DeepSummary
In this podcast episode, Tim Urban, the writer and co-founder of Wait But Why, discusses the founding and scaling of his popular long-form blog covering various topics from AI to psychology. He shares his motivation for pursuing Wait But Why full-time after previously running a tutoring business, and his process for selecting intriguing topics to research and write about in depth.
Urban delves into his research and writing processes, including how he breaks down complex subjects into engaging narratives and visuals. He also touches on strategies for overcoming writer's block and maintaining productivity. The discussion explores the distribution channels and revenue streams that enabled Wait But Why's growth to over 600,000 subscribers.
Additionally, the conversation revisits Urban's influential 2015 post on AI, reflecting on what he got right and what has changed with recent AI advancements like ChatGPT. Urban shares his mix of optimism and concern about the future impact of advanced AI on society and civilization.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- Tim Urban initially pursued Wait But Why full-time after feeling constrained by his previous tutoring business, driven by a desire for creative freedom.
- Urban follows a rigorous research process to deeply understand complex topics before distilling them into engaging narratives for a general audience.
- Establishing good writing habits and mechanisms to overcome procrastination have been key challenges Urban has grappled with over Wait But Why's journey.
- While building a large email list and exploring different revenue streams like merchandise, Urban has remained cautious about diluting Wait But Why's core focus.
- Urban's influential 2015 post anticipated many of the current discussions around advanced AI's societal impact, though recent breakthroughs have reshaped his timeline.
- Urban is optimistic about AI's potential to solve major challenges like aging and disease, but deeply concerned about risks of societal destabilization if not handled carefully.
- For creatives, Urban emphasizes the importance of pursuing authentic passion projects rather than chasing shallow attention and popularity.
- Looking ahead, Urban hopes to continue exploring his curiosities through Wait But Why while potentially expanding into new content mediums like video and audio.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “If you don't have a stable society, none of this matters.“ by Tim Urban
- “I'm incredibly optimistic about what could happen with health and human lifespan and things that have stressed me out, like the problems we currently have. I feel very optimistic about the problem is that the same thing that makes me feel optimistic about those, which is AI also makes me wonder whether the negatives of that thing are going to completely overwhelm the positives.“ by Tim Urban
- “If I had any inkling that AI might steal my job within, like, two years, I would have guessed like, 20. And that's one of a hundred different things that I've been shocked about with AI in the last few months.“ by Tim Urban
- “If you're going to especially do kind of creative stuff, do the stuff that is the ideal thing for you to be known for, not just the thing that can get attention quickest, because you're going to end up in a bad place.“ by Tim Urban
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Episode Information
The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch
Harry Stebbings
8/14/23
Tim Urban is the writer/illustrator and co-founder of Wait But Why, a long-form, stick-figure-illustrated website with over 600,000 subscribers and a monthly average of half a million visitors. He has produced dozens of viral articles on a wide range of topics, from artificial intelligence to social anxiety to humans becoming a multi-planetary species. Tim’s 2016 TED main stage talk is the third most-watched TED talk in history with 66 million views. In 2023, Tim published his bestselling book What’s Our Problem? A Self Help Book for Societies.
In Today's Episode with Tim Urban We Discuss:
1. The Founding of Wait by Why:
- What was the a-ha moment for Tim that Wait but Why should be his life's work and sole focus?
- What does Tim know now that he wishes he had known when he started?
- What does Tim believe he is running away from? Why is he so fearful of constraints?
2. Wait But Why: The Scaling Journey to 600,000 Subs:
- What was the first piece to really go viral? How did that change the trajectory?
- What single piece is Tim most proud of? What piece is he least proud of?
- What has been the hardest element of scaling Wait But Why?
- What was the most surprising and unexpected elements of Wait But Why's scaling?
3. Topic Selection: Choosing What To Write:
- What does the process look like for Tim when deciding what topic to write about?
- How does Tim know what his audience will want to hear about vs what they will not?
- What topics has Tim thought would be interesting but post initial research, are not?
4. The Writing Process:
- How does Tim approach the writing process? How has his changed over time?
- What mechanisms does Tim put in place to avoid writers block?
- What are some of Tim's biggest tips to aspiring writers and authors?
5. The Distribution Process:
- How does Tim approach distributing the content once produced? What works? What does not?
- Why did Tim choose newsletter, Twitter and Instagram as his channels of choice?
- How important has the newsletter been to the growth of the business?
6. AI: Super-Intelligence and The Future:
- On reviewing his pieces on AI back in 2015, what does he believe he got right? What would he change with the benefit of hindsight?
- Is Tim more or less positive looking forward at AI proliferating through all of society?
- What is Tim most concerned about in the world right now?