This Machine Kills

This Machine Kills

A podcast about technology and political economy /// Agitprop against innovation and capital /// Hosted by Jathan Sadowski and Edward Ongweso Jr., Produced by Jereme Brown /// Hello friends and enemies Listen anywhere that fine podcasts are distributed. Subscribe at patreon.com/thismachinekills to get premium episodes every week.

  1. Patreon Preview – 424. Me and My AI

    ٢٣ سبتمبر

    Patreon Preview – 424. Me and My AI

    We chat about the growing genre of personal literary essays about AI where the literati at places like the New Yorker pen long essays laying out their thoughts, worries, and ultimate embrace of AI. But as with most personal essays, we end up learning more about the foibles and anxieties of the authors than anything material about the thing they are writing about. Big shout out to the excellent piece in N+1 we discuss in this episode, which turns the sights of literary criticism on this genre of “AI-and-I” essays. ••• What’s Up With Peter Thiel’s Obsession With the Antichrist? https://newrepublic.com/article/200471/peter-thiel-obsession-antichrist-religion ••• Large Language Muddle https://www.nplusonemag.com/issue-51/the-intellectual-situation/large-language-muddle/#rf3-55362 ••• Two Days Talking to People Looking for Jobs at ICE https://www.nplusonemag.com/issue-51/politics/yanis-two-days-talking-to-people-looking-for-jobs-at-ice-2/ Standing Plugs: ••• Order Jathan’s new book: https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520398078/the-mechanic-and-the-luddite ••• Subscribe to Ed’s substack: https://substack.com/@thetechbubble ••• Subscribe to TMK on patreon for premium episodes: https://www.patreon.com/thismachinekills Hosted by Jathan Sadowski (bsky.app/profile/jathansadowski.com) and Edward Ongweso Jr. (www.x.com/bigblackjacobin). Production / Music by Jereme Brown (bsky.app/profile/jebr.bsky.social)

    ٨ من الدقائق
  2. 423. Violence, Fast and Slow

    ١٧ سبتمبر

    423. Violence, Fast and Slow

    We discuss the assassination of Charlie Kirk and its potential role as a catalyst of further violence and blowback by right-wing forces who want to avenge a martyr, by left-wing groups who want to kick off years of lead, or perhaps as simply another immense yet ephemeral moment in a strange world where “our whole life is surrounded by an immense accumulation of spectacles.” Then we segue expertly to talking about a new essay on “the weaponized world economy,” which adds great detail and depth to our analysis of the geoeconomic dynamics and conflicts that drive global politics, markets, finance and technology. ••• What We Know About the Hyundai-LG Plant Immigration Raid in Georgia https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/07/us/politics/hyundai-plant-immigration-raid-georgia.html ••• The Weaponized World Economy https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/weaponized-world-economy-farrell-newman ••• BRICS in 2025 https://www.phenomenalworld.org/analysis/brics-in-2025/ Standing Plugs: ••• Order Jathan’s new book: https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520398078/the-mechanic-and-the-luddite ••• Subscribe to Ed’s substack: https://substack.com/@thetechbubble ••• Subscribe to TMK on patreon for premium episodes: https://www.patreon.com/thismachinekills Hosted by Jathan Sadowski (bsky.app/profile/jathansadowski.com) and Edward Ongweso Jr. (www.x.com/bigblackjacobin). Production / Music by Jereme Brown (bsky.app/profile/jebr.bsky.social)

    ١ س ٢٠ د
  3. 421. To AGI, or Not to AGI, That is the Question

    ٣ سبتمبر

    421. To AGI, or Not to AGI, That is the Question

    With the announcement of a new $100 million Super PAC for pro-AI political influence, lines are being drawn between different styles of AI boosterism in Silicon Valley. There are those who worship at the altar of AGI and believe any other position is an intolerable impediment to innovation. There are those who want the tech sector to focus on using existing AI systems for everyday economic applications. And there are those who see AI as a techno-realpolitik power struggle over who is gonna kick whose ass: America or China? And then there’s Eric Schmidt, who holds all three positions — and writes op-eds touting each one — at the same exact time. ••• Silicon Valley Launches Pro-AI PACs to Defend Industry in Midterm Elections https://www.wsj.com/politics/silicon-valley-launches-pro-ai-pacs-to-defend-industry-in-midterm-elections-287905b3 ••• Silicon Valley Is Drifting Out of Touch With the Rest of America https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/19/opinion/artificial-general-intelligence-superintelligence.html ••• AI Could Usher In a New Renaissance https://www.wsj.com/opinion/agi-could-usher-in-a-new-renaissance-physics-math-econ-advancement-ed71a02a Standing Plugs: ••• Order Jathan’s new book: https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520398078/the-mechanic-and-the-luddite ••• Subscribe to Ed’s substack: https://substack.com/@thetechbubble ••• Subscribe to TMK on patreon for premium episodes: https://www.patreon.com/thismachinekills Hosted by Jathan Sadowski (bsky.app/profile/jathansadowski.com) and Edward Ongweso Jr. (www.x.com/bigblackjacobin). Production / Music by Jereme Brown (bsky.app/profile/jebr.bsky.social)

    ١ س ٢٣ د
  4. 419. The Launch of a Stillborn God

    ٢٠ أغسطس

    419. The Launch of a Stillborn God

    We chat about the disappointing launch and critical reception of GPT-5 and what this massive claims-reality gap tells us about how an overactive industry, propelled by grand social forces of capital accumulation, are ultimately producing “normal” or “mid” technologies. Plus, we get into the productivity paradox that plagues AI. ••• Does AI really boost productivity at work? Research shows gains don’t come cheap or easy https://theconversation.com/does-ai-really-boost-productivity-at-work-research-shows-gains-dont-come-cheap-or-easy-263127 ••• Does AI actually boost productivity? The evidence is murky https://theconversation.com/does-ai-actually-boost-productivity-the-evidence-is-murky-260690 ••• GPT-5 is a joke. Will it matter? https://www.bloodinthemachine.com/p/gpt-5-is-a-joke-will-it-matter ••• GPT-5 Should Be Ashamed of Itself https://www.realtimetechpocalypse.com/p/gpt-5-is-by-far-the-best-ai-system ••• A.I. as normal technology (derogatory) https://maxread.substack.com/p/ai-as-normal-technology-derogatory ••• What If A.I. Doesn’t Get Much Better Than This? https://www.newyorker.com/culture/open-questions/what-if-ai-doesnt-get-much-better-than-this ••• The Tech Fantasy That Powers A.I. Is Running on Fumes https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/29/opinion/ai-tech-innovation.html ••• How AI, Healthcare, and Labubu Became the American Economy https://kyla.substack.com/p/how-ai-healthcare-and-labubu-became Standing Plugs: ••• Order Jathan’s new book: https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520398078/the-mechanic-and-the-luddite ••• Subscribe to Ed’s substack: https://substack.com/@thetechbubble ••• Subscribe to TMK on patreon for premium episodes: https://www.patreon.com/thismachinekills Hosted by Jathan Sadowski (bsky.app/profile/jathansadowski.com) and Edward Ongweso Jr. (www.x.com/bigblackjacobin). Production / Music by Jereme Brown (bsky.app/profile/jebr.bsky.social)

    ١ س ١٨ د
  5. Patreon Preview – 418. The Trump Pump

    ١٥ أغسطس

    Patreon Preview – 418. The Trump Pump

    [Apologies for the tardiness, Jereme is moving house, that shit takes a lot of time and work, so it delayed production.] We first chat about how Trump’s Transportation Department will be “unleashing American drone dominance,” then we get into the thick morass of the Trump family’s ongoing entanglements with the crypto industry—and how both sides of this partnership are deeply, financially dependent on each other. ••• US proposes new drone rules that could lead to Starbucks, Amazon deliveries https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-proposes-new-drone-rules-that-could-lead-starbucks-amazon-deliveries-2025-08-05/ ••• Southwest Airlines jet dives as a fighter jet crosses its path near Los Angeles https://edition.cnn.com/2025/07/25/us/southwest-fighter-jet-close-call ••• Trump’s Finances Were Shaky. Then He Began to Capitalize on His Comeback. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/02/us/trump-finances-crypto.html ••• The ‘Trump Pump’: How Crypto Lobbying Won Over a President https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/09/us/politics/trump-crypto-lobbying.html ••• Does Trump’s Biggest Crypto Backer Really Exist? https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/trump-crypto-world-liberty-financial-aqua-1-foundation/ Standing Plugs: ••• Order Jathan’s new book: https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520398078/the-mechanic-and-the-luddite ••• Subscribe to Ed’s substack: https://substack.com/@thetechbubble ••• Subscribe to TMK on patreon for premium episodes: https://www.patreon.com/thismachinekills Hosted by Jathan Sadowski (bsky.app/profile/jathansadowski.com) and Edward Ongweso Jr. (www.x.com/bigblackjacobin). Production / Music by Jereme Brown (bsky.app/profile/jebr.bsky.social)

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A podcast about technology and political economy /// Agitprop against innovation and capital /// Hosted by Jathan Sadowski and Edward Ongweso Jr., Produced by Jereme Brown /// Hello friends and enemies Listen anywhere that fine podcasts are distributed. Subscribe at patreon.com/thismachinekills to get premium episodes every week.

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