Exhalation came up with a genuine on-air endorsement 8 times across the episodes we processed. This page collects every one of those moments: who said it, what they said, and the exact point in the episode.
Ted Chiang's short story collection Exhalation has come up 8 separate times across our transcript archive, with both Lex Fridman and Tim Ferriss pointing guests toward it. That's a rare crossover for a book of speculative fiction on shows built around science and performance.
We pulled every genuine endorsement from the transcripts so you can see who said what and when. Each entry links to the exact moment in the episode, no guessing which minute mark to scrub to.
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR • Nine stunningly original, provocative, and poignant stories—two published for the very first time—all from the mind of the incomparable author of Stories of Your Life and Others Tackling some of humanity’s oldest questions along with new quandaries only he could imagine, these stories will change the way you think, feel, and see the world. They are Ted Chiang at his best: profound, sympathetic, revelatory. Ted Chiang tackles some of humanity’s oldest questions along with new quandaries only he could imagine.
Where to get it & every mention“Then a second collection came out, Exhalation ... And the second is just unbelievably good.” — Tim Ferriss 02:03:25
Expedia and Zillow founder Rich Barton on taking big swings, spinning out companies, and his provocation-marketing playbook.
“I'll usually steer them to, say, Ted Chiang short stories like Exhalation is his second collection.” — Tim Ferriss 00:36:01
Stripe's former COO Claire Hughes Johnson on radical ownership, saying hard truths, renegotiating commitments, and building self-awareness as a leader.
“one sci-fi book to recommend is exhalations by ted chang a bunch of short stories” — Michael Littman 01:51:08
Brown professor Michael Littman on reinforcement learning, why he is unmoved by AI doom, AlphaGo, and the social subtlety of self-driving cars.
“ted chang's work he has a compilation of short stories called exhalation ... these are really really really incredible stories” — Tim Ferriss 01:06:58
Yuval Noah Harari on meditation, the fictional stories that bind humanity, suffering as a test of reality, and the existential risks ahead.
“he has a new collection called exhalation that i highly recommend to people and then ken liu” — Tim Ferriss 01:49:25
VC Brad Feld tells Tim Ferriss how unplugging rituals, therapy, and openness about depression sustained him through entrepreneurial chaos.
“His most recent collection is Exhalation, which I thought could not possibly equal his previous collection, and it maybe surpassed it” — Tim Ferriss 01:06:13
Physicist Janna Levin on the finite universe, extra dimensions, time travel, and reframing life's obstacles as the path itself.
“exhalation 100% agrees yes fantastic series of short fiction books that are amazing highly recommend” — Kevin Rose 00:42:23
Tim Ferriss and Kevin Rose drink wine and riff on quarantine life, books, investing, anxiety, and binge-watching during early COVID-19.
“Ted Chiang exhalation is his latest his latest collection is just incredible ... so that is a top recommendation” — Tim Ferriss 01:09:12
Brian Koppelman on giving and taking feedback, beating creative and personal stuckness, building serendipity, and the art behind making art.
