Day One FM LIVE: Annie Rauwerda Takes Us Into the Depths of Wikipedia
Nov 18, 2025
Annie Rauwerda, comedian and founder of @depthsofwikipedia, takes listeners on a journey through her unique Wikipedia experiences. She delves into political attacks on the platform and how it’s become a crucial source for tech giants. Expect fascinating talk on edits about muffins and the quirky dynamics of Wikipedia’s volunteer community. Annie shares her optimism for young editors shaping the future and recounts how her 'Perpetual Stew' led to lasting friendships. Plus, a sneak peek at her upcoming book!
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
How A Viral Clash Turned Friendly
- Caroline Calloway found Annie's post and publicly called her out, which led Annie to fix Calloway's Wikipedia entry and apologize.
- The interaction ended amicably and Annie later adopted a cat previously owned by Calloway.
Wikipedia As A Shared Reality
- Wikipedia became a primary source for big tech knowledge panels and fact-checking, increasing its influence online.
- Annie Rauwerda says Wikipedia now functions as a last bastion of shared reality used by platforms and LLMs.
Wikipedia Feeds AI Models
- LLMs and bots scrape Wikipedia heavily, making traffic measurements noisy and boosting Wikipedia's downstream impact.
- Annie notes Wikidata is machine-friendly and widely used in model training despite limited direct human use.
