Join Jeph and Shingi for a special Deep Dive into a phenomenon with higher market penetration than the iPhone: Ghosting.

In this episode, we step away from product reviews to deconstruct the "invisible market" of American social dynamics. Why do recruiters voluntarily burn bridges? Why do dating app matches collect "inventory" they never intend to use? And why is the US social landscape defined by short-term transactionalism?

We analyze the "Asymmetry of Awkwardness" and the market failures of modern communication. Finally, we share the contrarian Playbook: how to find massive alpha simply by being the one person who follows up.

In this episode, we cover:

• The Recruitment Black Hole: Why hiring managers go dark and the long-term cost of efficiency.

• The Dating Paradox: How technology commoditized attention and normalized the "fade."

• Transactional Friendships: The culture shock of "in-person ghosting" in the US.

• The Follow-Up Playbook: Why "inefficient politeness" is your ultimate competitive advantage.

LinkedIn was supposed to make professional networking easier. So why does it now feel harder than ever to actually reach anyone?

In this episode, Jeph and Shingi explore The LinkedIn Effect how a platform that once felt like an obvious breakthrough slowly turned into something we all rely on but rarely enjoy. From the early promise of frictionless professional connections to the reality of ghosting, performative posts, and expensive premium tiers, this is a behavioral deep dive into what happens when networks scale beyond meaning.

Blending psychology, technology history, and cultural insight, the episode asks a simple question with an uncomfortable answer: when does a useful product stop feeling useful — and what keeps it alive anyway?

A witty, reflective look at the professional network we can’t quite quit.

Episode Description:In this episode of The Deep Dive, Jeph and Shingi explore a technology that has stood the test of time: the train. While the US pivoted to the car, allowing the "Golden Age" of rail to fade , Japan doubled down, creating the high-speed Shinkansen to unlock a new kind of suburban development.

We break down the "Great Divergence" between American and Asian transit strategies and analyze the brilliant "Rail + Property" business model used in Hong Kong—where the transit operator acts as a real estate developer to fund expansion without massive government debt. Finally, we discuss the behavioral economics of rail: the "chauffeur experience" of zero cognitive load and why living in New York can be cheaper than Utah when you delete the "Car Bundle" from your life

The washing machine and the dryer are the quiet geniuses of modern life inventions so transformative that we barely notice them anymore. In this episode, Jeph and Shingi explore how humanity went from rivers and washboards to electrified drums that liberated billions of hours of labor.

From Jacob Christian Schäffer’s first hand-cranked washer in the 1700s to Alva Fisher’s electric Thor machine in 1908, from George T. Sampson’s heated-air drying drum to the heat-pump and sensor based dryers of today, this is the story of two machines that reshaped society more than the internet ever could.

But this isn’t just a timeline. It’s a behavioral journey. These machines didn’t win because they cleaned better. They won because they changed how people felt about time, effort, and control. The washer freed labor. The dryer freed uncertainty. Together, they redefined what “modern life” even means.

A witty, reflective deep dive into the household innovations that quietly moved civilization forward. Perfect for fans of behavioral psychology, technology history, and hidden revolutions hiding in plain sight.

Every era has its unstoppable force fire, steam, electricity… and now, sunlight. ☀️

In this episode of The Deep Dive, Jeph and Shingi explore how solar power went from fringe science to the fastest-growing source of energy on Earth. It’s the story of a quiet revolution powered not by oil or policy, but by psychology, design, and daring reframes what we call The Air Fryer Effect.

From rooftop panels to trillion-dollar grids, we trace the human story behind the solar boom: the inventors who bet on photons, the nations that turned deserts into energy farms, and the behavioral magic that made “free energy from the sky” finally feel obvious.

🌞 The Unstoppables: The Rise of Solar Power a witty, reflective deep dive into the innovation that’s quietly reshaping the plan

What do the air fryer, Japanese toilets, and the smartphone all have in common? They’re products that, once you use them, you can never go back. In this episode, Jeph and Shingi unpack The Smartphone Effect how a gadget that began as a phone became the air fryer of modern life.

From Nokia and BlackBerry to Steve Jobs’ glass revolution, to Google’s open-source gamble with Android, this witty and insightful deep dive explores how smartphones reshaped economies, rewired behavior, and turned us all into “phono sapiens.”

Forget Silicon Valley unicorns the greatest behavioral hack of the 21st century is sitting on your kitchen counter.

In this deep-dive episode, hosts Jeph and Shingi break down the true playbook of the Air Fryer. It’s not an engineering marvel; it's a psychological masterstroke. We analyze the counter-intuitive genius of this device through the lens of Rory Sutherland's behavioral economics and the Acquired-style business history.

You'll learn:

• The S-1 Story: The forgotten 1940s military oven that became the basis for Dutch engineer Fred van der Weij's invention, and the brilliant category-creation strategy by Philips in 2010.

• The Medieval Kitchen: Why the Air Fryer instantly makes traditional ovens and stoves feel like "archaic processes" (and how it eliminates the psychological pain of pre-heating).

• The True Value: We argue the Air Fryer's success isn't about saving fat; it's about acquiring your time and eliminating your guilt. As Jeph says, it's "reasonably close to oxygen".

• The Playbook: The three key lessons for entrepreneurs on how to create a product that generates irreversible habit formation.

If you own a Cosori, Ninja, or Dash, or are just curious about the psychology behind the fastest-growing appliance trend, this episode is mandatory listening.

#AirFryer #RorySutherland #Acquired #BehavioralEconomics #KitchenHacks #ProductStrategy #Innovation #Philips #CookingTips#Deepdive