Episodes
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This week, we took a field trip to the Phoenix suburbs to see Amazon’s newest iteration of drone delivery service in action. We toured the facility where these drones are in operation, spoke with the vice president and general manager of Prime Air, David Carbon, and watched from a local backyard as our own order dropped from the sky.
Guest:
David Carbon, vice president and general manager of Amazon Prime Air.We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
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Last Friday, a panel of federal judges denied TikTok’s petition to overturn the law that could force the ban of the app in the United States. We walk through the judges reasoning and explain why TikTok’s First Amendment argument was unsuccessful. Then, Julian Kelly, the director of quantum hardware at Google Quantum AI, explains how close we are to quantum computers that can solve practical problems. Finally, we talk about a new sentiment sweeping Silicon Valley: affection for the chatbot Claude.
Guest:
Julian Kelly, director of quantum hardware at Google Quantum AI.Additional Reading:
TikTok Faces U.S. Ban After Losing Bid to Overturn New LawQuantum Computing Inches Closer to Reality After Another Google BreakthroughCult of ClaudeDealBook Summit Podcast: The A.I. RevolutionWe want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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This week, Pat Gelsinger stepped down as chief executive of Intel. We talk with The New York Times’s Don Clark about why Gelsinger was ousted, what it means for the chip industry and how his departure could affect national security. Then, Kevin and Casey report back from an artificial intelligence conference, where experts debated how long it would take to build a structure around the sun to capture the star’s energy — also known as a Dyson sphere. And finally, gift guides have taken over the internet. We dig into why, and offer up suggestions for gear dads, home cooks and even tech billionaires in our first ever Hard Fork gift guide.
Guest:
Don Clark, New York Times contributor covering the chips industry.Additional Reading:
Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger Steps Down Amid Chipmaker’s StrugglesNvidia Rules A.I. Chips, but Amazon and AMD Emerge as ContendersWe want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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This week, we’re bringing you a Thanksgiving special that’s great for a long car ride, a day of cooking or avoiding conversation with your family. We’re counting down the 100 most iconic technologies of all time, starting with No. 100: Boats. Our definitive list was carefully crafted using an advanced methodology of vibes-only decision-making. By “iconic,” we mean technologies that have either changed the world, ruined it or at the very least made life a little more interesting. And because we love chaos, we’ll explain why we chose each one in roughly 30 seconds or less.
Additional Reading:
This episode was inspired by the Iconic 400 list compiled by the podcast “Las Culturistas”; check it out.
We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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This week, President-elect Donald Trump picked Brendan Carr to be the next chairman of the F.C.C. We talk with The Verge’s editor in chief, Nilay Patel, about what this could mean for the future of the internet, and for free speech at large. Then, a new study found that ChatGPT defeated doctors at diagnosing some diseases. One of the study’s authors, Dr. Adam Rodman, joins us to discuss the future of medicine. And finally, court is back in session. It’s time for the Hard Fork Crimes Division.
One more thing: We want to learn more about you, our listeners. Please fill out our quick survey: nytimes.com/hardforksurvey.
Guests:
Nilay Patel, co-founder of The Verge and host of the podcasts Decoder and The Vergecast.Adam Rodman, internal medicine physician at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and one of the co-authors of a recent study testing the effectiveness of ChatGPT to diagnose illnesses.Additional Reading:
Trump Picks Brendan Carr to Lead F.C.C.A.I. Chatbots Defeated Doctors at Diagnosing IllnessGary Wang, a Top FTX Executive, Is Given No Prison TimeWe want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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This week, we explore how the 2024 election paved the way for a new crypto-friendly Congress and what that means for the future of crypto. Then, for ChatGPT’s second birthday, Nick Turley, ChatGPT head of product at OpenAI, stops by to tell us where it goes from here and share some of his favorite chatbot hacks. Finally, a listener emailed us last week asking what social network he should be using in 2024. We’ll share our thoughts on which text-based platforms are the least annoying.
One more thing: We want to learn more about you, our listeners. It will help us make a better show. We would appreciate it if you filled out a quick survey: nytimes.com/hardforksurvey. Thank you.
Guest:
Nick Turley, ChatGPT head of product at OpenAIAdditional Reading:
Crypto Industry Lobbies Trump and His Allies After Election WinsHow Crypto Enthusiasts Hijacked a Dog Mayor CompetitionOpenAI Folds A.I.-Powered Search Engine Into ChatGPTBluesky Adds One Million New Users After ElectionWe want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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As of this week, we have a new president-elect. We discuss how the incoming administration’s approach to technology will affect Elon Musk, a TikTok ban, Big Tech’s antitrust challenges and the speed of A.I. progress. Then, Kashmir Hill, a technology reporter for The Times, joins to discuss her weeklong experiment of letting A.I. make every decision in her life. And finally, we play a round of election-free HatGPT!
Guest:
Kashmir Hill, technology reporter for The New York Times.Additional Reading:
What a Trump Victory Means for TechI Took a ‘Decision Holiday’ and Put A.I. in Charge of My LifeAn ‘Interview’ With a Dead Luminary Exposes the Pitfalls of A.I.Meta’s Plan for Nuclear-Powered A.I. Data Center Thwarted by Rare BeesFired Employee Allegedly Hacked Disney World’s Menu System to Alter Peanut Allergy InformationWe want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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Last week, Jeff Bezos canceled the Washington Post editorial board’s plan to endorse Kamala Harris. Are tech billionaires hedging their bets in case Donald Trump wins? Then, Miles Brundage, a former OpenAI senior adviser on artificial general intelligence readiness, stops by to tell us how his old company is doing when it comes to being ready for superintelligence, and whether we should all keep saving for retirement. And finally, David Yaffe-Bellany, a Times technology reporter, joins us to explore the rise of Polymarket, a crypto-powered betting platform, and discuss whether prediction markets can tell us who is going to win the election.
Guests:
Miles Brundage, former OpenAI senior adviser for A.G.I. readiness.David Yaffe-Bellany, technology reporter for The New York Times.Additional Reading:
Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and the Billions of Ways to Influence an ElectionMiles Brundage’s on Why He’s Leaving OpenAIThe Crypto Website Where the Election Odds Swing in Trump’s FavorWe want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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Note: This episode contains mentions of suicide.
This week, how Elon Musk became a main character in this year’s election, and what that means for the future of tech and of the country. Plus, the journalist Laurie Segall joins us to discuss the tragic case of a teenager who became obsessed with an A.I. companion bot and later died by suicide. We discuss what A.I. companies could do to make their apps safer for children.
If you are having thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or go to SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for a list of additional resources.
Guest:
Laurie Segall, chief executive of Mostly Human MediaAdditional Reading:
Elon Musk’s Big Business and Conflicts of Interest With the U.S. GovernmentCan a Chatbot Named Daenerys Targaryen Be Blamed for a Teen’s Suicide?Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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This week, the A.I. company Anthropic has Silicon Valley rethinking the timeline for artificial general intelligence. In addition to releasing a new safety policy, the company’s chief executive, Dario Amodei, laid out a vision of how A.I. could help cure cancer, mental illness and mitigate climate change in the near future. We consider his most surprising claims and what this means for the acceleration of the technology. Then, the Uber chief executive, Dara Khosrowshahi, joins us in the studio to discuss his company’s new partnership with Waymo, the autonomous vehicle company, and the future of that industry. And finally, leaked court documents reveal exactly how many TikTok videos you need to watch to get hooked on the app. So, Casey puts the number to the test.
Guest:
Dara Khosrowshahi, chief executive of Uber
Dario Amodei’s Essay “Machines of Loving Grace”TikTok Executives Know About App’s Effect on Teens, Lawsuit Documents Allege
Additional Reading:
We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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This week, in the wake of recent natural disasters, we dig into the rise of A.I.-generated slop that’s polluting the internet and disrupting rescue efforts. Then we talk with the investigative filmmaker Cullen Hoback about his new documentary on the history of Bitcoin and about why, after so many others have failed, he thinks he has found the real Satoshi Nakamoto. And finally, we hear the train whistle approaching, and that can only mean one thing: It’s once again time to board the Hot Mess Express.
Guest:
Cullen Hoback, Documentary filmmakerAdditional Reading:
Another Hurdle in Recovery From Helene: Misinformation Is Getting in the WayBitcoin Documentary ‘Money Electric’ Reopens Search for Satoshi NakamotoU.S. Weighs Forcing Google to Break Off Parts of the CompanyWe want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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On Sunday, Gov. Gavin Newsom of California vetoed Senate Bill 1047, an A.I. safety bill that would have curtailed the growth of the technology. What received a lot less attention were the 18 other important A.I. bills he signed into law over the past month. We walk through what is in them and what they mean for the rest of the country. Then, The Information’s Julia Black joins to discuss the baby craze that’s sweeping Silicon Valley, including investment in some wild new fertility technologies. And finally, it’s time for a system update! We get into OpenAI’s massive fund-raising deal and the senator who hopped on a call with a “deepfake” former Ukrainian official.
Julia Black, reporter at The Information
Guest:Additional Reading:
California Governor Vetoes Sweeping A.I. LegislationDawn of the Silicon Valley SuperbabyOpenAI Completes Deal That Values Company at $157 Billion‘Deepfake’ Caller Poses as Ukrainian Official in Exchange With Key Senator
We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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This week, Casey reports back from a wild day at Meta Connect, discussing what’s new with Meta’s efforts in artificial intelligence, virtual reality headsets and the Holy Grail — augmented reality glasses. Then, Steven Johnson, a writer and editorial director at Google Labs, stops by to talk about the company’s new hit NotebookLM, which uses A.I. to turn even boring PDFs, such as user manuals and Kevin’s bank records, into chatty, disturbingly good podcasts. Finally, so much happened in tech news this week that we reached for the bucket hat in the latest installment of HatGPT!
Guest:
Steven Johnson, author and editorial director, NotebookLM
Additional Reading:
Meta Unveils New Smart Glasses and Headsets in Pursuit of the MetaverseA.I. Is Mastering Language. Should We Trust What It Says?OpenAI Executives Exit as C.E.O. Works to Make the Company For-Profit
We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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Last week, OpenAI released a preview of its hotly anticipated new model, o1. We discuss what it has excelled at and how it could accelerate the timeline for building superintelligence. Then, we explain why Meta is making teenagers’ Instagram accounts private by default. And, finally, we chat with the New York Times reporter Karen Weise about why Amazon is forcing its corporate employees to go back to working in the office five days a week and whether other companies will follow suit.
Guests:
Karen Weise, a technology correspondent for The Times.Additional Reading:
OpenAI Unveils New ChatGPT That Can Reason Through Math and ScienceInstagram, Facing Pressure Over Child Safety Online, Unveils Sweeping ChangesAmazon Tells Corporate Workers to Be Back in the Office 5 Days a WeekWe want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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Apple unveiled its latest gadgets at its big September event on Monday. We discuss the most interesting new features — including AirPods that can function as hearing aids and Apple Watch software that can help detect sleep apnea — and offer our advice on when to buy a new iPhone. Then, the best-selling author Yuval Noah Harari joins us to discuss his new book and his biggest fears about A.I. And finally, we crack open some criminal cases in a new segment we’re calling the Hard Fork Crimes Division. We’ll explain how one man made $10 million by manipulating music streaming services and how online instructions for building a 3D-printed gun have ended up in the hands of criminals around the world.
Guest:
Yuval Noah Harari, author of “Sapiens,” “Homo Deus” and “Nexus.”Additional Reading:
Apple Unveils New iPhones With Built-In Artificial IntelligenceRussia Secretly Worms Its Way Into America’s Conservative MediaHe’s Known as ‘Ivan the Troll.’ His 3D-Printed Guns Have Gone Viral.The Bands and the Fans Were Fake. The $10 Million Was Real.We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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Over the weekend, X was banned in Brazil. We talk with The New York Times’s Brazil bureau chief, Jack Nicas, about how Brazilians are reacting, whether its owner, Elon Musk, has made a business miscalculation and what this means for free speech around the world. Then, we’re going “founder mode.” We explore why an essay about start-up founders reclaiming their authority went viral and what that tells us about how Silicon Valley thinks about power. And finally, we hear from listeners. Teachers and students left us voice messages describing how phone bans in schools are transforming their lives.
Guest:
Jack Nicas, Brazil bureau chief for The TimesAdditional Reading:
Brazil Blocks X After Musk Ignores Court Orders Paul Graham’s Founder ModeWe want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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Telegram’s founder, Pavel Durov, was arrested in France and charged with several crimes connected to his operation of the platform. We’ll tell you what the charges against him mean for the internet. Then Gov. Kathy Hochul, Democrat of New York, joins us to discuss why she wants to ban phones statewide in public schools. And finally, Kevin has been using secret codes to try to change what A.I. chatbots think of him. We get to the bottom of whether it is possible to manipulate A.I. outputs.
This episode contains discussion of suicide connected to youth mental health. If you are having thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or go to SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for a list of additional resources.
Guest:
Kathy Hochul, governor of New YorkAdditional Reading:
How Pavel Durov, Telegram’s Founder, Went From Russia’s Mark Zuckerberg to Wanted ManKathy Hochul’s ‘Big’ Plan to Ban Phones in SchoolsWe want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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This week, we discuss why so few campaigns seem to be experimenting with A.I. The Times’s Sheera Frenkel joins us with examples of the many different artificial intelligence products that have been turned down by campaigns in this election cycle, from A.I.-generated endorsements from long-dead historical figures to a synthetic version of Donald Trump. Then, we interview the Wyoming man who ran for mayor on the promise that he would exclusively use a customized ChatGPT bot to run the city. And finally, it’s time for a tech check. We run down the apps we’re using to become more productive.
Sheera Frenkel, a Times reporter covering technologyVictor Miller, former candidate for mayor in Cheyenne, Wyoming
Guest:
The Year of the A.I. Election That Wasn’tMayoral Candidate Vows to Let VIC, an AI Bot, Run Wyoming’s Capital CityThree Apps That Made Me More Productive This Year
Additional Reading:
We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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This week, we debate whether Elon Musk’s recent stumping and fund-raising for former President Trump could help him get re-elected. Then, former Microsoft’s chief executive, Steve Ballmer, stops by to discuss his effort to depolarize our politics using government data. And finally, This Week in A.I. returns: We run down some of the biggest recent stories that caught our attention.
Guest:
Steve Ballmer, former chief executive of Microsoft, founder of USAFactsAdditional Reading:
Inside Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s Growing AllianceThe American Right Is Terminally OnlineThe New Home of the L.A. Clippers Is a Hot Ticket for ArtA California Bill to Regulate A.I. Causes Alarm in Silicon ValleyWe want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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This week, a federal judge ruled that Google acted illegally to maintain a monopoly in online search. David McCabe, a New York Times reporter, joins to discuss what happens next. Then, are we in an A.I. bubble? We weigh in on the wild market swings that started the week and consider the argument that A.I. is overhyped. And finally, it’s time for our new segment: We bat around some of the weirdest recent tech drama — including a MrBeast competition that went awry and a founder who dropped a diss track aimed at a rival. All aboard the Hot-Mess Express.
David McCabe, a Times reporter covering technology policy.
Guest:
‘Google Is a Monopolist,’ Judge Rules in Landmark Antitrust CaseTech Bosses Preach Patience as They Spend and Spend on A.I.What’s Behind All the Stock Market Drama?Willing to Die for MrBeast (and $5 Million)
Additional Reading:
We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
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