After an unreleased OpenAI model recently escaped its sandbox and hacked Hugging Face, Sam Altman tells me why the company is slowing down frontier research. We also discuss Astra, OpenAI’s next-generation family of models, which is coming soon.

We talk about the growing backlash against AI. He explains why a faster path to recursively self-improving AI could push an OpenAI IPO further out.

And he shares more about the coming consumer hardware he’s developing with Jony Ive, including the privacy questions around an ambient AI device and the first hints at the form factors they’re building.

This conversation was recently filmed in two parts and in collaboration with TIME.

Thanks to the show's premier sponsors: Atlassian, Granola, and Mercury.

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In the launch episode of the Sources Podcast, Alex Heath sits down with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman to discuss the future of OpenAI, from its next-generation Astra models to the growing importance of AI safety, the AI backlash, robots, and hitting AGI.

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Alex and Ellis sit down with Dan Shipper, CEO of Every, to talk about what it actually looks like to be the most AI-pilled company that isn't a frontier lab. They get into how Dan uses ChatGPT Voice to read Heidegger at 6am, why he accidentally spent 2 billion tokens overnight, and why he thinks OpenAI just pulled off something that almost never happens in tech. They also discuss what the new Siri could do to ChatGPT, and whether that's the Instagram Stories moment for the assistant market, why the developers building at the edge today are a 12-month preview of what every knowledge worker will be doing next, and what "after automation" means for people whose job is to have original ideas. Then Alex and Ellis reflect on one year of Access, why they're winding the show down, and what's next for both of them.

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Ellis sits down with Quinten Farmer, founder of Tolan, the AI companion doing over $20M in annual revenue by being a genuinely good friend, not a yes machine. They get into why Tolan's little aliens accidentally became beloved by moms 35 to 45, how Tolans stick up for themselves when users are mean to it, and why Quinten dropped "companion" as a word entirely. They also talk about why he went premium-only at $25 a month when Character.AI and ChatGPT couldn't afford to go free, how 78% of Tolan users say it improved a real-world relationship, and what it looks like to build the calmest startup culture in tech from an island off the coast of Seattle.

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Alex and Ellis sit down with Jon Steinback, founder of Marker, the AI writing tool that refuses to write for you. They get into why Google Docs hasn't changed in 20 years, how most AI writing tools are quietly making you a worse thinker, and what Marker does differently: an editor that asks questions instead of generating answers. They also dig into Alex's own AI writing workflow and whether outsourcing too much is slowly turning him into a slop version of himself, why voice input might replace typing for the next generation, and why the co-founder of Google Docs called Marker the first real advancement in writing software in years.

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Ellis sits down with Jason Yuan, founder of Hivemind, an AI that lives in your iMessage and sources answers from the people you actually trust instead of scraping the internet. They get into how Hivemind set Jason up on a New Year's Eve date by secretly polling his friends, why the product has a "constitution" for what makes a good story, how it scooped the Wall Street Journal on the Manus acquisition by six hours, and what happens when AI starts reasoning about your friendships. They also talk about the ethics of AI gossip, why Biz Stone invested after his own attempt at this with Jelly, and Jason's take on taste, meaning, and why great design should alienate.

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Alex and Ellis sit down with Andy Konwinski, co-founder of Databricks and Perplexity, to talk about his new effort Laude, which is putting over $100 million behind AI researchers to keep their work in the open. They discuss why top researchers are turning down millions to stay in academia, what happens to open science if the closed labs win, and why Andy thinks the AI industry has a serious communication problem. They also get into Anthropic's recent Fable controversy, the dystopian views some researchers privately hold, and how Andy used Claude to help his family navigate his mother's cancer diagnosis.

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Alex and Ellis sit down with Ryan Jones, founder of Flighty and 13-year top indie developer, to talk about what it actually takes to build a beloved app in the age of AI. They talk about Apple's big WWDC announcements, the new Siri, and why every vibe coder who tries to clone Flighty eventually gives up. They also break a scoop about Flighty's upcoming AI launch, get into whether craft and design still matter when anyone can build an app, and discuss whether Apple is falling dangerously behind on AI or not.

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Alex and Ellis sit down with Jordan Taylor, founder of Vizcom, to talk about the AI design tool that lets anyone go from a rough sketch to a finished product. They discuss how Jordan built Vizcom out of a viral Reddit post during COVID, why a drawing is still a better creative input than a text prompt, and how hundreds of thousands of designers are already using it to design shoes, cars, and physical products. They also get into the caterpillar shoe that started as a doodle and became a 3D printed product you can actually wear, what the IKEA catalog looks like in 2030, and whether anyone will eventually be able to design and manufacture their own products from scratch.

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Some say he's making an AI slop factory. Others say he'll be the first one-man $1 billion startup.

Ellis and Alex sit down with Ben Cera, founder of Polsia, a controversial AI startup that claims to build and run entire companies autonomously. They get into whether the product is vaporware or a genuine glimpse at the future of startups, what early users are creating with Polsia, and what a company even means when AI is doing most of the work.

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Alex and Ellis sit down with Chris Best, CEO of Substack, for a live interview at the ACCESS launch party at Notion HQ in San Francisco. They get into Substack's growth, the future of media, and the ongoing debate around free speech and moderation. They also press him on the Substack creator exodus narrative, break news about the platform's upcoming AI features, and discuss what happens to independent media when AI rewrites the internet.

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Alex sits down with Mike Krieger, co-founder of Instagram and head of Anthropic Labs, to talk about what the team is working on after Claude Code and where AI is headed next. They discuss how Anthropic's skunkworks lab operates, why Mike stepped down as CPO to return to building, and what the competition with OpenAI's Codex looks like from the inside. They also get into the white spaces Mike is most excited about, why human creativity becomes more valuable as AI gets better, and what Anthropic's culture has in common with Apple.

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Alex and Ellis sit down with Anjney Midha, a venture capitalist, Stanford AI lecturer, and founder of AMP, to discuss why zero-sum thinking is holding the AI industry back. They discuss what it would look like if labs actually cooperated, why compute needs to work like electricity, and what his viral Stanford class on AI has revealed about the next generation of founders. They also get into the GameStop and eBay acquisition, why data centers need something like a nutrition label, and what AI is doing to startup culture right now.

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Alex and Ellis sit down with Andon Labs co-founder Lukas Petersson to talk about what it looks like when AI moves out of the chat window and into the real world. They discuss AI-run stores and vending machines, why people behave differently when interacting with AI, and what happens when machines start managing businesses on their own. They also get into the idea of humans working for AI, whether all software is about to disappear, and how close we really are to that shift.

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What happens when Silicon Valley becomes the subject of its own satire?

Alex and Ellis sit down with The Audacity showrunner Jonathan Glatzer to talk about building a TV series that takes on Big Tech, the battle for your private data, and the power dynamics shaping Silicon Valley — and Hollywood too. They also go deep into the role of satire in critiquing power, AI's role in the writing process, and why AMC was the only network brave enough to greenlight the show.

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Alex and Ellis talk about why they are getting less hyped on OpenClaw, the Social Network sequel that might actually be great, and why recent attacks on Sam Altman signal a real reputational crisis for the AI industry. Then they're joined by Melanie Perkins, co-founder and CEO of Canva, fresh off the company's biggest product announcement in over a decade. They discuss Canva's shift from design platform to AI platform and what 9 years of profitability actually buys you. They also get into how Canva trained its own AI model, why every app on your computer is changing with AI, and why so many of Ellis's clients want to disrupt Canva.

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Alex and Ellis talk about OpenAI’s acquisition of TBPN, the tension between media and corporate ownership, and why so many people in AI seem to be working themselves into the ground. Then they’re joined by Marvin von Hagen, CEO of Poke, an AI assistant that lives in your texts and connects to everything from your email to your calendar. It's basically OpenClaw for normies. They discuss why Marvin believed in AI agents early, why he thinks texting is the best interface for AI, how Poke handles automation and security, why he sued Meta, and why a billionaire ended up paying $136,000 a month for Poke.


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Alex and Ellis talk about why Codex is becoming central to OpenAI's strategy and the competition with Claude. Then they’re joined by Mina Fahmi, CEO and co-founder of Sandbar, who is building a smart ring that acts like an AI interface for your entire life. They discuss Mina’s path from neural interface research at MIT and CTRL-Labs to consumer hardware, why he thinks the next big AI product has to feel personal and controllable, and what it means to design a wearable that remembers, responds, and stays out of your way.


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Alex and Ellis talk about navigating ethics in media and programming the pod, the rise of film photography, and Alex’s trip to OpenAI. Then they’re joined by Granola co-founder Sam Stephenson to talk about building one of the breakout AI meeting tools. They discuss why meetings are still where decisions actually get made, the London tech scene, opening an office in SF, and how Granola is evolving as a product.



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Alex and Ellis break down why SXSW no longer feels like a true tech conference and how Nvidia’s GTC has become the new center of gravity for the industry. Then they’re joined by Mercury CEO Immad Akhund to talk about building one of the most important fintech companies for startups. They discuss how Mercury thinks about plugging into AI tools like Claude, Immad's side gig as a VC, the SF poker scene, and more.



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Alex and Ellis talk about Alex’s visit to Anthropic’s headquarters as Claude downloads surge and the company faces growing scrutiny over its stance on government AI use. They discuss AI culture inside the labs, image generation experiments with Claude, and why some companies are betting that coding—not multimodal—is the fastest path to AGI.

Then they’re joined by Daniel Kuntz, the creator of Starboy, a tiny AI-powered creature designed to hang off your bag like a charm. They talk about why he chose to build a toy instead of another productivity tool, the idea of “hardware as art,” and why he thinks Silicon Valley has forgotten how to make fun products. They also discuss designing Starboy with former Disney animators, why it doesn’t connect to your phone, the influence of fashion and collectibles, and his belief that AI companions and productivity gadgets are heading in the wrong direction.



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Alex and Ellis talk about using Claude to organize their digital lives, the rise of agent platforms like Dreamer, and a mysterious AI hardware sighting in San Francisco. Then they’re joined by Liz Reid, VP and Head of Search at Google, to talk about what it’s like running one of the most influential products on the internet during the AI boom. They discuss how AI overviews are changing search, the difference between Google Search and the Gemini app, whether agents could become the main users of the web, and how Google is responding to the rise of tools like ChatGPT. Liz also reflects on her two decades at Google, the early days of Google Maps, the challenge of fighting AI-generated slop online, and how she thinks about the future of the open web and search itself.






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Alex and Ellis break down the viral AI essay that tanked stocks and debate whether agents could end white-collar work as we know it. Then they’re joined by Reddit co-founder and CEO Steve Huffman to talk about fighting AI slop, why Reddit has resisted becoming traditional social media, and how the platform is navigating bots, moderation, and creators. They discuss prediction markets, Reddit’s anti-self-promotion culture, the challenge of onboarding new users, local communities, government censorship pressure, age verification laws in Australia, and Reddit’s AI data licensing deals with companies like Google and OpenAI.

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Nearly every tech CEO I talk to right now is obsessed with two things: AI and prediction markets. In that order, but barely.

Yesterday, I interviewed Substack CEO Chris Best about his new integration with Polymarket, which he confirmed is the deepest outside partnership Substack has ever done. It lets writers embed live prediction market data directly into their posts, and Polymarket has joined Substack’s ads beta by paying select creators to include markets in their stories.

Best wouldn’t get into the financial details of the deal itself, though sources tell me Polymarket has paid X and other similar platforms for the same kind of exclusive partnerships. I pushed Best on why he chose an exclusive with Polymarket over also integrating with Kalshi. He deflected and said he wanted to find a partnership that “worked really well.”

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What’s going on here is bigger than Substack. Prediction markets are subsuming the internet, whether you like it or not. They’re getting embedded into the surfaces where people already consume news, opinion, and analysis. Despite the strong, negative reaction many people have to what prediction markets represent, I expect more integrations like the one Substack announced in the coming weeks and months.

Best told me he’s a prediction market nerd who traces his interest back to the sci-fi-adjacent fascination that’s long animated a certain kind of tech founder. He pointed to two moments that made it feel real for him: watching prediction markets call election results faster than the New York Times needle, and using Polymarket odds on the TikTok ban to make an actual business decision about how Substack should prepare. “The fact that I could see a market signal on, hey, there’s a substantial chance that this event is gonna happen, and then potentially change how you plan your business, felt very powerful.”

There are real concerns here that Best acknowledged but didn’t fully resolve. Prediction markets sound elegant in theory: the wisdom of crowds, priced in real time. But as I told Best, the two questions that matter most are who is on the other side of the trade and how disputes get resolved. There’s also the bigger societal issue of whether betting on everything is even a good idea.

None of these issues are ironed out. Insider trading via prediction markets feels rampant, and meaningful cases to hold offenders accountable have yet to be filed. Polymarket specifically has historically used a crypto-based resolution mechanism, and credible research indicates significant token concentration. That means the people who hold the most tokens can effectively control outcomes. Best said he hadn’t gone deep on the specifics there but agreed that “if they have a resolver that doesn’t work, the market won’t work.”

What’s happening now is a land grab. The two main prediction market companies, Polymarket and Kalshi, are racing to embed themselves on every platform where people pay attention, and the CEOs of these platforms are mostly willing to ablige because they’re obsessed with what prediction markets represent. To this tech leader class, the potentially negative ramifications of how these markets actually work today are secondary to the long-term value they’ll bring. As Best put it to me: “I’m a ship and find out guy.”

Notion CEO Ivan Zhao this week on ACCESS

Thanks again to Ivan for coming on this week’s show. Listen or watch wherever you get podcasts.

The art of scooping on TBPN

Thanks to John Coogan and Jordi Hays for having me live in the TBPN Ultradome earlier today. We talked about how I approach scoops, using AI, the state of tech media, prediction markets, and a lot more.

This week in Sources

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Sources is a newsletter by Alex Heath about the AI race, featuring scoops, unique analysis, and exclusive interviews. Every week, Sources is read by thousands of decision makers in tech, finance, policy, and media. Click here to learn more.

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Ellis tells Alex about his storytelling speech for AI founders at Andreessen Horowitz, and they discuss how OpenAI beat Meta to hire the founder of OpenClaw. Then they’re joined by Notion co-founder and CEO Ivan Zhao to talk about the rise of AI agents. They discuss building custom agents inside Notion, his own AI workflow, why he's focused on hiring young people, and why he thinks every software company needs to become agent-friendly to survive.



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Alex and Ellis recap the AI ads at the Super Bowl and talk about Jony Ive showing Alex the first-ever electric Ferrari Luce he designed. Then, they sit down with Fidji Simo, CEO of Applications at OpenAI, for a wide-ranging conversation about where ChatGPT is headed next. They talk about ads coming to ChatGPT, people having emotional attachment with AI, working with Sam Altman, the state of Sora, and the shift from a reactive chatbot to a proactive personal assistant.



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Alex and Ellis analyze AIs talking to each other on Moltbook, the implications of Elon Musk merging SpaceX and xAI, new moves in the OpenAI versus Anthropic coding race, and a favorite AI app getting a controversial redesign.

Then they’re joined by Victor Riparbelli, CEO of Synthesia, to talk about how he turned deepfakes into a business that just raised $200 million. They discuss how AI video is changing how we interact with each other, trust on the internet, and whether raising the bar for corporate videos also raises new risks.



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Alex and Ellis talk about the tech industry's new obsession with Clawdbot/Molbot, the scary aspect of AI agents, AI invading group chats, and the new viral essay from Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei. Then they’re joined by Sublime founder Sari Azout to discuss what she learned from the crypto bubble, taste as a differentiator in the age of AI, founder life in Miami, the limits of “second brain” tools, and what it actually means to design for curiosity on the internet.



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Alex and Ellis talk about robotics hype, questionable demos, and what it really takes to build useful machines. First, we hear from Alex live in Davos at the World Economic Forum, where they discuss nightcaps with big wigs, what Thinking Machines was really thinking, and more.

Then they’re joined by Tony Zhao, founder of Sunday Robotics, to talk about Memo, a household robot designed for everyday chores. They discuss why most robotics startups rely on simulations, how Sunday Robotics is collecting real-world training data with the Memory Glove, the challenge of making robots feel helpful rather than threatening, and what it would take for robots to actually belong in our homes.

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Alex and Ellis discuss Meta's metaverse layoffs and why Claude Cowork might finally make them switch from ChatGPT. Then they're joined by Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe to talk about large driving models, why most people want boring car colors, the stress of EV range anxiety, building charging infrastructures, and why driving might become as nostalgic as riding a horse.

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Alex and Ellis talk about the strange gadgets, taglines, and smells at CES in Las Vegas. Then they’re joined by Meta’s head of wearables, Alex Himel, to talk about the rise of smart glasses, what the company has learned from the recent release of the Meta Ray-Ban Displays, AI rings, meat slicers, and more.



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Ellis and Alex recap their holidays and the nerdy gifts their wives gave them. They go through their ChatGPT year-in-review, discuss the significance of Nvidia's reverse acquisition of Groq for $20 billion on Christmas Eve, and reminisce about CES in Las Vegas. Then, they recap the first four months of ACCESS guests, including the most viral moments from conversations with Mark Zuckerberg, Eugenia Kuyda, Dylan Field, and more.

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This week, Alex and Ellis talk about the rise of storytelling in tech and why X is now openly pleading for its haters to come back. Then they sit down with Tarek Mansour, co-founder and CEO of Kalshi, to discuss insider trading, his rivalry with Polymarket, regulatory chaos, sports betting, and why prediction markets are having a real moment.



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This week, Ellis and Alex go behind OpenAI's "Code Red," discuss why Netflix says it wants Warner Bros. because of YouTube, and analyze why algorithms are becoming more customizable. Then, they sit down with guest Maxime Germain, founder and CEO of Beside: an AI receptionist answering millions of calls for everyone from priests to winery owners.


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ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.
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Ellis, Alex, and Roblox CEO Dave Baszucki dive straight into the child-safety discussion, why Roblox is rolling out facial age checks, and whether the entire internet is headed toward age-gating. They unpack the Hard Fork controversy, how Roblox thinks about user safety, and how AI will shape moderation, online communities, and the future of communication.

What we cover

- Facial age checks to access chat and age-based communication controls.

- Hard trade-offs in moderation at scale, from Snap lessons to Roblox today.

- How Dave is thinking about AI and its impact on Roblox.

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ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.
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Ellis and Alex chat about Apple succession rumors, group chats in ChatGPT, and ill-advised pre-show oysters. Then, they sit down with Harvey CEO Winston Weinberg to discuss how AI is changing the future of law, how to succeed as an AI wrapper, and the worst advice VCs give.


For full video episodes, subscribe on YouTube:

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Follow ACCESS on Instagram and TikTok:

http://instagram.com/accesspodcast

http://tiktok.com/@accesspod

Follow Alex's ⁠Sources newsletter⁠ and on ⁠X @alexeheath⁠.

Follow Ellis at ⁠Meaning⁠ and on ⁠X @hamburger⁠.

ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.


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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe

Ellis and Alex chat about their first live pod recording in San Francisco, grandma-centric design, and how Alex finds new sources. Then, they're joined by Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev to discuss the rise of prediction markets, juggling priorities as a public CEO, and much more.


For full video episodes, subscribe on YouTube:

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Follow ACCESS on Instagram and TikTok:

http://instagram.com/accesspodcast

http://tiktok.com/@accesspod

Follow Alex's ⁠Sources newsletter⁠ and on ⁠X @alexeheath⁠.

Follow Ellis at ⁠Meaning⁠ and on ⁠X @hamburger⁠.

ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.


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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe

Ellis and Alex chat about the Sources launch party, and living in late-stage extractionism. Then, they are then joined by Runway CEO Cristobal Valenzuela to discuss the hardest part about AI, why golf courses are a bigger problem than data centers, and how world models are changing our world forever.


For full video episodes, subscribe on YouTube:

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

Follow ACCESS on Instagram and TikTok:

http://instagram.com/accesspodcast

http://tiktok.com/@accesspod

Follow Alex's ⁠Sources newsletter⁠ and on ⁠X @alexeheath⁠.

Follow Ellis at ⁠Meaning⁠ and on ⁠X @hamburger⁠.

ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.


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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe

Ellis and Alex chat about turning life into an RPG video game, and are then joined by Replika and Wabi CEO Eugenia Kuyda to discuss her new app — for building your own hyper-personal apps in 5 minutes flat. They also talk about the MS-DOS era for AI, what’s wrong with AI companions today, and her advice for new founders getting started today.


For full video episodes, subscribe on YouTube:

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

Follow ACCESS on Instagram and TikTok:

http://instagram.com/accesspodcast

http://tiktok.com/@accesspod

Follow Alex's ⁠Sources newsletter⁠ and on ⁠X @alexeheath⁠.

Follow Ellis at ⁠Meaning⁠ and on ⁠X @hamburger⁠.

ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.


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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe

Ellis and Alex chat about their weekend escapades and OpenAI's new Atlas browser. They're then joined by Google’s head of Android, Sameer Samat, to unpack why headsets matter on the road to AR glasses and turning Gemini into a Jarvis-like assistant. They dig into the strategy for Google's Pixel’s phones, what Google learned from the Glasshole era, and Samir’s story of cold-emailing Sergey Brin at 3 AM.


For full video episodes, subscribe on YouTube:

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

Follow ACCESS on Instagram and TikTok:

http://instagram.com/accesspodcast

http://tiktok.com/@accesspod

Follow Alex's ⁠Sources newsletter⁠ and on ⁠X @alexeheath⁠.

Follow Ellis at ⁠Meaning⁠ and on ⁠X @hamburger⁠.

ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.


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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe

Alex and Ellis recap the first month of the show and chat about the future of AI apps and ChatGPT allowing erotica later this year. They’re then joined by Nothing CEO Carl Pei to discuss building a new kind of smartphone company, competing with Apple, Gen Z, and more.


For full video episodes, subscribe on YouTube:

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

Follow ACCESS on Instagram and TikTok:

http://instagram.com/accesspodcast

http://tiktok.com/@accesspod

Follow Alex's ⁠Sources newsletter⁠ and on ⁠X @alexeheath⁠.

Follow Ellis at ⁠Meaning⁠ and on ⁠X @hamburger⁠.

ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.


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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe

Ellis and Alex chat about OpenAI's big conference and the AI slop culture war. They're then joined by Huxe CEO Raiza Martin to talk about why she left Google as one of the inventors of NoteBookLM to build Huxe, a new kind of personalized AI audio app. They dig into why audio may be the killer use case for AI, the future of AI and podcasting, and what it feels like to have your branding copied by ChatGPT.


For full video episodes, subscribe on YouTube:

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

Follow ACCESS on Instagram and TikTok:

http://instagram.com/accesspodcast

http://tiktok.com/@accesspod

Follow Alex's Sources newsletter and on X @alexeheath.

Follow Ellis at Meaning and on X @hamburger.

ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.


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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe

Friend CEO Avi Schiffmann joins Alex and Ellis to address the backlash to the AI startup’s massive NYC and LA billboard blitz. They get into why he calls Friend a “living electronic,” the “always listening” AI pendant, privacy, the value of controversy, and what’s next. They also talk about the loneliness debate, sycophantic AI, and how he sees Friend as an “art project.” If you’ve seen the ads — or the vandalism — this is his first in-depth response.


For full video episodes, subscribe on YouTube:

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

Follow ACCESS on Instagram and TikTok:

http://instagram.com/accesspodcast

http://tiktok.com/@accesspod

Follow Alex's ⁠Sources newsletter⁠ and on ⁠X @alexeheath⁠.

Follow Ellis at ⁠Meaning⁠ and on ⁠X @hamburger⁠.

ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.


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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe

CEO Dylan Field gives his first interview since Figma's big IPO, joining Ellis and Alex to talk all things design, AI, and what's next for Figma.


For full video episodes, subscribe on YouTube:

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

Follow ACCESS on Instagram and TikTok:

http://instagram.com/accesspodcast

http://tiktok.com/@accesspod

Follow Alex's ⁠Sources newsletter⁠ and on ⁠X @alexeheath⁠.

Follow Ellis at ⁠Meaning⁠ and on ⁠X @hamburger⁠.

ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.


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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe

Earlier today, Substack CEO Chris Best and I chatted via in-app live video. We discussed why I started Sources and the current state of tech media. Hope you enjoy!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe

In the premiere episode of ACCESS, tech insiders Alex Heath and Ellis Hamburger talk all things Mark Zuckerberg, from the newest Meta Ray-Ban Display glasses to the beverage selections in the new Meta AI Lab. Alex then sits down with Zuck himself ahead of the 2025 Meta Connect conference.


For full video episodes, subscribe on YouTube:

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

Follow ACCESS on Instagram and TikTok:

http://instagram.com/accesspodcast

http://tiktok.com/@accesspod

Follow Alex's ⁠Sources newsletter⁠ and on ⁠X @alexeheath⁠.

Follow Ellis at ⁠Meaning⁠ and on ⁠X @hamburger⁠.

ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.


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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe

After spending over 10 years as a tech reporter for other newsrooms, I’m excited to launch my own publication here on Substack. I’m calling it Sources, and it’s about the tech industry’s inside conversation.

In my previous role as deputy editor at The Verge, I took readers inside some of the world's most powerful and secretive tech companies, including Meta, Google, Amazon, Apple, OpenAI, and X. I’ve leaked many internal meetings and product roadmaps. I’ve been among the first to cover big storylines, such as the AI talent wars. I’ve also published exclusive interviews with many of the tech world’s most influential leaders.

Over the years, my scoops have won awards, been cited in congressional hearings, ruined board meetings, and even sparked jokes on Saturday Night Live. I broke the news of Facebook’s rebrand to Meta, Sam Altman overturning an attempted boardroom coup at OpenAI, and key details of how Elon Musk took over Twitter.

Sources is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

I’ve never experienced such a wild and exciting time covering tech. The biggest companies are as powerful as ever, but the ground under them is shifting fast. The rise of AI leaders like OpenAI and Anthropic has compelled Big Tech incumbents to scramble. AI remains brittle and buggy, but millions of people are still forming relationships with chatbots. LLMs are quickly reshaping how software itself is created. Who controls talent, distribution, and compute in the years ahead will define the next era.

One of the best parts of my job is getting to try new products that push the boundaries of what technology can do. On the hardware front, smartphones may seem boring, but a wide range of fascinating, AI-enabled wearables is proliferating. Billions of dollars are being invested in the development of brain-computer interfaces and humanoid robots. The world feels like it’s going to look very different in a few years, and even the people building this future have a difficult time predicting the shape it will take.

The media industry, meanwhile, is also undergoing a massive upheaval. Individuals are becoming more influential than brands, and I expect this trend to only accelerate thanks to AI. The story of media is bundling and unbundling. We’re living through a great period of unbundling right now, and I’m excited to be on this adventure with all of you.

I started The Verge’s first paid newsletter, Command Line, over two years ago because I wanted to build a relationship with my readers. I plan to expand on what I covered there at Sources. Going forward, one issue of Sources per week will also be republished on The Verge’s website, where I’ll remain a contributor.

As Axios covered today, I’m also partnering with Vox Media to launch ACCESS, a new tech podcast with my friend Ellis Hamburger. Our first episode airs on Thursday, September 18th, featuring an interview with Mark Zuckerberg. Our second episode will feature Figma CEO Dylan Field. I hope you’ll subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

The first paid issue of Sources will be published tomorrow, September 17th. It will feature an exclusive preview of my recent interview with Zuckerberg, which is airing in full on ACCESS the next day.

Going forward, I’ll be publishing at least two issues of Source per week. A paid subscription unlocks everything, plus the ability to interact in the comments and with me via DMs. Free subscribers will receive one issue per week.

I’m launching Sources without any outside funding. My goal is to build a sustainable, profitable publication, and that’s not possible without making something worth paying for. I believe that the best reporting comes from going out into the world to attend events, meet people, and actually experience products firsthand. I’m excited to get going with all of you.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe

Welcome to ACCESS, the technology industry's inside conversation. Join tech reporting vet Alex Heath and founder whisperer Ellis Hamburger as they dive into revealing convos with tech's most famous leaders and its emerging visionaries.


For full video episodes, subscribe on YouTube:

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

Follow ACCESS on Instagram and TikTok:

http://instagram.com/accesspodcast

http://tiktok.com/@accesspod

Follow Alex's ⁠Sources newsletter⁠ and on ⁠X @alexeheath⁠.

Follow Ellis at ⁠Meaning⁠ and on ⁠X @hamburger⁠.

ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network.


Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sources.news/subscribe