Skip to content
Melo Podcasts Home
CategoriesLanguagesFollowing

Episode 126 · Search Engine

Colossus 2

21 Nov 2025 · 43 min

Play episode WhatsApp Download

Episode notes

In part two of our story about Elon Musk’s growing data center empire, we visit the battle between people in Memphis and xAI. And we try to understand a strange, untested assumption at the heart of the AI financing boom. Support Search Engine!

Podcast

Search Engine

PJ Vogt · Tech & Science · English

We try to make sense of the world, one question at a time. No question too big, no question too small.Hosted by PJ Vogt, edited by Sruthi Pinnamaneni. Named one of the best podcasts of all time by Time Magazine

More from Search Engine All episodes →

  1. E129 · 9 Jan 2026 · 39 min

    The Fediverse Experiment

    Our present version of the internet is arguably the worst it’s ever been. Which means – any shot at changing things, even an unlikely one – is worth trying out. Three podcasters who’ve spent years critiquing social media companies try to build their own small alternative social media. A collaboration with Hard Fork’s Kevin Roose and Casey Newton: join ⁠The Forkiverse⁠ here.

  2. E128 · 19 Dec 2025 · 56 min

    A Perfectly Average Anomaly

    A man walks into an airport body scanner, and with eerie consistency, the machine flags the exact same part of his body. What could be going on? Search Engine investigates a Bermuda Triangle. Incognito Mode⁠, our ad-free, no-rerun, bonus episode feed.

  3. 12 Dec 2025 · 49 min

    Unlocked: The State of Search Engine 2025

    As a special, one-time holiday treat, we're sharing something we only usually offer on our premium feed, Incognito Mode. Our annual board meeting! We talk about what shopping a podcast has been like in this environment, our internal stats, and… Yes, Yes, No. Incognito Mode, our ad-free, no-rerun, bonus episode feed.

  4. 5 Dec 2025 · 1 hr

    What's the best phone to do crimes on? (classic)

    For years, the must-have phone for the discerning drug trafficker or hitman was a brand you may not have heard of: AN0M. Reporter Joseph Cox tells us the story of the AN0M phone, its sudden rise and shocking fall, and the shadowy group behind its invention. Joseph's new book: Dark Wire. Incognito Mode, our ad-free, no-rerun, bonus episode feed.

  5. E127 · 27 Nov 2025 · 36 min

    How to talk (or not talk) politics at family holidays

    This week, in honor of the holiday season — can you, should you change your family’s politics through holiday conversation. If so, how? A conversation with Ezra Klein. ⁠Support Search Engine!

  6. E125 · 21 Nov 2025 · 42 min

    Colossus 1

    Tech billionaires have made an enormous bet on AI, the biggest bet that tech has made on anything in a very long time. Reporter Sruthi Pinnamaneni goes on a journey – from Data Center Alley to the shadow of Colossus – to see what the money’s being spent on, and to learn what happens if things go wrong. Support Search Engine!

  7. E124 · 12 Nov 2025 · 44 min

    An Anthropology of Gooners

    A reporter spends a year diving into a subculture of young men online who unite around their extreme commitment to constant, unadulterated porn consumption. Why are they doing this, what is it doing to them, and what does their existence tell us about the internet we’re all stuck on? The Goon Squad by Daniel Kolitz for Harper’s Magazine Daniel’s Twitter Support Search Engine!

  8. E123 · 31 Oct 2025 · 57 min

    America vs. China

    People review everything, but they almost never review what it’s like to live in another country. Until now. We interview a writer who’s lived in China, covered China, and has had to choose between life here and there. What are the big misconceptions Americans have about China? How could America learn to build trains and bridges as fast as China does? And how should the two countries actually be copying each other? Breakneck: China’s Quest to Engineer the Future by Dan Wang Support Search Engine!

  9. E122 · 17 Oct 2025 · 52 min

    The Rage in the Cage

    Can you tickle your way to victory in an MMA fight? An investigation into a sports scandal with journalist Pablo Torre. See videos mentioned in this episode. Check out Pablo Torre Finds Out on Youtube or Spotify. Support Search Engine! Comment on this episode.

  10. E121 · 10 Oct 2025 · 47 min

    Cocomelon For Adults

    Last week, OpenAI released an app that quickly shot to the #1 spot in Apple's App Store. Sora is like TikTok, except all the videos are AI generated. Is this ... what we're doing now? What's the business case for a fake AI video platform? Check out Casey Newton's newsletter (Platformer) and podcast (Hard Fork) Support Search Engine!

Take it with you

The Melo app keeps playing with the screen off, works in the car and on your watch, wakes you to your station, and browses the whole catalogue offline. Free, no ads, no account.

Get it on Google Play