From Algorithms to AI: How Reality Got Rewritten in 100 Episodes of TechSequences

Six years after launching in the uncertainty of April 2020, Alexa Raad and Leslie Daigle revisit the origins of TechSequences and the world that shaped it. What began as a conversation about contact tracing, digital privacy, and the early influence of “the algorithm” now reads like a snapshot of a more stable reality—one where truth still felt anchored and shared. In this milestone 101st episode, they reflect on how quickly that foundation shifted, and how the systems we once trusted to inform us have been transformed by an escalating competition for attention. As the Internet evolved from a collaborative frontier into a hyper-optimized commercial ecosystem, the incentives changed—and with them, our experience of reality itself. News became content, attention became currency, and AI accelerated everything: from the rise of synthetic media and “hallucinated” facts to the emergence of fully personalized information environments. Alexa and Leslie explore how these forces have blurred the line between signal and simulation, raising urgent questions about trust, consent, accountability, and whether a shared understanding of truth can still exist in an age of infinite, tailored persuasion. Looking ahead, the conversation turns to what comes next. If the past six years caught us off guard, what are we missing now? From the growing value of human authenticity to the risk of deepening digital divides, and the possibility of new innovation cycles beyond today’s tech giants, this episode is both a reflection and a reckoning. Six years in, TechSequences is no longer just tracking the evolution of technology—it’s grappling with how that evolution is reshaping reality itself, and what it means for the future we’re building. Hosted by: Alexa Raad and Leslie Daigle. The views and opinions expressed in this program are our own and may not reflect the views or positions of our employers.