(Preview) How America Lost Rare Earths, Netflix Partners with Spotify and Bill Simmons, What Comes Next in the Robotaxi Wars
Andrew and Ben begin by examining the various structural forces and business decisions that led the U.S. and the West to cede rare earth mining and refining to China, including reduced friction at the expense of resilience n a variety of areas, predatory pricing that pays extra dividends in the commodities business, and why Ben is keeping an eye on the Middle East in the months to come. From there: Reactions to the news that Spotify and Netflix are partnering and pulling podcasts off of YouTube, with thoughts on the limits of that strategy and the difference between YouTube's cut of creator ad revenue and Apple's developer fees. At the end: Uber, Tesla, and Waymo and the shape of the future autonomous vehicle marketplace, Ben's thoughts on Tesla's Full Self-Driving, OpenAI's corporate structure, and ChatGPT embraces AI erotica.
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20:46
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20:46
(Preview) OpenAI Astride the World, Infrastructure Buildouts and Boundless Ambitions, More on Sora and Creation
Thoughts on OpenAI after a month of infrastructure and partnership announcements, including the differences between OpenAI and a Mag7 company, Ben’s interview with Sam Altman this week, Apps in ChatGPT, and drawing on Windows, Apple, and WeChat to better understand the company’s strategy. At the end: Questions on Sora, the 90-9-1 law, and OpenAI’s approach to copyright, as well as some brief reactions to China's move to escalate curbs on rare earth exports.
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23:09
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23:09
(Preview) Sora 2 and an AI Video Boom, Meta’s Vibes One Week Later, Questions on TikTok, Solar Power, and the iPhone Air
Andrew and Ben begin with reactions to OpenAI's Sora 2, a new Sora app, and more thoughts on last week’s ‘Vibes’ release from MetaAI. Topics include: Parallels between Sora 2 and the GPT 3.5 release in 2022, responding to a sample of disgusted MetaAI 'Vibes' reactions, why OpenAI is investing in short form video, why the threat to Meta is clearer than ever, and fair questions about Mark Zuckerberg's leadership after the last several years. At the end: TikTok’s business prospects and security concerns, solar power possibilities for AI infrastructure, Ben's shocking embrace of the iPhone Air, and a Sharp Tech x Oreo crossover.
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34:47
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34:47
Emergency Pod: Instant Reactions to MetaAI Vibes
Ninety minutes after they wrapped a conversation about YouTube, Google and the future of AI video, Ben and Andrew reconvene to make Ben eat his words about Meta's inability to ship and react to Vibes — a new feed in the Meta AI app for short-form, AI-generated videos.
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16:15
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16:15
(Preview) Video's Ongoing Victory Over Text, Google and YouTube's Abundance of Opportunity, Six Questions About an AI Bubble
On today's show Andrew and Ben begin with a 60-second iPhone review before turning to YouTube and Google's abundance of AI opportunities. Then: Six questions about the AI bubble, including reactions to Nvidia's investment in OpenAI, Oracle's financing vs. cloud incumbents, Microsoft's spending strategy, the looming power crisis, and more. At the end: A salute to the bubble prince, more on Meta's smart glasses, and "presage" confirmation.