Tech Won't Save Us - AI Hype Enters Its Geopolitics Era w/ Timnit Gebru

Paris Marx is joined by Timnit Gebru to discuss where the AI industry stands in 2025 as AI increasingly becomes a geopolitical football even as the big promises made by AI companies fail to materialize.

Timnit Gebru is the founder and executive director of the Distributed AI Research Institute.

Tech Won’t Save Us offers a critical perspective on tech, its worldview, and wider society with the goal of inspiring people to demand better tech and a better world. Support the show on Patreon.

The podcast is made in partnership with The Nation. Production is by Eric Wickham.

Also mentioned in this episode:

  • Timnit wrote about the TESCREAL bundle of ideologies with Émile Torres.
  • The Data Workers’ Inquiry allowed data workers to share their experiences in their workplaces.

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What Next | Daily News and Analysis - Could DOGE Really Gut Social Security?

DOGE cuts have already hit Social Security, with offices closing and employees fired. With Elon Musk calling the program a “Ponzi scheme” and saying entitlements are “the big one to eliminate,” this may be just the beginning of the unraveling of the trusted safety net that millions of Americans rely on. 


Guest: Joe Perticone, political reporter at The Bulwark.


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Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, Ethan Oberman, and Rob Gunther.

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The Stack Overflow Podcast - Junky data is like an out-of-tune guitar—it prevents AI harmony

Welcome to Leaders of Code, a new business segment of the Stack Overflow podcast. On this show, we chat with business, tech, and engineering leaders from forward-thinking companies across industries about their business strategies, the challenges and opportunities of building high-performing teams, driving innovation, leveraging the power of AI, and other key topics. Tune in every second Thursday for real-world success stories, actionable strategies, and fresh perspectives to help you navigate your leadership and growth journey.

In our very first episode, Stack Overflow CEO Prashanth Chandrasekar talks to Don Woodlock, Head of Global Healthcare Solutions at InterSystems, about the challenges in their AI journey and the critical role of a robust data strategy in any successful AI initiative.

They also:

  • Discuss the importance of maintaining a human-centric approach when automating processes with GenAI, emphasizing trust-building as a top priority.
  • Dive deep into specific use cases and real-world successes and obstacles in AI implementation, from data scalability to system integration.
  • Share their perspectives on common misconceptions about AI in today’s landscape.


Episode notes:

Risky Business with Nate Silver and Maria Konnikova - China’s Best Moves, and How to React to a Dealer’s Mistake

Last week, Nate and Maria talked about the game theory of American diplomacy right now. This week, they look at it from the perspective of America’s biggest rival: China. How should China respond as the US turns away from the global stage? What new opportunities do they have?

Plus, both hosts weigh in on the poker controversy surrounding a recent big win… that was actually a loss.

For more from Nate and Maria, subscribe to their newsletters:

The Leap from Maria Konnikova

Silver Bulletin from Nate Silver 

Get ad-free episodes, and get your questions answered in an exclusive weekly bonus episode, of Risky Business by subscribing to Pushkin+ on Apple Podcasts or Pushkin.fm. Pushkin+ subscribers can access ad-free episodes, full audiobooks, exclusive binges, and bonus content for all Pushkin shows. 

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It Could Happen Here - Nate Silver: The Smoothest Brain On The Internet

Robert, James, and Gare discuss Nate Silver’s theory that tweets are proof that Elon Musk is a ‘spiky’ genius.

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CBS News Roundup - 03/12/2025 | World News Roundup Late Edition

President Trump slaps reciprocal tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. EU promises countermeasures. Senate Democratic leader says votes aren't there to pass a bill to avoid partial government shutdown on Friday. Lawyers for Palestinian activist the government wants deported appeared in court. CBS News Correspondent Jennifer Keiper with tonight's World News Roundup.

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Slate Books - Supercommunicators | 3. How to Have the Hardest Conversations

The final installment of our series explores the conversations that most of us dread, like frank discussions of our differences or a negative performance review at work. We often anticipate that these chats will go badly—and end in hurt feelings or embarrassment—but there are proven ways to make them easier to navigate.


Host Charles Duhigg talks with psychologist Jay Van Bavel about strategies for having the hardest conversations. And: Vernā Myers, Netflix’s former vice president for inclusion strategy, tells the story of what happened inside the company after an executive was fired for using a racial slur. 


This Slate miniseries dives into the art and science of meaningful conversations, inspired by Duhigg’s bestselling book, Supercommunicators. The guides we mention in this episode can be found at charlesduhigg.com/tools/


Supercommunicators was produced by Sophie Summergrad and Derek John, who also did the sound design. Our technical director is Merritt Jacob and our supervising producer is Joel Meyer.

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Planet Money - The last time we shrank the federal workforce

If you cut every single federal job President Donald Trump wants to cut, how much money would that save?

A president has tried to massively shrink the size of the federal government before. It was in the 90s, under a Democrat.

Today on the show: Where they found waste the last time we really looked. (Hint: it wasn't jobs.) And why the pace of firings under Trump might start to slow down.

For more:
- Lessons for the Future of Government Reform
- Is government too big? Reflections on the size and composition of today's federal government
- Creating a Government That Works Better and Costs Less

This episode of Planet Money was produced by Willa Rubin. It was edited by Jess Jiang and engineered by Jimmy Keeley. We had fact-checking help from Sierra Juarez. Alex Goldmark is our executive producer. Special thanks to Ben Zipperer.

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