Another Podcast

Advertising is $700bn - after IDFA and the cookie apocalypse, what else is breaking apart and where do things land? Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

The more that governments, regulators, policy-makers and activists demand that tech works differently, the more argument there is, and the more that tech people and companies people say ‘no!’  But what does it mean when a tech company, or indeed any company in any industry, says ’no’?  Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

Shein added 60k new products in the last week - double Zara and H&M's total combined stock. Netflix made more shows last year than the entire US TV industry back when it start streaming. What happens when you remove physical limits? What's the feedback cycle?   Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

What do we mean when we say 'the metaverse'? And what do we mean by interoperability? It's far more useful to get specific about how we think about the future of the internet. What will it do and not do? How will it work and not work? If we are going to make predictions and be wrong, we might as well be wrong in specific ways. Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

Elon made a lot of noise this week, but what else was going on? We chat about half a dozen things that happened in tech this week, all of them more interesting than the bird company.  Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

Netflix missed its numbers, but what's really going on in streaming? Is this a tech company, and does it have winner-takes-all effects? Or are all the questions to ask really about television? And whatever happened to the Apple TV? Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

Elon is on manoeuvres, but what are the problems? Has he thought about this at all? Why has Twitter always been such a mess, and why is it such a tiny company? 

‘Big tech’ is big and scary, but do they care about your market? They could come in, yes, and make a mess, but would that make any sense for them? And, do you look like a seal? Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

Web3 will remake networks, content and online publishing - apparently. But how many cycles have we been through, how much do the forms, networks and intersections change, and what does it mean to own your data? Is that even possible?  Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

A chat about Ukraine without pretending we know about Russia, geopolitics and Ukraine. Rather we will focus on some of the things happening in and around tech with regards to this. And we are absolutely conscious these may not be the most important things happening right now. Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

Crypto is so big and yet so unclear that we can’t even agree what to call it. What does ‘web3’ mean, what might it mean, how do we ignore the noise, and what questions might matter? Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

Everything comes out of Covid (we hope), especially retail. US ecommerce penetration jumped forward a little and the UK a lot, but what kinds of companies, brands and stories can be created now that everything and anything can be online? Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

One thing is obvious in tech, there are so many questions worth exploring. In 2022,  we are thinking about cars and infrastructure, crypto and web3,  AR and VR,  games and regulations. It's less about hat we focus on maybe, and more about how we think about these topics and what questions are worth paying attention to. 

Another episode on our theme ‘how to talk about X if you’re not in the field’ - this time ‘Web3’, the new brand name for crypto. How do we ignore the noise (SO much noise) and think about where and how this will be useful? Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

We can talk all day about crypto, or VR or Facebook, but how might we talk about *everything* in tech? What are the frameworks and tools to structure the noise? 

There are two strands to this story: the second phase of Facebook which is the Metaverse (which we previously spoke about on the podcast) and Facebook actually changing its name to Meta. If and when you decide to create a new brand because the existing brand comes with a lot of baggage, a marketing person would probably suggest you fix the problems first, and then decide how to communicate the reb...

‘Metaverse’ is the buzzword of the moment, yet it doesn’t really exist as more than a label on a whiteboard, and many of the ideas it tries to combine might not happen, or not like that. This might be the new ‘information highway.’ But however it works, some kind of break-out of new devices, new experiences and new kinds of popular culture seems pretty easy to believe in. Follow Benedict on Twitte...

Tech regulation and the problems that prompt it to fill every headline. But is structural change coming? Who will this affect? Who will notice? Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

The new iPhones are boring, and why that's interesting. Plus, Apple and Epic stumble towards a new App Store model, and - Real Soon Now - Apple! glasses! and! cars! It's the Apple metronome.  Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

The barrier to entry to gaming is lower than it has ever been. But are there more gamers today? Are more 10-year-olds playing games today than they did 10 years ago? And why are we more focused on what is happening in this space? Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

Why hasn't tech disrupted mobile network operators? Smartphones changed everything about mobile, and yet the networks are all still there with pretty much the same business. Does software always matter? At what level of the stack? And what's the read-across to cars? Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

A conversation about creativity, working with tech and optimism with Nicolas Roope, agency and startup co-founder who has ridden many of the revolutions we talk about on this show. Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter Follow Nicolas on Twitter

'Digital transformation' sounds like a terrible marketing slogan, but it describes a pretty basic generational change in how big companies do tech. Why is that interesting if you're not a big company?  Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter

This is a follow-up to our conversation on Chinese tech with someone who knows a lot more about this space than we do - Lillian Li, who writes the weekly newsletter, Chinese Characteristics. Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter Follow Lillian on Twitter

This is a follow-up to our conversation on Ad Tech with someone who knows a little more about this space than we do - Jeremy White, Executive Editor WIRED UK. Follow Benedict on Twitter Follow Toni on Twitter Follow Jeremy White on Twitter