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Formative Years in St. Louis. Guest Author: Keach Hagey. This segment explores Sam Altman's childhood in St. Louis during the 1980s and 90s. Hagey describes Altman's parents: Jerry, an idealistic real estate developer focused on affordable housing, and Connie, a highly ambitious dermatologist who set rigorous expectations for her four children. As the eldest, Sam was identified early as being intellectually "on another plane." At sixteen, he candidly came out to his mother, who eventually moved past her initial health-related fears to maintain their strong bond. A defining influence was the John Burroughs School, a progressive private institution that instilled a moral responsibility to use one's talents to improve the world. Despite his technological interests in programming and ham radio, Altman was noted for his precocious charisma and ability to engage adults on topics ranging from computer science to human rights. The segment concludes with his decision to attend Stanford University. 2
This past summer, employees at OpenAI had a meeting. On the table were about 10 cases where users discussed violence. Months later, one of those users committed one of the deadliest mass shootings in Canadian history. Sam Altman wrote an apology letter to the devastated town of Tumbler Ridge. WSJ's Georgia Wells reports on why OpenAI resisted internal calls to alert law enforcement. Ryan Knutson hosts. Further Listening: - A Troubled Man and His Chatbot - Artificial: The OpenAI Story Sign up for WSJ's free What's News newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Meta's business is doing just fine. But Meta as a company, and Meta as a series of products? That is, uh, messier. David and Nilay discuss the company's ongoing desire to be relevant and cool, the unceasing importance of Instagram, and why it makes perfect sense that Facebook would clone Polymarket. After that, the hosts talk about Apple's huge price increases, and the ways in which RAMageddon might change the gadget market forever. Then it's time for Brendan Carr is a dummy, the latest on the movie Artificial, and the looming fight over AI data. Further reading: The Steam Machine is the most ambitious game console I've ever played Valve prices the Steam Machine at $1,049 How much would the Steam Machine cost to build? Valve describes just how brutal RAM negotiations are in 2026 The Steam Machine is the start of an even more expensive future for game consoles I drove the Slate Truck — there's more to it than EV minimalism The Slate Auto pickup truck starts at $24,950 Meta pauses employee tracking tool after internal leak. Now Meta will track what employees do on their computers to train its AI agents Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth Admits the Company's AI Reorg Was ‘Atrocious' | WIRED Zuckerberg reportedly wants a Polymarket clone — but without real money Polymarket paid creators to post fake videos of themselves placing and winning bets. Meta plans to release AI-powered prediction market app Facebook's Creator Studio has been revived as an AI companion app Kaleidescape's Strato E player blows streaming, and your wallet, away Something's off with Midjourney's pivot to body scanners People Inc. CEO says it's “probably” headed for a confrontation with Google over AI crawling. ABC encourages viewers to back network amid FCC investigations Bob Iger's Disney wanted Apple, Twitter, and 007 The film about Sam Altman has been dropped by Amazon MGM Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11. (Timestamps are approximate.) 00:01:00 Cannes Cold Open 00:07:00 Coach x Spotify Absurdity 00:10:00 Vox Media PMX Shakeup 00:14:00 Meta Chaos vs Money 00:26:00 Gambling as Engagement 00:33:00 Ramageddon Hits Gadgets 00:44:00 Slate Truck Price 00:45:00 Range And Truck Feel 00:48:00 Tech Bloat Backlash 00:50:00 BYD Versus Tesla 00:56:00 FCC Targets The View 01:04:00 Amazon Drops Artificial 01:08:00 Kaleidescape Versus Blu Ray 01:13:00 Bob Iger Merger Rumors 01:17:00 Blocking AI Crawlers 01:22:00 Wrap Up And Next Week Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
LEVITICUS is the new Australian horror movie that turns (already quite frightening) gay conversion rituals into something even more haunting. And with us to unpack it is our friend Justin Kirkland, who just happens to have a new podcast exploring (with good humor!) how the Bible has been yielded as a weapon. Then we imagine some classic romances with a devilish twist. What's Good? Alonso - UDM14.com Drea - Bentonville Film Festival 2026! Justin - Launch of This is Not a Weapon podcast Kevin - life-changing coasters ITIDICAmazonMGM Bails on Guadagnino's Almost-Complete Sam Altman MovieMadonna Says Her Biopic was Scrapped at Universal Over Budget Staff Picks Alonso - The Boys in the Band (1970) (in new 4K UHD!) Drea - Color Book and Maddie's Secret Justin - The Birdcage Kevin - Invaders from Mars (1953) Help support this show and unlock bonus content! Become a member at https://maximumfun.org/joinmaxfilm Follow us on BlueSky, Facebook, Instagram, or LetterboxdWithKevin AveryDrea ClarkAlonso DuraldeProduced by Marissa FlaxbartSr. Producer Laura Swisher
OpenAI leaned toward delaying its IPO to 2027 rather than budge from Altman's $1T valuation, rattling tech stocks. The government had OpenAI stagger GPT-5.6's release over security concerns. Microsoft hiked Xbox prices again, and SpaceX teased a Starlink mobile network. Sources: OpenAI leans toward holding off its IPO until 2027 after warnings that Sam Altman's desired $1T valuation may not be met in current market conditions (The New York Times) Sources: Sam Altman told staff the US government asked OpenAI to stagger the release of GPT-5.6 over security concerns, approving "access customer by customer" (The Information) Microsoft says the price of Xbox consoles will increase on August 1 by $100 for 512GB models and $150 for 1TB models, the third price increase since 2025 (Kotaku) Sources: SpaceX COO Gwynne Shotwell told investors during an IPO roadshow SpaceX may launch a Starlink mobile product and build its own terrestrial US network (FT) Longreads How Chicago is betting on quantum computing, including turning the site of its former US Steel mill into a campus, after largely missing the digital revolution (WSJ) As China's working-age population shrinks, consensus is growing that China must embed embodied AI robots into as many tasks as possible, as soon as possible (FT) Subscribe to the ad-free feed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
It's been a week of much news and many releases. IndieWire editors Anne Thompson and Ryan Lattanzio unpack the drama around Luca Guadagnino's upcoming Sam Altman biopic "Artificial." They also share their thoughts on the buzzy new trailer for Jesse Eisenberg's second directorial effort: "The Debut" starring Juliane Moore and Paul Giamatti, as well as the news of Google's partnership with A24. Finally they review a slew of new releases, from the Pixar box office smash "Toy Story 5" to the Olivia Wilde directed sex dramedy "The Invite" and the floundering "Supergirl." Check out the trailer for "The Debut" - https://www.indiewire.com/news/trailers/the-debut-movie-trailer-julianne-moore-jesse-eisenberg-1235201503/ Read how Olivia Wilde fought for theatrical for her third feature: https://www.indiewire.com/features/interviews/the-invite-olivia-wilde-rejected-netflix-1235201797/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
As tech companies race to build hyperscale data centers, communities are coming together to push back. Saul Levin joins Paris Marx to discuss how rising opposition to data center construction is uniting people across party lines and prompting broader conversations around what infrastructure people want instead. Saul Levin is community organizer and host of The Hum.Tech Won't Save Us offers a critical perspective on tech, its worldview, and wider society with the goal of inspiring people to demand better tech and a better world. Support the show on Patreon.The podcast is made in partnership with The Nation. Production is by Kyla Hewson.Also mentioned in this episode:You can now pre-order Paris's new book, Hyperscale: The Ambition and Excess of Big Tech's Data Empires.Saul wrote a piece with Astra Taylor about the bigger picture of data center organizing.The Seminole Nation in Oklahoma passed a ban on AI data centers on their lands.Sam Altman and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer posing together at the site of a new data center drew wide criticism.Support the show
This week, the team discusses Amazon's controversial decision to drop Luca Guadagnino's film about OpenAI's Sam Altman — which reportedly did not paint him in a favorable light. Alongside Google DeepMind's $75 million brand new partnership with indie film studio A24, how much of a dent is AI actually having in the films we see? They also discuss the recent upheaval of workers — from electricians to software engineers — against data centers. Plus: Meta's program to track employees' data gets paused after a massive leak, and Anthropic is now getting along with the government thanks to CEO Dario Amodei no longer being in the room. Articles mentioned in this episode: Some Electricians Think Building Data Centers Is for Sellouts | WIRED Meta Pauses Employee-Tracking Program Following Internal Data Leak | WIRED The Trump White House Is Over Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei | WIRED Join WIRED's best and brightest on Uncanny Valley as they dissect the collision of tech, politics, finance, and business, from the newest ventures to the effects of inaccurate information from artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots on social protests. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices
The evasiveness of AI companies, calls for a nationwide datacenter moratorium, Amazon backs out of Sam Altman biopic, Pentagon used Grok AI to fire missiles at Iran, MSG made dossier on activists who opposed facial recognition.
On this week's episode, we discuss the startling news that Amazon-MGM has decided to bail on distributing Luca Guadagnino's forthcoming film about Sam Altman and OpenAI. Is this simply a matter of reconciling conflicts of interest, or is something more dastardly involved? Then they review Toy Story 5: The One With Screens. Does it live up to its predecessors? Or is it something to be half-watched on a tablet while folding socks? Make sure to swing by Bulwark+ on Thursday for our special bonus episode on the best animated featuers of the 21st century. And if you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend!
All eyes are on New York. The congressional primaries happen tonight, and in a city this Democratic, many of these races will effectively decide who heads to Congress. What I'm watching is a battle between Hakeem Jeffries and Zohran Mamdani. Mamdani is flexing. We're going to see exactly how much of a kingmaker he is in New York City. Jeffries is backing incumbents like Dan Goldman and Adriano Espaillat, the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. Mamdani is backing candidates including Brad Lander and Darlisa Avila Chevalier. The big question is whether Mamdani's endorsements can translate into wins, especially against somebody as entrenched as Espaillat.The race that really has my attention, though, is New York's 12th Congressional District. Jerry Nadler is retiring, and what has followed is an absolute clown car of a race. Micah Lasher would be my favorite to win, but he's the least interesting candidate in the field. George Conway, once one of the chief architects of turning the Monica Lewinsky scandal into the political force that it became and later one of the most notable Never Trump Republicans in America, is running as a Democrat. Jack Schlossberg, John F. Kennedy's grandson, is also in the race. And then there's Alex Bores, a New York Assembly member who has become the main character of this contest thanks to his relationship with AI.Politics Politics Politics is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.The polling has been all over the place. Early on, Schlossberg led thanks to the Kennedy name. More recent polling has Lasher ahead, with Bores close behind and a huge chunk of the electorate still undecided. That's important because Bores has become the center of one of the strangest political fights I've ever seen. Roughly $26 million has poured into this House race because of his support for the RAISE Act, a proposal to regulate artificial intelligence at the state level.The two major companies in artificial intelligence, OpenAI and Anthropic, have very different views on how to regulate AI. A super PAC supported by OpenAI leadership in a personal capacity spent money attacking Bores, arguing that splintered state regulations would hurt the industry. Anthropic-aligned groups responded by spending even more money. Do they support the RAISE Act? Who knows. They want OpenAI's effort to fail, and that's what makes fight this so unusual. All of this is far less about Alex Bores and more about two AI companies using a congressional primary as a venue for a much larger argument.I know politics, and I understand the influence of super PACs. I've never seen a personal beef quite like this one. Anthropic hates OpenAI, and it's not a secret. Their CEO, Dario Amodei, does not believe OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman is trustworthy. Anthropic's view is that it needs to out-innovate OpenAI and become the market leader. At the same time, I think the anti-Bores effort made strategic mistakes. The ads were so ham-fisted that they gave him life he otherwise would not have had. The spending has even become controversial inside OpenAI. And tonight's the night we find out whether any of it even mattered.Chapters00:00:00 - Intro00:05:34 - Jeffries vs. Mamdani00:10:04 - NY-1200:20:50 - Update00:22:00 - Keir Starmer00:26:50 - Israel00:31:35 - Congress00:34:29 - Intro to Attention Mechanism00:38:16 - Attention Mechanism with Andrew Mayne01:43:58 - Wrap-up This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.politicspoliticspolitics.com/subscribe
DR1Our Tech OverlordsIn our 'Elon Musk's alibi to police was, "It couldn't be my fault; I haven't been at Tesla since they passed my pay package."' headline of the week. Tesla Under Fire After Car Smashes Into Texas Home and Kills 76-Year-Old Grandmother*************** In our 'Hello, my name is Jeff, I have a younger brother and sister, my favorite food is Betty Crocker pancakes, and I am a Coupon-ism major at Columbia University' headline of the week. Jeff Bezos Called Washington Post His Worst Investment and Staff He Laid Off ‘Terrible' People*************** LivingSocial (Written Down 2016): In 2010, Amazon poured $175 million into this daily-deals competitor to Groupon. The daily-deals craze fizzled out quickly, and six years later, LivingSocial was acquired by Groupon for effectively $0In our 'Just tell them it will make their Netflix better' headline of the week. Head of Microsoft Rages at His Fellow CEOs for Admitting What They're Actually Doing to Society With AI*************** “You can't say, hey, all white-collar jobs are gone and this could even be a weapon and we will use all the power to build data centers,” Nadella explained(Microsoft's own AI CEO Mustafa Suleyma, it's worth noting, very recently claimed that AI was on the verge of performing most “professional tasks.”)Nadella is now pushing an approach that factors in the common worker, criticizing those who get excited to announce AI-driven layoffs. “No, how about we think about reorganizing the jobs?”In our 'Mark has super-duper pinky-promised to stop using his $150,000 Patek Philippe watch to time exactly how long it takes a developer to cry' headline of the week. Meta CTO Admits Mark Zuckerberg Has Completely Crushed Employee Spirits*************** In our 'Hey Ma, every time I click on this ad it wipes my butt, buys a dozen frozen turkey burgers, and breaks up with my girlfriend, tell Dad!' headline of the week. These new Amazon ads don't just recommend products—they can make your purchases for you***************MM1In our 'What if I replace the Oreo knockoff brand Kroger Chocolate Lovers Kid-O's with Hydrox in the vending machines? Will you like working here again?' headline of the week. Meta Floats Bigger Snack Budget After AI Shakeup Tanks Employee MoraleIn our 'What if I make it LOOK LIKE your job isn't harming children, so you can tell your Mom at Thanksgiving, "no, we don't hurt children, that's ridiculous!"? Will you like working here again?' headline of the week. Meta lobbies Congress for immunity from lawsuits alleging online harm to childrenIn our 'OK, what if I replace the HYDROX with ACTUAL OREOS in the vending machines? Not even Elon Musk would do that - would you like working here again?' headline of the week. X tells 'neglected' Meta employees that it is hiring and will 'exceed any snack budget offer'In our 'I should have gotten the worst possible grade for GOVERNANCE, not ENVIRONMENT... don't you people read?' headline of the week. Musk Furious After SpaceX Stock Get Worst Possible Environmental GradeIn our 'Free Float data already created influence metrics, says, "make your own ESG data, jerk"' headline of the week. Inside Peter Thiel's Invite-Only Dialog Network: Secret A-B-C Grading System for Billionaires and PoliticiansGrades are assigned based on factors including fame, wealth, influence and political fit: C ratings go to the most prominent figures, A to those who are established but less high-profile, and B to most othersDR2The StupidIn our 'Target screams, you're supposed to fake fire your CEO and make him Executive Chair and promote the COO in times of internal crisis!' headline of the week. Lucid Motors Fires 18% of Workforce and Axes COO Marc Winterhoff as EV Market Slowdown Hits Hard*************** In our 'Target screams, yes exactly!' headline of the week. Domino's names COO Joe Jordan as new CEO amid slowing sales***************Outgoing CEO Russell Weiner will transition to executive chairmanIn our 'Group of experts suggest painting the pool blue to get rid of the problem' headline of the week. ‘ESG Hasn't Gone Away': Group Urges Trump, SEC to Rein In ‘Big Three' Asset Managers' Voting Power Long Term*************** Bull Moose Institute: 8 men, 0 women: ran by Aiden Buzzetti, President | 1776 Project Foundation & Bull Moose ProjectIn our 'Soccer 1, Child Care 0' headline of the week. After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup*************** In our 'Board members include Kimbal Musk, O.J. Simpson, Dana White, Rebekah Neumann, Elizabeth Holmes, Richard Sackler, John R. Tyson, and John T. Walton' headline of the week. Trump Forms UFO Board to Investigate 'Mothership' Orb Threat Over Sensitive National Security SiteJohn T. Walton (1992-2005), the billionaire son of Walmart founder Sam Walton, died in 2005, when the home-built experimental ultralight aircraft he was piloting crashedUnlike siblings Rob and Jim Walton, who took executive roles, John's involvement emphasized oversight without deep immersion in merchandising or supply chain functionsMM2In our 'Blackrock announces funding a reboot of the movie The Highlander called The Gay Highlander: There Can Be Only One' headline of the week. With the exits of Apple's Tim Cook and Dow's Jim Fitterling, the Fortune 500 is losing two groundbreaking gay CEOs—leaving just one In our 'Lying sociopath is 100% excited about making money, 74% excited about taking a bath, 29% excited to go home to his baby, and 12% excited to eat Hydrox' headline of the week. Sam Altman was ‘0%' excited to be a CEO of a public company—but OpenAI is taking steps to compete in the AI IPO blitz anywayIn our 'Lying sociopath hires man accused of aiding suicide to build product that will destroy humanity' headline of the week. OpenAI Just Hired a Guy Accused of Terrible ThingsNoam Shazeer, cofounder of Character.AI who has been accused of having an AI chatbot that rooted for their customer's suicidesIn our 'Lying sociopath who hired man accused of aiding suicides for product designed to destroy humanity thinks the product will be able to do it by next Christmas' headline of the week. Sam Altman thinks AI will surpass human intelligence by 2030. His rival AI billionaires say it'll be even soonerIn our 'Man who owns everything and has all the money suggests you try out whittling or become a cobbler' headline of the week. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang says electricians and plumbers will be needed by the hundreds of thousands in the new working world
Apple TV may be chasing the prestige-TV crown that HBO once owned, but the big question is whether that model can work in streaming when even HBO muddied the waters. Meanwhile, Amazon MGM may be looking for a new home for its Sam Altman biopic, Instagram wants more time on your TV, and Netflix's K-pop Demon Hunters keeps dominating globally.This week on The FULL Experience: V (Part I)Next week: V (Part II)Subscribe, get expanded show notes, and past episodes at http://Cordkillers.comSupport Cordkillers at http://Patreon.com/CordkillersYouTube: https://youtu.be/7EXpR53RzFM Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Global AI Power Play Is Here, And It's Already Shaping Your Career and Business. What if I told you that a $600 billion handshake in Saudi Arabia just reshaped the future of AI and your career, and most professionals have no idea?In this video, I'll show you what REALLY happened when Trump met with Elon Musk, Sam Altman, Nvidia's CEO, and Middle Eastern leaders, and how their deal is already shifting the AI, cybersecurity, and business landscapes forever.We'll dive into: the tech arms race and how it's redefining power in 2025; why 3.5M cybersecurity jobs remain unfilled despite mass layoffs; how AI is transforming careers, security, and global policies; the 5 risks in AI that are creating new job roles and business models; why YOU are right on time, not too late for AI leadership opportunitiesWhether you're a professional in cybersecurity, a business leader, or someone navigating this AI wave, this video will help you stay ahead of the curve.Looking to go from chaos and unpredictability to resilience in the world of AI? Start here with The Predictability Factor newsletter at The Monica Talks Cyber (https://www.monicatalkscyber.com).
Qué tal, queridos Curiosinautas. Bienvenidos a un nuevo CuriosiMartes, el resumen semanal de noticias tecno del tío Fabián.Esta semana viene cargada: el regreso inesperado de Commodore con un teléfono retro pensado para comunicarse sin caer en redes sociales, los problemas de Android 17 en los propios Pixel, la nueva guerra tecnológica entre China, Estados Unidos y la Unión Europea, y un cambio clave en Apple con la posible llegada de una etapa más enfocada en diseño y hardware.Además, hablamos de inteligencia artificial en serio: la salida de figuras clave de Google DeepMind y Meta, las advertencias de Sam Altman sobre una IA que podría superar intelectualmente a los humanos, el concepto de “rendición cognitiva” y el riesgo de dejar de pensar por depender demasiado de los chatbots.También exploramos el futuro de la robótica versátil junto a DEEPRobotics, con avances en robots cuadrúpedos, embodied AI, automatización y nuevos formatos como el M20 y su pequeño compañero robótico.La robótica ya no es solo industrial: empieza a mezclarse con asistencia, autonomía, seguridad, compañía y nuevas formas de interacción con el mundo físico.Y para cerrar, una noticia que parece ciencia ficción: Midjourney Medical trabaja en un sistema de escaneo corporal con medio millón de sensores ultrasónicos, pensado para analizar el cuerpo completo en menos de 60 segundos y ayudar en la detección temprana de enfermedades.
Jonathan and JP are back with another packed week of trailer verdicts, screen time nostalgia, and the kind of movie news that makes you question everything.First up, List It or Nix It — the guys put Hot Spot, Klara and the Sun, Shrek 5, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Dinosaurs of the Wild West, Hexed, and Time of Death through the Letterboxd test. Some earn a spot. Some don't make it out alive.Then it's What We've Been Watching. Jonathan's been in the jungle with Jumanji, getting morally complicated with Red Rocket, and going full '80s nostalgia with Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. JP went deep with 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple and swung back to the high seas with Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl.And then there's The News. Toy Story 5 just had one of the biggest animated opening weekends in history — is Pixar officially back? Disclosure Day stumbles in week two. Spider-Man: Brand New Day is already breaking presale records but has to compete with Nolan for premium screens. The week's wildest story: Luca Guadagnino's nearly-finished film about Sam Altman gets dropped by Amazon — right after their $50 billion OpenAI deal. Totally unrelated, we're sure. Plus: Supergirl early buzz, a new Keanu Reeves Lego movie, Dan Trachtenberg doing kids' horror (yes, really), Austin Powers 4 is happening, and Emmy nominations are officially locked in.
Market update for Tuesday June 23rdCheck out the Public app for incredible investing tools and to support the show (LINK)Follow us on Instagram (@TheRundownDaily) and YouTube for bonus content and instant reactions.In today's episode, Zaid covers:Why tech stocks are selling offGoogle just had the worst day in its history after losing two of its top AI minds to rivalsWhy Meta is going all-in on $299 smart glassesIBM rises after getting an upgrade from JPMQualcomm drops despite a $4B AI dealFun Fact: Amazon spent $40 million on a Sam Altman movie… and then buried it
While Anthropic and the U.S. Government continued to try and make amends, there was another seismic shift quietly taking place: open source surged. Between Microsoft reportedly testing Open Source models for Copilot and the powerful new GLM-5.2, there was a clear trend this week in AI world. Missed it all? Don't worry, we'll catch you up so you can make the informed decisions for your company. Anthropic Continues Fable Fight, Microsoft Goes Open Source, Midjourney's Big Pivot and More AI News That Matters -- An Everyday AI Chat with Jordan WilsonNewsletter: Sign up for our free daily newsletterMore on this Episode: Episode PageToday's Episode on LinkedIn: Thoughts on this? Join the convo on LinkedIn and connect with other AI leaders.Upcoming Episodes: Check out the upcoming Everyday AI Livestream lineupWebsite: YourEverydayAI.comEmail The Show: info@youreverydayai.comConnect with Jordan on LinkedInTopics Covered in This Episode:Anthropic Fable 5 and Mythos 5 Export BanTrump Labels Anthropic a National Security ThreatMicrosoft Copilot CoWork Open Source Model SwitchMicrosoft Considers DeepSeek-V4 for AI Cost ReductionChinese GLM 5-2 Sets Open Source BenchmarkGLM 5-2 Challenges Proprietary AI ModelsMidJourney Hardware Pivot: AI Medical Imaging ScannerCursor Building 1.5T Parameter Model, GitHub CompetitorAI CEO Summit: G7 Pushes US-Led AI CoalitionOpenAI Prepares GPT-5.6 ReleaseAnthropic, OpenAI, Google Face Geopolitical AI ScrutinyAdvancements in Token Efficiency and Cost ControlTimestamps:00:00 Trump's comments on Anthropic06:17 Microsoft exploring lower-cost AI models09:07 Microsoft exploring DeepSeek amid tensions13:45 AI model performance and efficiency trends15:59 AI leaders meet at G7 Summit21:22 Midjourney unveils first hardware product23:26 MidJourney's innovative spa technology28:50 Discussing Cursor's evolution and impact32:24 Talking about AI use cases33:27 Rumors and upcoming AI model releases37:20 OpenAI's major new hiresKeywords: Anthropic, Fable Five, Mythos Five, export controls, national security threat, Dario Amodei, Amazon, supply chain risk, Defense Production Act, Copilot CoWork, Microsoft, usage based pricing, open source AI, DeepSeek V4, Chinese AI model, token costs, Azure, agentic AI, enterprise AI billing, data security, compliance filters, GLM 5-2, Zhipu AI, 753 billion parameter model, MIT open source license, long context window, autonomous coding, Hugging Face, benchmark performance, text only model, multimodal capabilities, token efficiency, AI spend, G7 summit, AI governance, AI coalition, AI standards, cybersecurity risks, bioterrorism, chip trade, Sam Altman, OpenAI, Claude Opus 4.8, Gemini 3.5 Pro, MidJourney, medical imaging, MidJourney scanner, full body ultrasound, Butterfly Network, MRI alternative, spa launch, SpaceX, Cursor, 1.5 trillion parameter model, code hosting, GitHub competitor, code generation, AI super apps, Colossus compute, technical prompts, context window expansion, GPT 5.6, Claude Conway agent, Grok Imagine, Firefly AI, code artifacts, Google Ad Manager AI, Open Knowledge Format, Noam Shazeer, Dean Ball, Andrej Karpathy.Send Everyday AI and Jordan a text message. (We can't reply back unless you leave contact info) Start Here ▶️Not sure where to start when it comes to AI? Start with our Start Here Series. You can listen to the first drop -- Episode 691 -- or get free access to our Inner Cricle community and all episodes: StartHereSeries.com Also, here's a link to the entire series on a Spotify playlist.
Matt is joined by Keach Hagey, a journalist at The Wall Street Journal and author of 'The Optimist: Sam Altman, OpenAI, and the Race to Invent the Future,' to discuss Amazon abandoning Luca Guadagnino's movie ‘Artificial' and looking to sell it to another studio to distribute. They talk about why Amazon made this movie in the first place, its relationship with OpenAI, their thoughts on the script and how it portrays Altman, whether any major studio will buy this movie, and how big tech has influenced Hollywood's decision-making strategy (00:00). Matt finishes the show with a prediction about the legendary Clive Davis pre-Grammys party (27:17). Host: Matt Belloni Guest: Keach Hagey Producers: Craig Horlbeck, Jessie Lopez, and Jon Jones Theme Song: Devon Renaldo After false reports of Deborah's death, she and Ava return to Vegas. Watch now. Alan Cumming hosts the hit series THE TRAITORS. Streaming on Peacock. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Does Hollywood have a problem with censorship? What's the best post-pandemic movie? Is Andy Burnham, Britain's next potential Prime Minister, actually cool? Amazon MGM Studios has dropped their upcoming Luca Guadagnino film 'Artificial', with some speculating it's because the movie features an unflattering portrayal of OpenAI founder Sam Altman. Is this yet another example of tech billionaires censoring the media industry? Richard Osman and Marina Hyde discuss if studios can do anything to fight back? Keir Starmer is out. Andy Burnham is in (maybe). Richard discusses the former Manchester Mayor's 'indie-kid' credentials with a rifle through his record collection. Quentin Tarantino says there are no good movies post-pandemic. Is he wrong? We discuss the best films of the last half-decade, and why the world is so list obsessed. Recommendations: Return To Space (Netflix) Pompeii: Out Of Time (Trailer) Roy Keane Complaining About Wags (The Overlap) The Rest is Entertainment is brought to you by Octopus Energy, Britain's most awarded energy supplier. Lloyds. 250 years on and still backing the nation's aspirations. Lending is subject to status. You could lose your home if you don't keep up your mortgage repayments. Conditions apply.1996 average first-time buyer deposit based on Office National Statistics House Price Index data. Summer sale is here: get an annual membership for a third off with code SUMMER26. That's ad-free listening, every bonus episode, and full access to our exclusive members' series. Sale ends August 31st, so grab it before summer's over. For more Goalhanger Podcasts, head to www.goalhanger.com Video Editor: Adam Thornton & Lorcan Moullier Assistant Producer: Imee Marriott Senior Producer: Joey McCarthy Social Producer: Emma Jackson Exec Producer: Sam Psyk Filmed at www.westdigitalstudios.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
El episodio 119 llegó con historia, escándalo y datos que no te podés perder.Arrancamos con el hito más grande del momento: Elon Musk se convirtió en el primer trillonario de la historia. SpaceX salió pública a 2.3 trillones de dólares y lo puso en una categoría donde nadie más existe. Lucas lo dijo mejor que nadie: él está más cerca de Larry Page que Larry Page de Elon. Un número que no tiene sentido hasta que lo escuchás.Después hablamos de por qué SpaceX no es solo una empresa espacial. Es la única compañía verticalmente integrada de principio a fin para la era AI: tiene datos, centros de cómputo, energía solar, telecomunicaciones satelitales y exploración espacial bajo el mismo techo. El bull case es simple y brutal.Luego viene el escándalo de la semana. El fundador de Cloudflare contó públicamente que Vinod Khosla, uno de los VCs más respetados del mundo, intentó convencerlo de echar a sus co-founders a cambio de quedarse con todo el equity. Y cuando lo negó, publicó el term sheet como prueba. Una historia que debería leer todo founder antes de levantar su primera ronda.También hablamos de un caso cercano que sirve de advertencia real: un co-founder que quiso salirse de una startup que no funcionaba y recibió amenazas legales de sus socios y los VCs para que perdiera su vesting. La lección es clara — antes de arrancar una compañía, hay que tener las conversaciones incómodas.En el frente de IPOs, Anthropic y OpenAI hicieron sus filings privados casi al mismo tiempo y están obligando a los banqueros a elegir bando. Lucas se queda con Anthropic. Cristóbal también, aunque reconoce que la flexibilidad moral de Sam Altman en el mundo de Trump puede ser una ventaja.Después analizamos a Bending Spoons, los italianos que compraron Evernote, Vimeo y WeTransfer entre otros, y los están exprimiendo con AI desde Milano a una fracción del costo americano. Un modelo de negocio que muchos subestiman y que ya factura más de un billón de dólares al año.Cerramos con tres temas que tocan directamente la vida cotidiana. AI destruyó el modelo de las grandes consultoras — Accenture cayó 18% en un solo día y los puestos entry-level están desapareciendo, lo que pone en jaque el ROI del MBA. Los smartphones y la caída global de la natalidad tienen una correlación que empieza a asustarnos a todos. Y los propios CEOs de las redes sociales no le dan pantallas a sus hijos, que es la señal más honesta que existe sobre lo que realmente piensan de sus productos.
We already reviewed the big movie of the week -- that would be "Toy Story 5" -- so we wanted to tell you about a couple of cool, new indies on this Friday edition of Breakfast All Day: THE DEATH OF ROBIN HOOD. Hugh Jackman stars in this darkly violent version of the Robin Hood legend. Specifically, he wants no part of it, and would rather live out his final days in peace. Michael Sarnoski's film is beautiful but brutal. Co-starring Jodie Comer, Bill Skarsgård and Murray Bartlett. In theaters. LEVITICUS. Two young men (Joe Bird and Stacy Clausen) fall in love in a decaying Australian mill town. Religious leaders force them into a conversion therapy that makes them fear an enigmatic, threatening version of each other. Writer-director Adrian Chiarella executes this inspired horror concept extremely well in his feature filmmaking debut. In theaters. MOVIE NEWS LIVE! This went extra long because there was so much to talk about, including the "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" trailer, Amazon dropping Luca Guadagnino's Sam Altman movie, Fox buying Roku, "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" at Sphere Las Vegas, and Ben Stiller's New York Knicks documentary. Join us on Fridays at Noon Pacific. Thanks for starting your weekend with us! Christy is offering discount Cameos for Father's Day! Only $20 from now until 10pm Pacific on Sunday. Find out more and book here: https://www.cameo.com/christylemire Subscribe to Christy's Saturday Matinee newsletter: https://christylemire.beehiiv.com/
Sean and Amanda open today's show with a long list of movie news headlines, including Luca Guadagnino's Sam Altman movie ‘Artificial' being dropped by Amazon following their OpenAI partnership, and Curry Barker inking a 10-figure deal with Universal and Blumhouse Atomic Monster for his next original project. Then, they cover a new release with Michael Sarnoski's ‘The Death of Robin Hood' starring Hugh Jackman. They highlight its impressively gnarly filmmaking, explain why its big flaw is in the concept of the film itself, and take a look at the history of ‘Robin Hood' movies and discuss what makes them successful. Next, they discuss ‘Toy Story 5', a film which Sean and Amanda had vastly different reactions to. After debating what did and didn't work for them, they rank every film from the ‘Toy Story' franchise. (0:00) Intro (0:36) Movie news (19:03) ‘The Death of Robin Hood' (27:04) What makes a good ‘Robin Hood' movie? (42:18) ‘Toy Story 5' (1:15:19) What is Pixar now? (1:21:07) The ‘Toy Story' movie rankings Hosts: Sean Fennessey and Amanda Dobbins Producer: Jack Sanders Production Support: Lucas Cavanagh Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Don't forget your Daddy! It's Father's Day this weekend.Rumors are swirling that Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce might be actually tying the knot in Rhode Island this weekend.Bunnie Xo and Jelly Roll's divorce keeps getting messier and Bunnie Xo is spilling more details. Amazon has officially dropped the nearly finished film "Artificial" that paints a less than flattering picture of Sam Altman, we dig into why this is a big deal.Brooklyn Beckham is throwing shade at his parents Victoria Beckham and her hot husband David Beckham. We can't believe we JUST found out that Anne Hathaway is pregnant with her third child. Jesse Eisenberg says he will absolutely not play Mark Zuckerberg in a movie and he's got strong feelings about the Facebook billionaire. Comedian Ben Katzner joins us in the studio to talk about haunted houses and Harry Potter. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Charlie Fink, Ted Schilowitz, and Rony Abovitz take the full hour to work through the most consequential AI and spatial computing stories of the moment — unfiltered, in depth, and without the usual polite hedging that comes with having someone on to promote something. This is a pure news and commentary episode, and the news is strange enough that three experienced people sitting in a room still cannot fully account for it.AI XR News You Should Know:The OpenAI vs. Elon Musk case concluded without a clear ruling, but the more durable observation is what the whole saga revealed about Sam Altman. He has now survived being ousted by his own board (which he subsequently dismantled), a high-profile lawsuit from Elon Musk, and senior rivals leaving for government roles. Rony frames this through the Overton window — Altman studies what society is prepared to accept at any given moment and positions himself precisely there. Ted references a New Yorker profile that describes Altman as having a politician's gift for telling people what they want to hear until it becomes true. The financial architecture underneath the AI boom looks precarious on close inspection. SpaceX, widely assumed to be profitable, is losing five billion dollars a year. Anthropic is spending three dollars for every dollar of revenue it generates — and is paying SpaceX approximately one billion dollars a month for compute through roughly 2030. Rony's framing lands hard: two money-losing entities are funding each other while NVIDIA captures all the margin in between. Sequoia published a fifty-page analysis arguing the economics cannot work — while simultaneously holding positions in the companies it is critiquing. Google I/O delivered less on wearables than expected, but the real story was a deliberate strategic decision to put Gemini at the center of the company's entire product surface — effectively cannibalizing an eighty-two-billion-dollar search business before a competitor does it for them. The Innovator's Dilemma, run on purpose. On the hardware side, Android XR glasses are designed to be imperceptible as technology — thin temples, hidden camera portals, frames that belong in an optometrist's display case rather than a trade show floor. Rony notes that Google's glasses almost certainly incorporate Magic Leap optics, following a partnership announced in fall 2025. [00:00] – Cold open and episode framing: why there is no guest today and what the trio plans to cover.[04:15] – OpenAI vs. Elon Musk non-verdict: what the outcome (and lack of one) actually reveals.[09:30] – Sam Altman and the Overton window: Rony's read on how Altman has survived everything thrown at him.[16:00] – Anti-AI backlash on campuses: Eric Schmidt booed at University of Arizona, YouGov poll showing 69 percent of young people negative on AI, and what the demographic gradient means.[24:45] – SpaceX financials and the AI funding loop: the five-billion-dollar annual loss, Anthropic's burn rate, and Charlie's Ponzi scheme framing.[33:20] – Sequoia's fifty-page report and the ad model endgame: Ted's argument that Google wins because they already know the business model.[41:00] – Google I/O: the deliberate destruction of the search business, Android XR glasses, and why distribution beats specifications.[49:10] – AI accountability and the airplane analogy: Ted's line, Rony's "underground noise" from generals and CTOs, and the problem of regulatory vocabulary.[55:30] – Palantir, dual-use opacity, and the Lookout Mountain Air Force Station story: Rony on Jared Leto, classified film studios, and Cold War bunkers in Laurel Canyon.[01:01:00] – The success ledger: who is measuring impact, and what should actually count as winning.This episode is sponsored by Zappar and Mattercraft. Mattercraft is Zappar's web-based platform for building augmented reality experiences without an app. Find them at mattercraft.io. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
What happens when someone who grew up in the Lucasfilm Games golden era decides that today's AI tools are failing creatives? Mike Levine has spent more than 30 years building at the intersection of games, XR, VFX, and interactive storytelling—and his verdict is clear: the current AI stack is a fragmented, overcomplicated mess that turns directors into prompt engineers.Mike started as a tester at Lucasfilm Games (later LucasArts), working his way into the art department on titles like Sam & Max and The Dig before helping ship live-action Star Wars games such as Rebel Assault and Jedi Knight II. He later built rotoscoping tools used across the VFX industry, collaborated with ILM and Pixar, experimented with mobile AR games for Hasbro and HoloLens, and dipped into crypto gaming—before finally co-founding MovieFlow (now FilmSpark), an AI-native production platform designed so that filmmakers, agencies, and showrunners can move from script to screen without needing a computer science degree.The AI XR news you should know: Apple taps Google Gemini to power Siri, acknowledging that building world-class LLMs in-house makes little financial sense. Meta cuts 10% of Reality Labs, right-sizing its VR bets while pivoting toward wearables. Xreal raises another $100M amid questions about Chinese state influence and data flows. Higgs Field lands $80M at a $1.3B valuation for AI cinematography tools that many filmmakers still find unreliable. Wikipedia signs licensing deals with major AI companies after years of being scraped for free. OpenAI invests $252M in Sam Altman–backed Merge Labs, raising fresh conflict-of-interest questions.Key Moments Timestamps:[00:23:02] From Boston journalist-to-be to accidental hire at Lucasfilm Games[00:26:24] The “test pit” culture at Lucas and how Nintendo experience got Mike in the door[00:28:45] Moving into the art department, learning Photoshop from early legends, and shipping Sam & Max[00:31:15] Live-action Star Wars games: Rebel Assault, Jedi Knight II, and convincing George Lucas[00:34:38] Visiting Pixar with new VFX tools and recognizing the same creative “magic” as LucasArts[00:36:24] Doug Trumbull's influence on Mike's sense of cinematic possibility and immersion[00:43:27] The urinal meeting at Magic Leap and what early spatial computing got right (and wrong)[00:49:00] Why most AI tools are “dark ages” for filmmakers: node graphs, 10+ subscriptions, no story view[00:51:00] Building MovieFlow/FilmSpark: story-first, timeline-based AI production for long-form and vertical shows[00:53:00] The Neighborhood Podcast: a 90-second vertical murder mystery as proof-of-concept for AI-native seriesWhen humans can generate shots, scenes, and even entire episodes in minutes, the bottleneck shifts from production to vision. Mike argues that the winning AI tools will be the ones that let directors see their whole story, maintain continuity, and iterate fast—without ever feeling like they left the edit bay for a dev console. His vertical drama collaboration with Charlie, The Neighborhood Podcast, is an early look at what happens when narrative craft meets AI-native pipelines instead of fighting them.This episode is brought to you by Zapar creators of Mattercraft—the leading visual development environment for building immersive 3D web experiences. Build smarter at mattercraft.io.Watch the full episode on YouTube and subscribe to the AI XR Podcast for weekly conversations with the people building the future of AI, XR, and interactive media. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
SpaceX will be acquiring AI coding startup Cursor for $60 billion. AI venture capitalist Michael Fertik was that company's first investor, and he explains why a software vibe coding company is a good match for Elon Musk's AI ambitions. Victor Riparbelli, CEO of AI video platform Synthesia, was at the AI working lunch at the G7 in France, in the room with Sam Altman, Dario Amodei, Demis Hassabis, Marc Benioff, and world leaders including President Trump. Riparbelli discusses the group's effort to collaborate on AI guardrails, while maintaining the pace of innovation. The U.S. and Iran have signed the Memorandum of Understanding to end the war in Iran, but CNBC's Eamon Javers indicates that there are more negotiations still to come. Plus, CNBC's Steve Liesman reports on Kevin Warsh's first meeting as Federal Reserve Chairman. Steve Liesman 4:06 Eamon Javers 11:28 Victor Riparbelli 18:26 Michael Fertik 28:13 In this episode: Joe Kernen, @JoeSquawk Steve Liesman, @steveliesman Eamon Javers, @eamonjavers Kelly Evans, @KellyCNBC Katie Kramer, @Kramer_Katie Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Daniel and JB kick off what they call their most capital-intensive episode yet on ADSN. The conversation opens with SpaceX's blockbuster IPO — stock surging past $200 a share, the company now worth more than Microsoft, and the staggering stat that Elon Musk's net worth jumped by "a full Warren Buffett" in a single day. From there they unpack the $60 billion Cursor acquisition, Fox's $20 billion Roku deal, Substack's official ads launch, and Mercury's new agentic banking platform.The episode covers a wide sweep of what's moving in tech and media right now: why frontier AI labs are about to go on an acquisition spree, how Fox is running Meta's family-of-apps playbook for television, why Sam Altman says "always make an API" saved OpenAI, and the emerging argument that tech companies will start looking more like hedge funds — tiny teams, massive AI leverage, and profit per employee through the roof. If you want to understand where the money is flowing and why, this is the episode.Thank you to our sponsors:AdQuick – Making OOH advertising as easy to plan, buy, and measure as digital. adquick.comThrad.ai — Building the advertising infrastructure for AI. thrad.aibeehiiv — The all-in-one platform for newsletters, websites, and every tool you need to grow and earn. beehiiv.comThe Farm — Fraction commercial legal with an in-house approach to outside counsel. thefarmllp.com STAY CONNECTEDJames on Twitter & LinkedIn – /jamesborowDaniel on LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok – /danieldrugerSubscribe & leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review on Spotify & Apple Podcasts.
Bosses of the top Artificial Intelligence firms have met the leaders of the world's biggest economies. At a G7 lunch in France, they've been discussing AI risks and dangers. Who has more power right now - the politicians or the billionaire CEOs? Also in the programme: How the Great Pyramid at Giza has survived several thousand years worth of earthquakes; and why the world's coral reefs may be more resilient to climate change than we thought. (Photo: US President Donald Trump, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis, South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung, Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attend a working lunch with G7 leaders on innovation and AI during the G7 Summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, June 17, 2026. Credit: Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein)
“Between 1980 and 2019, the billionaires gained $25 trillion. By today it's probably $35 trillion. The question is who will pay for reform? You go where the money is.” — Mordecai Kurz Keynes observed that in the long run, we are all dead. The nonagenarian Stanford economist Mordecai Kurz agrees. Which is why he has no patience for the tech utopians' promise of abundance for all of us in the long run. And his new book, Private Power and Democracy's Decline: How to Make Capitalism Support Democracy, is amongst the most urgent cases yet made for a fundamental reform of American capitalism. Kurz compares our billionaire-infested times with the Gilded Age of the late 19th century, which eventually ended with sharp progressive reform. We are now in a second Gilded Age, he argues. Between 1980 and 2019, the top billionaires gained $25 trillion. By today, he estimates it's $35 trillion. Meanwhile, workers without college education gained essentially nothing in income between 1980 and 2010. The result is both Trumpism and the world's first trillionaire. Kurz lays out a three-fronted reform strategy. First, reduce market power through patent and antitrust reform. Second, redistribute the gains from technology through a 65% top marginal income tax rate and a 45% corporate rate. Third, guarantee the livelihood of every worker displaced by policy-supported technological change with retraining, full wage support, tuition, healthcare, and even relocation. Wouldn't the billionaires simply leave? The spirited Kurz, who has taught economics at Stanford for sixty years, isn't worried. “Others will come instead of them,” he says. And in response to Sam Altman's argument that AI will free humanity from labour, Mordecai Kurz retorts with Keynes's remark about death in the long run. And this particular long run, he says, could be many millennia. Five Takeaways • The Second Gilded Age: Same Dynamic, Different Technology: Kurz's central historical argument: the first Gilded Age — 1864 to 1914 — produced extreme inequality, rising economic monopolists who became centres of political power, and democratic decline. It ended with progressive reform. The second Gilded Age, beginning in 1980, follows the same logic: technology used as a weapon of market power, market power converting into political power, political power undermining democratic institutions. The difference is scale and speed. Between 1980 and 2019, the top billionaires accumulated $25 trillion. By 2026, Kurz estimates $35 trillion. The reform that ended the first Gilded Age took fifty years. He is not sure we have that long. • The Three-Pronged Reform: Market Power, Distribution, Livelihoods: Kurz's proposed reform has three components. First: reduce market power through patent reform, antitrust reform, and reform of acquisition law — the legal structures that allow technology firms to entrench monopoly positions. Second: redistribute the gains from technology through a 65% top marginal income tax rate, a compulsory minimum 15% tax on incomes above $400,000, and a 45% corporate tax rate. Third: guarantee the livelihood of every worker displaced by policy-supported technological change — retraining, full wage support, tuition for children, healthcare, and relocation assistance. • The 1980 Mistake: Where It All Went Wrong: Kurz is precise about the origin of the problem: 1980. The turn to unregulated free-market capitalism under Reagan, combined with the information technology revolution, created what he calls a techno-winner-takes-all economy. Workers without college education gained essentially nothing in income between 1980 and 2010. Millions lost their jobs to automation and import competition and received no government support. Kurz's diagnosis of Trumpism: it fed on the despair of those abandoned workers. This is not a cultural or demographic explanation. It is a structural economic one. • Would the Billionaires Leave? Let Them: Andrew raises the obvious objection: if you tax them at 65%, won't the Elon Musks and Larry Pages and Sam Altmans simply leave? Kurz's response is blunt: he doesn't think they would, because the system called America — its universities, infrastructure, market, human capital, and institutional environment — is what made their billions possible. Their billions are not the product of their individual genius alone. But if they do leave, he says, others will come instead. He adds that he would prefer coordinated taxation across all Western advanced economies, not the US alone. • In the Long Run, We Are All Dead: The Keynesian Punchline on Tech Utopianism: Andrew asks about Elon Musk's claim that money will eventually disappear and technology will free humanity from labour — the Keynesian/Marxist long-run abundance argument. Kurz paraphrases Keynes' most famous line: “In the long run, we are all dead.” And then he adds: the long run could be a very long time. He is ninety years old, has taught at Stanford since 1961, and from his office window he can see the $1 billion mansions in the hills above Palo Alto and the workers below who cannot afford to live there. He is, he says, not prepared to wait for Musk's utopia. About the Guest Mordecai Kurz is the Joan Kenney Professor of Economics Emeritus at Stanford University, where he has taught since 1961. He is the author of Private Power and Democracy's Decline: How to Make Capitalism Support Democracy (MIT Press, May 19, 2026) and The Market Power of Technology: Understanding the Second Gilded Age (Columbia University Press, 2023). He was born in Tel Aviv and received his doctorate from MIT. References: • Private Power and Democracy's Decline: How to Make Capitalism Support Democracy by Mordecai Kurz (MIT Press, May 19, 2026). • The Market Power of Technology: Understanding the Second Gilded Age by Mordecai Kurz (Columbia University Press, 2023) — the preceding volume, referenced throughout. • Thomas Piketty — blurbed the book: “A great book, a must-read.” Also referenced in the conversation. • Dani Rodrik and Gabriel Zucman — referenced as fellow economists in Kurz's camp. • Marc Andreessen — referenced for his counter-argument that high taxation destroys innovation. About Keen On America Nobody asks more awkward questions than the Anglo-American writer and filmmaker Andrew Keen. In Keen On America, Andrew brings his pointed Transatlantic wit to making sense of the United States — hosting daily interviews about the history and future of this now venerable Republic. With nearly 3,000 episodes s...
OpenAI is facing pressure from every direction. In this episode of Hashtag Trending, host Jim Love examines reports that OpenAI may have lost as much as $38 billion in 2025, even as the company is reportedly considering aggressive pricing strategies while competitors such as Anthropic raise prices and tighten usage limits. The company is also now the target of a coordinated investigation by 42 U.S. state attorneys general following concerns over ChatGPT's "sycophancy" behaviour — a controversial tendency for AI systems to reinforce user beliefs rather than challenge potentially harmful thinking. And in a new lawsuit, a New Brunswick mother is suing OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, alleging that ChatGPT reinforced her daughter's harmful thoughts and contributed to her emotional dependency on the chatbot. The case joins a growing list of lawsuits that could help define whether AI companies have a legal duty of care when users rely on their systems for advice, companionship and support. This episode explores three critical questions: • Can the economics of generative AI ever become sustainable? • Is this the beginning of a major regulatory crackdown on AI and social media? • What responsibilities do AI companies have when people depend on their systems during vulnerable moments? Chapters 00:00 Headlines and Setup 00:36 OpenAI Losses and Pricing 05:09 42 State Probe Begins 09:39 Global Regulation Wave 13:18 Wrongful Death Lawsuit 17:54 Duty of Care Question 19:19 Personal Reflection and Check In 21:53 Resources and Wrap 23:09 Outro and Where to Find Us Hashtag Trending is hosted by Jim Love and covers the latest developments in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, technology policy, digital business and innovation.
Step right up folks! Please don't crowd! No need to shove, plenty here for everyone!Welcome to the Bonanza Extravaganza of the Artificial Intelligence “BOOM.” Silicon Valley billionaires are now proposing a scheme to deliver an unbelievable windfall to “every citizen.” Tech titans like Sam Altman of OpenAI are pushing the federal government to create a “public wealth fund” to let us commoners be investment partners in building the AI wonderworld.Lest you worry that this might be a corporate scam, note that Donald Trump, the deal-maker-in-chief, exults that letting the American public buy into the tech booms is a sure bet to “make them rich.” And Altman adds that a public investment fund would allow Joe and Jill Schmo to “participate directly in the upside of AI-driven growth.”Wow – benevolent capitalism!But wait – aren't AI barons infamous greedheads who constantly rig the system for themselves, sneer at the public, and openly disdain government programs? Well… yes.And wait again – they say We would “share in the upside” of AI, but what about the downside? Far from profitable, all of the industry's powerhouses, including OpenAI, are losing hundreds of billions of dollars while carelessly adding trillions in new debt and – shhhh – quietly admitting that their razzle-dazzle computer fantasies might not work.They won't tell you this, but going bust is a real possibility. And that is why AI's private-enterprise whizzes are now so desperately pushing us taxpayers to become their socialist “partners.” If and when they fail, your and my role is to save their bacon by demanding that “the public” deserves a government bailout.Do something!Want to help keep an eye on what Big Tech is trying to do with AI? Check out The Midas Project, a new AI watchdog nonprofit.Jim Hightower's Lowdown is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jimhightower.substack.com/subscribe
June 16th, 2026, Court Leader's Advantage Podcast EpisodeWhen former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, real estate executiveGloria Caulfield, and music executive Scott Borchetta praised artificial intelligence during recent commencement addresses, graduates responded not with applause but with boos. For a growing number of Americans, especially youngerworkers entering the workforce, AI is no longer viewed primarily as a tool of innovation and opportunity. Rather, it is increasingly seen as a threat to jobs, economic security, and public trust.The concerns are multifaceted. AI's massive demand forelectricity and water raises environmental questions. Its capacity to generate misinformation and "hallucinated" facts raises concerns about public trust and the integrity of information. Most significant for Generation Z, however, is the fear that AI will fundamentally alter the job market andundermine economic security.Many technology leaders appear largely unmoved by theseconcerns. Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, has argued that fears of widespread job displacement are overstated. Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, contends that workers will not lose jobs to AI itself, but rather to workers who know how to use AImore effectively. Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, has similarly predicted that AI will increase productivity, create new opportunities, and improve living standards rather than simply eliminate jobs.The public remains unconvinced.A March 2026 Quinnipiac University poll found that 70% ofAmericans believe AI will reduce the number of available jobs. Among Generation Z, concern is even more pronounced, with 81% believing advances in artificial intelligence are likely to decrease employment opportunities.These concerns are fueled by highly visible workforcereductions. In 2025, Amazon announced approximately 14,000 corporate layoffs while acknowledging that AI-enabled efficiencies played at least a partial role in workforce reductions.[i] UPS announced plans to eliminate 20,000 positions. While the main reason for the reduction in force was a pullback by Amazon, CEO Carol Tomé also cited efficiencies from implementing AI.[ii] Cisco reduced itsworkforce by more than 4,000 employees while increasing its focus on AI-driven networking and security products.[iii] For many workers the message is unmistakable: artificial intelligence means fewer jobs rather than greater opportunity.Courts have historically been cautious adopters of newtechnology, and artificial intelligence appears to be no exception. Yet courts also face chronic staffing shortages, budget constraints, growing caseloads, and increasing pressure to improve efficiency. State legislatures, funding authorities, and court leaders may soon begin asking whether AI can help courts accomplish more with fewer resources.This month, we examine the growing backlash againstartificial intelligence. Is it a temporary reaction or the beginning of a lasting shift in public attitudes? Are court professionals and the public prepared for the inevitable transition? [i]Variety, "Amazon Says It Will Lay Off 14,000 Corporate Workers, Citing AI" (October 31, 2025)[ii] Gulf News, "AI Job Cuts: Major Companies Replacing Humans with Bots in 2025" (February 21, 2026)[iii] PBS (October 28, 2025), “Despite reporting record quarterly revenue of $15.8 billion — up 12% year-over-year —Cisco announced layoffs representing less than 5% of its global workforce, as the company realigned around AI-driven growth”Today's PanelTJ BeMent Court Administrator, 10th Judicial Administrative District Athens, GeorgiaRick Pierce Judicial Programs Administrator, Administrative Office of the Courts, Mechanicsburg, PennsylvaniaKarl Thoennes Court Administrator, Second Judicial Circuit Court, Sioux Falls, South DakotaCreadell Webb Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer, 1st Judicial District of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia,Pennsylvania
After her 24-year-old daughter died by suicide in Montreal, Kristie Carrier read the months of ChatGPT conversations on Alice's phone — and filed suit against OpenAI and Sam Altman.SOURCES, LINKS, AND PRINT VERSION: https://weirddarkness.com/openai-suicide-lawsuitLook for this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Amazon Music, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and other podcast apps. Get a list of free listening apps here: https://pod.link/1078714736*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.
Jordi Visser is a veteran macro investor with 30+ years of experience and the author of the VisserLabs Substack. In this conversation, we break down the SpaceX IPO, orbital data centers, and the critical minerals powering the AI buildout. We also discuss the AI model wars, why Jordi thinks Sam Altman won't be running OpenAI within a year, and how the New York Knicks playoff run connects to the future of crypto and blockchain in a world of AI and deep fakes.======================Need liquidity without selling your crypto? Take out a Figure Crypto-Backed Loan, allowing you to borrow against your BTC, ETH, or SOL with 12-month terms, 8.91% interest rates, and no prepayment penalties. Or check out Democratized Prime (https://figuremarkets.co/pomp) and earn ~9% APY on real world assets, paid hourly. Unlock your crypto's potential today at Figure! https://figuremarkets.co/pomp Figure Lending LLC dba Figure (NMLS 1717824). Loans subject to approval. Crypto collateral may be liquidated. Terms apply - see full disclosures at figure.com/disclosures/======================Arch Public is an agentic trading platform that automates the buying and selling of your preferred crypto strategies. Sign up today at https://www.archpublic.com and start your automated trading strategy for free. No catch. No hidden fees. Just smarter trading.======================Simple Mining makes Bitcoin mining simple and accessible for everyone. We offer a premium white glove hosting service, helping you maximize the profitability of Bitcoin mining. For more information on Simple Mining or to get started mining Bitcoin, visit https://www.simplemining.io/pomp======================0:00 - Intro1:00 - SpaceX IPO, Elon & orbital data centers12:15 - Critical minerals & the AI supply chain18:55 - American industrial sovereignty & critical chemicals22:36 - AI model cost crisis & who wins the model war37:10 - Knicks NBA Finals & the case for crypto in an AI world47:48 - Jeff Bezos launches Prometheus50:34 - AI use case of the week
Sam Altman and Dario Amodei both published essays this week on the future of AI and what we must do so everyone benefits. One of them is literally titled "Our Plan." The other one has an actual plan.Kwaku and I dig into it all on this week's FAFO Friday. Plus — and this story isn't getting enough attention — according to New Scientist, two years ago Ukraine used fully autonomous “Terminator” drones that killed everything they saw. No human in the loop. Dead Russian soldiers. But rest assured, according to the drone-maker cited, it was just a one-off “test.” But how long until this is standard practice? And do we want that future? So, yeah, maybe we should get planning… ---Support Future Around & Find Out:* Follow Dan on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/dblums/* Get the free newsletter: https://www.futurearound.com* Become a paid subscriber and help future proof FAFO! https://www.futurearound.com/upgradeMusic by Jonathan Zalben
How much would it take for you to tattoo a memecoin's name on your forehead? Taylor Lorenz (User Mag) tells us about the platform where crypto speculators pay strangers to do almost anything in service of pumping their coin's value: Pump.fun Go. But Taylor argues this is bigger than a weird internet rabbit hole — it’s a burgeoning ‘bounty economy,’ that’s quietly warping reality itself. Then: Sriram Krishnan, the Senior White House Policy Advisor on Artificial Intelligence, is leaving the White House. Nitasha Tiku (The Washington Post) explains his impact, what this means for the future of federal tech policy and who is jostling for influence in his place. Finally, Kyle Chayka (The New Yorker) on the ‘show’-ification of everything. Even the tech industry is getting into the game, literally. The Founders Fund just bankrolled a slick YouTube series where tech billionaires like Sam Altman and Palmer Luckey play Mafia, the parlor game. It’s bizarre. So why does Silicon Valley keep trying to make content happen, and who is it actually for?Additional Reading: These 430 Viral Videos Are Being Preserved in a British Archive The Bounty Economy Is Breaking Reality - by Taylor Lorenz Top Trump artificial intelligence adviser to leave the White House Kareem Rahma and the Tyranny of Web Video Shows | The New Yorker Can Tech Legends Find the Liar? (Mafia Episode 1) Download SAILY in your app store and use our code techstuff at checkout to get an exclusive 15% off your first purchase! For further details go to https://saily.com/techstuff See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
“Welcome to the Church of Ludd, it's nice to see you join our congregation. Please pick up a pamphlet as you walk in, which explains how to set up your religious exemption from using AI at your workplace.” — After a fun story about religious refusal of AI, we then chat about the various policy proposals being put forth by folks like Sam Altman and Bernies Sanders which outline how public wealth funds, equity stakes in AI companies, and dividend payments can buy the public's trust in these technologies. ••• She won a religious exemption from using AI at work. The Pope's remarks could fuel similar appeals. https://www.businessinsider.com/worker-got-religious-exemption-using-ai-at-work-2026-6 ••• Senior U.S. Officials Eye Government Shares in AI Giants https://www.notus.org/technology/trump-ai-stake-openai ••• Donald Trump, Bernie Sanders and Sam Altman are all talking about public ownership in AI https://apnews.com/article/sam-altman-ai-bernie-sanders-trump-public-ownership-772224f9cd138eb79d3ef3336858a5d5 Standing Plugs: ••• Order Jathan's book: https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520398078/the-mechanic-and-the-luddite ••• Subscribe to Ed's substack: https://substack.com/@thetechbubble ••• Subscribe to TMK on patreon for premium episodes: https://www.patreon.com/thismachinekills Hosted by Jathan Sadowski (bsky.app/profile/jathansadowski.com) and Edward Ongweso Jr. (www.x.com/bigblackjacobin). Production / Music by Jereme Brown (bsky.app/profile/jebr.bsky.social)
Six months after their last roundup, Jacob sits down with Ari Morcos (Datology AI CEO, former Meta AI researcher) and Rob Toews (Radical Ventures partner, Forbes AI columnist) to take stock of an AI landscape that has shifted dramatically: coding agents crossing the long-time-horizon threshold has turned engineers into managers of agents, near-frontier open weight AI looks like it may be disappearing as Meta and the Chinese labs pull back, and Anthropic's restrictions on its newly released Fable model have its biggest supporters questioning whether safety framing is masking competitive positioning. The conversation runs through the full state of the lab wars, including Rob doubling down on his Sam Altman ouster prediction and the Bret Taylor succession theory, why Google's structural advantages remain intact despite falling behind on coding, what xAI's Cursor acquisition is really for, and Ari's claim that compute constraints could push labs to suspend their APIs entirely. The back half digs into the physical bottlenecks underneath it all, from atom and x-ray lithography startups challenging ASML to H100 prices reversing their decline, before closing with predictions: recursive self-improvement is closer than it was six months ago but slower than the takeoff narratives suggest, robotics is nearing its GPT-3 moment, and Anthropic's next chapter may be life sciences. (0:00) Intro (1:40) Coding Agents Cross a Threshold (3:29) Is Open-Weight AI in Retreat? (7:37) Cost Crunch & Scaffolding (12:13) The "Apps Are Cooked" Debate (16:37) Sam Altman Under Scrutiny (19:44) Anthropic's Fable Backlash (23:24) How Big a Step Change Is Fable? (26:50) What's Going On at Google? (33:20) Could the APIs Go Away? (34:11) Breaking the Semiconductor Bottleneck (35:42) Beyond EUV: Atom & X-Ray Lithography (37:23) Implications of a Compute Shortage (40:20) Do Alt Chips Actually Help? (43:43) SpaceX, xAI & the Cursor Acquisition (48:50) How Close Are We to RSI? (52:21) Quickfire With your host: @jacobeffron - Managing Director at Redpoint
Episode 750 arrives with a simple reminder: the bullshit never sleeps. This week Jason and Brian dive headfirst into a game of Douchebag Ping Pong featuring OpenAI, Anthropic, Elon Musk, and the rest of the AI industrial complex. OpenAI is preparing to go public while simultaneously transforming ChatGPT into an everything app, Anthropic wants the world to slow down AI development before Skynet shows up for work, and then immediately releases a more powerful model because apparently self-awareness only goes so far. Meanwhile, Sam Altman's eyeball-scanning side hustle is laying people off, proving that convincing humans to hand over their biometric data remains a surprisingly difficult sales pitch.The AI arms race gets even weirder as SpaceX unveils plans for orbital data centers the size of flying football fields while Google and Anthropic shovel billions into Elon's compute empire just to keep their models fed. On Earth, Seattle is trying to ban new AI data centers before they drink the city dry, Meta is planting AI infrastructure in India, Google is slashing Gemini prices, and a Mississippi judge discovers that lawyers on both sides of a case used AI to invent legal citations, resulting in the rare spectacle of artificial stupidity arguing against itself. Thankfully, AI also manages to do something useful, helping researchers develop a promising universal vaccine and reminding us that not every machine-learning story ends with humanity getting harvested for electricity.Elsewhere, crypto continues its transformation into performance art as Sam Bankman-Fried seeks a presidential pardon while reports suggest the Trump family made billions from crypto projects that left investors holding the bag. Meta gets caught quietly experimenting with face recognition in smart glasses, lawmakers scramble to require recording indicators, and Snapchat tightens protections for younger users. The guys also celebrate Apple's shockingly competent Sports app, a rare piece of software that simply does the thing it's supposed to do without trying to become your therapist, financial advisor, or AI life coach. Plus: Ghostbusters returns, Devil May Cry gets another season, Bill Burr takes on Facebook in The Social Reckoning, and a look at why Silicon Valley's newest luxury service appears to be paying actual humans for conversation.Sponsors:DeleteMe - Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use promo code GOG at checkout.CleanMyMac - Get Tidy Today! Try 7 days free and use code OLDGEEKS for 20% off at clnmy.com/OLDGEEKSPrivate Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/750Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/w8POIp_Dts0SHOW NOTESOpenAI files SEC paperwork to go publicAnthropic proposes a global slowdown of AI developmentOpenAI Joins Anthropic in Call for International AI WatchdogAnthropic releases Claude Fable, a version of Mythos, days after warning AI is becoming too dangerousOpenAI reportedly has a major ChatGPT overhaul in storeSam Altman's Eyeball Scanning Company Now Laying Off WorkersElon Musk's first-gen orbital data center craft spans wider than a Boeing 747 and runs an interchangeable chip payload — AI1 satellite compute payload is 120 kW, peaks at 150 kWGoogle will pay SpaceX $920 million a month to use xAI's data centersSeattle is close to approving a year-long ban on large data centersMeta signs first AI data center deal in India with RelianceGoogle cuts the price of its AI Plus plan and doubles the storageJudge Learns Lawyers on Both Sides of Case Used AI, Cancels Trial, Kicks Everyone Off the CaseThe University of Cambridge says it successfully tested a vaccine with an AI-designed antigenKalshi will require employment info for some bets as an insider trading precautionSam Bankman-Fried applies for a pardon from TrumpTrump Family Reportedly Made About $2.3 Billion on Crypto While Investors Lost About $2.3 Billion on Trump-Related CryptoThe Nerdy Escorts Cashing In On Silicon Valley's AI BoomApple Made a Sports App That Does Almost Nothing. It's Incredible.Meta Removes Face-Recognition System From Its Smart Glasses, Is Mad About itSmart Glasses Would Legally Require a Recording Light Under Proposed LawSnap will no longer allow younger teens' Spotlight videos to be publicly viewableThe iOS 27 beta pretty much confirms that an Apple foldable is happeningThinking Sideways: How to Think Like a Chess Player and Win at Life by Jennifer ShahadeThinking Fast, Slow, Artificially: AI and Your BrainCloudConvertHoppersDownton Abbey: The Motion PictureWidow's BayThe New ‘Ghostbusters' Cartoon Gets a Title and Release DateDevil May Cry Season 2 on NetflixTHE SOCIAL RECKONING – Official Teaser Trailer (HD)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
The Twenty Minute VC: Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch
AGENDA: 00:00 – SpaceX Launches the Largest IPO Roadshow in History at $1.77T Valuation 05:00 – Did Elon Break the IPO Playbook? The High-Risk Pricing Strategy Explained 12:00 – Will SpaceX Create a New Generation of Venture Billionaires? 17:00 – OpenAI Files to Go Public as the AI IPO Race Officially Begins 19:00 – Sam Altman's Vision: Why AI Is Becoming Always-On Infrastructure 22:00 – Apple Admits Defeat on Siri and Turns to Google AI 25:00 – Uber Cuts 23% of HR as AI Reshapes White-Collar Work 31:00 – Founders Revolt Against VCs: The Fundraising Horror Stories Going Viral 38:00 – Lovable Hits $500M ARR: The Rise of the 100-Person Billion-Dollar Company 48:00 – Elon's Masterstroke: Why the Cursor Acquisition Could Be the Deal of the Year
This Week In Startups is made possible by:NetSuite - Netsuite.com/TWiSTDeel - Deel.com/TWiSTSquarespace - Squarespace.com/TWiSTTwo days before SpaceX launches the largest IPO in history at a flat $135/share, our VC roundtable drops a scorcher: The top 1% of seed deals might actually be underpriced. Plus: the "Sequoia scam" dual-tranche controversy, tokens-for-equity deals, and whether Claude Fable 5 is a true step function.Tomasz Tunguz (Theory Ventures), Michael Downing (Castalia Capital), and Paige Doherty (Behind Genius Ventures) join Alex to go deep on Seed investing, startup economics, AI spend, and the impact of smarter AI on the founder journey.Guest Links:Tomasz Tunguz: https://x.com/ttunguzTheory Ventures: https://theoryvc.com/Michael Downing: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldowning/Castalia Capital: https://castalia.capital/Paige Doherty: https://x.com/paigefinnnBehind Genius Ventures: https://www.behindgeniusventures.comShow Links:Anthropic's IPO announcement: https://www.anthropic.com/news/confidential-draft-s1-secOpenAI's IPO announcement: https://openai.com/index/openai-submits-confidential-s-1/Bending Spoons F-1 filing: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2004711/000110465926071170/tm2613674-7_f1.htmSpaceX IPO filing: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1181412/000162828026040364/spaceexplorationtechnologib.htmBrendan Foody's post on Sequoia: https://x.com/BrendanFoody/status/2063470286515683759Claude Fable 5: https://www.anthropic.com/news/claude-fable-5-mythos-5OpenRouter data on Chinese models: https://openrouter.ai/rankings?view=daySaronic: https://www.saronic.com/MotherDuck: https://motherduck.com/Nox Metals: https://noxmetals.co/Timestamps:0:00 Tomasz Tunguz, Michael Downing & Paige Doherty join2:07 The SpaceX IPO and the IPO window4:22 Plaud: If your work depends on conversations — interviews, meetings, calls — you need a Plaud NotePin. You can check it out at https://Plaud.ai/twist and use code TWIST for 10% off!6:30 The new bar: 10x growth (not 3x) to raise a great Series A8:46 Net-new AI budgets9:46 Squarespace: Turn your idea into a beautiful website! Go to https://www.squarespace.com/twist for a free trial. When you're ready to launch, use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.11:09 How some founders are outgrowing venture capital11:44 The power pendulum swings back to founders12:46 SpaceX vs. OpenAI vs. Anthropic: Which IPO is most enticing?19:53 Deel - Founders scale faster on Deel. Set up payroll for any country in minutes, hire anyone anywhere, get visas handled fast, and get back to building. Visit https://deel.com/twist to learn more.26:07 Tokens-for-equity, GPU-hours-for-equity & the financialization of compute28:35 Founders airing VC dirty laundry (napping VCs included)29:56 Netsuite - The business landscape is very chaotic right now. That's why you need NetSuite, by Oracle. Get the free business guide Demystifying AI at https://Netsuite.com/TWiST36:38 Claude Fable 5 first impressions: pricing, benchmarks & orchestration45:42 Where value accrues: application layer vs. models vs. private data1:00:06 Nationalization of AI labs: Bernie Sanders, Sam Altman & Trump agree?!1:01:25 Portfolio spotlights: Saronic, MotherDuck, and Nox MetalsSubscribe to the TWiST500 newsletter: https://ticker.thisweekinstartups.comCheck out the TWIST500: https://www.twist500.comSubscribe to This Week in Startups on Apple: https://rb.gy/v19fcpFollow Lon:X: https://x.com/lonsFollow Alex:X: https://x.com/alexLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexwilhelmFollow Jason:X: https://twitter.com/JasonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasoncalacanisGreat TWIST interviews: Will Guidara, Eoghan McCabe, Steve Huffman, Brian Chesky, Bob Moesta, Aaron Levie, Sophia Amoruso, Reid Hoffman, Frank Slootman, Billy McFarlandCheck out Jason's suite of newsletters: https://substack.com/@calacanis
Trump naps courtside and jinxes the Knicks. Bovino wants 100 million Americans disappeared. And Musk's robots are coming for the rest of us. In this episode: *
On Monday, June 1, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) published an op-ed in The New York Times proposing the American AI Sovereign Wealth Fund Act, a law that would transfer a 50% ownership stake in artificial intelligence (AI) companies into a federal sovereign wealth fund through a one-time tax. “The creative work of millions of people… has essentially been stolen by some of the wealthiest people in the world,” Sanders said. “It's time for us to reclaim it.” Simultaneously, President Donald Trump has been in discussions with Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI (the maker of ChatGPT), about transferring equity of the company into a government-run “public wealth fund.” Trump has also suggested the government could take equity stakes in other leading AI developers. Why are World Cup tickets so expensive?After much anticipation, the first games of the World Cup jointly hosted by Canada, the United States, and Mexico will begin on Thursday at the historic Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Associate Producer, longtime soccer/football fan, and Portsmouth supporter Aidan Gorman started looking for tickets — but what he found was a story. Today, Aidan explores the high cost of World Cup tickets and FIFA's embrace of dynamic pricing. Check out our latest video here!Ad-free podcasts are here!To listen to this podcast ad-free, and to enjoy our subscriber only premium content, go to ReadTangle.com to sign up!You can read today's podcast here and today's “Have a nice day” story here.You can subscribe to Tangle by clicking here or drop something in our tip jar by clicking here. Take the survey: What do you think of partial government ownership of AI companies? Let us know.Our Executive Editor and Founder is Isaac Saul. Our Executive Producer is Jon Lall.This podcast written by: Will Kaback and audio edited and mixed by Dewey Thomas. Music for the podcast was produced by Diet 75.Our newsletter is edited by Managing Editor Ari Weitzman, Senior Editor Will Kaback, Lindsey Knuth, Bailey Saul, and Audrey Moorehead. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
This week we talk about initial public offerings, Anthropic, and investment flywheels.We also discuss AI, financial entanglements, and backstops.Recommended Book: Superconvergence by Jamie MetzlTranscriptAn initial public offering, or IPO, is what happens when a private company goes public and starts selling shares of itself, occasionally to just institutional investors like banks and sovereign wealth funds, but usually also to retail investors, which means normal people who buy stocks as part of their investment strategy.Often private companies go this route, go public, because it's one of the primary ways of gleaning new, oftentimes large inflows of money, and that money can then be used for investments in assets for the company, but it also allows employees who have shares in the company as part of their compensation to cash out, to get paid possibly a huge bonus for all their efforts, and it's often a means by which executives garner huge paydays for themselves, because they can now sell their accumulated shares, or borrow against them, or because they have something in their contract that says they get x amount of bonus money or new shares if they take the company public, or achieve a certain valuation goal—and going public is a good way to do that.This is also one of the primary ways investors in a company, whether that's a bunch of smaller seed investors or big-name venture capitalists, to get their money back; the 10 or 100x-ing of their investment, getting ten or 100-times the money they put into the company, generally happens through an IPO, because it can balloon the valuation of that company, and it gives them a more conventional and reliable way of getting money back for their shares: they can just sell those shares on the open market.So an IPO allows a private company to make shares of itself available to others, on scale. And the ‘initial' part of initial public offering points at the early days of the process, during which the baseline price of a share of stock is established.A fairly arcane and complex process has emerged around this, and it's an entire industry at this point, with some institutions specializing in taking companies public, helping them get as high an initial price on that stock as possible. They also help them leap all sorts of regulatory hurdles set by the Securities and Exchange Commission, if they're going public on a US exchange, at least, other bodies handle such things in other countries, and these going-public entities, called underwriters, which are usually investment banks, also typically have their own stake in the matter, earning compensation through a fee called a ‘gross spread,' which is the difference between a discounted rate on the stock and what the stock is sold for on the open market on that first day it's available.What I'd like to talk about today is a wave of very closely watched unusual, impending IPOs that are coming later this year, and one of them in particular that looks to be even more unusual than the rest.—SpaceX, OpenAI, and Anthropic are three of the largest companies in human history; on paper, at least.And that's an important caveat. Market valuation for private companies is generally determined by how much investors are willing to spend on a percentage ownership of the company. So if you start a lemonade stand and I offer to buy 1/10th of that lemonade stand from you for $100, that implies, using this logic, that your lemonade stand has a valuation of $1000; 10 times that $100 that I offered to pay you.Such valuations are also informed by independent analyses from outside experts and institutions. SpaceX, for instance, pre-IPO, is estimated to be worth somewhere between $780 billion and nearly $2 trillion, depending on who you listen to, based on their assets, their potential future earnings, and any advantages they might have in the markets in which they operate.AI company Anthropic is estimated to be worth something like $965 billion, based on a May 2026 series H funding round, through which it raised $65 billion; based on that funding round, the calculations were done, and just shy of a trillion dollars is what the math says the company is worth, though some outside analyses say it's worth a bit less than that, while others suggest it's maybe closer to $1.4 trillion.OpenAI, a direct competitor of Anthropic, is valued at about $100 billion less than Anthropic based on its most recent $122 billion funding round, but again, analyses put the company's actual value, what people and investors would pay for it on the open market, all over the place.Each of these companies have different variables acting upon them heading into a period in which it's expected that all three will IPO.OpenAI kicked off the current AI race, for instance, but it's burning money at an incredible rate, and has yet to make a profit, losing billions per year, and will probably continue to lose billions each year for a while into the future.Anthropic, on the other hand, offers a similar product as OpenAI, but is projected to post its first quarterly operating profit of just over half a billion dollars in Q2 2026, making it one of the first frontier-model-making AI companies to make a profit, as most of these companies are investing so heavily in research and infrastructure like data centers that they're still in heavy cash-burn mode.SpaceX is distinct from these other two also high-flying, cash-burning tech companies in part because of its colorful and controversial owner, Elon Musk, and in part because it's a rocket launch company that also sells internet services beamed down to earth from satellites, and until recently, most of its reliable income has come from that single offering, selling internet access. But it also recently had X, formerly called Twitter, a social network, and an AI company meant to compete directly with OpenAI and Anthropic, called xAI, folded into it.So it's now a multifaceted company with several edgy, but somewhat mature and difficult to compete with offerings, most of which make no money, but all of which in theory at least kinda sorta orient around AI and other sci-fi goods and services.The surge in interest and investment in AI over the past several years led to a pivot for most of Musk's companies, and that led to the merging of the smaller xAI and X into SpaceX, which was the only really profitable company of that trio of companies, and that merging, until just recently, made SpaceX unprofitable, as well.Because of the unprofitability and relative unpopularity of xAI's offerings, like the controversy-ridden Grok chatbot, SpaceX has recently taken to leasing out its data centers to competitors, like Anthropic and Google, each of which are paying around a billion dollars a month to use some of SpaceX's data center capacity, which xAI hasn't needed, because of the unpopularity of Grok, for their own AI services. That, in turn, has suddenly made SpaceX a little bit profitable, which is important for reasons I'll get into momentarily.This portion of the US-based AI industry is kind of a tangle in many ways, all of these companies competing, but also intersecting and overlapping, often investing in each other and in the infrastructure that underpins them, while also being invested in by those same infrastructural entities. And these three companies' IPOs are being seen as something of a weathervane, their success or failure, and the degree to which they succeed or fail hinting at the direction of this industry, and whether or not this is a financial bubble that will soon, or eventually, pop.There are hints that those at the top of these companies are attempting to hedge their bets, in case their IPOs don't do what they need them to do, or don't do what they need them to do at the right magnitude.Sam Altman, OpenAI's also fairly controversy-ridden CEO, has been very close with US President Trump, and has reportedly been holding meetings about the possibility of the US government taking a significant stake in OpenAI, and maybe other AI companies as well. The idea here is that US funds, so taxpayer dollars, would be invested in these companies, and that would tie the companies more closely to the US government, which could be beneficial if these companies then increase in value, making the US government a profit on that investment. This would be beneficial for the companies, in turn, because they would basically be backstopped by the US government; the US would be more likely to help them stay solvent to avoid losing that invested capital, with its regulations and laws related to AI, but it would also make these companies too big and too important to fail, giving them a lot of leeway in how they behave and compete, or fail to, from that point forward. And if they do still fail, the US taxpayer would be paying for a significant portion of that loss while those in charge, investors and the higher-ups of these companies, would walk away with a bunch of money.SpaceX is taking another approach to IPO bet-hedging, by asking top US stock indices, like the Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500, which track top stocks, ‘top' designated by value, but also other metrics, usually related to stability and profitability, to ignore some of those other metrics and allow SpaceX entrance into their indices more rapidly than would typically be allowed.These indices are meant, in part, to help protect investors from volatility. High-flying startups might surge at the beginning, immediately after their IPO, but then fizzle out when it becomes clear their fundamentals aren't good, and they're not actually a solid investment, long-term.What SpaceX wants is to be allowed into this club of valuable, long-term profitable and stable companies, because it is big and flashy and might have the largest IPO in history. And if these indices don't want to be left out of all that, the argument goes, they should allow SpaceX into their club, regardless of those long-time rules of admittance.Nasdaq, which runs the exchange where SpaceX will be listed, agreed to a rules change in May of 2026 that will allow large private companies, like SpaceX, that go public on their exchange, fast entry onto the Nasdaq 100 list.This change of rules was made exclusively for SpaceX, and it could have a significant impact on the company's IPO, because many index funds and exchange-traded funds, ETFs, track the Nasdaq 100, which means they balance their portfolio based on what's in the Nasdaq 100, keeping things relatively or absolutely proportionate to that fund.That means because of this change, a lot of everyday, passive investors, who have their retirement funds and pension plans and even their personal portfolios in index funds and ETFs that track the Nasdaq 100 will automatically end up holding some or a lot of SpaceX stock, despite it being an untested, new, currently unprofitable company. Some of these funds are automatically managed and will just buy SpaceX because that's what they're programmed to do, and others are managed by humans, but because they've promised their customers to keep their funds aligned with the market, more money going into SpaceX means they'll be inclined to join the club and buy a bunch of SpaceX, as well. And because of how this works, the more funds buying SpaceX stock, the more funds will be required or inclined to buy; it's a sort of stock flywheel.That exposes all these investors to more volatility of the kind they maybe hoped to avoid by tracking this index, which isn't supposed to be volatile. But SpaceX's Musk was able to demand this change because, again, this is looking to be the biggest IPO in history, the company valued at $1.77 trillion dollars after the IPO. As a result, he can demand these sorts of things, and typically be listened to.Some other stock market indices have also said they would allow quick entrance to their lists for SpaceX and possibly OpenAI and Anthropic, as well.The S&P 500, however, after assessing the possibility of quick entry, has rejected the idea, saying it won't bend its rules, no matter how big these three IPOs are looking to be. That means folks with money in S&P 500-tracking funds will be protected from that initial volatility.That said those recent deals SpaceX made with Anthropic and Google nudged them into profitability, and if they can maintain that profitability for a year, post-IPO, then they'll be able to enter the S&P 500. And because Google's parent company Alphabet is a significant investor in SpaceX, they've already made money, on paper, on the deal they made with SpaceX for that datacenter capacity, paying out less than they're making back in valuation.So that tangle of relationships is likely to continue to enrich those in charge of these companies, and those who hold a bunch of shares of their stock, but it's also likely to get more of these massive, but volatile companies into ostensibly less-volatile indices, faster, which could have repercussions for the one-third of private US wealth that is currently invested in the stock market.Show Noteshttps://www.investopedia.com/terms/i/ipo.asphttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Initial_public_offeringhttps://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-06-05/spacex-s-75-billion-ipo-draws-more-orders-than-shares-availablehttps://www.marketwatch.com/story/elon-musk-needs-the-cultish-support-of-everyday-investors-to-pull-off-the-massive-spacex-ipo-08e7ea49https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/spacexs-ipo-dream-runs-into-wall-streets-oldest-test-chart-of-the-day-114542191.htmlhttps://www.cnbc.com/2026/06/05/tech-download-anthropic-ipo-ai-valuations.htmlhttps://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/05/technology/spacex-indexes-401k.htmlhttps://nypost.com/2026/06/04/business/one-third-of-americans-wealth-is-now-tied-to-the-stock-market-a-record-high/https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/06/sp-500-blocks-fast-spacex-entry-wont-waive-rule-for-unprofitable-ai-firms/https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/06/we-pissed-off-a-lot-of-people-giant-data-center-plan-cut-50-amid-protests/https://www.notus.org/technology/trump-ai-stake-openaihttps://techcrunch.com/2026/06/05/google-will-pay-spacex-920m-per-month-for-compute/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letsknowthings.substack.com/subscribe
Group Chat News is back with the biggest stories of the week including the Knicks taking over Madison Square Garden and the massive MSG spectacle, the final LA ballots coming in and the questions surrounding the mayoral election, the government wanting to buy into the major AI companies as Bernie Sanders, Trump, and Sam Altman all weigh in, the market dip and what Broadcom's forecast says about AI, SpaceX minting 400 new millionaires ahead of its IPO and the Ontario Teachers' Fund turning $300 million into a projected $11 billion, and a debate on Newport Beach, California living, and much more
In a program devoted to the topic of AI, Ralph welcomes first, Tyson Slocum, director of the energy group at Public Citizen, who tells us about the local backlash against the construction of data centers. Then New York Times climate writer, David Wallace-Wells, explains how the Big Tech CEOs did not count on human beings possibly rising up against them and their machines.Tyson Slocum is director of Public Citizen's Energy Program, covering the regulation of petroleum, natural gas and power markets. He serves on the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's “Energy & Environmental Markets Advisory Committee,” and frequently intervenes before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) representing the interests of household consumers.The basic question is they (Big Tech companies) are developing essentially governmental powers— governmental powers— not market powers or corporate powers. They've reached a level now where they are our government, the corporate government. And we have to escalate our urgencies to that level. It's more than just the hour is late. The hour is over. So we have to go back and respond with a completely unprecedented level of public interest, standards, etc., including whether this technology (AI) should be allowed at all.Ralph NaderI definitely see that we are in a speculative bubble. That bubble will burst. And folks within the AI industry, like Sam Altman, have been very clear where they have publicly said, when the bubble breaks, we expect to get a financial bailout because our AI applications are so important to the national interest.Tyson SlocumAnd the backlash to data centers isn't just about, oh, I'm concerned about my power rates going up or I'm concerned about the noise or the water usage. It's also a civil rights and human rights issue where people are saying, I don't like this vision that Big Tech is laying out for us that is going to be produced in this building down the street from our community.Tyson SlocumDavid Wallace-Wells is a columnist and staff writer at the New York Times, where he writes a weekly newsletter on climate change, technology, and the future of the planet. He is the author of the book, The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming. His recent feature in the New York Times Magazine is “AI Populism is Here. And No One is Ready.”Just over the last six months, there's been a huge surge in anti-AI and in particular anti-data center organizing and activism in the U.S. And you can see that on the ground where you see huge crowds coming to town halls to protest new data centers that are being proposed. You see some towns that have approved those data centers literally having their entire city council voted out of office as a result. And you see it in these surveys where within the span of just a few months. Huge sentiment flips among the American public from being basically agnostic about AI with some misgivings and some optimism to pretty striking majority opposition to the technology and the infrastructure build out that it requires.David Wallace-WellsThis (AI) is a technological revolution that has been designed and is being built by an extremely small number of people with very particular idiosyncratic, in certain ways, I think, somewhat sociopathic worldviews.David Wallace-WellsNews 6/5/26* Our top story this week comes from Congress, where the House has, at long last, successfully pushed through a War Powers Resolution on Iran. As NPR notes “The resolution had originally been set for a vote two weeks ago, but Republican leaders sent House members home early for a May recess when it appeared the largely Democratic-backed measure had enough Republican votes for passage.” However, this did not substantially erode Republican support and the resolution passed by a margin of 215 to 208, with four Republicans, led by Thomas Massie, voting for a cessation of hostilities. The measure now heads to the Senate, where Democrats have been pressing the matter as well but face an uphill battle, and even if it passes through the upper chamber, President Trump is likely to veto the measure if it arrives on his desk. Moreover, House progressives are now pushing a new War Powers Resolution, this one focusing on Lebanon. POLITICO reports Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib forced a vote this Thursday on a resolution calling for the removal of U.S. troops from Lebanon in seven days, despite opposition from the leadership of her own party. The resolution failed by a wide margin, but still garnered a respectable 92 votes, including support from Congressman Massie. Symbolic though they may be, these votes show a growing backlash to Trump's military adventurism abroad, particularly in the Middle East. With oil prices continuing to rise, this discontent shows no sign of abating.* The main news this week however were the primaires. Tuesday saw a wave of major Democratic primaries across the country. Faiz Shakir, longtime advisor to Bernie Sanders and Executive Director of More Perfect Union, reports that election night was a “clean sweep for Bernie's endorsements” with five out of five of these candidates set to win the Democratic nomination in their respective races. One race Shakir highlighted was Sam Forstag's bid for Congress in Montana's 1st congressional district. Forstag, a firefighter – technically a “smokejumper,” who parachutes into remote areas to extinguish wildfires – earned the endorsements of AOC, Jamie Raskin, Pramila Jayapal and others, as well as many unions, in addition to that of Senator Sanders. Meanwhile in the Montana Senate race, Alani Bankhead has triumphed in the Democratic primary. According to Semafor, “Republicans suspect Bankhead will essentially cede the race to [independent candidate Seth] Bodnar (despite her denials), which would make the general election more competitive.” Bodnar is the former president of the University of Montana and his campaign is backed by former Democratic Senator Jon Tester. One recent poll of a head-to-head match up of Bodnar against Republican nominee Kurt Alme shows the candidates in a dead heat.* In New Jersey, two more Sanders-endorsed candidates have emerged victorious: Analilia Mejia and Dr. Adam Hamawy. Mejia won the special election to replace now-Governor Mikie Sherill in April, beating out former Congressman Tom Malinowksi, the heavy favorite in that race. Mejia is very likely to win this seat again in November, as she already defeated the Republican nominee, Joe Hathaway, in the special election. This from MorristownGreen. Perhaps more surprisingly is the victory of Dr. Adam Hamawy. Now a plastic surgeon, he has distinguished himself for his heroism: saving the life of now-Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth when her Blackhawk helicopter was shot down in Iraq, serving as a first responder to the 9/11 attacks, and most recently, for his work in Gaza. As the Intercept puts it, “In 2024, [Hamawy]...went to Gaza to provide medical aid to Palestinians wounded by Israeli forces and was temporarily trapped there after Israel closed the Rafah border crossing. When the crossing was reopened, Hamawy was among a small group who refused to leave on demands that more medical workers be let in.” Hamawy's progressive policy platform includes support for Medicare for All, abolishing ICE, and opposing military aid to Israel. He is almost guaranteed to win this D+13 seat, succeeding Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman.* The candidates Bernie endorsed in California also prevailed, with Randy Villegas poised to win his primary in the state's 22nd congressional district and Jane Kim winning her race for California Insurance Commissioner, but the results from the state overall are more mixed. As of now, Republican Gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton leads in the count, with centrist Democrat and former Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra in a close second and progressive billionaire Tom Steyer in third. However, as the count continues, Steyer's margin continues to improve while Hilton's ebbs away – meaning the runoff could end up being Becerra vs. Steyer, though it is still too early to say. A similar dynamic is unfolding in Los Angeles, where incumbent Mayor Karen Bass is ensured a slot in the general election while her opponents – Councilwoman Nithya Raman to her left and former reality TV star Spencer Pratt to her right – continue to duke it out for the second slot. With California's notoriously glacial counting pace and the LA Times reporting that millions of ballots remain to be counted, all we can do is watch and wait.* However, up in Minnesota, another Bernie-backed candidate is on the road to victory. On Tuesday, Peggy Flanagan, the Lieutenant Governor seeking the Senate seat being vacated by Amy Klobuchar, overwhelmingly won the endorsement of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. Her closest rival, Congresswoman Angie Craig, did not even bother to attend the party convention. While Craig decried the supposed anti-democratic nature of a party convention endorsement, Flanagan posted a video telling Craig “If you can't show up and face your own party, then you're not ready to face Republicans,” per the Nation. Flanagan can boast the endorsement of many high-profile progressives in addition to Sanders, such as Senators Elizabeth Warren, Ed Markey, and Minnesota's own Tina Smith, among many others. If elected, she would be the first ever Native American woman to serve as Governor of an American state.* More much-publicized endorsements came this week from AOC and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who both endorsed DSA-aligned legislative candidates, but as City and State NY notes, not the same ones. Mamdani gave his blessing to Darializa Avila Chevalier, a DSA-backed candidate running to unseat powerful Rep. Adriano Espaillat who is seeking his sixth term in Congress. Polling shows Avila Chevalier runs ahead of Espaillat when voters learn about her platform, but lags behind due to low name recognition – something the Zohran endorsement is sure to help remedy. Meanwhile AOC issued her endorsement of four DSA candidates for the state legislature. This all suggests that the two titans of the New York City Democratic Socialist movement are coordinating – with Zohran seeking to boost DSA's prospects without alienating the New York state establishment and vice versa for AOC – but that is nothing more than a hunch.* Looking southward, lame duck Republican Senator John Cornyn this week posted an article on his official Twitter page titled “Libertarian Ted Brown courts disaffected conservative voters in Texas' U.S. Senate race,” from Houston Public Media. Senator Cornyn's comment – “Ruh roh” – set off a firestorm of speculation that this was a subtle endorsement of the Libertarian's campaign and intended to undermine the campaign of his erstwhile opponent and victor of the Republican Senate primary, Ken Paxton. While Cornyn has furiously denied that this is in any way an endorsement of Brown, calling even the “characterization” that he is “promoting” this candidate “fake news,” there is little doubt that posting about Brown from his official account constitutes a promotion of the campaign, albeit not an endorsement. It will be interesting to see whether Cornyn takes other subtle, or not so subtle, digs at Paxton over the course of the campaign, given that he seems to hold a substantial degree of antipathy towards the Texas Attorney General.* Our next two stories come to us from Florida. First, in Florida's 24th congressional district, the National Journal reports longtime Congresswoman Frederica Wilson will not seek reelection. We recently discussed Congresswoman Wilson on this segment when it was revealed that she had been MIA from the House for weeks following an undisclosed eye surgery. Wilson is 82 years old. The National Journal couches this story in the context of aged members of Congress accepting, or more often refusing, to pass the torch. In its gerontocracy tracker, it highlights members like Doris Matsui, John Garamendi, Jim Clyburn and Maxine Waters, all of whom are 80 years old or older, who are actively seeking reelection this cycle.* Meanwhile, in Florida's 20th district, the Sunshine State's redistricting initiative has put the historically Black district in jeopardy. Under the newly drawn lines, the frontrunner in this seat is Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz and though she claims the Congressional Black Caucus and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries told her that “they know I know our community” the CBC has not endorsed her and Rep. Yvette Clarke, the CBC's chairwoman, said the caucus did not encourage Wasserman Schultz to run in the district. However, there are currently four Black candidates vying for the seat previously held by Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, including Cherfilus-McCormick herself as well as progressive challenger Elijah Manley, former Mayor of Broward County Dale Holness and Luther Campbell the former rapper more famously known as Uncle Luke. Now, according to the Miami Herald, all four of these candidates are meeting to “discuss coalescing behind one candidate.” Manley is quoted in this piece saying that while they have not reached an agreement, they “did agree that we needed to consolidate,” and he said the “conversations are going on. They have been very constructive and fruitful.” It is encouraging that in the wake of Callais decision we are beginning to see a more strategic approach to Black political representation, which has been too long monopolized by powerful longtime incumbents intent on nothing so much as preserving their own fiefdoms.* Finally, in a story shocking to exactly no one, Axios is out with a new report showing that the National Guard occupation of Washington D.C. has done little to reduce crime in the District. Per a new study by the centrist Niskansen Center, while the security theater of the deployment seems to have deterred “opportunistic” property crime, violent crime remained on the same downward trajectory it had been on since before the deployment. Moreover, the promised co-benefit – that the presence of the Guard would free up the Metropolitan Police Department to focus on high-crime areas – did not materialize at all. Despite these lackluster results, President Trump plans to double the National Guard presence in Washington – which already costs $1.5 million a day – ahead of the 250th anniversary events this summer. This is an outrageous waste of taxpayer money especially now that we know for sure how little impact this hostile occupation is actually having on driving down violent crime.This has been Francesco DeSantis, with In Case You Haven't Heard. Get full access to Ralph Nader Radio Hour at www.ralphnaderradiohour.com/subscribe
This week on Grumpy Old Geeks, Brian and Jason once again survey the smoldering wreckage of the tech industry and discover that the people building the future are increasingly being sued by governments, publishers, customers, employees, and occasionally reality itself. California is coming after 23andMe over its catastrophic data breach, Florida is taking a swing at OpenAI, CNN has joined the ever-growing conga line of companies suing Perplexity, and Meta somehow decided the solution to improving AI is recording employees' every mouse click while generously allowing them a whole 30-minute privacy break. Meanwhile, Google's own engineers are sharing memes about how much Google's AI tools suck, Microsoft apparently wants users addicted to its new AI assistant - first taste's free! - and Anthropic is preparing to go public with a valuation that makes even the most irrational dot-com era investor look financially responsible.The AI arms race continues producing exactly the kinds of outcomes you'd expect when venture capitalists start huffing their own press releases. Instagram's AI support bot reportedly helped hackers steal accounts because apparently "Are you sure you're the owner?" was considered an optional step. Suno raised another $400 million while fighting copyright lawsuits, Paramount+ seems to have let AI create the ugliest Star Trek thumbnail in Federation history, and Stan Lee has now been digitally resurrected because modern capitalism looked at death and said, "Nice try." Over in transportation, BYD is so confident in its self-driving technology that it's willing to pay for your accidents, while Tesla owners are discovering their old Full Self-Driving contracts may have quietly received software updates of the legal variety. Somewhere in a conference room, a lawyer just whispered, "Let's not put that in writing," ten years too late.Elsewhere, governments worldwide continue their ongoing experiment of raising children by confiscating smartphones. Malaysia has implemented a social media ban for kids under 16, Poland wants phones and smartwatches locked away at school, and Kentucky schools just collected $27 million from social media companies accused of building products as addictive as cigarettes.Dave Bittner drops by for a visit and we discuss Spotify listeners apparently preferring old music because new music keeps getting algorithmically focus-grouped into oblivion and a healthy dose of Star Wars, Downton Abbey, Derry Girls, Lego, books, gadgets, and AI-generated jazz. Add it all up and you've got another week where the only thing moving faster than technology is the legal department trying to keep up.Sponsors:DeleteMe - Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use promo code GOG at checkout.Shopify - Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at Shopify.com/grumpyPrivate Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/749Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/A1sv2BEzWBkShow NotesVibe Coders are Script KiddiesDestroy the BroligarchyColorado Governor Vetoes Surveillance Pricing Ban as Public Backlash Against the Tech GrowsCalifornia sues 23andMe over 2023 data breach that affected 7 million usersFlorida sues OpenAI, Sam Altman, in first-of-its-kind lawsuit over violent incidentsMeta will reportedly let employees take 30-minute breaks from its tracking programInstagram is alerting users who were targeted by hackers during AI chatbot attacksGoogle Employees Internally Share Memes About How Its AI SucksGoogle ordered to put clearer links in AI search and let UK publishers opt outMicrosoft Wants to 'Make People Addicted' to its New AI Assistant, Internal Documents RevealMeta, other social networks will pay $27 million to settle Kentucky school district lawsuitMalaysia's under-16 social media ban carries fines up to $2.5 millionPoland wants to ban phones and smartwatches in schoolsCNN is the latest media company to sue PerplexityStill facing copyright lawsuits, AI music generator Suno raises another $400MBYD is assuming financial liability if you crash while using its self-driving techAnthropic is set to go public after filing paperwork with the SECData Center Operators Are Trying to Fix Their Water Use ProblemsTesla Owners Say Their Old FSD Contracts Were Quietly ChangedStan Lee's voice and likeness have been resurrected, thanks to AIParamount+ used AI to make the ugliest Star Trek thumbnail ever2026 World Cup Wall ChartI Am Not a Robot: My Year Using AI to Do (Almost) Everything by Joanna SternCarl's Doomsday Scenario: Dungeon Crawler Carl Book 2 by Matt DinnimanWisdom Takes Work: Learn. Apply. Repeat. by Ryan HolidayBelkin Connect 4-Port USB-C Hub - USB C Hub Multiport Adapter Dongle with 4 USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 Ports - High-Speed 10G Data Transfer for Laptop, MacBook, iPad, PC, and More - 100W PD - $32.24Dave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatControl LoopOnly Malware in the BuildingThe Mandalorian Season 1Star Wars: RebelsWrapped up the Downton Abbey series rewatchBuffy and Ted Lasso star Anthony Head dies at 72Almost through the Derry Girls series.Lego Mando and Grogu set (mild spoiler)AI generated JazzThe Biggest Hits on Spotify Right Now Are a Blast From the PastSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
https://youtu.be/Zl79XkZdba0 (*Watch the YouTube version for MANY images! Releases June 5th)On today's episode of the Occult Symbolism and Pop Culture with Isaac Weishaupt podcast we're exploring the Backrooms! We're first going to discuss the concept of Liminal Spaces, where they've been depicted in pop culture films and shows, real life locations you've been to, and most importantly the occult ritual element of initiations using these spaces! We'll then discuss the internet history of what Backrooms are: Creepypasta and the concept of fiction manifesting into reality through hyperstition cyberspace! After all that we'll do a plot spoiling movie analysis of Kane Parsons new record breaking Backrooms film! I'll walk you through all the concepts I saw during my viewing which will include: Twin Peaks, (of course), underground initiation rituals, aliens, magick, all seeing eyes, crossing the Aleister Crowley and Jack Parsons Abyss, cannibalism, human furniture, Moonchild homunculus, Sam Altman, Carl Jung, Epstein, 4chan and the technofascist plan to retrocausally create AI gods from the HP Lovecraft Cthulhu Abyss!Free Feed YouTube video will release June 5th! https://youtu.be/Zl79XkZdba0Links:Longlegs Analysis- Occult Demons, NLP MKULTRA, Satanic Murders, Doll Magick & Twin Peaks!https://illuminatiwatcher.com/bonus-longlegs-analysis-occult-demons-nlp-mkultra-satanic-murders-doll-magick-twin-peaks/Wayfair Conspiracy Theories: Human Trafficking Furniture Camps KUBRICK Adrenochrome and Hollywood Movies!https://www.illuminatiwatcher.com/wayfair-conspiracy-theories-human-trafficking-furniture-camps-kubrick-adrenochrome-and-hollywood-moviesPortals Pt 1: Magick Gateways, Jungian Symbols & Pop Culture Portals EXPLAINED!https://illuminatiwatcher.com/portals-pt-1-magick-gateways-jungian-symbols-pop-culture-portals-explained/The Shining Decoded Pt 1: Conspiracies, Illuminati, MKULTRA & Project Monarch!https://illuminatiwatcher.com/the-shining-decoded-pt-1-conspiracies-illuminati-mkultra-project-monarch/FREE book, social medias, appearances & more: https://allmylinks.com/isaacw SUPPORTER FEEDS get bonus content AND go commercial free + other perks:*PATREON.com/IlluminatiWatcher : ad free, HUNDREDS of bonus shows, early access AND TWO OF MY BOOKS! (The Dark Path and Kubrick's Code); you can join the conversations with hundreds of other show supporters here: Patreon.com/IlluminatiWatcher (*Patreon is also NOW enabled to connect with Spotify! https://rb.gy/hcq13)*VIP SECTION: Due to the threat of censorship, I set up a Patreon-type system through MY OWN website! IIt's even setup the same: FREE ebooks, Kubrick's Code video! Sign up at: https://illuminatiwatcher.com/members-section/*APPLE PREMIUM: If you're on the Apple Podcasts app- just click the Premium button and you're in! NO more ads, Early Access, EVERY BONUS EPISODE WANT MORE PODCASTS?... Check out my UNCENSORED show with my wife, Breaking Social Norms where we discuss conspiracies, politics, relationships and more!: https://breakingsocialnorms.com/Merch, MushroominatiWatcher Coffee, shirts, signed books: https://occultsymbolism.com/Isaac's Link Tree with links to EVERYTHING: https://allmylinks.com/isaacw *STATEMENT: This show is full of Isaac's useless opinions and presented for entertainment purposes. Audio clips used in Fair Use and taken from YouTube videos.
California voters head to the polls today in a statewide primary election. Kevin Rector of the Los Angeles Times joins to discuss the biggest races. It was a consequential day for the country’s leading AI companies. Anthropic filed for an initial public offering, the Wall Street Journal reports. Meanwhile, NPR reports that the state of Florida sued OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, over safety concerns. The Supreme Court will soon rule in two significant cases that could have major implications for November’s midterm elections. Jan Wolfe of Reuters explains what’s at stake in each of the decisions. Plus, why the White House could soon drop the DOJ “anti-weaponization” fund, Hezbollah and Israel agreed to a partial ceasefire, and why the white picket fence is disappearing from American yards. Today’s episode was hosted by Gideon Resnick.