Dan Benjamin

Dan Benjamin is a technologist working across leadership, software, and audio. He is an inventor credited with multiple patents, and an avid keynote speaker who has appeared at conferences on technology, design, and the craft of podcasting.

In 2009 he became a full-time podcaster with 5by5, a network its listeners called “NPR for Geeks.” He hosted and produced dozens of shows, among them Back to Work with Merlin Mann and The Ihnatko Almanac with Andy Ihnatko, and helped launch the careers of many podcasters. 5by5 grew into one of the most influential independent tech networks, drawing many millions of downloads and multiple Apple Podcasts “Best of” awards. In 2011, Fortune named him The King of Apple Talk Radio.

In 2016 he founded Fireside, a hosting, analytics, and distribution platform built on everything he had learned running his own network. It became one of the most widely used and trusted platforms of its kind before being acquired by Very Good Software in 2024.

Today he’s most interested in how AI can expand human creativity, building tools and ideas at the edge of software, audio, and craft. He lives in Colorado, shoots street photography, and writes The Unusual Newsletter.