Additional thoughts on what the NBA can (and can't) learn from Formula 1, areas for ESPN to improve in an era of abundance, the success of the English Premier League, and the calculus of Apple and MLS. Plus: Ben's fraught history with the letter A and Andrew's "production function."
Parsing the criticisms of ex-Google employees who've put the company's culture in the spotlight, mid-2000s Microsoft as a Google analog and a window into the good and bad of dominant companies, and reactions to Elon Musk's latest comments about open sourcing Twitter's algorithm. At the end: follow-up on Spotify as a podcast aggregator and marveling at Apple's latest project.
The challenges inherent to the Spotify business model, why an emphasis on podcast growth was a great solution that was executed poorly, and various paths to profitability that continue to be promising for the long term. At the end: Brief follow-up to the Gonzalez v. Google conversation, why RSNs are dying (but not dead yet), and market forces that may save the NBA despite itself.
Parting thoughts and a few emails as Sydney passes into the afterlife, quick reactions to Mark Zuckerberg’s subscription announcement on Sunday, and extended thoughts on Section 230 before the Google v. Gonzalez arguments at the Supreme Court this week. At the end: Chatbot analogs for the Stratecheryverse and Badger Rushmore.
Ben offers his takeaways from a full day of chatting with Sydney, Bing's new chatbot, why the focus on search utility might be missing the point, the refreshing weirdness of a chatbot that makes mistakes and has an attitude, and questions about empathy and the next frontier after nuclear technology.
Reactions to the demos from Google and Bing this week, answers to an emailer looking for an AI bear case, and why Apple never went into the TV business. Plus: A trade proposal for Disney, an explainer on regional sports network bankruptcies, and fun facts about dental health and SodaStreams.
Meta’s earnings and the market’s resounding endorsement, revisiting the misconceptions that colored the Meta story toward the end of 2022, an essay about the degrading internet and what the causes might be, plus emails on lost AirPods and a healthier alternative to cigar night.
A look at Cloudflare's strengths and weaknesses in the 2023 marketplace, why Microsoft and Amazon are well-positioned to further solidify their B2B empires over the next 12 months, and various questions and theories about the layoffs in big tech over the past three months. Plus: More info on MVNOs, a shout out to HEB in Texas, and a listener demands bundle answers.
Grocery delivery apps and why Wal-Mart might have the better idea, why Visible uses the Verizon network while charging half the price, and a question about the future of autonomous vehicles outside of passenger rides. At the end: whether tech could change content development in Hollywood and Ben's memories from the Ron Dayne era at Wisconsin.
A history of Google’s path to dominance in digital advertising, 149 pages of DOJ efforts to alter that same landscape, and a few more thoughts on advertising models vs. subscription models. Plus: Peloton, scooters, a Google diary, and two prongs of the Sharp Tech path to health and prosperity.
Parsing the good and bad from Q4 earnings announced by Netflix late last week, dreaming of a free, ad-supported Netflix in the future, what Reed Hastings got right as founder and CEO, plus emails on streaming cost structure, electric vehicles and Acorn computers in British classrooms.
A question about the "Svengali of tech" spawns an overview of ARM and the roots of its business model, follow-up to this week's Amazon conversation, and the future of the WWE leads to discussion of the streaming landscape and the NFL's invincibility.
Amazon after a rocky 12 months and on the verge of 18,000 layoffs, whether it's time for the business to mature beyond the Bezos' "Day 1" creed, plus Web3's AI outlook, the utopian view on AI's implications for linguistics, and a question about communities.
Reactions to the structure of the rumored Microsoft-OpenAI investment, challenges and opportunities for Google as AI matures, what happens to the internet (and AI) after auto-generated text floods the zone. At the end: text vs. images for the future and follow-ups on failed Microsoft investments, YouTube's NFL gamble, and Amazon's NFL ratings.
Last-minute tech gifts as a prelude to a gift-guide zag, YouTube TV and the implications of this week's Sunday Ticket news, the differences between remote work for a startup and a mature business, and closing with microchips and AI saving the day in D.C.
Unpacking another weekend of drama and incoherence at Twitter, various lessons to be drawn from these public controversies, whether a Twitter collapse would be good for the media, and an apology to the L’Oreal corporate family (but not Renault/Alpine).
The FTC's approach to Microsoft-Activision as a microcosm of broader questions and challenges, what Bell Labs history can tell us about future solutions, and follow-up questions related to TSMC in Arizona and America's approach to onshoring.
Various questions after a new round of TSMC investments in the U.S., reactions to TSMC founder Morris Chang saying that “globalization is almost dead,” beginning the remote work conversation with Ben's memories of life at Automattic, and thoughts on the competing factors that make the work-from-home question so difficult.
More questions on ChatGPT and what the future of start-ups may look like, Microsoft's success and the added scrutiny that comes with acquisitions in the consumer space, a case against the Australian approach to regulation, plus questions about Alphabet and Ben's Spotify Wrapped list.
The Internet-wide reaction to ChatGPT 3.5, how OpenAI has evolved and how its chat technology works, the UX challenge of contextualizing answers that are usually right but sometimes demonstrably wrong, plus some quick reactions to “The Twitter Files” on Friday night.
Surveying the landscape after a week of Musk tweets and rumors of a Musk-Cook summit, Amazon has a $10 billion Alexa problem, and Ben and Andrew are asked to build a successor to The Social Network.
The legend of Bob Iger and the recent history of Bob Chapek, why Disney stock went up last week (but not by much), ESPN and Disney+ in the shadow of the $71 billion 21st Century Fox acquisition, and emails about third party play-by-play and a scientific defense of cigar clubs.
The night Twitter was laid to rest, TV in movie theaters and the debate over David Zaslav, whether strategy consultants are useful, and celebrating Thanksgiving with a plan to fix the NBA and a taxonomy of group chats.
A closer look at Opendoor in the midst of its biggest challenge yet, the state of Twilio and Cloudflare, excellent pushback on claims that crypto doesn’t have a product, and reactions to SBF’s DMs and Max Verstappen’s antics.
The implications of a straight-forward case of fraud, what Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX teach us about the dangers of conflation, why and how Twitter is failing under Elon Musk, and responses to emailers who have asked about Meta's ability to develop a Twitter competitor.
An email about Netflix spawns an extended overview of Spotify's present and future, a closer look at Apple Music's royalties messaging, reactions to the permanent injunction block Penguin Random House's attempted acquisition of Simon and Schuster, and the two most important features we need from Twitter Blue.
A question about Section 230 spawns expansive thoughts from Ben, a proposal for an alternate solution to moderation, new questions on Twitter as the Mastodon takeover approaches, and responses to listeners who balked at Andrew's broad social media dismissal last week.
Reactions to $8/month for Twitter Blue, the fevered conversation around Musk’s ownership, whether Twitter should take even more risks as a private company, and answers to mailbag questions about Apple, Netflix and Ben’s personal calculus in Taiwan.
How Ben reads an earnings report, the various challenges that might unsettle TikTok investors, an extended debate on whether Twitter and Facebook have been good for society, and Andrew is profiled by a major news outlet while Ben shares lessons from his early years.
Google's core business is sound but YouTube's numbers are murkier, the bull case for Meta as the market runs the other way, and a fair and balanced look at Snap. Then, a few mailbag questions about automation, Netflix abroad, and the psychology of a Red Bull fan.
