Cognitive neuroscientist Ruben Laukkonen tells Imran Garda that raising AI is a lot like raising a child: it’s not enough to make it intelligent, we also need to teach it human values. The question is how? Laukkonen believes the answer could be in one of humanity's most ancient practices — contemplative meditation. Dr. Ruben Laukkonen joins The InnerView from Barcelona to discuss how he believes we can mitigate the risks of AI, what it means for a machine to be moral, and how the world’s oldest meditation practices could help us build better AI.

Saleyha Ahsan tells Imran Garda that acts of inhumanity against medics, doctors, and humanitarian workers are happening daily and with complete impunity. She’s witnessed it all — in Palestine, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Syria. Ahsan is a former British soldier, humanitarian doctor and filmmaker who has served on the frontlines of some of the world’s most brutal conflicts: from the ethnic cleansing in Bosnia-Herzegovina in the 1990s, to attacks on healthcare workers in Palestine, and the large-scale bombings of schools and hospitals in Syria. On this episode of The InnerView, Ahsan shares why she no longer advises junior doctors to go to Gaza, the moment that changed her forever, and what she thinks must happen before anyone can truly feel safe.

As far as 20th century tyrants go, Joseph Stalin earned his place to be ranked near the top of the pile. Tens of millions died at his hands, and while he made the Soviet Union a superpower and helped defeat the Nazis during World War II, it’s really hard to ignore or rationalize his crimes. As more and more evidence emerged over the decades the world came to see the real cost of Stalin’s rule: forced deportations, gulags, the Holodomor famine in Ukraine. In essence – suffering on an industrial scale. And yet, in some corners of the world—especially in his homeland—Stalin’s shadow still lingers, his statues still sell and his memory evokes positive emotions among many. Stalin was born Joseph Dzhugashvili, an ethnic Georgian, who would become the leader of a world empire centered in Moscow. Imran Garda heads to Georgia, where he meets Irakli Khvadagiani, a researcher at the Soviet Past Research Lab in Tbilisi, and asks: Why does the cult of Stalin still survive, and who’s keeping it alive? Then, in Stalin’s hometown of Gori, Imran joins Zhana Odiashvili, founder of the Gori Free Walking Tour, who leads him through the highs and lows of Stalin’s legacy. Zhana speaks about the scars left by Stalin’s rule, the lingering effects of the country’s 2008 war with Russia and her own complicated feelings toward the man her town can’t seem to forget.

As a small country in the Caucasus, Georgia is no stranger to being caught between Russia and Western powers. When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, it brought flashbacks for Georgians — of their cities being bombed, of Russian tanks rolling across their border in 2008. Memories of war and occupation. It also was a reminder that in 2008 the United States and its allies promised much, but delivered little. That geopolitical challenge facing Tbilisi has increased anxiety among the Georgian people and has renewed questions about a choice Georgians feel they need to make. In which direction do they see their future? Imran Garda travels to Georgia where he meets protesters and sits down with two politicians on opposite sides to hear their arguments: former Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia and Georgian Dream lawmaker Levan Makhashvili. Makhashvili says the ruling party, Georgian Dream, is being pragmatic and wants to survive. Georgian Dream stands accused by opposition leaders and even its Western friends of election fraud and steering the country toward Russia. The government claims it’s all a distortion of reality. But with Russia still occupying parts of Georgian territory and the recent introduction of the controversial “foreign agents” law that Human Rights Watch calls a law designed to “extinguish critical voices” and seems to mimic similar legislation in Russia, it has pushed some young people over the edge. They have taken to the streets to say they want a clear commitment away from Russia and towards Europe. For months, waving EU flags and defying their government, thousands of Georgians have protested outside parliament against what they say is an alarming slide away from Europe—and into Russia’s shadow. Giorgi Gakharia was once Prime Minister and oversaw a clampdown on dissent when he was Interior Minister. This time around, he stands with the dissenters, saying Georgian Dream is not merely being pragmatic and has made an active decision to be anti-West. On this episode of The InnerView we listen to Gakharia's criticisms and Makhashvili’s defense of the current policy and the controversial law. Can Georgia balance its interests, and the reality of its geography? Can Georgian Dream still keep Georgia’s dream of the European Union alive without upsetting Russia?

"An ambassador does not sit passively and allow lies to be spread about his country...it's not an accident that former prominent South Africans are prominent MAGA engineers." Now "persona non grata" in the United States, former South African Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool sits down for an exclusive interview with Imran Garda in Cape Town. Rasool opposes Elon Musk and the Trump administration's claim of Afrikaner persecution and white genocide in his country, and has no regrets about the comments that led to his high profile expulsion from the United States. The former Ambassador explains what he calls the global "phenomenon" of white grievance and supremacism that is being amplified by the Trump administration and addresses the "race-baiter" epithet used by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in his tweet announcing Rasool's expulsion. The two discuss the events leading up to his expulsion from the US and Rasool explains why he believes South Africa is being punished by the United States — both economically and politically. He says the country was deemed "impudent" for even thinking of taking US ally Israel to the ICJ and describes how he was told by Trump officials that the door to discussing trade would only open once South Africa retracts its lawsuit at the International Court of Justice. "What hurts the Trump administration is that the last victims of colonialism, apartheid and supremacy, have the first voice against a genocide in the Middle East." Can South Africa avoid further retribution, while still holding onto its stated values? Or does it have to bend the knee to Trump in order to save itself?

Aziz Abu Sarah’s brother was killed by Israeli forces for allegedly throwing stones, yet he tells Imran Garda that Israelis are not his enemies. A Palestinian peacemaker and activist, Abu Sarah has witnessed firsthand the violence in occupied East Jerusalem and endured profound personal loss. But instead of succumbing to anger and the desire for revenge, he chose a path of reconciliation—working alongside Israelis to challenge the occupation and build a future rooted in peace. Is the approach naive, or brave? On this episode of The InnerView, Abu Sarah shares how his experiences in conflict zones like Rwanda have shaped his approach to peacemaking, what leaders like Netanyahu and Ben-Gvir fear the most, and why he believes that standing hand in hand with Israeli partners forces the international community to listen.

Rev. Jeffrey Brown is one of the architects of a strategy that helped to reduce violent crime involving youth in Boston by 79% in the 1990s. Brown did it by bringing together faith leaders, community members and law enforcement to do something that was unthinkable at the time: speak directly to the people who were perpetrating the violence. The result is known as "The Boston Miracle". Imran Garda meets with Jeffrey Brown at the historic Twelfth Baptist Church in the predominantly African-American neighborhood of Roxbury in Boston. Roxbury is one of several communities in Boston that were once gripped by violent crime. Today it is thriving. On this episode of The InnerView, Brown talks about why government strategies to reduce violence keep missing the mark, how faith can transform an entire community, and why listening—truly listening—can heal a community in ways no policy ever could.

For a decade John Perkins traveled to the world's developing nations with the aim of selling them massive loans that they didn't need and in most cases couldn't possibly pay back. Perkins' work as an economic hit man helped lock target countries into a cycle of debt that would see them transfer control of their natural resources to serve Western interests. In his book Confessions of an Economic Hit Man, Perkins blew the whistle on a system designed to concentrate the world's wealth and power in the hands of a few at the expense of the many. On this episode of The InnerView, Imran Garda asks Perkins how he came to reject the system he once served, how it's manifesting itself in today's world, and who are the new economic hit men leading the charge.

Mo Gawdat once sat at the pinnacle of the Silicon Valley tech inductry, serving as Google X’s Chief Business Officer. Then he decided to walk away from it all, leaving the corporate world behind to focus on what he says truly matters: happiness, self-awareness and self-acceptance. On this episode of The InnerView, Mo Gawdat explains why he believes happiness is a choice that you can embrace to lead a more fulfilled life. Gawdat, the author of Solve for Happy and Scary Smart opens up about ego, the powerful players shaping AI, and what happens when machines take control.

Omer Bartov, a renowned Israeli-American scholar of Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Brown University, says that Israel’s treatment of Palestinians in Gaza meets the criteria for genocide, demonstrating a clear intent for ethnic cleansing, fueled by dehumanizing rhetoric. While Germany faced its Holocaust guilt with deep introspection, the question remains: can Israeli society ever do the same for the suffering it has inflicted on Palestinians? Bartov tells Imran Garda that only a political process within Israel can pave the way for genuine regret and meaningful change. On this episode of The InnerView, Imran Garda asks Bartov whether a recent ceasefire is a step toward lasting peace or just a fleeting pause.