Tech millionaire Bryan Johnson, known for his anti-ageing research, walked out of a podcast recording with Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath midway, citing poor air quality. He said the pollution caused his “skin to break out in a rash” and left his “eyes and throat burning.”
On his recent India visit, the 47-year-old recorded an episode for Mr Kamath’s podcast “WTF” at a five-star hotel with an air purifier. Despite wearing an N95 mask, he left midway, unable to tolerate the room’s air quality, which had an AQI of around 120. At one point during the discussion, Mr Johnson remarked, “I can’t see you over there,” when asked about India’s air quality.
Confirming the incident on X, Mr Johnson said, “When in India, I did end this podcast early due to the bad air quality.”
Praising Mr Kamath as a “gracious host,” he explained the room was circulating outside air, rendering his air purifier ineffective.
By the time he left, Mr Johnson noted the indoor AQI had climbed to 130, with PM2.5 levels at 75 micrograms per cubic metre – equivalent to smoking 3.4 cigarettes over 24 hours. He added that after just three days in India, the pollution triggered a rash, along with persistent eye and throat irritation.
Mr Johnson criticised how deeply normalised air pollution has become in India. “People would be outside running. Babies and small children exposed from birth. No one wore a mask, which can significantly decrease exposure. It was so confusing,” he wrote.
He questioned why India’s leadership had not declared air pollution a “national emergency” and cited studies on air pollution’s health effects. “The evidence shows that India would improve the health of its population more by cleaning up air quality than by curing all cancers,” he said.
Over To America
Drawing a comparison, he said that while pollution was India’s silent crisis, obesity was America’s. “When I returned to the US, my eyes were fresh to see what is normalised to me. I saw obesity everywhere. 42.4 per cent of Americans are obese, and because I was around it all the time, I had been mostly oblivious to it,” he said.
When in India, I did end this podcast early due to the bad air quality. @nikhilkamathcio was a gracious host and we were having a great time. The problem was that the room we were in circulated outside air which made the air purifier I’d brought with me ineffective.
Inside,… https://t.co/xTkpW567Xv
— Bryan Johnson /dd (@bryan_johnson) February 3, 2025
Last month, Bryan Johnson shared tips on tackling air pollution in India. In a post on X, he claimed that solving air pollution in India would save more lives than curing cancer.
His associate, in a video, demonstrated measures they took in Mumbai, including using portable air quality monitors, keeping car windows shut, wearing N96 masks, and carrying portable air purifiers.
On Monday, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) revoked Stage 3 of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) as Delhi’s AQI dropped below 300.
