She has built a media empire around authenticity, bridging fashion, philanthropy, and activism. As The Simonetta Lein Show Launches its seventh season with Hall of Famer Daryl Hall, Simonetta stands at the nexus of a provocative idea: Team Humanity vs. AI takeover. In a world increasingly mediated by algorithms, she insists on real voices, deep dialogue, and the courage to stay human.
Born in Italy, now a global influencer, TV host, founder of The Wishwall Foundation, and CEO of Ausonia Partners, she has interviewed world leaders, celebrities, and changemakers on her trailblazing show. Her mission: to reclaim narrative, amplify unheard stories, and build bridges where polarization reigns.
In this exclusive for VOUS, Simonetta shares her vision for season 7, her beliefs on technology and humanity, and why real conversation may be the greatest act of resistance.
- VOUS: Simonetta, as you gear up for season 7 of The Simonetta Lein Show, what is your guiding theme this year?
Simonetta:
Season 7 is a declaration: Team Humanity vs. AI takeover. We live in a time when machine learning, deep fakes, and algorithmic echo chambers threaten to numb our souls. My aim this season is to reset the conversation—to use the show as a battleground for human connection, for questions that resist easy answers, and for voices that insist we deserve more than digital masks.
- VOUS: Why is the idea of “real conversation” central to your work now?
Simonetta:
Because we’re drowning in curated personas and noise. Conversation means vulnerability, ambiguity, listening. It’s messy. Real conversation resists filters. It allows us to connect across difference, to challenge our assumptions, and to reclaim humanity in a time when what’s real is suspect.
“When you tell real stories of human pain
and hope, you merge activism & art.”
- VOUS: You began in fashion and modeling, and later expanded into media, philanthropy, and authorship. How do you see these threads converging?
Simonetta:
They converge through storytelling and purpose. Fashion gave me voice; media gave me platform; philanthropy gave me responsibility. Each sphere taught me something crucial about attention, influence, and impact. My ambition now is not just to be seen, but to help see others.
“Real conversation resists filters.”
- VOUS: Let’s talk AI. Some fear that technology will replace human expression. Where do you draw the line between tool and takeover?
Simonetta:
AI as tool—great. AI as substitute—dangerous. We must guard against illusions of perfection, deep fakes, and emotionless content. The heart of humanity is imperfection, doubt, nuance. My fight is to ensure our souls remain involved, not outsourced.
- VOUS: What role does Team Humanity play? How do you define it?
Simonetta:
Team Humanity is a movement—those who choose empathy over efficiency, relationship over algorithm, depth over brevity. It’s a pledge: to fail with honesty, to listen across difference, to hold space for pain and wonder. Those who believe humanity is not obsolete.
- VOUS: On The Simonetta Lein Show, you’ve interviewed names like Mark Cuban, Steve-O, Kathy Ireland, etc. Which conversation changed you deeply — and why?
Simonetta:
I’ll never forget the episode with Mark Cuban. His clarity, frenetic energy, and refusal to settle reminded me that vision demands sacrifice. But the most surprising was a quieter conversation with someone outside fame—a philanthropist in a forgotten region—where small acts became epic. That moment reminded me that greatness lives in the margins.
“Team Humanity is a movement, not a slogan.”
- VOUS: Your Wishwall Foundation is an integral pillar of your identity. How do you balance activism and entertainment in your life?
Simonetta:
I refuse to separate them. When you tell real stories of human pain, hope, dreams, you merge activism and art. The Wishwall is about granting small, dignified wishes—education, shelter, empowerment. Meanwhile, on stage and screen, I push cultural conversation. That balance keeps me awake.
- VOUS: The show is predominantly Instagram-native, fast, visual. How do you preserve depth in a short format?
Simonetta:
By resisting brevity that flattens. I design episodes that carry emotional arcs—beginning, tension, reflection. I keep the visuals bold but let the pauses breathe. The trick is editing without erasing humanity.
- VOUS: When you feel disconnected — by fame, algorithms, expectations — how do you find your anchor again?
Simonetta:
Return to the small: morning silence, journaling, nature, letters from fans, listening to music. I always reset with rituals grounded in the body. I also revisit my roots—the early days of fashion, the early pages of my book Everything Is Possible. They remind me where I started.
- VOUS: As someone who navigates public and private, what boundaries do you protect?
Simonetta:
My internal world is off-limits. My spiritual practice, emotional process, intimate struggles—those belong to me and a trusted inner circle. I choose what I share. Boundaries are not walls — they are the shape of freedom.
- VOUS: In your vision, what does a future of media look like — one that honors humanity rather than replaces it?
Simonetta:
I imagine networks that prioritize slow thinking, contradiction, collaborative narratives. Media that allows silence between voices. That values the fringe over the viral. That treats creators as humans, not content factories. That amplifies marginalized voices.
“AI can mimic surface. It can’t feel heartbreak.”
- VOUS: You have lived in multiple countries and built bridges between cultures. How does that inform your ideas about global community?
Simonetta:
Migration is my lens. Each time I cross border—to film, fashion, philanthropy—I bring dual citizenship: of place and empathy. I believe in layered identity. A global community must honor difference, not erase it. We connect through story, not assimilation.
- VOUS: The intersection of course is your brand. What are you building beyond the show — what’s the legacy you hope to leave?
Simonetta:
I’m building a media ecosystem: the show, a publishing arm, mentorship, Team Humanity movement, global chapters of the Wishwall. A network where creators, changemakers, and everyday people share voice, resources, stories. I want legacy to mean bridges built, voices lifted, choices changed.
“Boundaries are not walls — they are the shape of freedom.”
- VOUS: If AI becomes so advanced that people can’t tell real from fabricated, how will you continue to brand authenticity?
Simonetta:
By leaning into mess, vulnerability, unpredictability. AI imitates surface. It can’t feel heartbreak, nuance, moral tension. My authenticity will be in imperfect edges, in laughter, in honesty, in admitting when I’m wrong. That is my watermark.
- VOUS: Finally — what do you hope the world takes from season 7 of The Simonetta Lein Show?
Simonetta:
I hope viewers remember: you are not algorithm fodder. You are feeling, flawed, sovereign. That thought, that voice, matters. I hope brave questions spread. I hope hearts soften, minds widen. And I hope we carry the flame of humanity through the storm of change.
As she continues to explore the intersections of humanity, technology, and authentic storytelling, Simonetta remains a creative force who evolves with each season. And now, she’s stepping into one of the most exciting chapters yet — the launch of Season 7 of The Simonetta Lein Show, featuring none other than Hall of Famer singer Daryl Hall. This new season promises deeper conversations, powerful insights, and the same signature blend of grace and fearlessness that have made her one of today’s most influential voices in media.
As the world edges further into the age of artificial intelligence, Simonetta Lein stands as a voice of equilibrium — reminding us that progress without presence is hollow. Through The Simonetta Lein Show and her Team Humanity movement, she challenges an era obsessed with perfection to rediscover the beauty of imperfection, compassion, and curiosity.
Her vision is not nostalgia for a pre-digital past, but an invitation to evolve consciously — to use innovation as a mirror, not a mask. Season 7 isn’t just another chapter in her show; it’s a manifesto for real conversation in unreal times.
Because in Simonetta’s universe, humanity isn’t losing — it’s learning how to lead again.
