Tech Won't Save Us - podcast cover

Tech Won't Save Us

Paris Marxtechwontsave.us

Silicon Valley wants to shape our future, but why should we let it? Every Thursday, Paris Marx is joined by a new guest to critically examine the tech industry, its big promises, and the people behind them. Tech Won’t Save Us challenges the notion that tech alone can drive our world forward by showing that separating tech from politics has consequences for us all, especially the most vulnerable. It’s not your usual tech podcast.

Episodes

DOGE Is Gutting the US Digital Service w/ Kate Green and Milo

Paris Marx is joined by Kate Green and Milo to discuss how Elon Musk’s DOGE is dismantling the US Digital Service and the consequences that has on really improving service delivery in government. Kate Green and Milo are former US Digital Service engineers. 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 Na...

Mar 27, 202553 minEp. 269

Preview: Breaking Down Canada’s Election on Campaign Cops

Don’t worry; your regularly scheduled Tech Won’t Save Us is coming soon! But if you’re looking to try something a little different and get a critical take on the ongoing Canadian election, check out Campaign Cops, a special five-week series hosted by Paris Marx and Rachel Gilmore. The first episode is here for you to try out, but if you want to keep listening, find future episodes on Rachel’s YouTube channel or her podcast feed on places like Apple or Spotify . Support the show...

Mar 26, 202536 min

Canada’s Tech Leaders Want Their Own DOGE w/ Jen St. Denis

Paris Marx is joined by Jen St. Denis to discuss how Silicon Valley thinking is creeping into Canadian politics as Donald Trump continues to threaten the country with tariffs and annexation. Jen St. Denis is a reporter with The Tyee. 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 ...

Mar 20, 202552 minEp. 268

AI Hype Enters Its Geopolitics Era w/ Timnit Gebru

Paris Marx is joined by Timnit Gebru to discuss where the AI industry stands in 2025 as AI increasingly becomes a geopolitical football even as the big promises made by AI companies fail to materialize. Timnit Gebru is the founder and executive director of the Distributed AI Research Institute. 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 pod...

Mar 13, 202555 minEp. 267

The UK’s Misguided Embrace of AI Hype w/ James Meadway

Paris Marx is joined by James Meadway to discuss how the UK Labour Party is embracing AI regardless of the cost and the consequences of allowing US companies to dominate the digital economy in so many other countries. James Meadway is an economist and the host of Macrodose. 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 partn...

Mar 06, 202545 minEp. 266

Protesting Tesla Can Hurt Elon Musk w/ Ed Niedermeyer

Paris Marx is joined by Ed Niedermeyer to discuss the trouble with Tesla’s business model and how that makes Elon Musk’s power vulnerable to protest and boycott. Ed Niedermeyer is the author Ludicrous: The Unvarnished Story of Tesla Motors and a co-host of the Autonocast. 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 partner...

Feb 27, 202554 minEp. 265

How DOGE is Remaking the US Government w/ Makena Kelly

Paris Marx is joined by Makena Kelly to discuss how Elon Musk’s DOGE is reshaping the US government and the consequences that has for government employees and the wider public. Makena Kelly is a senior writer at WIRED and writes the weekly Politics Lab newsletter. 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 wit...

Feb 20, 202553 minEp. 264

Patreon Preview: The Harms of Generative AI w/ Alex Hanna

Our Data Vampires series may be over, but Paris interviewed a bunch of experts on data centers and AI whose insights shouldn’t go to waste. We’re releasing those interviews as bonus episodes for Patreon supporters. Here’s a preview of this week’s premium episode with Alex Hanna, the Director of Research at the Distributed AI Institute. For the full interview, support the show on Patreon . Support the show...

Feb 17, 20256 min

The Tech Oligarchy’s Campaign Against the Media w/ Eoin Higgins

Paris Marx is joined by Eoin Higgins to discuss how tech billionaires set out to change the media ecosystem and made it profitable for influential voices to shift to the political right. Eoin Higgins is a journalist and the author of Owned: How Tech Billionaires on the Right Bought the Loudest Voices on the Left . 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 ...

Feb 13, 202553 minEp. 263

Patreon Preview: Sam Altman’s Self-Serving AGI Future w/ Julia Black

Our Data Vampires series may be over, but Paris interviewed a bunch of experts on data centers and AI whose insights shouldn’t go to waste. We’re releasing those interviews as bonus episodes for Patreon supporters. Here’s a preview of this week’s premium episode with Julia Black, a reporter on The Information’s Weekend Team. For the full interview, support the show on Patreon . Support the show...

Feb 10, 20256 min

How Spotify Remade the Music Industry w/ Liz Pelly

Paris Marx is joined by Liz Pelly to discuss how Spotify changes how we listen to music and the broader impacts it has on the wider music industry. Liz Pelly is a music journalist and the author of Mood Machine . 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 Eric Wickham. Also me...

Feb 06, 20251 hr 6 minEp. 262

The Problem With Cyberlibertarianism w/ Chris Gilliard

Paris Marx is joined by Chris Gilliard to discuss David Golumbia's final book Cyberlibertarianism and how right-wing politics shaped how we think about the internet. Chris Gilliard is co-director of the Critical Internet Studies Institute and author of the forthcoming book Luxury Surveillance, coming in 2026. 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 ...

Jan 30, 202558 minEp. 261

Patreon Preview: Do We Live in a Simulation? w/ Émile P. Torres

Our Data Vampires series may be over, but Paris interviewed a bunch of experts on data centers and AI whose insights shouldn’t go to waste. We’re releasing those interviews as bonus episodes for Patreon supporters. Here’s a preview of this week’s premium episode with Émile P. Torres, a postdoctoral researcher at Case Western University. For the full interview, support the show on Patreon . Support the show...

Jan 27, 20255 min

The New Tech Oligarchy w/ Gaby Del Valle

Paris Marx is joined by Gaby Del Valle to discuss the inauguration of Donald Trump and what the tech oligarchy hopes to get from their relationship with him. Gaby Del Valle is a policy reporter at The Verge and is working on a book on ecofascism that will be released by Bloomsbury in 2026. 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 ...

Jan 23, 202553 minEp. 260

Patreon Preview: The Fascistic Solutionism of AI w/ Dan McQuillan

Our Data Vampires series may be over, but Paris interviewed a bunch of experts on data centers and AI whose insights shouldn’t go to waste. We’re releasing those interviews as bonus episodes for Patreon supporters. Here’s a preview of this week’s premium episode with Dan McQuillan, author of Resisting AI and a lecturer at Goldsmiths University of London. For the full interview, support the show on Patreon . Support the show...

Jan 20, 20255 min

How to See Tech Like a Luddite w/ Jathan Sadowski

Paris Marx is joined by Jathan Sadowski to discuss the relationship between technology and capitalism, and what lessons can be taken from the Luddites to properly assess and understand these systems. Jathan Sadowski is is the author of The Mechanic and the Luddite: A Ruthless Criticism of Technology and Capitalism . He’s also the co-host of This Machine Kills and a Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Information Technology at Monash University. Tech Won’t Save Us offers a critical perspective on t...

Jan 16, 20251 hr 3 minEp. 259

Patreon Preview: How Big Tech Made the Cloud w/ Dwayne Monroe

Our Data Vampires series may be over, but Paris interviewed a bunch of experts on data centers and AI whose insights shouldn’t go to waste. We’re releasing those interviews as bonus episodes for Patreon supporters. Here’s a preview of this week’s premium episode with Dwayne Monroe, a senior cloud architect and longtime consultant these kinds of projects. For the full interview, support the show on Patreon . Support the show...

Jan 14, 20255 min

What Netflix Has Done to Movies w/ Will Tavlin

Paris Marx is joined by Will Tavlin to discuss how the Netflix model transformed film into the Typical Netflix Movie and how the company uses claims about data to deceive the public. Will Tavlin is a New York-based writer who has written for n+1, Bookforum, and the Columbia Journalism Review. 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 podca...

Jan 09, 20251 hr 6 minEp. 258

How Cloud Giants Cement Their Power w/ Cecilia Rikap

Paris Marx is joined by Cecilia Rikap to discuss the ways Amazon, Microsoft, and Google gain power from companies becoming dependent on their cloud services and how generative AI exacerbates that problem. Cecilia Rikap is an Associate Professor in Economics at University College London. 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 ...

Jan 02, 202544 minEp. 257

Maybe We Should Destroy AI w/ Ali Alkhatib

Paris Marx is joined by Ali Alkhatib to discuss the difficulty of holding the AI industry accountable and why sometimes it makes sense for people to destroy AI systems that are harming them. Ali Alkhatib works with Logic(s) magazine and was previously the director of the Center for Applied Data Ethics. 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 ....

Dec 26, 202436 minEp. 256

The Year in Tech w/ Molly White, Brian Merchant, & Eric Wickham

Paris Marx is joined by Molly White, Brian Merchant, and Eric Wickham to discuss the highs and lows (mostly lows) of this year in tech news. Molly White is the creator of Web3 is Going Just Great and Follow the Crypto. Brian Merchant is my co-host on System Crash, a new podcast we’re hosting. He’s also a longtime tech journalist and author of Blood in the Machine. Eric Wickham is the producer for Tech Won’t Save Us, along with a bunch of other podcast, and an independent journalist. Tech Won’t S...

Dec 19, 20241 hr 18 minEp. 255

How Data Is Changing Air Travel w/ Amanda Mull

Paris Marx is joined by Amanda Mull to discuss the data-informed decisions that are changing the way we all experience air travel, mostly for the worse. Amanda Mull is a senior reporter and Buying Power columnist at Bloomberg Businessweek. 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...

Dec 12, 20241 hr 4 minEp. 254

Patreon Preview: Spain Doesn’t Have Water for Data Centers w/ Aurora Gomez Delgado

Our Data Vampires series may be over, but Paris interviewed a bunch of experts on data centers and AI whose insights shouldn’t go to waste. We’re releasing those interviews as bonus episodes for Patreon supporters. Here’s a preview of this week’s premium episode with Aurora Gomez Delgado of Tu Nube Seca Mi Río. For the full interview, support the show on Patreon . Support the show...

Dec 10, 20244 min

Should Australia Ban Teens from Social Media? w/ Cam Wilson

Paris Marx is joined by Cam Wilson to discuss Australia’s plan to ban under-16s from social media, the interests driving it, and whether it’s the right approach to tackle the harms of those platforms. Cam Wilson is associate editor at Crikey. 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 . Product...

Dec 05, 20241 hr 1 minEp. 253

Patreon Preview: The Crippling Energy Demand of Ireland’s Data Centers w/ Brid Smith

Our Data Vampires series may be over, but Paris interviewed a bunch of experts on data centers and AI whose insights shouldn’t go to waste. We’re releasing those interviews as bonus episodes for Patreon supporters. Here’s a preview of this week’s premium episode with Brid Smith, a former TD or Member of Parliament in the Irish Parliament in Dublin. For the full interview, support the show on Patreon . Support the show...

Dec 03, 20245 min

Patreon Preview: Fighting Data Centers in Chile w/ Sebastian Lehuede

Our Data Vampires series may be over, but Paris interviewed a bunch of experts on data centers and AI whose insights shouldn’t go to waste. We’re releasing those interviews as bonus episodes for Patreon supporters. Here’s a preview of this week’s premium episode with Sebastian Lehuede, a lecturer at King’s College London. For the full interview, support the show on Patreon . Support the show...

Nov 29, 20246 min

Nuclear Won’t Meet Tech’s Energy Demands w/ MV Ramana

Paris Marx is joined by MV Ramana to discuss the tech industry’s push to have nuclear energy power its data centers and why the reality of nuclear power isn’t as great as its promoters often make it seem. MV Ramana is a Professor and Simons Chair in Disarmament, Global and Human Security at the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs at the University of British Columbia. He is the author of Nuclear Is Not the Solution: The Folly of Atomic Power in the Age of Climate Change . Tech Won’t Save ...

Nov 28, 20241 hr 2 minEp. 252

The Forgotten Story of How Conservatives Shaped the Internet w/ Becca Lewis

Paris Marx is joined by Becca Lewis to discuss the right-wing project to shape the internet in the 1990s and how we’re still living with the legacies of those actions today. Becca Lewis is a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford University. 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 ...

Nov 21, 20241 hrEp. 251

Patreon Preview: How Cloud Giants Cement Their Power w/ Cecilia Rikap

Our Data Vampires series may be over, but Paris interviewed a bunch of experts on data centers and AI whose insights shouldn’t go to waste. We’re releasing those interviews as bonus episodes for Patreon supporters. Here’s a preview of this week’s premium episode with Cecilia Rikap, an Associate Professor in Economics at University College London. For the full interview, support the show on Patreon . Support the show...

Nov 19, 20246 min

Making Sense of a Pro-Tech Trump Presidency w/ Brian Merchant

Paris Marx is joined by Brian Merchant to discuss the fallout from the US election, what it means for the tech industry, and more importantly, what it might mean for all of us. They also celebrate the show hitting 250 episodes! Brian Merchant is a longtime tech writer and author of Blood in the Machine: The Origins of the Rebellion Against Big Tech . 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 ...

Nov 14, 20241 hr 5 minEp. 250