The eleventh hour agreement between Charter and Disney, why Charter was the clear winner but Disney will benefit regardless, and what Charter’s investments say about the future of internet in America. At the end: Reactions to a breakthrough chip from Huawei and SMIC and its potential implications on US-China policy.
The ongoing Disney-Charter dispute, why the power dynamics appear to have shifted underneath ESPN’s feet, and what this dispute could mean for the future of the streaming landscape and cable operators. At the end: Why the NBA and other leagues should be careful about looking to big tech to replace big cable.
The logic underlying both sides of Shopify’s move to incorporate Buy with Prime, a question about disruption yields an an answer about AI, and a few updates on streaming services. At the end: Apple’s AirPod empire and Max Verstappen’s dominance.
Another round of monster earnings for Nvidia, the challenges and opportunities that will define the next decade for Nvidia and other AI players, and questions on Sony's success and Adyen's hiring practices. At the end: More on nut picker-uppers!
The Wall Street Journal’s expansive look at the Chinese economy inspires an analogy for the comparative strength of America, two questions on Microsoft, and some follow-up to last week’s enthusiasm for ad-supported streaming services. At the end: Spotify has a White Noise controversy, and a rejection of calls for branding democracy.
Next steps for a direct-to-consumer ESPN are beginning to come into view, Disney’s tech challenges and Bob Iger’s streaming price hikes, and an overview of Fox and the legacy telecoms companies. At the end: college football analogy clarification and various Tik-Tot follow-up.
Ben’s experience seeing Taylor Swift live in Los Angeles, what her success can teach us about the modern entertainment landscape, and a closer look at Apple and Disney. At the end: Harsh reality after a hell of a ride for LK-99.
Musk vs. Zuckerberg as the undercard to another round of Meta vs. the European Union, Microsoft's pricing strategy for Copilot, and the latest universally unpopular move that makes perfect sense for college football's biggest market participants. At the end: Free speech follow-up and introducing Tik-Tot, our new parenting segment.
A look at LK-99 and the various ways a room temperature superconductor might change the world, EU and US officials express concern over China’s move toward trailing edge chips, and recent Intel lobbying efforts highlight the challenge of real decoupling and the nuances of US-China competition. At the end: The Elon deliberate sabotage theory and a call for parenting questions.
The Wall Street Journal's report that Facebook removed content related to Covid-19 in response to pressure from the Biden administration, both the principled and pragmatic cases for not repeating that pattern in the future, and a listener wonders whether CTO should be an official member of the Presidential cabinet. At the end: Mailbag questions on Fusion and Starlink technology, a Taylor Swift streaming service, and raising phonk awareness.
Checking in with Netflix as the ad-supported model matures, more on streaming residuals and the future of movies and TV, and general thoughts on the latest news at “X,” née Twitter. At the end: Follow-up on AI and concerns over the Meta’s open source LLM.
Meta makes its large language model free for commercial and research use, why enabling a dispersed development environment could help Meta's business and AI consumers as a whole, and thoughts on ChatGPT as its momentum slows. At the end: A warning to movie stars, while lazy sports continue to take the world by storm.
The familiar tech stories underlying the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, why streaming residuals are so difficult to calculate, and Disney's current problems as a microcosm for the entertainment industry as a whole. At the end: A few words about coffee.
The push to enjoin the Microsoft-Activision merger and why it failed, the broader challenges inherent to applying existing antitrust laws to tech, and the uncertainty clouding Microsoft's next moves in the UK and elsewhere. At the end: A word about Top Chef and answering some mail on Twitter and Threads.
Tracing the recent social media history that led to Threads, 70 million users in three days (and whether Meta can keep them coming back), an early contender for worst Thread of all time, and the dysfunction at Twitter that has now opened the door to a wide variety of challengers.
Boom Supersonic and the (possibly) imminent future of supersonic commercial air travel, listener emails on Apple and Sony, TSMC, Google’s graveyard, Reddit, and European regulation. At the end: the BBS glory days, tech origin stories, and recs for a weekend in Madison, Wisconsin.
The Prince Harry "grifter" controversy as an object lesson in the internet content economy, what Spotify has (and maybe hasn't) learned from its adventures in podcast development, and the strategies on both sides of the announcement that GM and Ford will use Tesla's charging network for their EVs. At the end: A rumored HBO pivot prompts a victory lap live on the podcast.
Understanding the challenges facing Reddit in the modern internet environment, the various tensions underlying this week’s controversy with moderators, and the future of niche subscription offerings as The Athletic rethinks its coverage. Plus: The Vision Pro keyboard and a word about Zuck as Headset Fortnight concludes.
Responding to listener questions and comments in the wake of Apple’s WWDC and the announcement of the Vision Pro, including thoughts on the absence of AI in Apple’s messaging, a headset hater’s epiphany, gaming partnerships that should (but won’t?) happen, sports possibilities, immersive memories, and some obligatory speculation on the Apple Car.
Ben’s experience with the Apple Vision Pro, the components and capabilities that make it so expensive, implications for the future of personal computing, and what it would mean to have a society full of people in headsets.
Big picture questions before Apple debuts its new headset at WWDC this week, the latest twist in Meta’s ongoing foray into hardware, and two follow-up emails about Nvidia’s future. Plus: Zuck sympathy, cable bills, and why there’s no ultra premium Stratechery stock picking tier.
Talking all things Nvidia as Wall Street catches GPU fever, parallels to Sun Microsystems and the dot com bubble, and questions about AI energy efficiency and reliance on TSMC. At the end: a streaming lover pushes back on nostalgia for cable and involuntary sports subsidies.
Microsoft’s evolution and what AI can and can’t accomplish, the ChatGPT app on iOS, and more on the logic of cable companies during the 2010s. Plus: Why leagues won’t go direct to consumer and one listener for whom the streaming is working just fine.
ESPN's ominous direct-to-consumer ambitions, the incentives that drove the collapse of a cable business model that was beneficial to nearly everyone, why YouTube TV might fill the power vacuum, and what companies like Netflix and Disney can learn from Taylor Swift.
Google’s AI ambitions, whether large language models will be a winner-take-all space, the coming wave of AI regulation and the implications for small businesses, and more thoughts on VR as Apple prepares to enter the space.
The Reality Labs spending has echoes of a past Google mistake, past animosity vs. future opportunities for Apple and Facebook, and a few responses to last week’s leaked Google memo. Plus: One more note about Xbox and a question about handwritten notes.
China's ongoing response to last fall's sweeping export controls on advanced semiconductors, the importance of Japan and the Netherlands imposing their own set of export controls, and more on Intel's antitrust struggles and how the company (or the U.S. government) might respond. Plus: A correction about water risks and a clarification about the Suns app.
A question about profitable and public venture-backed businesses over the past 15 years, why Amazon, Google and Apple might be interested in sports rights, and a proposed broadcasting strategy in Phoenix that might be the best idea the NBA's had since in the internet. Plus: A clarification about Microsoft, and a note to Liberty Media and Formula 1.
Twitter's latest idea spurs a discussion of the micropayment model, an email about Twitter Blue and Twitter subscription's for independent creators, and follow-up Microsoft thoughts on the spirit underlying antitrust laws, the EU regulatory environment, and why Microsoft can't simply partner with Activision in the cloud gaming space.
UK regulators may have scuttled the biggest merger in gaming history, the implications for globalized businesses going forward, and debates about antitrust enforcement. Plus: Two follow-ups to the Netflix conversation and a baffling tax development for software companies.
