Decoder with Nilay Patel Vox Media Podcast Network
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- Business
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Decoder is a show from The Verge about big ideas — and other problems. Verge editor-in-chief Nilay Patel talks to a diverse cast of innovators and policymakers at the frontiers of business and technology to reveal how they’re navigating an ever-changing landscape, what keeps them up at night, and what it all means for our shared future.
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Understanding the chaos at Tesla
Today, Verge transportation editor Andy Hawkins and I are going to try and figure out Tesla. I said try — I did not say succeed. But we’re going to try. That’s because Tesla has been on a real rollercoaster these past two weeks, in terms of its stock price, its basic financials, and well, its vibes.
If you’ve been following the company, you know that that gap between what the business is and how its valued has been getting bigger and bigger for years now – and lately, with Elon Musk saying he’s going all-in on autonomy and announcing a robotaxi event in August, it seems like we’re getting closer to a make or break moment, especially as competition in the broader EV market heats up.
Links:
Tesla reaches deals in China on self-driving cars — NYT
Elon Musk goes ‘absolutely hard core’ in another round of Tesla layoffs — The Verge
Tesla’s Autopilot and Full Self-Driving linked to dozens of deaths — The Verge
Elon Musk says Tesla will reveal its robotaxi on August 8th — The Verge
A cheaper Tesla is back on the menu — The Verge
Tesla’s profits sink as the company struggles with cooling demand — The Verge
Tesla lays off ‘more than 10 percent’ of its workforce, loses top executives — The Verge
Tesla recalls all 3,878 Cybertrucks over faulty accelerator pedal — The Verge
Elon Musk says it’s “time to reorganize” Tesla — The Verge
Elon Musk lost Democrats on Tesla when he needed them most — WSJ
Credits:
Decoder is a production of The Verge, and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Today’s episode was produced by Kate Cox and Nick Statt and was edited by Callie Wright. Our supervising producer is Liam James.
The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.
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Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Källenius explains why EVs are still the future — but Apple's next-gen CarPlay isn't
A lot has changed since the last time Ola was on Decoder. Back then, he said Mercedes would have an all-EV lineup by 2030 — a promise a whole lot of car companies, including Mercedes, have now had to soften or walk back. But he doesn't see that as a setback at all, and he and Mercedes are both still committed to phasing out gas in the long run.
We also spent some time talking about what's happening both on the outside of cars — Mercedes' classic look and its EV look aren't necessarily quite in the same place — and on the inside of them, as infotainment becomes a huge point of competition and design.
Links:
How Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Källenius is refocusing for an electric future - The Verge
Mercedes-Benz opens its first 400kW EV charging station in the US - The Verge
Mercedes-Benz is the first German automaker to adopt Tesla’s EV charging connector - The Verge
Is the metaverse going to suck? A conversation with Matthew Ball - The Verge
The Mercedes G-Wagen, the ultimate off-road status symbol, goes electric - The Verge
Mercedes workers file federal charges with NLRB to stop union busting - The Alabama Political Reporter
The MBUX Hyperscreen - Mercedes-Benz USA
Transcript:
https://www.theverge.com/e/23904592
Credits:
Decoder is a production of The Verge, and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Today’s episode was produced by Kate Cox and Nick Statt and was edited by Callie Wright.
The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices -
Why the TikTok ban won't solve the US's online privacy problems
Today, we’re talking about the brand-new TikTok ban — and how years of Congressional inaction on a federal privacy law helped lead us to this moment of apparent national panic about algorithmic social media.
This is a thorny discussion, and to help break it all down, I invited Verge senior policy reporter Lauren Feiner on the show. Lauren has been closely covering efforts to ban TikTok for years now, and she’s also watched Congress fail to pass meaningful privacy regulation for even longer. We’ll go over how we got here, what this means for both TikTok and efforts to pass new privacy legislation, and what might happen next.
Links:
Biden signs TikTok ‘ban’ bill into law — The Verge
TikTok ban: all the news on attempts to ban the video platform — The Verge
Anyone want to buy TikTok? — Vergecast
Congress takes on TikTok, privacy, and AI — Vergecast
Tiktok vows to fight 'unconstitutional' US ban — BBC
‘Thunder Run’: Behind lawmakers’ secretive push to pass the TikTok bill — NYT
On TikTok, resignation and frustration after potential ban of app — NYT
Lawmakers unveil new bipartisan digital privacy bill after years of impasse — The Verge
A real privacy law? House lawmakers are optimistic this time — The Verge
Congress is trying to stop discriminatory algorithms again — The Verge
Credits:
Decoder is a production of The Verge, and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Today’s episode was produced by Kate Cox and Nick Statt and was edited by Callie Wright. Our supervising producer is Liam James.
The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices -
Discord CEO Jason Citron makes the case for a smaller, more private internet
Today, I’m talking to Jason Citron, the co-founder and CEO of Discord, the gaming-focused voice and chat app. You might think Discord is just something Slack for gamers, but over time, it has become much more important than that. For a growing mix of mostly young, very online users steeped in gaming culture, fandom, and other niche communities, Discord is fast becoming the hub to their entire online lives. A lot of what we think of as internet culture is happening on Discord.
In many ways Discord represents a significant shift away from what we now consider traditional social platforms. As you’ll hear Jason describe it, Discord is a place where you talk and hangout with your friends over shared common interests, whether that’s video games, the AI bot Midjourney, or maybe your favorite anime series. It is a very different kind of interface for the internet, but that comes with serious challenges, especially around child safety and moderation.
Links:
Discord opens up to games and apps embedded in its chat app — The Verge
Discord is nuking Nintendo Switch emulator devs and their entire servers — The Verge
Inside Discord’s reform movement for banned users — The Verge
Discord ends deal talks with Microsoft — WSJ
Discord cuts 17% of workers in latest tech layoffs — NYT
Discord to start showing ads for gamers to boost revenue — WSJ
Discord says it intentionally does not encrypt user messages — CNN
How Discord became a social hub for young people — NYT
‘Problematic pockets’: How Discord became a home for extremists — WashPo
Discord CEO Jason Citron on AI, Midjourney — Bloomberg
Transcript: https://www.theverge.com/e/23898955
Credits:
Decoder is a production of The Verge, and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Today’s episode was produced by Nick Statt and was edited by Callie Wright. Our supervising producer is Liam James.
The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices -
Disney just fought off a shareholder revolt — but the clock’s still ticking
Today, we're talking about Disney, the massive activist investor revolt it just fought off, and what happens next in the world of streaming. Because what happens to Disney really tells us a lot about what's happening in the entire world of entertainment. Earlier this month, Disney survived an attempted board takeover from businessman Nelson Peltz. While investors ultimately sided with Disney and CEO Bob Iger, the boardroom showdown made something very clear: Disney needs to figure out streaming and get its creative direction back on track.
To help me figure all this out, I brought on my friend Julia Alexander, who is VP of Strategy at Parrot Analytics, a Puck News contributor, and most importantly, a former Verge reporter. She's a leading expert on all things Disney, and I always learn something important about the state of the entertainment business when I talk to her.
Links:
The Story of Disney+ — Puck News
Disney’s CEO drama explained, with Julia Alexander — Decoder
Is streaming just becoming cable again? Julia Alexander thinks so — Decoder
Disney Fends Off Activist Investor for Second Time in 2 Years — NYT
For Disney, streaming losses and TV’s decline are a one-two punch — NYT
Disney’s ABC, ESPN weakness adds pressure to make streaming profitable — WSJ
Disney reportedly wants to bring always-on channels to Disney Plus — The Verge
The Disney Plus-Hulu merger is way more than a streaming bundle — The Verge
Disney’s laying off 7,000 as streaming boom comes to an end — The Verge
The last few years really scared Disney — Screen Rant
Credits:
Decoder is a production of The Verge, and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Today’s episode was produced by Nick Statt and was edited by Callie Wright. Our supervising producer is Liam James.
The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices -
Dropbox CEO Drew Houston wants you to embrace AI and remote work
At the absolute most basic, Dropbox is cloud storage for your stuff — but that puts it at the nexus of a huge number of today’s biggest challenges in tech. As the company that helps you organize your stuff in the cloud itself goes all remote, how do we even deal with the concept of “your stuff?”
Today I’m talking with Dropbox CEO Drew Houston about those big picture ideas — and why he thinks generative AI really will be transformative for everyone eventually, even if it isn’t yet now.
Links:
Dropbox AI and Dash make it easier to find your files from all over the web | The Verge
Kids who grew up with search engines could change STEM forever | The Verge
No, Dropbox's cafeteria didn't get a Michelin star | VentureBeat
It's official: San Francisco's office vacancy rate just set a record | San Francisco Examiner
Jeff Bezos: This is the 'smartest thing we ever did' at Amazon | CNBC
Dropbox is laying off 500 people and pivoting to AI | The Verge
Congress bans staff use of Microsoft's AI Copilot | Axios
Transcript: https://www.theverge.com/e/23892647
Credits:
Decoder is a production of The Verge, and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Today’s episode was produced by Kate Cox and Nick Statt and was edited by Callie Wright.
The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Customer Reviews
Sometimes hit or miss…
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A great listen.
A lively and informing podcast, full of insight.