The Trial Where Two Billionaires Could Lose — And Everyone Would Cheer - Week in Tech

The Trial Where Two Billionaires Could Lose — And Everyone Would Cheer - Week in Tech

From TechStuff by iHeartPodcasts

May 1, 2026 · 57 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the legal battle between Elon Musk and OpenAI, along with Google's Pentagon agreement and the marketing strategies of AI companies targeting women.

This week, some courtroom drama. It’s Elon Musk v. OpenAI the next few weeks and billionaires are taking the stand and opening their diaries — and memories of Burning Man — to scrutiny. Reed Albergotti ( Semafor ) breaks down the legal battle and why Elon Musk believes he’s owed billions since OpenAI went for-profit. Nitasha Tiku ( The Washington Post ) reports on the Pentagon agreement Google was ‘proud’ to sign. But it’s déjà vu for many Google employees, who once again demanded company leadership proceed cautiously. Finally, Taylor Lorenz ( User Mag ) on the ‘girlboss-ification’ of AI: the coordinated push by major AI companies to win over women, from Anthropic's invite-only influencer supper clubs in New York to Reese Witherspoon's suspiciously enthusiastic (and allegedly unpaid) AI pep talk on Instagram. Additional Reading:  Shadowboxing Emperors | Semafor Google workers petition CEO to refuse classified AI work with Pentagon | The Washington Post Google told staff it is ‘proud’ of Pentagon AI contract after internal backlash | Financial Times   The Girlboss-ification of AI w/ Kat…

People in this episode

Guests: Reed Albergotti, Nitasha Tiku, Taylor Lorenz

Topics covered

  • courtroom drama
  • Elon Musk
  • OpenAI
  • Google
  • AI
  • Pentagon agreement
  • billionaires

Keywords

  • Elon Musk
  • OpenAI
  • Google
  • Pentagon
  • AI
  • courtroom drama
  • billionaires
  • Reese Witherspoon
  • SAILY

Sponsors

SAILY

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: OpenAI, Semafor, The Washington Post, User Mag, Google, Financial Times

Products: SAILY

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