The iconic Beverly Hills home of Marion Davies and William Randolph Hearst, for years an oasis for film stars and power brokers, is being restored by philanthropist Nicolas Berggruen.

Tao sits down with billionaire philanthropist Nicolas Berggruen, Chairman of the Berggruen Institute, on the eve of giving his institute's Prize for Philosophy and Culture to Peter Singer. The $1 million award is given annually to thinkers whose ideas have profoundly shaped human self-understanding and advancement in a rapidly changing world. Tao asks some challenging political and philosophical questions, asking Nicolas if there should be billionaires in the world, notwithstanding the good they may be capable of doing, especially given how arbitrary and unjust allocation of wealth can be, and given Nicolas's own youthful flirtations with Marxism and his love of famously leftist philosophers like Jean Paul Sartre.

Money can buy influence over nearly anything in the world — including in the world of ideas.

Scheduled to open in 2024, Palazzo Diedo will house an exhibition and art residency space

Nicolas Berggruen y Nathan Gardels, autores del libro “Renovar la democracia”, buscan formas de resolver los problemas en ese sistema político y creen que se necesitan cambios, entre otras cosas, para mejorar la confianza de las sociedades en los gobiernos

Nicolas Berggruen, investor and philanthropist, joins us to explore the dynamics of power, wisdom, and ideas in the 21st century.

An American billionaire believes Australia’s action in forcing Google and Facebook to pay for journalism is a ‘huge step for the world’ and democracy that will spur global change.

“Democracy is really about giving individuals a place in society, a voice—respect, in some ways—equality as humans. It’s also a system. It’s not every individual for themselves; it has to be society as a whole.”

"I think art and and architecture survive and transmit our cultures from generation to generation."

Nicolas Berggruen built his fortune while cultivating an expansive worldview; now he’s harnessing the powers of Los Angeles to better the world