Silicon Valley does has been the epicenter of global innovation for decades. But the Valley and its associated personalities, companies and trends have never been home to such undiluted power as they are today.
Think about this: Elon Musk, one of the richest men in the world, essentially underwrites U.S. presidential candidates while subsidiaries of his interstellar company SpaceX acquire more orbital real estate with each satellite launch; despite Facebook’s decline as a go-to platform for many Americans, Meta’s global user base continues to grow, ever closer to a staggering 4 billion; and over the past two years, Silicon Valley startups and giants have created another lucrative tech hype cycle, catalyzing billions of dollars in spending despite the promises of an artificial intelligence revolution.
At WIRED, we cover all this power and influence every day on our digital platforms and in our print editions. But we’re always looking for fresh ways to explore Silicon Valley’s dominance, especially in ways that make it easier for you, the WIRED audience, to understand and think about. Why might Elon Musk want a GOP-led White House so badly, and what would Trump’s regulatory environment and Musk’s approach to federal efficiency mean for your everyday life? If Meta continues to be involved in making the entire meta world a reality, how will this change the way you socialize, work, and learn? Will generative AI really change everything, or are we in the middle of a bubble that will soon devastate the tech industry on a scale we haven’t seen since the dotcom crash in the early 2000s?
There is a lot to discuss, but there is also a lot to talk about. So I’m content to announce Uncanny Valleya fresh podcast from three of WIRED’s top Bay Area journalists: Michael Calore, Zoë Schiffer and Lauren Goode. Together, Uncanny Valleyhosts will unravel and explain the latest and greatest – and even weirdest – trends in the tech industry and how they may shape society as a whole.
Expect informed and wise conversations from three hosts who have decades of experience discussing Silicon Valley and its products, AND his people, all from inside the Bay Area bubble. And because this is WIRED, we’ll balance this shrewd talk with a hearty dose of weird stuff: After all, the most powerful people in tech don’t just invent the future — they also try to cheat death, single-handedly apocalyptic bunkers, and build VC-backed cities from scratch.
You can find Uncanny Valley wherever you find your podcasts. We’d love to hear from you: send us your opinions, show ideas and questions for our hosts at uncannyvalley@wired.com. I hope you love this show as much as we do; enjoy listening!