Who is Lex Fridman, MIT researcher and podcaster set to interview PM Narendra Modi

Lex Fridman will be visiting India for the podcast, his first ever trip to the country. It will also mark Modi’s second podcast appearance.

Updated on: Jan 19, 2025, 13:43:37 IST

By HT News Desk | Written by Shivam Pratap Singh

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Lex Fridman, a renowned podcaster and computer scientist from the United States, announced on Sunday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will appear in his podcast at the end of February.

Lex Fridman with Donald Trump. (Instagram/ Lex Fridman)

Fridman will be visiting India for the podcast, his first ever trip to the country. It will also mark PM Modi’s second podcast appearance, having earlier sat down with Zerodha founder Nikhil Kamath earlier this month.

According to the news agency IANS, the podcast is expected to focus on initiatives such as Digital India, Make in India and the country’s advancements in AI.

“I will be doing a podcast with Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, at the end of February. I’ve never been to India, so I’m excited to finally visit and experience many facets of its vibrant, historic culture and its amazing people as fully as I can,” Fridman shared on X.

Who is Lex Fridman?

Lex Fridman is a prominent scientist in the US, dealing with computer technology. He hosts ‘The Lex Fridman Podcast’, which debuted in 2018. It is in this podcast that PM Narendra Modi will be appearing next month.

Born in Chkalovsk in the erstwhile Soviet Union on August 15, 1983, Fridman grew up in Moscow. He moved to the US after the collapse of the Soviet Union and got his education from Drexel University, where his father also taught. He holds a PhD in electrical and computer engineering.

Fridman’s podcast is known for its engaging conversations with influential figures across science, technology, sports and politics. The podcaster and MIT research scientist is “interested in robots and humans”, according to his bio on social media platform X.

A number of global leaders and innovators have previously appeared on his podcast. The list includes Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky y, US senator Bernie Sanders and many more. His ability to hold engaging conversation has seen his subscriber base on YouTube rise to an impressive 4.5 million.

Elon Musk heaped praises on Fridman's MIT study on driver behavior with Tesla’s semi-autonomous systems, catapulting him to fame within the tech community. He has also faced criticism for the study lacking peer review though.

Modi previously appeared on the People by WTF podcast, hosted by Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath. During this two-hour conversation, Modi delved into his early life, leadership philosophies and India’s technological advancement.

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