In a special live-to-tape episode of Better Offline, Ed is joined by The Verge's Alex Cranz and YouTube influencer Michael Fisher to talk about what they're actually enjoying in the tech industry - and why things don't feel quite as magical and exciting as they used to.

https://www.youtube.com/@TheMrMobile

https://www.theverge.com/authors/alex-cranz 

In a special live-to-tape episode of Better Offline, Ed is joined by The Verge's Alex Cranz and YouTube influencer Michael Fisher to talk about what they're actually enjoying in the tech industry - and why things don't feel quite as magical and exciting as they used to.
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/@TheMrMobile">https://www.youtube.com/@TheMrMobile</a>
<a href="https://www.theverge.com/authors/alex-cranz">https://www.theverge.com/authors/alex-cranz</a>&nbsp;

Better Offline is a weekly show exploring the tech industry’s influence and manipulation of society - and interrogating the growth-at-all-costs future that tech’s elite wants to build. 

Combining narrative-form storytelling, one-on-one interviews and panel-based discussions, Better Offline cuts through the buzzwords and obfuscation of the tech industry, investigating and evaluating the schemes and scams of everyone from cryptocurrency scumbags to the greediest of the venture capital elite. Tech industry veteran Ed Zitron and a dynamic coterie of guests will help listeners understand the who, how and why of how tech’s most powerful players are changing the world - for better or for worse.

Better Offline is a weekly show exploring the tech industry’s influence and manipulation of society - and interrogating the growth-at-all-costs future that tech’s elite wants to build. 
Combining narrative-form storytelling, one-on-one interviews and panel-based discussions, Better Offline cuts through the buzzwords and obfuscation of the tech industry, investigating and evaluating the schemes and scams of everyone from cryptocurrency scumbags to the greediest of the venture capital elite. Tech industry veteran Ed Zitron and a dynamic coterie of guests will help listeners understand the who, how and why of how tech’s most powerful players are changing the world - for better or for worse.

Better Offline

Better Offline is a weekly show exploring the tech industry’s influence and manipulation of society - and interrogating the growth-at-all-costs future that tech’s elite wants to build.



Combining narrative-form storytelling, one-on-one interviews and panel-based discussions, Better Offline cuts through the buzzwords and obfuscation of the tech industry, investigating and evaluating the schemes and scams of everyone from cryptocurrency scumbags to the greediest of the venture capital elite. Tech industry veteran Ed Zitron and a dynamic coterie of guests will help listeners understand the who, how and why of how tech’s most powerful players are changing the world - for better or for worse.

Better Offline is a weekly show exploring the tech industry’s influence and manipulation of society - and interrogating the growth-at-all-costs future that tech’s elite wants to build.
 
Combining narrative-form storytelling, one-on-one interviews and panel-based discussions, Better Offline cuts through the buzzwords and obfuscation of the tech industry, investigating and evaluating the schemes and scams of everyone from cryptocurrency scumbags to the greediest of the venture capital elite. Tech industry veteran Ed Zitron and a dynamic coterie of guests will help listeners understand the who, how and why of how tech’s most powerful players are changing the world - for better or for worse.

Where Did Tech's Magic Go? feat. Alex Cranz and Michael Fisher

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/7858c896-c127-44c9-b54a-b19a016c7100/transcript

This week’s Better Offline is a recording of a panel held by Clarion West in Seattle earlier this year with Cory Doctorow and Ed Zitron, discussing enshittification, The Rot Economy, and the destruction of modern tech platforms, moderated by Whitney Beltrán.

Original Air Date: 11.12.25

Cory Doctorow: https://craphound.com/
Whitney Beltrán: https://brightwhitney.com/

Get involved with Clarion West: https://www.clarionwest.org/get-involved/give/

Clarion West is a nonprofit literary organization that runs an acclaimed six-week residential workshop every summer, online classes and workshops, one-day and weekend workshops, a reading series every summer, and other events throughout the year. At Clarion West, you’ll be among award-winning and best-selling writers in science fiction, fantasy, games, horror, and more. Our workshops and classes are taught by world-class instructors from across the field of speculative fiction. Wherever you may be in your career, whether novice or sage, we offer a diverse listing of classes that is packed with valuable information to take your writing to the next level.

Want to support me? Get $10 off a year’s subscription to my premium newsletter: https://edzitronswheresyouredatghostio.outpost.pub/public/promo-subscription/w08jbm4jwg it would mean a lot!

YOU CAN NOW BUY BETTER OFFLINE MERCH! Go to https://cottonbureau.com/people/better-offline and use code FREE99 for free shipping on orders of $99 or more.

---

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Email Me: ez@betteroffline.com

This week&rsquo;s Better Offline is a recording of a panel held by Clarion West in Seattle earlier this year with Cory Doctorow and Ed Zitron, discussing enshittification, The Rot Economy, and the destruction of modern tech platforms, moderated by Whitney Beltr&aacute;n.
Original Air Date: 11.12.25 Cory Doctorow: <a href="https://craphound.com/">https://craphound.com/</a> Whitney Beltr&aacute;n: <a href="https://brightwhitney.com/">https://brightwhitney.com/</a>
Get involved with Clarion West: <a href="https://www.clarionwest.org/get-involved/give/">https://www.clarionwest.org/get-involved/give/</a> Clarion West is a nonprofit literary organization that runs an acclaimed six-week residential workshop every summer, online classes and workshops, one-day and weekend workshops, a reading series every summer, and other events throughout the year.&nbsp;At Clarion West, you&rsquo;ll be among award-winning and best-selling writers in science fiction, fantasy, games, horror, and more. Our workshops and classes are taught by world-class instructors from across the field of speculative fiction. Wherever you may be in your career, whether novice or sage, we offer a diverse listing of classes that is packed with valuable information to take your writing to the next level.
Want to support me? Get $10 off a year&rsquo;s subscription to my premium newsletter: <a href="https://edzitronswheresyouredatghostio.outpost.pub/public/promo-subscription/w08jbm4jwg">https://edzitronswheresyouredatghostio.outpost.pub/public/promo-subscription/w08jbm4jwg</a> it would mean a lot!
YOU CAN NOW BUY BETTER OFFLINE MERCH! Go to <a href="https://cottonbureau.com/people/better-offline">https://cottonbureau.com/people/better-offline</a> and use code&nbsp;FREE99 for free shipping on orders of $99 or more.
---
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CZM Rewind: Cory Doctorow and Ed Zitron on Enshittification and the Rot Economy

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/a059ae43-c969-4ff8-9b4e-b4410114f38a/transcript

In this week's Better Offline monologue, Ed Zitron runs through how 70-80% of Amazon and Microsoft’s AI revenue and capacity is taken up by OpenAI and Anthropic, and how capacity constraints across the industry are a result of hyperscalers sacrificing their infrastructure to the least-profitable startups of all time.

Premium newsletter out later today - AI’s Demand Story Is A Lie - save $10 off a year of my premium newsletter: https://edzitronswheresyouredatghostio.outpost.pub/public/promo-subscription/gzqwkv54e1

YOU CAN NOW BUY BETTER OFFLINE MERCH! Go to https://cottonbureau.com/people/better-offline and use code FREE99 for free shipping on orders of $99 or more.

---

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Email Me: ez@betteroffline.com

In this week's Better Offline monologue, Ed Zitron runs through how 70-80% of Amazon and Microsoft&rsquo;s AI revenue and capacity is taken up by OpenAI and Anthropic, and how capacity constraints across the industry are a result of hyperscalers sacrificing their infrastructure to the least-profitable startups of all time. Premium newsletter out later today - AI&rsquo;s Demand Story Is A Lie - save $10 off a year of my premium newsletter: <a href="https://edzitronswheresyouredatghostio.outpost.pub/public/promo-subscription/gzqwkv54e1">https://edzitronswheresyouredatghostio.outpost.pub/public/promo-subscription/gzqwkv54e1</a>
YOU CAN NOW BUY BETTER OFFLINE MERCH! Go to&nbsp;<a href="https://cottonbureau.com/people/better-offline">https://cottonbureau.com/people/better-offline</a> and use code&nbsp;FREE99 for free shipping on orders of $99 or more.
---
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Email Me: <a href="mailto:ez@betteroffline.com">ez@betteroffline.com</a>

Monologue: AI's Compute Demand Story Is A Lie

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/5b59a2c7-4ecc-490c-84ea-b43c0156ed25/transcript

On this week’s Better Offline, Ed Zitron digs into Palantir’s 22-point manifesto with Caleb and June from Kill The Computer.

The Manifesto: https://x.com/PalantirTech/status/2045574398573453312 

Caleb and June
https://bsky.app/profile/birdrespecter.bsky.social

https://bsky.app/profile/killthecomputer.com

https://bsky.app/profile/junlper.beer

https://x.com/canteverdie

Please support me by subscribing to my premium newsletter - here’s $10 off your first year of annual https://edzitronswheresyouredatghostio.outpost.pub/public/promo-subscription/84rt762qen 

YOU CAN NOW BUY BETTER OFFLINE MERCH! Go to https://cottonbureau.com/people/better-offline and use code FREE99 for free shipping on orders of $99 or more.

---

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https://www.instagram.com/edzitron

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Email Me: ez@betteroffline.com

On this week&rsquo;s Better Offline, Ed Zitron digs into Palantir&rsquo;s 22-point manifesto with Caleb and June from Kill The Computer. The Manifesto: <a href="https://x.com/PalantirTech/status/2045574398573453312">https://x.com/PalantirTech/status/2045574398573453312</a>&nbsp; Caleb and June <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/birdrespecter.bsky.social">https://bsky.app/profile/birdrespecter.bsky.social</a>
<a href="https://bsky.app/profile/killthecomputer.com">https://bsky.app/profile/killthecomputer.com</a>
<a href="https://bsky.app/profile/junlper.beer">https://bsky.app/profile/junlper.beer</a>
<a href="https://x.com/canteverdie">https://x.com/canteverdie</a>
Please support me by subscribing to my premium newsletter - here&rsquo;s $10 off your first year of annual&nbsp;<a href="https://edzitronswheresyouredatghostio.outpost.pub/public/promo-subscription/84rt762qen">https://edzitronswheresyouredatghostio.outpost.pub/public/promo-subscription/84rt762qen</a>&nbsp;
YOU CAN NOW BUY BETTER OFFLINE MERCH! Go to&nbsp;<a href="https://cottonbureau.com/people/better-offline">https://cottonbureau.com/people/better-offline</a> and use code&nbsp;FREE99 for free shipping on orders of $99 or more.
---
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Palantir's Manifesto with June and Caleb from KTC

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/d0b49030-54f9-4bc5-934f-b43a013cc9e3/transcript

Where Did Tech's Magic Go? feat. Alex Cranz and Michael Fisher

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