make a profit out of it. [04:02] New models being introduced is expected. The deepseek model also has censorship. [05:05] It might end up where every country or region will have their own AI model with biased suggestions based on their priorities. [06:02] I talk about the main reason why aliens should exist. Naive humans can't be it. [07:02] Tucker Carlson's and Piers Morgan's conversation in Riyadh. They pressed each other using sophisticated challenges. It was an amazing language battle. [08:01] People should approach disagreements in this way. [09:11] Another great conversation that Piers Morgan had was with a Saudi Prince. It was about how sports events shouldn't have anything to do with politics. [10:56] The Saudis are trying to attract athletic role models for the future of their children. [12:54] Back to conspiracy corners. I love Candice Owens. She can be controversial with some of her deep dives.  [13:48] Her next series about the history of Emmanuel Macron and his wife is super fascinating.   Show links: Join my free workshop focused on building a successful year here! Interested in FinTech compliance? - consider investing in the FinTech Compliance Self-Starter Package! I would love to invite you to sign up for my newsletter. If you are interested, please click here. deepseek Tucker & Piers Morgan Debate Foreign Aid, Hate Speech, NATO, Gun Control, & Is Zelensky a Dictator? Saudi Sports Minister Prince Abdulaziz on Ronaldo, Salah, Trump & World Cup Becoming Brigitte: Gaslighting The Public | Ep 1   This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit eavesdroplive.substack.com

I'm excited to share news about a new series from Darryl Cooper, host of the Martyr Made Podcast. His latest series is all about World War II, told from the perspective of ordinary Germans. It's a fascinating look at how ideologies take hold and change societies. We'll use that as a springboard to talk about how we receive and accept compliments, then dive into the software industrial complex and how it creates unnecessary dependencies. Finally we'll look at how AI is going to simplify those systems and change industries. It's a wild ride through history, human behavior and innovation. If you found value in this episode, I would really appreciate it if you could leave a review! My mission is to help and support as many FinTech startups as possible, and when you leave a positive review, more people can find this podcast and help their companies! If you are on Apple, just click here to review, select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" and tell me what your favorite part of the podcast is. Today's episode: [00:40] Podcaster Darryl Cooper is back with a new series on World War II from the perspective of ordinary Germans.  [01:30] Darryl makes very well researched long-form podcasts on historical topics.  [02:50] It's important to understand the nuance and what happens when ideology and narrative can dominate a nation and drive certain behaviors. [03:36] He never takes sides and does extensive research with thousands of sources. [04:40] I like the idea of why this conversation is important. [06:28] I share a new perspective on receiving compliments.  [08:20] How women sometimes try to minimize their compliments. [09:01] How the software industrial complex has been creating unnecessary jobs within many industries and how AI is going to put these software specific rules out of business. This was a recent topic on the All-In Podcast. [09:37] These big companies have created software that is very complex to operate and requires a specialist.  [10:57] The main users of these tools and software were people who graduated from MBA schools. People who could analyze and collate data were necessary. [13:13] If something can be done with AI, we won't need these people with MBAs to compile all of the data. [14:40] Tool providers have been trying to make their tools stickier and harder to replace. [15:19] People with training and certifications in these complex tools would almost become like a free sales force for the product. Show links: Join my free workshop focused on building a successful year here! Interested in FinTech compliance? - consider investing in the FinTech Compliance Self-Starter Package! I would love to invite you to sign up for my newsletter. If you are interested, please click here. The Martyr Made Podcast - Darryl Cooper All-In Podcast This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit eavesdroplive.substack.com

If you've ever wondered how disruption leads to new beginnings, this episode is for you. I'm diving into the cycles of history, from tearing down the old to building the new and how understanding those patterns can give you hope. We'll look at The Fourth Turning Theory, the evolution of institutions and why change is a superpower for growth. Along the way I'll share personal stories, risk and resilience insights and even a bit of Greek mythology to tie it all together. Get ready to see the bigger picture and learn how to navigate the "winter" we're in and prepare for the "spring" ahead. If you found value in this episode, I would really appreciate it if you could leave a review! My mission is to help and support as many FinTech startups as possible, and when you leave a positive review, more people can find this podcast and help their companies! If you are on Apple, just click here to review, select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" and tell me what your favorite part of the podcast is.   Today's episode: [01:48] History goes through cycles. Every cycle repeats in about 80 to 100 years. These cycles consist of four phases: spring, summer, fall, and winter. Currently, we are in winter. [02:53] Things we can expect as this cycle continues. We can expect further dismantling and disruption of old institutions and old forms of control over territory. [03:35] History doesn't like inefficiencies and friction. [04:32] We can also expect changes in forms of money. [05:14] I like the idea of being close to something new and a fresh start. [07:00] Last week, I was optimistic after Mark Zuckerberg made a speech admitting that Facebook, Meta, and WhatsApp were censoring posts. These companies are now going to allow more free content. [08:32] He probably senses this is going to be the new norm. [09:59] I've been following Danielle Paige. She recently moved from Florida to Los Angeles, and her house burned down.  [10:38] She had just moved and invested in this new home. [12:15] She's lost so much, but she still has a personal brand, followers, and tremendous resiliency. She has the resources to make a lot of money. [14:17] When things happen, it feels like we've lost a lot but in reality our potential still isn't impacted. [15:34] I was also listening to the PBD Podcast and a former CIA agent was the guest. He was talking about how we take less risks as individuals and more as a group. [17:43] I share a conversation I had with my youngest about Greek mythology and resonating with our favorite characters.   Show links: Join my free workshop focused on building a successful year here! Interested in FinTech compliance? - consider investing in the FinTech Compliance Self-Starter Package! I would love to invite you to sign up for my newsletter. If you are interested, please click here. The Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy - What the Cycles of History Tell Us About America's Next Rendezvous with Destiny Danielle Paige   This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit eavesdroplive.substack.com