PODCAST · technology
Untangled
by Charley Johnson
Untangled is a podcast about technology, people, and power. untangled.substack.com
Episodes
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Can you say no to AI at work?
Welcome back to Untangled, a newsletter and community for people who refuse the story that technology just happens to us. It’s stewarded by me, Charley Johnson, and enriched by members like you. This week’s podcast guest is Ami Fields-Meyer. Ami was a senior policy advisor in…
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"We Have No Time to Rush": Why Organizations Should Slow Down AI Adoption
Welcome back to Untangled, a newsletter and community for people who refuse the story that technology just happens to us. It’s stewarded by me, Charley Johnson, and enriched by members like you. This week I’m writing about what David Robinson’s exit from OpenAI and Maggie Jackson’s…
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Why "Go Experiment with AI" Fails as an AI Adoption Strategy
Welcome back to Untangled. It’s written by me, Charley Johnson, and valued by members like you. This week I talked with Jen Briselli, co-founder of Topology and an adjunct professor at Massachusetts College of Art and Design. Jen is one of my favorite thinkers on complexity, and she’s...
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What is an 'AI strategy'?
Welcome back to Untangled. It’s written by me, Charley Johnson, and valued by members like you. This week I’m sharing my conversation with Nick Pyati, a former senior strategy leader at Microsoft and the founder of Belari AI. Nick spent nine years doing strategy for a company whose ground...
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You can't make sense of the world alone with a chatbot.
Hi there, Welcome back to Untangled. It’s written by me, Charley Johnson, and valued by members like you. Help me make it better? This week I’m sharing my conversation with Marina Nitze — former CTO of the Department of Veterans...
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She spent hours thinking with Claude. Then she couldn't explain any of it.
Hi there, Welcome back to Untangled. It’s written by me, Charley Johnson, and valued by members like you. Help me make it better? This week: my conversation with Helen and Dave Edwards of The Artificiality Institute on how AI...
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We Don't Have to Build the Filter Bubble of One
Hi there, Welcome back to Untangled. It’s written by me, Charley Johnson, and valued by members like you. Help me make it better? Today I’m sharing my conversation with Angelica Quicksey, Managing Director of New_Public, about the rise of the agentic...
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The World They're Building Toward
Hi there, This week I’m sharing a conversation I had with Bo Young Lee, CEO of AI4All about Silicon Valley imaginaries, rational refusal, and the futures we haven’t been offered. As always, please send me feedback on today’s post by replying to this email. I read and respond to every note. On...
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Your data isn't exhaust. It's a belonging.
Hi there, Welcome back to Untangled. It’s written by me, Charley Johnson, and supported by members like you. Help me make it better? This week I’m sharing a conversation I had with Beth Rudden — founder of Bast AI, former chief data officer for a $34 billion division at IBM, and someone...
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The Age of Algorithmic Deference.
Hi there, Welcome back to Untangled. It’s written by me, Charley Johnson, and supported by members like you. Help me make it better? This week, I’m sharing a conversation I had with Hilke Schellmann — Emmy Award-winning investigative journalist, NYU professor, and author of The…
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What If We Regulated Chatbots Like Any Other Product?
Hi there, Welcome back to Untangled. It’s written by me, Charley Johnson, and valued by members like you. Today, I’m sharing my conversation with Ben Winters, Director of AI and Privacy at Consumer Federation of America, about The People First Chatbot Bill—model legislation for regulating...
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When Your AI Assistant Becomes an Advertiser
Hi there, Welcome back to Untangled. It’s written by me, Charley Johnson, and supported by members like you. This week I’m sharing my conversation with Miranda Bogen (Director, AI Governance Lab, Center for Democracy & Technology) about what happens when your AI assistant becomes an…
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What Happens When Your Coworkers Are AI Agents
Hi there, Welcome back to Untangled. It’s written by me, Charley Johnson, and supported by members like you. This week, I’m sharing my conversation with Evan Ratliff, journalist and host of the thought-provoking podcast, Shell Game. As always, please send me feedback on today’s post by…
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The Universe Called. It Says Your Theory of Change Is Cute.
If you’ve sensed a shift in Untangled of late, you’re not wrong. I’m writing a lot more about ‘complex systems.’ To name a few: * What even is a ‘complex system’ and how do you know if you’re in one. * How to act interdependently and do the next right thing in a complex system. * Why if/then...
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"Autonomy or Empire"- Rethinking What AI Is For
This week, I spoke with Harry Law, Editorial Lead at the Cosmos Institute and a researcher at the University of Cambridge, about AI and autonomy. Harry wrote a terrific essay on how generative AI might serve human autonomy rather than the empires Big Tech is intent on building. In our…
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'Be Curious, Not judgmental' or What AI Critics Get Wrong!
Today, I’m sharing the 15-minute diagnostic framework I use to assess an organization’s capacity to navigate uncertainty and complexity. Fill out this short survey to get access. The diagnostic is just one tool of 30+ included in the Playbook that will help you put the frameworks from my course...
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"Empire of AI" w/Karen Hao
Today, I’m sharing my conversation with Karen Hao, award-winning reporter covering artificial intelligence and author of NYT bestseller, Empire of AI. We discuss: * The scale-at-all cost approach to AI Big Tech is pursuing — the misguided assumptions and beliefs it rests upon, and the harms it...
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There’s no such thing as ‘fully autonomous’ agents
I’m Charley Johnson, and this is Untangled, a newsletter and podcast about our sociotechnical world, and how to change it. Today, I’m bringing you the audio version of my latest essay, “There’s no such thing as ‘fully autonomous agents.’ Before getting into it, two quick things: 1. I have two…
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Is tech a religion? Is Elon Musk a hungry ghost?
Today, I’m sharing my conversation with Greg Epstein, American Humanist chaplain at Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and author of the great new book Tech Agnostic: How Technology Became the World’s Most Powerful Religion, and Why It Desperately Needs a…
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Can we democratize AI?
Today, I’m sharing my conversation with Divya Siddarth, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Collective Intelligence Project (CIP) about how we might democratize the development and governance of AI. We discuss: * The CIP’s work on alignment assemblies with Anthropic and OpenAI — what they’ve...
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Building healthy local communities online & off
Today, I’m sharing my conversation with Deepti Doshi, Co-Director of New_Public about what they’ve learned building local healthy communities, online and off. We discuss: * The problem New_Public is trying to address with their initiative, Local Lab. (Which I highlighted in my recent essay,...
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Block, build, be
This week, I’m sharing my conversation with Anya Kamenetz, the creator of The Golden Hour, a newsletter about “thriving and caring for others on a rapidly changing planet. Anya and I announced a new partnership recently — now, when you sign up for an annual paid subscription to Untangled, you’ll...
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Is AI snake oil?
Hi, I’m Charley, and this is Untangled, a newsletter about our sociotechnical world, and how to change it. * Come work with me! The initiative I lead at Data & Society is hiring for a Community Manager. Learn more here. * Check out my new course, Sociotechnical Systems Change in Practice. The…
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The potential of public AI
Hi, I’m Charley, and this is Untangled, a newsletter about our sociotechnical world, and how to change it. * Untangled crossed the 8,000 subscriber mark this week. Woot! * Come work with me! The initiative I lead at Data & Society is hiring for a Community Manager. Learn more here. * Last week, I...
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OpenAI’s mythology, Meta’s secret, and Microsoft’s hypocrisy.
Hi, I’m Charley, and this is Untangled, a newsletter about our sociotechnical world, and how to change it. * Last week, I argued that the shared reality that the U.S. has long glorified was predominantly white and male, and historically, fragmentation has proven to be a good thing. * I launched…
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A world overrun by AI agents w/Evan Ratliff
Hi, it’s Charley, and this is Untangled, a newsletter about technology, people, and power. Today, I’m sharing my conversation with Evan Ratliff, journalist and host of Shell Game, a funny and provocative new podcast about “things that are not what they seem.” Evan cloned his voice, hitched it to…
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I turned 40 this week.
Hi, it’s Charley, and this is Untangled, a newsletter about technology, people, and power. Can’t afford a subscription and value Untangled’s offerings? Let me know! You only need to reply to this email, and I’ll add you to the paid subscription list, no questions asked. I turned 40 this week and…
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AI is a mirror. What can it show us?
Hi, it’s Charley, and this is Untangled, a newsletter about technology, people, and power. This week I’m sharing my conversation with Shannon Vallor, the Baillie Gifford Chair in the Ethics of Data and Artificial Intelligence at the Edinburgh Futures Institute (EFI) at the University of…
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🎧 Unfollow your friends!
Last week, I analyzed a new lawsuit brought by University of Massachusetts Amherst professor Ethan Zuckerman and the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University. The lawsuit would loosen Big Tech’s grip over our internet experience if successful. In this conversation, I’m joined by ,...
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When it comes to regulating social media, it's tradeoffs all the way down
Hello, welcome back to the podcast edition of Untangled. If someone forward you this link, it was probably my sister. Give it a listen — she knows what she's talking about. Then, if you're so inclined, become a subscriber. 👉 Two things before we get into it. First, you can now listen to…
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From co-ops to crypto
You came back! That warms my writerly heart. If someone forwarded you this email, definitely thank them - they just get your wonky sensibility. Then, if you’re so inclined, become a subscriber. 👉 One more thing before we get into it - if Untangled arrives in your Promotions tab, consider moving…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Untangled is a podcast about technology, people, and power.
untangled.substack.com
HOSTED BY
Charley Johnson
CATEGORIES
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Untangled have?
Untangled currently has 31 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Untangled about?
Untangled is a podcast about technology, people, and power. untangled.substack.com
How often does Untangled release new episodes?
Untangled has 31 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to Untangled?
You can listen to Untangled on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Untangled?
Untangled is created and hosted by Charley Johnson.
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