Foundering

Many of Silicon Valley's most celebrated companies build software -- but these days, the startup everyone's talking about is Stance, which makes socks. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Sarah McBride visits Stance to see why venture capitalists have poured $110 million into a business that has little to do with technology. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A devastating cyberattack on Equifax has compromised critically sensitive information on 143 million U.S. consumers. While we won't know the full repercussions for years, this week on Decrypted, Bloomberg Technology's Lizette Chapman explores the worst possible things that could happen to these people whose information was stolen. You may think that identity theft ends after a couple canceled credit cards, but Lizette speaks to victims who spent years rebuilding their shattered finances and lives. Lizette and Brad also outline what you can do right now to protect yourself -- although nothing can guarantee complete safety on today's internet. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As news continues to break about Russia's attempts to influence and hack the U.S. election, this week we're re-airing an episode from 2016 about how investigators traced the breach of the Democratic National Committee's email servers to Russian spies. At the end of the episode, Brad and Bloomberg Technology's Jordan Robertson discuss everything that's happened since then. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Despite tremendous advances over the last decade, electric cars have yet to go mainstream. Even once Tesla ramps up production of its Model 3 cars, one obstacle will remain: a lack of infrastructure lining America's roads. This week on Decrypted, Bloomberg Technology's Pia Gadkari dives deep into the companies, led by Tesla, that are trying to tackle this problem -- by pouring millions of dollars into building a network of charging stations. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In China, parents are desperately seeking good teachers for their children. A number of local tech startups are meeting that demand; one is even connecting them with American tutors halfway across the world. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Peter Elstrom explores VIPKid's data-driven approach to online tutoring, to see what it means for Chinese students, as well as the U.S. teachers who are finding a new source of employment.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The year is 2005, the company is Apple. The iPod is a smash hit, but then-CEO Steve Jobs decides it's time to cannibalize the company's star product with a gamble: a smartphone. A decade after those phones reached the hands of the first consumers and changed the history of computing, Bloomberg Technology's Mark Gurman goes deep behind the scenes with the people who raced to get that original iPhone ready. On the eve of the product's unveiling, a crisis almost derailed the entire project. Mark and Brad also discuss the various features that people can expect from the iPhone 8, which Apple's set to announce next month.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We hear a lot about the approaching end of the fossil fuel era. But as various companies work on wind and solar, there's a group of scientists quietly working on another method of generating electricity, in the lab that once created the atomic bomb. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Jing Cao visits the researchers who are smashing hydrogen atoms together in a process called nuclear fusion. They say they're on the brink of a major milestone, but they face an age-old problem: not enough funding.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A sailor and a windsurfing champion are trying to crack your morning commute with a new kind of transportation device: a zero-emissions boat that looks like it flies above the water. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Marie Mawad and Aki Ito take a look at the challenges that lie ahead for this startup, now that the company has developed a working prototype in France. This follows last week's episode on another entrepreneur's lifelong passion for flying cars.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Silicon Valley currently has a serious case of flying car fever, but this isn't the first time enthusiasm for these vehicles has gripped the industry. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Alistair Barr and Aki Ito visit the man who's spent his entire life trying to turn his Jetson-like vision into reality. It's a story of unwavering and maybe even irrational optimism that's cost Paul Moller more than $100 million and led him to declare bankruptcy and face allegations of fraud. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the last few weeks, several woman have come forward with their accounts of being harassed in the tech industry. This week, Bloomberg Technology's Aki Ito and Sarah McBride hear from a woman who's never spoken publicly about her experience. The episode also includes interviews with multiple women who were instrumental in exposing what many have called Silicon Valley's "open secret" and recount what their lives have been like since sharing their stories. Please note: This episode includes discussion of adult content. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.