“In some sense, the fundamental question we need to answer as a species about whether this episode is the season finale or the series finale of our species is whether we can escape game theory. Do we do the thing that game theory says? And what is game theory? It's sort of like the ability to know what is the strategically right move.”
StarTalk Radio · Ideas & Essays · October 2026
Context
Chuck Nice has just asked how Aza squares building guardrails on AI with the risk that other countries won't, leaving a rival ahead economically and militarily. Aza answers that the core question is whether people can escape the strategic logic of a race.
Transcript
Aza, on your resume is the dubious invention of the infinite scroll, where we all got caught up
…on, but does that mean other countries will as well? And if they don't, that puts us at an economic and ultimately perhaps a military disadvantage to them if they let AI completely run ahead of us. So where does your thinking and your actions, how do they land in the middle of this conundrum?
Yeah. In some sense, the fundamental question we need to answer as a species about whether we will, whether this episode is the season finale or the series finale of our species is whether we can escape game theory. Do we do the thing that game theory says? And what is game theory? It's sort of like the ability to know what is the strategically right move. In the face of
someone else who's also playing that same game.
Exactly. That's exactly right. So you're saying it exactly right. Like if I don't develop like the most powerful AI and my adversary does and they can cyber hack me or if I'm hitting fast forward more on technological progress, I'm making new weapons or my GDP is out competing yours, then you will…
theory also includes the possibility that it may be that if we cooperate with our fellow players, everyone is in a better place. That's right. That's a possible solution in some configurations of game theory.
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