Better Offline
Cool Zone Media and iHeartPodcasts
Better Offline is a weekly show exploring the tech industry’s influence and manipulation of society - and interrogating the growth-at-all-costs future that tech’s elite wants to build.
Combining narrative-form storytelling, one-on-one interviews and panel-based discussions, Better Offline cuts through the buzzwords and obfuscation of the tech industry, investigating and evaluating the schemes and scams of everyone from cryptocurrency scumbags to the greediest of the venture capital elite. Tech industry veteran Ed Zitron and a dynamic coterie of guests will help listeners understand the who, how and why of how tech’s most powerful players are changing the world - for better or for worse.
Combining narrative-form storytelling, one-on-one interviews and panel-based discussions, Better Offline cuts through the buzzwords and obfuscation of the tech industry, investigating and evaluating the schemes and scams of everyone from cryptocurrency scumbags to the greediest of the venture capital elite. Tech industry veteran Ed Zitron and a dynamic coterie of guests will help listeners understand the who, how and why of how tech’s most powerful players are changing the world - for better or for worse.
Episodes
Mentioned books
49 snips
Feb 25, 2026 • 59min
Hater Season: Victoria Song & Alex Cranz
Victoria Song, Verge journalist who exposes wellness marketing and sketchy health tech, and Alex Cranz, writer critiquing fitness and AI coaching, spar over wearable claims, gray‑market peptides, and the limits of AI coaches. They call out dubious supplement studies, inconsistent device readings, privacy risks from datafied bodies, and the rush to quick fixes like GLP‑1s.
79 snips
Feb 20, 2026 • 8min
Monologue: AI Isn't Replacing Software Companies, Calm Down About Claude Code
A sharp takedown of fears that AI will let companies ditch software vendors. Clear scenes on the hidden costs and maintenance headaches of in-house builds. A critique of media hype and why subsidized AI tools are not sustainable. A close look at Claude Code’s limits and the long-term risks of fragile, undocumented AI-written code.
61 snips
Feb 18, 2026 • 59min
Hater Season: Caleb Wilson, Juniper and Arif Hasan
Arif Hasan, Wide Left football commentator with a knack for prediction markets, and Juniper, co-host of Kill The Computer known for sharp tech criticism, trade barbs about Silicon Valley elites and AI hype. They tear into AI evangelism, prediction markets for disasters, and the aesthetics and ethics of AI-made ads and art. Short, snarky takes on tech’s worst trends.
84 snips
Feb 13, 2026 • 7min
Monologue: No, Something Big Isn't Coming
A fiery takedown of alarmist AI hype and deceptive writing. Claims about autonomous code-writing and self-improving models are challenged. A controversial benchmark and undisclosed conflicts are exposed. The piece calls out media amplification and demands accountability.
114 snips
Feb 11, 2026 • 1h 7min
Hater Season: Cal Newport on AI Reporting
Cal Newport, a computer science professor and writer known for critiques of tech and AI coverage, skews into how media inflates AI stories. He names recurring reporting traps like vibe reporting, misleading demos, and hype laundering. Short takes cover why agent demos fail, why engineers push back, and how journalistic incentives favor alarmist narratives.
46 snips
Feb 6, 2026 • 8min
Monologue: Is Oracle Screwed?
A sharp take on generative AI hype colliding with market reality. A deep dive into Oracle’s bold compute claims, missing power and financing gaps. Analysis of fundraising moves, debt strain and potential layoffs or asset sales. A look at how NVIDIA, OpenAI and a controversial TikTok deal complicate Oracle’s prospects.
102 snips
Feb 4, 2026 • 38min
Hater Season: Openclaw with David Gerard
David Gerard, technology critic behind Pivot to AI, offers skeptical takes on OpenClaw/MaltBot and AI hype. He breaks down prompt-injection risks, bot social networks that fake agency, and how agent projects mirror crypto grifts. The conversation ties AI enthusiasm to venture capital bubbles and real-world security and market consequences.
35 snips
Jan 30, 2026 • 12min
AI Is Worse Than The Dot Com Bubble: Part Four
A somber walkthrough of how an AI boom could unravel global tech finances. Scenarios include massive hardware revenue collapses, stranded data centers, and sweeping venture capital contractions. The podcast contrasts AI infrastructure costs with dot‑com era economics and examines how hype, misleading models, and false cost claims could deepen the fallout.
36 snips
Jan 29, 2026 • 14min
AI Is Worse Than The Dot Com Bubble: Part Three
A sharp breakdown of why AI's economics may be far riskier than the dot‑com era. A comparison of GPU suppliers to old fiber vendors and the role of concentrated customers. A look at single‑stock dominance, heavy vendor financing, and the enormous infrastructure and power needs behind modern AI.
94 snips
Jan 28, 2026 • 20min
AI Is Worse Than The Dot Com Bubble: Part Two
A contrarian take comparing today’s AI investment frenzy to the dot‑com build‑out. Myth-busting on infinite compute demand and falling model costs. A deep dive into GPU economics, data center scale, rapid hardware depreciation, and Taiwan supply risks. Warnings about concentrated market exposure and potential financial contagion.
