This is Hayden Field, senior AI reporter at The Verge — and your Thursday episode guest host. I have another couple of shows for you while Nilay is out on parental leave, and we’re going to be spending more time diving into some of the unforeseen consequences of the generative AI boom.
Today, I’m talking with Heidy Khlaaf, who is chief AI scientist at the AI Now Institute, about the tech industry’s shift toward AI military applications. I wanted to know what’s motivated this shift, and why Heidy thinks leading AI firms are being far too cavalier about deploying generative AI in high-risk scenarios.
Links:
OpenAI is softening its stance on military use | The Verge
OpenAI awarded $200 million US defense contract | The Verge
OpenAI is partnering with defense tech company Anduril | The Verge
Anthropic launches new Claude service for military and intelligence use | The Verge
Anthropic, Palantir, Amazon team up on defense AI | Axios
Google scraps promise not to develop AI weapons | The Verge
Microsoft employees occupy headquarters in protest of Israel contracts | The Verge
Microsoft’s employee protests have reached a boiling point | The Verge
Credits:
Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Our producers are Kate Cox and Nick Statt. Our editor is Ursa Wright.
The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
--------
42:56
--------
42:56
Dropout CEO Sam Reich on business, comedy, and keeping culture weird
Guest host Hank Green talks with his friend Dropout CEO Sam Reich about keeping a business simple, trying to run a company the “right way,” and why the internet should be full of as many weird little projects as possible.
Read the full transcript on The Verge.
Links:
How CollegeHumor reinvented itself for the new internet age | People
CollegeHumor shaped online comedy. What went wrong? [2020] | Wired
‘I believe in this enough to try to do it myself’ [2020] | Digiday
Jacob Wysocki needed a minute to process that Game Changer | Vulture
Game Changer smartly weaponizes its online following | Mashable
Vimeo CEO Philip Moyer is betting on the human touch | Decoder
Vimeo to be acquired by Bending Spoons for $1.38B | The Verge
Credits:
Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Our producers are Kate Cox and Nick Statt. Our editor is Ursa Wright.
The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
--------
1:06:00
--------
1:06:00
How chatbots — and their makers — are enabling AI psychosis
Verge senior AI reporter Hayden Field and New York Times reporter Kashmir Hill discuss the significant mental health impact AI chatbots, such as ChatGPT, can have on users — both people in crisis, and also people who seemed stable.
This episode contains non-detailed discussions of suicide and mental illness. If you or someone you know is in crisis, considering self-harm, or needs to talk, please call the Lifeline at 988.
Links:
A teen was suicidal. ChatGPT was the friend he confided in. | New York Times
Sam Altman says ChatGPT will stop talking about suicide with teens | The Verge
Chatbots can go into a delusional spiral. Here’s how. | New York Times
Why is ChatGPT telling people to email me? | New York Times
They asked an AI chatbot questions. The answers sent them spiraling. | New York Times
She is in love with ChatGPT | The New York Times
‘I feel like I’m going crazy’: ChatGPT fuels delusional spirals | Wall Street Journal
Meta, OpenAI face FTC inquiry on chatbots’ impact on kids | Bloomberg
Credits:
Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Our producers are Kate Cox and Nick Statt. Our editor is Ursa Wright.
The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
--------
50:11
--------
50:11
How brands and creators are fighting for your attention — and your money
This is Hank Green, the cofounder of Complexly. I’m back for my second guest hosting spot here on Decoder while Nilay is out on parental leave. Today, I’m talking with Digitas CEO Amy Lanzi, who runs a major marketing and ad agency. You might remember Amy; Nilay interviewed her for Decoder live at an event in New York City almost a year ago. But Nilay, who runs what might be the last website on Earth, has a very different perspective on the world of digital marketing than I do. So as a career YouTuber, I had a lot of questions for someone in a position like Amy’s.
Links:
Digitas unveils new generative AI platform, Digitas AI | Digitas
Amy Lanzi on steering Digitas through the demands of modern marketing | Sightly
Introducing Reddit Community Intelligence | Reddit
Digitas North America announces Amy Lanzi as CEO | Digitas
Credits:
Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Our producers are Kate Cox and Nick Statt. Our editor is Ursa Wright.
The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
--------
1:01:07
--------
1:01:07
Sierra CEO Bret Taylor on why the AI bubble feels like the dotcom boom
This is Alex Heath. For my final episode as your Thursday episode guest host, I recently sat down with Bret Taylor, the CEO of AI startup Sierra and the chairman of OpenAI, for a live event in San Francisco hosted by Alix Partners.
Bret has worked at Google, Facebook, and Salesforce in high-level, executive roles, and he led Twitter’s board during Elon Musk’s takeover, so very few people have seen the tech industry up close like Bret has. Now, he’s all in on AI. We covered a lot of ground in this conversation, and I hope you find Bret’s perspective as fascinating as I did.
Links:
Ex-Salesforce co-CEO Bret Taylor’s Sierra is the latest $10 billion AI startup | CNBC
I talked to Sam Altman about the GPT-5 launch fiasco | Verge
Sam Altman says ‘yes,’ AI is in a bubble | Verge
MIT study on AI profits rattles tech investors | Axios
GPT-5 Pro can prove new, interesting mathematics | Sebastien Bubeck
AI chatbots are ready to talk to customers. Sort of. | WSJ
How is AI different than other technology waves? | Acquired Podcast
Credits:
Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Our producers are Kate Cox and Nick Statt. Our editor is Ursa Wright.
The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Decoder is a show from The Verge about big ideas — and other problems. Verge editor-in-chief Nilay Patel talks to a diverse cast of innovators and policymakers at the frontiers of business and technology to reveal how they’re navigating an ever-changing landscape, what keeps them up at night, and what it all means for our shared future.
![Podcast Finding Peak [Formerly The Ryan Hanley Show]](https://www.radio.net/podcast-images/175/finding-peak-podcast.jpeg?version=82b124b0ff069964372f0fb64b11dde9)
USA