Sharp Tech with Ben Thompson (Preview) AWS History and Trainium’s AI Future, OpenAI Makes a Deal With Microsoft, Meta and the Future of Wearable Devices
13 snips
May 1, 2026 They trace AWS’s cloud origins and explain how Amazon’s cost-driven playbook is reemerging in AI. They debate why Amazon’s Trainium chips may finally make sense for model training. They unpack the recent OpenAI–Microsoft alignment and why OpenAI might still want AWS. They also speculate on Meta’s Display glasses, legal battles around wearables, and where AR/VR goes next.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Hosts Swap Broken MacBook Air Stories
- Andrew Sharp and Ben Thompson bought new MacBook Airs after kernel panics and hardware damage interrupted work.
- Andrew described kernel panics from drops; Ben noted stepping on his Air and both struggling with macOS Tahoe whiteness and software quirks.
AWS Growth Driven By AI Workload Consolidation
- Amazon reported AWS revenue up 28% and overall revenue rose 17% to $181.5 billion, with net profit up 77% aided by Anthropic investment gains.
- Andy Jassy attributed growth to customers keeping new AI agents where they already store cloud services and data.
Two Ways Tech Companies Make Money
- Ben contrasts two profit models: Apple-style differentiated moats vs Amazon-style low-cost commodity leadership where scale and cost structure win.
- In commodities, the lowest-cost provider captures sustainable profits by undercutting competitors and surviving price pressure.