I had a thought today: what if Eric Weinstein's Geometric Unity, has a formulation as complex E8 gauge theory in 14 dimensions, coupled to a brane whose worldvolume theory is Gunaydin's 4d octonionic magic supergravity? The rationale for this being the 14-dimensional grading of E8(C), something which Michael Rios told me about years ago.
It's unlikely, but a concrete speculation like this, is a way to get a handle on several otherwise nebulous possibilities.
