Why do we use slang?

2025-12-05

The Labour party stormed to victory in last year’s UK general election, following a long period in the political wilderness, but their popularity has collapsed since they took office. Like their European counterparts, they are facing pressure from the left and right. Our editor-in-chief Zanny Minton Beddoes sat down with Keir Starmer, the prime minister, to discuss his plans to address the country’s problems and what he makes of the rise of the insurgent Reform UK party.

Watch the full interview to hear how he hopes to meet the moment.

00:00 The fate of centrist politics
00:50 Reform UK’s policies
04:40 Britain’s relationship with the European Union
07:24 How Keir Starmer would sum up his politics on a bumper sticker

Watch the full interview:

2025-12-03

India is taking a different path on AI. It is embedding AI models built by Indian universities in the government tech stack.

On the latest episode of Inside Tech, Tom Standage and Alex Hern explain how India’s approach works and why it stands out globally.

00:00 – Why India’s AI strategy stands out
01:12 – Why language is important
03:05 – What India’s experiment means for global AI

Watch the full show: https://econ.st/4iyEJu7

How can a middle power compete in AI: https://econ.st/3Y5X48o

India has a unique opportunity to lead in AI: https://econ.st/4pa1ZBf

Sign up to the Insider newsletter: https://econ.st/4nOyzIb

2025-11-26

There is no love lost between Donald Trump and John Bolton, his former national security adviser. Mr Bolton made a dramatic exit from the first Trump administration after months of tension. Since then he has been a fierce critic of the president’s character and competence. He has also been indicted for transmitting and storing classified information—which he denies. Mr Bolton joins David Rennie, our geopolitics editor, to dissect Mr Trump’s worldview, evaluate his America-first foreign policy and consider the future of American power.

00:00 – Is Donald Trump on a “downhill slope”?
02:19 – What Trump could do as a lame-duck president
03:29 – Has Trump damaged America’s institutions irreparably?
05:21 – The long-term impact of ‘America-First’ foreign policy

Watch the full interview:

2025-11-22

Will transplanting animal organs into humans become normal? Emilie Steinmark, our Science correspondent and Alok Jha, host of Babbage podcast, discuss the logic behind transplanting genetically-modified pig organs into humans and if this might help resolve the global organ-donor shortage.

00:00 – Why is xenotransplantation interesting again in 2025?
00:12 – Why do scientists use pigs for organ transplants?
01:05 – What risks come from using organs from animals?
02:10 – How do you prepare a pig organ for a human transplant?
03:39 – How do scientists edit pig genes to reduce rejection?
06:03 – Will pig-to-human organ transplants become normal in the future?

Links:
Listen to the full episode: https://econ.st/3X9oIkA
How pig-organ transplants might soon save lives: