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Technology

Uncovering and explaining how our digital world is changing — and changing us.

Leaked OpenAI documents reveal aggressive tactics toward former employees
Future Perfect

Has Sam Altman told the truth about OpenAI’s NDA scandal?

By Kelsey Piper
Future Perfect
The double sexism of ChatGPT’s flirty “Her” voiceThe double sexism of ChatGPT’s flirty “Her” voice
Future Perfect

Is OpenAI gaslighting Scarlett Johansson?

By Sigal Samuel
Future Perfect
The misleading, wasteful way we measure gas mileage, explainedThe misleading, wasteful way we measure gas mileage, explained
Future Perfect

And how to measure fuel economy better.

By David Zipper
Future Perfect
“I lost trust”: Why the OpenAI team in charge of safeguarding humanity imploded“I lost trust”: Why the OpenAI team in charge of safeguarding humanity imploded
Future Perfect

Company insiders explain why safety-conscious employees are leaving.

By Sigal Samuel
Future Perfect
ChatGPT can talk, but OpenAI employees sure can’tChatGPT can talk, but OpenAI employees sure can’t
Future Perfect

Why is OpenAI’s superalignment team imploding?

By Kelsey Piper
Technology
Teletherapy can really help, and really hurtTeletherapy can really help, and really hurt
Technology

From privacy breaches to bad providers, teletherapy services often come with a hidden cost.

By A.W. Ohlheiser
Business & Finance
Meme stocks like GameStop are soaring like it’s 2021Meme stocks like GameStop are soaring like it’s 2021
Business & Finance

To quote Elon Musk, “Gamestonk!!”

By Nicole Narea
Money
How a bunch of Redditors made GameStop’s stock soarHow a bunch of Redditors made GameStop’s stock soar
Money

Much to the chagrin of the hedge funds attempting to short it.

By Emily Stewart
TikTok
How TikTok Shop ads turned an obscure, inaccurate book into a bestsellerHow TikTok Shop ads turned an obscure, inaccurate book into a bestseller
TikTok

Was this book the reason TikTok is getting banned in the US? No, but ads saying so sold a lot of copies.

By A.W. Ohlheiser
Social media platforms aren’t equipped to handle the negative effects of their algorithms abroad. Neither is the law.
Future Perfect

Because of one law, the internet has no legal duty of care when it comes to hate speech. Just take a look at what happened in Myanmar.

By Tiffany Ng
Money
What a Zoom cashier 8,000 miles away can tell us about the future of workWhat a Zoom cashier 8,000 miles away can tell us about the future of work
Money

Is a new age of digital offshoring coming?

By Whizy Kim
Video
How AI tells Israel who to bombHow AI tells Israel who to bomb
Play
Video

AI is supposed to help militaries make precise strikes. Is that the case in Gaza?

By Rajaa Elidrissi
Future Perfect
Your phone can tell when you’re depressedYour phone can tell when you’re depressed
Future Perfect

Emerging apps use AI to guess when you’ll be sad. Can they also help you feel better?

By Celia Ford
The one huge obstacle standing in the way of progress on gene-editing medicine
Future Perfect

The genetic data that underpins CRISPR has a big diversity problem.

By Charlotte Hu
Is TikTok breaking young voters’ brains?
TikTok

TikTok has made itself into a hub for Gen Z political expression. But as Zoomers change politics, how is the app changing them?

By Christian Paz
Technology
The misleading information in one of America’s most popular podcastsThe misleading information in one of America’s most popular podcasts
Podcast
Technology

The Huberman Lab has credentials and millions of fans, but it sometimes oversteps medical fact.

By A.W. Ohlheiser
Today, Explained newsletter
AI has created a new form of sexual abuseAI has created a new form of sexual abuse
Today, Explained newsletter

How do you stop deepfake nudes?

By Anna North
The Gray Area
Everything’s a cult nowEverything’s a cult now
Podcast
The Gray Area

Derek Thompson on what the end of monoculture could mean for American democracy.

By Sean Illing
Money
Food delivery fees have soared. How much of it goes to workers?Food delivery fees have soared. How much of it goes to workers?
Money

Amid delivery discourse, a new report claims to shed some light on DoorDash’s delivery fees.

By Whizy Kim
Technology
Imagining an internet without TikTokImagining an internet without TikTok
Technology

The potential TikTok ban is now law. What happens next?

By A.W. Ohlheiser
Politics
Is the new TikTok ban for real?Is the new TikTok ban for real?
Politics

Biden has signed a bill to ban TikTok. But it’s not over yet.

By Nicole Narea
My adult kids found themselves in nature. Will my youngest lose herself in her phone?
Home Planet

My 12-year-old daughter will inherit a warmer world — and, I fear, a lonelier one.

By Tracy Ross
Future Perfect
Will AI mean the end of liberal democracy?Will AI mean the end of liberal democracy?
Podcast
Future Perfect

Fareed Zakaria on the age of revolution.

By Sean Illing
Future Perfect
Your brain’s privacy is at risk. The US just took its first big step toward protecting it.Your brain’s privacy is at risk. The US just took its first big step toward protecting it.
Future Perfect

Colorado passed legislation to prevent companies from selling your brainwaves. But is it enough to stop the likes of Meta and Apple?

By Sigal Samuel
Future Perfect
A hack nearly gained access to millions of computers. Here’s what we should learn from this.A hack nearly gained access to millions of computers. Here’s what we should learn from this.
Future Perfect

The internet is far less secure than it ought to be.

By Kelsey Piper
Mental Health
What the evidence really says about social media’s impact on teens’ mental healthWhat the evidence really says about social media’s impact on teens’ mental health
Mental Health

Did smartphones actually “destroy” a generation?

By Eric Levitz
Technology
Taiwan’s earthquake preparedness saved a lot of lives — and prevented a catastrophe for the global tech economyTaiwan’s earthquake preparedness saved a lot of lives — and prevented a catastrophe for the global tech economy
Technology

From Taiwan to South Korea to Silicon Valley, some of the most important nodes in the global tech economy are in disaster-prone places.

By Bryan Walsh
Future Perfect
Want a 32-hour workweek? Give workers more power.Want a 32-hour workweek? Give workers more power.
Future Perfect

German labor history has some tips on how the US could reduce its workweek.

By Oshan Jarow
Politics
Truth Social just made Trump billions. Will it solve his financial woes?Truth Social just made Trump billions. Will it solve his financial woes?
Politics

Trump’s social network has made him one of the richest people in the world — at least on paper.

By Nicole Narea
Future Perfect
AI “agents” could do real work in the real world. That might not be a good thing.AI “agents” could do real work in the real world. That might not be a good thing.
Future Perfect

Why AI agents that could book your vacation or pay your bills are the next frontier in artificial intelligence.

By Kelsey Piper
Crypto
Sam Bankman-Fried’s trial pulled back the curtain on cryptoSam Bankman-Fried’s trial pulled back the curtain on crypto
Crypto

The criminal conviction of the once-lionized cryptocurrency billionaire will have ripple effects on the entire industry.

By Whizy Kim
Climate
AI already uses as much energy as a small country. It’s only the beginning.AI already uses as much energy as a small country. It’s only the beginning.
Climate

The energy needed to support data storage is expected to double by 2026. You can do something to stop it.

By Brian Calvert
Technology
The slow death of Twitter is measured in disasters like the Baltimore bridge collapseThe slow death of Twitter is measured in disasters like the Baltimore bridge collapse
Technology

Twitter, now X, was once a useful site for breaking news. The Baltimore bridge collapse shows those days are long gone.

By A.W. Ohlheiser
How AI could explode the economy
Future Perfect

And how it could fizzle.

By Dylan Matthews
Why the Pentagon wants to build thousands of easily replaceable, AI-enabled drones
Future Perfect

Ukraine’s drone innovations have changed how the US is planning for a war with China.

By Joshua Keating
Technology
Apple is facing a new antitrust lawsuit that could dethrone the iPhoneApple is facing a new antitrust lawsuit that could dethrone the iPhone
Technology

Does Apple have a monopoly on smartphones? The Justice Department thinks so.

By Nicole Narea
Elon Musk wants to merge humans with AI. How many brains will be damaged along the way?
Future Perfect

Neuralink has implanted a chip in its first human brain. But it’s pushing a needlessly risky approach, former employees say.

By Sigal Samuel
Business & Finance
Reddit is going public. Will its unruly user base revolt?Reddit is going public. Will its unruly user base revolt?
Business & Finance

Reddit could become the next meme stock — or flop.

By Nicole Narea
Technology
The latest drama in “poverty porn” YouTube, explainedThe latest drama in “poverty porn” YouTube, explained
Technology

Nobody wins when creators fight over who is helping a poor family the most.

By A.W. Ohlheiser
Today, Explained newsletter
Should schools lock up kids’ phones?Should schools lock up kids’ phones?
Today, Explained newsletter

What banning phones in schools can — and can’t — do.

By Anna North