El Podcast

E132: Grief, Google & the AI Revolution: Vauhini Vara Unpacks Tech's Hold on Our Lives

Episode Summary

Journalist & author Vauhini Vara discusses her book Searches: Selfhood in the Digital Age, exploring the impact of technology on identity, grief, and personal agency. She reflects on her experiences in Seattle and Silicon Valley, delving into the complexities of AI, surveillance capitalism, and digital communication. The conversation highlights the risks and benefits of tech, the importance of understanding its influence, and the need for individuals to make mindful choices in an increasingly tech-driven world.

Episode Notes

Vauhini Vara explores the impact of technology on identity, grief, and personal agency in a world dominated by AI and surveillance capitalism.

Guest Bio:
Vauhini Vara is a journalist and prize-winning author whose work focuses on technology, its societal impacts, and selfhood in the digital age. She has written for numerous outlets and authored books such as Searches: Selfhood in the Digital Age. Wahini has worked as a reporter for The Wall Street Journal and has written extensively on the role of tech companies in shaping modern life.

Topics Discussed:

• The intersection of selfhood and technology
• The power of big tech companies and their influence on society
• AI’s role in shaping language and the future of work
• The implications of surveillance capitalism
• The evolution of Silicon Valley and its impact on culture
• Grief and technology's role in processing personal loss
• Agency and personal choices in a tech-driven world

Top 3 Quotes:

• "The goal of these companies is to get us to use these products for longer and longer periods, because that makes them more money."
• "What these companies are doing is that they are amassing so much knowledge about us that they will ultimately have this body of knowledge that far exceeds anything that we as individuals, as communities, as institutions can possibly know."
• "Only we can tell our own stories because only we have the experiences that we have the position in the world that we have."

📺Watch full pod on YouTube➡️https://youtu.be/cdbHeBS5JAY