Episodes

  • Live @ Nvidia's nerd Super Bowl, poker takes over tech, and the future of AI banking

    Live @ Nvidia's nerd Super Bowl, poker takes over tech, and the future of AI banking
    Mar 20 2026
    Alex and Ellis break down why SXSW no longer feels like a true tech conference and how events like Nvidia’s GTC have become the new center of gravity for the industry. They talk about the growing spectacle around Jensen Huang, the shift from product-driven moments to marketing-driven ones, and what it says about where tech culture is headed.Then they’re joined by Mercury CEO Immad Akhund to talk about building one of the most important fintech companies for startups. They discuss how Mercury approaches banking differently, the challenges of serving founders, competition in fintech, and what it takes to build a trusted financial platform in the AI era. Follow ACCESS on Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/accesspodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Alex: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://sources.news/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/alexeheath/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Ellis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://meaning.company/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/hamburger⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 15 mins
  • Meet Starboy, the alien toy that hates being called AI

    Meet Starboy, the alien toy that hates being called AI
    Mar 13 2026
    Alex and Ellis talk about Alex’s visit to Anthropic’s headquarters as Claude downloads surge and the company faces growing scrutiny over its stance on government AI use. They discuss AI culture inside the labs, image generation experiments with Claude, and why some companies are betting that coding—not multimodal—is the fastest path to AGI. Then they’re joined by Daniel Kuntz, the creator of Starboy, a tiny AI-powered creature designed to hang off your bag like a charm. They talk about why he chose to build a toy instead of another productivity tool, the idea of “hardware as art,” and why he thinks Silicon Valley has forgotten how to make fun products. They also discuss designing Starboy with former Disney animators, why it doesn’t connect to your phone, the influence of fashion and collectibles, and his belief that AI companions and productivity gadgets are heading in the wrong direction. Follow ACCESS on Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/accesspodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Alex: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://sources.news/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/alexeheath/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Ellis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://meaning.company/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/hamburger⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 14 mins
  • What happens to Google when AI answers everything? with Google’s Liz Reid

    What happens to Google when AI answers everything? with Google’s Liz Reid
    Mar 6 2026
    Alex and Ellis talk about using Claude to organize their digital lives, the rise of agent platforms like Dreamer, and a mysterious AI hardware sighting in San Francisco. Then they’re joined by Liz Reid, VP and Head of Search at Google, to talk about what it’s like running one of the most influential products on the internet during the AI boom. They discuss how AI overviews are changing search, the difference between Google Search and the Gemini app, whether agents could become the main users of the web, and how Google is responding to the rise of tools like ChatGPT. Liz also reflects on her two decades at Google, the early days of Google Maps, the challenge of fighting AI-generated slop online, and how she thinks about the future of the open web and search itself. Follow ACCESS on Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/accesspodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Alex: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://sources.news/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/alexeheath/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Ellis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://meaning.company/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/hamburger⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 10 mins
  • Reddit CEO Steve Huffman on surviving the AI slop-pocalypse

    Reddit CEO Steve Huffman on surviving the AI slop-pocalypse
    Feb 26 2026
    Alex and Ellis break down the viral AI essay that tanked stocks and debate whether agents could end white-collar work as we know it. Then they’re joined by Reddit co-founder and CEO Steve Huffman to talk about fighting AI slop, why Reddit has resisted becoming traditional social media, and how the platform is navigating bots, moderation, and creators. They discuss prediction markets, Reddit’s anti-self-promotion culture, the challenge of onboarding new users, local communities, government censorship pressure, age verification laws in Australia, and Reddit’s AI data licensing deals with companies like Google and OpenAI. Follow ACCESS on Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/accesspodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Alex: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://sources.news/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/alexeheath/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Ellis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://meaning.company/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/hamburger⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 12 mins
  • Notion CEO Ivan Zhao on if AI is really killing software companies

    Notion CEO Ivan Zhao on if AI is really killing software companies
    Feb 19 2026
    Ellis tells Alex about his storytelling speech for AI founders at Andreessen Horowitz, and they discuss how OpenAI beat Meta to hire the founder of OpenClaw. Then they’re joined by Notion CEO Ivan Zhao to talk about the rise of AI agents. They discuss building custom agents inside Notion, his own AI workflow, why he's focused on hiring young people, and why he thinks every software company needs to become agent-friendly to survive. Follow ACCESS on Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/accesspodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Alex: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://sources.news/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/alexeheath/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Ellis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://meaning.company/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/hamburger⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 15 mins
  • OpenAI's Fidji Simo on why ads are coming to ChatGPT

    OpenAI's Fidji Simo on why ads are coming to ChatGPT
    Feb 11 2026
    Alex and Ellis recap the AI ads at the Super Bowl and talk about Jony Ive showing Alex the first-ever electric Ferrari Luce he designed. Then, they sit down with Fidji Simo, CEO of Applications at OpenAI, for a wide-ranging conversation about where ChatGPT is headed next. They talk about ads coming to ChatGPT, people having emotional attachment with AI, working with Sam Altman, the state of Sora, and the shift from a reactive chatbot to a proactive personal assistant. Follow ACCESS on Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/accesspodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Alex: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://sources.news/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/alexeheath/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Ellis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://meaning.company/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/hamburger⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 32 mins
  • How deepfakes became a $4B business, with Synthesia's Victor Riparbelli

    How deepfakes became a $4B business, with Synthesia's Victor Riparbelli
    Feb 5 2026
    Alex and Ellis analyze AIs talking to each other on Moltbook, the implications of Elon Musk merging SpaceX and xAI, new moves in the OpenAI versus Anthropic coding race, and a favorite AI app getting a controversial redesign. Then they’re joined by Victor Riparbelli, CEO of Synthesia, to talk about how he turned deepfakes into a business that just raised $200 million. They discuss how AI video is changing how we interact with each other, trust on the internet, and whether raising the bar for corporate videos also raises new risks. Follow ACCESS on Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/accesspodcast/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Alex: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://sources.news/⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/alexeheath/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow Ellis: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://meaning.company/⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/hamburger⁠⁠⁠⁠ ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 16 mins
  • Where we'll go when the bots take over, with Sublime's Sari Azout

    Where we'll go when the bots take over, with Sublime's Sari Azout
    Jan 30 2026
    Alex and Ellis talk about the tech industry's new obsession with Clawdbot/Molbot, the scary aspect of AI agents, AI invading group chats, and the new viral essay from Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei. Then they’re joined by Sublime founder Sari Azout to discuss what she learned from the crypto bubble, taste as a differentiator in the age of AI, founder life in Miami, the limits of “second brain” tools, and what it actually means to design for curiosity on the internet. Follow ACCESS on Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/accesspodcast/⁠⁠⁠ Follow Alex: ⁠⁠⁠https://sources.news/⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/alexeheath/⁠⁠⁠ Follow Ellis: ⁠⁠⁠https://meaning.company/⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠https://x.com/hamburger⁠⁠⁠ ACCESS is produced in partnership with the Vox Media Podcast Network. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 18 mins