Joe Rogan has come under fire for his seemingly contradictory views on artificial intelligence, which were highlighted after a podcast clip resurfaced.
The UFC commentator started the Joe Rogan Experience in 2009. Since then, it has become Spotify’s most popular podcast, with over 2,600 episodes and attracting tens of millions of listeners each month.
Despite its vast audience, the show was notably absent from the Golden Globes’ newly launched podcast category for 2026.
In a podcast episode from October, Battlestar Galactica actress Katee Sackhoff appeared as a guest, and a clip from this episode has gained traction on Twitter.
The discussion turned to the strong interest Sackhoff’s young daughter has in KPop Demon Hunters, leading Rogan to bring up the topic of artificial intelligence.
“The music on this thing is absolutely phenomenal,” Sackhoff said, complimenting the film’s encouraging message about self-belief.
Sackhoff explained that the actors portraying the animated characters are voiced by real people who contributed to writing the original music.
She mentioned her desire to see them perform live, and the conversation revealed that the voice actors were performing at iHeartRadio’s Jingle Ball.
Rogan responded: “If you have these anime characters that represent the music and then all a sudden you see a human doing it, you’re like, ‘Huh?'”
He continued, “Probably would be better if AI made the music.”
Sackhoff was quick to disagree.
“Stop it! It will never be better if AI makes the music,” she retorted as Rogan laughed. “You just broke my soul, Joe!”
When Rogan remarked that AI is “making some really good music,” Sackhoff countered: “It’s also making some great podcasts.”
Rogan’s laughter abruptly ceased.
“Well, I don’t know about that,” he replied, shifting the conversation back to KPop Demon Hunters.
Later in the episode, Rogan showcased his favorite song to Sackhoff: an AI-generated ‘soul cover’ of 50 Cent’s ‘What Up Gangsta’.
Rogan, a fan of the original rapper, suggested that the AI version was superior to the initial track.
Sackhoff questioned him, “If you’d gone to 50 Cent and said, ‘Can you get together with a producer and create this for me?’ Do you think he could have done it?”
Rogan responded affirmatively, as Sackhoff continued: “But we never gave him the chance to do it. So, we’re sort of robbing him.”
Rogan noted that 50 Cent has had 30 years to create such a version, and defended his preference for the AI rendition: “I know what you’re saying, but my point is that it tricks me and I know the trick… and I don’t care. It’s that good. And no one else cared in the green room.”
While some people are worried about the growing use of AI and its effects on employment, particularly in creative fields, this debate is gaining attention.
The conversation was revisited when a social media user tweeted this week: “The ‘you should love ai’ line is best outlined by a recent joe rogan episode.”
“He LOVES ai music and always tells guests this. a guest pushed back on him saying ‘I’ve heard ai podcasts are amazing too’ and joe rogan immediately pushes back.”
Another Twitter user chimed in, “Everyone thinks AI is great at everything. Except their job.”
One person commented: “This is why it’s insane to me that ALL artists don’t present a united front when it comes to AI slop.
“Whether it be visual arts, music, voice acting, writing, whatever… the end goal is to wipe us ALL out. The end goal of the AI lovers is to never pay ANY of us for our hard work,”
For those curious about 50 Cent’s perspective on AI versions of his music, here’s what he had to say.
In an interview with Complex, the rapper expressed his approval of AI renditions of his songs ’21 Questions’ and ‘God Gave Me Style’.
“I really like those songs!” he shared. “Look, it will reach someone that I missed. Someone who couldn’t hear what I was trying to say to them in the writing can hear it now that it’s in that format. They’ll go, ‘Oh, yo! Play that again!’”
Further defending AI, 50 Cent added: “I don’t like fighting fights that I can’t win, I don’t think you can beat AI.
“I think we need to look at how we create businesses that work well with it and performs faster and progresses as [AI] progresses because it’s not gonna stop progress.”
That’s the perspective from the rapper himself.