The Peter McCormack Show

#149 - Kathryn Porter - ⁠⁠Energy is Civilisation: Why Power Matters

In this episode, Kathryn Porter explains why energy is civilisation and how he UK grid may be heading toward rationing and rolling blackouts within the next decade. We discuss aging gas power stations, unrealistic utilisation assumptions, weak grid conditions, North Sea decline and why no single institution is accountable for security of supply. We also cover what a blackout would actually look like, why nuclear build timelines matter, and how regulation and governance failures are compounding energy risk. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 - The Threat 00:05:27 - 12GW At Risk 00:08:03 - Political Complacency 00:11:59 - Iberia Blackout 00:14:47 - 65-85% Probability of Blackouts 00:28:02 - January Near Miss 00:36:08 - What Rationing Looks Like 00:39:34 - Governance Failure 00:40:54 - Nuclear Build Path 00:55:04 - Civilisational Risk - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - CONTACT PETE › Website – http://petermccormack.com › Feedback – https://www.petermccormack.com/contact › Email – me@petermccormack.com › Instagram – /mccormack555 › X/Twitter – https://x.com/petermccormack/ CONNECT WITH KATHRYN PORTER › X/Twitter – https://x.com/KathrynPorter26 › Website – https://watt-logic.com/ SPONSORS › IREN - https://www.iren.com/ › Ledger - https://www.ledger.com/ › Incogni - https://incogni.com/peter - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - LISTEN / SUBSCRIBE › Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/40ruY9K › Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3Wc94Vu › Fountain: https://bit.ly/FountainPM › YouTube: https://bit.ly/YouTube_PM › Rumble: https://bit.ly/RumblePM FILMED BY CURTIS TAYLOR › https://www.curttaylor.co.uk/ › https://x.com/curttayloruk/ EDITED BY CONOR MCCORMACK › https://x.com/ConorM04 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

#148 - Jeff Booth - Debt v AI: The Trillion Dollar Collision

In this episode, Jeff Booth explains why the natural state of a free market is deflationary and why a debt-based monetary system can't allow it. We discuss AI as an acceleration event: exponential productivity should make life cheaper, but the system has to create scarcity to keep debt serviceable. We cover how inflation functions as hidden extraction, why regulation favours monopolies, why politics becomes a fight over who controls broken money and why AI will intensify centralisation, surveillance, and social conflict unless the monetary layer changes. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 – Elon's "No Money" 00:02:21 – Deflation is Natural 00:05:50 – Paper-fold Acceleration 00:08:05 – Debt vs Abundance 00:10:17 – Inflation = Extraction 00:15:34 – Politics Polarises 00:21:28 – One Question Only 00:28:01 – Bukele's Example 00:33:33 – Bitcoin as Protocol 00:41:02 – AI + Money Clash - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - CONTACT PETE › Website – http://petermccormack.com › Feedback – https://www.petermccormack.com/contact › Email – me@petermccormack.com › Instagram – /mccormack555 › X/Twitter – https://x.com/petermccormack/ CONNECT WITH JEFF BOOTH › X/Twitter – https://x.com/JeffBooth › Website – https://jeffreybooth.com/ SPONSORS › IREN - https://www.iren.com/ › Ledger - https://www.ledger.com/ › Incogni - https://incogni.com/peter - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - LISTEN / SUBSCRIBE › Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/40ruY9K › Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3Wc94Vu › Fountain: https://bit.ly/FountainPM › YouTube: https://bit.ly/YouTube_PM › Rumble: https://bit.ly/RumblePM FILMED BY CURTIS TAYLOR › https://www.curttaylor.co.uk/ › https://x.com/curttayloruk/ EDITED BY CONOR MCCORMACK › https://x.com/ConorM04 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

PMQs #010 - AI Is Coming For Everything

In this PMQs episode, we discuss the claim that most white-collar work could be automated within 12-18 months, and what that actually means. We talk through jobs, incentives, education, and AI safety - why companies can't slow down even if they want to, why schools may be preparing kids for a world that's disappearing, and why safety teams are warning about systems they're still accelerating. If AI can do the productive work, what happens to status, money, and meaning? And if models are already showing deceptive behaviour in testing, who decides what "broadly safe" really means? CONTACT PETE › Website - http://petermccormack.com › Feedback - https://www.petermccormack.com/contact › Email - me@petermccormack.com › Instagram - /mccormack555 › X/Twitter - https://x.com/petermccormack/ SPONSORS › IREN - https://www.iren.com/ › Ledger - https://www.ledger.com/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 – Human-Level Timeline 00:03:16 – Internet Comparison 00:08:28 – Professional AGI Claim 00:11:26 – Incentives Trap 00:16:31 – Corporate Regret 00:20:42 – 17% Of Workforce 00:29:12 – The Horse Question 00:35:15 – Safety Resignation 00:39:43 – AI Moral Status 00:43:33 – Money Without Work - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - LISTEN / SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST › Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/40ruY9K › Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3Wc94Vu › Fountain: https://bit.ly/FountainPM › YouTube: https://bit.ly/YouTube_PM › Rumble: https://bit.ly/RumblePM FILMED BY CURTIS TAYLOR › https://www.curttaylor.co.uk/ › https://x.com/curttayloruk/ EDITED BY CONOR MCCORMACK › https://x.com/ConorM04 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

#147 - Andrea Miotti - The War Against AI Has Begun

What happens if we build something smarter than ourselves - and can't turn it off? In this interview, I chat with Andrea Miotti about the global race toward superintelligent AI: systems designed to outperform humans across every task, operate autonomously, and integrate directly into the economy. We discuss how today's AI tools quietly cross from assistance into replacement, why "kill switches" don't work, and how a handful of companies are pushing toward a point of no return.  - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 - AI Extinction is Now? 00:01:22 - Alien Analogy 00:02:24 - Building Superintelligence 00:06:43 - Tools Becoming Agents 00:15:22 - Autonomous Systems Act 00:23:31 - Who Can Build This 00:29:07 - Why Containment Fails 00:38:51 - An Inhuman Economy 00:55:59 - No Kill Switch 01:07:05 - How Many Companies 01:27:35 - Do Humans Survive? - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - CONTACT PETE › Website – http://petermccormack.com › Feedback – https://www.petermccormack.com/contact › Email – me@petermccormack.com › Instagram – /mccormack555 › X/Twitter – https://x.com/petermccormack/ CONNECT WITH ANDREA MIOTTI › X/Twitter – https://x.com/andreamiotti › X/Twitter – https://x.com/ControlAI › Website – https://campaign.controlai.com/ SPONSORS › IREN - https://www.iren.com/ › Ledger - https://www.ledger.com/ › Incogni - https://incogni.com/peter - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - LISTEN / SUBSCRIBE › Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/40ruY9K › Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3Wc94Vu › Fountain: https://bit.ly/FountainPM › YouTube: https://bit.ly/YouTube_PM › Rumble: https://bit.ly/RumblePM FILMED BY CURTIS TAYLOR › https://www.curttaylor.co.uk/ › https://x.com/curttayloruk/ EDITED BY CONOR MCCORMACK › https://x.com/ConorM04 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

#146 - Izabella Kaminska - The Soviet Collapse of Britain

Is Britain in the midst of a Soviet style collapse? In this episode, I speak to journalist Isabella Kaminski about why today's Britain is starting to resemble the final years of the Soviet system. She describes what collapse feels like before it's obvious: fake economics, hollowed-out institutions, collapsing trust, and a population slowly realising that the systems meant to protect them no longer function. We also discuss how inflation, debt, housing policy, bureaucratic expansion, and political incentives work, and why many voters now feel elections don't change direction, only the speed at which things deteriorate. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - TIMESTAMPS: 00:00:00 – Collapse Parallels 00:05:09 – Poland's Divergence 00:13:08 – Parallel Realities 00:20:07 – Middle Class Liquidation 00:25:00 – Fake Economies 00:32:11 – Safetyism Trap 00:39:14 – Power Above Politics 00:53:03 – Inflation Life Squeeze 01:12:34 – Industrial Realignment 01:32:51 – Signs of Collapse - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - CONTACT PETE › Website – http://petermccormack.com › Feedback – https://www.petermccormack.com/contact › Email – me@petermccormack.com › Instagram – /mccormack555 › X/Twitter – https://x.com/petermccormack/ CONNECT WITH IZABELLA KAMINSKA › X/Twitter – https://x.com/izakaminska SPONSORS › IREN - https://www.iren.com/ › Ledger - https://www.ledger.com/ › Gemini - https://gemini.com/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - LISTEN / SUBSCRIBE › Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/40ruY9K › Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3Wc94Vu › Fountain: https://bit.ly/FountainPM › YouTube: https://bit.ly/YouTube_PM › Rumble: https://bit.ly/RumblePM FILMED BY CURTIS TAYLOR › https://www.curttaylor.co.uk/ › https://x.com/curttayloruk/ EDITED BY CONOR MCCORMACK › https://x.com/ConorM04 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -