Cosmic Intelligence
by Chad Woodford
Latest episode
Is the Future of AI In Bhutan?
Is the Future of AI In Bhutan?
About this podcast
Welcome to Cosmic Intelligence (formerly Spiritual But Not Ridiculous), a podcast that explores philosophy (Western and Vedic), consciousness, cosmology, spirituality, and technologies in the broadest sense—technologies of the sacred, of transformation, and of the mundane. As we enter this age of artificial intelligence (AI), we focus in particular on AI and its implications for humanity, questions of consciousness, AI safety and alignment, and what it means to be human in the 21st century, as well as its impact on our shared worldview. Since worldviews create worlds we will always keep one eye on our shifting worldview, hoping to encourage it along from materialism to idealism.
In terms of consciousness and spirituality, we also explore spiritual practices and other ways to expand consciousness, the importance of feeling our feelings, how to cultivate compassion and empathy, find balance, and lean into fear as a practice. Sometimes we have guests.
We approach all subjects from a grounded and discerning perspective.
Your host is Chad Jayadev Woodford, a philosopher, cosmologist, master yoga teacher, Vedic astrologer, lawyer, and technologist.
Episodes
The newest 20 of 23 episodes
- Is the Future of AI In Bhutan? · 20 min · Season 4 Episode 5I’m in Bhutan this week with a group of experienced, wise, and diverse innovators for a collaborative, week-long listening and brainstorming engagement with Bhutanese leadership…
- The Better AI Gets, the Further We Seem from AGI · 25 min · Season 4 Episode 4Let's take a grounded look at the state of the AI industry in early 2026 and ask whether we’re actually any closer to artificial general intelligence (AGI) or superintelligence…
- AI Empires and the Soul Sickness of Silicon Valley · 33 min · Season 4 Episode 3Why is Mark Zuckerberg so obsessed with the Roman Empire? Why is Peter Thiel so obsessed with the Antichrist? Why does Sam Altman want $7 trillion dollars for an uncharted course…
- AI, Magical Thinking, and the Machine Metaphor with Matt Segall · 1 h 6 min · Season 4 Episode 2In this conversation, philosopher Matt Segall and I address the role of philosophy in contemporary culture, emphasizing the need for discernment amidst ideological ferment. We…
- Apollonian Intelligence: Why Do Tech Bros Have the Worst Ideas? · 23 min · Season 4 Episode 1Peter Thiel is speaking this month in San Francisco about the antichrist. Nicole Shanahan, ex-wife of Google co-founder Sergey Brin and former vice-presidential running mate of…
- Will Artificial Intelligence Make Us More or Less Wise? · 29 min · Season 3 Episode 8In this episode I explore the complex relationship between artificial intelligence (AI) and wisdom, particularly focusing on discernment. I argue that while AI can hinder…
- Zombies, Transhumanists, and the Worldview Crisis · 47 min · Season 3 Episode 7Continuing our deep dive into what it means to be human in the age of AI, and inspired by the physicalist yet transcendent worldviews of the transhumanists, in this episode I…
- What Psychedelic States of Consciousness Tell Us about AI · 32 min · Season 3 Episode 6The irony of the application of the word “hallucination” to LLMs making mistakes is that they are completely incapable of having psychedelic experiences. Why does that matter? In…
- Impediments to Creating Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) · 52 min · Season 3 Episode 5Artificial general intelligence, or superintelligence, is not right around the corner like AI companies want you to believe, and that's because intelligence is really hard. Major…
- Looking Through the AI Hype into a More Human Future · 13 min · Season 3 Episode 4Long time no talk! I just finished my masters in philosophy, cosmology and consciousness, which didn’t leave me much time for producing this podcast in the past nine months. But…
- Hit of Happines: The Philosophy of Artificial Intelligence with Brian Dubow · 1 h 7 min · Season 3 Episode 3This week we're sharing an episode of a podcast called Hit of Happiness, where Chad spoke to Brian Dubow about artificial intelligence and consciousness, among many other things…
- Unraveling the Mysteries of Quantum Consciousness and AI · 22 min · Season 3 Episode 2In this episode, Chad explores a scientific theory of consciousness first put forth by Nobel Laureate Roger Penrose and Dr. Stuart Hameroff in the 1990s called quantum…
- What It Means To Be Human In The Age of AI: A New Beginning · 23 min · Season 3 Episode 1Chad is relaunching his podcast with a new name and a broader focus! Starting this week on this same feed, the show will be called Cosmic Intelligence and explore fundamental…
- Resting Deeply In the Divine with Hilary Jackendoff · 1 h 5 min · Season 2 Episode 2This week I talk to Hilary Jackendoff, a yoga nidra and meditation teacher and trainer, and Human Design coach. She’s also a powerful, heart-centered woman. To me, Hilary is the…
- How To Be Spiritual But Not Ridiculous · 1 h 7 min · Season 2 Episode 1This week I discuss discernment: What it is, why it’s important, how it can prevent ridiculousness, why that matters, and how to increase our discernment. As part of this…
- Transforming Wellness with Kerri Kelly · 1 h 37 min · Season 1 Episode 9This week I talked to Kerri Kelly, the founder of CTZNWELL, a movement that is democratizing wellbeing for all. A descendant of generations of firemen and first responders, Kerri…
- Embodiment, Wildness & Magic with Schuyler Brown · 1 h 24 min · Season 1 Episode 7In this episode I talk to Schuyler Brown, a futurist, facilitator, coach, teacher of embodiment and meditation, and a writer. You can find her at artofemergence.com and her…
- Sacred Plants & Yoga: A Love Story · 49 min · Season 1 Episode 6In this episode, we approach plant medicine from a yogic perspective. And we explore how yoga and sacred plant medicine are complementary practices with a long-standing symbiotic…
- Stop Playing It Safe with Adam Schomer · 1 h 15 min · Season 1 Episode 5My guest this week is Adam Schomer, a documentary film and television director, writer, and producer, and the president of i2i Productions. Adam is probably most known for the…
- On Becoming More Impactful With Spirituality · 57 min · Season 1 Episode 4Inspired by friends, family, and people like Daniel Pinchbeck, who have been so critical of spirituality, I mount a full-throated defense of spirituality, first acknowledging the…
