Today, President Biden signed a law banning TikTok, assuming it can't work out some long-shot deal to sell to a U.S. owner. TikTok of course is going to fight all this in court. Editor in Chief at The Verge, and host of the Decoder podcast, Nilay Patel joins Taylor Lorenz to discuss TikTok’s uncertain future.
Later, YouTube star Marques Brownlee aka MKBHD stops by to discuss how one critical review turned him into the internet's main character, his favorite tech products of 2024, and where the tech landscape is headed.

Full video of this episode will be available on Taylor's YouTube channel


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Sell or Die. TikTok’s Sophie’s Choice + MKBHD on his viral ‘takedowns’

Power User explores how technology and the internet are upending our lives and the world around us. Each week, tech journalist Taylor Lorenz explores everything from online fame to emerging platforms, viral phenomena to the creator economy, and much more. Tune in on Thursdays for the most influential stories that Silicon Valley often ignores.
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This week, TikTok creators sue the US government over free speech, Bumble tells women to get busy, YouTube’s CEO wants creators to win Emmys, and Google’s new AI gives some bad advice.

Later, Taylor Lorenz chats with Kate Lindsay, co-founder of the Embedded newsletter, about a new social media movement called “Blockout 2024.” The campaign encourages users to block celebrities who haven’t publicly condemned the attacks in Gaza. But is it working? 

Full video of this episode will be available on Taylor's YouTube channel


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Is the celebrity 'blockout' working? + TikTok creators sue the U.S.

Bloomberg’s Ashley Carman joins Taylor Lorenz to discuss the current state of audio and its creator economy. They discuss Spotify's impact and how close we are to achieving the decade-long dream of viral audio. Plus, Ashley takes us into the ridiculous world of fake podcast ads on TikTok and the rise of audiobooks and AI narrators.
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What's up with Fake Podcast Ads, AI Audiobooks and the Audio Creator Economy?

Kanye West accused one of the most popular Twitch streamers, Kai Cenat, of being an “industry plant.” It perpetuated the idea that some internet celebrities became famous thanks to invisible forces pulling the strings. But in a business as fickle as online content creation, is an industry plant even possible? Taylor Lorenz asks Maxwell Mitcheson, a partner at Underscore Talent.

Later, Taylor weighs in on Aaron Sorkin hinting at a possible follow-up to The Social Network, plans for a new tech utopia in San Francisco, Adam Mosseri’s big Instagram update, and Threads hitting 150 million active users.

Full video of this episode will be available on Taylor's YouTube channel


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Are "Industry Plants" Real? + 'The Social Network' Sequel

AI is causing chaos and confusion in pop music. Drake and Kendrick Lamar are feuding through diss tracks, but people can’t seem to tell if these songs are real or artificially generated. Taylor Lorenz brings in New York Times pop music critic Jon Caramanica to get to the bottom of it all. Plus, how Chappell Roan broke through the algorithm and Taylor Swift's return to TikTok.
Later, Taylor Lorenz weighs in on an upcoming AI-generated beauty pageant, Elon’s plan to rid X of bots by forcing new users to pay, an open letter from TikTok creators to President Biden, and Marques Brownlee’s scathing review of the Humane AI Pin.

Full video of this episode will be available on Taylor's YouTube channel.


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Sell or Die. TikTok’s Sophie’s Choice + MKBHD on his viral ‘takedowns’

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