The Intelligence from The Economist

Skilled immigrants bring more than just their expertise to job markets. But governments miss opportunities to attract them—or make them feel entirely unwelcome. In America it seems like the standard tip fraction just keeps going up and up (11:36). Where will it end? And as part of our “schools briefs” primer on AI, we answer your questions, starting with facial recognition (18:28).Get a world of insights by subscribing to Economist Podcasts+. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

Corporate investment in artificial-intelligence infrastructure reaches $1.4trn by some estimates. We ask what might threaten the expected windfalls that justify the spending. A Japanese mine’s bid to be listed by UNESCO was made harder because it ignores South Korean wartime forced labour (10:49). And why a nicotine pouch has so many fans on America’s right (18:03).Get a world of insights by subscribing to Economist Podcasts+. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

Part of Russia is under foreign control for the first time since the second world war. We ask about the strategy behind the surprise raid—which may not be the last. The Paris Olympics were, all told, a tremendous success, with some lessons for future games (11:47). And the 3-D holographic displays coming to a car dashboard near you (20:35).Get a world of insights by subscribing to Economist Podcasts+. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

The radical right was visible somewhere in the background all the way through the boomers’ lives. Now one of their number had made himself the hero of that movement and led it to power. Under the pressure of a pandemic, Americans had a choice. Should they give Donald Trump another chance? Or turn to another man of the 1940s, Joe Biden, who promised to rebuild the kind of economy in which he'd grown up. Unless it was all too late...To listen to the full series, subscribe to Economist Podcasts+.If you’re already a subscriber to The Economist, you have full access to all our shows as part of your subscription. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.This episode draws on audio from the following publishers: ABC, CNN, State Department, PBS, Washington Post, C-SPAN, PeteforAmerica, MSNBC, cover of John Lennon's "Imagine", Charles Cornell, VOA, CBC, NBC, CNBC

How a fraternity started by a Canadian jokester and masculinity guru morphed into a political organisation who took to the streets to fight for Trump.Rebecca Jackson talks to five prominent Proud Boys, including the groups’ founder, Gavin McInnes and Enrique Tarrio, one of the men jailed for sedition for his role in the events on January 6. If you want to understand Trump voters in the run up to the November election, you could do worse than start by learning about who the Proud Boys are and what they stand for.Music: Blue Dot Sessions and Epidemic Sound Show notes Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

The rich world is experiencing record migrant flows—and the attendant social upheaval. Finding immigration policies that are not economically ruinous is damnably hard. Our three-part series starts to unpack why people are so fed up with the big dating apps (11:10). And the head-spinning history of how break(danc)ing became an Olympic sport (18:44).Get a world of insights by subscribing to Economist Podcasts+. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

Tourists are getting decidedly less-warm welcomes in popular spots, but blunt anti-tourism policies are self-defeating. We look at how to maintain benefits for both the visitors and the visited. As Russia tries to avoid another military draft, a slick recruitment drive seems to be bringing in new troops (09:22). And fatigue with smartphones is leading to a fashion for dumb ones (15:22).Get a world of insights by subscribing to Economist Podcasts+. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

Tim Walz, a folksy Midwesterner who came late to politics, is on the Democratic ticket. We ask how he got there and whether he was the best tactical pick. A visit to Lebanon reveals a sense of foreboding, as a sharper war between Israel and Hizbullah seems inevitable (11:04). And the executives who just don’t know when to quit (19:53).Get a world of insights by subscribing to Economist Podcasts+. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.

Sheikh Hasina, who led the country for 20 of the past 28 years with an increasingly authoritarian grip, was ultimately undone by student protests that would not be quelled. China may be world-leading in autonomous taxis—but our ride in one is not without complications (9:00). And remembering Thomas Neff, who rid the world of a third of its nukes (16:38).Get a world of insights by subscribing to Economist Podcasts+. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our FAQs page or watch our video explaining how to link your account.