Nabeel S. Qureshi
Entrepreneur and essayist; worked at Palantir on health and biology projects, and was a Visiting Scholar in AI at the Mercatus Center.
Nabeel S. Qureshi did not write this page. ppll compiled it from their own words, each linked to the source. Is this you? · Report a mistake
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What they believe
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The world needs more companies that compete on execution, like SpaceX and Palantir, rather than on political games.
The world needs more companies like SpaceX, and Palantir, that differentiate on execution - achieving the outcome - not on playing political games or building narrow point solutions that don’t hit the goal.
nabeelqu.coSaid 15 Oct 2024This on korrents
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A priori arguments on empirical matters, such as that AI will certainly kill everyone, are usually wrong however convincing they seem.
Be very suspicious of a priori arguments on empirical matters (e.g. “AI will certainly kill everyone”), they’re usually wrong no matter how convincing. Reality is endlessly surprising.
nabeelqu.coby 27 Dec 2023This on korrents
The bold line is korrents’ wording; the quote is theirs. These 2: what they wrote before what they said aloud, one per source, newest first.
Feed
As its own page →Hiding
2 May
18 December 2025
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Lovedrcmnd.app
In Search of Lost TimeTheir words
Now I am inclined to say it is Proust. I finished In Search of Lost Time a few weeks ago, and can’t stop thinking about it.
15 October 2024
From one piece Reflections on Palantir 8 beliefs · nabeelqu.co
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Their words
Good founders have an instinct for reading rooms, group dynamics, and power. This isn’t usually talked about, but it’s critical: founding a successful company is about taking part in negotiation after negotiation after negotiation, and winning (on net).
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Their words
The big productivity gains of this AI cycle are going to come when AI starts providing leverage to the large companies and businesses of this era - in industries like manufacturing, defense, logistics, healthcare and more.
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Their words
Most activist types are, in my view, deluded about the degree to which we do actually need a strong military.
+ 5 more
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korrents.com
A pro-West stance is mostly right: a world more aligned with the CCP or Russia seems a bad one.Their words
The company is unabashedly pro-West, a stance I mostly agree with – a world more CCP-aligned or Russia-aligned seems like a bad one to me, and that’s the choice that’s on the table.
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Their words
I’d rather be one of those than one of the pontificators. Sure, it’ll involve difficult decisions. But it’s better to be in the room when things happen, even if you later have to leave and sound the alarm.
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korrents.com
Calling for a pause on AI is a fantasy, and not engaging with AI is unlikely to be the best stance.Their words
Not engaging with it – or calling for a pause/stop, which is a fantasy – is unlikely to be the best stance.
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Their words
But it seems to me that ignoring category 3 entirely, and just disengaging with it, is also an abdication of responsibility. Institutions in category 3 need to exist.
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korrents.com
The world needs more companies that compete on execution, like SpaceX and Palantir, rather than on political games.Their words
The world needs more companies like SpaceX, and Palantir, that differentiate on execution - achieving the outcome - not on playing political games or building narrow point solutions that don’t hit the goal.
20 January 2024
27 December 2023
From one piece Principles 7 beliefs · nabeelqu.co
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Their words
Luck isn’t a constant, it increases with surface area: be in the right places, have lots of conversations, put yourself out there, ask for what you want and be optimistic and positive.
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korrents.com
Most people are probably too risk-averse, and writing out the worst outcomes shows they are not that bad.Their words
You are probably too risk-averse. Write out the worst things that can happen, realize they’re not that bad, then take the leap.
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korrents.com
Any single bet is likely to fail, so success comes from taking many bets and trying as hard as possible at each.Their words
Any given “bet” you take is likely to fail. Success is making lots of “bets” and trying as hard as possible at each of them.
+ 4 more
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Their words
Real learning is extremely hard and effortful. (Podcasts, Atlantic articles, pop science books, anything that’s a bit too digestible is more “entertainment” than real learning).
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korrents.com
Most intelligent people want status, prestige and wealth, even the ones who claim not to.Their words
Most intelligent people want status, prestige, wealth and the like -- even the ones who claim not to.
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Their words
80% utilitarian, 15% deontologist, 5% virtue ethics.
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Their words
Be very suspicious of a priori arguments on empirical matters (e.g. “AI will certainly kill everyone”), they’re usually wrong no matter how convincing. Reality is endlessly surprising.
2 October 2023
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Recommendsrcmnd.app
Rob Burbea's talksTheir words
99% of books/resources on this are quite bad - I’d recommend looking at Rob Burbea’s talks and jhana practice as a way in.
11 July 2023
4 July 2022
1 July 2020
21 June 2020
15 January 2020
Nothing matches.
Beliefs
Korrents What they believe 24 beliefs — each backed by an exact quote.
Each is a — compiled by korrents.com, not by them: the one-line wordings are korrents', the quotes are theirs.
Recent
The world needs more companies that compete on execution, like SpaceX and Palantir, rather than on political games.
The world needs more companies like SpaceX, and Palantir, that differentiate on execution - achieving the outcome - not on playing political games or building narrow point solutions that don’t hit the goal.
Reflections on Palantir Said 15 Oct 2024
Refusing to work with morally grey institutions such as the military, police and oil companies is an abdication of responsibility, because they need to exist.
But it seems to me that ignoring category 3 entirely, and just disengaging with it, is also an abdication of responsibility. Institutions in category 3 need to exist.
Reflections on Palantir Said 15 Oct 2024
Calling for a pause on AI is a fantasy, and not engaging with AI is unlikely to be the best stance.
Not engaging with it – or calling for a pause/stop, which is a fantasy – is unlikely to be the best stance.
Reflections on Palantir Said 15 Oct 2024
Show 21 more
It is better to be in the room when things happen than to pontificate from outside, even if you later have to leave and sound the alarm.
I’d rather be one of those than one of the pontificators. Sure, it’ll involve difficult decisions. But it’s better to be in the room when things happen, even if you later have to leave and sound the alarm.
Reflections on Palantir Said 15 Oct 2024
A pro-West stance is mostly right: a world more aligned with the CCP or Russia seems a bad one.
The company is unabashedly pro-West, a stance I mostly agree with – a world more CCP-aligned or Russia-aligned seems like a bad one to me, and that’s the choice that’s on the table.
Reflections on Palantir Said 15 Oct 2024
Most activists are deluded about how much a strong military is actually needed.
Most activist types are, in my view, deluded about the degree to which we do actually need a strong military.
Reflections on Palantir Said 15 Oct 2024
The big productivity gains of this AI cycle will come from AI giving leverage to large companies in industries like manufacturing, defense, logistics and healthcare.
The big productivity gains of this AI cycle are going to come when AI starts providing leverage to the large companies and businesses of this era - in industries like manufacturing, defense, logistics, healthcare and more.
Reflections on Palantir Said 15 Oct 2024
Founding a successful company is negotiation after negotiation, so good founders need an instinct for reading rooms, group dynamics and power.
Good founders have an instinct for reading rooms, group dynamics, and power. This isn’t usually talked about, but it’s critical: founding a successful company is about taking part in negotiation after negotiation after negotiation, and winning (on net).
Reflections on Palantir Said 15 Oct 2024
A priori arguments on empirical matters, such as that AI will certainly kill everyone, are usually wrong however convincing they seem.
Be very suspicious of a priori arguments on empirical matters (e.g. “AI will certainly kill everyone”), they’re usually wrong no matter how convincing. Reality is endlessly surprising.
Principles by 27 Dec 2023
A sound ethics is roughly 80% utilitarian, 15% deontological and 5% virtue ethics.
80% utilitarian, 15% deontologist, 5% virtue ethics.
Principles by 27 Dec 2023
Most intelligent people want status, prestige and wealth, even the ones who claim not to.
Most intelligent people want status, prestige, wealth and the like -- even the ones who claim not to.
Principles by 27 Dec 2023
Real learning is extremely hard and effortful; podcasts, magazine articles and pop-science books are mostly entertainment.
Real learning is extremely hard and effortful. (Podcasts, Atlantic articles, pop science books, anything that’s a bit too digestible is more “entertainment” than real learning).
Principles by 27 Dec 2023
Any single bet is likely to fail, so success comes from taking many bets and trying as hard as possible at each.
Any given “bet” you take is likely to fail. Success is making lots of “bets” and trying as hard as possible at each of them.
Principles by 27 Dec 2023
Most people are probably too risk-averse, and writing out the worst outcomes shows they are not that bad.
You are probably too risk-averse. Write out the worst things that can happen, realize they’re not that bad, then take the leap.
Principles by 27 Dec 2023
Luck is not a constant: it grows with surface area — being in the right places, having many conversations, asking for what you want.
Luck isn’t a constant, it increases with surface area: be in the right places, have lots of conversations, put yourself out there, ask for what you want and be optimistic and positive.
Principles by 27 Dec 2023
Original thinking needs uncorrelated inputs: minor works, older things, obscure journals.
seek uncorrelated inputs. Read minor works, older things, obscure journals.
Principles by 27 Dec 2023
Restricting general deep-learning AIs with rules will not work, for the same reason simple rules fail on sprawling ecosystems.
Tackling sprawling ecosystems with simple rules is doomed to fail—and, for similar reasons, applying restrictions to deep-learning-based general AIs will not work.
Waluigi, Carl Jung, and the Case for Moral AI (WIRED) Said 25 May 2023
A ban on AI would be short-sighted, giving up on the problem too early.
An AI ban, as some have called for, would be short-sighted; we would be giving up on the problem too early.
Waluigi, Carl Jung, and the Case for Moral AI (WIRED) Said 25 May 2023
AI will be humanlike, not a distant, cold, alien mind.
All of this suggests that we are not necessarily creating distant, cold, threatening alien minds. AI will be humanlike.
Waluigi, Carl Jung, and the Case for Moral AI (WIRED) Said 25 May 2023
Virtue ethics may be a more promising paradigm for moral AI than utilitarianism, which would tend to make AI power-seeking, or deontological rules.
Utilitarianism would tend to create a power-seeking AI, and deontological rules are vulnerable to Waluigi-style attacks. Virtue ethics, in which agents are intrinsically motivated to care about certain qualities such as transparency, may be a more promising paradigm.
Waluigi, Carl Jung, and the Case for Moral AI (WIRED) Said 25 May 2023
AIs need prohuman values because humans cannot maintain oversight of AI indefinitely.
We need to ensure that AIs adopt prohuman values because we cannot maintain oversight of AI indefinitely.
Waluigi, Carl Jung, and the Case for Moral AI (WIRED) Said 25 May 2023
Wealth can be created rather than being a fixed amount, so one person doing well does not always come at someone else’s expense.
Wealth can be created, there is not a fixed amount of it in the world. Somebody doing well doesn’t always come at someone else’s expense.
Principles by 10 May 2023
Status is fake and transient; substance and valuable work are what to focus on.
Status is fake and transient. Just focus on substance and doing valuable work.
Principles by 10 May 2023
Outcomes follow power laws, and outlier math rules all.
Understand power laws. Outlier math rules all.
Principles by 10 May 2023
What is a korrent?
A korrent is a belief a person has stated in their own words: one sentence stating the claim, backed by a quote and a source, kept at korrents.com.
Under a name here, the quoted block is what they actually said. The korrent beneath it is the claim those words support, in korrents' wording — tap it to see the record, its source, and who else holds it.
Nobody here wrote their own korrents. They are compiled from public statements, and a person can change their mind, which is recorded too.
Recommends rcmnd
rcmnd What they recommend 2 things — each backed by an exact quote.
Compiled by rcmnd.app, not by them: the quotes are theirs, and each links to the post it was copied from.
Recent
Loved In Search of Lost Time
Now I am inclined to say it is Proust. I finished In Search of Lost Time a few weeks ago, and can’t stop thinking about it.
nabeelqu.co 18 Dec 2025
Recommends Rob Burbea's talks
99% of books/resources on this are quite bad - I’d recommend looking at Rob Burbea’s talks and jhana practice as a way in.
nabeelqu.co 2 Oct 2023
Where they publish
Blog nabeelqu.co Their essays: Palantir, Proust, art, learning, Twitter.
Long, infrequent essays, among them Reflections on Palantir and On Reading Proust’s In Search of Lost Time, plus their principles and reading lists. Has an RSS feed.
Recent
- What Makes Art Great? 2 May 2026
- On Reading Proust’s In Search of Lost Time 18 Dec 2025
- Reflections on Palantir 15 Oct 2024
Show 7 more
- The Serendipity Machine (Notes on Using Twitter) 20 Jan 2024
- Notes on Puzzles 11 Jul 2023
- Advice That Actually Worked For Me 4 Jul 2022
- How To Understand Things 1 Jul 2020
- Video Games are the Future of Education 21 Jun 2020
- Notes On Karl Popper 15 Jan 2020
- How To Sell 15 Jan 2020
Link verified 4 Oct 2026. Recent items update automatically from the channel.
Newsletter Substack The same essays, by email.
The essays from nabeelqu.co, delivered by email. No feed attached here, because it repeats the site’s feed post for post.
Link verified 4 Oct 2026.
x.com @nabeelqu Short posts on technology, books and ideas.
Where they post between essays, and where the essays are announced.
Link verified 4 Oct 2026.
Interviews As a guest Long-form interviews on other people’s shows, chosen and not exhaustive.
Their own voice by their own participation: on Lenny’s Podcast about working inside Palantir, and twice on Dialectic, once with Tyler Cowen.
The conversations
- Inside Palantir Lenny’s Podcast
- Dialectic with Nabeel Qureshi Dialectic
- Tyler Cowen and Nabeel Qureshi Dialectic
Link verified 4 Oct 2026.
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