How a bad bet built the internet: a short history of bubbles

According to a Harvard economist, spending on data centers and artificial intelligence accounted for 92% of U.S. economic growth in the first half of last year.    That's fueled speculation that we’re in an AI bubble, because spending on that level doesn’t feel sustainable. If the bubble pops and …

Housing costs dropped in Austin. How they did the impossible

Austin, Texas is not a cheap place. But for the last few years, it’s been a real outlier. While many cities saw rent go up, Austin’s average rent actually fell. A lot.  On today's episode, what is Austin doing right? And what could Seattle learn from it?  GUEST: Audrey McGlinchy, Housing reporter…

Sports ticket prices have skyrocketed. Here's why (encore)

Happy New Year! The Booming team is taking a week to rest and recharge before the new year begins...we’ve got lots of new episodes up our sleeve that we’re excited to share with you.   In the meantime, we wanted to revisit some of our favorite episodes. This one is about the rising costs of Seattl…

How stores are spying on you (encore)

The Booming team is hard at work on some new episodes coming out next year. In the meantime, we wanted to revisit some of our favorite stories this holiday season. We think this one will be particularly useful for those of you still doing some last-minute holiday shopping. It explores the ways AI …

How does Seattle's cost of living stack up to other cities?

We all know the cost of living is really high in Seattle. Whether it's housing or groceries, this town is a tough place to make ends meet.  But just how expensive is Seattle compared to other cities? On today's episode, Monica talked to a researcher who sends armies of shoppers to find out. And w…

The climate migrants seeking refuge in the PNW

The Pacific Northwest has been booming for decades, and home builders have struggled to keep up.   That’s led to a housing shortage, homelessness crisis, and transportation headaches. But we may see an even bigger population boom here as climate change makes more places unlivable.   Climate migra…

What happens to Seattle if the AI bubble pops?

You may have heard that the economy is maybe... definitely... probably... in an “AI bubble.”  Companies are spending hundreds of billions of dollars to build the AI infrastructure of the future. The hope is all that spending will pay off with super-advanced AI that will more than cover the cost of…

BONUS: The future of Seattle's highways

Happy Thanksgiving! We hope you enjoy this bonus episode. The Booming team recorded a live event a few weeks ago at the Seattle Public Library about the future of Seattle’s highways – so we wanted to drop it in the feed in case you missed it.   Booming's Joshua McNichols co-hosted the event with …

Can the power of a star lower our electric bills?

Our power grid is maxing out. We're plugging in electric cars, massive data centers, and heat pumps all at once. And it's not stopping anytime soon. Demand is expected to grow by 30% over the next ten years.   And the increasing demand is spiking our energy bills. But Big Tech is betting on a solu…

Is coding dead? This professor doesn't think so

On our most recent episode, we reported on how tons of young people are choosing trade school over college out of fear of white-collar jobs drying up. Companies appearto be making big bets that AI can replace huge chunks of their workforces.  It seems like “go to trade school” has become the new “…