This week, we dig into the group chat that’s rocking the Trump administration and talk about why turning to Signal to plan military operations probably isn’t a great idea. Then, we’re joined by the podcaster Dwarkesh Patel to discuss his new book “The Scaling Era,” and whether he’s still optimistic about the broad benefits of A.I. And finally, a couple weeks ago we asked whether A.I. was making you dumber. Now we hear your takes.

Guest:

• Dwarkesh Patel, tech podcaster and author of “The Scaling Era: An Oral History of A.I., 2019-2025”

Additional Reading:

• The Trump Administration Accidentally Texted Me Its War Plans
• Signal Chat Leak Angers U.S. Military Pilots
• Is A.I. Making Us Dumb?

We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

With all of Silicon Valley weighing in on the Trump administration’s new action plan for artificial intelligence, Kevin and Casey break down what’s on everybody’s wish list. Then, a Columbia undergrad explains why he built a tool that lets coders use A.I. to cheat on job interviews. And finally, we climb aboard the Hot Mess Express to talk Solana’s anti-woke ad, anxious A.I. algorithms and Slack spycraft in the world of H.R.

Guest:

• Roy Lee, Columbia sophomore and founder of Interview Coder

Additional Reading:

• America Crafts an A.I. Action Plan
• Meet the 21-Year-Old Helping Coders Use A.I. to Cheat in Google and Other Tech Job Interviews
• Solana Pulls Ad After Huge Backlash
• Digital Therapists Get Stressed Too, Study Finds
• Rippling Sues Deel, a Software Rival, Over Corporate Spying

We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

This week, as the long-promised new Siri faces increasing delays, we explore why Apple seems to be falling even further behind in artificial intelligence. Then, the New York Times reporter Adam Satariano joins us to explain how Elon Musk’s satellite internet provider Starlink took over the world. And finally, we look at a new study that asks: Is A.I. eroding our critical thinking skills?

Guest:

• Adam Satariano, New York Times reporter

Additional Reading:

• Apple Delays Siri Upgrade Indefinitely as AI Concerns Escalate 
• With Starlink, Elon Musk’s Satellite Dominance Is Raising Global Alarms
• The Impact of Generative AI on Critical Thinking: Self-Reported Reductions in Cognitive Effort and Confidence Effects From a Survey of Knowledge Workers

We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

This week, Google introduced a new way to search, which could mean that Googling as we know it is on the way out. It’s called AI Mode and it is essentially the company’s response to the growing number of people turning to A.I. chat bots instead of Google search.

We walk through what this new product looks like, who can use it and what it could mean for the internet’s future. Then, we talk with the New York Times crypto reporter David Yaffe-Bellany about President Trump’s recent announcement concerning a national crypto reserve and why the news upset some of the biggest crypto advocates. Finally, we react to voice mail from listeners describing the tools they’ve vibecoded.

Guest: 

• David Yaffe-Bellany, New York Times reporter covering the crypto industry.

Additional Reading: 

• Trump Faces Blowback Over Plans for Crypto Reserve
• Not a Coder? With A.I., Just Having an Idea Can Be Enough.

We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

This week, Anthropic’s C.E.O., Dario Amodei, returns to the show for a candid, wide-ranging interview. We discuss Anthropic’s brand-new Claude 3.7 Sonnet model, the A.I. arms race against China, and his hopes and fears for this technology over the next two years. Then, we gather up recent tech stories, put them into a hat and close out the week with a round of HatGPT.

Guest:

• Dario Amodei, chief executive of Anthropic

Additional Reading:

• Inside the White-Hot Center of A.I. Doomerism
• Machines of Loving Grace
• Apple Removes Cloud Encryption Feature From U.K. After Backdoor Order

We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

This week, Elon Musk brought a new chatbot into the crowded A.I. universe — Grok 3, the latest model from his company xAI. We break down how it compares with other leading models and what it reveals about Musk’s larger ambitions. Then, Vlad Tenev, the chief executive of the investing platform Robinhood, lays out his vision for the future of investing and fields some difficult questions about his company’s role in fueling a culture of risky financial speculation. Finally, Kevin revisits his high school coding era and tries to make Casey a new software tool, with an A.I. assist.

Guest:

• Vlad Tenev, chief executive of Robinhood and co-founder of Harmonic.

Additional Reading:

• There Are Probably Too Many A.I. Companies Now
• An Investing Revolution Is Coming. The U.S. Isn’t Ready for It.
• Is Math the Path to Chatbots That Don’t Make Stuff Up?

We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Kevin reports back from the A.I. Action Summit in Paris, where it was full speed ahead toward artificial general intelligence, with a conspicuous lack of action on the safety front. Also, Happy Valentine’s Day! We’re taking a look at A.I. on dating apps. First, our producer Rachel Cohn explains what happened when she applied all of the advice from Hinge’s new Prompt Feedback tool to her dating profile. Then, we’re joined by Hinge’s founder and C.E.O., Justin McLeod, to discuss how he thinks A.I. can help users find love.

Guests:

Rachel Cohn, Hard Fork producer, writer of the newsletter “Are You My Boyfriend?”

Justin McLeod, founder and C.E.O. of Hinge

Additional Reading:

• Macron Pitches Lighter Regulation to Fuel A.I. Boom in Europe
• Vance, in First Foreign Speech, Tells Europe That U.S. Will Dominate A.I.
• When Cupid Is a Prying Journalist

We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

This week, we’re joined by the Times reporter Jonathan Swan to discuss Elon Musk’s tech takeover of Washington, D.C. Then, Liz Pelly, author of a new book about Spotify, stops by to discuss “ghost musicians” and how Spotify’s algorithms are reshaping music culture. And finally — it’s Tool Time! We’ll tell you all about the new A.I. tools we’re using, plus the one that we wish existed.

Guests: 

• Jonathan Swan, a White House reporter for The New York Times
• Liz Pelly, author of “Mood Machine: The Rise of Spotify and the Costs of the Perfect Playlist”

Additional Reading: 

• Inside Musk’s Aggressive Incursion Into the Federal Government
• The Ghosts in the Machine
• ChatGPT's deep research might be the first good agent

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

This week we go even deeper on DeepSeek. ChinaTalk's Jordan Schneider joins us to explain the Chinese A.I. industry and to break down the reaction inside of China to DeepSeek’s sudden success. Then … hello, Operator! We put OpenAI’s new agent software to the test. And finally, all aboard for another ride on the Hot Mess Express!

Guest:

• Jordan Schneider, founder and editor in chief of ChinaTalk

Additional Reading:

• Why DeepSeek Could Change What Silicon Valley Believes About A.I.
• OpenAI launches its agent
• Fable, a Book App, Makes Changes After Offensive A.I. Messages
• Amazon Pauses Drone Deliveries After Aircraft Crashed in Rain

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

A Chinese firm called DeepSeek managed to upend global markets at the start of the week, to drag down chipmaker Nvidia — and to surge to No. 1 in the iPhone app store, all in basically no time at all.

Today, in this bonus episode, we talk through the news behind the freakout. How is a new A.I. model from one Chinese A.I. company making such a big splash? And what does it mean for the U.S. artificial intelligence industry?

We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.

.

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.