The Intelligence from The Economist
The Economist
300 episodes
Join Jason Palmer and Rosie Blau for noise-cancelling news and analysis from The Economist's global network of correspondents. Every weekday the winner of "Best Daily Show" at the 2026 British Podcast Awards, picks three stories shaping your world—the big shifts in politics, business and culture, plus things you never knew you needed to know. On Saturdays, download The Weekend Intelligence to dive deep into a single story, vividly told.
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Episodes page 1 of 6
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Bye bye Bibi? Israel’s election results
Binyamin Netanyahu has underperformed but so has his main opponent, Gadi Eisenkot. Who will form a government? We decipher what the messy results mean for Israel. Our American-midterms series heads south to Georgia.…
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Act of Claude: Anthropic’s IPO bid
It would be the first public listing from a frontier-AI firm—and perhaps the largest IPO of all time. We comb through the filing to understand how the company is thinking about itself and its industry. Our…
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From this day, fourth: Lula’s surprise win
Brazil’s president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, staged a historic comeback to win a fourth term. We ask how he did it, and what he must do next. Each day this week our correspondents in America are focusing on crucial…
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Songs of disenchantment: the sorrow of Nigeria
Nigeria is suffering a worsening security crisis, compounded by a lean harvest, global aid cuts and rising energy prices. So why is President Bola Tinubu likely to win January’s election? Europe is struggling to…
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Dunes and gloom: MBS’s annus horribilis
This week, Muhammad bin Salman, crown prince of Saudi Arabia, was forced to postpone his annual investment summit. His other big bets on the kingdom’s future are also floundering. Sam Bankman-Fried, a…
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Cash test: can Europe support Ukraine alone?
Donald Trump’s administration is turning against Ukraine. But as European powers confront trouble at home, they are struggling to replace American support. Are US private science institutions entering a golden age? And…
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Disorder of magnitude: France’s riots
What started as student protests ballooned into national lawlessness. The disorder plays into the hands of France’s political extremes; expect more of it. In Zimbabwe white farmers are returning to work land taken by…
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Independence eh? Canada’s referendum
The province of Alberta will vote on secession today. It is unlikely to go ahead, but the separatist vibe is just one of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s many headaches. Our correspondent examines China’s efforts toward…
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Schrödinger’s chat: can AI and scientists co-exist?
In recent weeks, AI has solved hundreds of previously unanswered maths problems. Our correspondents ask if machines can do the same in other areas of science and what role human researchers may play. Why crisps are…
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An interview with Alice Weidel
Under Alice Weidel’s leadership the Alternative for Germany (AfD), a right-wing populist party, has been riding high. A series of successes in state elections have brought it closer than ever to power at national…
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Who wants to be a millennial? Generation comeback
Their struggles to get jobs or buy homes once propelled political movements. Now many millennials are out-earning their parents and in positions of power. Our correspondent explains the transformation. Sophisticated…
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Kicking Kyiv: Trump’s doubtful deals
Donald Trump claims to have brokered a deal to import Russian diesel and an energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. As attacks on Kyiv continue, our deputy editor says Trump is risking Ukraine’s future for a…
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Unrest in peace: misery in Gaza
A year ago Donald Trump created the Board of Peace to rebuild Gaza. Yet for many Palestinians, life is even harder, as the ceasefire is repeatedly violated, crime is rising and poverty rife. Why record labels are in a…
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Saudi under siege: Houthis attack airport
This weekend, Yemeni rebels struck Saudi Arabia’s international airport in the deadliest attack on a Gulf Arab country since the Iran war began in February. Our correspondent reports from Riyadh. How European…
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Saving your bacon: healthy-eating policy evolves
Decades of messaging have not worked, so governments are trying new ways to get citizens to eat well, from scary labelling to taxing the junkiest foods. Will it work? The death of a plague researcher in Russia is made…
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Valley of the shadow of debt: bond-market jitters
Bond yields across the rich world keep ticking up. We take a global look at where the risks are mounting most, and just how much worry is warranted. What might have once seemed fanciful is becoming real: delivering…
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Gilets jeunes? France’s school protests
What started as a small protest about conditions of a school and of schooling has mushroomed, and tapped into national anxieties that may prove hard to tame. In the context of the “Cornell 7” case we examine Title IX,…
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House call: Spain’s snap election
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is gambling that anger about housing might solidify his mandate in a snap poll. Most probably it will instead add to the rightward shift in European politics. America’s beef prices have…
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Here comes the son? Brazil’s election tips rightward
Flávio Bolsonaro, populist-right son of the imprisoned coup architect Jair, received the most votes in the presidential first round. We ask why Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the incumbent, fell behind—and what is at stake…
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Coffer stop: AI may shrink tax base
If Artificial Intelligence results in job losses or lower salaries, government revenues will fall. Our correspondent explains how best to tax the windfalls from AI. Paint is a surprisingly cheap way to cool buildings.…
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Trial and terror: Russia escalates Kyiv campaign
Russia has embarked on a new campaign to quell Ukraine, focused on supermarkets, playgrounds and other civilian targets. Our correspondent reports on the toll on daily life in Kyiv. Despite the backlash against…
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Cheques and the City: Premier League disgrace
An independent commission has found Manchester City guilty of breaching over 100 rules. What penalty will the Premier League exact? Russia’s increasingly brazen attempts to provoke and undermine Europe. And why cute…
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Brazil rut: Lula v Bolsonaro, again
On October 4th, Brazil faces a polarising general election: re-elect the octogenarian incumbent or pick the son of a former president jailed for attempting a coup. In some countries honour culture holds women back from…
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Foiled plot: did Iran plan British base attack?
Five men are in custody under suspicion of explosives and terrorism offences after being arrested near a British military base used by American aircraft. This could mark a significant escalation in Iranian hybrid…
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Big meet, little meat: the Trump-Xi summit
Not much of real substance appears to have emerged from the get-together. But our correspondent says there are clues of how both sides view an evolving relationship. Tommy Robinson, a British far-right influencer, is…
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Home disadvantage: risks in housing markets
Rich-world house prices survived the last fit of interest-rate rises; our correspondent lays out why they may not this time. Nine months after Australia banned social media for under-16s, we ask if anything has…
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National front-runner: who can beat Le Pen?
Marine Le Pen, party leader of France’s populist-right National Rally, starts her fourth presidential bid with a commanding lead. The country’s political centre is broad, fragmented—and flagging. A buffer zone against…
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The mob rule: criminality consumes South Africa
An illicit shadow economy, rampant extortion and the capture of the criminal justice system: mafia members and tactics are eating away at the state. Oura seems to have captured the market for smart rings; we ask…
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Centre punch: Germany’s state-election shocker
Two more state-election results reveal surging support for both the far-right AfD and the populist-left Die Linke parties. Chancellor Friedrich Merz himself described the outcome as a disaster; what will it mean for…
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Drone truth: Russia has the upper hand
After a visit to Ukraine last week, our defence editor reports on a new phase of the war as Kyiv and other civilian targets are bombarded by Russian missiles. He also visits an elite Ukrainian drone unit. Why alcohol…
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Rise and shine: Warsh’s Fed rate test
The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates for the first time since July 2023. For the central bank’s new chair Kevin Warsh, that decision was a test both of monetary policy and politics. A governor’s election in…
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The end of the world is AI? An existential threat
Is artificial intelligence becoming uncontrollably powerful? Our correspondent analyses whether a pause to breakneck development is possible or feasible. We have entered the new age of the orator. And why cheese is…
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Islamism in Britain: what is the threat?
Though a growing share of the British population is anxious about Islam, they have no reason to be. Islamism, a fringe ideology that believes government and society should be guided by Islamic principles, is the real…
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Strait and narrowing: the Houthis’ striking advance
After years of stalemate, Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis are taking territory, including on a Red Sea strait. We ask what has changed, and how the shift fits into the wider regional conflict. As America’s midterm…
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The Weekend Intelligence: Shire folk - Episode 1: Tommy's Town
For 15 years, the British media dismissed Tommy Robinson as a far-right extremist. We kept him off our televisions, and out of our newspapers. Today his rallies attract tens of thousands of followers and he has the…
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Out-numbered: AI’s contentious maths milestone
OpenAI’s claim to have solved one of the great problems in mathematics has itself created problems. We ask why the breakthrough has shaken the field. On the 25th anniversary of 9/11 we examine the vast counterterrorism…
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Working through it: the AI jobs boom dawns
The labour data are in from America and a trend is becoming clearer: on balance AI is starting to create more jobs than it hoovers up. Despite advancements of just about every other kind, China cannot seem to escape…
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Chainsaw sputtering: Milei’s experiment falters
President Javier Milei has tamed inflation and improved the lot of many Argentines. But an election season approaches, and the promised economic and wage growth are not materialising. As LIV Golf files for bankruptcy,…
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School of shock: teenagers get dimmer
International tests in maths and reading show that 15-year-olds today score what 14-year-olds would have done a decade ago. Our correspondent explains the long-term decline. Is Miami’s thriving economic growth…
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All right on the night: AfD’s victory
Alternative for Germany won an even larger share of the vote than expected in yesterday’s state election. What does the far-right nationalist party’s success mean for Germany and Europe? The climate case for limiting…
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Bargaining chips: Nvidia is the bank of AI
Nvidia, the world’s most valuable company, has shifted strategy to boost demand for its chips. Our correspondent assesses the opportunities and risks. Knife crime in Britain moves to rural pastures. And our obituaries…
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Ire and ICE: the toll of America’s deportations
Donald Trump’s stance on immigration helped him win the presidency. Our correspondent asks if a backlash against the campaign could damage Republican midterm prospects. Reddit is struggling in an age of AI. And the…
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Right in front: AfD could win German state
On Sunday, Alternative for Germany could become the first far-right nationalist party to win a state election since the end of the second world war. Is Britain right to worry about Palantir handling government…
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After the flood: Nepal’s ongoing rescue
After the devastating flash flood last week, our correspondent explains why the country is so ill-equipped to deal with the crisis. Does AI stop children from learning? And why Japanese ongaku kissa, or listening bars,…
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Stars in their AIs: tech is changing Hollywood
Behind the scenes, Artificial Intelligence is playing a growing role in every aspect of film-making, from script-writing and production-planning to shot-generation and editing. As the number of people covered by…
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Bots on the ground: China leads humanoid race
Our correspondent goes inside a Chinese robot facility to see thousands of droids being taught to complete useful tasks. Is it worth the time and money? How Meta’s $17bn settlement at its blockbuster trial could change…
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Big shot: does a cancer vaccine work?
Personalised vaccines could offer a breakthrough in the fight against cancer. Our correspondent analyses the latest trial. Canada’s oil market is flourishing, despite the trade war. And, why we will always love Dolly…
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Slip the surly bonds? Scott Bessent goes on a yield trip
Amid record-tickling yields, the bond markets are now trying to make sense of what Scott Bessent, America’s Treasury secretary, has announced—a move that might put him on a collision course with the Federal Reserve. We…
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Even-more-maximum pressure: sanctions on Iran
After much hullabaloo America announced its “Operation Economic Outcast”, a new tranche of sanctions. It is thin gruel, and might in fact invite military reprisals from Iran. Call centres form a large part of the…
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Elbows up, again: a US-Canada trade flare-up
Promising trade talks imploded after a literal 11th-hour change from the American side. We examine the new trade barriers being erected, and the complex calculation for Prime Minister Mark Carney. In Japan Gen X…
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