Author: Paris Marx

Paris Marx is joined by Aaron Benanav to discuss his vision for a multi-criterial economy and how it would alter the type of technology our society creates. It’s a plan to center human experience through democratic discourse while driving true social and technological innovation.

Aaron Benanav is an Assistant Professor at Cornell University and the author of Automation and the Future of Work.

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 Kyla Hewson.

Also mentioned in this episode:

• The two parts of Aaron’s essay on a Multi-Criterial Economy were published in the New Left Review.

• Learn more about the briefly discussed Bangladesh youth led revolution.

Paris Marx is joined by Brian Merchant to discuss whether the AI bubble is about to burst and how bosses are deploying AI tools to kill jobs and degrade work.

Brian Merchant is the author of Blood in the Machine and writes a newsletter of the same name.

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 Kyla Hewson.

Also mentioned in this episode:

• Brian has a series called AI Killed My Job with existing entries on tech workers and translators.
• Brian encourages listeners to check out the work being done by the National Writer’s Union, Translators Against the Machine, and Lucile Danilov at Loc’d and Loaded.
• You can contact Brian directly by emailing aikilledmyjob@pm.me
• A Stanford paper published this week explores the effects of AGI on employment.

Paris Marx is joined by Kate Mackenzie and Tim Sahay to discuss the geopolitics behind China’s investments in green tech and electrification, and how it presents the prospect of a new development model based on renewables instead of fossil fuels.

Kate Mackenzie is an adjunct fellow at Macquarie University. Tim Sahay is co-director of the Net Zero Industrial Policy Lab at Johns Hopkins University. They are the co-writers of the Polycrisis newsletter from Phenomenal World.

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 Kyla Hewson.

Also mentioned in this episode:

• Tim and Kate wrote about the potential role of the BRICS in future geopolitics.

• The Financial Times explored the implications of China as an electrostate.

• China leads the growing electric vehicle market, ⁠by a lot⁠.

• Pakistan imported 17 gigawatts of solar panels in 2024 alone, as Africa is in the midst of its own surge in Chinese solar panel imports.

• Trump’s policies are pushing China and India to ⁠strengthen ties⁠.

Paris Marx is doing a solo episode this week to bring together some important issues that have been on his mind lately. This is a recording of a talk Paris gave in Auckland, New Zealand on how Silicon Valley’s alliance with Donald Trump forces us to reassess the politics of the internet and challenge our collective dependence on US tech as it embraces the project of American empire.

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:

• Paris co-wrote a white paper on digital sovereignty and has written about the need to challenge US tech in response to Silicon Valley’s alliance with Trump.
• Paris also mentioned the EuroStack and British Digital Cooperative report.
• Dark Times Academy offers courses on a wide range of topics.

Support the show

Tech Won’t Save Us is turning three years old, so Paris recorded a quick update on the show and announced plans for a new Elon Musk series if the show gets 200 new Patreon supporters in April.

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. Follow the podcast (@techwontsaveus) and host Paris Marx (@parismarx) on Twitter, and support the show on Patreon.

The podcast is produced by Eric Wickham and part of the Harbinger Media Network.

Support the show

To end 2021, Paris Marx provides a quick update on the podcast and what’s coming next year.

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. Follow the podcast (@techwontsaveus) and host Paris Marx (@parismarx) on Twitter, and support the show on Patreon.

Find out more about Harbinger Media Network at harbingermedianetwork.com.

Also mentioned in this episode:

• Paris’ book Road to Nowhere: What Silicon Valley Gets Wrong about the Future of Transportation comes out in July 2022.

Support the show

Paris Marx takes a solo episode to discuss the billionaire space race. Specifically, how billionaires are selling grand futures of space travel as a PR scheme to get huge public contracts that will allow them to control the infrastructure of space.

🚨 T-shirts are now available!

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. Follow the podcast (@techwontsaveus) and host Paris Marx (@parismarx) on Twitter, and support the show on Patreon.

Find out more about Harbinger Media Network at harbingermedianetwork.com.

Also mentioned in this episode:

• Paris wrote about the billionaire space race, and it was translated into German, Italian, and Turkish.
• New Mexico’s $220-million Spaceport America that’s used by Virgin Galactic is a joke.
• SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service has been way overhyped.
• If we went to Mars, we would get cancer.
• Adam Mann had a great essay on how we should think about Mars, and whether it’s “ours.”
• Elon Musk says we can be indentured servants on Mars, and people will die.
• Paris has written about Jeff Bezos’ space colonies, and compared them to Blade Runner and The Expanse.
• Jeff Bezos stepped down as Amazon CEO to take on the role of Executive Chairman.
• Ursula K. Le Guin argues science fiction isn’t about the future, nor is it predictive.
• Amazon’s emissions rose 19% in 2020 and it’s helping Big Oil.
• Paris wrote about the real climate future billionaires are creating.

Support the show

Paris Marx is solo this week, providing an update on the podcast, the series of guests planned for May, and what’s coming next for Tech Won’t Save Us!

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. Follow the podcast (@techwontsaveus) and host Paris Marx (@parismarx) on Twitter, and support the show on Patreon.

Find out more about Harbinger Media Network at harbingermedianetwork.com.

Also mentioned in this episode:

• Paris wrote about the future of the internet, why Elon Musk is planning for climate apocalypse, the problems with Jeff Bezos’ space future, and why a socialist future won’t look like a capitalist one.
• Paris was recently on the Digital Void podcast.

Support the show