Founder vs. Cancer: A Real-Life Hail Mary

Founder vs. Cancer: A Real-Life Hail Mary

Author: Curiosity Media March 31, 2026 Duration: 1:01:02

After watching Project Hail Mary, Cal sees more than a sci-fi story about saving the stars—he sees a blueprint for how humans might survive the age of AI. That insight leads him to a real-life story even more extraordinary. When tech founder Sid Sijbrandij is diagnosed with a rare, aggressive cancer, the traditional medical system eventually runs out of answers. Most people would accept that outcome. Sid does the opposite. He treats his own disease like an open- source problem—gathering data, building a team, and chasing solutions across the globe with the same mindset that helped build GitLab into a billion-dollar company. With the help of AI, Cal translates this complex scientific journey into a human story anyone can follow. One that's filled with pancakes, partnerships, love, and a radical idea: What if the future of survival—against disease, against uncertainty, against AI itself—belongs to those who adapt fastest? This episode is about more than cancer. It's about how humans fight back.


For decades, Cal Fussman has built a remarkable career by asking the right things at the right time, drawing profound insights from icons like Muhammad Ali, Mikhail Gorbachev, and Serena Williams. That same genuine curiosity drives every episode of Big Questions with Cal Fussman. This isn't about quick soundbites or surface-level chatter. Instead, Cal creates a space where guests-from visionary CEOs and legendary coaches to groundbreaking artists-feel comfortable exploring the pivotal moments and hard-earned lessons that truly shaped their paths. You'll hear conversations that meander into unexpected places, often uncovering the personal philosophies and resilient mindsets behind public success. Produced by Curiosity Media, the podcast serves as a masterclass in listening and human connection, relevant for anyone interested in the intersections of business, creative careers, and lifelong education. Each discussion feels like a deep dive into a life fully examined, offering tangible wisdom for navigating your own big questions.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Big Questions with Cal Fussman
Podcast Episodes
YOUR BRAIN. YOUR GUT. YOUR EDGE. [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 49:31
Graduation stages across America erupted in boos this spring when AI came up. That anxiety isn't just for new grads. It's felt by anyone wondering whether they still have a place in a world being reshaped by technology.…
Big Questions: The Future Of Work [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:24
In an age when AI has everyone asking what's next for humans, Cal goes looking for answers. He finds them in some unexpected places. A five-year-old girl who walked through a Transylvanian forest to save her sister's lif…
Where Grief Meets Promise [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 7:47
Cal opens this deeply personal episode of Big Questions with a flood of remarkable medical breakthroughs. 3D-printed windpipes. A pancreatic cancer drug that doubles survival rates. Nanotechnology clearing toxic proteins…
Old School Rules, New Age Tools. [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 17:48
A professor at an elite university noticed something alarming: every student's work was flawless . . . and nearly identical. All of it generated by AI. So she did the unthinkable (for the students, anyway). She banned de…
He Could Be Golfing. Instead, He's Upgrading Your Brain. [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 38:23
What if AI didn't replace you — it made you a better you? Dr. David Bach, Harvard-trained neuroscientist and founder of Optios, is using artificial intelligence to help people think faster, learn better, retain more, and…
The Stranger Inside of You [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:00
Cal was 12 years old, bored out of his mind in junior high science class, waiting for the bell to ring. He had no idea his wandering brain was doing exactly what it was built to do – tell stories. We all carry the most e…
What? A Cowgarithm????? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 7:47
What do Clint Eastwood, a Montana snowstorm, and a herd of cattle have to do with artificial intelligence? Cal starts with the romance of the old cattle drives and the sound of the old show Rawhide, remembers the pull of…
The Theater That Taught Me How To Survive AI [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 15:13
Cal Fussman walks into a theater expecting to see a documentary about artificial intelligence. He walks out with a new understanding of the future of work. Through a surprising connection to Super Mario, a landlord named…
Who Buys the Future If AI Takes Your Job? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 10:31
The headlines keep leading us to believe that AI is coming for your job. But Cal Fussman poses a question no one else is asking. If humans stop earning… who's left to buy what AI and the machines produce? As companies ra…