Your Replacement Works for 40 Cents an Hour—Good Luck!

Robots at 40 Cents an Hour: Welcome to Humanity’s Final LayoffCongratulations, humans—you’re officially too expensive. While you’re out here demanding fair wages and basic rights, companies like Tesla and Figure are rolling out humanoid robots that work for the price of pocket lint. Optimus and its mechanical buddies are clocking in at 40 cents an hour, and spoiler alert: they don’t need breaks, unions, or health insurance.Max Bennett and Lisa Vega take a ruthless dive into the bleak reality of automation, the billion-dollar robot race, and the inevitable question—what happens when you are the inefficiency in the system? Buckle up for brutal takes, dark humor, and a front-row seat to humanity’s slow-motion economic extinction.Note: This project explores the new creative potential unlocked by generative AI, showcasing how a single person, in just two hours, can curate (not create, but curate) a polished podcast series. I recognize the critiques around AI-generated content and the potential for digital clutter but invite you to take a listen on your next walk or drive and see what you think. Audio is AI-generated by Google's NotebookLM. Images by Grok-3 and Magic Studio.