Slate Money

This week: Inflation is going bananas (unless you’re talking about the actual fruit.) First up, hosts Felix Salmon , Emily Peck , and Elizabeth Spiers dig into what is causing inflation and why bananas should actually cost more than they do. Then, Meta wants everyone to play with its new A.I. model but is the cuteness covering up something sinister? Finally, why Kelly Clarkson really doesn’t get t...

When Puerto Rico’s debt crisis ballooned into the largest governmental default in U.S. history, Congress stepped in with an unprecedented solution. Felix Salmon is joined by David Skeel , who served as chair on the oversight board that helped the island regain economic stability and detailed the saga of this debt crisis in his book Promise Land . They discuss the ins and outs of government debt, t...

This week, we’re talking about a mega-merger, Spain, and artificial intelligence. First up, hosts Felix Salmon , Emily Peck , and Elizabeth Spiers go deep on the Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery merger. They unpack David Ellison's calculus, the potential ripple effects, and more. Then they look to Europe at the economic woes in Spain and France. Finally, Silicon Valley really, really wants...

Adam Auriemma , author of the Bloomberg Money newsletter, brings his personal finance expertise to the show. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck pick Adam’s brain about how we should think about budgeting, his thoughts on renting and buying in the current housing market, and his take on financial advisors and planners. In the Slate Plus episode: Annuities Are So Hot Right Now Want to...

In this Money Talks: Emily Peck interviews reporter Ellen Gabler about her New York Times investigation into how Wall Street investors are making money on personal-injury lawsuits that drag on for years—with unsettling consequences for plaintiffs. Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe direct...

This week: The bond market continues to churn with yields spiking globally. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck are joined by Financial Times journalist Robin Wigglesworth , whose new book, A Fabulous Debt: The Epic Story of How Bonds Built the Modern World , feels particularly relevant right now. Robin recounts the research he did for the book and explains why the history of bonds is...

This week: Everyone is talking about A.I. safety as OpenAI shares more alarming security breaches. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck examine the complicated reality of trying to slow down the A.I. frontier. Then, the hosts discuss Fed chair Kevin Warsh’s unexpected vote to raise rates—in defiance of Donald Trump. And finally, with the SEC opening the door to tokenized equities, they...

In this Money Talks: Roy Swan joins Elizabeth Spiers to turn the assumption of a zero-sum economy on its head. Swan, the director of the Ford Foundation’s mission investments program, explains why the idea that someone has to lose in order for you to win is not just costing societally, but economically—and how positive impact and positive returns aren’t mutually exclusive. Swan’s new book is Posit...

This week: The new book Money to Burn goes deep on private-equity behemoth Apollo Global Management and its billionaire cofounder and former CEO, Leon Black. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck are joined by author William D. Cohan to talk about his reporting on Black’s investment empire and what it means for Wall Street to be dominated by private equity. They also get into Black’s tr...

This week: Nvidia joined Silicon Valley’s A.I. investment frenzy and bought Hugging Face for $12.93 billion. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck discuss what this deal signals about the astounding amounts of money being thrown around the relatively niche market of A.I. investment. Then, bond yields are on the rise and the hosts discuss why global concern is rising with them. And final...

One-hundred-million-year-old bones are so hot right now. In this Money Talks , Felix Salmon is joined by Salomon Aaron, director of an antiquities gallery specializing in fossils, to explain everything you ever wanted to know about dealing in dinosaurs and why the market has exploded in recent years. Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all...

This week: Meta settles with the U.S. states suing the company over teen safety concerns. Emily Peck and Elizabeth Spiers are joined by Scarlet Fu of the new Bloomberg Money (while Felix is stuck on a tarmac somewhere in Canada) to discuss if Meta’s $17 billion settlement is as big of a deal as it sounds, and what this outcome really means for the social media guardrails overall. Then, they turn t...

This week: the Slate Money hosts ask all their burning A.I. questions to someone who can actually answer them. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck sit down with A.I. expert Noah Brier and pick his brain about the reality of all our A.I. fears, the arms race with China, and how businesses are using it now. In the Slate Plus episode: What’s Up With Robots? Want to hear that discussion a...

In this Money Talks: Martha Gimble , the Executive Director of the Budget Lab at Yale, joins Elizabeth Spiers to explain their recent report on early childhood education and care policies and how federal subsidies could realistically work to make these things affordable. Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts....

This week: The Treasury Department announced it’s killing an anti-corruption measure that requires shell companies to identify their beneficiaries. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck explain how a key aspect of the bipartisan Corporate Transparency Act ended up on the chopping block—and what lobbyists and the Trump administration stand to gain from its elimination. Then, the hosts di...

This week: On the heels of his recent story on the glut of art that baby boomers are leaving to younger generations, Felix Salmon talks with Elizabeth Spiers and Emily Peck about why boomers like to collect things—from fine art to Pez dispensers—and why younger generations aren’t necessarily following suit. Then, the hosts look at why Scott Bessent decided to prop up the Japanese yen and what make...

In this Money Talks: Felix Salmon sits down with Lee Buchheit for an in-depth chat on sovereign debt at a live event hosted by The Library of Mistakes .  Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Slate Money show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify . Or, visit slate.com/mon...

This week: Situational Awareness—an A.I.-forward hedge fund led by a former wunderkind and OpenAI employee—was tanking fast until a rival fund stepped in. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck explain the series of events that led to Citadel swooping in to buy the bulk of assets held by 25-year-old Leopold Aschenbrenner’s investment firm. Then, it’s time to talk about the “crack spread”...

This week: The term “explosive diarrhea” captured the nation's attention, turning all eyes toward the company linked to a major cyclosporiasis outbreak. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck discuss the much-talked about food poisoning story and the PR flubs of Trump-aligned Taylor Farms. Then, the hosts give an update on Trump’s latest attempt to keep his beloved tariffs alive after th...

In this Money Talks: Elizabeth Spiers talks to journalist Beth Gardiner about her expose of the plastic industry, Plastic Inc. They’ll get into the unsettling history behind the now ubiquitous material and how Big Oil has managed to hide in plain sight, shifting the burden of plastic waste onto consumers.  Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening...

This week: New York Gov. Kathy Hochul put a statewide moratorium on building A.I. data centers. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck discuss the decision and how the rush to build data centers is driving up energy costs. Then, the hosts explain how a new law–which removes an existing requirement for mobile-home construction–might help the affordable-housing crisis. And finally:what the...

This week: The company buying up legacy brands like AOL, Evernote, and Vimeo had a huge IPO with shares immediately surging by 40%. Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and guest host Stacy-Marie Ishmael discuss the Milan-based company’s strategy and unexpected success. Then, the hosts look at how prediction markets are booming during the World Cup. And later: why Bitcoin’s plummeting price is costin...

In this Money Talks: Felix Salmon is joined by Nobel Prize winning-economist Alvin Roth to discuss his new book, Moral Economics , which uses controversial topics—like prostitution and organ sales—to explore how morality shapes a market … and how we can apply economics lessons to big ethical issues. Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all y...

Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck are joined by Reuters Media Editor Edmund Lee to revisit their 2016 predictions for the Comcast/NCBUniversal merge r, now that the companies have announced their split. Then, they explore how the World Cup fits into our very American media landscape. And finally, the hosts look at Donald Trump’s latest mandatory earnings disclosure, which revealed t...

This week: Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan passed away at the age of 100. Today: Felix Salmon , Elizabeth Spiers , and Emily Peck examine Greenspan’s legacy and the way it’s being emulated by the Fed’s current chair, Kevin Warsh. Then, the hosts discuss succession at JPMorgan now that CEO Jamie Dimon’s latest heir apparent, Marianne Lake, has left the company. And finally they...