October 23, 2023 • 2hr 11min

Mark Zuckerberg & Dr. Priscilla Chan: Curing All Human Diseases & the Future of Health & Technology

Huberman Lab

In this episode, Andrew Huberman interviews Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, and Dr. Priscilla Chan, co-founder of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI). They discuss CZI's ambitious goal of curing all human diseases, Meta's development of VR/AR technologies, the impacts of social media, and the future of AI. The conversation covers a wide range of topics at the intersection of technology, health, and society.

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Key Takeaways

The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) aims to cure, prevent, or manage all diseases by the end of the century through funding science, building tools, and conducting research
CZI is taking a long-term approach focused on understanding cells and biology at a fundamental level, using AI and new technologies to accelerate scientific discovery
Meta is developing VR, AR and smart glasses technologies that could transform how we interact with digital information and each other
Zuckerberg believes technology like social media can have positive or negative effects depending on how it's used, and Meta aims to give users more control over their experiences
AI assistants and digital avatars may soon allow creators to engage with audiences at scale in new ways

Introduction

In this episode, Andrew Huberman interviews Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, and Dr. Priscilla Chan, co-founder of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI). They discuss CZI's ambitious goal of curing all human diseases, Meta's development of VR/AR technologies, the impacts of social media, and the future of AI. The conversation covers a wide range of topics at the intersection of technology, health, and society.

Topics Discussed

Chan Zuckerberg Initiative's Mission and Approach (5:35)

Dr. Chan explains that CZI's goal is to "cure, prevent, or manage all disease by the end of the century." Their approach involves:

Funding scientific research
Building software and hardware tools to accelerate research
Conducting scientific research through Biohub institutes

Zuckerberg emphasizes their focus on developing tools to empower the broader scientific community: "Our goal is to basically give the scientific community and scientists around the world the tools to accelerate the pace of science."

Understanding Cells and Biology (17:57)

A key focus for CZI is understanding cells and biology at a fundamental level:

Mapping all cell types in the human body
Understanding how cells function differently in health and disease
Using AI to analyze massive biological datasets

Dr. Chan explains: "We've gone from, in 2017, funding some methods work, to now having really not complete, but nearly complete atlases of how the human body works, how flies work, how mice work at the single cell level."

AI and Large Language Models in Science (29:53)

Zuckerberg discusses how AI and large language models (LLMs) could accelerate scientific discovery:

Training LLMs on scientific data to generate hypotheses
Using AI to imagine different cellular states and interactions
Running in silico experiments to test ideas quickly

He notes: "We think you'll be able to basically imagine all of the different types of cells and all the different states that they can be in and when they're healthy and diseased and how they'll interact with each other, interact with different potential drugs."

CZI Biohubs and Collaborative Research (42:11)

Dr. Chan describes CZI's Biohub institutes, which bring together researchers from multiple institutions to tackle big scientific challenges:

San Francisco Biohub focused on single cell biology and infectious disease
Chicago Biohub studying inflammation and tissue engineering
New York Biohub developing cellular "microscopes" to detect disease

She explains the Chicago Biohub's work: "They've been already been able to, as a collaboration under the leadership of Shanna Kelly, design engineered skin tissue. The architecture looks the same as what's in you and I. And what they've done is built these super, super thin sensors, and they embed these sensors throughout the layers of this engineered tissue, and they read out the data."

Technology and Mental Health (1:07:25)

Zuckerberg discusses the potential positive and negative impacts of technology on mental health:

Social connection and relationships can be beneficial
Passive consumption of negative content can be harmful
Meta aims to give users more control over their experiences

He states: "I think at its best, you're forming meaningful connections with other people. And there's a lot of research that basically suggests that it's the relationships that we have and the friendships that kind of bring the most happiness and in our lives, and at some level end up even correlating with living a longer and healthier life."

Social Media Tools and Parental Controls (1:19:17)

Zuckerberg outlines tools Meta provides to help users manage their social media experiences:

Parental controls for teens
Default private settings for users under 16
Tools to understand time spent and content viewed
Features to nudge users towards diverse content

He notes: "We have all these parental tools, so that way parents can kind of understand what their children is to are up to in a good balance. And then on the other side, we try to give people tools to understand how they're spending their time."

Virtual and Augmented Reality (1:28:55)

Zuckerberg discusses Meta's vision for VR and AR technologies:

VR headsets for immersive experiences and collaboration
AR glasses to blend digital information with the physical world
Creating a "real world" that combines physical and digital elements

He explains: "I think in the future, the real room is going to be the combination of the physical world with all the digital artifacts and objects that are in there that you can interact with them and feel present, whereas the physical world is just the part that's physically there."

VR for Fitness and Creativity (1:36:09)

Huberman and Zuckerberg discuss potential applications of VR for fitness and creative pursuits:

VR fitness experiences like boxing and dance
Virtual musical instruments and art tools
Expanding access to expensive equipment through virtual versions

Zuckerberg notes: "I think in the future, you'll have the option of just buying an app or a hologram piano, which will be a lot more affordable. And I think that's going to unlock a ton of creativity."

Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses (1:49:31)

Zuckerberg describes Meta's smart glasses developed in collaboration with Ray-Ban:

Stylish glasses with built-in cameras, speakers, and microphones
Ability to take photos/videos, listen to music, and make calls
AI assistant integration for hands-free interaction
Privacy considerations like recording indicator light

He explains the vision: "The real product that we want to eventually get to is this kind of full augmented reality product in a kind of stylish and comfortable normal glasses form factor."

AI Assistants and Digital Avatars (2:06:42)

Zuckerberg discusses the potential for AI-powered digital avatars and assistants:

Allowing creators to engage with audiences at scale
Importance of creator control over AI representations
Starting with fictional AI characters before real person avatars
Enabling small businesses to create AI assistants

He notes: "I think where you want to get over time is to the place where any creator or any small business can very easily just create an AI assistant that can represent them and interact with your kind of community or customers if you're a business and basically just help you grow your enterprise."

Conclusion

This wide-ranging conversation covered CZI's ambitious efforts to accelerate biomedical research, Meta's development of VR/AR technologies, the impacts of social media, and the potential of AI to transform various aspects of society. Zuckerberg and Chan expressed optimism about technology's ability to solve major challenges and improve lives when developed thoughtfully. While acknowledging potential downsides, they emphasized giving users more control and developing tools to empower people. The discussion highlighted how rapidly advancing technologies like AI, VR, and AR may reshape how we interact with information and each other in the coming years.