How big tech is creating its own friendly media bubble to ‘win the narrative battle online’ | Technology

A montage of Palantir’s CEO, Alex Karp, and waving US flags set to a remix of AC/DC’s Thunderstruck blasts out because the intro for the tech billionaire’s interview with Sourcery, a YouTube present introduced by the digital finance platform Brex. Over the course of a pleasant stroll by way of the corporate places of work, Karp fields no questions on Palantir’s controversial ties to ICE however as an alternative extolls the corporate’s virtues, brandishes a sword and discusses how he exhumed the stays of his childhood canine Rosita to rebury them close to his present house.“That’s actually candy,” host Molly O’Shea tells Karp.If you’re seeking to hear from a few of tech’s strongest individuals, you’ll more and more discover them on a constellation of exhibits and podcasts like Sourcery that present a secure area for an business that’s cautious, if not brazenly hostile, in direction of important media shops. A few of the new media shops are created by the businesses themselves. Others simply occupy a selected area of interest that has discovered a pleasant ear among the many tech billionaire class like a remora on a fast-moving shark. The heads of tech’s largest corporations, together with Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, Sam Altman, Satya Nadella and extra, have all sat for lengthy, cozy interviews in latest months, whereas corporations like Palantir and Andreessen Horowitz have branched out this 12 months into creating their very own media ventures.At a time when the vast majority of People mistrust large tech and consider synthetic intelligence will hurt society, Silicon Valley has constructed its personal community of other media the place CEOs, founders and buyers are the unchallenged and beloved stars. What was as soon as the province of some fawning podcasters has grown into a totally fledged ecosystem of publications and exhibits supported by among the tech business’s strongest.Whereas pro-tech influencers like podcast host Lex Fridman have for years shaped a symbiotic relationship with tech elites like Elon Musk, some corporations have determined this 12 months to chop out the intermediary solely. In September, the enterprise capital agency Andreessen Horowitz introduced that it had launched an a16z weblog on Substack. Considered one of its distinguished writers, investor Katherine Boyle, has a longstanding friendship with JD Vance. Its podcast has in the meantime grown to greater than 220,000 subscribers on YouTube, and final month hosted OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, who counts Andreessen Horowitz as a serious investor.“What if the way forward for media isn’t managed by algorithms or legacy establishments, however by impartial voices constructing immediately with their audiences?” the agency wrote in its Substack announcement. The agency as soon as invested $50m within the digital media upstart BuzzFeed with the same imaginative and prescient, solely to see it fall into penny inventory territory.The a16z Substack additionally introduced this month that the agency was launching an eight-week new media fellowship for “operators, creators, and storytellers shaping the way forward for media”. The fellowship consists of collaborating with a16z’s new media operation, which it describes as being made up of “on-line legends” making a “single place the place founders purchase the legitimacy, style, brandbuilding, experience, and momentum they should win the narrative battle on-line”.Along with a16z’s media effort, Palantir launched a digital and print publication earlier this 12 months known as the Republic that mimics educational journals and thinktank-style magazines like International Affairs. The journal is funded by the Palantir Basis for Protection Coverage and Worldwide Affairs, a non-profit of which Karp is the chair, although he solely works there 0.01 hours per week, in accordance with 2023 tax filings.“Far too many individuals who shouldn’t have a platform do. And there are far too many individuals who ought to have a platform however don’t,” states the Republic, which has an editorial crew made up of senior Palantir executives.A sampling of the articles the Republic has revealed consists of an essay arguing that US copyright legislation restrictions will forestall US AI dominance and one other from two Palantir workers on how Silicon Valley working with the army is sweet for society, a degree Karp has himself made many instances.The Republic joins a burgeoning set of pro-tech publications like Area journal, which was based late final 12 months by the Austin-based enterprise capitalist Max Meyer. The outlet takes its motto, “The New Wants Pals”, from Disney’s movie Ratatouille.“At Area, we don’t cowl ‘the information.’ We cowl The New,” a letter from the editors said in its inaugural difficulty. “Our mission at Area is to cheer on the people who find themselves, slowly however absolutely – and generally in a short time! – bringing the longer term into the current.”The letter echoes a sentiment shared by its founder, who has criticized publications like Wired and TechCrunch for being too important of their protection of the business.“The magazines which have traditionally coated this space are simply tremendous detrimental now. By being daring and optimistic, we’re going to battle with them,” Meyer instructed Joe Lonsdale, a co-founder of Palantir, on the latter’s podcast.Some components of tech’s new media scene have additionally grown extra organically, moderately than being created as an official company media arm – even when the optimistic total tone is analogous. The TBPN video podcast, which reimagines tech business trivia like hirings as a high-stakes drama akin to an NFL draft, has quickly grown in affect since launching late final 12 months. The present’s self-aware but pro-tech vibe has attracted distinguished followers and friends, together with Meta’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, who gave an in-person interview in September to advertise Meta’s sensible glasses.One other podcaster, 24-year-old Dwarkesh Patel, has equally constructed out a miniature media empire lately by way of lengthy, collegial interviews with tech leaders and researchers about synthetic intelligence. Earlier this month Patel talked with Microsoft’s CEO, Satya Nadella, who gave him a tour of one of many firm’s latest datacenters.skip previous publication promotionA weekly dive in to how know-how is shaping our livesPrivacy Discover: Newsletters might include details about charities, on-line adverts, and content material funded by exterior events. Should you do not need an account, we are going to create a visitor account for you on theguardian.com to ship you this article. You may full full registration at any time. For extra details about how we use your information see our Privateness Coverage. We use Google reCaptcha to guard our web site and the Google Privateness Coverage and Phrases of Service apply.after publication promotionAs with many developments in tech, Elon Musk was an early adopter of this model of pro-tech media appearances. For the reason that billionaire purchased Twitter in 2022, the corporate has throttled hyperlinks to important information shops and arrange autoreplies that return poop emojis when reporters attain out for remark. He has seldom given interviews to established media shops, however seems for lengthy sit-downs with sympathetic hosts like Lex Fridman and Joe Rogan, by which his opinions go largely unchallenged.Musk’s embrace of making a media bubble round himself has additionally proven how indifferent this type of content material can change into from actuality and consequence within the pursuit of other information. The billionaire’s longstanding discontent with Wikipedia led him this 12 months to create the AI knockoff Grokipedia, which generates blatant falsehoods and outcomes that match his personal far-right worldview. Musk’s chatbot Grok has in the meantime repeatedly expressed opinions that mirror the billionaire’s personal opinions or go to ludicrous lengths to flatter him, together with final week claiming that he was fitter than LeBron James and will beat Mike Tyson in a boxing match.The rise of tech’s new media can be half of a bigger shift in how public figures are presenting themselves and the extent of entry they’re prepared to offer journalists. The tech business has a protracted historical past of being delicate round media and intently guarded about their operations, a bent that has intensified following scandals just like the Fb information which have uncovered inside paperwork and potential harms. In a single instance of how skittish some in tech have change into round detrimental press, journalist Karen Hao writes in her 2025 guide, Empire of AI, that OpenAI didn’t formally communicate to her for 3 years following a important profile she did on the corporate in 2019.Tech’s transfer in direction of sympathetic shops and in-house media creation additionally mirrors a method the leisure business took on years in the past. Movie and album launch press excursions have lengthy been tightly managed affairs, the place actors and musicians undergo a gauntlet of simply vetted, low-stakes interviews on exhibits like Scorching Ones. Politicians have embraced the same mannequin – as was evident throughout Donald Trump’s 2024 marketing campaign tour of podcasters like Theo Von, or California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, launching his personal politics podcast earlier this 12 months – which gives them each entry to new audiences and a safer area for self-promotion.Even when a lot of this new media isn’t aiming to reveal wrongdoing or problem individuals in energy, it’s not precisely with out worth. The content material that the tech business is creating is steadily a mirrored image of how its elites see themselves and the world they need to construct – one with much less authorities regulation and fewer probing questions on how their corporations are run. Even probably the most banal questions can be a glimpse into the heads of people that exist primarily in guarded board rooms and gated compounds.“Should you have been a cupcake, what cupcake could be?” O’Shea requested Karp on Sourcery introduced by Brex.“I don’t need to be a cupcake as a result of I don’t need to be eaten,” Karp mentioned. “I’m resisting turning into a cupcake.”Fast GuideContact us about this storyShowThe greatest public curiosity journalism depends on first-hand accounts from individuals within the know.When you have one thing to share on this topic, you’ll be able to contact us confidentially utilizing the next strategies.Safe Messaging within the Guardian appThe Guardian app has a instrument to ship recommendations on tales. Messages are finish to finish encrypted and hid throughout the routine exercise that each Guardian cellular app performs. 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