The Next Big Idea Daily

Kevin Roose spent years inside the biggest AI labs for The AGI Chronicles, and what he found is stranger than the headlines: the people most afraid of artificial intelligence are the ones building it, and the finish line keeps moving. Then, Gary Rivlin shares ideas from AI Valley, a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter's account of how the scramble to cash in on AI handed the advantage to the tech giants and pushed safety to a distant second.

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People do puzzling things. We buy things to impress strangers, give to charities without checking whether they work, and dig in during negotiations even when a deal would help everyone. Game theory suggests there's a logic underneath all of it. In their 2022 book, Hidden Games, Moshe Hoffman and Erez Yoeli show how hidden incentives shape everything from fashion to altruism. Then Yale professor Barry Nalebuff's 2022 book, Split the Pie, takes that thinking to the negotiating table and asks whether we've been arguing over the wrong number all along. Two books about the games we play, whether we know it or not.

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It’s easy to feel optimistic when everything is going according to plan. But what happens when the plan falls apart—or the challenge lasts longer than expected?

Positive psychology researcher Michelle Gielan says optimism isn’t just a feeling we either have or don’t. In Resilient Optimism: The Science of Sustaining a Positive Mindset in Tough Times, she explores how we can practice it, even when circumstances are difficult.

Then anthropologist and endurance athlete Michael Crawley shares ideas from To the Limit: The Meaning of Endurance from Mexico to the Himalayas, exploring what different cultures can teach us about why we push ourselves—and how enduring together can bring us closer.

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Before you make plans for the future, how often do you stop to consider the life you’ve already lived? In Life in Perspective, productivity expert Tiago Forte makes the case for an annual review that starts with looking back—not judging yourself or rushing into resolutions.

Then, Life Worth Living (2023), by Miroslav Volf, Matthew Croasmun, and Ryan McAnnally-Linz, takes the question a step further: Are the things we’re chasing actually worth wanting? Together, the books offer a chance to pause, reflect, and think more carefully about what matters most. ⁠⁠ ⁠⁠

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Quince — Give the gift of quality this holiday season. Go to quince.com/nbid to get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns.

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Becoming a parent changes your life—but what happens to your brain? Neuroscientist Susana Carmona explores the remarkable transformations of pregnancy and parenthood in A Mother’s Brain: The New Science of the Neuro-Maternal Revolution, and explains why “mommy brain” isn’t quite what we think.

Then, psychiatrist Daniel Amen and parenting expert Charles Fay turn to the brains of children—and the adults raising them. In Raising Mentally Strong Kids, they share ideas for building connection, setting loving limits, and helping kids learn from their mistakes. ⁠⁠ ⁠⁠

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