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Dystopia Now: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Kate Willett and Emile Torres
Dystopia Now is a show where a comedian (Kate Willett) and an academic (Emile Torres) explore the philosophies and religions of Silicon Valley and tech billionaires shaping our country, our world, and our future.
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- 6 days ago1h 1m
Bickering Over Galaxies: "AI 2040" and the Pursuit of Cosmic Utopia
This week, Kate and Émile discuss AI 2040, a new document by some of the same authors behind AI 2027. The authors argue, if AI companies come to their senses and prioritize AI safety, the result could be a superintelligence that brings about a utopian world of immortality and space colonization and property rights. We dismantle the silly arguments in AI 2040 with a good dose of mockery. Further Reading Thomas Larsen, Romeo Dean, Brendan Halstead, Eli Lifland, Ryan Greenblatt, Daniel Kokotajlo. AI 2040: Plan A, https://ai-2040.com Daniel Kokotajlo, Scott Alexander, Thomas Larsen, Eli Lifland, Romeo Dean. AI 2027, https://ai-2027.com/
- 2 weeks ago59 min
UNLOCKED: Surveillance Pricing with Zephyr Teachout
Subscribe to our Patreon for more bonus content at patreon.com/c/DystopiaNow! On this now-unlocked episode, we talked to antitrust hero and Fordham University law professor Zephyr Teachout about surveillance pricing and surveillance wages. From airlines charging us more to fly home if they see we've recently searched "funeral arrangements" to rideshare companies paying less per ride if your bank account is low, we explored the present and future possibilities of data as a tool for economic and labor exploitation. Book Mentioned Karen Levy, Data Driven: Truckers, Technology, and the New Workplace Surveillance Further Reading FTC Report, https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2025/01/ftc-surveillance-pricing-study-indicates-wide-range-personal-data-used-set-individualized-consumer ACLU Report, https://www.aclu.org/news/privacy-technology/surveillance-pricing Electronic Frontier Foundation on surveillance pricing, https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/08/fight-surveillance-pricing-we-need-privacy-first Maryland ban on surveillance pricing, https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/apr/29/maryland-grocery-stores-ban-surveillance-pricing New York legislation, https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/central-ny/politics/2026/05/19/surveillance-pricing- Cory Doctorow on surveillance wages, https://doctorow.medium.com/https-pluralistic-net-2026-04-06-empiricism-washing-veena-dubal-d63fef485503
- 3 weeks ago51 min
Why Life on Mars Would Probably Suck
We return from our brief summer break chatting about Émile's latest article of interest, "Here's Why SpaceX's Mission is Bullshit" in the wake of its recent IPO and question the assumptions underlying transhumanism for space exploration. Further Reading https://www.realtimetechpocalypse.com/p/heres-why-spacexs-mission-is-bullshit https://www.realtimetechpocalypse.com/p/is-elon-musk-a-mass-murderer-on-par Books Mentioned Adam Becker, More Everything Forever
- Jun 19, 20261h 2m
Protopia Futures (ft. Monika Bielskyte)
Does fiction inform what we think the future should look like? Sci-fi and futurism has typically told us the inevitability of technology and dystopian cyberpunk imaginaries. Monika Bielskyte joins us to introduce her alternative, Protopia Futures, a framework for science-informed visions for a good future. Find Monika's writings at https://monikabielskyte.substack.com Further Reading https://monikabielskyte.substack.com/p/we-can-always-do-something-about https://plus.flux.community/p/to-achieve-a-beautiful-future-we https://monikabielskyte.substack.com/p/the-futurism-you-were-sold-was-a https://monikabielskyte.substack.com/p/protopia-world-stack-values-bodies
- Jun 11, 202639 min
Pope Leo's Anti-AI Encyclical
This week, we go over the merits and demerits of the Pope Leo XIV's first encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas and its co-presentation with Christopher Olah of Anthropic, the company branding itself as most concerned with "AI Safety." Further Reading Émile's article: https://www.realtimetechpocalypse.com/p/shame-on-the-pope-shame-on-ea-shame Magnifica Humanitas: https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiv/en/encyclicals/documents/20260515-magnifica-humanitas.html Full Speech: Anthropic Co‑Founder Christopher Olah at Magnifica Humanitas Vatican Launch | EWTN News: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORFrdYSvzuw Paolo Benanti, "An invisible revolution: Peter Thiel and the Silicon Valley coup": https://legrandcontinent.eu/fr/2026/03/14/thiel-heresie-benanti Timnit Gebru's comments: https://x.com/timnitGebru/status/2058959646891581898
- Jun 4, 202648 min
An Independent for Nebraska (ft. Austin Ahlman)
Could a populist, independent candidate win an election in the most Republican part of Nebraska's 1st Congressional District? In a time when the Republican and Democratic Party are both notoriously corrupt, Austin Ahlman is making the call to "Take Back Nebraska." This week we talk with Austin about his run for office, antimonopoly, Abundance, and how tech companies are undermining Nebraska's public power system through regulatory carve-outs. Find Austin's campaign at ahlmanfornebraska.com or takebacknebraska.com. Further Reading Austin Ahlman for The Intercept: https://theintercept.com/staff/austin-ahlman/ Austin Ahlman Launches Insurgent Independent Campaign in Nebraska https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYE10gacxiE
- May 28, 202648 min
Florida Man Runs for Congress as a Democratic Socialist (ft. Oliver Larkin)
Subscribe to our Patreon at patreon.com/c/DystopiaNow! Oliver Larkin, activist, union organizer, and Democratic Socialist, joins us this week to discuss his run for election to the U.S. House as a Florida representative. We talk about Oliver's campaign, how South Florida and Greater Miami are becoming new headquarters for tech companies including Palantir, and what we can do electorally to support working people instead of billionaires. Further Reading Find Oliver's campaign at https://www.oliverforcongress.com https://theintercept.com/2026/02/26/iran-war-powers-vote-democrats-gottheimer-moskowitz
- May 21, 202611 min
PATREON PREVIEW: Surveillance Pricing with Zephyr Teachout
Subscribe to our Patreon for the FULL episode and more bonus content at patreon.com/c/DystopiaNow! On this special Patreon episode, we talked to antitrust hero and Fordham University law professor Zephyr Teachout about surveillance pricing and surveillance wages. From airlines charging us more to fly home if they see we've recently searched "funeral arrangements" to rideshare companies paying less per ride if your bank account is low, we explored the present and future possibilities of data as a tool for economic and labor exploitation. Book Mentioned Karen Levy, Data Driven: Truckers, Technology, and the New Workplace Surveillance Further Reading FTC Report, https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2025/01/ftc-surveillance-pricing-study-indicates-wide-range-personal-data-used-set-individualized-consumer ACLU Report, https://www.aclu.org/news/privacy-technology/surveillance-pricing Electronic Frontier Foundation on surveillance pricing, https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2024/08/fight-surveillance-pricing-we-need-privacy-first Maryland ban on surveillance pricing, https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/apr/29/maryland-grocery-stores-ban-surveillance-pricing New York legislation, https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/central-ny/politics/2026/05/19/surveillance-pricing- Cory Doctorow on surveillance wages, https://doctorow.medium.com/https-pluralistic-net-2026-04-06-empiricism-washing-veena-dubal-d63fef485503
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About Dystopia Now
Dystopia Now is a show where a comedian (Kate Willett) and an academic (Emile Torres) explore the philosophies and religions of Silicon Valley and tech billionaires shaping our country, our world, and our future.
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