Episodes

  • Automating the restaurant industry, with Josef Chen (KAIKAKU)

    Automating the restaurant industry, with Josef Chen (KAIKAKU)
    Apr 16 2025

    Josef Chen is the founder of KAIKAKU, a London-based company developing automation technology for restaurants. A former Imperial College student, Chen created his first Bitcoin faucet at age 13 and previously worked as the first intern at Bitpanda (Austria's first unicorn startup). After growing up working in his parents' Chinese restaurant from age six, Chen has now returned to the industry with a mission to transform it through robotics and technology.

    Calum and Tom talk to Josef Chen about:

    • Josef's remarkable journey from peeling potatoes in his parents' Austrian restaurant at age six to founding a cutting-edge robotics company
    • How KAIKAKU's "living laboratory" approach enables rapid hardware development and real-world testing of restaurant automation
    • Why specialised robots designed for specific tasks will outperform humanoid robots in practical applications
    • The widespread misallocation of engineering talent in Britain, with top graduates being lured into finance instead of building tangible solutions
    • How restaurant automation can free staff from mundane tasks to focus on genuine hospitality and customer experience
    • Josef's vision for rebuilding Britain's engineering culture through initiatives like London Micro Grants

    Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Substack. Produced by Aeron Laffere.



    Further reading

    Sweetgreen’s S-1 Filing - Deep dive into a US tech-forward restaurant chain’s unit economics, vision, and automation strategy

    Ocado’s AI-powered robotic arms: levelling up efficiency in online grocery and logistics - Case study of one of the few globally competitive UK hardware automation efforts

    Neko Health - Example of vertically integrated tech x real-world experience design, referenced by Joseph

    London Micro Grants - A live initiative for empowering grassroots builders in the UK with small-scale funding

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anglofuturism.substack.com
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    1 hr and 1 min
  • Restoration and radical reform, with Douglas Carswell (Mississippi Center for Public Policy)

    Restoration and radical reform, with Douglas Carswell (Mississippi Center for Public Policy)
    Apr 2 2025
    Douglas Carswell is a British politician who served as a Member of Parliament from 2005 to 2017, first as a Conservative before defecting to UKIP in 2014. A prominent Brexit campaigner and co-founder of Vote Leave, he now runs the Mississippi Center for Public Policy, a free-market think tank in the United States. Carswell is known for his advocacy of democratic reform, limited government, and economic freedom.Calum and Tom talk to Douglas Carswell about:Douglas's experience in Mississippi where free-market reforms have accelerated economic growth beyond the UK'sHow Britain's "Blairite Ascendancy" of 30 years has empowered unaccountable experts and regulatory bodies that block elected officials from governing effectivelyA detailed blueprint to restore executive power through orders in council, civil service reform, and judicial restraintProposals for public spending cuts of £170 billion and tax reductions including abolishing tariffs, lowering VAT, and reducing income taxesAddressing immigration through tighter controls and a voluntary "re-migration" program for non-contributorsThe cultural dimensions of Britain's troubles and the need to reassert Anglo-American values against cultural relativismHow these reforms could unlock British innovation and prosperity if leaders have the courage to endure short-term painListen on Apple Music, Spotify, and Substack. Produced by Aeron Laffere.Further readingMilestones: Nine steps to restore Britain - the essay outlining Douglas Carswell's detailed proposalsDominion: How the Christian Revolution Remade the World by Tom Holland - Mentioned by Carswell as influential to his understanding of Western valuesLooking for Growth campaign - A UK initiative advocating for policies to boost British economic growthWhy Nations Fail by Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson - Explores how political institutions impact economic successThe Sovereign Individual by James Dale Davidson and William Rees-Mogg - Examines the changing relationship between individuals and the stateEconomics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt - A classic text on free-market economicsState Capacity Libertarianism by Tyler Cowen - A blog post that reimagines libertarianism with a focus on effective government Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anglofuturism.substack.com
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    1 hr and 49 mins
  • Sort out the Boriswave, embrace automation, with Cllr Tom Jones (Scotton & Lower Wensleydale)

    Sort out the Boriswave, embrace automation, with Cllr Tom Jones (Scotton & Lower Wensleydale)
    Mar 19 2025

    We welcome Cllr Tom Jones to the KCIII. Tom serves as the Councillor for Scotton & Lower Wensleydale on North Yorkshire Council and is also an accomplished essayist.

    Cllr Jones joins Calum and Tom to discuss Anglofuturism, immigration reform, and how Britain can build a more productive, high-wage future:

    The origins and appeal of Anglofuturism as both an aesthetic and political movement responding to economic stagnation and declining living standards for young Britons

    Tom Jones' immigration paper "Selecting the Best" which argues Britain's reliance on mass immigration has created a low-wage, low-productivity economy

    How "human quantitative easing"—importing cheap labor rather than investing in automation—has damaged British productivity and wages

    The car wash industry as a case study where cheap migrant labor replaced automated systems, creating exploitation and environmental problems

    The need to redirect state capacity toward strategic priorities like energy, manufacturing, and defence instead of dispersing resources

    How greater automation and selective high-skill immigration could transform Britain into a high-wage economy capable of meaningful global influence

    Listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Produced by Aeron Laffere.



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anglofuturism.substack.com
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    1 hr and 27 mins
  • The last hope for the Chagos Islands: Calum Drysdale

    The last hope for the Chagos Islands: Calum Drysdale
    Mar 11 2025

    The government is attempting to seal its giveaway of the Chagos Islands: a crucial archipelago in the Indian Ocean that was uninhabited when the Portuguese found them, but to which Mauritius – thousands of miles away – has made a specious claim. Extraordinarily, the British government is trying to indulge that claim – and to pay billions to continue to use the island that hosts a military base.


    The public has still not been given a satisfactory explanation for the giveaway, but the prime minister and the attorney general are thought to be of the view that Britain should obey a non-binding judgment by a partisan international court. That court is stacked with enemies of Britain... but the wallet inspector must be obeyed!


    Starmer and co are inches away from sealing the giveaway. But they reckoned without a ruddy young Anglofurist...


    Our very own Calum Drysdale!


    Calum and Lord Kempsell are together launching a judicial review into the putative giveaway. As news breaks of the judicial review, Tom and Calum discuss:


    • The history of the Chagos Islands
    • The bizarre logic of the government
    • Britain's slender hopes of keeping the islands


    HMG now has 14 days to respond to Calum and Lord Kempsell.


    Co-presenters: Tom Ough and Calum Drysdale

    Producer: Æron Laffere


    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anglofuturism.substack.com
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    1 hr and 5 mins
  • Britain's manifest Antarctic destiny

    Britain's manifest Antarctic destiny
    Feb 20 2025
    Calum and Tom on:- The history of British Antarctic exploration, from Captain Cook's mission to find Terra Australis to Shackleton's heroic survival after the Endurance was trapped in ice,- The geopolitical status of Antarctica, including Britain's territorial claims, the 1959 Antarctic Treaty that prohibits mining and militarisation, and how this could change after 2048,- The potential economic value of the British Antarctic Territory with its vast untapped resources (oil, gas, gold, and other minerals) and whether Britain should develop these resources before other nations claim them,Listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.Timestamps(00:00:00) - Introduction(00:01:30) - Antarctic Overview(00:04:16) - Historical Expeditions(00:12:50) - Heroic Age(00:31:19) - Sovereignty Issues(00:34:58) - Antarctic Treaty(00:36:49) - Resource Potential(00:54:25) - Future ProspectsTranscript00:00:00 - IntroductionTom OughWelcome back to the King Charles III Space Station. I'm Tom Ough.Calum DrysdaleAnd I'm Calum Drysdale. And if you, our listeners, have a telescope handy, you might be able to see our orbital space pub speeding southwards. Tom's behind the bar with one hand on our ship's wheels and the other one clutching a pint of gin.Tom OughListeners, you can't see the wheel but let me assure you that it's fashioned of beautiful English oak. A perfect replica of the wheel on HMS Victory.Calum DrysdaleTom, tell me where you're taking us.Tom OughWell, take a look through that Mullions porthole we put in the floor.Calum DrysdaleYep, taking a look.Tom OughWhat do you see?Calum DrysdaleI see the Falklands to the west. South Georgia… and I think that must be the South Sandwich Islands to the east. And now it's a long rocky peninsula.Tom OughYeah, an enormous apparently inhospitable peninsula.Calum DrysdaleAnd yet, something about it feels like home.Tom OughCorrect. As we sweep over this frozen continent, you will need no reminding that we are looking over the British Antarctic Territory.I will stop the ship here.00:01:30 - Antarctic OverviewCalum DrysdaleListeners, the view is stunning. Mile upon mile of white wilderness with the southern lights dancing above it. But Tom, maybe you can tell the listeners why you've brought us here.Tom OughWell, in short, what we're looking at is Britain's most valuable overseas possession. It could be the ticket to a new age of British prosperity, but it's under threat. And I think it's high time the country pay the matter some attention.Calum DrysdaleWell, I think it's something that we often forget. In that it's notable when, well or maybe not so notable to some people, when we try to rid ourselves of a few tiny atolls in the Indian Ocean. But actually the idea that we own a whole sort of section of a slice of a continent is maybe even less well known.Tom OughYeah and let's put this in perspective because the Chagos Islands, important as they are, are pretty minuscule in terms of land mass. Whereas the British Antarctic Territory is about eight times the size of Great Britain. It's insane, it's absolutely enormous and I think it's high time the country paid the matter some attention.Calum DrysdaleI think it's a bit risky Tom, isn’t it? Because the more attention we draw to our overseas territories the greater risk that the FCDO tries to find someone to foist them off on.Tom OughYeah I do worry about this because I think our claim to the Antarctic territory is in fact weaker than our claim to the Chagos Islands. So if you are listening and you are a senior civil servant at the FCDO then please, please avert your ears. But we are going to do an episode on the British Antarctic Territory nevertheless.Calum DrysdaleAnd our first one without a guest as seemingly Tom you are appointing yourself as our resident expert in the field.Tom OughWell there is a there is a criminal dearth of enthusiasts about the British Antarctic territory and I hope listeners will over the next half hour or so come to understand why I think there's a dearth.Calum DrysdaleWhilst most people are going out to the pub and talking to women, what on earth have you done spending your time worrying about the British Antarctic territory?Tom OughI for one got nerd sniped by the BAT as they call it last year when a big oil and gas discovery was made in the waters surrounding it and that led me to look into the BAT to which I had not given much thought prior to that. I discovered that it's enormous. It could be very lucrative. It's very exciting. It's a frontier. There's an amazing British history there as well. Perhaps we can get into all of those over this conversation.Calum DrysdaleAbsolutely. Do you want to start us off, Tom? Why on earth do we own a slice of this icy pie?00:04:16 - Historical ExpeditionsTom OughThere's a story to this which explains why we make the claim and I think we can get into that very soon. But I think it's worth winding back a little further because Antarctica has a fascinating recent history. ...
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    1 hr and 5 mins
  • First we came for the dogs – now the NIMBYs and criminals, with Lawrence Newport (Looking for Growth)

    First we came for the dogs – now the NIMBYs and criminals, with Lawrence Newport (Looking for Growth)
    Jan 28 2025

    Today we welcome Lawrence Newport, darling of the British progress movement and bane of vicious dogs.

    Lawrence discusses:

    - His successful campaign to ban XL Bully dogs after identifying their disproportionate role in fatal attacks and overcoming resistance from animal welfare organisations,

    - His Looking For Growth initiative to streamline infrastructure development through legislation that bypasses regulatory hurdles for nuclear power, electricity cables, and data centres,

    - His Crush Crime campaign focusing on career criminals, highlighting the need for longer sentences for repeat offenders and addressing the breakdown in policing that has made certain crimes effectively legal,

    Listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

    Timestamps

    (00:00:00) - Introduction

    (00:01:30) - ‘XL Bully’ Campaign

    (00:06:31) - Government Inertia

    (00:22:26) - Infrastructure Challenges

    (00:41:09) - Crime and Policing

    (00:52:26) - Crime Wave Causes

    (01:02:29) - Future Vision



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anglofuturism.substack.com
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    1 hr and 7 mins
  • Make Britain the compute capital of the world, with Samo Burja (Bismarck Analysis)

    Make Britain the compute capital of the world, with Samo Burja (Bismarck Analysis)
    Nov 28 2024

    Samo Burja is the founder and president of Bismarck Analysis, an industrial analysis and consulting firm studying failing organizations, and the author of "Great Founder Theory" which explores how exceptional individuals shape history by creating innovative institutions rather than merely steering events. He also chairs the editorial board of Palladium Magazine.

    Samo discusses:

    - How organisations decline when they shift goals to match diminished capabilities instead of pursuing bold visions, illustrated by NASA's evolution from space exploration to Earth observation

    - Why social technologies (like trust networks) are as crucial as material technologies in driving innovation and economic growth, with religious communities like Protestant merchants historically enabling trade through shared values

    - Britain's potential to regain global prominence through ambitious projects like nuclear energy, Antarctic resource development, and AI compute infrastructure, but only with live players who break from institutional scripts

    Listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

    Timestamps

    (00:00:00) - Introduction

    (00:02:23) - Organisational Decline

    (00:07:29) - Energy Challenges

    (00:19:04) - NASA's Evolution

    (00:28:26) - AI and Society

    (00:37:29) - Social Technologies

    (00:56:19) - Britain's Status

    (01:05:45) - Political Opportunities

    (01:16:16) - Future Prospects



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anglofuturism.substack.com
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    1 hr and 28 mins
  • Bring back the captains of industry, with Rian Chad Whitton (Bismarck Analysis)

    Bring back the captains of industry, with Rian Chad Whitton (Bismarck Analysis)
    Nov 20 2024

    Rian Chad Whitton is a research analyst specialising in automation, industrial policy, and energy markets at Bismarck Analysis who writes on Substack under the name Doctor Syn and won the TXP Progress Prize for his essay on British energy policy.

    Rian discusses:

    How British industry declined from being the first Promethean nation to losing competitiveness due to loss of empire, high wages, and poor policy decisions like industrial deglomeration

    Why manufacturing remains crucial for national security, productivity growth, and regional equality despite the push toward services

    How Britain could revitalise industry through lower electricity costs, nuclear power expansion, and promoting large industrial conglomerates similar to South Korean chaebols

    Listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Read the transcript.

    Timestamps

    (00:00:00) - Introduction

    (00:01:44) - British Industry History

    (00:06:50) - Current Industry Status

    (00:12:47) - R&D and Innovation

    (00:19:35) - Service Economy Debate

    (00:25:18) - Military and Manufacturing

    (00:32:23) - Industrial Policy Models

    (00:45:30) - Automation and Jobs

    (00:55:33) - Education and Skills

    (00:59:23) - Conclusion



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit anglofuturism.substack.com
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    1 hr and 1 min
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