Sharp Tech with Ben Thompson (Ben Thompson)
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| Date | Titre | Durée | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Jan 2023 | A Beginner's Guide to ARM, Amazon and Buy with Prime, Apple in the 90s, Who Wants to Own WWE? | 00:08:16 | |
A question about the "Svengali of tech" spawns an overview of ARM and the roots of its business model, follow-up to this week's Amazon conversation, and the future of the WWE leads to discussion of the streaming landscape and the NFL's invincibility. | |||
| 05 Dec 2022 | A Beginner’s Guide to ChatGPT: How It Works, Why Tech Twitter is Euphoric, and What the Next Challenges Look Like | 00:57:23 | |
The Internet-wide reaction to ChatGPT 3.5, how OpenAI has evolved and how its chat technology works, the UX challenge of contextualizing answers that are usually right but sometimes demonstrably wrong, plus some quick reactions to “The Twitter Files” on Friday night. | |||
| 10 Nov 2022 | A Beginner's Guide to Spotify and Emails on Antitrust and Algorithms | 00:13:53 | |
An email about Netflix spawns an extended overview of Spotify's present and future, a closer look at Apple Music's royalties messaging, reactions to the permanent injunction block Penguin Random House's attempted acquisition of Simon and Schuster, and the two most important features we need from Twitter Blue. | |||
| 17 Nov 2022 | A Closer Look at Opendoor and Cloudflare and Responses to Your FTX Emails | 00:11:51 | |
A closer look at Opendoor in the midst of its biggest challenge yet, the state of Twilio and Cloudflare, excellent pushback on claims that crypto doesn’t have a product, and reactions to SBF’s DMs and Max Verstappen’s antics. | |||
| 04 Jun 2023 | A Few Questions Before Apple Embraces Virtual Reality, Meta Tries to Crash Headset Week, Nvidia and the Omniverse | 01:05:09 | |
Big picture questions before Apple debuts its new headset at WWDC this week, the latest twist in Meta’s ongoing foray into hardware, and two follow-up emails about Nvidia’s future. Plus: Zuck sympathy, cable bills, and why there’s no ultra premium Stratechery stock picking tier. | |||
| 20 Feb 2023 | A Viking Funeral for Sydney the Chatbot, Meta’s Verified Experiment, Algorithms and Liability as Section 230 Takes Center Stage | 01:01:05 | |
Parting thoughts and a few emails as Sydney passes into the afterlife, quick reactions to Mark Zuckerberg’s subscription announcement on Sunday, and extended thoughts on Section 230 before the Google v. Gonzalez arguments at the Supreme Court this week. At the end: Chatbot analogs for the Stratecheryverse and Badger Rushmore. | |||
| 13 Jun 2023 | An All Things Apple Mailbag: AI and the Vision Pro, Gaming Ambivalence, Immersive Memories, VR Sports Rights | 01:07:47 | |
Responding to listener questions and comments in the wake of Apple’s WWDC and the announcement of the Vision Pro, including thoughts on the absence of AI in Apple’s messaging, a headset hater’s epiphany, gaming partnerships that should (but won’t?) happen, sports possibilities, immersive memories, and some obligatory speculation on the Apple Car. | |||
| 19 Dec 2022 | Another Weekend with Musk: More Chaos, Fewer Options, and an Object Lesson in the Importance of Principles | 01:02:09 | |
Unpacking another weekend of drama and incoherence at Twitter, various lessons to be drawn from these public controversies, whether a Twitter collapse would be good for the media, and an apology to the L’Oreal corporate family (but not Renault/Alpine). | |||
| 01 Dec 2022 | Apple's Exposure in a Musk War, Alexa: Find 10 Billion Dollars, YouTube’s Rev Share Model, The Next Great Tech Movie | 00:13:54 | |
Surveying the landscape after a week of Musk tweets and rumors of a Musk-Cook summit, Amazon has a $10 billion Alexa problem, and Ben and Andrew are asked to build a successor to The Social Network. | |||
| 17 Aug 2022 | Apple's Privacy Power Play and TikTok Concerns | 01:04:17 | |
Apple’s emphasis on privacy and the competitive advantages that come with it. Then, the varied concerns surrounding TikTok’s emerging dominance in culture.
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| 20 Mar 2023 | Appropriate Fear of Microsoft, A Workplace Efficiency Counterpoint, Artifact and Substack in the Modern Era | 01:06:55 | |
What Microsoft Copilot could mean for SaaS businesses and CIOs and Google, the midrange jumper and questions about long-term office culture optimization, and a few more thoughts on regulation in the wake of the SVB collapse. At the end: Artifact and Substack and the challenge for text-based businesses as the world moves to video. | |||
| 04 Oct 2022 | Cable Temperature Check and a Bundle Experiment | 00:58:53 | |
Why it may make sense to sell Netflix, Apple TV, Paramount Plus and other streamers as one product, why cable may (or may not) be the intermediary brokering the sale, questions for the future of live sports rights. Then, an answer to listeners who have questions about the new era of Stratechery. | |||
| 04 Aug 2022 | CHIPS History and Pelosi’s Taiwan Visit | 01:00:51 | |
A brief history of semiconductors in the US and Taiwan, what the CHIPS act can and can’t fix, and why the legislation is probably a good idea regardless. Then, reactions to Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taiwan. | |||
| 10 Apr 2023 | Clown Car History Lessons, Both Sides of the Twitter-Substack Fight, Parenthood Tech Strategies | 01:03:43 | |
Parsing the latest Twitter controversy with a look back at pre-Musk decisions, the motivations driving Substack and Twitter last week, and big picture thoughts on the future of Substack. At the end: children in the age of AI proliferating, screen time dilemmas, and more. | |||
| 23 Jan 2023 | Encouraging Netflix Earnings, Continuing Questions, and How the Model Might Evolve | 01:00:52 | |
Parsing the good and bad from Q4 earnings announced by Netflix late last week, dreaming of a free, ad-supported Netflix in the future, what Reed Hastings got right as founder and CEO, plus emails on streaming cost structure, electric vehicles and Acorn computers in British classrooms. | |||
| 22 May 2023 | ESPN as Cable’s Grim Reaper, How the Cable Bundle Crumbled, What Taylor Swift Can Teach Content Companies | 00:59:08 | |
ESPN's ominous direct-to-consumer ambitions, the incentives that drove the collapse of a cable business model that was beneficial to nearly everyone, why YouTube TV might fill the power vacuum, and what companies like Netflix and Disney can learn from Taylor Swift. | |||
| 27 Mar 2023 | Evaluating AI Risk and Entering an Era of Incredible Unknowns | 01:02:49 | |
A programming note regarding the next few weeks of the podcast, a long email from a Stratechery reader about the risks of AI, and extended thoughts on the various risks and unknowns that define the AI conversation in the present moment. | |||
| 17 Apr 2023 | Generative AI and Copyright, When AI Hits the Music Business, The Social Media that Comes After Twitter | 01:03:18 | |
Copyright debates underlying text-to-image generation, the stakes for incumbents and upstarts, and what AI could mean for the music business (but not yet the movie business). Plus: A listener’s Twitter reality check yields a discussion of what might come next in a new era of social media. | |||
| 24 Oct 2022 | Good News for Netflix Believers and the Latest TikTok Reporting | 01:00:18 | |
Netflix's Q3 response to all its Q1 critics, sorting through the threats elsewhere in the streaming landscape, what to look for as Netflix makes its foray into ads. Then, responses to a new report on TikTok that was published hours after last Friday's podcast. | |||
| 24 Aug 2022 | Google-as-Government and Netflix vs. HBO Max | 01:04:16 | |
A Google enforcement strategy gone awry, the pluses and minuses of horizontal integration, and the common thread among most big tech complaints. Then, the downsides of Netflix’s binge model. | |||
| 27 Oct 2022 | Google/Facebook/Snap Earnings and Another Dimension of Automation | 00:10:50 | |
Google's core business is sound but YouTube's numbers are murkier, the bull case for Meta as the market runs the other way, and a fair and balanced look at Snap. Then, a few mailbag questions about automation, Netflix abroad, and the psychology of a Red Bull fan. | |||
| 12 Jan 2023 | GPT in 2023: A Marriage with Microsoft, The Bull and Bear Case for Google, Compute Questions and More | 01:10:15 | |
Reactions to the structure of the rumored Microsoft-OpenAI investment, challenges and opportunities for Google as AI matures, what happens to the internet (and AI) after auto-generated text floods the zone. At the end: text vs. images for the future and follow-ups on failed Microsoft investments, YouTube's NFL gamble, and Amazon's NFL ratings. | |||
| 20 Sep 2022 | Introducing Sharp Tech | 00:20:08 | |
Ben and Andrew discuss the origins of the podcast, their own backgrounds, and why they’re excited about making this show. | |||
| 21 Nov 2022 | Mailbag: A Premature Twitter Eulogy, Netflix in Theaters, Buy or Sell: Strategy Consultants, The Six People You Meet in a Group Chat | 01:16:41 | |
The night Twitter was laid to rest, TV in movie theaters and the debate over David Zaslav, whether strategy consultants are useful, and celebrating Thanksgiving with a plan to fix the NBA and a taxonomy of group chats. | |||
| 22 Sep 2022 | Mailbag: Adobe and Antitrust, Engagement Quality vs. Quantity, The Cult of Musk, Porcupine Lore | 00:11:05 | |
Adobe-Figma antitrust questions, the pluses and minuses of ignoring user complaints, how Twitter hype led to real infrastructure at Tesla, a word about porcupines. | |||
| 29 Sep 2022 | Mailbag: Apple Privacy Counterpoint, Covid and Content Moderation, Phoenix Suns Sale, Justice for Gamers | 01:00:28 | |
User agency within Apple's ATT landscape, what Covid can teach us about the risks of regulating content moderation, whether AI fears spawned by The Terminator are reasonable, interrogating Andrew's gamer logic.
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| 20 Oct 2022 | Mailbag: Chip Ban Follow Up, What About Tik Tok?, Validating AI Work Product, Coaches and GMs as CEOs | 00:12:34 | |
Taiwan's military readiness and the modal outcome for Tik Tok in the U.S., a question about immersive audio spawns Clubhouse lament, two questions about the future of AI in the knowledge economy, choosing the NBA coaches and GMs who will lead the next era in tech. | |||
| 07 Nov 2022 | Mailbag: Down the 230 Rabbit Hole, A Third Door Moderation Approach, Twitter Follow-Up, Andrew Responds to the Nicest Angry Emails Ever | 01:03:35 | |
A question about Section 230 spawns expansive thoughts from Ben, a proposal for an alternate solution to moderation, new questions on Twitter as the Mastodon takeover approaches, and responses to listeners who balked at Andrew's broad social media dismissal last week. | |||
| 31 Oct 2022 | Mailbag: How to Read an Earnings Report, TikTok's ATT Challenges, The Net Impact of Social Media, Lessons of a Young Tech Employee | 01:07:17 | |
How Ben reads an earnings report, the various challenges that might unsettle TikTok investors, an extended debate on whether Twitter and Facebook have been good for society, and Andrew is profiled by a major news outlet while Ben shares lessons from his early years.
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| 14 Oct 2022 | Mailbag: Metaverse Week Concludes, A Hater's Take on Virtual Reality, The Apple Question, Touring the Stratechery Travel Kit | 00:11:25 | |
Ben remembers why he believes in the future of VR, Andrew remembers why he's not a fan the metaverse movement, listeners wonder about possibilities at Apple and beyond, and Ben offers guidance on tech travel kit best practices.
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| 07 Oct 2022 | Mailbag: Two Musk Questions, Streaming Follow Up, Ad-Supported Businesses, Interrogating Andrew on Tech | 00:11:19 | |
Elon Musk is a land of contradictions, reframing re-bundling and TNT's NBA incentives, a variety of questions about ad-supported business models, and a podcast confirmation hearing as Andrew faces questions about his tech opinions.
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| 13 Dec 2022 | Making Advanced Microchips in Arizona and Imagining a Remote Work Future | 01:02:39 | |
Various questions after a new round of TSMC investments in the U.S., reactions to TSMC founder Morris Chang saying that “globalization is almost dead,” beginning the remote work conversation with Ben's memories of life at Automattic, and thoughts on the competing factors that make the work-from-home question so difficult. | |||
| 14 Nov 2022 | Making Sense of the FTX Catastrophe and a Reality Check on Twitter Under Musk | 01:07:36 | |
The implications of a straight-forward case of fraud, what Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX teach us about the dangers of conflation, why and how Twitter is failing under Elon Musk, and responses to emailers who have asked about Meta's ability to develop a Twitter competitor. | |||
| 06 Feb 2023 | Meta Comes Roaring Back, What the Market Missed Last Fall, The Compromises that Define the Modern Internet | 01:01:32 | |
Meta’s earnings and the market’s resounding endorsement, revisiting the misconceptions that colored the Meta story toward the end of 2022, an essay about the degrading internet and what the causes might be, plus emails on lost AirPods and a healthier alternative to cigar night. | |||
| 11 Aug 2022 | Meta’s Murky Future and the Transformed New York Times | 01:03:15 | |
The future of Facebook and Instagram in the TikTok era, Instagram's shifting priorities, and stated preference vs. revealed preference. Then, the new era of the New York Times. | |||
| 24 Apr 2023 | Netflix as a Sleeping Ad-Supported Giant, 'Max' and the Other Streamers, Whether Nvidia Shall Inherit the Earth | 01:04:16 | |
Potential implications of Netflix advertising success, checking in with the rest of the streaming landscape, and the long-term questions surrounding Nvidia and the GPU ecosystem. At the end: Two follow-ups on AI and copyright, a Silicon Valley clarification, and Bucks therapy. | |||
| 11 Oct 2022 | New Metaverse Dreams and Old Metaverse Questions | 00:57:54 | |
Reactions to Mark Zuckerberg’s keynote at Meta Connect 2022, why it makes sense for Meta to partner with Microsoft in the virtual reality space, the aspects of the VR pitch that still feel underwhelming, and whether Zuckerberg is the right person to lead this era of Facebook. | |||
| 27 Sep 2022 | Nvidia Backlash and the China Conundrum | 01:01:20 | |
Why the internet is upset after Nvidia's Ada Lovelace announcement, the perfect storm of the past 12 months, a bet on AI inside and outside of gaming. Then, the calculus for Apple and Nvidia as tensions rise between China and the U.S. | |||
| 16 Mar 2023 | (Preview) A Big Week for AI, Closed Source vs. Open Source Development, Meta in the "Year of Efficiency" | 00:11:55 | |
Several notable AI announcements this week, lessons from the LLaMa leak and the response it inspired around the world, trade-offs inherent to both sides of closed source vs. open source development question. At the end: Meta's "Year of Efficiency" and the Oscars on life support. | |||
| 30 Mar 2023 | (Preview) A Twitter Temperature Check, Reactions to that AI Open Letter, The Technical Logistics of a TikTok Ban | 00:09:38 | |
Elon Musk's two-part announcement about Twitter Blue and the "For You" tab, why subscription and advertising business models are generally incompatible, a variety of reactions to this week's open letter regarding AI safety, and the technical logistics of a TikTok ban. | |||
| 01 Jun 2023 | (Preview) An Impromptu Nvidia Symposium, A Brief History of Solaris and Sun Microsystems, The Future of AI Energy Consumption | 00:09:31 | |
Talking all things Nvidia as Wall Street catches GPU fever, parallels to Sun Microsystems and the dot com bubble, and questions about AI energy efficiency and reliance on TSMC. At the end: a streaming lover pushes back on nostalgia for cable and involuntary sports subsidies. | |||
| 02 Feb 2023 | (Preview) Cloudflare in 2023, Macro Conditions and Microsoft, Questions and Answers on the Tech Layoffs, Diving Deeper (literally) on MVNOs | 00:10:55 | |
A look at Cloudflare's strengths and weaknesses in the 2023 marketplace, why Microsoft and Amazon are well-positioned to further solidify their B2B empires over the next 12 months, and various questions and theories about the layoffs in big tech over the past three months. Plus: More info on MVNOs, a shout out to HEB in Texas, and a listener demands bundle answers. | |||
| 20 Apr 2023 | (Preview) Fair Use Follow-Up, LLMs in Litigation, Positives and Negatives for Zoom, The Ultimate Apple Mystery | 00:08:11 | |
More on the copyright questions facing innovators and regulators as generative AI matures, Microsoft Copilot and the future of LLMs in litigation, plus emails on the state of Zoom in 2023, the Apple productivity suite, and how to bring tech talent back to the Midwest. | |||
| 09 Feb 2023 | (Preview) Google vs. Bing Begins, Bear Cases for AI, Apple's Lost Hardware Opportunity, The Implications of the Bally Sports Bankruptcy | 00:09:34 | |
Reactions to the demos from Google and Bing this week, answers to an emailer looking for an AI bear case, and why Apple never went into the TV business. Plus: A trade proposal for Disney, an explainer on regional sports network bankruptcies, and fun facts about dental health and SodaStreams. | |||
| 11 May 2023 | (Preview) Google’s Lesson for Hardware Dreamers, How Facebook and Apple Can Help Each Other, A Case for Touching Parchment | 00:11:31 | |
The Reality Labs spending has echoes of a past Google mistake, past animosity vs. future opportunities for Apple and Facebook, and a few responses to last week’s leaked Google memo. Plus: One more note about Xbox and a question about handwritten notes. | |||
| 26 Jan 2023 | (Preview) How Google Conquered Ads, What the DOJ Wants to Do About It, Follow-Ups on Free Netflix, Checking in with Peloton | 00:09:42 | |
A history of Google’s path to dominance in digital advertising, 149 pages of DOJ efforts to alter that same landscape, and a few more thoughts on advertising models vs. subscription models. Plus: Peloton, scooters, a Google diary, and two prongs of the Sharp Tech path to health and prosperity. | |||
| 15 Jun 2023 | (Preview) Reddit as a Business, APIs and Interest Rates and Angry Moderators, The Athletic Rethinks Its Coverage Approach | 00:09:56 | |
Understanding the challenges facing Reddit in the modern internet environment, the various tensions underlying this week’s controversy with moderators, and the future of niche subscription offerings as The Athletic rethinks its coverage. Plus: The Vision Pro keyboard and a word about Zuck as Headset Fortnight concludes. | |||
| 16 Feb 2023 | (Preview) The Bing to Sydney Epiphany, Search as an AI Red Herring, Moving to a Cabin in an Undisclosed Location | 00:11:42 | |
Ben offers his takeaways from a full day of chatting with Sydney, Bing's new chatbot, why the focus on search utility might be missing the point, the refreshing weirdness of a chatbot that makes mistakes and has an attitude, and questions about empathy and the next frontier after nuclear technology. | |||
| 27 Apr 2023 | (Preview) The UK Blocks Microsoft-Activision, Globalized Companies and Local Regulations, Antitrust and Innovation | 00:11:03 | |
UK regulators may have scuttled the biggest merger in gaming history, the implications for globalized businesses going forward, and debates about antitrust enforcement. Plus: Two follow-ups to the Netflix conversation and a baffling tax development for software companies. | |||
| 04 May 2023 | (Preview) Venture-Backed Businesses of the Past Decade, Why Streamers Want Sports Rights, The Suns Choose Reach over RSN Fees | 00:09:50 | |
A question about profitable and public venture-backed businesses over the past 15 years, why Amazon, Google and Apple might be interested in sports rights, and a proposed broadcasting strategy in Phoenix that might be the best idea the NBA's had since in the internet. Plus: A clarification about Microsoft, and a note to Liberty Media and Formula 1. | |||
| 07 Jun 2023 | (Preview) Vision Pro at First Sight: How It Works, Why It Costs $3,500, and What It Might Mean for the Future of Computing | 00:08:07 | |
Ben’s experience with the Apple Vision Pro, the components and capabilities that make it so expensive, implications for the future of personal computing, and what it would mean to have a society full of people in headsets. | |||
| 17 May 2023 | (Preview) What Google Wants to Do with AI, The Tensions Inherent to AI Regulation, Can an Apple Headset Revive VR? | 00:12:01 | |
Google’s AI ambitions, whether large language models will be a winner-take-all space, the coming wave of AI regulation and the implications for small businesses, and more thoughts on VR as Apple prepares to enter the space. | |||
| 23 Feb 2023 | (Preview) What Spotify Learned About Podcasting, The RSN Train Wheezing Along, Does ESPN Need the NBA? | 00:11:40 | |
The challenges inherent to the Spotify business model, why an emphasis on podcast growth was a great solution that was executed poorly, and various paths to profitability that continue to be promising for the long term. At the end: Brief follow-up to the Gonzalez v. Google conversation, why RSNs are dying (but not dead yet), and market forces that may save the NBA despite itself. | |||
| 25 May 2023 | (Preview) Windows and the AI Platform Shift, OpenAI Enters the App Store, Follow-Up on Sports Streaming and Cable Hindsight | 00:11:42 | |
Microsoft’s evolution and what AI can and can’t accomplish, the ChatGPT app on iOS, and more on the logic of cable companies during the 2010s. Plus: Why leagues won’t go direct to consumer and one listener for whom the streaming is working just fine. | |||
| 09 Mar 2023 | (Preview) Xbox History and VR’s Future, The TikTok Ban, Much to Consider Before a Pivot from Big Tech | 00:08:59 | |
Microsoft history and the VR future for Nintendo and Meta, the various considerations underlying the "Ban TikTok" debate, and advice for a listener who's considering a pivot from a career in big tech. At the end: A few notes on Apple and one immutable law of the Internet. | |||
| 18 Oct 2022 | Questions, Concerns and Unknowns after the China Chip Ban | 01:00:22 | |
The narrow purpose of the latest US export controls, the broad attack the Chinese government will likely perceive, why heightened American attention to Taiwan could be dangerous, and a variety of unknowns as the world awaits the next steps. | |||
| 22 Dec 2022 | Sharp Tech Holiday Hoopla: Gift Recs and YouTube TV, Microchips and Remote Work, Could ChatGPT Run a Basketball Team? | 01:00:23 | |
Last-minute tech gifts as a prelude to a gift-guide zag, YouTube TV and the implications of this week's Sunday Ticket news, the differences between remote work for a startup and a mature business, and closing with microchips and AI saving the day in D.C. | |||
| 30 Jan 2023 | Solving Online Groceries, Explaining Those Cheap New Cell Phone Plans, Autonomous Deliveries, Tech vs. Humans in Content Development | 01:08:04 | |
Grocery delivery apps and why Wal-Mart might have the better idea, why Visible uses the Verizon network while charging half the price, and a question about the future of autonomous vehicles outside of passenger rides. At the end: whether tech could change content development in Hollywood and Ben's memories from the Ron Dayne era at Wisconsin. | |||
| 08 May 2023 | The Chip Ban Seven Months Later, China's Response, More on Intel and Tower Semiconductor | 01:06:31 | |
China's ongoing response to last fall's sweeping export controls on advanced semiconductors, the importance of Japan and the Netherlands imposing their own set of export controls, and more on Intel's antitrust struggles and how the company (or the U.S. government) might respond. Plus: A correction about water risks and a clarification about the Suns app. | |||
| 28 Nov 2022 | The Cult of Iger and the Future at Disney and ESPN | 01:01:29 | |
The legend of Bob Iger and the recent history of Bob Chapek, why Disney stock went up last week (but not by much), ESPN and Disney+ in the shadow of the $71 billion 21st Century Fox acquisition, and emails about third party play-by-play and a scientific defense of cigar clubs. | |||
| 03 Nov 2022 | The First Week of New Twitter and Apple/Netflix/Taiwan Follow-Up | 00:10:35 | |
Reactions to $8/month for Twitter Blue, the fevered conversation around Musk’s ownership, whether Twitter should take even more risks as a private company, and answers to mailbag questions about Apple, Netflix and Ben’s personal calculus in Taiwan. | |||
| 27 Feb 2023 | The Google Culture Question, A Law of Large Companies, Twitter's Algorithm Plans, Apple's Attempt at Glucose Monitoring | 01:07:38 | |
Parsing the criticisms of ex-Google employees who've put the company's culture in the spotlight, mid-2000s Microsoft as a Google analog and a window into the good and bad of dominant companies, and reactions to Elon Musk's latest comments about open sourcing Twitter's algorithm. At the end: follow-up on Spotify as a podcast aggregator and marveling at Apple's latest project. | |||
| 15 Dec 2022 | The Past/Present/Future of Tech Antitrust Arguments and More on TSMC in Arizona | 00:12:06 | |
The FTC's approach to Microsoft-Activision as a microcosm of broader questions and challenges, what Bell Labs history can tell us about future solutions, and follow-up questions related to TSMC in Arizona and America's approach to onshoring. | |||
| 13 Mar 2023 | The SVB Collapse, How the Government Responded, and the Era in Tech that Ended This Weekend | 01:12:12 | |
Revisiting the decisions that led to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and talking through the implications of the government's solution, the behavior of various tech personalities on Twitter, and why the past several days signal the end of an environment that defined Silicon Valley throughout its rise. | |||
| 13 Sep 2022 | What AI Is Today and What It Might Be Tomorrow | 00:58:54 | |
New AI image generators hint at a decentralized future, newspapers vs. the internet as an analogy for what’s next, potential implications for white collar workers, and how Steve Ballmer can help Apple. | |||
| 06 Mar 2023 | What the NBA Can Learn from Formula 1, Why ESPN May Need to Pivot Too, The EPL Outlier and Apple's MLS Experiment | 01:05:39 | |
Additional thoughts on what the NBA can (and can't) learn from Formula 1, areas for ESPN to improve in an era of abundance, the success of the English Premier League, and the calculus of Apple and MLS. Plus: Ben's fraught history with the letter A and Andrew's "production function." | |||
| 16 Jan 2023 | What's Going on at Amazon? and AI Language Barriers | 01:07:11 | |
Amazon after a rocky 12 months and on the verge of 18,000 layoffs, whether it's time for the business to mature beyond the Bezos' "Day 1" creed, plus Web3's AI outlook, the utopian view on AI's implications for linguistics, and a question about communities. | |||
| 01 May 2023 | What’s the Deal with Micropayments?, Costs and Benefits and Twitter Blue, More Thoughts on Microsoft-Activision | 01:05:54 | |
Twitter's latest idea spurs a discussion of the micropayment model, an email about Twitter Blue and Twitter subscription's for independent creators, and follow-up Microsoft thoughts on the spirit underlying antitrust laws, the EU regulatory environment, and why Microsoft can't simply partner with Activision in the cloud gaming space. | |||
| 08 Dec 2022 | When AI Moves Faster than Products, Microsoft's Evil Genius, Australian Rules for America's Ad Market, Questions on YouTube/Twitter/Spotify | 00:13:17 | |
More questions on ChatGPT and what the future of start-ups may look like, Microsoft's success and the added scrutiny that comes with acquisitions in the consumer space, a case against the Australian approach to regulation, plus questions about Alphabet and Ben's Spotify Wrapped list. | |||
| 18 Apr 2024 | 10 Years of Stratechery: Best and Worst Takes, Creating on the Internet, AI as a Threat, and Memories of Day 1 | 01:10:23 | |
Celebrating 10 years of Stratechery as a subscription business with 10 questions about analysis, creating on the Internet, what's coming with AI, and what it was like on day 1.
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| 09 May 2024 | A Disastrous (and Resonant) New iPad Commercial, The Future of Google Search, Tom Brady and the Netflix Roast | 01:08:11 | |
The iPad commercial that made the Internet angry this week, a question about Google search spawns thoughts on the various futures of Google's business, and a few observations on the Tom Brady roast as a reflection of Netflix strategy. Plus: A final word on the iPad and its utility. | |||
| 16 Jan 2025 | AI’s Uneven Arrival, TikTok’s Potential Departure, Xiaohongshu and the Delights of Cultural Exchange | 01:09:35 | |
Looking to digital advertising history for clues about AI’s impact on the economy, proposed frameworks for AGI and ASI, and why AI benefits are likely to be unevenly distributed in the near term. Then: The logic and continued uncertainty surrounding a TikTok ban in the United States, the delights of Xiaohongshu mania, and a word about TikTok and conflicting principles. | |||
| 15 Feb 2024 | A Sports Super Bundle, The Next Challenge for Digital Advertising, Zuckerberg Reviews the Apple Vision Pro | 01:06:00 | |
A look at the questions surrounding the sports streaming bundle that’s coming from Fox, Disney, and Warner Brothers Discovery, including the challenge of targeting video ads on the internet, why Disney’s bet on sports is a bet on ads, and why Andrew is bearish on the joint venture. At the end: Mark Zuckerberg on the Vision Pro, and Ben takes to Twitter to talk Vision Pro on an airplane. | |||
| 16 Nov 2023 | A Stratechery, Sharp Tech, and Sharp China Crossover on the Chip Ban, Taiwan, TikTok and More | 01:04:19 | |
After one year of Sharp Tech and Sharp China, a summit with Ben Thompson, Bill Bishop and Andrew Sharp to discuss podcasting, the chip ban, the US-China relationship and beyond. | |||
| 27 Feb 2025 | AI Promises and Chip Precariousness, Policy Recommendations and a Changing World, Concerns and Counterpoints | 01:25:55 | |
A discussion of Ben's Stratechery article AI Promises and Chip Precariousness, including basic geography and evolving geopolitical considerations informing today's Taiwan tensions, the recent history of US policy surrounding chips, considerations for US policies going forward, and various concerns with lifting the chip ban and implementing stricter controls on chipmaking equipment. | |||
| 08 Apr 2024 | Amazon and the “Just Walk Out” Parable, Mythbusting on Meta and TSMC, The XZ Backdoor and Its Implications | 01:05:36 | |
Updated thoughts on Amazon rolling back “just walk out” in grocery stores, context for a viral Meta tweet and a year of pessimism surrounding TSMC in Arizona, and Ben walks through what happened with the XZ backdoor and the changes that should come next.
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| 22 Nov 2024 | America and the Trade Status Quo, Tariffs and What May Come Next, A Chance to Build in Tech and Beyond | 01:08:40 | |
Talking through the evolution of the modern trade landscape, the implications of tariffs under a new U.S. administration, and Ben’s article on Monday, A Chance to Build. Topics include: the realities that are prompting change, China’s growth in hardware and software, TSMC and Trump, the future for Waymo, and more.
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| 10 Apr 2025 | American Disruption, Tech’s Manufacturing History in Asia, The Power of Demand in an Uncertain Future | 01:14:28 | |
Ben and Andrew return to discuss Liberation Day whiplash, Apple’s history in China and tech’s history in Asia, and the various challenges inherent to the efforts to rejuvenate America’s industrial capacity. At the end: Ben recaps a visit to a Formula 1 race in Japan. | |||
| 19 Sep 2023 | An Endgame for YouTube TV, Big Disney Decisions (And Whether Bob Iger Should Make Them), The Era Beyond Peak TV | 01:13:51 | |
How the history of Google and may predict the future for YouTube, the stakes for Disney and Bob Iger as the earth shifts underneath them, and various considerations for consumers and content makers alike as the entertainment industry prepares for a new era. At the end: missed exit opportunities, a few antitrust digressions, and one man's iPhone 15 grievance. | |||
| 24 Apr 2025 | Apple and the Ghosts of Companies Past, Privacy at the Expense of Performance, The Cook Question | 01:00:09 | |
Talking through Ben's article on Apple and the Ghosts of Companies Past, including Apple's religious commitment to privacy, untapped platform potential in AI, parallels to Intel, and why Tim Cook is probably the wrong CEO to undertake the cultural shifts today that may be required for the company to thrive tomorrow. At the end: An AppleTV+ public service announcement. | |||
| 20 Dec 2023 | Apple Gets a Patent War for Christmas, Europe's Ability to Hijack the Regulatory Process, Systemic Questions After Adobe-Figma | 01:13:20 | |
The patent dispute that has Apple ready to take Apple Watches off the market, the expanding powers of the EU regulatory regime, why the Adobe-Figma acquisition raised legitimate competition concerns, and the uncertainty for the startup ecosystem as mergers become more difficult across tech. | |||
| 12 Jun 2024 | Apple Gets Intelligence, Unpacking the Partnership with OpenAI, What WWDC Can Tell Us About AI Adoption | 01:07:26 | |
Reviewing all things WWDC in 2024, including the introduction of Apple Intelligence, why Apple's vision for mainstream AI was compelling, the Apple partnership with OpenAI, questions about Private Cloud Compute, and lots more. | |||
| 13 Mar 2025 | Apple History and Apple Psychology, How Apple Should Capitalize On Its AI Potential, Why It Probably Won't | 01:08:55 | |
Revisiting Apple's nadir in the 1990s, along with internal friction that boiled over after Steve Jobs' passing, and explaining why Apple execs should—but probably won't—respond to the Apple Intelligence embarrassment by empowering third-party developers to build great AI products that run locally on the iPhone. | |||
| 02 Nov 2023 | Biden’s Executive Order on AI, Innovation and the Steve Jobs Approach, Balancing AI Risks and Upside | 01:09:50 | |
The White House executive order on AI, the accidental lesson of all the analogies to nuclear technology, what Steve Jobs and Bill Gates can teach us about innovation, and a look at the competing systemic priorities that create AI questions without clear answers. | |||
| 12 Sep 2023 | Charter Wins and Does Disney a Favor, Charter and the Broadband Market, SMIC Gets the US Government’s Attention | 01:13:11 | |
The eleventh hour agreement between Charter and Disney, why Charter was the clear winner but Disney will benefit regardless, and what Charter’s investments say about the future of internet in America. At the end: Reactions to a breakthrough chip from Huawei and SMIC and its potential implications on US-China policy. | |||
| 22 Aug 2023 | China Turmoil and America’s Hidden Superpower, Bing vs. Google Six Months Later, Studios Disrupted Themselves to Invent Broadcast TV | 01:03:32 | |
The Wall Street Journal’s expansive look at the Chinese economy inspires an analogy for the comparative strength of America, two questions on Microsoft, and some follow-up to last week’s enthusiasm for ad-supported streaming services. At the end: Spotify has a White Noise controversy, and a rejection of calls for branding democracy. | |||
| 17 Oct 2023 | College Students and Chips, The Future of Computing (and the Limits of Physics), Formula 1 and Apple | 01:04:18 | |
An emailer recommends ignoring college students on Twitter, the strategic logic of America’s ban on the sale of advanced chips to China, and a few different questions about AI and our digital future. At the end: Apple’s rumored F1 interest and why the partnership makes sense. | |||
| 07 Sep 2023 | Disney vs. Charter and a New ESPN Reality, The Future of the Cable Business, Risks for the NBA and Other Sports | 01:11:58 | |
The ongoing Disney-Charter dispute, why the power dynamics appear to have shifted underneath ESPN’s feet, and what this dispute could mean for the future of the streaming landscape and cable operators. At the end: Why the NBA and other leagues should be careful about looking to big tech to replace big cable. | |||
| 31 Jul 2023 | Facebook Bowed to White House Pressure, The US Department of Technology, Fusion and Starlink and Swiftie Spotify | 01:03:29 | |
The Wall Street Journal's report that Facebook removed content related to Covid-19 in response to pressure from the Biden administration, both the principled and pragmatic cases for not repeating that pattern in the future, and a listener wonders whether CTO should be an official member of the Presidential cabinet. At the end: Mailbag questions on Fusion and Starlink technology, a Taylor Swift streaming service, and raising phonk awareness.
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| 06 Feb 2024 | First Impressions of the Vision Pro: What It Is, What It Might Have Been, and a Note About Guest Mode | 01:09:47 | |
Ben and Andrew share first impressions after Andrew demos a Vision Pro and Ben spends 24 hours exploring the AVP at home. Plus: Venting about Apple’s user-hostile guest mode process. | |||
| 05 Dec 2024 | Gelsinger Out at Intel, 20 Years of Structural Challenges and Strategic Blindspots, The Board and What’s Next | 01:04:24 | |
A closer look at Intel's fall from grace in the wake of CEO Pat Gelsinger's sudden retirement and with the company facing a fresh round of questions about its future. Topics include: Ben's overview of a 20-year run of paradigm shifts and strategic missteps, Gelsinger's strengths and weaknesses, CHIPS Act funds and a looming inflection point, and the murky path forward for American made chips. | |||
| 03 Jun 2024 | Generative AI and Hardware Upgrades, Google History and the Dark GPU Theory, Amazon’s Logistics Long Play | 01:10:29 | |
A question about generative AI and the hardware powering voice assistants, projecting the GPU future with the dot com bubble as context, and thoughts on Amazon’s capital expenditures and the state of AWS and Amazon Supply Chain. At the end: An Elon hater reviews the Cybertruck. | |||
| 19 Dec 2024 | Holiday Mailbag: The Next Intel, Google’s AI Revival, Modern Sportswriting, TSMC Mugs, Tutoring Takes, and Lots More | 01:40:09 | |
Ending the year with a slew of great emails from listeners, including questions about the next U.S. flagship to fail, Google's advantages in AI, an iOS 18 autopsy, the classes that Ben and Andrew would teach as professors, AI for chip production, TSMC mugs, recommendations for X usage, and the return of the TikTot segment to discuss tutoring and children. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from the whole Sharp Tech family!
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| 01 Feb 2024 | Mailbag: A Navy SEAL on the Vision Pro, Reading 10-Qs, Apple Follow Up, Netflix and Books, Unsolicited Parenting Advice | 01:03:44 | |
A new mailbag featuring a comparison between the Vision Pro and night vision goggles, Ben’s process for digesting quarterly earnings news, and some final thoughts on Apple’s approach to the App Store.
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| 13 Dec 2023 | Mailbag: Google and Antitrust Festivus, Credit Card Dominance, AI for Movies and Writing, Shohei’s Contract | 01:08:11 | |
Epic vs. Google spawns a victory lap for Ben and some obligatory arguments with Andrew, a closer look at the FinTech revolution that never quite materialized, and the AI possibilities in journalism and Hollywood. At the end: Shohei Ohtani's bizarre contract, a Christmas song correction, and a call to emailers for year-end awards categories. | |||
| 31 Oct 2024 | Meta and an Abundance of AI Opportunities, When AI Integrates Into the Feed, AI for UI and One Emailer's Dismay | 01:10:10 | |
Talking through Ben's piece on Meta and Abundance, including the past, present and future of Meta's value proposition to e-commerce advertisers, plans to incorporate AI-generated content into news feeds, and questions about augmented reality and the next phase of user interfaces. At the end: An emailer highlights potential downsides of the vision Meta is selling. | |||
| 27 Sep 2024 | Meta Previews an Augmented Reality Future, Orion and the Apple Vision Pro, A Call for More Live Keynotes | 01:00:01 | |
An episode of reactions to Meta Connect 2024. Topics include: the lively atmosphere during Mark Zuckerberg’s keynote, Ben’s experience with the Orion AR glasses, the strengths and weaknesses of Apple and Meta in the race to create a platform for the future, Llama 3.2, Snap’s Spectacles, and more. | |||
| 08 Aug 2023 | Meta’s EU Plans and Microsoft’s AI Pricing, The Barbell Effect Hits College Football, Photo Sharing in Parenthood | 01:10:09 | |
Musk vs. Zuckerberg as the undercard to another round of Meta vs. the European Union, Microsoft's pricing strategy for Copilot, and the latest universally unpopular move that makes perfect sense for college football's biggest market participants. At the end: Free speech follow-up and introducing Tik-Tot, our new parenting segment. | |||
| 20 May 2024 | Netflix Gets the NFL for Christmas, The Streaming Wars Become the Bundle Wars, Leagues and Studios and Internet Realities | 01:05:46 | |
A variety of notable Netflix developments over the past few weeks, Hollywood's continued move to a (kinda) rebundled future, and what sports leagues are learning as internet realities take hold across entertainment. At the end: Andrew finally watches "Her" and shares his review.
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| 26 Oct 2023 | Netflix Revives the Monoculture, The NBA and Its Rights Fee Future, The Bidding Calculus for Amazon and Disney | 01:16:11 | |
A Netflix letter to shareholders that doubles as a message to the rest of Hollywood, the NBA’s precarious negotiating posture as the cable bundle crumbles, and one way Amazon could make the NBA a worthwhile investment. | |||
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