

Sharp Tech with Ben Thompson
Andrew Sharp and Ben Thompson
A podcast about understanding how tech works and the way it is changing the world. Hosted by Andrew Sharp with Ben Thompson.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Feb 9, 2023 • 10min
(Preview) Google vs. Bing Begins, Bear Cases for AI, Apple's Lost Hardware Opportunity, The Implications of the Bally Sports Bankruptcy
To email the show: email@sharptech.fm
Google Stock Tumbles Nearly 8% After Bard Ad Shows Inaccurate Answer, AI Race Heats Up — Investor’s Business Daily
New Bing, and an Interview with Kevin Scott and Sam Altman About the Microsoft-OpenAI Partnership — Stratechery Interview
Why TV Has Resisted Disruption — Stratechery
In Paris demo, Google scrambles to counter ChatGPT but ends up embarrassing itself — Ars Technica
Here's Why Apple Isn't Making a Television — Time Magazine
Disney to cut 7,000 jobs in major revamp by CEO Iger — Reuters
Nelson Peltz’s Other C.E.O. Gambit — Puck News
Regional Sports Networks, ESPN + RSNs, TechDirt’s Response on Title II and Net Neutrality — Stratechery Update
MLB, NBA and NHL may buy biggest owner of regional sports TV networks: sources — New York Post
Get Sharp Tech Premium, Sharp China, Stratechery Update, Stratechery Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $12/month.

18 snips
Feb 6, 2023 • 1h 2min
Meta Comes Roaring Back, What the Market Missed Last Fall, The Compromises that Define the Modern Internet
To email the show: email@sharptech.fm
Meta Myths — Stratechery
Facebook Lenses — Stratechery
The ‘Enshittification’ of TikTok — Wired
‘If You Think The Internet Is Terrible Now, Just Wait a While’ — The Awl
EarPods with Lightning Connector — Apple
Album Club — Listener Andrew D
Get Sharp Tech Premium, Sharp China, Stratechery Update, Stratechery Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $12/month.

Feb 2, 2023 • 11min
(Preview) Cloudflare in 2023, Macro Conditions and Microsoft, Questions and Answers on the Tech Layoffs, Diving Deeper (literally) on MVNOs
To email the show: email@sharptech.fm
Cloudflare’s Disruption — Stratechery
Microsoft Earnings, Azure’s Slowdown, Office Strikes Back — Stratechery Update
Tech Layoffs, Big Tech’s Hiring Rates, Microsoft’s VR Layoffs — Stratechery Update
An Interview with Michael Nathanson About Netflix and the Media Industry — Stratechery Interviews
Column: The real aim of big tech’s layoffs: bringing workers to heel — Los Angeles Times
Finding Visible Egress/ingress nodes on the big-I Internet — Reddit
The Manchurian Candidate (1962) ORIGINAL TRAILER — YouTube
Get Sharp Tech Premium, Sharp China, Stratechery Update, Stratechery Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $12/month.

Jan 30, 2023 • 1h 8min
Solving Online Groceries, Explaining Those Cheap New Cell Phone Plans, Autonomous Deliveries, Tech vs. Humans in Content Development
To email the show: email@sharptech.fm
Amazon’s New Customer — Stratechery
Walmart Earnings, Walmart’s Grocery Business, Amazon’s Grocery Stumbles — Stratechery Update
An Interview With Instacart CEO Fidji Simo About Big Ambitions — Stratechery Interviews
Pro-Neutrality, Anti-Title II — Stratechery
Netflix and Net Neutrality — Stratechery
An Interview with The Air Current’s Jon Ostrower about Southwest’s Meltdown and Independent Publishing — Stratechery Interviews
Die Hard: With A Vengeance Trailer (HD) — YouTube
Ron Dayne Wisconsin Highlights — YouTube
Get Sharp Tech Premium, Sharp China, Stratechery Update, Stratechery Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $12/month.

Jan 26, 2023 • 10min
(Preview) How Google Conquered Ads, What the DOJ Wants to Do About It, Follow-Ups on Free Netflix, Checking in with Peloton
To email the show: email@sharptech.fm
An Interview with Michael Nathanson About Netflix and the Media Industry — Stratechery Interview
Tech Layoffs, Big Tech’s Hiring Rates, Microsoft’s VR Layoffs — Stratechery Update
DOJ Sues Google, Google’s Advertising Aggregation, No Duty to Deal — Stratechery Update
Peloton Changes CEO, The Pandemic Stocks, Peloton’s Options — Stratechery Update
Get Sharp Tech Premium, Sharp China, Stratechery Update, Stratechery Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $12/month.

Jan 23, 2023 • 1h 1min
Encouraging Netflix Earnings, Continuing Questions, and How the Model Might Evolve
To email the show: email@sharptech.fm
Netflix’s New Chapter — Stratechery
AI chatbot’s MBA exam pass poses test for business schools — Financial Times
Netflix’s New Look Is Already Catching On — Wall Street Journal
Netflix Earnings, Netflix Doubles Down, Netflix’s Ad Tier — Stratechery Update
Why Netflix Should Sell Ads — Stratechery
Why Netflix Should Not Sell Ads, Elon Musk and Twitter — Stratechery Update
Cable’s Last Laugh — Stratechery
A Free Ad-Supported Netflix Service? Ted Sarandos Says Company Is “Open” to the Idea — The Hollywood Reporter
Reed Hastings’ Journey at Netflix Would Make for Binge-Worthy TV — Bloomberg
Acorn History (via listener Andrew D.) — Qsl.net
Get Sharp Tech Premium, Sharp China, Stratechery Update, Stratechery Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $12/month.

Jan 19, 2023 • 8min
A Beginner's Guide to ARM, Amazon and Buy with Prime, Apple in the 90s, Who Wants to Own WWE?
To email the show: email@sharptech.fm
Twitter Timelines, Azure and OpenAI, Apple and China — Stratechery Update
Peloton’s Operations, Intel Buys Tower Semiconductor, What Now for ARM (plus Intel + RISC-V) — Stratechery Update
The Amazon Tax — Stratechery
Beyond Aggregation: Amazon as a Service — Stratechery
The End of the Beginning — Stratechery
WWE stock upgraded at Wells Fargo as analysts debate potential buyers — Yahoo! Finance
"These 3rd graders acting different" — Twitter: @Overtime
How to Pronounce Oeuvre? (3 WAYS!) UK Vs US + French Pronunciation Guide — YouTube
Get Sharp Tech Premium, Sharp China, Stratechery Update, Stratechery Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $12/month.

9 snips
Jan 16, 2023 • 1h 7min
What's Going on at Amazon? and AI Language Barriers
To email the show: email@sharptech.fm
Amazon confirms its massive layoffs will affect 18,000 employees — The Verge
Amazon Kept Inventing, and Now It’s Going to Start Cutting — Bloomberg
Amazon Earnings, Amazon’s Costs, Amazon Closes Stores — Stratechery Update
An Interview with Brad Stone about Amazon Unbound — Stratechery Interviews
Day Two to One Day — Stratechery
Alexa: Amazon’s Operating System — Stratechery
Meta open sources early-stage AI translation tool that works across 200 languages — The Verge
Social Networking 2.0 — Stratechery
Get Sharp Tech Premium, Sharp China, Stratechery Update, Stratechery Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $12/month.

7 snips
Jan 12, 2023 • 1h 10min
GPT in 2023: A Marriage with Microsoft, The Bull and Bear Case for Google, Compute Questions and More
To email the show: email@sharptech.fm
AI and the Big Five — Stratechery
More on Google and AI; OpenAI, Integration, and Microsoft — Stratechery Update
An Interview with Daniel Gross and Nat Friedman about ChatGPT and the Near-Term Future of AI — Stratechery Interview
FTC Fines Epic, Netflix Ads, YouTube and the NFL — Stratechery Update
Amazon wraps 'TNF' debut season with lower numbers, but much younger demos — Sports Business Journal
Get Sharp Tech Premium, Sharp China, Stratechery Update, Stratechery Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $12/month.

4 snips
Dec 22, 2022 • 1h
Sharp Tech Holiday Hoopla: Gift Recs and YouTube TV, Microchips and Remote Work, Could ChatGPT Run a Basketball Team?
To email the show: email@sharptech.fm
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FTC Fines Epic, Netflix Ads, YouTube and the NFL — Stratechery Update
YouTube the likely home for 'Sunday Ticket — Sports Business Journal
Alphabet’s YouTube TV Nears Deal For NFL Sunday Ticket. Profiting Will Be a Challenge. — Barron's
Google’s YouTube in Talks for Rights to NFL Sunday Ticket — Wall Street Journal
US targets China’s potential chip stars with new restrictions — Financial Times
How TikTok Became an International Crisis — The New York Times
What Comes Next for the Most Empty Downtown in America — The New York Times
Get Sharp Tech Premium, Sharp China, Stratechery Update, Stratechery Interviews, Greatest of All Talk and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $12/month.