Superconductor Superconfusion, KOSA’s Hidden Costs and HatGPT

Elon’s Two-Day War with Apple + How to Beat an A.I. Censor + S.B.F.’s ‘Bad Month’: Elon Musk accuses Apple of trying to sabotage Twitter. But after his visit with Apple’s C.E.O., Tim Cook, things are … good? Then, the New York Times reporter Paul Mozur on the tactics Chinese protesters are deploying to avoid the most sophisticated censorship apparatus in the world. Plus: S.B.F. says it’s been a “bad month.” by Hard Fork

51 min listen

Generative AI is Here. Who Should Control It?: We sit down with the founder of Stability AI, Emad Mostaque, on the heels of his $101 million fund-raising round. His open-source Stable Diffusion image generator is the key to unlocking creativity, he says, and “one of the ultimate tools for freedom of expression” — as long as it stays out of the hands of a few censorious tech giants. So what’s this former hedge fund manager turned tech mogul thinking about how this technology could be used — or misused? Plus: A.I. Kevin and A.I. Casey stop by. by Hard Fork

54 min listen

What’s a Hard Fork?: Hosts Kevin Roose and Casey Newton explore stories from the wild frontier of tech. What’s real? What’s hype? “Hard Fork” is here to help you make sense of it. Tune in on Friday, Oct. 7. by Hard Fork

1 min listen

Emergency Pod: Elon Musk Owns Twitter: We look into the company’s weird new future with Times tech reporter Kate Conger. Plus, how Apple is single-handedly deciding the future of the digital economy, and a social media death watch. by Hard Fork

57 min listen

A Hard Fork in the Road: FTX’s Unraveling and Elon’s Loyalty Oath: The balance sheet contains an apology, the in-house coach is concerned that company executives are “undersexed” and billions in customer funds remain in jeopardy. The wreckage at FTX goes from bad to worse. Plus: Elon’s “extremely hardcore” plan for Twitter 2.0. by Hard Fork

47 min listen

Life Under Musk: Two Twitter Employees Speak Out: “We cross our fingers and hope to make it through another day.” Twitter hasn’t spoken publicly since Elon Musk bought the company a week ago. But inside, employees describe a mood of fear, chaos, stress and bizarre requests to print out code. by Hard Fork

39 min listen

Elon’s Hidden Motives + A Meetup in the Metaverse: The $44 billion Twitter deal is back on the table — and Casey isn’t buying it. Kevin looks for friends in the Metaverse. And the “Hard Fork Transparency Report” debuts. by Hard Fork

64 min listen

Bard Fork + How to Talk So Chatbots Will Listen by Hard Fork

63 min listen

N.Y.C. Says Airbn-bye + How Far Would You Go for a GPU? + The A.I. Songs of the Summer: Are New York City’s new rules for short-term rentals like Airbnb effectively a ban? And will they accomplish what proponents want them to? Then, The New York Times tech reporter Erin Griffith on Silicon Valley’s mad dash for GPUs. And finally, we take stock of the A.I. songs of the summer and discuss YouTube and Universal Music Group’s plan to make synthetic voices profitable. by Hard Fork

64 min listen

Can ChatGPT Make This Podcast?: It’s writing podcast scripts, finishing students’ homework and correcting mistakes in computer code: ChatGPT, the A.I. chatbot from OpenAI, is suddenly everywhere. Who should decide how it’s built? What could go wrong? And what could go right? by Hard Fork

58 min listen

A Trip to TikTok + ChatGPT’s Origin Story + Kevin Systrom’s Comeback: TikTok is opening up a “Transparency and Accountability Center” to try to win over skeptics. Is the company’s strategy working? Then, the origin story of OpenAI’s ChatGPT and how the company kicked off an A.I. arms race. Plus: The co-founder of Instagram, Kevin Systrom, hopes to make a “TikTok for text.” by Hard Fork

62 min listen

Meta’s Trump Calculus + Regime Change at Netflix: What does Donald Trump’s reinstatement on Facebook and Instagram mean for our politics and platforms? Then, Netflix in its post-Reed era. Plus: How the Bored Ape Yacht Club went from being the Disney of Web3 to handing out sewer passes for their new video game. by Hard Fork

59 min listen

ChatGPT Transforms a Classroom + Is 'M3GAN' Real?: A high school teacher on how the new chatbot from OpenAI is transforming her classroom — for the better. And, “M3GAN” may be closer than you think. Plus: Why Gen Z is chasing the digital camera aesthetic. by Hard Fork

62 min listen

TikTok’s Spying Scandal + ChatGPT Puts Google on Notice + Phone Jail: Calls to ban TikTok or force its sell-off from its parent company ByteDance are gaining momentum, especially after reports of ByteDance’s surveillance of several U.S. journalists. And could Microsoft’s investment in OpenAI mark the end of Google’s search monopoly? Plus: New Year's resolutions, including locking up your phone. by Hard Fork

60 min listen

A Verified Mess: Turmoil from Twitter to FTX: This week, we go inside Elon Musk’s “dire” warnings, FTX’s spectacular collapse and Meta’s big layoffs. Has the tech industry lost its mind? “Hard Fork” listeners: We want to hear your questions about the tech industry. Send them to hardfork@nytimes.com. Also, check us out on TikTok: @hardforkpod. by Hard Fork

53 min listen

SBF Arrested + 2023 Predictions + Your Questions Answered: The year of the “mini-Musk” chief executive, the end of homework as we know it, a crackdown on TikTok and other predictions for 2023. Also, Sam Bankman-Fried’s arrest and answers to our listener questions. by Hard Fork

57 min listen

Legs Are Coming + $36 Burritos + Shocking AI News: Meta is in the fight of its life — and Mark Zuckerberg hopes VR is the answer. Hmmm. Plus, an existential threat to the gig economy and the wildest news in artificial intelligence. by Hard Fork

60 min listen

GPT-4 Is Here + The Group Chat Bank Run: 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. by Hard Fork

63 min listen

Elon's Crumbling Empire + Generative A.I. Goes to Court: Nearly three months into Elon Musk's takeover of Twitter, things are in a "shambolic" state. Is the rest of Elon’s empire also in trouble? Then, an artist fighting generative A.I. sets the stage for a legal clash. Plus: what goes wrong when A.I. becomes a reporter. by Hard Fork

61 min listen

Bluesky Has the Juice + A.I. Jobs Apocalypse + Hard Questions by Hard Fork

56 min listen

A Congressman Goes to A.I. School + How to Ban TikTok: 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? by Hard Fork

59 min listen

The Bing Who Loved Me + Elon Rewrites the Algorithm: “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. by Hard Fork

61 min listen

Bing’s Revenge + Google’s AI Faceplant by Hard Fork

55 min listen

A.I. Beach + Vibes-Based R.T.O. + the ‘Black Mirror’ Quamputer: This week, advertisers swarmed the beaches of southern France for the Cannes Lions advertising festival. Kevin says artificial intelligence is all anyone there can talk about, but admits the conference is making him rethink how quickly generative A.I. will take over the industry — despite the buzz. Then, the New York Times reporter Emma Goldberg on when remote work stopped being the future for tech companies. And finally: What does the newest season of “Black Mirror” tell us about what’s next for TV? by Hard Fork

62 min listen

Superconductor Superconfusion, KOSA’s Hidden Costs and HatGPT: Researchers in Korea claim they’ve identified a material that could unlock a technological revolution: the room temperature superconductor. Material scientists are skeptical, but enthusiasts on Twitter are enthusiastic. Why is the internet so excited about superconductors? Then, the Kids Online Safety Act is headed to the Senate floor. Would it actually keep children safe? And how would it change the internet? Plus: Kevin and Casey play HatGPT. by Hard Fork

67 min listen

BONUS: Hard Fork Live! Big Tech’s Arch Nemesis + Bot, or Not?: 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? by Hard Fork

43 min listen

Kevin Killed Sydney + Reddit’s C.E.O. Defends Section 230: 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. by Hard Fork

52 min listen

Inside the Hunt for the Discord Leaker + Twitter Chaos Updates: 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.” by Hard Fork

70 min listen

The Surgeon General’s Social Media Warning + A.I.’s Existential Risks: 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. by Hard Fork

73 min listen

Google’s A.I. Bonanza + Driverless Car Talk With Cruise C.E.O. Kyle Vogt: 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. by Hard Fork

69 min listen

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Superconductor Superconfusion, KOSA’s Hidden Costs and HatGPT

Superconductor Superconfusion, KOSA’s Hidden Costs and HatGPT

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