![](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/32220310-b38a-40d9-b373-6fb5dbb0b1e9/53820643279_96e2c83e4f_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&q=80&rect=0%2C602%2C5791%2C3259&w=800)
The Iconoclast
Setup
Peter Thiel has made no secret of his feelings about economic and cultural issues. Hear him discuss his vision for the future, his bets on AI and digital currencies, his thoughts on the state of America — and why he’s staying out of the 2024 U.S. presidential election (for now).
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Economy
![Health Care Dollars and Sense](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/e12e381e-18bb-4b95-9944-1ae7a7583865/AIHHealthcare.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=267&q=80&rect=29%2C0%2C1409%2C940&w=400)
The United States spends $4.3 trillion—almost one fifth of the nation’s GDP—on health care. As the scale of the medical enterprise expands, venture capitalists are pursuing th...
![Gettyimages 1251559190](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/58d24997-fbaa-44bc-88ce-f9a8ee5b7400/GettyImages-1251559190.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=400&mono=0a7c51&q=80&rect=1178%2C0%2C3447%2C3446&w=400)
![Gettyimages 1251559190](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/58d24997-fbaa-44bc-88ce-f9a8ee5b7400/GettyImages-1251559190.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=400&q=80&rect=1178%2C0%2C3447%2C3446&w=400)
It’s been decades since the United States has updated its immigration policies in any sort of comprehensive way, and the problems and suffering at the southern border have per...
![Can Capitalism Change Course?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/5251ae67-a839-4992-94b7-5934dfd686ff/GettyImages-1503371245.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=267&q=80&rect=0%2C13%2C8372%2C5577&w=400)
In a time of growing wealth disparity and changing societal values, can capitalism adapt? How is the economy being transformed by investments in infrastructure, AI, energy, an...
![Gettyimages 1849966331](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/d073a327-e3ad-4448-9007-af7604aa001a/GettyImages-1849966331.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=400&mono=ac473e&q=80&rect=1754%2C0%2C4773%2C4776&w=400)
![Gettyimages 1849966331](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/d073a327-e3ad-4448-9007-af7604aa001a/GettyImages-1849966331.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=400&q=80&rect=1754%2C0%2C4773%2C4776&w=400)
Whether they publicly tout it or not, U.S. technology companies play a powerful role in politics, cultural issues and the way we live. Founder and investor Peter Thiel is one...
![15 Talks to Understand the 2024 Political Landscape](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/26ac3431-ada5-424c-94a2-fdbb8fbb1bc3/GettyImages-1490401931.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=267&q=80&rect=0%2C0%2C4096%2C2729&w=400)
The 2024 presidential election is only months away, and the past few weeks alone have brought shocking headlines that change the political ground we stand on — an attempted a...
![Gettyimages 1560590937](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/61060d95-cdf4-4b73-96ef-4832c7f04fb8/GettyImages-1560590937.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=400&mono=0a80bc&q=80&rect=1445%2C0%2C4115%2C4113&w=400)
![Gettyimages 1560590937](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/61060d95-cdf4-4b73-96ef-4832c7f04fb8/GettyImages-1560590937.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=400&q=80&rect=1445%2C0%2C4115%2C4113&w=400)
Sizable electorates around the world are flocking to populist candidates who promise power, domination and a return to better times. The global experiment in liberalism seems...
![Aif Stock Hero Images](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/d53c86d8-a116-4261-8468-bf005c53bca1/AIFStockHeroImages.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=400&mono=ab287a&q=80&rect=1453%2C0%2C3377%2C3375&w=400)
![Aif Stock Hero Images](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/d53c86d8-a116-4261-8468-bf005c53bca1/AIFStockHeroImages.png?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=400&q=80&rect=1453%2C0%2C3377%2C3375&w=400)
The federal right to abortions in the United States has been overturned, access to contraception and IVF services are threatened in many states, and the gender wage gap persis...
![Adobestock 260344316](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/f2599851-39be-4138-a0b4-165f786a48a6/AdobeStock_260344316.jpeg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=400&mono=ac473e&q=80&rect=0%2C0%2C2624%2C2624&w=400)
![Adobestock 260344316](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/f2599851-39be-4138-a0b4-165f786a48a6/AdobeStock_260344316.jpeg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=400&q=80&rect=0%2C0%2C2624%2C2624&w=400)
The Supreme Court has issued another series of controversial and consequential decisions this term, fueling discussion on the current state of the judicial branch. Recent poll...
![Are American Women Going Backwards?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/a4f70e43-9976-4d6c-936d-6ffb4f1b3993/53824046585_143bcae259_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=600&q=80&rect=180%2C0%2C2062%2C3101&w=400)
The rollback of reproductive rights, the push to end no-fault divorce, and gun laws that allow domestic abusers to own a firearm are turning the clock back on women’s rights....
![Does American Capitalism Still Work?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/6ddc1a5b-c983-41dc-9fdf-c50d8411fce7/53823880878_647f9e3767_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C483%2C4651%2C2618&w=400)
In a time of growing wealth disparity and evolving societal values, can capitalism adapt to sustain the American Dream?
![Can We Disagree Better?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/867d54ef-2bf9-4bb5-995d-f35c23e375d0/53821131222_ca1376075a_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C187%2C5360%2C3015&w=400)
Americans feel more polarized than ever, but two governors from opposite sides of the aisle have made it their mission to show otherwise.
![Women Investing in Women](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/29942e24-e2ab-4f83-94d2-b907fbaf4615/53823873613_23991edd49_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C260%2C3101%2C1752&w=400)
Women are twice as likely to invest in female-led businesses. Explore the ways women approach wealth building and investment, and how they create opportunities to build financ...
![A Friendship Forged Across the Aisle](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/7f68fce4-96b1-496a-9a3c-24bc903170c0/53823888468_306343aebd_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=600&q=80&rect=1292%2C0%2C2067%2C3100&w=400)
Former Senators Bill Nelson and Kay Bailey Hutchison discuss the bipartisan work that defined their careers, suggest ways for today’s elected officials to find common ground,...
![The Court Decides](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/44f5f558-fb15-4b8c-8704-3d09fe95fc55/53822899936_81b46589e0_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=4%2C0%2C8248%2C4640&w=400)
As the Supreme Court concludes another contentious term, it is once again reshaping the legal landscape. With cases on abortion, gun rights and social media — and potentially...
![Ford’s CEO on EVs and Driving Into the Future](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/08b088f4-4719-4c3b-9330-be6ac4ff123a/fordceo.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C297%2C5632%2C3168&w=400)
Join Jim Farley as he explores how drivers' needs and priorities are guiding the future of vehicle technology and reshaping our expectations of cars and trucks.
![Pushback: The Perils (and Power) of Corporate Commitments](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/52e07d66-d3b4-46f7-9d95-fa97f85a9682/53823619826_882478669c_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C252%2C4651%2C2618&w=400)
With ESG caught in the political culture wars, business executives must decide to speak up or stay quiet about climate, diversity and democracy. What do employees and citizens...
![Navigating Tomorrow’s Economy (Part 1 and Part 2)](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/6174eb00-1e5e-4da8-acfb-8b85be903d4b/53822186869_5287ac99ed_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=600&q=80&rect=2735%2C0%2C2660%2C4000&w=400)
![The First AI Elections](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/99577b3a-ea63-463d-ab41-661af8afde41/aielections.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C279%2C5443%2C3062&w=400)
Two billion people worldwide are set to vote in elections this year, amid global conflict, societal mistrust, broken information ecosystems — and the truth-destroying disrupti...
![The Secret of Making Hits](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/008361bf-2540-4a00-8e1f-69739f370ce8/53822660989_e5265f0505_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=1%2C307%2C5880%2C3308&w=400)
Amid seismic shifts in the entertainment world, Oscar-, Golden Globe- and Emmy-winning Brian Grazer has managed to keep pivoting to new ways to tell stories in movies, TV and...
![The African Century](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/bdb124db-886c-4221-854e-1e6893bfb3be/53824085325_aa02dd6d1f_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C1453%2C3100%2C1744&w=400)
Africa is a rising giant. By 2050, one in four people on the planet will be African, and by 2060, Africa will have the largest labor force in the world. A former Nigerian pres...