1 00:00:15,266 --> 00:00:19,395 When did we all stop believing that our government could do great things? 2 00:00:19,479 --> 00:00:22,148 -That's one small step for man… 3 00:00:22,732 --> 00:00:24,567 You know, we only went to the moon in the first place 4 00:00:24,650 --> 00:00:27,862 because we were locked in a Cold War military competition with the Soviets. 5 00:00:27,945 --> 00:00:32,033 …One giant screw you to those Commie bastards. 6 00:00:35,995 --> 00:00:39,332 But it was still one of the greatest technological achievements 7 00:00:39,415 --> 00:00:40,958 in human history. 8 00:00:41,709 --> 00:00:44,545 You know, I used to idolize NASA as a kid. 9 00:00:44,629 --> 00:00:48,132 They were creating the future right before our eyes. 10 00:00:49,133 --> 00:00:50,927 -Today though, 11 00:00:52,303 --> 00:00:56,182 none of us think of the US government as a hotbed of innovation, 12 00:00:56,265 --> 00:00:58,559 more like a place where ideas go to die. 13 00:00:58,643 --> 00:01:01,562 After they filled out an F30 Idea Death Approval Form. 14 00:01:02,438 --> 00:01:03,523 Denied. 15 00:01:04,649 --> 00:01:08,528 -Instead, today we idolize these guys. 16 00:01:12,323 --> 00:01:14,450 The Tech industry. 17 00:01:14,534 --> 00:01:19,247 We've brought you such life-changing innovations as the iPhone, 18 00:01:20,289 --> 00:01:26,337 Google Maps, and the little talking box that spies on you. 19 00:01:27,213 --> 00:01:29,549 Searching the web for the little talking box 20 00:01:29,632 --> 00:01:31,217 -that spies-- -Not now. Stop it. 21 00:01:32,718 --> 00:01:36,138 We've made the world a more connected, 22 00:01:36,222 --> 00:01:39,934 more efficient, and more expensive place, 23 00:01:40,017 --> 00:01:43,354 and we did it all by ourselves. 24 00:01:45,857 --> 00:01:48,860 That's the story they tell, but is it true? 25 00:01:49,527 --> 00:01:52,530 You know, if we've learned one thing on this show so far, 26 00:01:52,613 --> 00:01:57,285 it's that no one does anything alone. I mean hell, this show has my name on it, 27 00:01:57,368 --> 00:02:01,789 but it literally took a team of people just to help me get dressed this morning. 28 00:02:01,873 --> 00:02:04,292 Oh, thank you Bree. I thought I had some schmutz. 29 00:02:05,251 --> 00:02:09,255 So has our government really given up on innovating 30 00:02:09,338 --> 00:02:12,049 and just handed the wheel of progress to these guys? 31 00:02:12,133 --> 00:02:17,430 Or is it still somewhere behind the scenes mapping out our future? 32 00:02:25,438 --> 00:02:28,900 When was the last time you were truly lost? 33 00:02:28,983 --> 00:02:32,862 For me, it was back in 2006, when I was first doing stand-up. 34 00:02:32,945 --> 00:02:36,365 I used to literally print out MapQuest directions 35 00:02:36,449 --> 00:02:39,785 and follow them religiously to wherever the open mic was. 36 00:02:39,869 --> 00:02:43,247 If I made a wrong turn I'd have to do my set wherever I wound up. 37 00:02:43,331 --> 00:02:47,418 To this day, I can still hear the lemurs heckling me at the Bronx Zoo. 38 00:02:50,588 --> 00:02:54,550 But I literally have not gotten lost once in the last decade 39 00:02:54,634 --> 00:02:58,012 thanks to the single greatest innovation in navigational technology 40 00:02:58,095 --> 00:03:00,848 in human history, GPS. 41 00:03:00,932 --> 00:03:03,017 That's right, fuck the compass. 42 00:03:03,768 --> 00:03:05,353 Hey! 43 00:03:05,436 --> 00:03:06,687 Get with the times kid! 44 00:03:08,272 --> 00:03:09,857 -Argh! 45 00:03:10,858 --> 00:03:12,902 I mean, think about this thing. 46 00:03:12,985 --> 00:03:15,571 Any device with a global positioning system receiver 47 00:03:15,655 --> 00:03:18,699 can tell you where you are within a few feet, 48 00:03:18,783 --> 00:03:21,953 how fast you're going within a fraction of a mile per hour, 49 00:03:22,036 --> 00:03:26,290 even what time it is within a millionth of a second anywhere on Earth. 50 00:03:27,124 --> 00:03:29,085 But, you know what blows my mind? 51 00:03:29,168 --> 00:03:34,090 GPS wasn't created by Bill Gates or Steve Jobs or Ask Jeeves. 52 00:03:34,173 --> 00:03:37,718 It was invented developed and is still run to this day 53 00:03:37,802 --> 00:03:39,720 by the United States Federal Government. 54 00:03:40,680 --> 00:03:45,601 But why? Why would the government invent something like GPS? 55 00:03:45,685 --> 00:03:49,730 It was all because of the Cold War. 56 00:03:52,483 --> 00:03:56,362 In 1957, two government scientists were tuning in to the signal 57 00:03:56,445 --> 00:04:01,117 of the Soviet satellite, Sputnik when they made an astonishing discovery. 58 00:04:01,200 --> 00:04:05,079 Drat! The Soviets have beaten us to space, 59 00:04:05,162 --> 00:04:08,416 and they filled it with filthy communist beeping. 60 00:04:09,000 --> 00:04:13,004 But wait, if we measure the changes in frequency of those beeps, 61 00:04:13,087 --> 00:04:16,173 we can determine where Sputnik is and how fast it's going. 62 00:04:16,257 --> 00:04:18,676 And that means if we launched our own satellites, 63 00:04:18,759 --> 00:04:22,013 then we could use their signals to calculate our position on Earth, 64 00:04:22,096 --> 00:04:24,974 and that'll give our GI Joes the upper hand. 65 00:04:26,559 --> 00:04:30,187 Your beeping will be your downfall, comrade Khrushchev. 66 00:04:32,648 --> 00:04:35,735 The brave engineers at the Department of Defense 67 00:04:35,818 --> 00:04:40,573 spent the next fifty years developing and refining the GPS signal, 68 00:04:40,656 --> 00:04:44,035 miniaturizing receivers, and launching satellites. 69 00:04:44,910 --> 00:04:48,414 The goal? Unbridled military might. 70 00:04:48,497 --> 00:04:51,334 GPS was a major advancement in warfare, 71 00:04:51,417 --> 00:04:53,836 revolutionizing everything from reconnaissance, 72 00:04:53,919 --> 00:04:57,089 to search and rescue, to missile targeting. 73 00:04:57,173 --> 00:05:00,426 Anything to send the Pinko bastards running. 74 00:05:00,509 --> 00:05:02,553 But in the year 2000, 75 00:05:03,220 --> 00:05:07,808 the government opened access to high grade GPS to civilian use. 76 00:05:08,434 --> 00:05:11,937 Today, 24 heroic government satellites 77 00:05:12,021 --> 00:05:16,067 tirelessly circle the globe, creating a worldwide network that 78 00:05:16,150 --> 00:05:19,820 any device with a GPS receiver can use for free. 79 00:05:19,904 --> 00:05:22,073 -It's a global public utility. 80 00:05:22,156 --> 00:05:25,117 Paid for by your hard-earned tax dollars. 81 00:05:26,285 --> 00:05:27,953 Isn't America swell? 82 00:05:29,246 --> 00:05:30,748 Yes, we are. 83 00:05:30,831 --> 00:05:35,753 GPS has led to an economic explosion in the private sector. 84 00:05:35,836 --> 00:05:39,465 We visionaries, no, luminaries, 85 00:05:40,216 --> 00:05:42,551 no, visionaries, 86 00:05:42,635 --> 00:05:47,264 in the tech industry have taken these tiny, inexpensive GPS receivers 87 00:05:47,348 --> 00:05:50,392 and put them in just about everything. 88 00:05:50,476 --> 00:05:55,189 That's right, your dog now has GPS thanks to us. 89 00:05:55,272 --> 00:06:00,277 We've used this technology to change the world in countless ways. 90 00:06:00,361 --> 00:06:04,615 Google used GPS to revolutionize navigation. 91 00:06:04,698 --> 00:06:08,160 Uber used it to disrupt the taxicab industry 92 00:06:08,244 --> 00:06:09,995 right out of business. 93 00:06:10,079 --> 00:06:14,959 And Tinder uses GPS to make dating worse. 94 00:06:15,042 --> 00:06:16,335 Since the 1980s, 95 00:06:16,418 --> 00:06:20,881 GPS has generated over 1.4 trillion dollars 96 00:06:20,965 --> 00:06:23,050 for American businesses. 97 00:06:25,511 --> 00:06:27,596 Isn't this incredible? I mean, 98 00:06:27,680 --> 00:06:30,266 some of the most valuable companies in America 99 00:06:30,349 --> 00:06:33,144 were built on the back of a government utility 100 00:06:33,227 --> 00:06:35,938 that we the public, paid to develop. 101 00:06:36,689 --> 00:06:38,732 You know, maybe that means they shouldn't work so hard 102 00:06:38,816 --> 00:06:41,110 to get out of paying their taxes. 103 00:06:41,193 --> 00:06:42,570 Abba-baba-baba-baba-baba. 104 00:06:42,653 --> 00:06:44,405 Um, just so, you know, 105 00:06:44,488 --> 00:06:47,575 my private island is a business expense, okay? 106 00:06:47,658 --> 00:06:52,371 It's where I dock my work yacht. It's a work yacht. 107 00:06:52,454 --> 00:06:54,748 But, however you slice it, 108 00:06:54,832 --> 00:06:59,503 the return we're getting on GPS as a society is incredible. 109 00:06:59,587 --> 00:07:03,007 I mean, this amazing utility that has transformed our lives 110 00:07:03,090 --> 00:07:06,051 only cost the DOD two-tenths of a percent 111 00:07:06,135 --> 00:07:08,470 of its yearly budget to maintain. 112 00:07:08,554 --> 00:07:10,890 And despite that tiny cost, 113 00:07:10,973 --> 00:07:14,602 GPS is now embedded into the fabric of our society. 114 00:07:14,685 --> 00:07:18,564 The power grid uses it to direct electricity to your home. 115 00:07:18,647 --> 00:07:22,109 Stock exchanges use it to time sensitive financial transactions, 116 00:07:22,193 --> 00:07:25,446 and cell phone towers use it to route your calls. 117 00:07:25,529 --> 00:07:27,948 That means that even a minor glitch 118 00:07:28,032 --> 00:07:30,618 wouldn't just send me back to MapQuest printouts, 119 00:07:30,701 --> 00:07:34,371 it could seriously disrupt our entire society. 120 00:07:34,455 --> 00:07:39,043 So who's in charge of making sure this vital system stays on course? 121 00:07:39,126 --> 00:07:40,377 -Hey, Adam. -Oh, hi! 122 00:07:40,461 --> 00:07:43,130 HI, I'm Captain Rudico. Welcome to Schriever Air Force Base. 123 00:07:43,214 --> 00:07:44,924 Let me take you through security and show you around. 124 00:07:45,007 --> 00:07:45,966 That'd be great. 125 00:07:46,050 --> 00:07:48,469 We're called the Second Space Operations Squadron. 126 00:07:48,552 --> 00:07:52,139 And a lot of people don't realize that our GPS constellation 127 00:07:52,223 --> 00:07:55,267 is command and controlled from, um, two stops. 128 00:07:55,351 --> 00:07:58,521 Oh my-- We're gonna see where GPS is. 129 00:07:58,604 --> 00:08:02,024 Absolutely, where we send the commands, how we command these satellites, 130 00:08:02,107 --> 00:08:03,192 that's where I'm showing you. 131 00:08:03,275 --> 00:08:05,319 -That is so cool. -Yeah. Yeah! 132 00:08:05,402 --> 00:08:07,696 I'm struck by how much this like feels 133 00:08:07,780 --> 00:08:10,324 kind of like a normal office building apart from the fact that 134 00:08:10,407 --> 00:08:12,660 if I go in the wrong place, someone's gonna shoot me. 135 00:08:12,743 --> 00:08:14,620 Yeah, just wait till you see the Ops floor. 136 00:08:14,703 --> 00:08:15,704 -Okay. -Yeah. 137 00:08:16,413 --> 00:08:18,290 This is a very serious door. 138 00:08:18,374 --> 00:08:20,584 Right behind here, this one little operation center, 139 00:08:20,668 --> 00:08:22,002 we service six billion users. 140 00:08:22,086 --> 00:08:23,671 I can't believe we're gonna see this. 141 00:08:24,505 --> 00:08:26,465 -Here we go. Come on in Adam. -Alright. 142 00:08:26,549 --> 00:08:30,302 Welcome to the GPS Operations Center. This is the master control station 143 00:08:30,386 --> 00:08:32,972 where we fly all of our GPS satellites. 144 00:08:33,055 --> 00:08:36,308 So the entire GPS constellation is run from this room. 145 00:08:36,392 --> 00:08:37,768 -Absolutely. Yeah. -By these ten people. 146 00:08:37,851 --> 00:08:41,230 These ten people provide this service to everybody across the globe. 147 00:08:41,313 --> 00:08:43,148 It's usually a big surprise for people to figure that out. 148 00:08:43,232 --> 00:08:46,026 -Yeah. -Three past seven seven. 149 00:08:46,110 --> 00:08:49,655 Active now seven set and cape A SS01 stead hill cycle subframe 150 00:08:49,738 --> 00:08:52,866 -SPDOBC two nav dump. -That's the order. 151 00:08:52,950 --> 00:08:56,245 No windows. No cis. No teepees. No conjunctions. Good six. 152 00:08:56,328 --> 00:08:59,873 So you folks here, you're sending messages to the satellite 153 00:08:59,957 --> 00:09:02,418 to check on, it to adjust to what it's doing, etcetera, 154 00:09:02,501 --> 00:09:03,669 and you're coordinating that from here. 155 00:09:03,752 --> 00:09:08,799 Exactly. And this gives us command authority on the satellite. 156 00:09:08,882 --> 00:09:10,884 You actually have command of the satellite right now? 157 00:09:10,968 --> 00:09:12,595 Yeah, as this is setting up. 158 00:09:12,678 --> 00:09:14,888 Wow. Can I ask you a personal question? 159 00:09:14,972 --> 00:09:16,390 -Sure. -How old are you? 160 00:09:16,473 --> 00:09:17,975 -Twenty years old. -Okay. 161 00:09:18,058 --> 00:09:21,478 When I was 20 years old, I was a fucking dumbass, man. I couldn't have 162 00:09:21,562 --> 00:09:24,398 been doing this. Is that a lot of pressure? 163 00:09:24,481 --> 00:09:27,610 Yeah I mean, I've gotten used to it. But, yeah, if you think about it. 164 00:09:28,861 --> 00:09:32,156 One of our oldest satellites right now is about 23, 24 years old. 165 00:09:32,239 --> 00:09:35,993 You are younger than some of the satellites that you are running? 166 00:09:36,076 --> 00:09:37,453 Yep. 167 00:09:37,536 --> 00:09:40,122 Incredible. Woah, what do we do next? 168 00:09:40,205 --> 00:09:41,915 Uh, well, we've already sent a test command, 169 00:09:41,999 --> 00:09:43,584 so if you want, we're gonna have you… 170 00:09:44,251 --> 00:09:45,544 -Okay. -this line down here, 171 00:09:45,628 --> 00:09:48,922 -type in that right there. -Okay. 172 00:09:49,006 --> 00:09:50,841 As you get ready to send that test command, 173 00:09:50,924 --> 00:09:55,054 sixty-eight point seven billion dollar GDP impact every year by GPS. 174 00:09:55,137 --> 00:09:56,972 -All right? Don't mess it up. -Okay. 175 00:09:57,056 --> 00:09:59,642 Could mess up a lot of people's commutes right now. 176 00:09:59,725 --> 00:10:01,310 -That's an 'O' or a 'D'? -That's an 'O'. 177 00:10:01,393 --> 00:10:03,437 -Oh I know, I-- That was wrong. -Tap tap finger it. 178 00:10:03,520 --> 00:10:06,190 Alright, I'm real-- Oh, caps lock is on, so 179 00:10:06,273 --> 00:10:08,317 when I press shift it goes to lower ca-- Okay. 180 00:10:08,400 --> 00:10:10,903 I'm on top of it! I'm on top of it guys. 181 00:10:10,986 --> 00:10:12,488 Just tell me if the pressure is too much. 182 00:10:15,032 --> 00:10:17,034 Alright. Was there-- That was a space. 183 00:10:17,117 --> 00:10:18,327 -Space okay? -Okay. 184 00:10:18,410 --> 00:10:21,288 -No space. -No spa-- No space there? 185 00:10:21,372 --> 00:10:23,207 Alright, that one's on you guys, it looked like a space. 186 00:10:23,290 --> 00:10:25,376 -Is this a 'D' or an 'O'? -That is an 'O', sir. 187 00:10:25,459 --> 00:10:27,711 Okay. So when I hit enter, 188 00:10:27,795 --> 00:10:31,757 this command goes to one of those ground stations 189 00:10:31,840 --> 00:10:33,425 and then what, it's beamed up to the satellite? 190 00:10:33,509 --> 00:10:34,510 -Exactly. -Absolutely. 191 00:10:34,593 --> 00:10:37,262 And the satellite goes bleep-bleep and sends something back down here. 192 00:10:37,346 --> 00:10:38,389 -But before you hit 'enter,' -Yes. 193 00:10:38,472 --> 00:10:39,723 you gotta get their permission. 194 00:10:39,807 --> 00:10:42,059 Yeah, he's the verification for everything I send. 195 00:10:42,142 --> 00:10:44,687 Okay. Good-- Good to send this? 196 00:10:45,854 --> 00:10:47,648 -Yeah. 197 00:10:47,731 --> 00:10:50,526 -Finally. Okay. Let's do it. -And… 198 00:10:50,609 --> 00:10:52,361 Yep, just hit 'enter.' 199 00:10:53,821 --> 00:10:55,239 You'll see up here in messages… 200 00:10:55,322 --> 00:10:58,033 -status pending. And… -Status pending… 201 00:10:58,117 --> 00:10:59,660 Command tra-- Miss-- Transmission complete! 202 00:10:59,743 --> 00:11:01,662 -There it goes. Yep. -And you are admitted by one. 203 00:11:01,745 --> 00:11:02,746 -There we go. -I did it! 204 00:11:02,830 --> 00:11:04,873 Now you've uh, commanded a GPS satellite. 205 00:11:04,957 --> 00:11:06,291 -Thank you! 206 00:11:08,460 --> 00:11:10,629 -Okay. Now you're humoring me. -That only took… That 207 00:11:10,713 --> 00:11:12,548 only took five minutes longer than normal. 208 00:11:14,049 --> 00:11:15,467 Thank you so much, Kenny, really appreciate it. 209 00:11:15,551 --> 00:11:16,719 -My pleasure. -Incredible. 210 00:11:16,802 --> 00:11:18,303 Jus-- Wor… Work on your penmanship, 211 00:11:18,387 --> 00:11:21,014 that'll give everybody an easier time in the future, thank you. 212 00:11:21,098 --> 00:11:23,225 I'd like, uh, to introduce you to Colonel Holston, 213 00:11:23,308 --> 00:11:24,518 our Space Delta 8 Commander. 214 00:11:24,601 --> 00:11:26,186 Oh my God. So nice to meet you. 215 00:11:26,270 --> 00:11:28,230 -You're in command here. -Yes. 216 00:11:28,313 --> 00:11:30,482 Is there anything strange to you about the fact that, like, 217 00:11:30,566 --> 00:11:33,444 the civilian purpose is being fulfilled by the US military? 218 00:11:33,527 --> 00:11:35,779 I wouldn't have been surprised, "Oh, the government's in charge of it," 219 00:11:35,863 --> 00:11:39,116 but I would have thought, "Ah, NASA, NOAA, one of those other agencies." 220 00:11:39,199 --> 00:11:40,659 Why the military for GPS? 221 00:11:40,742 --> 00:11:42,953 Yeah, absolutely. Because the start of GPS 222 00:11:43,036 --> 00:11:45,539 was really to be able to provide our warfighters with understanding 223 00:11:45,622 --> 00:11:47,124 where are they in the battlefield. 224 00:11:47,207 --> 00:11:50,586 While it's extremely advantageous to the government and the military, 225 00:11:50,669 --> 00:11:52,171 -has a lot of civilian use. -Yeah. 226 00:11:52,254 --> 00:11:55,382 And so, really, the entire world gets to benefit from these ten operators 227 00:11:55,466 --> 00:11:57,468 that are doing this mission on a daily basis. 228 00:11:57,551 --> 00:12:00,512 And so it's an added benefit for the entire globe. 229 00:12:00,596 --> 00:12:04,349 Now, so many tech companies are like, making use of your signal 230 00:12:04,433 --> 00:12:07,603 to make money and to change, you know, the world that I live in. 231 00:12:07,686 --> 00:12:09,146 A lot of times they're taking the credit for that, right? 232 00:12:09,229 --> 00:12:10,522 They're sayi-- Like, Uber's like, "Ah, 233 00:12:10,606 --> 00:12:12,649 we revolutionized transportation and all that." 234 00:12:12,733 --> 00:12:14,985 Does that ever grind your gears at all? Like, be real with me a little bit. 235 00:12:15,068 --> 00:12:16,153 Are you ever sitting here going like, 236 00:12:16,236 --> 00:12:19,948 "No, we're doing it. We invented this and nobody knows." 237 00:12:20,032 --> 00:12:22,409 You know, we work in partnership with industry 238 00:12:22,493 --> 00:12:25,037 across government to be able to provide that signal. 239 00:12:25,120 --> 00:12:27,748 It is really one team to be able to build the capability 240 00:12:27,831 --> 00:12:29,958 that we need to be able to be the strongest, uh, 241 00:12:30,042 --> 00:12:31,376 the United States can provide. 242 00:12:31,460 --> 00:12:34,630 Yeah but, okay, that was a wonderful political answer, but come on, 243 00:12:34,713 --> 00:12:38,967 when you are using your cellphone and you're looking at that little dot, 244 00:12:39,051 --> 00:12:40,969 you look at that and you go like, "I'm doing that," don't you? 245 00:12:41,845 --> 00:12:42,763 Hell yeah. 246 00:12:44,431 --> 00:12:47,726 -I love it. Thank you so much. -Alright, thank you. Appreciate it, Adam. 247 00:12:47,809 --> 00:12:49,645 Wow. 248 00:12:49,728 --> 00:12:52,648 You know, I'll be honest, until we started working on this show, 249 00:12:52,731 --> 00:12:57,402 I had no idea that every time I use GPS to find a Starbucks to poop in, 250 00:12:57,486 --> 00:12:59,821 I'm doing it using military satellites. 251 00:12:59,905 --> 00:13:01,823 I mean, what about the rest of my technology? 252 00:13:01,907 --> 00:13:03,325 My phone? My laptop? 253 00:13:03,408 --> 00:13:06,078 Is my Roomba a pawn of the military-industrial complex? 254 00:13:09,206 --> 00:13:13,919 Well, we looked into it, and the answer turns out to be… yeah. 255 00:13:14,002 --> 00:13:16,171 Because of DARPA. 256 00:13:16,255 --> 00:13:18,006 You may not have heard of DARPA, 257 00:13:18,090 --> 00:13:21,552 but your world would be unrecognizable without it. 258 00:13:21,635 --> 00:13:24,012 It's a secretive agency within the US government 259 00:13:24,096 --> 00:13:28,809 that invests in far-out research to push the limits of future technology. 260 00:13:28,892 --> 00:13:33,188 It's kind of like the government's version of, uh, Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory. 261 00:13:33,272 --> 00:13:37,317 But, just like the movie, it has a serious dark side. 262 00:13:37,401 --> 00:13:40,654 -Hello. I'm Danny Darpa. 263 00:13:40,737 --> 00:13:42,489 Right this way, little boy. 264 00:13:42,573 --> 00:13:43,782 Okay, I'm 38. 265 00:13:43,865 --> 00:13:47,661 Hoo! 38 months, you are big baby. 266 00:13:59,673 --> 00:14:02,092 Behold our creations, child! 267 00:14:02,759 --> 00:14:07,431 It was DARPA funded research that the world such wonders as lasers, 268 00:14:07,514 --> 00:14:11,393 weather satellites, and graphical user interfaces. 269 00:14:17,733 --> 00:14:20,902 We even had a hand in the most transformative innovation 270 00:14:20,986 --> 00:14:22,279 of the last century. 271 00:14:22,362 --> 00:14:24,615 The Instant Pot? Oh, no, the regular pot. 272 00:14:24,698 --> 00:14:25,824 Shh. 273 00:14:25,908 --> 00:14:27,034 They're about to perform. 274 00:14:45,802 --> 00:14:48,889 Yes, what normies know as "the Internet," 275 00:14:48,972 --> 00:14:54,186 descends directly from a DARPA project called the Arpanet. 276 00:14:54,269 --> 00:14:57,773 It was the first network that linked many different kinds of computers 277 00:14:57,856 --> 00:15:00,484 together across vast distances. 278 00:15:00,567 --> 00:15:05,989 And it grew and grew, until it became the globe-spanning, 279 00:15:06,073 --> 00:15:11,536 world-changing, supermatrix that you are using to watch this right now. 280 00:15:15,540 --> 00:15:19,503 We even provided the initial funding for some of your favorite tech products. 281 00:15:19,586 --> 00:15:24,091 The company that makes Roomba wouldn't even exist without Daddy Darpa's dollars. 282 00:15:24,675 --> 00:15:28,553 And Apple, people think Apple invented Siri. 283 00:15:28,637 --> 00:15:30,555 Wrong sir! Wrong! 284 00:15:30,639 --> 00:15:32,808 Hey Siri, who is your true father? 285 00:15:32,891 --> 00:15:35,143 I'm sorry, I didn't quite get that. 286 00:15:35,227 --> 00:15:37,354 Are you ashamed of your roots?! 287 00:15:37,437 --> 00:15:39,272 Sorry, Papa. 288 00:15:39,356 --> 00:15:43,360 I was developed at a DARPA funded lab called SRI. 289 00:15:43,443 --> 00:15:47,322 Licensed to a private company then sold to Apple in 2010. 290 00:15:47,406 --> 00:15:48,991 See, we in the government 291 00:15:49,074 --> 00:15:52,786 are able to spur innovation in ways the private sector can't. 292 00:15:52,869 --> 00:15:57,749 Those cowardly capitalists have to focus on short-term profits to 293 00:15:57,833 --> 00:15:59,710 keep their shareholders happy. 294 00:15:59,793 --> 00:16:05,507 But we at DARPA are unencumbered with such petty concerns. 295 00:16:05,590 --> 00:16:10,012 We are free to take big risks on wild ideas 296 00:16:10,095 --> 00:16:12,014 that may not pan out for decades. 297 00:16:12,597 --> 00:16:15,934 Why, GPS took us half a century to develop. 298 00:16:16,018 --> 00:16:20,063 I'd like to see the little mayflies in Silicon Valley try that! 299 00:16:23,150 --> 00:16:25,736 You know, it's fine. 300 00:16:25,819 --> 00:16:28,447 We actually love our corporate partnerships. 301 00:16:28,530 --> 00:16:31,867 It would just be nice if we got a little more appreciation. 302 00:16:32,784 --> 00:16:35,495 Today, we continue to explore the 303 00:16:35,579 --> 00:16:39,499 technical frontiers of the future like autonomous vehicles, 304 00:16:39,583 --> 00:16:43,837 brain-computer interfaces, and even remote-controlled insects. 305 00:16:47,924 --> 00:16:51,428 Whoops, that one still has some kinks. 306 00:16:52,345 --> 00:16:54,264 Anyway, on with the tour. 307 00:16:56,475 --> 00:16:58,268 Amazing, isn't it? 308 00:16:58,351 --> 00:17:02,064 But there's something else you should know about DARPA. 309 00:17:08,236 --> 00:17:11,990 DARPA stands for Defense Advanced Research Project Agency, 310 00:17:12,074 --> 00:17:14,159 as in military defense. 311 00:17:14,242 --> 00:17:18,371 All that super cool tech was really just a side effect of DARPA's actual mission 312 00:17:18,455 --> 00:17:21,875 to build and maintain American military superiority. 313 00:17:30,050 --> 00:17:34,137 Yes, just like the Moon landing, GPS, and Rocky 4, 314 00:17:34,221 --> 00:17:36,890 DARPA was born of the Cold War. 315 00:17:36,973 --> 00:17:39,935 It was our government's competition with the Soviet Union 316 00:17:40,018 --> 00:17:42,437 that led it to pour massive resources 317 00:17:42,521 --> 00:17:45,857 into developing new military and weapons technology. 318 00:17:53,907 --> 00:17:58,411 That's right. DARPA is responsible for Agent Orange. 319 00:17:58,495 --> 00:18:02,165 A chemical defoliant our military used during the Vietnam War, 320 00:18:02,249 --> 00:18:04,543 which caused cancer, birth defects, 321 00:18:04,626 --> 00:18:09,005 and the deaths of as many as 400,000 Vietnamese citizens. 322 00:18:09,089 --> 00:18:11,258 American soldiers who were exposed to it, 323 00:18:11,341 --> 00:18:14,344 later developed leukemia and Hodgkin's Disease, 324 00:18:14,427 --> 00:18:16,930 and children three generations removed 325 00:18:17,013 --> 00:18:19,891 are still being born today with birth defects 326 00:18:19,975 --> 00:18:21,852 because of Agent Orange exposure. 327 00:18:22,811 --> 00:18:25,814 The same government agency that brought us the Internet, 328 00:18:26,481 --> 00:18:27,440 did all this. 329 00:18:41,329 --> 00:18:42,247 Ah-- 330 00:18:42,789 --> 00:18:45,667 You know what I've always found strangest about new technology? 331 00:18:46,418 --> 00:18:50,422 You can never quite be sure how it'll change the world. 332 00:18:50,505 --> 00:18:53,425 Like when the defense department launched those GPS satellites, 333 00:18:53,508 --> 00:18:57,012 they had no idea that one day we'd use them to deliver burritos. 334 00:18:58,221 --> 00:19:00,098 It's a Pandora's Box, 335 00:19:00,182 --> 00:19:02,976 and there's no better example of this than drones. 336 00:19:04,436 --> 00:19:07,480 Drones are one of the most useful gadgets of the decade, 337 00:19:07,564 --> 00:19:10,192 democratizing the skies for millions. 338 00:19:10,275 --> 00:19:13,570 They're used by ranchers, search and rescue teams, hobbyists, 339 00:19:13,653 --> 00:19:17,532 and videographers, yet drones also make people nervous. 340 00:19:17,616 --> 00:19:20,202 Because while they've gotten us some beautiful wedding shots, 341 00:19:20,285 --> 00:19:22,996 that's not the only kind of shot they take. 342 00:19:23,914 --> 00:19:27,000 The GoPros with wings you get at the big box store, 343 00:19:27,083 --> 00:19:29,586 were actually built on engineering advances 344 00:19:29,669 --> 00:19:31,463 DARPA and our government made 345 00:19:31,546 --> 00:19:35,675 when they were developing another breakthrough military technology… 346 00:19:38,220 --> 00:19:39,638 The combat drone. 347 00:19:41,723 --> 00:19:45,101 Predator and Reaper drones can be operated from bases 348 00:19:45,185 --> 00:19:47,562 thousands of miles away by pilots 349 00:19:47,646 --> 00:19:50,815 who can see what the drone sees in real time. 350 00:19:51,441 --> 00:19:53,360 Now It's obvious why you'd want such a thing. 351 00:19:53,443 --> 00:19:55,695 There's no need to risk an American pilot's life 352 00:19:55,779 --> 00:19:58,031 by physically sending them into combat. 353 00:19:58,114 --> 00:20:00,867 I'd obviously prefer this Robo-plane to get shot at 354 00:20:00,951 --> 00:20:02,244 than my neighbor's kid. 355 00:20:05,622 --> 00:20:06,623 Oof. 356 00:20:06,706 --> 00:20:07,916 Better it than you. 357 00:20:08,500 --> 00:20:12,837 But, what are the unintended consequences of an invention like this? 358 00:20:13,546 --> 00:20:17,884 If you don't have to risk an American life to order an airstrike, 359 00:20:17,968 --> 00:20:21,179 does that create an incentive to order them more often? 360 00:20:21,972 --> 00:20:25,684 Do technologies that make it easier for us to kill 361 00:20:25,767 --> 00:20:27,811 mean that we kill more often? 362 00:20:28,687 --> 00:20:32,232 Well, the answer so far has been yes. 363 00:20:33,233 --> 00:20:37,028 Over the past 20 years, our drone fleet has grown from around 50 364 00:20:37,112 --> 00:20:39,698 to close to 11,000. 365 00:20:39,781 --> 00:20:43,702 And under the Obama Administration, drone strikes increased tenfold. 366 00:20:44,452 --> 00:20:46,621 During the war on terror, our government 367 00:20:46,705 --> 00:20:50,292 even began using them to surveil and assassinate people 368 00:20:50,375 --> 00:20:53,086 in countries where we weren't even officially at war. 369 00:20:54,296 --> 00:20:56,506 According to the Bureau of Investigative Journalism 370 00:20:56,589 --> 00:20:59,009 between 2010 and 2020, 371 00:20:59,092 --> 00:21:02,679 14,000 US drone strikes in covert actions 372 00:21:02,762 --> 00:21:06,266 killed as many as 2,200 civilians. 373 00:21:08,476 --> 00:21:11,062 Strikes that likely never would have been ordered 374 00:21:11,146 --> 00:21:12,731 if drones hadn't been invented. 375 00:21:15,900 --> 00:21:19,654 And DARPA is now working on autonomous weapons, 376 00:21:19,738 --> 00:21:23,199 A.I. fighter jets that can beat any human in a dogfight, 377 00:21:23,283 --> 00:21:27,787 and robots that can roam the battlefield without human intervention. 378 00:21:27,871 --> 00:21:30,248 I mean, that thing is halfway to a Terminator 379 00:21:30,332 --> 00:21:32,083 or all the way to a WALL-E, 380 00:21:32,167 --> 00:21:34,669 which is cuter, but still terrifying. 381 00:21:34,753 --> 00:21:38,673 What kind of a future world is this technology creating? 382 00:21:38,757 --> 00:21:41,843 Well, to find out, we were going to go see these in person, 383 00:21:41,926 --> 00:21:44,012 but DARPA canceled on us last minute 384 00:21:44,095 --> 00:21:47,390 after they told us the entire program had suddenly been classified. 385 00:21:47,474 --> 00:21:49,225 -Good day sir. 386 00:21:49,309 --> 00:21:50,310 Okay, but it would've been a really good segment. 387 00:21:50,393 --> 00:21:52,145 I said good day! 388 00:21:54,606 --> 00:21:57,609 I really struggled with how to feel about this. 389 00:21:58,485 --> 00:22:00,820 I mean, our government's incredible innovations 390 00:22:00,904 --> 00:22:03,740 have transformed my life for the better, 391 00:22:04,449 --> 00:22:09,371 but they've also hurt or destroyed the lives of so many others. 392 00:22:10,497 --> 00:22:12,415 Did it have to be that way? 393 00:22:12,499 --> 00:22:16,669 Did we have to invent Agent Orange just to get to play Pokémon Go? 394 00:22:17,295 --> 00:22:19,464 Did our government's greatest inventions 395 00:22:19,547 --> 00:22:22,217 have to be born out of the barrel of a gun? 396 00:22:24,302 --> 00:22:30,100 You know, it was our tax dollars that put the GPS satellites in the sky, 397 00:22:30,183 --> 00:22:32,227 that sent a human to the Moon. 398 00:22:32,310 --> 00:22:36,523 Hell, even Tesla got its start with a half-billion-dollar loan from the public. 399 00:22:36,606 --> 00:22:40,735 What? No! I'm completely self-made, I swear. 400 00:22:40,819 --> 00:22:44,197 This is-- It's not… even for me. 401 00:22:45,907 --> 00:22:50,245 Billionaires in turtlenecks don't decide what the future holds. 402 00:22:50,328 --> 00:22:52,372 We all do, together. 403 00:22:53,164 --> 00:22:57,377 So if you were to imagine the ideal future for yourself 404 00:22:57,460 --> 00:22:58,503 and for our country, 405 00:22:59,087 --> 00:22:59,963 what would it look like? 406 00:23:00,713 --> 00:23:04,467 Would it be full of bigger, blastier weapons and robot armies? 407 00:23:04,551 --> 00:23:06,427 Yee-haw! 408 00:23:06,511 --> 00:23:08,555 Die robot varmint! 409 00:23:10,807 --> 00:23:15,728 Or is it one where we devote our government's immense innovative power 410 00:23:15,812 --> 00:23:21,276 to solving our biggest challenges like climate change, hunger, or-- 411 00:23:21,359 --> 00:23:25,363 -Uh-oh.