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Apple Takes A Sideways Step On AI (PREVIEW) Mar 28, 2024

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This is a free preview of a premium episode. To subscribe to Down Round Premium and get access, head here.

This week, we're back on Apple. There are two big reasons: one, they're being sued by the United States on antitrust grounds. And secondly, multiple news reports suggest they are looking for a partner in the generative AI space – which might be Google, or Anthropic, or any number of others.

We dig into these two stories, and what they say about the current state of tech – and why AI might be at a low point of the hype cycle.

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Neuralink: No monkeys were harmed in the production of this episode Mar 26, 2024

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Last week, it was reported that Elon Musk's Neuralink had successfully allowed a patient to play chess with his mind. It represents a small – and maybe a tad overhyped – step towards the company's goal for a full brain computer interface.

In this ep, we discuss Neuralink, brain-computer interfaces, and exactly what Musk and others in the space are trying to achieve. Also, the big question: who is the market?

Links

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Dropbox: What's going on up there? (PREVIEW) Mar 21, 2024

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This is a free preview of a premium episode. To subscribe to Down Round Premium and get access, head here.

Dropbox. There's a name you probably haven't thought about in a while. Once among the hottest startups on Earth, it lost some of its lustre once every major company in the world began offering consumer and enterprise cloud storage. But it's still alive, kicking and profitable – and making a pivot to AI.

In this ep, we talk about Dropbox and the other cloud storage businesses of the 2000s and 2010s, and why they're between a rock and a hard place.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

BYD: How hard can a battery and four wheels be? Mar 19, 2024

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This week we're looking at BYD, the Chinese battery maker turned electric vehicle behemoth, which is now the world's biggest EV maker. Following on from our premium episode about the Apple Car a couple of weeks ago, we talk about the current state of the EV market, how BYD found success, and why the world is still relatively slow on the uptake of electric cars.

Always remember: build your dreams, folks.

Links

Tesla overtaken by China’s BYD as world’s biggest EV maker – FT

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TikTok Ban Watch 2024 Mar 12, 2024

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Well folks, it's happening again. The US is threatening to ban TikTok. A bill is currently worming its way through Congress which would ban the app unless it fully divested itself from ByteDance, its Chinese parent company. This led TikTok to engage battle stations, and launch probably the stupidest PR campaign in recent history.

In this episode, we talk TikTok, make predictions about a ban, and pontificate on its effect on politics and culture.

Links

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Why Apple Scrapped Its Car (PREVIEW) Mar 07, 2024

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This is a free preview of a premium episode. To subscribe to Down Round Premium and get access, head here.

The fabled Apple car – also known as Project Titan – is no more. After working on it for the last 10 years and blowing $10 billion, the company internally announced that it would scrap the project and reassign many of its staff to generative AI.

In this ep, we talk about the Apple car project: why it was originally imagined, what it sought to do, and why it ultimately didn't work out.

Links

How Apple Sank About $1 Billion a Year Into a Car It Never Built – Bloomberg

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The AI Girlfriend Experience (feat. Tom Cashman) Mar 05, 2024

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One less discussed angle of the rise of AI and widely available LLMs is the relationship dimension. From ChatGPT's personalisation features to AI chatbots on Meta platforms, through to porn and sexbots, many people are using AI for companionship. It's big business too, with The Information reporting that pornbot providers are one category of AI company which are growing without the need for external investment.

To unpack the weird world of AI companionship, some of the rising companies in the space, and what it means for society, we're joined by comedian Tom Cashman. (You can watch his brand new special here.)

Links

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Nvidia Earnings Blowout (PREVIEW) Mar 01, 2024

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This is a free preview of a premium episode. To subscribe to Down Round Premium and get access, head here.

Nvidia, the graphics card company turned into AI chip powerhouse, posted its earnings at the end of last week. Surprising no one, they were huge – propelling the company even higher up the charts of the most valuable companies on Earth.

In this ep, we unpack the earnings and what they mean, as well as talking about Nvidia's future, and even incompetently attempting to put forward a bear case.

Links

Nvidia posts revenue up 265% on booming AI business – CNBC

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Unpacking the Reddit IPO Feb 27, 2024

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Reddit is going public. After a false start a couple of years ago, the online message board is undergoing the IPO process, setting markets up for the biggest social media IPO since Pinterest in 2019.

The company has filed its S1, which for the first time lets the world peek into Reddit's books, also revealing what it thinks are its biggest risks and opportunities. Join us as we pick through the document for revealing nuggets.

Links

Reddit S-1

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The Great Xbox Surrender (PREVIEW) Feb 23, 2024

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This is a free preview of a premium episode. To subscribe to Down Round Premium and get access, head here.

The gaming world was ablaze over the past few weeks over reports that Xbox was throwing in the towel and letting some of its biggest exclusive titles go to its eternal rival, the PlayStation. It riled up the Xbox ultras and raised questions about how committed Microsoft is to console gaming – despite its monster $75B acqusition of Activision-Blizzard.

It ended up being a little less dramatic than anticipated. But it still raises questions about Microsoft's strategy in gaming, and how the world's biggest company is approaching the rapidly growing -- and increasingly unstable -- gaming market.

Links

Microsoft is slowly building to a future where ‘every screen is an Xbox - The Verge
Microsoft: four Xbox-exclusive games are coming to PS5 and Nintendo Switch – The Verge
Sony’s value reportedly dropped by $10 billion following ‘disappointing’ PlayStation financials

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