Issue 020 · Sept 22nd 2026
Who’s Igor?
If AI made everyone A LOT richer, would we even have AI debates?
Last week, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called for the AI industry to slow itself down. He warned that increasingly autonomous AI systems could soon hack networks, improve themselves faster than humans can understand them, and eventually become powerful enough that we lose control. Sam Altman and Elon Musk quickly echoed versions of the warning. The people building the technology are, quite literally, telling us they are worried about what they are building - I mean, Dario’s been doing that for awhile, but it feels more real now for some reason.
On the one hand, we should probably believe them…or at least prepare for the possibility. But, are most Americans actually terrified that Claude is going to kill them? Or are they just pissed that a handful of investors, elite managers, and AI researchers are going to make stupid amounts of money while everyone else just grins and takes it?
Amodei himself has acknowledged the problem. Earlier this year he warned of a future of “hypergrowth, hyper-inequality” and wrote that extreme concentration of AI wealth could “break society. So what is the AI backlash really about? Are Americans afraid of what AI might do to humanity, or increasingly furious about who gets to own it, profit from it, and decide what happens to everyone else?
- NYC Event to Learn More -
An UNMUTED Debate: The AI-ndustrial Revolution?
When: Thursday, October 22nd
What: Turns out WE are doing this debate, late next month! Two former UNMUTED speakers go head to head to dive deep into AI as an economic boon or bust? Will the rich get richer, faster? Or will there actually be economic benefits for the working class, and others that didn’t get in on the ground floor?
The Room at UNMUTED - THIS Tuesday
What does the UN do? How much does the US spend on the UN today? Are we getting our money’s worth? How would you even measure that? Well, in partnership with Network 20/20, we are going to find the f*ck out! Because we’re asking the biggest question of all: Should the US leave the UN?
Former Biden appointed UN ambassador Chris Lu defends the merit of the UN against Taufiq Rahim, principal of 2040 World and Senior Fellow at New America. We also just landed Subhah Agarwal to be our opener! She’s funny, I think. You don’t have to have a strong opinion, you don’t have to be a wonk, you just have to be really really ridiculously good looking. Just kidding - the bar is political curiosity! If you’re curious about what the UN is, and whether or not it’s failing us (or whether America is failing the UN), join us. BUT if you can’t make it, subscribe here to stay updated on all of our upcoming events.
Is the UN the most inefficient jobs program in the world?
Leave the house NEXT week in
NYC
Wed 9/30, 9 AM
Does China Need to Consume More?
Nicholas Lardy (Peterson Inst.) v
Daniel Rosen (Rhodium Group) &
Jing Qian (Asia Society)
A CHY-NA debate! Basically, Chinese consumers don’t consume enough, OR DO THEY? OR DOES IT MATTER? A rare opportunity to understand the problems of not America!
Produced by Asia Society
Hosted at Asia Society
Wed, 9/30, 6 PM
The States vs. the Executive
Like, a billion present and former Solicitors General.
Do you even know what a Solicitor General is? Because I had to AI search it. An event about the tension between their boss (AG) and the governor, as well as how SGs can often work together across party lines!
Produced by Federalist Society
Hosted at The Cornell Club
Thurs, 9/24, 9:30 PM
How Trusted Creators Monetize without Selling Out
Matt Mitsui (CCE x NYC) +
Haley Janicek (Kit) +
Ayanna Dutton-Diaz (AD Consulting)
This is a topic that should get way more conversation. How can you trust political content creators who take money from campaigns? Not directly the topic but could come up! Might be too corporate though…
Produced by UGLY TALKS
Hosted at Kit Studios
That’s all for now. See you Space Cowboy…