Canada has made a move that’s rattling Western allies: opening its market to Chinese electric vehicles after years of alignment with U.S.-led restrictions. The decision signals a thaw in Canada–China relations — and raises a bigger question: is this the start of a wider fracture in the Western front on China?

What this episode covers
In this week’s Rethinking Tech, Aparna and Harinda break down Canada’s new trade posture through three lenses: tech, geopolitics, and ethics.

• Canada’s tariff rollback on Chinese EVs and how the quota is structured

• China’s tariff cuts on Canadian canola (and what it could mean for other exports)

• The decade-long freeze: Huawei’s Meng Wenzhou, “the Two Michaels,” and the cost of alignment

• Why Chinese EV makers (BYD, NIO, XPeng, Li Auto) entering Canada changes the competitive landscape

• The less-discussed layer: EV software, spyware fears, batteries, and charging infrastructure

• Why this matters beyond cars: the precedent for other Chinese technologies

• The geopolitical ripple effects: U.S. leverage, EU uncertainty, and middle powers building new negotiating options

Why this matters
This isn’t only a trade story. It’s a signal about how middle powers behave when superpower pressure becomes costly.

Canada’s move suggests a pragmatic shift: diversify partners, protect domestic sectors, and expand options — even if it complicates alliances and ethical narratives. The deeper question is whether this is a one-off deal… or the beginning of a new playbook for countries navigating the U.S.–China tug of war.

🔗 Connect with Us

📺 YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RethinkingTech⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠🎧 Spotify: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/6NYgOPmYW6Ba2LFn3IBST3⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠🍏 Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rethinking-tech/id1795651530⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠📸 TikTok: @rethinking_tech💼 LinkedIn: Rethinking Tech Podcast👤 Aparna: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/aparnabhushan/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠👤 Harinda: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/harindak/⁠

OpenAI is introducing ads inside ChatGPT — a move that signals a major shift not just for the company, but for the entire AI industry.

After months of dismissing the idea, ads are now being rolled out to free users and lower-cost tiers, raising questions about financial pressure, competition, and whether generative AI has reached a breaking point. With Google closing the gap and investors increasingly nervous about an AI bubble, the conversation around sustainability is getting harder to ignore.

What this episode explores
This discussion looks at why ads may have become unavoidable — and what changes when a conversational AI platform adopts the same business model that built Google and Meta.

• Why OpenAI is moving toward ads now

• The role of free users, paid tiers, and revenue pressure

• Rumors around IPO plans, valuation, and financial strain

• Whether ads will subtly influence responses — not just sit on the sidelines

• How ChatGPT compares to Google’s AI-driven search model

The episode also digs into deeper implications: what happens when people use AI in intimate ways, how advertising attribution might work inside an LLM, and whether ads become the real monetization layer for AI at scale.

Why this matters
Ads aren’t just a revenue tool — they shape incentives.

As ChatGPT becomes embedded in daily life, introducing advertising raises uncomfortable questions about trust, manipulation, and whether “free” AI can stay neutral. This isn’t just about banners or sponsored links. It’s about how AI platforms survive, who pays, and what trade-offs users may be quietly accepting.

The move suggests something bigger: AI may be indispensable — but not yet profitable. And ads may be the clearest signal yet that the industry is entering a new phase.

🔗 Connect with Us

📺 YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RethinkingTech⁠⁠⁠⁠🎧 Spotify: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/6NYgOPmYW6Ba2LFn3IBST3⁠⁠⁠⁠🍏 Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rethinking-tech/id1795651530⁠⁠⁠⁠📸 TikTok: @rethinking_tech💼 LinkedIn: Rethinking Tech Podcast👤 Aparna: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/aparnabhushan/⁠⁠⁠⁠👤 Harinda: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/harindak/⁠

China wants to build a massive new embassy in London — and the reaction has been intense. The proposed site, the former Royal Mint near the City of London, has become the center of public protests, security debates, and competing narratives about espionage, diplomacy, and power.

What this episode examines
China previously purchased the Royal Mint site, but the deal stalled pending government approval. Now, Chinese authorities are pushing to finalize the transaction and reconstruct the property — including plans for extensive underground facilities located close to key financial infrastructure.

• Why the Royal Mint site has become so controversial

• Concerns around underground construction and proximity to financial data cables

• The role of MI5 and its assessment of the risks

• Public fears about surveillance, dissidents, and data access

• Whether China is being treated differently than other nations

The conversation also explores statements from UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has emphasized that national security is “non-negotiable” — while also arguing that Britain must maintain diplomatic dialogue with China as a global power.

Why this matters
This debate isn’t just about one embassy or one country. It raises broader questions about how embassies function in an era of digital infrastructure, intelligence gathering, and financial surveillance.

As China advances initiatives tied to BRICS, alternative currencies, and workarounds to systems like SWIFT, concerns about data, influence, and power are increasingly intertwined.

The episode asks a harder question:
If governments already assume embassies collect intelligence, where does legitimate security concern end — and political fear begin?

🔗 Connect with Us

📺 YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RethinkingTech⁠⁠⁠🎧 Spotify: ⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/6NYgOPmYW6Ba2LFn3IBST3⁠⁠⁠🍏 Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rethinking-tech/id1795651530⁠⁠⁠📸 TikTok: @rethinking_tech💼 LinkedIn: Rethinking Tech Podcast👤 Aparna: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/aparnabhushan/⁠⁠⁠👤 Harinda: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/harindak/⁠

Spotify is quietly reshaping how music is produced, surfaced, and monetized. At the center of the debate is a program known as Perfect Fit Content — a system accused of flooding playlists with music from artists who don’t exist, optimized for listener data rather than human creativity.

This episode examines how platforms evolve once they control both the audience and the data.

What this episode covers
Spotify’s business model follows a familiar tech playbook: build a great product, collect massive amounts of data, then trade quality for margins. In music, that shift may now mean replacing human artists with AI-generated tracks that closely match listener taste — at near-zero cost.

• How “Perfect Fit Content” works and why it’s controversial

• The transition from real artists to AI-generated music

• Why user satisfaction — not artist impact — becomes the key metric

• The extraction of value at the platform level, including compensation at the top

• Parallels with Netflix’s data-driven content strategy

The discussion also explores whether users are being deceived, whether they care, and what happens when taste becomes so predictable that anyone — or anything — can reproduce it.

Why this matters
This isn’t a story about whether tech founders should earn more than artists. It’s about what happens when platforms own the data, the distribution, and eventually the content itself.

As AI lowers production costs and optimizes for engagement, the line between human creativity and synthetic output starts to blur. Spotify may simply be ahead of the curve — testing how far users are willing to go before authenticity actually matters.

The question isn’t whether this can be done.
It’s whether listeners will ever decide they want something different.

🔗 Connect with Us

📺 YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RethinkingTech⁠⁠⁠🎧 Spotify: ⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/6NYgOPmYW6Ba2LFn3IBST3⁠⁠⁠🍏 Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rethinking-tech/id1795651530⁠⁠⁠📸 TikTok: @rethinking_tech💼 LinkedIn: Rethinking Tech Podcast👤 Aparna: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/aparnabhushan/⁠⁠⁠👤 Harinda: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/harindak/⁠

Microsoft is building data centers at an unprecedented scale to support the AI push. But in many U.S. communities, that expansion is colliding with a hard reality: soaring energy demand, water use, rising utility bills, and growing local backlash.

This episode looks at what happens when AI infrastructure meets finite resources — and who ultimately bears the cost.

What this episode covers
As political leaders push “AI everything,” data center capacity has become critical infrastructure. But communities hosting these facilities are increasingly protesting the strain placed on electricity grids, water systems, and land use.

• Why data centers are becoming flashpoints in local communities

• How energy and water costs are quietly shifted onto residents

• Microsoft’s decision to curb water use and absorb higher U.S. utility costs

• Why this move sets a new precedent — and advantages the biggest players

• How rising energy-for-compute costs could price smaller AI companies out

The discussion also examines why Microsoft’s commitment applies only to U.S. data centers, despite its global footprint — and what that signals about regulation, competition, and its relationship with the current U.S. administration, including statements from Donald Trump supporting the idea that companies should “pay their own way.”

Why this matters
AI isn’t just about compute anymore. It’s about energy, water, and political coordination.

When large tech companies can afford to internalize infrastructure costs, they don’t just ease community pressure — they reshape the competitive landscape. This episode explores how energy-for-AI is becoming the next gatekeeper, and why the future of AI may be decided as much by utilities and regulation as by algorithms.

🔗 Connect with Us

📺 YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RethinkingTech⁠⁠⁠🎧 Spotify: ⁠⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/6NYgOPmYW6Ba2LFn3IBST3⁠⁠⁠🍏 Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rethinking-tech/id1795651530⁠⁠⁠📸 TikTok: @rethinking_tech💼 LinkedIn: Rethinking Tech Podcast👤 Aparna: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/aparnabhushan/⁠⁠⁠👤 Harinda: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/harindak/⁠

Greenland has become a recurring point of interest in U.S. foreign policy — often framed as a national security concern, but surrounded by competing narratives and unclear motivations.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump repeatedly argued that the United States “needs” Greenland for security reasons, pointing to Russian and Chinese activity in the Arctic. Denmark, which governs Greenland while it remains self-governing, has pushed back on those claims, emphasizing existing cooperation and security arrangements.

What this episode explores
When “national security” becomes the justification, definitions often blur. This episode looks beyond the rhetoric to examine who might benefit financially and strategically from annexation — including interests tied to rare earth minerals, resource extraction, and future Arctic shipping routes as ice continues to melt.

From supply chains and climate change to China, Russia, and long-term control of strategic territory, Greenland sits at the intersection of geopolitics, money, and power.

Why this matters
The real question isn’t whether Greenland is valuable.
It’s what annexation would actually give the United States that it doesn’t already have — given existing military bases, NATO cooperation, and Denmark’s stated willingness to work with allies.

This episode examines how strategic language is used, what’s left unsaid, and why Greenland continues to surface in discussions about future power and influence.

🔗 Connect with Us

📺 YouTube: ⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RethinkingTech⁠⁠🎧 Spotify: ⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/6NYgOPmYW6Ba2LFn3IBST3⁠⁠🍏 Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rethinking-tech/id1795651530⁠⁠📸 TikTok: @rethinking_tech💼 LinkedIn: Rethinking Tech Podcast👤 Aparna: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/aparnabhushan/⁠⁠👤 Harinda: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/harindak/⁠

The Tony Blair Institute was built as a nonprofit focused on governance, geopolitics, and policy advice. But leaked documents suggest the organization may now be pursuing a very different future — one that looks increasingly like a technology company operating in the defense and government software space.

What this episode covers
In this episode of Rethinking Tech, we examine claims that the Tony Blair Institute is repositioning itself as an alternative to Palantir, and what it means when a nonprofit think tank begins developing AI-driven tools for governments.

• Why the Institute’s strategic vision appears to be shifting

• The role of major tech funding and infrastructure backing

• How nonprofit status intersects with defense and AI development

• Comparisons to Palantir’s long-established position in government tech

• Whether ethics, profit, and structure still meaningfully differ in AI

Why this matters
This isn’t about personalities or political allegiance.
It’s about how power, technology, and legitimacy are increasingly bundled together — and how organizations once positioned as neutral advisors are moving closer to operational influence.

As AI and government software become central to security, enforcement, and decision-making, the lines between think tanks, contractors, and technology firms are blurring. The Tony Blair Institute offers a case study in that transition — raising difficult questions about accountability, competition, and whether new entrants can realistically challenge entrenched players like Palantir.

This episode looks at what it takes to move from policy to product — and why that shift is far more complicated than it appears.

🎙️ About Rethinking Tech

Rethinking Tech explores the intersection of technology, geopolitics, business, and ethics — focusing on how systems actually work, not just how they’re talked about.

We analyze structure, incentives, and consequences — without hype.

🔗 Connect with Us

📺 YouTube: ⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RethinkingTech⁠⁠🎧 Spotify: ⁠⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/6NYgOPmYW6Ba2LFn3IBST3⁠⁠🍏 Apple Podcasts: ⁠⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rethinking-tech/id1795651530⁠⁠📸 TikTok: @rethinking_tech💼 LinkedIn: Rethinking Tech Podcast👤 Aparna: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/aparnabhushan/⁠⁠👤 Harinda: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/harind

Public broadcasting in the United States has reached a breaking point. The organization responsible for routing federal funding to public media — including PBS and NPR — has voted to dissolve itself, citing defunding and an inability to operate in line with its ethical and editorial standards.

What this episode covers
In this episode of Rethinking Tech, we examine the decision by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to shut itself down, and what that decision reveals about the changing role of technology, funding, and trust in public information systems.

• Why public broadcasting chose to become redundant

• How defunding alters editorial integrity and public trust

• The role of social media and technology in fragmenting information

• Why publicly funded institutions face growing scrutiny and politicization

• What this trend signals for journalism, public services, and civic discourse

Why this matters
This isn’t about defending or attacking public media.
It’s about understanding what happens when public institutions can no longer operate independently of political pressure, donor influence, or technological disruption.

As more people get their information through platforms optimized for engagement rather than accuracy, traditional sources of shared truth are eroding. From public broadcasters in the U.S. to cases like the BBC, the same questions are emerging: who controls the narrative, who pays for it, and what can the public still rely on?

Public broadcasting offers a concrete case study of how funding, technology, and power intersect — and what is lost when trust in shared infrastructure begins to collapse.

🎙️ About Rethinking Tech

Rethinking Tech explores the intersection of technology, geopolitics, business, and ethics — focusing on how systems actually work, not just how they’re talked about.

We analyze structure, incentives, and consequences — without hype.

🔗 Connect with Us

📺 YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RethinkingTech⁠🎧 Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/6NYgOPmYW6Ba2LFn3IBST3⁠🍏 Apple Podcasts: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rethinking-tech/id1795651530⁠📸 TikTok: @rethinking_tech💼 LinkedIn: Rethinking Tech Podcast👤 Aparna: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/aparnabhushan/⁠👤 Harinda: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/harindak/⁠

DJI is the world’s largest drone manufacturer, with its technology used everywhere from real estate footage to military and autonomous systems. But behind its dominance sits a complex corporate structure that has drawn growing attention from U.S. regulators.

What this episode covers
In this episode of Rethinking Tech, we examine how DJI built a network of affiliated entities and shell companies, why U.S. authorities moved to shut down its access to the American market, and how those decisions are now reshaping the global drone industry.

• How DJI’s corporate and funding structure evolved

• Why drones are treated as sensitive technology

• The role of data, sensors, and autonomy in modern systems

• Why enforcement went beyond future bans to retroactive action

• What this sets in motion for robotics and connected technologies

Why this matters
This isn’t about demonizing a single company or debating geopolitics in the abstract.
It’s about understanding how advanced technologies scale power, how financial and corporate architecture intersects with policy, and why regulators are increasingly focused on who controls the systems behind everyday tools.

Drones are no longer niche devices. They sit at the intersection of consumer tech, surveillance, autonomy, and national security. DJI offers a concrete case study of how technology, governance, and accountability collide — and why the consequences will be felt far beyond one company.

🎙️ About Rethinking Tech

Rethinking Tech explores the intersection of technology, geopolitics, business, and ethics — focusing on how systems actually work, not just how they’re talked about.

We analyze structure, incentives, and consequences — without hype.

🔗 Connect with Us

📺 YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RethinkingTech⁠🎧 Spotify: ⁠https://open.spotify.com/show/6NYgOPmYW6Ba2LFn3IBST3⁠🍏 Apple Podcasts: ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rethinking-tech/id1795651530⁠📸 TikTok: @rethinking_tech💼 LinkedIn: Rethinking Tech Podcast👤 Aparna: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/aparnabhushan/⁠👤 Harinda: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/harindak/⁠

2026 is shaping up to be a decisive year — not because of a single breakthrough or crisis, but because multiple systems are converging under pressure.

In this x10 episode of Rethinking Tech, Aparna and Harinda lay out their predictions for 2026 across technology, geopolitics, and ethics — focusing on where power is shifting, where constraints are emerging, and what signals are already visible.

Rather than reacting to headlines, this conversation looks at structural forces that will shape how technology is built, governed, and contested in the year ahead.

What this episode covers

• How artificial intelligence is moving from hype to infrastructure and security concern

• Why technology is increasingly inseparable from geopolitical power

• How economic and political fragmentation is reshaping global coordination

• Where ethics, governance, and trust are becoming operational constraints

• What these shifts mean heading into 2026

  
  

  
  

• IMF Sees Global Growth Holding Steady in 2026 as AI Investment Accelerates
  https://www.reuters.com/business/imf-sees-steady-global-growth-2026-ai-boom-offsets-trade-headwinds-2026-01-19/

• Economic Conflict Emerges as the World’s Top Risk, WEF Survey Finds
  https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jan/14/economic-conflicts-are-worlds-greatest-risk-wef-survey-suggests

• AI’s Biggest Risk Isn’t Hype — It’s Security, Warn Leaders at Davos
  https://www.businessinsider.com/ai-security-risks-worry-ey-kpmg-execs-cybersecurity-davos-2026-1

• Eight Ways AI Will Shape Geopolitics in 2026
  https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/dispatches/eight-ways-ai-will-shape-geopolitics-in-2026/

• How 2026 Could Decide the Future of Artificial Intelligence
  https://www.cfr.org/article/how-2026-could-decide-future-artificial-intelligence

• Journalism, Media, and Technology Trends & Predictions for 2026
  https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/journalism-media-and-technology-trends-and-predictions-2026

• Top Global Risks for 2026
  https://www.stimson.org/2026/top-ten-global-risks-for-2026/

• AI Ethics Trends That Will Redefine Trust and Accountability in 2026
  https://bernardmarr.com/8-ai-ethics-trends-that-will-redefine-trust-and-accountability-in-2026/

Why this matters

Technology in 2026 is no longer a neutral tool.

It’s becoming a core driver of power, leverage, and constraint — shaping how economies function, how states compete, and how ethical boundaries are tested.

Understanding these shifts early isn’t about prediction for its own sake.
It’s about recognizing where friction is unavoidable — and where choices still exist.

🎙️ About Rethinking Tech

Rethinking Tech explores the intersection of technology, geopolitics, business, and ethics — focusing on how systems actually work, not just how they’re talked about.

We analyze structure, incentives, and consequences — without hype.

🔗 Connect with Us

📺 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@RethinkingTech
🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6NYgOPmYW6Ba2LFn3IBST3
🍏 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rethinking-tech/id1795651530
📸 TikTok: @rethinking_tech
💼 LinkedIn: Rethinking Tech Podcast
👤 Aparna: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aparnabhushan/
👤 Harinda: https://www.linkedin.com/in/harindak/