What Next: TBD

A twice weekly podcast about tech, power, and the future.

Advertisement

About the Show

Every Friday and Sunday, Slate’s popular daily news podcast What Next brings you TBD, a clear-eyed look into the future. From fake news to fake meat, algorithms to augmented reality, Lizzie O’Leary is your guide to the tech industry and the world it’s creating for us to live in.

Host

  • Lizzie O’Leary is the host of What Next: TBD, Slate’s show about technology, power, and the future. Previously, she created and hosted Marketplace Weekend. She has reported for CNN, Bloomberg News, and the New York Times Magazine, among others. She is also a contributing writer at the Atlantic.

Big Pharma’s Bet on Psychedelics

Psychedelic drug research is increasingly being funded by pharmaceutical companies.

Crypto Could Leave Texas in the Dark

How crypto mining is taxing the Texas power grid.

The Monkeypox Vaccine Monopoly

How intellectual property laws make health crises worse.

The Homes We Forgot to Build a Decade Ago

Is there a way to fix the never-ending housing crisis in the U.S.?

The Dark Web of Online Spider Sales

How the pandemic and social media turbocharged the online spider trade.

Paging Dr. Bezos

Amazon’s latest push into health care raises questions about data privacy.

Smart City: Dumb Idea?

Is the promise of the smart city over?

Europe Is Burning

How will Europe deal with climate change?

Silicon Valley’s Hidden Discrimination

How a DEI talk about caste bias exposed discrimination in tech.

Can Twitter Sue Elon Musk Into Submission?

A look inside Twitter as they take Elon Musk to court.

Paxlovid’s Mysteries

Is Paxlovid really a miracle drug?

Can FEMA Keep Up With Climate Change?

Does the agency need to rethink disaster aid?

The Good Hackers

The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act gets updated guidelines from the DOJ.

TikTok’s Mental Health Influencers

Inside the world of mental health content creation

Does Crypto Investment Need to Be Regulated?

Is crypto too risky an asset?

Can the Law Keep Up With the Internet?

How Reno v. ACLU shaped the internet as we know it.

The Culture War Over Electric Cars

When will electric cars go mainstream?

Sheryl Sandberg’s Complicated Legacy

How will Meta’s former second-in-command be remembered?

Bots! What Are They Good For?

How serious is Twitter’s bot problem?

Is Elon Musk Any Good at Business?

A look at the richest man’s business acumen.