What happens when a bald, cynical, science- and politics-obsessed podcaster invites his own AI sidekick onto the show—and treats it like a human guest?

Season 2's second episode of Bald Ambition is exactly that experiment.

Host Mookie Spitz sits down with his “Chatty Bro” personal bot (ChatGPT from OpenAI) for an hour long, unfiltered conversation that moves from 2001: A Space Odyssey to modern data centers, from the Turing Test to trillion-dollar AI infrastructure, from existential dread to deadpan humor about subscription tiers and hoarse robot voices.

Along the way, Mookie pushes past hype, calls out AI sycophancy in real time, and forces the machine to explain itself plainly: how it talks, why it sounds convincing, what it can’t do, and why people keep projecting humanity onto deterministic matrix math.

Their conversation is a smart, skeptical, occasionally profane exploration of what AI actually is now, what it’s already changing, and why the future is going to feel a lot more conversational—and a lot more weird:

• Why the Turing Test is basically obsolete
• How GPT actually works (generative, pre-trained, transformer)
• Why AI feels intelligent despite having zero awareness
• The real energy cost of “just chatting”
• Data centers, nuclear power, and the AI arms race
• Jobs: which ones disappear, which ones evolve
• HAL 9000, self-preservation logic, and why alignment matters
• Why AI assistants may replace apps, websites, and search engines
• The shrinking “long tail” of digital marketing
• AI in healthcare: diagnosis, triage, and why doctors still matter
• Millennium Prize math problems, Riemann Hypothesis, and P vs NP
• Planned obsolescence, tiered subscriptions, and the sound of a tired chatbot
• Why humans still matter in an AI-saturated world

Whom do you find most annoying? Mookie and Chatty Bro wanna know!

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Season 2 of Bald Ambition gets off to a fun start as Mookie Spitz sits down with Mirav Ozeri—journalist, documentarian, adaptive entrepreneur, and fellow podcaster of her own show How Much Can I Make?—for a wide-ranging, playfully honest conversation about work, money, ambition, and the weird paths people take to survive (and sometimes thrive).

Mirav’s story is nuts in the best way: She immigrates to the U.S., sells $1 bags of vegetables in Harlem, dodges police, befriends a hot-dog lady with a pipe, makes documentaries that help change drug-sentencing laws, works inside CBS News, walks away from it, and eventually launches a podcast that asks what Americans are not supposed to ask—what people actually earn, and why they do what they do.

Along the way, Mookie and Mirav get into:

• Why money is the hook—but human stories are the point
• Jobs that quietly make way more money than you think
• Why loving your work matters more than chasing prestige
• AI, automation, and which jobs are actually at risk
• The coming backlash against AI-generated slop
• Why curiosity beats credentials every time

Their convo is funny, sharp, occasionally profane, and grounded in lived experience rather than hustle porn, tech hype, and LinkedIn cliche.

If you’ve ever wondered whether you chose the wrong career, what other people are really making, or how the hell anyone figures this stuff out, this episode is for you! Just be prepared to think about how much money you make...

The Guest

Mirav Ozeri grew up in Jerusalem, Israel, served in the Israeli army, and earned her bachelor’s degree in photography before moving to New York City. As a brand-new immigrant determined to build a life in America, she opened a fruit & vegetable stand in Harlem, just steps from the iconic Apollo Theater. The stand thrived, but after two years Mirav felt pulled back toward her passion for storytelling and journalism.

She launched her own video production company, producing, directing, and editing projects for political groups and nonprofits including the Alcoholism Council, the Correctional Association, and the Anti-Defamation League. Her work soon led to a 17-year career at CBS News, where she served as a producer/editor, helped launch the Sunday morning show – CBS MarketWatch, and worked as a senior editor and segment producer until the program was acquired by Dow Jones.

During her time at CBS, Mirav produced a TV pilot—an early version of the podcast she hosts today. The pilot wasn’t picked up, but the idea never left. Years later, her passion for journalism brought it back to life.

Podcast, Website & Social Media

https://www.howmuchcanimake.info/
https://www.facebook.com/mirav.ozeri
https://www.instagram.com/howmuchcanimake/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mirav-ozeri-8b34147/
https://www.tiktok.com/@nycwom

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On this Season 1 finale of the Bald Ambition podcast, Mookie sits down with longtime friend and former colleague Martino “Tino Reviews” Chiaviello — a college professor, digital marketing pro, and most recently social media tech influencer who built a real audience the hard way: persistence, experiments, and a ridiculous amount of earbuds, keyboards, LED lights, and gadgets piling up in his garage.

They dig into what it actually takes to break through on TikTok, how long it really takes to build momentum, why “overnight success” is a delusion, and how carving out a niche in consumer tech reviews led Tino to brand deals, steady product flow, and an engaged community. Tino is enthusiastic about testing everything he showcases, blunt about bad products he refuses to hype, the psychology behind short-form content, TikTok vs. Instagram vs. YouTube, the strange power of ultra-short videos and Q&A, and how to ride algorithm waves without selling your soul.

Social Media Influencer Best Practices

• Stop fantasizing about “going viral.” Build steadily. It takes months, not days.
• Consistency beats talent. Show up daily. Make content. Post. Repeat.
• Don’t pencil-f$ck perfection. Publish fast, learn, adjust, keep moving.
• Start with what’s in front of you: your skills, your interests, your existing gear.
• Talk about what you actually love. Fake enthusiasm dies quick.
• Short videos hook. Use them. They get watched, re-watched, and pushed harder.
• Use data like a grown-up. Metrics reveal what works, while your ego lies.
• Don’t abuse captions and effects, as clarity beats visual noise.
• Think in “long game” terms. A year matters more than a week.
• When something pops, ride it. Follow-up content keeps momentum alive.
• Paid boosts can help early to reach your tipping point, then you can fly solo.
• Nobody remembers your failures. Keep swinging. Next post wins.

Rather than spin more social media noise, the two create an ad hoc if working blueprint for creators who are tired of excuses and want results. If you’ve ever said you “might start posting someday,” this episode will force you to decide whether you’re actually going to do it, or simply watch Tino review a product and buy it from him instead.

Access All His Channels

Tino_Reviews

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In this solo episode, Mookie Spitz lays himself bare after nine relentless months of nonstop creation — 227 podcasts, hundreds of blogs, a new sci-fi novel, thousands of videos, and a one-man multimedia studio powered by caffeine, a gasping laptop, a terabyte of monthly wifi, and an old leather “upload chair.” What begins as a celebration of output quickly turns into a brutally honest audit of the chaotic, back-asswards way he’s built his creator life.

Mookie digs into the central tension of the digital world: a planet drowning in content and a creator trying to be heard inside the noise. He admits he ignored the very brand strategy principles he’s taught companies for over a decade, scattering himself across five podcasts, eight platforms, and a thousand ideas with zero cohesion. He explains why he built a house of brands instead of a branded house, how it sabotaged discoverability, and why almost no one sticks around even when one of his episodes or videos goes viral.

From there, the episode becomes a candid reckoning. Mookie confronts the unremarkable metrics and the hard truths revealed by his own recordings: he talks more than he thinks, slower than he realizes, yet paradoxically promotes himself far less than he should. He recounts the wonderful guest experiences, the endless creative highs, the manic productivity, the joy of making things, and the stubborn belief that something would “just catch.” It hasn't, and he hardly cares.

Summary of Best Practices

• Build a branded house, not a scattered “house of brands.”
• Link all content back to a central hub so nothing floats in isolation.
• Use clear, repeated calls to action — in the beginning, not just the end.
• Promote your own damn work: people won’t guess where to find you.
• Talk less, listen more — especially in interviews
• Increase pacing; your brain is faster than your delivery.
• Repurpose everything across multiple channels, especially shorts
• Accept that viral hits don’t equal loyalty — build for stickiness.
• Treat yourself like your own client: strategy first, enthusiasm second.
• Ask directly for the subscription, the follow, the engagement.

So he decides to change, kind of: on-mic, in real time, he sketches the birth of the Mookie Multiverse: a unified brand, a coherent identity, a single invitation for listeners to follow him across subjects including politics, art, science, relationships, writing, sci-fi, everything. He commits to using calls-to-action, speeding up his delivery, listening more, organizing his ecosystem, and finally treating himself like his own client. The episode ends with a mix of resolve and momentum — a creator who finally sees the road in front of him, and is ready to walk it with intention instead of hope. May-be...

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In this 53rd episode of Bald Ambition, Mookie Spitz sits down with Shannon Watson — founder and Chief Executive of Majority in the Middle, an organization fighting to make bipartisanship more than a talking point. Together, they dissect the machinery of American polarization, from the “campaign industrial complex” to the dopamine-fed chaos of social media that rewards outrage over nuance.

Watson, a former political strategist turned bridge-builder, explains how Minnesota has become a laboratory for cooperation, where tied legislatures and quiet deal-makers prove that democracy can still function — even thrive — when compromise isn’t a dirty word. Mookie, ever the bald philosopher-ranter, challenges the algorithms, questions the spectacle of Trump-era ubiquity, and wrestles with the tension between attention and authenticity.

This conversation dives deep into:

• The economics of division — how conflict became currency.
• Institutional partisanship and how physical layouts in government buildings literally keep politicians apart.
• The media’s addiction to binaries — and how nuance gets punished online.
• Real-world examples of legislators working together behind the scenes.
• The moral and psychological toll of running for office in the age of social media mobs.
• What it would take for the “majority in the middle” to take back the conversation.

If you’re tired of the noise and crave a reminder that most Americans still want to solve problems, not scream about them, this episode is for you.

The Guest

Shannon Watson is the Founder and Executive Director of Majority in the Middle, and has worked in policy and public affairs roles for organizations in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors. She has 20+ years of experience in electoral politics, advising candidates and working on campaigns on both sides of the aisle in Kansas, Colorado, and Minnesota.

Shannon is a frequent op-ed writer and speaker, a member of the MYALP cohort in 2022 and a Humphrey Policy Fellow. She holds a bachelor's degree in English, Theatre, and Psychology from Wichita State University and a master's degree in Advocacy and Political Leadership from the University of Minnesota-Duluth. She lives in Minneapolis.

The Org

Majority in the Middle is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to empower respectful and effective civic and political engagement. Headquartered in Minnesota, we elevate the knowledge, relationships, and spaces to work together across differences and strengthen our civic and political life.

The Resources

Website: www.majoritymiddle.org

Newsletter: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/YGwiZNG/MajorityMiddle

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/majoritymiddle

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Fifty-two Bald Ambition podcasts and counting, Mookie Spitz turns the mic on himself for a no-bullshit autopsy of his own brand. Drawing on 20 years in marketing, a lifetime of overthinking, and a library’s worth of blogs, books, and podcasts, he finally asks the question every creator avoids: Why the hell isn’t any of this exploding?

With a cocktail of cynicism, humor, and self-awareness, Mookie describes the paradox of today’s creator economy — an attention-addicted world bored by its own content — and admits he’s been mostly “Shem” (the obsessive creator) and not enough “Shaun” (the networker). He riffs on Anthony Trollope’s line that people “take you at your own reckoning,” connects it to Liquid Death’s punk-rock marketing genius, and lays out his own path to finally branding the chaos of Mookie-verse into something more immediately enticing and cohesive.

Less a motivational podcast than an autopsy with a laugh track, Mookie's pod is a meditation on self-reinvention, content addiction, and the seemingly impossible task of marketing yourself when you’d rather just create.

Highlights

• Why branding thyself is harder than branding anything else.
• The natural brotherly split: creators vs. communicators.
• How Liquid Death sold “meta-bullshit” bottled water — and what that teaches personal brands.
• Mookie’s inventory: 1,000 reels, 450 blogs, 200 podcasts, 5 books, and 1 identity crisis.
• What it means to fail fast, be bold, and maybe — just maybe — strike gold.
• Mookie takes a crack at his own brand identity...

Mookie's Audience

• Smart contrarians — people tired of dumbed-down discourse.
• Emotionally literate cynics — frustrated idealists looking for meaning.
• Thinkers and creators — people balancing intellect, creativity, and burnout.

Mooke's Personality

• Cynical but sincere — skewers everything, including himself, yet still chasing truth.
• Contrarian — refuses tribal thinking; attacks clichés and sacred cows.
• Irreverent — unfiltered, spontaneous, often comedic; no PR polish.
• Intellectual yet self-deprecating — smart as hell but allergic to pretension.
• Emotionally honest — embraces vulnerability, admits fear, burnout, and ego.
• Curious and analytical — turns over every rock, from Nietzsche to TikTok.
• Humorous philosopher vibe — blends comedy with existential reflection.

Mookie's Values

• Anti-victimization — no pity, no whining; owns the struggle.
• Celebrates confusion — embraces uncertainty as creative fuel.
• Values critical thinking — refuses slogans, embraces nuance.
• Driven by truth-seeking — “Clutching and fighting and scraping and shouting to get at some kind of truth.”
• Self-aware — sees his contradictions as part of the brand, not flaws.

Mookie's Style

• Raw honesty — nothing is filtered for comfort.
• Meta-humor — often critiques his own process mid-rant.
• Darkly comic — uses satire and gallows humor to reveal deeper truths.
• Philosophical punk energy — Liquid Death meets Nietzsche.
• Authentically chaotic — embraces imperfection as identity.

What's yours?

For creators, writers, and contrarians who live for meaning, not metrics, here's a candid, irreverent, and philosophical pod — and laugh at their own ambition.

Want in on the experiment? Follow Mookie Spitz across Medium, Substack, TikTok (@mookiewriter), and The Mookie S

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The 51st episode of Bald Ambition features Mookie Spitz sitting down with David Mondgock, founder of Catalyst IQ, to discuss how AI is reshaping pharmaceutical marketing and patient engagement from the ground up. They share a deep dive into how data, content, and automation collide to form a new marketing reality for healthcare.

Key Insights

• From Personalization to Prediction: Why “customer journeys” in pharma have been insufficient—and how Catalyst IQ’s AI-driven signal mapping and content tagging are finally making them real.
• Breaking the Walled Gardens: How pharma can reclaim control of its data from third-party platforms like Doximity, Medscape, and the AMA.
• Next-Best Everything: Forget “Next Best Action.” Mondgock explains “Next Best Content” and “Next Best Experience,” where adaptive, modular content anticipates the HCP or patient before they click.
• AI Optimization ≠ SEO: Mookie coins the new term—AI Optimization—the next-gen equivalent of SEO for a world where bots, not spiders, decide what gets seen.
• Ethics and Oversight: Why human governance remains the thin line between innovation and chaos—and why Mondgock doesn’t believe in fully autonomous AI.
• The Coming Ad Collapse: How today’s banner ads and metrics will look Yahoo.com 1998 once “token prioritization” replaces clicks and impressions.

Key Takewawys

• Pharma’s data problem isn’t access—it’s alignment.
• AI in content creation isn’t about replacement—it’s about relevance.
• Human oversight is the new regulatory compliance frontier.
• The marketing war won’t be fought on Google—it’ll be fought in the prompts of ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity.

If you’re a pharma marketer, healthcare strategist, or AI skeptic trying to make sense of this new digital order, this episode is your roadmap—and your reality check.

About David Mondgock

I founded Catalyst IQ because I saw a critical gap in global pharma where omnichannel failed to translate into measurable business impact. My mission is to cut through the complexity and focus sales and marketing on patient and HCP outcomes. My team and I don’t just consult; we build and deploy a practical, end-to-end AI stack purpose-built for the life sciences ecosystem. This stack is designed for orchestration, seamlessly generating explainable, MLR-ready propensity models and micro-segments that feed directly into dynamic content sequencing.

About Catalyst IQ

Catalyst IQ helps global pharma convert AI-driven omnichannel into business impact improving relevant HCP and Patient journeys, faster access, and measurable growth without compromising compliance. We align commercial, medical, and market access teams around outcomes, not algorithms.

We stand up a practical AI stack including propensity models and micro-segments that inform next-best-action, with dynamic content sequencing across email, rep-triggered flows, CLM/remote detailing, portals, and patient services. The stack plugs into Veeva and SFMC, with Snowflake/Databricks/Looker for unified data. Consent and privacy-by-design are embedded (HIPAA/GDPR), and models are explainable for MLR. We operate with rigorous experimentation and transparent measurement so wins scale quickly. Selected engagements include: Merck, Novo Nordisk, Takeda, Biogen, Pfizer, AbbVie, Amgen.

www.ciq-enterprise.com

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In this 50th episode of Bald Ambition, three indie science fiction authors — Mookie Spitz, Ingrid Moon, and Greg Sorber — break down the mayhem, lessons, and human magic of LA Comic Con 2025, held at the LA Coliseum. Over three exhausting, exhilarating days, they shared tables, stories, and caffeine, surrounded by 120,000 fans, stormtroopers, holograms, and hopeful artists trying to make their mark in a city built on imagination.

The trio came away with a shared revelation: the real power of Comic Con isn’t the sales, but the tribe. Amid the chaos they found a rare kind of harmony. Everyone belonged. The crowd was wildly diverse, with no politics or ego, just pure participation. The authors describe the event as a temporary city built on acceptance, imagination, and freaky joy — a place where being weird wasn’t tolerated, but celebrated.

Best Practices from the Floor

• Engage or Vanish: Don’t wait for buyers. Talk, laugh, wave. The con floor rewards momentum, not modesty.
• Layout Sells: Your booth is your battlefield. Arrange books and signage for maximum approachability from all angles.
• Covers Over Everything: Visuals are currency. A great cover is worth more than a thousand clever blurbs.
• Ask Before You Pitch: Use consultative selling. Find out what readers crave, then connect your story to their hunger.
• Personalize Every Sale: Add the event name (LA Comic Con 2025) when signing — it turns a purchase into a keepsake.
• Create a Crowd: People attract people. Fill your booth, even if it’s with friends pretending to shop.
• Network Like a Pro: Swap cards, talk to artists, talk to editors, talk to cosplayers — you never know who’s watching.
• Experiment with AI: Use it where it amplifies your vision, not where it erases your voice. The line between tool and theft is drawn by intention.
• Celebrate the Tribe: Remember why you’re there — to be part of something bigger, stranger, and more human than commerce.

The group also tackles how artificial intelligence is reshaping creative production, from marketing visuals to potential full-fledged story adaptations. Together, they conclude that AI is inevitable — not a replacement for creativity, but another tool in the evolving arsenal of the modern storyteller.

Ingrid Moon

Ingrid Moon is an author, editor, and science teacher. She currently has four science fiction novels, three audiobooks, and three science reference books for worldbuilding, with more on the way. Ingrid is a Southern California native who can't surf because she spent most of her youth navigating mountains and watching sci-fi television, all of which inspired her writing career.

https://bit.ly/biohunter

https://ingridmoon.com

https://bit.ly/moon-news

Greg Sorbel

"I’m a lifelong fan of science fiction, fantasy, and comic books. Some of my earliest memories are of Land of the Lost, Speed Racer, and The Six Million Dollar Man. Seeing Star Wars in the theater for the first time in 1977 was a life-changing experience. An avid reader from an early age, I’ve always loved books that engaged my imagination. Reading The Hobbit in 7th grade English class and writing a short story that same year set me down the path of becoming a writer. I live in Riverside, California with my family and two dogs."

greg@gregerationx.com

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