Sharp Tech with Ben Thompson

By Ben Thompson

A podcast about understanding how tech works and the way it is changing the world. Hosted by Andrew Sharp with Ben Thompson.... more

· Technology

4.7

9090 ratings

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FAQs about Sharp Tech with Ben Thompson:

How many episodes does Sharp Tech with Ben Thompson have?

The podcast currently has 225 episodes available.

Sharp Tech with Ben Thompson episodes:

May 08, 2025 Apple and the Power of Platforms, AI Comes for Google Search, ChatGPT Comes for Higher Education
Talking Platform Power and 15 years of App Store arguments, with topics including Ben's memories from Microsoft, the difference between regulating platforms and aggregators, and the case for intervening in the App Store today. Then: Eddy Cue testifies that Apple is exploring AI search options for Safari, and a New York Magazine feature on ChatGPT in colleges sparks thoughts on tech, higher education, and Blue Books.
To email the show: [email protected]
@SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube
@Stratechery Channel — YouTube
Platform Power Is Underrated — Stratechery
Apple Eyes Move to AI Search, Ending Era Defined by Google — Bloomberg
Everyone Is Cheating Their Way Through College — NY Mag
AI Homework — Stratechery
Get all episodes of Sharp Tech, Sharp China, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk, Asianometry and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year.
...more
1h 20min
May 05, 2025 (Preview) What’s Next for Apple and the App Store, The Risks of Continuing This Fight, More on Meta and Its AI Vision
Ben's Daily Update on Friday and Apple's argument appealing the order in Epic v. Apple, the risks facing Apple as they've continued to fight these battles the past several years, and questions for the future as the present gets increasingly messy. At the end: Meta's plans for AI business agents, an emailer asks whether Meta's message today means Facebook failed yesterday, and a proposal for AI officiating in the NBA is soundly rejected.
To email the show: [email protected]
@SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube
@Stratechery Channel — YouTube
Apple Held in Contempt, The Crux of the Case, The Takings Clause — Stratechery Update
Get all episodes of Sharp Tech, Sharp China, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk, Asianometry and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year.
...more
14min
May 01, 2025 (Preview) Meta and Its Many Plans in AI, Apple Gets Hammered in Court, The Costs of Waiting to Do the Right Thing
A 360 degree look at Meta's AI efforts after Ben's sitdown with Mark Zuckerberg and Meta's launch of a standalone AI app. Then: Reactions to Wednesday's holding that Apple violated a court order and may be criminally liable for its behavior, responses to an email about a broadened understanding of consumer welfare, and a Punchbowl News headache for Amazon.
To email the show: [email protected]
@SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube
@Stratechery Channel — YouTube
An Interview with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg About AI and the Evolution of Social Media — Stratechery Interview
Meta’s AI Abundance — Stratechery
Apple Dealt Stinging Court Defeat on App Store Sales Commissions — Bloomberg
Amazon, Trump, and Tariff Costs; Amazon Haul and Temu; Political Lessons — Stratechery Update
Get all episodes of Sharp Tech, Sharp China, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk, Asianometry and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year.
...more
11min
April 28, 2025 (Preview) All About AI Companions: Personalization Upsides, Dystopian Downsides, AI Therapy, Advertising Tension, and Lots More
After last week's conversation about AI for companionship, Ben and Andrew answer emails about the future of personalized LLM answers, speculative costs and benefits, the tension between building trust and building a product with 3 billion customers, and much more.
To email the show: [email protected]
@SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube
@Stratechery Channel — YouTube
ChatGPT Memory, Boundaries and AI Companions, Auren — Stratechery Update
Tech’s Two Philosophies — Stratechery
How People Are Really Using Gen AI in 2025 — Harvard Business Review
Get all episodes of Sharp Tech, Sharp China, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk, Asianometry and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year.
...more
11min
April 24, 2025 Apple and the Ghosts of Companies Past, Privacy at the Expense of Performance, The Cook Question
Talking through Ben's article on Apple and the Ghosts of Companies Past, including Apple's religious commitment to privacy, untapped platform potential in AI, parallels to Intel, and why Tim Cook is probably the wrong CEO to undertake the cultural shifts today that may be required for the company to thrive tomorrow. At the end: An AppleTV+ public service announcement.
To email the show: [email protected]
@SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube
@Stratechery Channel — YouTube
Apple and the Ghosts of Companies Past — Stratechery
The Intel Opportunity — Stratechery
The Deal That Makes No Sense — Stratechery
Apple is Losing Over $1 Billion a Year on Streaming Service — The Information
Get all episodes of Sharp Tech, Sharp China, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk, Asianometry and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year.
...more
1h 1min
April 21, 2025 (Preview) What Memory Can Do for ChatGPT, OpenAI's Future and Google's Circles Past, What College Football Can Teach Us About Tech
Talking through the implications of memory capabilities for ChatGPT, the future of AI companionship, OpenAI's platform ambitions, and why Google Circles never found a market. At the end: College football, tech, and a bit of Bell Labs history.
To email the show: [email protected]
@SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube
@Stratechery Channel — YouTube
ChatGPT can now remember and reference all your previous chats — Ars Technica
ChatGPT Memory, Boundaries and AI Companions, Auren — Stratechery Update
Get all episodes of Sharp Tech, Sharp China, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk, Asianometry and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year.
...more
16min
April 17, 2025 Three Eras of Facebook (and the Internet), The Problems with FTC v. Meta, The Realities of Perfect Competition
Tracing the history of Facebook to understand the challenges for the government in this month's FTC v. Meta trial, and thoughts on the nature of competition on the Internet and its impact on the economy at large.
To email the show: [email protected]
@SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube
@Stratechery Channel — YouTube
Meta v. FTC, The Three Facebook Eras, Video Slop and Market Forces — Stratechery Update
Regulators and Reality — Stratechery
Get all episodes of Sharp Tech, Sharp China, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk, Asianometry and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year.
...more
1h 10min
April 14, 2025 (Preview) Apple Gets a Temporary Reprieve, The End of Internet 2.0, An Incomplete Tech Blog Post Canon
Andrew and Ben discuss another weekend of pivots, updates and clarifications to the Trump trade policies, the big picture shifts and fundamental questions underlying these policies, a question about Spotify, and Stevie's platform rant inspires an emailer's request for a tech blog post canon.
To email the show: [email protected]
@SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube
@Stratechery Channel — YouTube
Apple Was on Brink of Crisis Before Trump Tariff Concession — Bloomberg
Internet 3.0 and the Beginning of (Tech) History — Stratechery
Strategy Letter V — Joel on Software
The Bitter Lesson — Rich Sutton
Stevey's Google Platforms Rant — Github Gist: chitchcock
Complexity and Strategy — Terry Crowley
The Tinkerings of Robert Noyce — Tom Wolfe
The Spirit Of The Internet — The Awl
The only thing that matters — Marc Andreessen
Get all episodes of Sharp Tech, Sharp China, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk, Asianometry and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year.
...more
12min
April 10, 2025 American Disruption, Tech’s Manufacturing History in Asia, The Power of Demand in an Uncertain Future
Ben and Andrew return to discuss Liberation Day whiplash, Apple’s history in China and tech’s history in Asia, and the various challenges inherent to the efforts to rejuvenate America’s industrial capacity. At the end: Ben recaps a visit to a Formula 1 race in Japan.
To email the show: [email protected]
@SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube
@Stratechery Channel — YouTube
American Disruption — Stratechery
Trade, Tariffs, and Tech — Stratechery Update
A Chance to Build — Stratechery
How Apple tied its fortunes to China — Financial Times
Get all episodes of Sharp Tech, Sharp China, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk, Asianometry and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year.
...more
1h 15min
March 31, 2025 (Preview) xAI Buys X, The Bitter Lesson for Everyone, Everywhere, Google’s Only Hope in AI
Thoughts on both X and xAI in the wake of Friday’s announcement from Elon Musk, Chat GPT’s image capabilities and whether AI-adjacent SaaS companies will ever have a moat, and emailers offer counterpoints on Sam Altman’s ads answer and the notion that Google can’t make great products anymore. At the end: Should Substack serve ads?, answers on Israeli cybersecurity, and more on Steve Jobs and Studio Ghibli.
To email the show: [email protected]
@SharpTechPodcast Channel — YouTube
@Stratechery Channel — YouTube
Musk Merges His AI Company With X, Claiming Combined Value of $113 Billion — Wall Street Journal
Thread from @realEstateTrent — X
Stevey's Google Platforms Rant — Github Gist
ChatGPT 4o Adds Image Generation and It’s Fun as Hell — Daring Fireball
Get all episodes of Sharp Tech, Sharp China, Stratechery Updates and Interviews, Greatest of All Talk, Asianometry and the Dithering Podcast as part of Stratechery Plus for $15/month or $150/year.
...more
13min

FAQs about Sharp Tech with Ben Thompson:

How many episodes does Sharp Tech with Ben Thompson have?

The podcast currently has 225 episodes available.

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