I’ve been listening to The Vergecast all the way back to the Paul-and-Dieter days (the good old days), and the current state of the show has both highs and lows.
Nilay is perhaps the smartest and most insightful tech journalist today. He has genuinely interesting things to say about tech and policy, and he is the reason that The Vergecast is a popular show.
However, there are a few things that make the podcast hard to listen to.
First, Nilay, slow down when you’re talking. Sometimes it sounds as if you’re mumbling through sentences so fast I can barely hear what you’re saying.
Second, while tech policy is important and can be interesting, it feels as though the show is built entirely around discussing policy, with the actual technology and products receiving only a small amount of time for discussion. Please balance this out much more.
Third, I understand, Nilay, that you’ve been in this business a long time covering big tech. It’s understandable that you’re cynical about them and their antics. However, that cynicism permeates the entire podcast, and genuine interest in technology and products is almost entirely glossed over. It takes the joy out of it. More balance here too, please.
Fourth, David is a nice guy, but he seems to be overly deferential to your opinions if you challenge him, and he continually makes sweeping, overly declarative statements about almost everything. His big, bold statements quickly fall apart; I’ve even heard you disagree with them often.
Fifth (this is a small personal disagreement of mine): yes, AI has its issues. It has a hallucination problem, clearly. But in my opinion you are far too dismissive of the value that LLMs are currently providing to a lot of people. The products are cool. By all means, point out their flaws and raise the issues that come with them, such as economic displacement, but you write them off so quickly that it comes across as naïveté.
Sixth, Dieter was a perfect counterbalance to your strong opinions and self-assurance. Dieter also had strong opinions and was confident enough to push back on things he disagreed with. I just ask that you please not be so sure of yourself all the time during the podcast.
Seventh, the theme music for the show is atrocious. I get what you’re going for—it’s creative—but abandoning the old theme music is a tragedy; it was so good. Also, The Verge logo is not as good as the old one, either. The same goes for the podcast cover art. I get that it’s full of great inside jokes and Vergecast history (Ship of Theseus, etc.), but there was something so iconic and “right” about the old logo, old music, and old look of the website.
This review is not meant to be negative; it’s honest feedback from a fan.
Sincerely,
A longtime listener
