Episodes

Genome editing holds the potential to be a transformative new therapy, and the pace of progress is truly breathtaking.

In the last 20 years or so, many new cancer treatments have emerged that provide greater precision and targeting of cancer cells. Today, we have a better understanding of the genetic components of cancer. Through novel technology and cutting-edge science, we’re now able to understand how the accumulation of molecular alterations in the genome leads to the coding of proteins that can promote uncontrolled cell division. New treatments are emerging at the genetic and molecular level, along with novel approaches to targeting the new microenvironment that cancers create. On this episode of Theory and Practice, we explore the future of cancer medicine, and there’s no better leader to turn to for that discussion than Dr. Jay Bradner. Since 2016, he’s been president of the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, where he leads the discovery and development of life-changing therapies to benefit patients. Theory and Practice is a presentation of GV and Google AI. Th…

This week we speak with Professor David Baker about the enormous scope for making new proteins and how that translates into practical uses to tackle diseases, such as Covid-19.

Psychiatry is changing and will be unrecognizable in the next 10-20 years, given our new understanding about the role of brain circuits in the generation of emotions and behavior. This week we talk to Professor Karl Deisseroth, D.H. Chen Professor of Bioengineering and of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

What is a thought? Some may think that question is quite abstract, but it has huge implications for science and computer design.

For millennia, humans have believed that aging is inevitable. Yet thirty years ago, the work of Professor Cynthia Kenyon and her colleagues showed that a single gene mutation in a worm doubled its lifespan and postponed the diseases of aging. Recent work on the naked mole rat, a mammal like us, has shown that risk of death need not increase with age. In the final episode of this season of Theory and Practice, we explore the genetic, cellular, and molecular basis of aging with Professor Kenyon and ask what harnessing this knowledge means for the future of healthcare. Theory and Practice is a presentation of GV and Google AI. This season we'll dive deep into the languages of life through explorations of the "dark genome", genome editing, protein folding, the future of aging, and more. Hosted by Anthony Philippakis (Venture Partner at GV) and Alex Wiltschko (Staff Research Scientist with Google AI), Theory and Practice opens the doors to the cutting edge of biology and …

Dr. Greg Corrado, Distinguished Scientist and Head of Health AI at Google Health, explains how to responsibly introduce AI into healthcare.

How do we empower the next generation of LLMs with greater deduction skills and efficiency? We explore a future where introspection is added to LLMs, and Dr. Cui gives broader context to our current thinking about AI’s vast potential.

In episode 3, we explore how humans will control computers in the future with Dr. Thomas Reardon. Dr. Reardon founded CTRL-Labs and is an early pioneer in exploring the relationship between humans and machines. Now at Meta’s Reality Labs, Dr. Reardon continues his work on non-invasive neural interfaces that detect activity in the human nervous system.

For episode 4, we turn to surgical robots with the help of Dr. Catherine Mohr, President of the Intuitive Foundation, who played an integral role in developing the DaVinci surgical robot system.

In episode 5, we explore how machine learning helped create a map of odor and how that technology will train computers to smell. Anthony Philippakis visits Dr. Alex Wiltschko’s lab at Osmo, where scientists are dedicated to digitizing our sense of smell.

In this episode, we’re joined by James DiCarlo, the Peter de Florez Professor of Neuroscience at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Director of the MIT Quest for Intelligence. Trained in biomedical engineering and medicine, Professor DiCarlo brings a technical mindset to understanding the machine-like processes that occur in human brains. His focus is on the machinery that enables us to see.

Our guest for Episode 7 is Dr. Clément Farabet, VP of Research at Google DeepMind. For the past 15 years, Dr. Farabet’s work has been guided by a central mission: figuring out how to build AI systems that can learn on their own — and ultimately redefine how we write software. We discuss the conundrum in the Chinese Room Argument to explore whether computers can achieve artificial general intelligence.

In the final episode, we reflect on investing in artificial intelligence's future with the leader of GV’s Digital Investing Team, Dave Munichiello, who has a long-standing history with AI and robotics.