People vs Algorithms

Alex reviews the “liquid” interface and wonders if anyone at Cupertino actually used the beta outdoors.

Plus: a spirited defense of Zaslav as the media's embattled savior, fighting for the spoils of the operator class; the sad saga of the link economy and why publishers are stuck tolling bots for pennies.

Also: the gloriousness of popcorn and Coke, Peter Kafka as Good Product, and renewed appreciation for the Denver airport.

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* Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter

* Alex Schleifer's Human Computer

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Chapters:

* 00:00 Open

* 00:45 Welcome

* 08:14 In this episode

* 14:38 Liquid Glass

* 28:33 Sad State Of The Media Economy

* 39:34 AB Tags In

* 45:18 Death Of The Link Economy

* 48:54 AI Toll

* 59:12 Good Product

* 01:03:27 Outro

As performance metrics grow murky and traditional advertising falters, proximity is becoming the new proxy for value. We talk through the bloated conference circuit, the rise of curated events, the logic behind Cannes as a marketplace, and why some publishers are pulling back while others double down. Along the way, we debate the wisdom of Newsweek buying an ad tech company, the challenge of turning creator reach into enterprise value, and the case of a $3 million newsletter business with 90% margins that stands in contrast to the deconstruction of legacy media models.

Join us in Cannes for a live recording of People vs Algorithms from the Dotdash Meredith villa on Thursday, June 20, at 3:30pm. Troy and Brian will be joined by Dotdash Meredith CEO Neil Vogel and Axios media correspondent Sara Fischer. We'll have drinks and mingling immediately following the recording. Register here.

* Watch us on YouTube

* Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletter

* Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter

* Alex Schleifer's Human Computer

* Follow Alex, Brian and Troy on Twitter

Chapters:

* 00:00 Welcome

* 01:39 NY Tech Week

* 06:29 Cannes - A Carnival Of Capitalism

* 12:00 Creator Events

* 17:58 AI Creative

* 29:12 Newsletter: Great Business

* 37:33 Newsweek Buying Ad Prime

* 45:03 Good Product

* 46:32 Outro

It used its dominant position in search to be the arbiter for the web. As the web moves into an agentic AI era, we break down how Google is positioned and the impact its next evolution will have for the ecosystem it shaped and de facto ruled.

Plus: why media’s unionization craze didn’t fix bad models, why nobody can remember any ad campaigns, and the charms of the Shelter Island dump as a community convener.

RSVP to PvA Live at Cannes with Sara Fischer and Neil Vogel at the Dotdash Meredith villa.

* Watch us on YouTube

* Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletter

* Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter

* Alex Schleifer's Human Computer

* Follow Alex, Brian and Troy on Twitter

Chapters:

* 01:10 Welcome

* 01:37 PVA Live @ Cannes Lions

* 03:43 Media Buyouts

* 07:42 The Information Space is Scrambling PR

* 12:09 Veo 3

* 17:38 Staples' Easy Button is Back

* 23:22 Google

* 29:50 One-Trick Pony

* 34:48 Google Products

* 47:40 Google Now

* 56:08 How the market views Google with AB

* 01:15:56 Good Product

In this episode, we dive into how the rise of AI agents and new protocols is replacing browsing with prompting, and pages with machine-readable interfaces. Google and Microsoft are rolling out AI-powered tools that make websites disappear into the background, forcing publishers, marketers, and product teams to rethink how value is surfaced and monetized.

* Watch us on YouTube

* Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletter

* Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter

* Alex Schleifer's Human Computer

* Follow Alex, Brian and Troy on Twitter

Chapters:

* 00:00 Open

* 00:54 Welcome

* 03:38 AI Tears Down The Front Door Of The Internet

* 25:04 Sam & Jony

* 42:39 Bernie on Flagrant

* 44:10 Good Product

* 46:58 Distribution Direction with AB

* 56:50 Understanding Risk Profile with AB

* 01:03:44 Outro

Plus: we learn that Alex is no David Zaslav because he doesn’t see the genius in a CNN weather app, an appraisal of Airbnb’s “everything” app, and a celebration of kookiness of Eurovision.

* Watch us on YouTube

* Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletter

* Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter

* Alex Schleifer's Human Computer

* Follow Alex, Brian and Troy on Twitter

Chapters:

* 00:00 Open

* 01:38 Intro

* 02:41 Welcome

* 03:23 Eurovision

* 08:14 App-mania

* 08:53 HBO Max

* 12:47 CNN

* 19:35 ESPN

* 24:11 AirBnB

* 32:55 Apple

* 59:03 Good Product

* 01:06:27 Outro

We unpack Google’s search reinvention, publishers acting like a deer in the highlights, Perplexity’s emergence as a heel, Apple’s AI misfires, and the risks of AI reinforcement loops. Plus: what happens when publishers still rely on traffic models that are quietly unraveling.

* Watch us on YouTube

* Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletter

* Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter

* Alex Schleifer's Human Computer

* Follow Alex, Brian and Troy on Twitter

Chapters:

* 00:00 Open

* 00:22 Intro

* 01:01 AI Search Shake-Up

* 18:40 Perplexity’s $50m Venture Fund

* 32:20 DOJ vs Google Ad-Tech

* 37:26 AI & Mental-Health Risks

* 54:15 Valnet “Sweatshop” Roll-up

* 01:01:59 Mogul Memoirs & Reputation

* 01:03:09 Good Product

* 01:07:38 Outro

* Watch us on YouTube

* Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletter

* Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter

* Alex Schleifer's Human Computer

* Follow Alex, Brian and Troy on Twitter

Chapters:

* 00:00 Open

* 00:22 Intro

* 00:45 Welcome

* 01:20 Marketing Advertising Media Events

* 07:01 The Shoes That Have Not Dropped

* 20:43 Group Chats

* 31:38 Zuck Derangement Syndrome

* 54:54 Epic Beats Apple

* 59:14 Trump Cabinet Influencers

* 01:06:32 Good Product

* 01:13:29 Overtime With AB

From TBPN to Turpentine, it’s not journalism—it just looks like it. They also explore the “Chaos Economy” through Foxconn’s EV pivot and unpack why analogies beat logic in shaping how we process tech shifts. Plus, Pete Buttigieg’s appearance on Flagrant shows that even politics is adapting to the influencer era.

* Watch us on YouTube

* Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletter

* Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter

* Alex Schleifer's Human Computer

* Follow Alex, Brian and Troy on Twitter

Chapters:

* 00:00 Open

* 00:55 Welcome

* 01:26 Ode to Zins

* 04:15 Tech's Alternative Media Playbook

* 24:53 Chaos Economy

* 40:00 Analogy Machines vs Rational Animals

* 57:27 Pete Buttigieg and the Manosphere Media Moment

* 01:08:11 Good Product

* 01:10:17 Outro

This week we dig into the spread of hyperpunditry and why the Information Space rewards those who confidently switch lanes with abandon. Plus: AI’s bottoms-up adoption curve, Anonymous Banker on golf media’s strength and the crazy life of sea turtles.

• Watch us on YouTube
• Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletter
• Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter
• Alex Schleifer's Human Computer
• Follow Alex, Brian and Troy on Twitter

The tariff wars kicked off and confirmed that we are in a post-expertise era where your bona fides matter less than your confidence. Plus: celebrating GDPR’s impending demise. what to do with Vanity Fair, and Shopify’s AI manifesto.

• Watch us on YouTube
• Troy Young's People vs Algorithms newsletter
• Brian Morrissey's The Rebooting newsletter
• Alex Schleifer's Human Computer
• Follow Alex, Brian and Troy on Twitter