Generative AI 101

World models aren’t a sci-fi subplot, no, they’re how AIs build mini fake worlds in their silicon skulls to test ideas without wrecking your car or your reputation. In this episode, host Emily Laird breaks down what world models actually are (spoiler: think The Sims, but the Sim is smarter than your cousin) and why they’re the key to helping AI go from pattern-recogni...

Yann LeCun, deep learning pioneer and Meta’s AI heavyweight, is out and he's not leaving quietly. In this episode host Emily Laird unpacks his philosophical split with Meta over the limits of large language models, his obsession with world models, and why he thinks real intelligence means predicting your kitchen layout, not just auto-completing your emails. Join the ...

Banning ChatGPT in schools is like banning pencils because kids might doodle. In this episode, host Emily Laird takes a flamethrower to the myth that AI’s not in your classroom, because it is, and your students are already using it. Also… you know that. Right? Emily breaks down what real AI literacy looks like, why AI detectors are academic snake oil, and how school d...

OpenAI just gave your browser a brain and possibly a caffeine addiction. In this episode, host Emily Laird is ripping into Atlas, OpenAI’s Chrome-powered AI browser with baked-in ChatGPT, Agent Mode, and a memory function that might remember your possum research. Yes, your browser now clicks stuff for you. Welcome to the future. Try not to let it do your taxes.

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OpenAI just dropped $38 billion like it’s tipping the bartender at the GPU speakeasy, and the lucky recipient? Amazon Web Services (AWS if ya nasty). In this episode, host Emily Laird digs into why OpenAI is making moves on AWS while still keeping things cozy with Microsoft, what this deal means for the cloud infrastructure arms race, and how your AI stack might get c...

Claude 4.5 isn’t just the teacher’s pet, it’s running the class, grading the papers, and rewriting the syllabus in Python. In this episode, Emily Laird breaks down why Anthropic’s newest model might be the best coder alive (sorry, humans), how it quietly dominates your Slack threads, and what makes it the new heavyweight champ in AI tooling. From browser automation to...

Last week, Amazon axed 14,000 white-collar jobs, and this time, the pink slip came with a side of machine learning. In this episode, Emily Laird is unpacking the biggest corporate AI bloodbath of 2025; how generative AI took aim not at warehouses, but at the middle managers, HR folks, and program leads who thought they were safe behind a PowerPoint deck. Join the AI...

What do Call of Duty, Google Cloud, and your favorite cat video have in common? They all owe their lives to a battle raging deep inside your devices: GPU versus TPU. In this episode, host Emily Laird breaks down these silicon powerhouses, one’s a Swiss Army knife slinging pixels and precision, the other’s a neural network assassin built by Google on espresso. From For...

Meta just threw its AI playbook in the shredder, lit the ashes on fire, and built a secret lab on top. In this episode, Emily Laird breaks down the end of FAIR, the open-source darling of Meta AI, and the rise of a new AGI-obsessed regime led by Alexandr Wang. We’re talking layoffs, lab coats, and the TBD Lab (a.k.a. Meta’s AI Navy SEALs). Forget transparency, Meta’s ...

Humanoid robots are no longer sci-fi fever dreams or Silicon Valley party tricks, they’re coming for your chores (at least we hope). In this episode, Emily Laird's getting hands-on (literally) with Figure 03, a humanoid robot from Figure AI that walks, sees, hears, and maybe folds towels better than you. Powered by Helix, a model that blends vision, language, and acti...

Tilly Norwood isn’t real but she is raising real eyebrows. Billed as the next Natalie Portman (if Natalie were a laggy IKEA algorithm), this AI “actress” is part influencer, part software stack, and part lawsuit waiting to happen. In this episode, host Emily Laird unpacks the tech behind Tilly’s digital debut, from glitchy expressions to Frankenstack production tools,...

Elon Musk isn’t just tweeting through it, he’s building a supercomputer the size of a football stadium in the swamps of Memphis. It's called Colossus, and it’s stuffed with hundreds of thousands of Nvidia chips, guzzling gigawatts of power like a frat boy with a Monster Energy addiction. In this episode, host Emily Laird breaks down Musk’s big AI bet: the tech, the po...

A continuation of Emily's exploration into the Andreeson Horowitz Top 100 Generative AI apps. Janitor AI is a full-blown fever dream with 5 million users, 2 million characters, and zero shame. In this episode, host Emily Laird explores the spicy underworld of AI role-play, where lonely hearts, anime stans, and fantasy nerds collide. From vampire lovers to demon baris...

OpenAI Dev Day 2025 wasn’t just a product drop, it was a full-on software coup. In this episode, host Emily Laird breaks down how ChatGPT graduated from chatbot to operating system, complete with apps, agents, and enough compute power to fry your toaster. From booking a Rome trip mid-chat to building AI assistants without writing code, it’s clear: the era of tab-hoppi...

Character.AI is where Shakespeare meets Snapchat and your anime boyfriend quotes Nietzsche in real time. In this episode, Emily Laird explores the company turning chatbot conversations into Gen Z’s favorite form of weird therapy and role-play. Founded by two ex-Googlers (Transformer royalty, no less), Character.AI has raised big money, signed a $2.7B deal with Google,...

OpenAI just dropped Sora, a sleek new app that uses the brand new Sora 2 video gen model, and something called Pulse in Pro. Host Emily Laird breaks down what it all actually means beneath the PR gloss. Join the AI Weekly Meetups Connect with Us: If you enjoyed this episode or have questions, reach out to Emily Laird on LinkedIn. Stay tuned for more insights into t...

What do you get when you mix billion-dollar egos, unfinished AI code, and an arms race mindset? A potential disaster with better branding. In this episode, Emily Laird breaks down why “safety pledges” and AI ethics guidelines sound great… right up until there’s money on the table. From vaporware promises to high-stakes standoffs between sleepy engineers and rogue mode...

What do you get when OpenAI and NVIDIA throw $100 billion at the problem of thinking machines? A digital superhighway powered by 10 gigawatts of GPU-fueled fury, and maybe the early blueprints for artificial general intelligence. In this episode, Emily Laird breaks down why compute is the new oil, what the hell “Vera Rubin” has to do with your favorite Drake-AI mashup...

Meta’s back on your face and this time, it’s not just a privacy nightmare in disguise. In this episode, Emily Laird breaks down Meta’s latest smart glasses lineup: the Ray-Ban Display (complete with a mini screen in your eyeball), the Oakley Vanguard (for outdoorsy cyborgs), and the Ray-Ban Gen 2 (TikTok-ready, dystopia-lite).

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