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Reddit Revolts + MrBeast’s YouTube Empire + Peak Trust and Safety?From 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-06-16 09:05
Moderators on Reddit have shut down their forums in protest of a new policy that charges users for access to the site’s API. The revolt has put Kevin in child care-wisdom-withdrawal (RIP r/daddit) — and left many other users without their favorite subreddits. But does the incident say something more about the future of the internet? Then, the MrBeast Philanthropic-Industrial Complex. Plus: Platforms are already fumbling the ball on misinformation.
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Apple’s Face Computer + Crypto Chaos + How Teens Really Feel About Social MediaFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-06-09 09:00
Apple kicked off the week with the announcement of a mixed-reality headset: the Apple Vision Pro. Putting a computer on your face may seem weird AF, but if there’s one company that knows how to make nerdy stuff into the thing that everyone wants, it’s Apple. Will these fancy goggles be the next Apple revolution? Then, crypto had (another) terrible week after the S.E.C. filed lawsuits against the cryptocurrency exchanges Coinbase and Binance. Plus: Our teenage listeners on how they feel about social media.
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A.I.'s Inner Conflict + Nvidia Joins the Trillion-Dollar Club + Hard QuestionsFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-06-02 08:56
A few days after a lawyer used ChatGPT to write a brief filled with made-up cases, a group of A.I. experts released a letter warning of the “risk of extinction” from the technology. But will A.I. ever be good enough to pose such a threat? Then, FAANG is now MAAAN, with the addition of Nvidia. Here’s how the GPU company became a trillion-dollar behemoth. Plus: Kevin, Casey and the New York Times tech reporter Kate Conger answer Hard Questions from listeners.
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The Surgeon General’s Social Media Warning + A.I.’s Existential RisksFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-05-26 09:00
The U.S. surgeon general, Dr. Vivek Murthy, says social media poses a “profound risk of harm” to young people. Why do some in the tech industry disagree? Then, Ajeya Cotra, an A.I. researcher, on how A.I. could lead to a doomsday scenario. Plus: Pass the hat. Kevin and Casey play a game they call HatGPT.
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Mr. Altman Goes to Washington + Casey Goes on This American LifeFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-05-19 09:00
In a congressional hearing this week, OpenAI’s chief executive, Sam Altman, appeared to be on the same page as lawmakers: It’s time to regulate A.I. But like so many other proposals to regulate tech, will it actually happen? The Times’s technology reporter Cecilia Kang helps us understand whether Congress will actually act, and what that could look like. Then, Casey talks with Twitter’s former head of trust and safety, Yoel Roth, before and after Elon Musk took over the company.
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Google’s A.I. Bonanza + Driverless Car Talk With Cruise C.E.O. Kyle VogtFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-05-12 09:00
At its biggest event of the year, Google announced an avalanche of A.I. product releases: A.I. in search, A.I. that writes emails and A.I. that generates slides. Is Google pulling ahead in the A.I. arms race? And, after years of hype, self-driving cars are finally hitting the streets of American cities. Kevin and Casey take a ride through San Francisco in Banana Slug — an autonomous vehicle from the self-driving car company Cruise. After their ride, they sit down with Cruise’s chief executive, Kyle Vogt, to discuss the role he thinks self-driving cars will play in the future of transportation.
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Bluesky Has the Juice + A.I. Jobs Apocalypse + Hard QuestionsFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-05-05 09:00
The Twitter look-alike Bluesky, started by the former Twitter chief executive Jack Dorsey, is doing the impossible: making social media fun again. Then, A.I. is coming for jobs but not in the way you think. Plus: Kevin and Casey moonlight as advice columnists in a new Hard Fork segment called Hard Questions.
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Deepfake Drake + HatGPT + Ben Smith on the End of the BuzzFeed EraFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-04-28 09:00
A song featuring A.I.-generated versions of Drake and the Weeknd went viral — before being taken down by streaming services. Is censorship of A.I.-generated songs the way forward? Or can singers benefit from synthetic voices, as some artists like Grimes are suggesting? Then, HatGPT: Kevin and Casey pull headlines out of a hat and generate their own takes on the news. And Ben Smith, the former BuzzFeed News editor, discusses the end of the 2010s digital media era.
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Hard Fork Presents: The Most Amazing – And Dangerous – Technology In the WorldFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-04-21 09:00
Today we’re bringing you an episode on chips. No, not potato chips. While we rarely think about chips, they show up in nearly every aspect of our lives. Our toasters, our cars, our planes, our phones – and, in our politics. Kevin has been pitching an episode on the truly fascinating world of chips and semiconductors for quite a while, but our friends at the The Ezra Klein Show got to it first. This week on Hard Fork: Ezra Klein’s engrossing conversation with historian Chris Miller. It’s a must listen. Thank you to Ezra for beating us in our quest for a great chips episode. We'll be back with our regularly scheduled tech coverage, with Kevin and Casey next week.
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Inside the Hunt for the Discord Leaker + Twitter Chaos UpdatesFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-04-14 09:00
Aric Toler untangles the web of teens, gamers and memes at the heart of the latest intelligence scandal. Then, an update on Twitter — where things have gone from bad to worse. Plus: How A.I. is bringing us closer to “Westworld.”
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A.I. Vibe Check With Ezra Klein + Kevin Tries Phone PositivityFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-04-07 09:00
The New York Times Opinion columnist Ezra Klein has spent years talking to artificial intelligence researchers. Many of them feel the prospect of A.I. discovery is too sweet to ignore, regardless of the technology’s risks. Today, Mr. Klein discusses the profound changes that an A.I.-powered world will create, how current business models are failing to meet the A.I. moment, and the steps government can take to achieve a positive A.I. future. Also, radical acceptance of your phone addiction may just help your phone addiction.
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Google C.E.O. Sundar Pichai on Bard, A.I. ‘Whiplash’ and Competing With ChatGPTFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-03-31 09:00
For years, Google was seen as one of the most cutting-edge developers of A.I. But, with OpenAI’s release of ChatGPT, and other chatbots beating Google to market, is that distinction still the case? Google’s chief executive is in an unenviable position: Scramble to catch up or, in the face of potentially harmful technology, move slowly. Today, Sundar Pichai on Google’s delicate balance between A.I. innovation and safety.
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Bard Fork + How to Talk So Chatbots Will ListenFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-03-24 09:00
Google has unleashed its A.I. chatbot, Bard, to the world. And, Spotify’s A.I. D.J. knows your taste – perhaps a little too well.
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BONUS: Hard Fork Live! Big Tech’s Arch Nemesis + Bot, or Not?From 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-03-20 20:00
Jonathan Kanter, who heads up the Justice Department’s antitrust division, believes that antitrust laws are critical for innovation — from ad tech to A.I. The assistant attorney general is bringing a new philosophy to enforcing those laws. So, how is his new approach to protecting competition playing out? Plus: Can you guess whether that was a bot, or not?
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GPT-4 Is Here + The Group Chat Bank RunFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-03-17 09:00
It’s acing standardized tests, building websites and hiring TaskRabbits — GPT-4 is “equal parts fascinating and terrifying.” OpenAI has released its latest model, alongside A.I. announcements from Meta, Google and other industry players. The A.I. arms race is only accelerating. Then, what Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse means for the future of start-ups, and what Mark Zuckerberg has learned about layoffs.
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A Congressman Goes to A.I. School + How to Ban TikTokFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-03-10 10:00
Representative Don Beyer thinks artificial intelligence is “the most amazing technology since fire.” So what does it mean that most of Congress seems not to understand it? Then our colleague David McCabe discusses a bill that could dramatically expand the Biden administration’s power to ban TikTok. Plus: what can the video game character Waluigi tell us about A.I. chatbots gone rogue?
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Everyone Pivots to A.I. + Bad News for CryptoFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-03-03 10:00
Snapchat launches a chatbot. Meta plans to “turbocharge” its A.I. work. Elon Musk explores “BasedAI.” At this point, who isn’t making an A.I. play? Plus: Is crypto finally dead? Also, a new TikTok filter is making people terrifyingly hot.
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Kevin Killed Sydney + Reddit’s C.E.O. Defends Section 230From 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-02-24 10:00
Bing AI isn’t sentient. But it’s more than glorified autocomplete. How do we talk about — and understand — the power of today’s large language models? Then, Reddit’s C.E.O., Steve Huffman, on Section 230 and why the future of the internet lies with the Supreme Court. Plus: Meta is charging for blue checks.
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The Bing Who Loved Me + Elon Rewrites the AlgorithmFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-02-17 10:00
“I’m Sydney, and I’m in love with you. 😘” A conversation with Bing AI (aka Sydney) turns romantic and bizarre. Why Microsoft’s AI search tool appears more powerful — and unsettling — than we thought. Then, inside Elon Musk’s quest to be the most popular user on Twitter. Plus: It’s not just you. Online ads have gotten much worse.
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Bing’s Revenge + Google’s AI FaceplantFrom 🇺🇸 Hard Fork, published at 2023-02-10 10:00
Microsoft’s release of a ChatGPT-powered Bing signifies a new era in search. Then, a disastrous preview of Bard — Google’s answer to ChatGPT — caused the company’s stocks to slide 7 percent. The A.I. arms race is on. Plus: What “Nothing, Forever,” the 24/7, A.I.-generated “Seinfeld” parody, says about bias in A.I.