Maria talks with Women’s Chess Grandmaster Jennifer Shahade about what chess and poker teach you about life; how statistics can help you think about having kids; and the time Maria lost a chess match in four moves. For more from Nate and Maria

The President Has No Clothes: Biden Should Drop Out

9 days ago 45m 38s

In this bonus episode, Nate and Maria discuss last night’s debate between President Biden and former President Trump. They argue that Biden should drop out of the race, and discuss what might happen if he does. Further Reading: “Joe Biden Shoul

Nate’s Election Model, the Trouble with Insurance, and How People Get Risk Wrong

10 days ago 43m 13s

This week on Risky Business, Nate and Maria unveil Nate’s 2024 election model. (The forecast is bad news for Maria.) Also, they explain what insurance industry troubles tell us about the market for risk. And they discuss some key mistakes peopl

Snap Elections, Global Warming, and Maria’s Favorite Hot Sauce

17 days ago 42m 11s

This week on Risky Business, Nate and Maria discuss the reasoning behind Macron’s decision to hold early elections in France, how heat waves could help communicate the reality of climate change, and what we can learn from the impending sriracha

Lifetime Terms, Lifetime Bans, and the Return of Roaring Kitty

24 days ago 43m 33s

This week on Risky Business, Nate and Maria discuss whether Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor should retire, the perils of sports betting among professional athletes, and what the return of Roaring Kitty means for traditional market analysi

Mistakes and Unknowns: Election Polls, Poker Tournaments, and the NBA Finals

Jun 6th, 2024 48m 49s

This week on Risky Business, Nate gives his analysis of what Trump’s guilty verdict may mean for the election, Maria shares the biggest mistakes she’s seen at the World Series of Poker so far, and Nate reveals an interesting ripple in the sport

WSOP Kickoff, Crypto ETFs, and Airfare Refunds

May 30th, 2024 41m 11s

Nate and Maria are in Vegas for the first week of the World Series of Poker. On today’s show, they share their top tips for acing the World Series, explain the politics behind last week’s approval of a new kind of crypto ETF, and unpack new rul

A Backup for Biden

May 23rd, 2024 43m 8s

Nate and Maria start with something light: p(doom) and the possibility that AI will bring about the end of life as we know it. Then, Nate breaks down the news about the presidential debates and makes a shocking recommendation to the Democratic

Lessons from the Final Table

May 16th, 2024 39m 45s

Welcome to Risky Business, a show about making better decisions. Today, Maria has lessons from a poker tournament she recently played in Monte Carlo, where she made it to the final table. Then, Nate discusses what RFK Jr.’s impressive polling n

Trailer

Coming Soon... Risky Business with Nate Silver and Maria Konnikova

May 2nd, 2024 2m 42s

Launching on May 16, Risky Business is a weekly podcast about making better decisions. The hosts, Maria Konnikova and Nate Silver, are both journalists who moonlight as high-stakes poker players. On Risky Business, they bring their analytical f