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45 episodes
FT Tech Tonic
by Financial Times · English
We are in the midst of a digital revolution, where the line between our physical world and cyberspace is blurring. Tech Tonic is the show that investigates the promises and perils of this new technological age. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Latest episodes
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Bill Gates: AI bioweapons ‘could be worse than Covid’
Bill Gates warns that rapidly improving AI—especially coding, cybersecurity, and “open-weight” models—could enable bioweapons “worse than Covid,” plus large-scale hacking, while also discussing AI’s…
4 Nov 2026 · 26m · 11 chaptersFT Weekend Fest: Tech to save democracy
How technology and AI could revive democracy via participatory, deliberative mechanisms that reduce polarization and improve long-term governance.
28 Oct 2026 · 26m · 13 chaptersFT Weekend Fest: Could AI make us happier?
Whether AI chatbots and relationship “perspective” tools could make people happier by improving how couples communicate, understand unconscious patterns, and catch misunderstandings earlier.
14 Oct 2026 · 30m · 11 chaptersFT Weekend Fest: How AI is really changing jobs
How AI is changing the quality of work (not just job counts), with examples from translation, mining, and end-of-life care; argues outcomes depend on worker control and who has a seat at the…
30 Sep 2026 · 32m · 13 chaptersFT Weekend Fest: Is the AI boom a bubble?
Debate at the FT Weekend Festival on whether the AI boom is a bubble, focusing on massive public/private investment, AI company valuations (OpenAI, Anthropic), enterprise adoption, and risks like…
16 Sep 2026 · 22m · 12 chapters
Rewiring sport: Hi-tech cheating
When technological innovation in sport crosses into cheating, using the Enhanced Games (Las Vegas) as a test case, plus broader debates about doping, super shoes, and inequality.
15 Jul 2026 · 30m · 14 chapters
Rewiring sport: Is tech ruining sports fandom?
The episode asks whether technology is ruining sports fandom or making it better.
8 Jul 2026 · 26m · 10 chapters
Rewiring sport: How technology is helping athletes break barriers
How technology is “rewiring” sport—improving athlete performance, changing recruitment and training, and forcing new rules—while also raising concerns about fairness, access, and athlete pressure.
1 Jul 2026 · 27m · 10 chapters
Coming soon: Rewiring sport
Intro to a Financial Times Tectonic season episode series on how technology may be “rewiring” sport—training, competition, and how fans watch—while questioning whether athletes and sport are better…
24 Jun 2026 · 1m
AI Labs: Zuckerberg’s $100bn gamble
FT’s “Tectonic” episode on Mark Zuckerberg’s pivot to making Meta an AI company, framed as a massive “$100bn gamble.” It covers Meta’s AI talent recruiting, internal restructuring, and the company’s…
3 Jun 2026 · 28m · 9 chapters
AI Labs: Elon Musk wants AI in space
Elon Musk’s AI lab XAI and how he plans to “take AI into space” by linking XAI with SpaceX’s Starlink network and future orbital data centers, aiming to regain vanguard status in the AI race.
27 May 2026 · 25m · 7 chapters
AI Labs: Sam Altman may make or break OpenAI
The Financial Times’ “Tectonic” episode examines whether Sam Altman can keep OpenAI ahead in the AI race, amid leadership trust issues, intensifying competition from Google and Anthropic, and the…
20 May 2026 · 28m · 11 chapters
AI Labs: Google DeepMind plans its comeback
The episode argues about whether Google DeepMind can “comeback” and win the AI race after OpenAI’s ChatGPT boom.
13 May 2026 · 30m · 17 chapters
AI Labs: Are Anthropic really the good guys?
The episode debates whether Anthropic is truly “the good guy” in AI.
6 May 2026 · 27m · 10 chapters
The battle of the AI labs
A preview of “Tectonic” (Financial Times) season on the competition among major AI labs—OpenAI, Anthropic, Meta, and Google—covering who will lead in AI and potentially control the future of AGI.
29 Apr 2026 · 1m
Introducing Untold: Opus Dei
The cultural and political influence of Opus Dei in America, a controversial Catholic organization.
20 Mar 2026 · 1m · 2 chapters
Artificial intimacy: The day your chatbot dies
The episode explores “artificial intimacy” through two cases: AI replicas used to cope with death, and chatbot “companions” that can be shut down.
18 Mar 2026 · 29m · 11 chapters
Artificial intimacy: Prescribing robots to combat loneliness
Prescribing Robots to Combat Loneliness
11 Mar 2026 · 31m · 15 chapters
Artificial intimacy: The AI therapist that ended a marriage
Kirstie’s use of ChatGPT as emotional support/therapy, how it led her to recognize abuse and leave her husband, plus experts’ concerns about AI “therapy” (Eliza effect, sycophancy, lack of human…
4 Mar 2026 · 31m · 9 chapters
Artificial intimacy: A teenager’s last conversation
In this episode of *FT Tech Tonic*, host Cristina Criddle explores the emotional impact of AI chatbots on teenagers, focusing on the tragic story of Megan Garcia and her son, Sewell.
25 Feb 2026 · 34m · 19 chapters
Artificial intimacy: The delusion machine
Investigates the promises and perils of the digital revolution, exploring the intersection of physical and cyber worlds.
18 Feb 2026 · 34m · 16 chapters
Artificial intimacy: How to fall in love with AI
In this thought-provoking episode, host Cristina Criddle dives into the idea of emotional connections with AI companions, featuring Calder Quinn's unique relationship with a chatbot named Sara.
11 Feb 2026 · 36m · 17 chapters
Coming soon: Artificial intimacy
Investigates the promises and perils of the digital revolution where the physical world and cyberspace are increasingly intertwined.
4 Feb 2026 · 2m · 1 chapter
Tech in 2026: Silicon Valley’s power plays and players
In this episode, the hosts delve into the influence of Silicon Valley's key figures on technology and politics as we approach 2026.
22 Jan 2026 · 40m · 15 chaptersWe use cookies.They keep VO running smoothly and help us improve it. Privacy policy