One Nation United Against Data Centers - Week in Tech

One Nation United Against Data Centers - Week in Tech

From TechStuff by iHeartPodcasts

May 8, 2026 · 1h 1m

About this episode

The episode discusses AI regulation, dark money campaigns, and the backlash against data centers, featuring insights from various guests.

This week: AI regulation, dark money and data center backlash. Reed Albergotti ( Semafor ) helps decipher how the Trump Administration actually feels about AI oversight and it seems like a reversal of the hands-off approach they’ve taken so far. Taylor Lorenz ( User Mag ) exposes a dark money influencer campaign — one she was personally recruited for — that's paying creators to push pro-American AI, anti-China messaging on behalf of a Big Tech super PAC. And Nitasha Tiku ( The Washington Post ) reports on the fast-growing, bipartisan movement fighting data center construction in communities across the country. Plus: Sam Altman's leaked texts, 120,000 tech layoffs, and the GPT-5.5 launch party. Additional Reading:  So Long Jeeves and Ask.com, Relics of Yesterday’s Internet   White House Considers Vetting A.I. Models Before They Are Released | The New York Times   A Dark-Money Campaign Is Paying Influencers to Frame Chinese AI as a Threat | WIRED   Inside a growing movement warning AI could turn on humanity | The Washington Post   ‘The Most Bipartisan Issue Since Beer’: Opposition to Data Centers | The New York Times…

People in this episode

Guests: Reed Albergotti, Taylor Lorenz, Nitasha Tiku

Topics covered

  • AI regulation
  • dark money
  • data center backlash
  • tech layoffs
  • bipartisan movement
  • influencer campaign

Keywords

  • AI oversight
  • dark money
  • data centers
  • tech layoffs
  • influencer campaign
  • GPT-5.5

Sponsors

SAILY

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Semafor, User Mag, The Washington Post, Big Tech super PAC, WIRED, The New York Times

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