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The James Altucher Show

The James Altucher Show

By: James Altucher
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James Altucher interviews the world's leading peak performers in every area of life. But instead of giving you the typical success story, James digs deeper to find the "Choose Yourself" story - these are the moments we relate to... when someone rises up from personal struggle to reinvent themselves. The James Altucher Show brings you into the lives of peak-performers: billionaires, best-selling authors, rappers, astronauts, athletes, comedians, actors, and the world champions in every field, all who forged their own paths, found financial freedom and harnessed the power to create more meaningful and fulfilling lives.© Copyright © 2002-2025 PodcastOne.com. All rights reserved. Economics
Episodes
  • The Viral Chess Cheating Scandal with Anal Beads: Ben Mezrich Reveals the Full Story

    The Viral Chess Cheating Scandal with Anal Beads: Ben Mezrich Reveals the Full Story
    Jun 2 2026
    A Note from James:Oh my gosh, one of my favorite guests ever: Ben Mezrich.Ben wrote Bringing Down the House, which became the movie 21. He wrote The Accidental Billionaires, which became The Social Network. And now his latest page-turner, Checkmate, is about one of the most explosive scandals in modern sports: the Hans Niemann chess cheating controversy that took over the world.You remember the story. Magnus Carlsen, the greatest chess player of all time, loses to this completely arrogant, egotistical 19-year-old bad boy of chess. Then Magnus accuses him of cheating. This had basically never happened before at that level in chess.What followed was a viral meltdown: the infamous anal beads tweet, death threats, lawsuits, chess.com, Netflix documentaries, and a chess world at war with itself.Ben spent over a year with Hans Niemann. He got access to Magnus’s camp, chess.com, and the drama behind the chessboards. So we talk about whether Hans actually cheated that day, the insane rise of online chess during COVID, the world of prodigies, the generational clash inside elite chess, and how one suspicious game nearly destroyed a young player’s career.So welcome to one of my favorite guests, Ben Mezrich.Episode Description:James talks with bestselling author and screenwriter Ben Mezrich about Checkmate, his new book on the Magnus Carlsen–Hans Niemann chess cheating scandal. It’s classic Mezrich territory: brilliant young people, high-stakes competition, huge money, a gray area between genius and rule-breaking, and a story that becomes much bigger than the facts alone.The conversation is especially strong because James knows the chess world firsthand. He was a master-level player, helped build early internet chess infrastructure, knows many of the top players, and has commentated on Norway Chess. That gives the interview a different texture: Ben brings the reporting and the narrative access, while James brings the chess context and the ability to test the story move by move.They talk about Hans’s rise, Magnus’s suspicion, chess.com’s cheating algorithms, why online cheating is different from over-the-board cheating, the role of the infamous anal beads tweet, and the psychological cost of being publicly accused without definitive evidence. The question underneath the whole episode is not just “Did Hans cheat?” It’s: what happens when reputation, genius, technology, money, and suspicion all collide on one chessboard?What You’ll Learn:Why the Carlsen–Niemann scandal became a global story far beyond the chess world.How Ben Mezrich got access to Hans Niemann, chess.com, Magnus’s camp, and the hidden details around the scandal.Why cheating online is easier to detect than many people think, while over-the-board cheating may be harder to catch.Why Magnus’s accusation is both serious and complicated, even without definitive public evidence.How the anal beads rumor actually started—and why it turned a chess controversy into an internet phenomenon.Why Hans Niemann’s comeback to elite chess is so unusual after that level of reputational damage.How Ben thinks about stories involving ambition, genius, scams, gray areas, and young people breaking rules.Timestamped Chapters:[02:00] Preview: Hans Niemann, Magnus Carlsen, and the cheating accusation[02:59] A Note from James: Ben Mezrich returns[04:17] James’s chess background and connection to the story[04:45] Ben’s year embedded with Hans Niemann[05:00] Why elite chess players have such unusual personalities[05:42] Why chess carries cultural weight[06:15] Why the scandal exploded worldwide[07:44] Chess.com, streaming, and the billion-dollar chess economy[08:12] The Mezrich formula: genius, ambition, gray areas, and scandal[09:49] Online cheating vs. over-the-board cheating[10:29] Why technology has changed cheating in chess[11:44] The reputational risk of cheating over the board[12:37] Why top-20 chess status matters financially[13:12] Hans Niemann’s unusually fast rise[14:00] COVID, online chess, and Hans’s obsessive tournament grind[15:49] Suspicious patterns, livestreams, and uncertainty[17:09] Hans’s history of online cheating[17:33] Hans living alone in New York as a teenager[18:42] Not getting into Harvard and resetting his life around chess[19:35] James admits he may have been the first person to cheat online[20:42] Why cheating can help build a streaming reputation[21:29] How chess.com detects online cheating[22:04] Magnus’s gut feeling after the Sinquefield Cup game[23:19] Magnus’s state of mind before playing Hans[24:00] The photographer incident no one knew about[25:19] Magnus confronting the photographer[26:47] Hans’s body language during the game[27:32] Why Magnus felt “nobody plays me like this”[28:08] Hans’s explanation of the win[29:00] The psychological battle between Hans and Magnus[29:43] Magnus’s breakfast with Danny Rensch before the game[31:00] Why prior online cheating changes how opponents ...
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    1 hr
  • Opus Dei: The Cult of Dark Money, Human Trafficking, and Right-Wing Conspiracy inside the Catholic Church | Gareth Gore

    Opus Dei: The Cult of Dark Money, Human Trafficking, and Right-Wing Conspiracy inside the Catholic Church | Gareth Gore
    May 26 2026
    A Note from James:Have you ever read The Da Vinci Code?That book was definitely a page-turner. Before I read it, I had never really heard of Opus Dei. And after today’s conversation with Gareth Gore, you might wish you had never heard of Opus Dei either.In The Da Vinci Code, Opus Dei is a mysterious organization tied to the Catholic Church, secret history, and global power. But today’s guest, Gareth Gore, started investigating Opus Dei from a completely different angle. He was looking into the 2017 collapse of a major Spanish bank. He found something much bigger: a secretive organization with connections to global finance, politics, elite schools, the FBI, and even the highest levels of power in Washington, D.C.His book is Opus: The Cult of Dark Money, Human Trafficking, and Right-Wing Conspiracy inside the Catholic Church. And what he found is disturbing. Officially, Opus Dei promotes holiness in everyday life. And honestly, I like parts of that idea. But Gareth argues that behind the public message is a high-control organization built on secrecy, manipulation, financial opacity, and alleged abuse.We talk about how Opus Dei recruits from both the ultra-wealthy and the desperately poor, the strange ownership structures tied to hundreds of millions of dollars, the Robert Hanssen spy scandal, alleged influence in Washington, and Gareth’s recent private meeting with Pope Leo, where he says he gave the Pope a dossier calling for serious action.This is an eye-opening story. Here’s Gareth Gore.Episode Description:James talks with investigative journalist Gareth Gore about Opus Dei, the secretive Catholic organization at the center of Gareth’s book Opus. What started as Gareth’s investigation into the collapse of Banco Popular in Spain led him into a much larger story about money, power, religious authority, alleged exploitation, and the ways an institution can hide behind noble language while pursuing a much harder political and financial agenda.Gareth explains that Opus Dei officially presents itself as a Catholic movement dedicated to helping ordinary people find holiness through daily work. But his argument is that the public message conceals a high-control system built around recruitment, secrecy, spiritual pressure, and influence inside elite institutions. He describes Opus Dei as both an official part of the Catholic Church and, in his view, an abusive cult. Opus Dei strongly disputes Gareth’s book, calling it a false picture based on distorted facts and conspiracy theories.The conversation moves from Opus Dei’s founding in Spain in 1928 to its special status as a personal prelature, its alleged links to Banco Popular, its recruitment practices, the Robert Hanssen spy scandal, elite schools, Washington power networks, and Gareth’s recent meeting with Pope Leo. The episode is useful because it does not treat Opus Dei as just a conspiracy theory symbol from The Da Vinci Code. It asks a more direct question: what happens when a religious organization accumulates money, secrecy, political influence, and moral authority at the same time?What You’ll Learn:What Opus Dei officially is, and why its status as a personal prelature matters.How Gareth Gore went from investigating a Spanish bank collapse to writing a book about Opus Dei.Why Gareth argues that Opus Dei’s public message differs sharply from its internal practices.How Banco Popular allegedly became a financial engine for Opus Dei-linked projects.Why Gareth compares aspects of Opus Dei to a high-control cult.What Gareth says happened in the Robert Hanssen spy scandal.Why the alleged recruitment of minors and underprivileged girls has become one of the most serious issues around the organization.What Gareth told Pope Leo in their private meeting.Timestamped Chapters:[02:00] Gareth Gore on Opus Dei as an alleged abusive cult[02:41] Opus Dei as a “rising militia”[03:54] A Note from James: from The Da Vinci Code to Gareth’s investigation[05:54] Gareth joins the show[06:00] How James first heard of Opus Dei[06:37] Gareth’s background as a financial journalist[07:11] What is Opus Dei?[07:45] Opus Dei’s status as a personal prelature[08:40] Why that structure gives Opus Dei unusual freedom[09:15] Gareth’s argument: official Catholic structure, unofficial high-control group[10:03] The positive public message of “holiness in everyday life”[10:43] Josemaría Escrivá and Opus Dei’s founding[12:00] When Gareth thinks the movement turned political[13:30] Spain on the edge of civil war[14:14] Escrivá’s followers as a “secret army”[15:19] Why Opus Dei recruits from elites[16:00] Why Opus Dei also recruits from the poor[17:09] Underprivileged girls and alleged domestic servitude[17:37] How recruitment works by invitation[19:15] Lifelong study, confession, and spiritual guidance[19:54] Opus Dei’s modern agenda[20:46] Sex, family values, and political identity[22:05] Why Dan Brown chose Opus Dei for The Da Vinci Code[24:...
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    59 mins
  • Navy SEAL Dad Reveals How to Raise Confident Kids After Divorce | Brandon Webb

    Navy SEAL Dad Reveals How to Raise Confident Kids After Divorce | Brandon Webb
    May 21 2026
    A Note from James:Today on the show, I have a very special guest and a good friend of mine, Brandon Webb.Brandon has been on the show many times before. He’s a former Navy SEAL, and he also ran the Navy SEAL sniper school that trained some of the best snipers in the world, including the sniper the movie American Sniper was based on. He’s written a ton of books about the military, leadership, confidence, mental toughness, and even military thrillers. A few weeks ago, we talked about what was going on in Iran, and I encourage you to go back and listen to that episode too.His new book is Puddle Jumpers: Simple and Proven Ways to Raise Confident & Joyful Kids. This is not your typical parenting book. It’s not filled with abstract academic theory. I hate those books. This is written by a dad who has been through war, divorce, rebuilding businesses, and raising three kids as a committed co-parent after he and his ex-wife split.And I know his kids. From my perspective, he’s done a great job.As a father myself, I was really interested in this book. And even beyond parenting, it was useful for thinking about the kind of discipline I need to apply to myself. I’ve been divorced. I’ve had failed businesses. It’s hard navigating those life traumas while also trying to be a good father. Brandon has lived that, and he writes about it honestly.So let’s get into it. My friend, the one and only Brandon Webb. Welcome back to the show.Episode Description:James talks with former Navy SEAL, bestselling author, entrepreneur, and father of three Brandon Webb about parenting, co-parenting, discipline, confidence, failure, and what it actually takes to raise resilient kids.Brandon’s new book, Puddle Jumpers, is not a parenting book written from an ivory tower. It comes from lived experience: war, divorce, rebuilding after business failure, co-parenting across households, and trying to raise kids who can handle real life. His central point is simple but difficult: kids need love, support, boundaries, and enough ordinary stress to develop confidence.The conversation is practical and personal. Brandon explains why successful co-parenting requires putting the kids ahead of old resentments, why parents should ask better questions, why punishment without understanding the “why” can backfire, and why kids need to experience failure instead of being protected from every hard moment.What makes this episode useful is that the advice works beyond parenting. The same ideas—take responsibility, ask better questions, tolerate discomfort, celebrate small wins, and learn from failure—apply to adults too.What You’ll Learn:Why Brandon wrote a parenting book after years of writing about the military, leadership, and mental toughness.How he and his ex-wife built a healthy co-parenting relationship after divorce.Why “happy mom, happy kids” became one of his guiding principles.How everyday stressors—ordering food, asking for an autograph, taking the subway—build real confidence in kids.Why parents should praise effort, risk-taking, and resilience rather than simply telling kids they are smart.How to discipline with love by getting to the “why” behind bad behavior.Why sometimes the best parenting move is not advocating for your kid.How to help kids find purpose by exposing them to lots of people, places, skills, and experiences.Timestamped Chapters:[02:00] Brandon on parent-to-parent advice versus academic theory[03:02] A Note from James: Brandon Webb returns[04:42] From Navy SEAL books to a parenting book[05:27] Why Brandon never expected to write about parenting[06:14] Friends asking Brandon for parenting advice[07:25] Why he saw a gap in parenting books[08:12] Applying SEAL mental management tools to parenting[09:01] Co-parenting after divorce[09:29] Brandon’s ex-wife and kids joining the audiobook[09:47] Publishing with Authors Equity[11:07] Why co-parenting often breaks down[11:48] How the family court system can create conflict[13:22] The therapist who helped Brandon and Gretchen divorce well[15:29] “Happy mom, happy kids”[16:31] Responding when plans change after divorce[17:35] What the kids remember about healthy co-parenting[18:24] Why each chapter could be its own book[19:41] Building confidence and celebrating small wins[21:00] The power of ordinary stress[21:53] Asking for an autograph and building courage[23:33] Why kids need “wind” to grow stronger roots[24:47] The New York subway story and trusting kids[25:31] Failure, responsibility, and protecting kids too much[26:35] Praising effort versus praising intelligence[28:26] Brandon’s daughter failing her belt test[30:19] Why painful moments can become gifts[30:53] What Brandon wishes he had done better as a father[31:51] Three questions Brandon asked his kids[32:36] Why parents need to ask better questions[33:22] One-on-one trips with each child[34:00] Questions that led to a four-hour dinner conversation[38:25] Discipline, emotional ...
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    1 hr
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