# Ben Goertzel: Whoever Gets AGI First Can CONQUER THE PLANET

An episode of [The Beyond Tomorrow Podcast with Julian Issa](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1795041554), 28 Aug 2026, 52 min.

Audio: https://anchor.fm/s/fa2b1038/podcast/play/124865549/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-7-28%2F430723765-44100-2-528df341aee29.mp3

How close are we to AGI? This episode is brought to you by AgelessRx, where aging becomes a puzzle that can be solved. The mission is to help you live longer and healthier by adding more life to your years through science-backed solutions and personalized care. Learn more at http://agelessrx.com/beyond-tomorrow The race toward AGI is entering a new phase. Ben Goertzel explores alternative paths to intelligence beyond simply building bigger models. The conversation also examines the global AI race. The U.S. and China are competing for technological leadership. But the future of AI may not remain centralized. Then comes the bigger question: what happens after superintelligence? Goertzel imagines AI that could protect humanity. It could even help overcome aging, disease, and other human limitations. Ben Goertzel is an AI researcher, futurist, and CEO of SingularityNET and BGI Labs. Widely recognized as one of the pioneers of Artificial General Intelligence, he has spent more than two decades developing decentralized AI systems designed to benefit humanity. What You’ll Learn • Why the AI revolution may be bigger than previous technological shifts • How AI could become an extension of human intelligence • Why agency may matter more than machine consciousness • How the brain creates a simulated model of reality • Whether consciousness could emerge on different substrates • Why AI alignment is also a problem of human alignment • How AI could help humanity become smarter and more coherent ⏱ Timestamps 00:00 Intro 00:07 What Happens in the Next 12 Months? 03:41 Why China Is Catching Up 07:36 Why China Wants AI Control 10:18 Can Governments Control AI? 13:02 Human-Level AGI vs Superintelligence 15:35 Will ASI be Chinese or American? 17:47 The Next Breakthrough to AGI 21:05 How AI Could Become More Intelligent 22:23 Why Language Powers AI 27:33 Can Decentralized AI Change Everything? 32:23 The Global Race vs Decentralized AI 36:22 Would Superintelligence Protect Humanity? 40:19 Can We Build Compassionate AGI? 46:27 Why AI Arms Races Are Dangerous 51:14 Why Governments Shouldn’t Control AI 53:17 Can the Government Keep Up With AI? 54:00 Will Open AI Challenge Big Tech? 55:12 The Future of Decentralized AI 56:27 Could 2045 Arrive by 2028? Connect with Ben Website: https://singularitynet.io/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bengoertzel X: https://x.com/bengoertzel Connect with Julian Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebeyondtomorrowpodcast/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/juliankissa/ LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/julian-issa Website: www.beyondtomorrowpodcast.com Email: bookings@beyondtomorrowpodcast.com Subscribe on Spotify, Apple, and YouTube for more stories from the edge of what is possible.

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