EP 19 - Murray Simser Says Social Media Captured Elections, and Citizn Reverses It

Social media has become a dominant force in elections, agenda setting, and public debate. Murray Simser, Founder, CEO, and Chief Architect of CITIZN, joins Emanuel Petrescu and Kevin Carney for a wide-ranging conversation on geopolitics, empire, currency, energy, China, Taiwan, and the future of democracy.

The conversation moves from global power shifts and economic instability to the role of AI in civic life. Murray outlines his view that modern elections have been captured by social media dynamics, bots, algorithms, and attention systems. Citizn is presented as a response: a national civic network designed to help people understand policy, verify participation, protect privacy, and give informed consent through an AI-powered personal chief of staff.

Full episode and transcript: https://curiouspundits.com/podcast/ep19-citizn

Episode Show Notes:

Hosts: Emanuel Petrescu and Kevin Carney
Guest: Murray Simser, Founder, CEO, and Chief Architect of CITIZN

Topics covered:
Murray Simser’s background in technology and entrepreneurship
Microsoft Teams, Groove, and long-term technology bets
The end of empire, global power shifts, and the future of the West
Bretton Woods, the gold window, petrodollars, and currency systems
Canada, Europe, NATO, and transatlantic relationships
Ukraine, Iran, drones, missiles, and asymmetric warfare
Oil shocks, energy consumption, and GDP
China, Taiwan, BRICS, and non-dollar trade systems
Bitcoin, digital currencies, and alternative payment rails
Social media as the fifth estate
Why Murray believes elections are being captured by social media
Citizn as a civic technology platform
Democracy GPT and AI-assisted civic participation
Identity verification, privacy, bot prevention, and informed consent
The role of timing in political and technology adoption

Episode Timestamps:
00:00:18 Introduction and welcome
00:01:40 Murray Simser introduces himself
00:02:18 Microsoft Teams, Groove, and long-term technology bets
00:03:02 The state of the world in May 2026
00:04:07 Empire, history, and the end of Pax Americana
00:07:34 Bretton Woods, gold, banking, and money
00:10:50 Europe as a future capital of the West
00:15:41 Canada, Europe, and possible deeper integration
00:18:41 Asymmetric warfare, Ukraine, Iran, drones, and missiles
00:22:26 Oil shocks, energy, inflation, and economic pressure
00:28:29 China, Taiwan, and the risk of a Pacific theater
00:31:01 China, BRICS, resource extraction, and global trade systems
00:41:39 Digital currencies, Bitcoin, and non-dollar payments
00:43:42 Currency as agreement and the changing role of the U.S. dollar
00:51:14 Democracy, civil conflict, and peaceful institutional change
00:53:11 Trump, working-class frustration, and political competence
00:55:36 How social media captured modern elections
00:58:46 The fifth estate and agenda setting
01:05:32 What Citizn is
01:12:06 How Citizn avoids capture by special interests
01:13:20 Citizn as more than a social network
01:14:37 How Citizn knows what citizens need to know
01:16:13 Identity verification and bot prevention
01:20:03 AI, consciousness, and the Turing test
01:25:27 New political candidates and public frustration
01:28:16 Where to find Citizn
01:28:52 Closing remarks

Episode Links:

Episode Website URL: https://curiouspundits.com/podcast/ep19-citizn

Curious Pundits website: https://curiouspundits.com/

Citizn: https://www.citizn.world/

Democracy GPT: https://youtu.be/Qvfmoe-oq28

Odd Lots Podcast: https://www.bloomberg.com/oddlots

Odd Lots Episode - How Taiwan Became the World’s Most Perilous Geopolitical Chokepoint: https://www.podbean.com/ew/dir-y96x6-2d52312f

The Princeton Study: Congress Literally Doesn’t Care What You Think:
https://act.represent.us/sign/problempoll-fba

Episode Website URL:
https://curiouspundits.com/podcast/ep19-citizn

About the Podcast:

Hosted by Kevin Carney and Emanuel Petrescu, two curious minds exploring ideas, culture, and everything in between. Curious Pundits is a conversational podcast where each episode starts with a topic that caught our attention and unfolds into thoughtful, unscripted discussion. We follow curiosity wherever it leads, across disciplines, opinions, and perspectives, without pretending to have all the answers. Their main ventures are https://1307.digital/ (Emanuel) and https://organicgrowth.biz/ (Kevin).

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Entities mentioned in this episode People:

Emanuel Petrescu
Kevin Carney
Murray Simser
Steve Wood
Ray Ozzie
Ray Dalio
Jean-Baptiste Colbert
Richard Dawkins
Alan Turing
Elon Musk
Donald Trump
Justin Trudeau
Mark Carney
Chrystia Freeland
Hillary Clinton
Bill Clinton
George Herbert Walker Bush
George W. Bush
Clement Attlee
Winston Churchill
Nixon
Putin
Bill Gross
Katy Perry

Companies, Organizations, and Institutions:

Curious Pundits
CITIZN
Citizn Canada
Citizn United States
Citizn France
Microsoft
Microsoft Office
Microsoft Teams
Groove
Silicon Valley
Bell Labs
DARPA
European Union
NATO
World Trade Organization
World Bank
International Monetary Fund
Bank of International Settlements
BRICS
SWIFT
Parliament of Canada
Magna Carta
Treaties of Rome
Treaties of Maastricht
Clear
Mensa
The Odd Lots Podcast
Reddit
4chan
Twitter
Facebook
Google
YouTube
LinkedIn

Products, Platforms, and Technologies:

CITIZN
Democracy GPT
ChatGPT
AI
Internet
Social media
Blockchain
Bitcoin
Digital currencies
Central bank digital currencies
ARM chips
AWACS
BYD
KYC
API
Bot farms
Algorithms
Social Internet
Fifth estate
Turing test
Jarvis
iPhone
Phones
Newsletter
Podcast

Places:

Toronto
Canada
United States
America
Britain
United Kingdom
Europe
European Union
France
Germany
Berlin
Paris
London
Rome
Constantinople
Istanbul
Byzantium
Aachen
Washington
DC
Ottawa
Sydney
Canberra
Montreal
North America
Australia
Oceania
Asia
China
Taiwan
Formosa
Hong Kong
India
South As