II’m going to reveal something rather embarrassing: earlier this year I got sucked deep into the “Hubersphere,” the cult-like following of Andrew Huberman, the controversial neuroscientist and podcaster who is the subject of a viral New York Magazine article that appeared this week. Huberman has amassed a huge (and lucrative) following with his data-driven “protocols” for a better life. These protocols include things like taking massive amounts of expensive supplements, making sure you can see early morning sunlight for 10 to 30 minutes after waking, carefully timing when you drink coffee, and immersing yourself in ice baths.
Sounds like your run-of-the-mill scam wellness influencer, right? Not quite. What sets Huberman apart from others in the “Goop for bros” wellness space is that he is highly skilled and endearingly serious. The 48 year old describes itself as a professor of neuroscience at Stanford and laboratory director at the Stanford School of Medicine. He leans heavily on his ties to the Ivy League to boost his credibility and regularly features other Stanford professors on his podcast, which was the third most popular in the world last year, according to Spotify.
His podcasts are typically very long and full of detailed scientific research that he doesn’t try to gloss over: he speaks to his listeners as equals and makes you feel smart.
While Huberman, with his big muscles and bushy beard, looks every inch a manosphere meathead, he’s no Andrew Tate or Joe Rogan. Instead of preaching misogyny, he has had friendly conversations about “patriarchal messages.” He talked about his trans mentor. He has a sympathetic backstory about a broken home and a wayward childhood. In short, he seems like a good guy.
“Seems‘ is the operative word here. According to the New York Magazine cover story written by Kerry Howley, Huberman’s public image is at odds with his private life. He profiles himself as an ascetic who carefully controls every aspect of his life – meanwhile, the deeply reported piece suggests, he walks around like a hot mess and, at worst, a manipulative narcissist. Howley writes that during his time with a pseudonymous partner Sarah, Huberman had relationships with at least five other women, some of which lasted for years. The women usually had no idea he was seeing anyone else.
Although he seems calm and measured in his podcast, he has been accused of anger issues by one of his ex-girlfriends (which Huberman denies). He is also accused of giving a woman HPV (a common sexually transmitted infection) while also trying to have a child with her through IVF.
What does the podcaster say about this? Huberman declined to be interviewed for the piece and did not respond to requests for comment from the Guardian, but his spokesperson told New York Magazine that Huberman has never tested positive for HPV. (Howley notes that they left out the fact that the CDC says there is no approved test for HPV in men.) As for the kids? Huberman’s spokesperson denied that he and Sarah had decided to have children, “clarifying that they ‘decided to create embryos through IVF.’”
Not only is Huberman accused of lying to women, the piece suggests he is exaggerating his relationship with Stanford. The podcaster presents himself as having a “lab” at university, but sources suggested to New York Magazine that this was a rather grandiose way to describe what could amount to little more than a postdoc working alone.
A Stanford spokesperson, meanwhile, told New York Magazine: “Dr. Huberman at Stanford is operational and in the process of moving from the Department of Neurobiology to the Department of Ophthalmology.” He’s certainly an associate professor at Stanford (although he often leaves the “associate” part when talking about himself), but he doesn’t walk the halls there every day. He lives hundreds of miles away.
Being a terrible boyfriend isn’t a crime, nor does it automatically justify a 5,000-word cover piece in a magazine. Does Huberman’s personal life really matter if people find his podcast useful?
The answers to that question are mixed. On the one hand, some people have joked that Huberman’s deception is proof that his protocols certainly work. I mean, what normal person has the energy to date six different women and maintain a successful career? For that you need superhuman levels of energy. Even the women he cheated with seem to have a grudging respect for his logistical skills. “Just the planning!” said one. “I can barely schedule three Zooms in a day.”
Other people have dismissed New York Magazine’s story as a baseless personal attack. “It’s heartbreaking to see a hit piece written about my friend Andrew Huberman,” tweeted Lex Fridman, a highly influential technology podcaster with millions of followers. “…Hit-piece attacks like this are simply rubbish click-bait journalism desperately clinging to relevance. Andrew is to be celebrated. Period of time. His podcast has helped millions of people (including myself) live healthier lives. Keep going brother.”
There is certainly an argument that elements of the New York Magazine article could be considered a bit unfair. For example, there’s a moment when Scott Carney, a friend of Huberman’s, complains that the podcaster has canceled social engagements with him several times and had a habit of disappearing. The friend says this is evidence that the podcaster is manipulative: “I think Andrew likes to build up people’s expectations,” Carney said, “and then he really enjoys the opportunity to pull the rug out from under you .” Or it could just be a sign that the guy is flaky.
But the thing is, the play isn’t really about Huberman’s relationship with women or his friends, it’s about Huberman’s relationship with facts. And this is hugely important: Huberman isn’t just some guy with a podcast, he has a huge influence on people’s daily routines. He has over 6 million Instagram followers and over 5 million YouTube subscribers; his podcast is one of the most listened to in the world. People try to be “dopamine detoxifications” to improve their concentration. They follow his advice on ways to do that increase their testosterone. They take the piles of the supplements he recommends. His podcast episode about what alcohol does to your brain and body (which has been viewed over 6 million times) is hugely influential in alcohol recovery circles.
He has helped mainstream many wellness ideas: “How Podcaster Andrew Huberman Made America Care About Science,” reads one Time headline from last year. He is one of the most famous scientists in the world and is highly trusted at a time when scientists are not trusted decreasing. He has also thought about bringing that confidence to politics and has said he is doing just that fascinated about ever running for political office.
Of course, you could criticize Huberman’s health advice without delving into his personal life. Many people have done that. Even before the New York Magazine piece came out, there were plenty of Huberman’s skeptics who accused him of cherry-picking data or going way outside his area of expertise. “He’s extrapolating (animal research) into things that we can do as humans, but those things aren’t really strongly supported for humans,” Joseph Zundell, a cancer biologist, told me. Time last year.
He has also been criticized for promoting and running advertisements for nutritional supplements that may cause more harm than good. “When I regularly hear Andrew Huberman recommending the herb ashwagandha because of its ‘profound effect on anxiety‘, an herb for which there is suspected potential worsening autoimmune diseases and causing miscarriagesand which ones, like most adaptogensis poorly studied, I shake my head,” says Jonathan Jarry, science communicator, said.
Huberman’s personal integrity is newsworthy because he has made it a huge part of his personal brand. But the overall moral of this story is not that he is a monster or a fraud; it’s that there is no magic ‘protocol’ for health and wellness. You just have to use your common sense: eat a balanced diet and eat lots of vegetables, exercise your body, don’t drink a lot, don’t smoke. You don’t need books, influencers, or Stanford professors to tell you this: it’s common sense. But common sense is boring. We all long for magical solutions. We all long for someone to help us take control of our lives. That’s why it doesn’t really matter that Huberman is in the middle of a media storm. What he sells will always be popular. He may have lost some of his credibility now, but people will always want to hear that a better life is just around the corner.