Derek Thompson
@dkthomp.bsky.social
Staff writer at The Atlantic. Host of Plain English podcast. Books.
New pod: I think AI is a bubble. But, suddenly, so does everybody else.
I don't like it when conventional wisdoms get too conventional.
So I asked @azeem.bsky.social: What is the single strongest case that AI is NOT a bubble?
This episode is his answer.
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/e...
I don't like it when conventional wisdoms get too conventional.
So I asked @azeem.bsky.social: What is the single strongest case that AI is NOT a bubble?
This episode is his answer.
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/e...
Everybody Thinks AI Is a Bubble. What If They’re Wrong?
Podcast Episode · Plain English with Derek Thompson · 10/17/2025 · 52m
podcasts.apple.com
October 17, 2025 at 3:12 PM
New pod: I think AI is a bubble. But, suddenly, so does everybody else.
I don't like it when conventional wisdoms get too conventional.
So I asked @azeem.bsky.social: What is the single strongest case that AI is NOT a bubble?
This episode is his answer.
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/e...
I don't like it when conventional wisdoms get too conventional.
So I asked @azeem.bsky.social: What is the single strongest case that AI is NOT a bubble?
This episode is his answer.
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/e...
Reposted by Derek Thompson
I loved chatting with the always-sharp @dkthomp.bsky.social about the catastrophic recent loss of work for Hollywood's middle-class and why AI may lead to a creative renaissance for the entertainment industry akin to 1970s cinema. open.spotify.com/episode/2P3w...
The Future of Entertainment, Part 1: Is Hollywood's Business Model Broken?
open.spotify.com
October 10, 2025 at 4:48 PM
I loved chatting with the always-sharp @dkthomp.bsky.social about the catastrophic recent loss of work for Hollywood's middle-class and why AI may lead to a creative renaissance for the entertainment industry akin to 1970s cinema. open.spotify.com/episode/2P3w...
1. Social media is now 5% following friends and 95% watching videos made by strangers.
2. Every podcast is turning into a YouTube show.
3. AI companies can't stop building TikTok clones.
Everything is becoming television.
I wrote about why that matters.
www.derekthompson.org/p/why-everyt...
2. Every podcast is turning into a YouTube show.
3. AI companies can't stop building TikTok clones.
Everything is becoming television.
I wrote about why that matters.
www.derekthompson.org/p/why-everyt...
Everything Is Television
A theory of culture and attention
www.derekthompson.org
October 10, 2025 at 12:24 PM
1. Social media is now 5% following friends and 95% watching videos made by strangers.
2. Every podcast is turning into a YouTube show.
3. AI companies can't stop building TikTok clones.
Everything is becoming television.
I wrote about why that matters.
www.derekthompson.org/p/why-everyt...
2. Every podcast is turning into a YouTube show.
3. AI companies can't stop building TikTok clones.
Everything is becoming television.
I wrote about why that matters.
www.derekthompson.org/p/why-everyt...
Reposted by Derek Thompson
October 5, 2025 at 3:22 PM
"Total AI capex is projected to exceed $500 billion in 2026 and 2027—roughly the annual GDP of Singapore. Meanwhile, American consumers spend only $12 billion a year on AI services—roughly the GDP of Somalia."
www.derekthompson.org/p/this-is-ho...
www.derekthompson.org/p/this-is-ho...
This Is How the AI Bubble Will Pop
The artificial intelligence boom is the most important economic story in the world. But the numbers just don't add up.
www.derekthompson.org
October 2, 2025 at 2:04 PM
"Total AI capex is projected to exceed $500 billion in 2026 and 2027—roughly the annual GDP of Singapore. Meanwhile, American consumers spend only $12 billion a year on AI services—roughly the GDP of Somalia."
www.derekthompson.org/p/this-is-ho...
www.derekthompson.org/p/this-is-ho...
Reposted by Derek Thompson
“The demise of writing matters because writing is not a second thing that happens after thinking. The act of writing is an act of thinking.”
@dkthomp.bsky.social captures the high stakes of academic declines: we need to be training our brains to compete w AI.
www.theargumentmag.com/p/you-have-1...
@dkthomp.bsky.social captures the high stakes of academic declines: we need to be training our brains to compete w AI.
www.theargumentmag.com/p/you-have-1...
September 23, 2025 at 10:19 AM
“The demise of writing matters because writing is not a second thing that happens after thinking. The act of writing is an act of thinking.”
@dkthomp.bsky.social captures the high stakes of academic declines: we need to be training our brains to compete w AI.
www.theargumentmag.com/p/you-have-1...
@dkthomp.bsky.social captures the high stakes of academic declines: we need to be training our brains to compete w AI.
www.theargumentmag.com/p/you-have-1...
Reposted by Derek Thompson
Reposted by Derek Thompson
Loved this episode of Plain English with @dkthomp.bsky.social. Suzanne O’Sullivan is such a sane, compassionate and helpful voice in the field of medicine and mental health.
pca.st/episode/5972...
pca.st/episode/5972...
America in the Age of Diagnosis
pca.st
September 9, 2025 at 11:37 AM
Loved this episode of Plain English with @dkthomp.bsky.social. Suzanne O’Sullivan is such a sane, compassionate and helpful voice in the field of medicine and mental health.
pca.st/episode/5972...
pca.st/episode/5972...
Reposted by Derek Thompson
September 2, 2025 at 3:34 PM
New newsletter: Pilates is surging, yoga's on fire, gyms are packed, and Americans are working out more than ever. Why?
www.derekthompson.org/p/the-great-...
www.derekthompson.org/p/the-great-...
The Great American Fitness Boom
Pilates is surging. Gyms are packed. Americans are working out more than ever. A graph-by-graph guide to the fitness revolution sweeping the country
www.derekthompson.org
August 14, 2025 at 12:25 PM
New newsletter: Pilates is surging, yoga's on fire, gyms are packed, and Americans are working out more than ever. Why?
www.derekthompson.org/p/the-great-...
www.derekthompson.org/p/the-great-...
There's a thread from Matt Stoller going around accusing me of lying and purposefully misrepresenting my conversation with the real estate analyst Lance Lambert.
Well, I knew that was wrong.
So I called Lance.
Here's what happened next.
Well, I knew that was wrong.
So I called Lance.
Here's what happened next.
August 1, 2025 at 1:09 AM
There's a thread from Matt Stoller going around accusing me of lying and purposefully misrepresenting my conversation with the real estate analyst Lance Lambert.
Well, I knew that was wrong.
So I called Lance.
Here's what happened next.
Well, I knew that was wrong.
So I called Lance.
Here's what happened next.
Antitrust critics of Abundance claim homebuilding oligopolies are holding back supply and driving up prices, esp in Texas.
I did something really simple. I called up their sources.
Everyone I spoke to told me the same thing: Their claims are bullshit.
www.derekthompson.org/p/the-anti-a...
I did something really simple. I called up their sources.
Everyone I spoke to told me the same thing: Their claims are bullshit.
www.derekthompson.org/p/the-anti-a...
The Anti-Abundance Critique on Housing Is Dead Wrong
Antitrust critics say that homebuilding monopolies are the real culprit of America’s housing woes. I looked into some of their claims. They don’t hold up.
www.derekthompson.org
July 31, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Antitrust critics of Abundance claim homebuilding oligopolies are holding back supply and driving up prices, esp in Texas.
I did something really simple. I called up their sources.
Everyone I spoke to told me the same thing: Their claims are bullshit.
www.derekthompson.org/p/the-anti-a...
I did something really simple. I called up their sources.
Everyone I spoke to told me the same thing: Their claims are bullshit.
www.derekthompson.org/p/the-anti-a...
New pod: This is the worst housing market for first-time homebuyers in modern history.
How we got here, what's happening now—prices falling in the south, rising in the north, and what comes next, with @conorsen.bsky.social
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...
How we got here, what's happening now—prices falling in the south, rising in the north, and what comes next, with @conorsen.bsky.social
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...
The New Geography of Housing in America
Podcast Episode · Plain English with Derek Thompson · 07/30/2025 · 44m
podcasts.apple.com
July 30, 2025 at 3:00 PM
New pod: This is the worst housing market for first-time homebuyers in modern history.
How we got here, what's happening now—prices falling in the south, rising in the north, and what comes next, with @conorsen.bsky.social
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...
How we got here, what's happening now—prices falling in the south, rising in the north, and what comes next, with @conorsen.bsky.social
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...
Reposted by Derek Thompson
This chart from @dkthomp.bsky.social is a great example of what traditional economic indicators miss when it comes to human welfare. Socializing is an extremely valuable part of life, and Americans are getting less of it these days.
July 9, 2025 at 2:54 PM
This chart from @dkthomp.bsky.social is a great example of what traditional economic indicators miss when it comes to human welfare. Socializing is an extremely valuable part of life, and Americans are getting less of it these days.
The MAGA energy agenda is pretty simple.
It's about combining the energy policy of the 1980s with the trade policy of the 1880s. And it's about trying so hard to own the libs at any cost, you raise electricity prices everywhere.
derekthompson.substack.com/p/american-e...
It's about combining the energy policy of the 1980s with the trade policy of the 1880s. And it's about trying so hard to own the libs at any cost, you raise electricity prices everywhere.
derekthompson.substack.com/p/american-e...
American Energy Policy Cannot Afford to Be This Dumb
While China builds the economy of the future, Trump’s agenda combines the energy policy of the 1980s with the trade policy of the 1880s.
derekthompson.substack.com
July 1, 2025 at 1:33 PM
The MAGA energy agenda is pretty simple.
It's about combining the energy policy of the 1980s with the trade policy of the 1880s. And it's about trying so hard to own the libs at any cost, you raise electricity prices everywhere.
derekthompson.substack.com/p/american-e...
It's about combining the energy policy of the 1980s with the trade policy of the 1880s. And it's about trying so hard to own the libs at any cost, you raise electricity prices everywhere.
derekthompson.substack.com/p/american-e...
Reposted by Derek Thompson
If you're interested in a super-nerdy podcast about agricultural history and development (and an explanation if what yrs truly thinks Norman Borlaug actually did), this may scratch that particular itch. My thanks to @dkthomp.bsky.social for letting me ramble on.
Plain History: How Norman Borlaug Stopped the Apocalypse
Podcast Episode · Plain English with Derek Thompson · 05/16/2025 · 1h 11m
podcasts.apple.com
May 17, 2025 at 2:26 PM
If you're interested in a super-nerdy podcast about agricultural history and development (and an explanation if what yrs truly thinks Norman Borlaug actually did), this may scratch that particular itch. My thanks to @dkthomp.bsky.social for letting me ramble on.
I went to an acting camp between junior and senior year. We did a talk back with Richard Kind after a show in Chicago. "Ppl tell you 'Be an actor only if you can't do anything else,'" he said. "They're wrong." Dramatic pause. "Never be an actor. Even if you can't do anything else for shit: don't."
i'm upset and offended that no one in my life cared about me enough to bring it to my attention that the new yorker published a new profile of richard kind yesterday www.newyorker.com/culture/the-...
Richard Kind Is the Perfect Second Banana
The inveterate character actor discusses Don Quixote, his time as George Clooney’s roommate, and his latest gig: m.c.ing John Mulaney’s absurdist talk show.
www.newyorker.com
May 12, 2025 at 8:39 PM
I went to an acting camp between junior and senior year. We did a talk back with Richard Kind after a show in Chicago. "Ppl tell you 'Be an actor only if you can't do anything else,'" he said. "They're wrong." Dramatic pause. "Never be an actor. Even if you can't do anything else for shit: don't."
By targeting academics, embracing nostalgia economics, purging society of opposition ideology, rationing toys, and demolishing our global reputation at the moment we need scale, Trump has responded to the threat of China by mimicking the ghost of its Maoist past.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
The Disturbing Rise of MAGA Maoism
Trump seems to be ceding the future to China while emulating its past.
www.theatlantic.com
May 8, 2025 at 1:06 PM
By targeting academics, embracing nostalgia economics, purging society of opposition ideology, rationing toys, and demolishing our global reputation at the moment we need scale, Trump has responded to the threat of China by mimicking the ghost of its Maoist past.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...
New pod: Something very strange is happening to the labor market for college graduates. Their unemployment is rising much faster than the overall economy—in a way that's unprecedented in the last 40 yrs.
Why?
Harvard's David Deming and I talk thru the evidence.
open.spotify.com/episode/3Feh...
Why?
Harvard's David Deming and I talk thru the evidence.
open.spotify.com/episode/3Feh...
May 6, 2025 at 1:01 PM
New pod: Something very strange is happening to the labor market for college graduates. Their unemployment is rising much faster than the overall economy—in a way that's unprecedented in the last 40 yrs.
Why?
Harvard's David Deming and I talk thru the evidence.
open.spotify.com/episode/3Feh...
Why?
Harvard's David Deming and I talk thru the evidence.
open.spotify.com/episode/3Feh...
This is actual US policy right now
May 5, 2025 at 2:01 PM
This is actual US policy right now
Reposted by Derek Thompson
Great episode of “Plain English” by @dkthomp.bsky.social . Rarely would I recommend a 2-hour podcast, but the stakes here deserve this type of attention.
As a trainee, I need people to work for our future w/ constructive reform. The current carnage is terrifying!
open.spotify.com/episode/4Pee...
As a trainee, I need people to work for our future w/ constructive reform. The current carnage is terrifying!
open.spotify.com/episode/4Pee...
May 2, 2025 at 4:12 PM
Great episode of “Plain English” by @dkthomp.bsky.social . Rarely would I recommend a 2-hour podcast, but the stakes here deserve this type of attention.
As a trainee, I need people to work for our future w/ constructive reform. The current carnage is terrifying!
open.spotify.com/episode/4Pee...
As a trainee, I need people to work for our future w/ constructive reform. The current carnage is terrifying!
open.spotify.com/episode/4Pee...
Reposted by Derek Thompson
Interested in learning more about the value of US university-led basic science, the importance of NIH funding, & how American science works and could work better?
Checkout this podcast w/ @dkthomp.bsky.social @holdenthorp.bsky.social, & others.
#research #Innovation
open.spotify.com/episode/4Pee...
Checkout this podcast w/ @dkthomp.bsky.social @holdenthorp.bsky.social, & others.
#research #Innovation
open.spotify.com/episode/4Pee...
Megapod: The Crisis in American Science
Plain English with Derek Thompson · Episode
open.spotify.com
May 2, 2025 at 12:02 PM
Interested in learning more about the value of US university-led basic science, the importance of NIH funding, & how American science works and could work better?
Checkout this podcast w/ @dkthomp.bsky.social @holdenthorp.bsky.social, & others.
#research #Innovation
open.spotify.com/episode/4Pee...
Checkout this podcast w/ @dkthomp.bsky.social @holdenthorp.bsky.social, & others.
#research #Innovation
open.spotify.com/episode/4Pee...
The unemployment rate for recent grads is worse now relative to the overall economy than any time on record. Three flavors of explanation:
Short-term: It's Trump.
Medium-term: It's the flagging college premium.
Long-term: Is Gen-AI substituting for new hires?
www.theatlantic.com/economy/arch...
Short-term: It's Trump.
Medium-term: It's the flagging college premium.
Long-term: Is Gen-AI substituting for new hires?
www.theatlantic.com/economy/arch...
April 30, 2025 at 5:08 PM
The unemployment rate for recent grads is worse now relative to the overall economy than any time on record. Three flavors of explanation:
Short-term: It's Trump.
Medium-term: It's the flagging college premium.
Long-term: Is Gen-AI substituting for new hires?
www.theatlantic.com/economy/arch...
Short-term: It's Trump.
Medium-term: It's the flagging college premium.
Long-term: Is Gen-AI substituting for new hires?
www.theatlantic.com/economy/arch...
New pod: IS THIS THE CHINESE CENTURY?
That's the question I asked China experts Rush Doshi and Kurt Campbell on today's show. "The Chinese cannot believe what we are doing," they said: The Trump admin is like a CCP fantasy of accelerated American self-destruction.
open.spotify.com/episode/3YB8...
That's the question I asked China experts Rush Doshi and Kurt Campbell on today's show. "The Chinese cannot believe what we are doing," they said: The Trump admin is like a CCP fantasy of accelerated American self-destruction.
open.spotify.com/episode/3YB8...
Is This the Chinese Century?
Plain English with Derek Thompson · Episode
open.spotify.com
April 29, 2025 at 1:54 PM
New pod: IS THIS THE CHINESE CENTURY?
That's the question I asked China experts Rush Doshi and Kurt Campbell on today's show. "The Chinese cannot believe what we are doing," they said: The Trump admin is like a CCP fantasy of accelerated American self-destruction.
open.spotify.com/episode/3YB8...
That's the question I asked China experts Rush Doshi and Kurt Campbell on today's show. "The Chinese cannot believe what we are doing," they said: The Trump admin is like a CCP fantasy of accelerated American self-destruction.
open.spotify.com/episode/3YB8...