In this episode, Erik is joined by Byrne Hobart, author of tech and finance newsletter The Diff, to discuss Sam Altman's ousting from OpenAI, Microsoft's role in the story, and the new competitive landscape for AI companies. Make informed decision for high impact donations with GiveWell, which is offering Upstream listeners donation matching up to $100. To claim your match, go to www.givewell.org ➡️ pick “Podcast” enter "Upstream with Erik Torenberg" at checkout.
--
RELATED PODCAST
Every week investor and writer of the popular newsletter The Diff, Byrne Hobart, and co-host Erik Torenberg discuss today’s major inflection points in technology, business, and markets – and help listeners build a diversified portfolio of trends and ideas for the future. Subscribe to “The Riff” with Byrne Hobart and Erik Torenberg: https://link.chtbl.com/theriff.
--
SPONSORS:
Shopify: https://shopify.com/torenberg for a $1/month trial period
Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. Shopify powers 10% of all ecommerce in the US. And Shopify's the global force behind Allbirds, Rothy's, and Brooklinen, and 1,000,000s of other entrepreneurs across 175 countries. From their all-in-one ecommerce platform, to their in-person POS system – wherever and whatever you're selling, Shopify's got you covered. With free Shopify Magic, sell more with less effort by whipping up captivating content that converts – from blog posts to product descriptions using AI. Sign up for $1/month trial period: https://shopify.com/torenberg.
GiveWell: https://www.givewell.org/
Have you ever wondered where your donation could have the most impact? GiveWell has now spent over 15 years researching charitable organizations and only directs funding to the HIGHEST-IMPACT opportunities they’ve found in global health and poverty alleviation. Make informed decisions about high-impact giving. If you’ve never donated through GiveWell before, you can have your donation matched up to $100 before the end of the year, or as long as matching funds last. To claim your match, go to https://www.givewell.org/ and pick “Podcast” and enter "Upstream with Erik Torenberg" at checkout.
Oracle: https://oracle.com/upstream
With the onset of AI, it’s time to upgrade to the next generation of the cloud: Oracle Cloud Infrastructure. OCI is a single platform for your infrastructure, database, application development, and AI needs. Train ML models on the cloud’s highest performing NVIDIA GPU clusters.
Do more and spend less like Uber, 8x8, and Databricks Mosaic, take a FREE test drive of OCI at www.oracle.com/upstream
--
X / TWITTER:
@ByrneHobart (Byrne)
@eriktorenberg (Erik)
@upstream__pod
@turpentinemedia
--
TIMESTAMPS:
(00:00) Episode Preview
(01:00) Non-obvious thoughts about governance and legal structures
(03:45) Could the board have found out something about Sam?
(04:40) Tech’s online coordination and choosing sides
(06:25) Why haven’t the OpenAI board shared their reasoning?
(12:20) Are they going to bring Sam back?
(15:10) What should OpenAI’s pivot be?
(17:30) Sponsor: Shopify | Givewell
(20:30) Analyzing Microsoft's moves and the sweetheart deal
(23:50) Satya's succession plans
(27:15) OpenAI's unique governance structure
(30:00) Sponsor: Oracle
(32:15) Why Byrne is long Microsoft
(40:10) What explains Microsoft's turnaround?
(42:15) Meta and Google
(48:10) Which of these companies Byrne would short: Apple, Amazon, Google, Facebook, Microsoft
(50:20) Was this a coup from the Effective Altruism movement?
--
Upstream is a production from Turpentine
Producer: Sam Kaufman
Editor: Michelle Bessellieu
For guest or sponsorship inquiries please contact Sam@turpentine.co