AI Was Never About Helping You | Cory Doctorow

Cory Doctorow has a refrain: “The most important thing about a gadget isn’t what it does; it’s who it does it for and what it does it to.” In this episode of “Galaxy Brain,” he sits down with Charlie Warzel to talk about the AI boom, making the case that the hype, vision, and dreams of endless growth are unsustainable. Doctorow expands on his viral “enshittification” thesis: a critique of AI based around power and whether we are using AI tools or being used by them. This episode of "Galaxy Brain" was produced by Renee Klahr and engineered by Miguel Carrascal. Our theme is by Rob Smierciak. Hadley Robinson is our senior supervising producer. Claudine Ebeid is the executive producer of Atlantic audio, and Andrea Valdez is our managing editor. Subscribe to the “Galaxy Brain” newsletter: https://www.theatlantic.com/newslette... Subscribe to the “Galaxy Brain” podcast on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Subscribe to the “Galaxy Brain” podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/542WHgd... Follow The Atlantic on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theatlantic... Get more from your favorite Atlantic voices when you subscribe. You’ll enjoy unlimited access to Pulitzer-winning journalism, from clear-eyed analysis and insight on breaking news to fascinating explorations of our world. Atlantic subscribers also get access to exclusive subscriber audio in Apple Podcasts. Subscribe today at https://accounts.theatlantic.com/prod... 00:00 Intro 03:21 Interview with Cory Doctorow 06:03 What Is a Reverse Centaur? 09:21 Why the AI Bubble Is Bigger 13:49 Boss Psychology and Power 18:10 Is AI Actually Profitable? 22:14 Air Canada and the AI Accountability Sink 29:29 Puncturing the AI Bubble 35:46 Material Limits to AI Hype 39:54 AI, Oligarchy, and Democracy 43:20 Closing Thoughts and Credits