This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we take a closer look at the earnings reports from Microsoft and Amazon this week, as a litmus test for artificial intelligence demand and the state of the economy. We also consider the implications of Boeing's new CEO being based in the Seattle region, discuss a new AI tool that aims to streamline marketing tasks, and weigh in on the backlash to Google's Olympics ad for its Gemini AI chatbot
Microsoft capital spending soars to $19B, betting big on AI, as Azure growth underwhelms Wall Street
Amazon sales come up short, profits nearly double
Amazon looks to reduce costs to compete more aggressively on price as consumer habits shift
Boeing chooses its next CEO — and he will reportedly be based back in Seattle
Seattle tech vets launch 'Spok,' an AI copilot that aims to streamline marketing tasks – GeekWire
CNBC:Google pulls AI ad for Olympics following backlash

With GeekWire co-founder Todd Bishop and editor Taylor Soper.

This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we take a closer look at the earnings reports from Microsoft and Amazon this week, as a litmus test for artificial intelligence demand and the state of the economy. We also consider the implications of Boeing's new CEO being based in the Seattle region, discuss a new AI tool that aims to streamline marketing tasks, and weigh in on the backlash to Google's Olympics ad for its Gemini AI chatbot
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.geekwire.com/2024/microsoft-capital-spending-soars-to-19b-betting-big-on-ai-as-azure-growth-underwhelms-wall-street/">Microsoft capital spending soars to $19B, betting big on AI, as Azure growth underwhelms Wall Street</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.geekwire.com/2024/amazon-revenue-misses-expectations-but-profits-nearly-double-in-second-quarter-results/">Amazon sales come up short, profits nearly double</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.geekwire.com/2024/amazon-looks-to-reduce-costs-to-compete-more-aggressively-on-price/">Amazon looks to reduce costs to compete more aggressively on price as consumer habits shift</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.geekwire.com/2024/boeing-next-ceo-kelly-ortberg-seattle/">Boeing chooses its next CEO — and he will reportedly be based back in Seattle</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.geekwire.com/2024/seattle-tech-vets-launch-spok-an-ai-copilot-that-aims-to-streamline-marketing-tasks/">Seattle tech vets launch 'Spok,' an AI copilot that aims to streamline marketing tasks – GeekWire</a></li>
<li>CNBC: <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/02/google-pulls-ai-ad-for-olympics-following-backlash.html?__source=twitter%7Ctech&amp;amp;taid=66ad2dbf4980560001587387&amp;amp;utm_campaign=trueanthem&amp;amp;utm_medium=social&amp;amp;utm_source=twitter">Google pulls AI ad for Olympics following backlash</a></li>
</ul>
With GeekWire co-founder Todd Bishop and editor Taylor Soper.

GeekWire brings you the week's latest technology news, trends and insights, covering the world of technology from our home base in Seattle. Our regular news podcast features commentary and analysis from our editors and reporters, plus interviews with special guests.

GeekWire reporters John Cook, Todd Bishop and guests talk about the latest tech news and trends.

GeekWire

Microsoft, Amazon, AI, the economy, and another bad tech ad

This week on the GeekWire Podcast, our guest is entrepreneur and investor Ben Gilbert,  co-founder and co-host of the hit podcast Acquired.

Ben and his colleague David Rosenthal have developed a huge following for their deep-dive, long-form podcasts telling the stories behind some of the most successful companies in the world, and they recently released Microsoft Volume II, the second installment in their epic exploration of the Redmond-based technology giant. 

We talk about Microsoft's misunderstood era, with help from some archival highlights from GeekWire co-founder Todd Bishop's interviews with Bill Gates over the years. It’s a timely topic given Microsoft’s 50th anniversary in 2025 and the company's resurgence as one of the most valuable and relevant companies in the tech industry with the rise of AI. 

Before we jump in, we ask Ben to catch us up on all things Acquired. The podcast is the talk of Silicon Valley and Wall Street, as documented in a Wall Street Journal profile. Acquired just announced a live arena show coming up on Sept. 10 featuring Mark Zuckerberg at Chase Center in San Francisco, the home of the Golden State Warriors. 

Edited and produced by Curt Milton.

This week on the GeekWire Podcast, our guest is entrepreneur and investor <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjamingilbert">Ben Gilbert</a>,  co-founder and co-host of the hit podcast <a href="https://www.acquired.fm/">Acquired</a>.
Ben and his colleague <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidjamesrosenthal">David Rosenthal </a>have developed a huge following for their deep-dive, long-form podcasts telling the stories behind some of the most successful companies in the world, and they <a href="https://www.acquired.fm/episodes/microsoft-volume-ii">recently released Microsoft Volume II</a>, the second installment in their epic exploration of the Redmond-based technology giant. 
We talk about Microsoft's misunderstood era, with help from some archival highlights from GeekWire co-founder Todd Bishop's interviews with Bill Gates over the years. It’s a timely topic given Microsoft’s 50th anniversary in 2025 and the company's resurgence as one of the most valuable and relevant companies in the tech industry with the rise of AI. 
Before we jump in, we ask Ben to catch us up on all things Acquired. The podcast is the talk of Silicon Valley and Wall Street, as documented in <a href="https://www.wsj.com/business/media/acquired-podcast-tech-business-history-strategy-90e73603?st=4r6scqxfejr0b11&amp;reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink">a Wall Street Journal profile</a>. Acquired just announced <a href="https://acquired.ck.page/33e2ba3c3f">a live arena show</a> coming up on Sept. 10 featuring Mark Zuckerberg at Chase Center in San Francisco, the home of the Golden State Warriors. 
Edited and produced by Curt Milton.

Microsoft's misunderstood era: Ben Gilbert of 'Acquired' on the tech giant's most pivotal years

This week: the aftermath of the CrowdStrike outage, the larger forces at play, the future of cybersecurity, and where the world is headed long-term.

Our guest is Erik Moore, a veteran of the cybersecurity field and program director for the online Master of Science Program in Cybersecurity Leadership at Seattle University's Albers School of Business and Economics.

Moore says cybersecurity companies are facing faster and more complex threats due to factors including AI, and geopolitical and financial forces, requiring quicker responses. Current testing and deployment processes need to be overhauled handle these new challenges effectively. But long-term, he's optimistic about where the field and the world are headed.

Related Links 
GeekWire News Coverage: ‘A little frightening’: CrowdStrike outage puts Microsoft’s role in global IT back in the spotlight 
CrowdStrike Blog Post: Technical Details on Today’s Outage
Microsoft: Helping our customers through the CrowdStrike outage
Seattle University: Master of Science Program in Cybersecurity Leadership
CNBC: CrowdStrike update that caused global outage likely skipped checks, experts say
KING-5: CrowdStrike Outage Hits Microsoft 
Channel News Asia: What do we know about CrowdStrike?

This week: the aftermath of the CrowdStrike outage, the larger forces at play, the future of cybersecurity, and where the world is headed long-term.
Our guest is <a href="https://www.seattleu.edu/directory/profiles/erik-moore.php">Erik Moore</a>, a veteran of the cybersecurity field and program director for the online <a href="https://www.seattleu.edu/academics/all-programs/online-masters-cybersecurity-leadership/">Master of Science Program in Cybersecurity Leadership</a> at Seattle University's Albers School of Business and Economics.
Moore says cybersecurity companies are facing faster and more complex threats due to factors including AI, and geopolitical and financial forces, requiring quicker responses. Current testing and deployment processes need to be overhauled handle these new challenges effectively. But long-term, he's optimistic about where the field and the world are headed.
Related Links 
<ul>
<ul>
<li>GeekWire News Coverage: <a href="https://www.geekwire.com/2024/a-little-frightening-crowdstrike-outage-puts-microsofts-role-in-critical-infrastructure-back-in-the-spotlight/">‘A little frightening’: CrowdStrike outage puts Microsoft’s role in global IT back in the spotlight </a></li>
<li>CrowdStrike Blog Post: <a href="https://www.crowdstrike.com/blog/technical-details-on-todays-outage/">Technical Details on Today’s Outage</a></li>
<li>Microsoft: <a href="https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2024/07/20/helping-our-customers-through-the-crowdstrike-outage/">Helping our customers through the CrowdStrike outage</a></li>
<li>Seattle University: <a href="https://www.seattleu.edu/academics/all-programs/online-masters-cybersecurity-leadership/">Master of Science Program in Cybersecurity Leadership</a></li>
<li>CNBC: <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2024/07/20/crowdstrike-update-that-caused-global-outage-likely-skipped-checks-experts-say.html?__source=twitter%7Ctech&amp;amp;taid=669bb83020f1650001b618c7&amp;amp;utm_campaign=trueanthem&amp;amp;utm_medium=social&amp;amp;utm_source=twitter">CrowdStrike update that caused global outage likely skipped checks, experts say</a></li>
<li>KING-5: <a href="https://youtu.be/57EHkBtM2xk?si=A84pS6HDIsBiZDQp">CrowdStrike Outage Hits Microsoft </a></li>
<li>Channel News Asia: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgOuMbAgwqo">What do we know about CrowdStrike?</a></li>
</ul>
</ul>

Beyond the CrowdStrike outage: The larger forces at play, and a long-term view on cybersecurity

This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we catch up on the latest twist in the New York Times' lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft over the alleged use of its reporting to train GPT-4 and other large language models. The NYT is fighting OpenAI’s request to turn over reporters’ notes, interview memos, and other materials used to produce stories, to prove they were worthy of copyright. 

On a related topic, we take a closer listen to Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman's comments about AI and fair use at the Aspen Ideas Festival, which were more nuanced than some of the coverage might have made them appear. Watch Suleyman's full conversation with Andrew Ross Sorkin here.

Turning to the Seattle startup scene, an entrepreneurial supergroup has quietly formed a new electric vehicle charging startup, Juicer Energy, that appears poised to create a marketplace connecting homeowners and others with personal EV charging stations to EV owners in need of places to charge up their vehicles.

In the return of our "My AI" segment, we explore the concept of using AI to turn email into a database that can be intelligently mined, in this case with Google Gemini in Gmail and Google Workspace.

We also talk about using Microsoft Copilot in the Edge browser for domain-specific queries, and discuss the importance of treating AI not as an authoritative oracle but rather as a partner in the quest for insight.

On a related note, we suggest an episode of the "Think Fast, Talk Smart" podcast, called "How to Chat with Bots." (Thanks to Mark Briggs for the recommendation.)

With GeekWire co-founders John Cook and Todd Bishop.

This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we catch up on the latest twist in the New York Times' lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft over the alleged use of its reporting to train GPT-4 and other large language models. The NYT is <a href="https://www.geekwire.com/2024/new-york-times-co-fights-openais-request-for-reporters-source-materials-in-copyright-dispute/">fighting OpenAI’s request</a> to turn over reporters’ notes, interview memos, and other materials used to produce stories, to prove they were worthy of copyright. 
On a related topic, we take a closer listen to Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman's <a href="https://www.techradar.com/pro/microsoft-ai-ceo-says-content-published-online-is-freeware-to-help-train-ai">comments about AI and fair use</a> at the Aspen Ideas Festival, which were more nuanced than some of the coverage might have made them appear. Watch Suleyman's full conversation with Andrew Ross Sorkin <a href="https://youtu.be/lPvqvt55l3A?si=KHyaEvobQDkBMK6P">here</a>.
Turning to the Seattle startup scene, an entrepreneurial supergroup has quietly formed a new electric vehicle charging startup, <a href="https://www.geekwire.com/2024/former-offerup-and-auth0-ceos-lead-secretive-new-ev-charging-startup-with-high-powered-exec-team/">Juicer Energy</a>, that appears poised to create a marketplace connecting homeowners and others with personal EV charging stations to EV owners in need of places to charge up their vehicles.
In the return of our "My AI" segment, we explore the concept of using AI to turn email into a database that can be intelligently mined, in this case with Google <a href="https://workspaceupdates.googleblog.com/2024/06/gemini-in-side-panel-of-google-docs-sheets-slides-drive.html">Gemini in Gmail and Google Workspace</a>.
We also talk about using Microsoft Copilot in the Edge browser for domain-specific queries, and discuss the importance of treating AI not as an authoritative oracle but rather as a partner in the quest for insight.
On a related note, we suggest an episode of the "Think Fast, Talk Smart" podcast, called <a href="https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/how-chat-bots-secrets-getting-information-you-need-ai">"How to Chat with Bots."</a> (Thanks to <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/markbriggs/">Mark Briggs</a> for the recommendation.)
With GeekWire co-founders John Cook and Todd Bishop.

Microsoft, Amazon, AI, the economy, and another bad tech ad

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