Going Infinite: FTX & Crypto Tycoon Sam Bankman-Fried's Downfall w/ Michael Lewis | Technovation 816

Michael Lewis joins Peter High in a discussion about his latest book, Going Infinite: The Rise and Fall of a New Tycoon, and the insights he gleaned from his research into FTX and the disgraced founder, Sam Bankman-Fried. He shares how the topic stumbled into his lap, what interested him about the story, and why luck played a role in the story’s success. Michael Lewis pulls anecdotes from his book and talks about getting to know the crypto tycoon, learning about his upbringing, and understanding how the concept of ‘effective altruism’ set SBF on his eventual path. He talks about the unconventional business structure of FTX, the skepticism he has around cryptocurrency in general, and his unique perspective on whether or not the crypto startup founder is criminally crooked or just chaotically disorganized.

0:00:00 Introduction
0:02:20 Role of Luck and Interviewing Sam Bankman-Fried
0:04:43 The Rise of Crypto and Sam's Journey
0:16:38 ‘Effective Altruism’ and Its Influence on SBF
0:23:19 Intellectualization of Financial Markets
0:28:58 Alameda Research’s Lost $4 Million and Internal Divide
0:36:42 The Chaos and Disorganization of FTX
0:41:40 Is Sam Chaotically Disorganized or Crooked?
0:48:05 Michael’s Future Relationship with Sam Bankman-Fried
0:50:15 Outro

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#crypto #SBF #FTX

[jacquelyndotson]

Sorry Lewis, but we bought Number Go Up instead.

[genobom]

It is amazing to see that after all he saw and despite the undeniable guilty veredict, the author still talks with admiration about the guy as if was a weird but decent person. Thanks for saving me the time and the money to read this book

[DeeWeber]

Sam’s totally on the spectrum. But he’s a crook because he knew what he was doing was wrong and doubled down.

[OrdinaryMan]

The problem with Effective Altruism is its a feel good about yourself excuse for making obscene amounts of money and telling yourself that as soon as I make a few more dollars for myself I'll start giving some away to help people that need it worse than me. In other words you get rich by stealing from poor people and keeping it for yourself.

[Louise-ggmf]

Sam is lacking moral character. His parents failed him. That’s why he’s in trouble. Mr. Lewis fails to comprehend the many lives SBF destroyed.

[chrissheppard]

Going Felon would be more how about Going To Prison.

[Yotrek]

19:20 the flaw in the logic is effective altruism is a function of continually depreciating currencies. In a parallel financial universe without depreciating currencies charities, non profits, and EA cease to exist, because they don’t need to exist.

[aladinhussein]

The guy is just a goober who stole billions of dollars, luckily the jury weren't as stupid as this guy...

[jackpitts]

Someone should write a book about Michael Lewis, he starts off his writing career writing about himself and his apparent favoring of morality vs making money, and now he's writing and talking about glowing reviews of people who favor money over morality as some kind of hero. So strange. It's the story of a transformation from valuing morals to valuing only money accumulation by any means possible. Lewis is the main character in his own book about the decline of morality in business. And such a wierd comment that the Flash Boys character was too GOOD to be a good character. whaaaat?

[scotto]

Sam 'borrowed' a billion dollars (thousand million) and 'invested' this for himself not to give back any profits. Half a billion went into an AI group which is now worth over 2 billion. He would only ever have paid the initial half billion back.

[DeeWeber]

Unfortunately to make the money you have to step on all of our backs, creating the conditions that impoverish us in the first place.

[nunyabizness]

SBF Defense was to try and paint a picture of a failed business and a legitimate bankruptcy after all SBFs "best efforts." The jury did NOT agree! This book is going to get the worst reviews ever and Lewis should stop going on these book tours and creating videos to market it and save himself some real embarrassment. The lawsuits against SBF will continue for years, none of it in a favorable light to SBF. Im going to check out the Amazon and Good Reads reviews, anticipating nothing but scorn for this "letter to the jury." In some sense this book is a con like SBF himself, making me wonder if Lewis was bought by SBF like all the other discredited celebrities who duped the gullible.

[Obiahjones]

These writers are great literary characters, they are completely incapable of seeing the moral abyss of their subjects, the fact that they can’t see this guy as a grade A con artist is so entertaining, the kid was clearly clever but was no more than an over stimulated thief

[williamwade]

I was in court and watched a judge fine and put a woman on probation for writing a bad check to a grocery store. This guy has drank the kool aid.

[cpking]

Wow! Took me 12 seconds listening in the right spot to see what star-crossed loverbirds Sam and Micheal have in common: they're the two people on Earth who most strongly believe in doubling down on an extinction-level disaster!

[neowuwei]

SBF was found guilty on ALL charges in 3.5 hours. That should REALLY boost sales of his book, lol. Just hope he was paid a good sum to shill for SBF, like Kevin O was. And not paid in FTT either.

[SydneySewerat]

Michael Lewis fell for the cool aid. The scary thing is that Brad Katsaruma almost fell for SBF. At least Brad dodged a bullet thanks to Lewis, but Lewis didn't exactly, assuming his book tanks.

[CarrieCole]

I find it f-ing infuriating that Lewis keeps using "grown-ups" as opposed to what? children??? These were super educated adults - even if we grant that the frontal cortex is done cooking at 25. They had debated ethics amongst themselves and settled on this illegal, selfish, BS. This chaos theory of Lewis's is also garbage. That is not a way to run a business. He was a thief, and I'm glad a jury of his peers (that I feel certain he smugly disdains) found him guilty on every charge.

[FRACTION]

Sam was not wrong about job titles tbf

[kennyr]

As of April 2024...Sam the scammer got 25 years....(should have been 99). A TRULY sad day for justice. 😭😭