The $2 Trillion Mind | Nicolai Tangen

February 17, 2026 · 1 h 3 min

Show notes

Nicolai Tangen is the CEO of Norges Bank Investment Management, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund. He is responsible for managing $2.1 trillion. That's roughly 1.7% of every listed company on earth.

In this episode, we explore the intersection of massive wealth, high-speed decision-making, and the psychological traits required to survive the AI revolution.

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Approximate Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:09) What Are You Leaning Against?

(03:17) Tech Sector Evolution

(04:15) The AI Bubble

(05:44) Will AI Replace Humans in Investing?

(06:24) Lessons on Listening

(09:15) American vs. European Mindset

(12:09) Prime Minster For a Day

(14:27) Most Important Data

(16:00) Speed and Agility

(17:05) Ad Break

(18:35) Using Urgency as a Tool

(20:12) Can You Teach People to Change Their Minds?

(22:14) Positive and Negative Comments

(22:56) Testing Assumptions Before a Big Investment

(25:07) Attitude Towards Risk

(28:33) What’s Gotten Harder in Investing?

(29:07) The Rise of Passive Investing

(33:42) Why Did You Take This Job?

(35:04) Ad Break

(36:14) Sovereign Wealth Funds

(38:24) Voting Against Elon Musk’s Pay Package

(39:08) Building Long-Term Thinking

(43:17) Slowing Down Decisions

(45:13) Seeking Out Disagreement

(48:08) Hiring Checklist

(49:15) 140 Conversations To Prepare For A Huge Role

(53:33) CEO Evaluation

(01:01:25) What is Success For You?

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Follow Nicolai Tangen:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolai-tangen/?originalSubdomain=no

Learn More: https://www.nbim.no/en/about-us/leader-group/leadergroup-persons/nicolai-tangen/

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