The tech elite believe AI is just a few years away from displacing most computer-based jobs, and they seem…excited about it? Atlantic staff writer Matteo Wong joins Offline to discuss why Silicon Valley thinks AI is more important than anything happening in politics or the economy, and why it’s all eerily similar to their optimism around social media in the 2010s. But first! Max shares a personal update that we all hate, and then it's onto the news. This week, foe of the pod Elon Musk decided he’s done spending millions to be fake friends with Donald Trump. America’s edge lord may be posting less, but xAI is still spreading the good word. Max and Jon explain why Grok got so obsessed with unfounded claims of white genocide in South Africa, examine why Jon is STILL getting in Twitter fights, and explore new research on social media's dubious teen accounts.

Jia Tolentino, author of Trick Mirror and staff writer at the New Yorker, joins Offline to discuss how it’s becoming harder and harder to make sense of reality, especially with AI taking over our feeds. She and Jon talk about how online distrust bleeds into life offline, parenting in this moment of endless horrors, and the inspiration (or lack thereof) behind her latest essay, "My Brain Finally Broke." But first! Jon’s X account may have gotten hacked, but even a crypto scam couldn't stop him from getting his social media fix. Then, he and Max dig into Trump’s attacks on the U.S. Copyright Office, and the concerns it raises over the material AI companies are using to train their models. Finally, the guys explain how the new pontiff has come out against the technology, and why “Leo” is an homage to the last pope to preside over an industrial revolution.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

Lauren Greenfield, director of the acclaimed FX docuseries “Social Studies,” sits down with Jon to talk about the year she spent shadowing a group of LA teens as they navigated their very online lives. The kids gave Lauren permission to screen record their phones for the duration of filming, and the result is an intimate, frenetic and often horrifying account of what it's like to be underage on the internet. But first! Mark Zuckerberg is crushing the podcast circuit with relatable anecdotes about his underground bunker and replacing human friends with AI companions. Meanwhile, his frenemy Elon Musk is making a not-so-triumphant departure from DOGE. Jon and Max discuss whether the Department’s next step is a full-scale American panopticon, then say a little prayer for AI Pope Trump.
 

"Social Studies" curriculum and resources: https://www.learner.org/socialstudies/

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

Pete Hegseth isn’t the only one who loves a group chat—turns out Silicon Valley's descent into Trumpism was powered by a constellation of Signal and WhatsApp chats between America’s tech overlords. Max and Jon walk through the Marc Andreessen-powered phenomenon, then discuss how Jeff Bezos was forced to kiss Trump’s ring this week by walking back Amazon's response to his tariffs. Next up: how will Gen Z's lifestyle subsidy (cheap AI) compare to millenials’ lifestyle subsidy (cheap Ubers)? And finally, what’s the most disturbing way people are using AI chatbots…and why does it involve John Cena?

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

This Terminally Online preview breaks down the liberal media’s response to the back-and-forth between Larry David and Bill Maher, right-wing transvestigations, and TikTok’s “broken bone theory.” For the full episode and more Terminally Online, subscribe by April 30th to enjoy 30 days of Friends of the Pod for free! Support Crooked’s mission while unlocking ad-free episodes for Offline with Jon Favreau, exclusive content, a great Discord community, & more. Sign up now at crooked.com/friends  or through this feed on Apple Podcasts.

Google’s antitrust trial is all gas no breaks this week, with the Justice Department asking a federal judge to break up the $1.81 trillion dollar company. Jon and Max discuss all the possible outcomes, and why Google’s products have stagnated the more they’ve come to dominate the internet. Then, new research finds that people who deactivated Facebook or Instagram before the 2020 presidential election became significantly happier and less anxious. The guys break down the study's unsurprising results, then set their sights on dual right wing fever swamps: the online charge to overthrow the Supreme Court and the pronatalist movement championed by Elon Musk and an army of tradwives. Finally, what is Cluely, the undetectable AI designed to help you cheat, and is it really as harmless as spell check or calculators? Max and Jon round out the episode by answering listener questions—what historical event does Max wish he could’ve spied on via Signal chat? And when was the last time Jon touched grass?

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

Free speech warrior Mark Zuckerberg took the witness stand this week to defend Meta in a big antitrust case that, if successful, could break up the social media giant. Max and Jon run through the trial thus far, and discuss how Silicon Valley tycoons skewered themselves by supporting Trump. Then, the guys delve into the ever-improving state of AI, with help from Offline AI correspondent Jon Lovett. To round it all out, Dr. Leor Zmigrod joins the show to talk about her new book, The Ideological Brain, which explores the neuroscience of ideology and why some people are more susceptible to extremist thought than others.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

Ryan Broderick, host of Offline’s most-cited newsletter “Garbage Day,” joins Jon to talk tariff turmoil—how it will affect the TikTok deal, whether Trump has lost the faith of bro voters, and why the online right thinks a collapse of the global economy could solve America’s masculinity crisis. Then, is Elon Musk getting Ramaswamied? Was his nerd king persona ever more than a PR stunt? And what did we learn from Facebook whistleblower Sarah Wynn-Williams’ congressional testimony—and will Mark Zuckerberg try to clear his name?  

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

How does J.D. Vance have so much time to fight with Jon on X? Why are the courts letting Elon Musk buy votes in Wisconsin? And are we, as a society, ready forxAI to be trained on tweets from Catturd and Libs of TikTok? With Max out on vacation, Jon is joined by The Atlantic’s Charlie Warzel to process this week's online maelstrom—from horrendous deportations to Studio Ghibliesque edge lords—and to share what it was like for his boss to be mistakenly added to the Houthi PC Small Group chat.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.

This April, enjoy 30 days of Crooked's Friends of the Pod subscription—FREE. Support Crooked’s mission while unlocking ad-free episodes for Offline, exclusive content, a great Discord community, & more. Sign up now at crooked.com/friends or through this feed on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial.
 

They weren’t war plans, they were BATTLE plans—that’s the White House's new, extremely believable spin on why J.D. Vance, Pete Hegseth and countless other Trump officials were using a Signal chat to coordinate a military strike. Jon and Max relish the idiocy of what’s now become the most famous group chat in the world, and then dive into Snapchat’s latest feature that’s making teens even more glued to their screens. Then, the guys run through DoorDash’s new partnership with micro loan company Klarna, and why it’s shocking Apple allowed the Severance finale to air. Plus! Max sits down with journalist Charles Duhigg, author of Supercommunicators and host of a spinoff podcast, to talk about why connecting with people you disagree with builds stronger coalitions, and why values unify voters better than ideas.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast.