Show Notes
We’re being told that automation can free us. Machines will do the drudge work, and we will reclaim our time. But that’s not how things are going. Instead, artificial intelligence has concentrated power in the hands of the companies that own the infrastructure and outrun nation-states’ ability to regulate it.
In this episode of Futurology, author and scholar Nick Srnicek revisits the provocative idea he helped popularize after the 2008 financial crisis: that the left should fight for technology to reduce work and expand freedom, rather than simply resisting it. Srnicek describes his new book, Silicon Empires, which traces the shift from ephemeral platforms to hard infrastructure in Silicon Valley.
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Mentioned in this Episode:
#ACCELERATE: Manifesto for an Accelerationist Politics — Alex Williams and Nick Srnicek (Manifesto/Essay, 2013)
Inventing the Future: Postcapitalism and a World Without Work — Nick Srnicek and Alex Williams (Book, 2015)
T.A.Z.: The Temporary Autonomous Zone, Ontological Anarchy, Poetic Terrorism — Hakim Bey (Book, 1991)
After Work: A History of the Home and the Fight for Free Time — Helen Hester and Nick Srnicek (Book, 2023)
Platform Capitalism — Nick Srnicek (Book, 2016)
Silicon Empires: The Fight for the Future of AI — Nick Srnicek (Book, 2026)
This Life: Secular Faith and Spiritual Freedom — Martin Hägglund (Book, 2019)
Where to find Nick Srnicek:
X: @nsrnicek
BlueSky: @nsrnicek.bsky.social
University Profile: Dr. Nick Srnicek | King's College London
Substack (Silicon Empires): siliconempires.substack.com
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Credits
Executive Producers: Nicolas Berggruen, Nathan Gardels, Nils Gilman, Dawn Nakagawa, & Jason Hoch
Producers: Grant Slater, Alex Gardels, & Nathalia Ramos
Associate Producer: Elissa Mardiney
Theme Music: Marcus Bagala
Audio Engineer: Aaron Bastinelli & Kyle Scott Wilson
Futurology is a production of Studio B and Wavland for the Berggruen Institute in Los Angeles, California.
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