Episodes

May 15, 2023

Mon. 05/15 – Media Day On The Podcast

After some news about Apple testing M3 chips, it’s media day on the podcast. Wither Motherboard, as Vice declares bankruptcy. Netflix is cutting spending on its originals. Is the pivot to ads going to define the next stage o…
May 15, 2023

(IHP Bonus) Tesla Cofounder Marc Tarpenning (Corrected)

Marc Tarpenning, along with Martin Eberhard, was the cofounder of Tesla Motors back in 2003. But before that, Tarpenning and Eberhard were also the cofounders of NuvoMedia, which produced one of the world's first ebook devic…
May 14, 2023

(IHP Bonus) Tesla Cofounder Marc Tarpenning

Marc Tarpenning, along with Martin Eberhard, was the cofounder of Tesla Motors back in 2003. But before that, Tarpenning and Eberhard were also the cofounders of NuvoMedia, which produced one of the world's first ebook devic…
May 13, 2023

(Bonus) Apple II History With Laine Nooney

Yes, the Apple II is maybe more historically important than the Macintosh, at least for Apple as a company. I agree with the argument my friend Laine Nooney makes in their book: The Apple II Age: How the Computer Became Pers…
May 12, 2023

Fri. 05/12 – Twitter Has A New CEO

Elon says he’s hired a new CEO for Twitter, and folks think they know who this person will be. The Claude chatbot has expanded so much you can now write entire novels with it. Seeing what Meta is doing with AI in ads makes m…
May 11, 2023

Thu. 05/11 – Twitter Encrypts DMs? (Corrected)

Twitter finally rolled out encrypted DMs… or did they? More drips and drabs from yesterday’s Google event including an AI music generating tool that sounds pretty wild. Even the crypto miners are pivoting to AI. And why tech…
May 10, 2023

Wed. 05/10 – Google I/O

I’m writing this this morning before Google’s I/O, so I’m assuming that’s going to be the entirety of this episode. But who knows. Maybe I’ll be able to squeeze something non-Google stuff at the end. Join me in the time mach…
May 9, 2023

Tue. 05/09 – AI Comes To The Drive Through Window

More roiling questions about crypto and regulator enforcement. Nintendo’s Switch is getting long in the tooth. AI’s are coming to the Wendy’s drive through lane. An AI startup to protect against AI. And more of what we can e…
May 8, 2023

Mon. 05/08 – The Big Discord Username Shift

What to expect from Google IO. The big discord username switch. Sam Altman’s side hustle is launching a thing. But also a look at the regulatory issues his OpenAI is facing in Europe. And what if I told you an Ikea chair can…
May 7, 2023

(Bonus) Brian On Big Technology Podcast

This is the crossover episode of when I went on the Big Technology podcast on Friday. We ask where the moat is in AI? And we celebrate Ed Sheeran if you can believe it.
May 6, 2023

(Bonus) @semaforben On The Golden Age Of Digital Media And His AMAZING New Book About It

This is the book I've been dying for someone to write! This is how digital media happened for 20 years! Traffic: Genius, Rivalry, and Delusion in the Billion-Dollar Race to Go Viral. Yay to finally having Ben Smith on the po…
May 5, 2023

Fri. 05/05 – Can Open Source Win Out Over Open AI? (Corrected)

Apple earnings recap. A new, free code generating AI tool. Which, actually, lots of people are starting to ask the question: will open source AI actually come out on top in the AI revolution? And, of course, the weekend long…
May 4, 2023

Thu. 05/04 – The Regulators Come For AI

The regulators have not been sleeping on the AI revolution. Everybody wants to get in on the blue checkmark game. But this time, with actual utility. Airbnb now offers to rent out single rooms. Can ChatGPT out invest profess…
May 3, 2023

Wed. 05/03 – How A Pixies Song Broke Google Assistant

Google releases a new feature to put another nail in the password coffin. Malware merchants are using generative AI. A deep dive into what Bluesky is like right now. The best explainer of quantum computing I’ve ever seen. An…
May 2, 2023

Tue. 05/02 – The Writer’s Strike Inspired By AI

Looks like that Hollywood strike inspired by AI fears is a go. Apple and Google want to set a new standard to prevent modern digital stalking. Pornhub is boycotting Utah. Mastodon is trying to make it less confusing to give …
May 1, 2023

Mon. 05/01 – Why Hollywood Fears AI

Gurman says the big Apple Watch OS overhaul is nigh. I can already tell you what the biggest tech IPO of 2023 is going to be. Are there signs tech earnings have turned or a corner, or, at least, have bottomed out? And why th…
April 30, 2023

(IHP Bonus) Mike Slade on Steve Jobs' Return To Apple

Another bonus episode from the Internet History Podcast. As promised, Mike Slade is back to tell stories from the period 1998 through 2004, when he was Special Assistant to Steve Jobs. Background details on the iMac, the iPo…
April 29, 2023

(IHP Bonus) Mike Slade on NeXT and Steve Jobs' Return to Apple

Another bonus episode from the Internet History Podcast. I originally wanted to talk to Mike Slade about Starwave, the innovative company that launched some major names onto the web, including ESPN.com, ABCNews.com, MrShowbi…
April 28, 2023

Fri. 04/28 – Microsoft Gets Out Of The Mice Business

More signs that vital communications infrastructure is abandoning Twitter. Reddit is testing Discord-like chat channels. Big layoffs at Clubhouse. Microsoft exits the peripherals business after 40 years. And, of course, the …
April 27, 2023

Thu. 04/27 – Meta Does Good

Meta reported earnings that surprised investors in the good way. But that doesn’t mean they’re backing off the Metaverse. Global smartphone shipments continue to plummet. Might congress ban children from social media? Amazon…
April 26, 2023

Wed. 04/26 - The UK Is Blocking Microsoft’s Activision Acquisition

The UK is blocking Microsoft’s Activision Acquisition. A quick rundown of Microsoft and Alphabet earnings. The new Mavic drone is a beast. Cruise has actually expanded its self-driving taxi service. And a look at the mountin…
April 25, 2023

Tue. 04/25 – The AI Revolution Comes For Drake

Methinks Coinbase is orchestrating laying the groundwork for a showdown with US regulators. Slack rolls out Canvas, which seems pretty cool. AI Guardrails from Nvidia. A browser built for AI tools from Opera. And I delve int…
April 24, 2023

Mon. 04/24 – And More Twitter Stuff

Would you believe me if I told you there was more Twitter chaos over the weekend. More details on the Apple headset. Is ARM about to abandon its Switzerland strategy? Interesting data about how Netflix dominates TV watching.…
April 23, 2023

(Bonus) Chamath Palihapitiya Interview

Again, my Internet History Podcast interview with Chamath Palihapitiya of the All In podcast from 2016.