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Financial Times

We are in the midst of a digital revolution, where the line between our physical world and cyberspace is blurring. Tech Tonic is the show that investigates the promises and perils of this new technological age. 

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FT Tech Tonic

Introducing Toxic Legacy, a new season of Untold from the Financial Times. Host Laura Hughes uncovers a lead poisoning epidemic across the UK. You might be living with lead and not know it: the toxin is often invisible to the human eye, but wreaks havoc on our bodies once we’re exposed.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts or wherever you get your podcasts.

For information on how to live safely with lead, please visit the LEAPP Alliance website.

 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Introducing Untold: Toxic Legacy

For decades, science fiction writers have envisaged colonising Mars, even building cities on the red planet. Advocates for Mars exploration, such as Elon Musk, want to make that vision a reality. But can humans really live in an alien world? 

The FT’s space industry editor Peggy Hollinger speaks to researchers about the physical and mental pressures astronauts would face living millions of miles from home and to scientists studying the suitability of Mars’ atmosphere and soil. 

This episode of Tech Tonic is hosted by Peggy Hollinger and produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval. The senior producer is Edwin Lane and the executive producer is Flo Phillips. Fact checking by Lucy Baldwin. Sound design by Breen Turner and Samantha Giovinco. Original music by Metaphor Music. Manuela Saragosa is the FT’s acting co-head of audio.

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

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Mission to Mars: Bad science fiction

US President Donald Trump wants to “plant the stars and stripes on the planet Mars”. But more than 50 years on from the moon landings, America’s space agency, Nasa, is in disarray. Meanwhile, China is forging ahead with its own plans for manned missions to the Moon and perhaps to Mars. Who will win the race to the red planet? 

The FT’s space industry editor Peggy Hollinger speaks to former and current Nasa employees about the challenges facing the space agency, and to Jared Isaacman, Trump’s one-time nominee for Nasa administrator.

This episode of Tech Tonic is hosted by Peggy Hollinger and produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval. The senior producer is Edwin Lane and the executive producer is Flo Phillips. Fact checking by Lucy Baldwin. Sound design is by Breen Turner and Samantha Giovinco. Original music by Metaphor Music. Manuela Saragosa is the FT’s acting co-head of audio.

Clips: CNN, Brut America, John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox 4 News

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mission to Mars: The new space race

Elon Musk wants humans to settle on Mars, and his rocket company SpaceX is spending billions of dollars on developing the spacecraft to take us there. The ‘Starship’ is being designed to take astronauts back to the moon, and eventually, on to the red planet. But why is Musk so obsessed with building a colony on Mars, and is he really the man to take us there? 

The FT’s space industry editor Peggy Hollinger speaks to space experts and Mars enthusiasts about the pull of the red planet, both for scientists and explorers, and how realistic Musk’s vision for humanity as an interplanetary species really is.

This episode of Tech Tonic is hosted by Peggy Hollinger and produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval. The senior producer is Edwin Lane and the executive producer is Flo Phillips. Fact checking by Simon Greaves. Sound design is by Breen Turner and Samantha Giovinco. Original Music by Metaphor Music. Manuela Saragosa is the FT’s acting co-head of audio. Special thanks to Tom Hannen.

Clips: SpaceX, AP, Joe Rogan Experience, SXSW, VideoFromSpace, WPLG Local 10, International Astronautical Foundation, BBC Archive, ABC, CGTN, Flagler Live, John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, NasaSpaceFlight/Joshua Adank

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mission to Mars: Elon Musk's 'Starship' enterprise

US President Donald Trump has pledged to “plant the stars and stripes on the planet Mars”, China could send its first crewed mission to Mars within a decade, and Elon Musk wants people to actually settle on Mars, transforming the human race into an interplanetary species. 

In a new series of Tech Tonic, the FT’s Peggy Hollinger asks if we’re really about to land, and even live, on the red planet. 

Free to read:

Musk’s mission to Mars

Three days with America’s rocket chasers

Tech Tonic is produced by Mischa Frankl-Duval. The senior producer is Edwin Lane. Flo Phillips is the executive producer. Sound design by Breen Turner and Samantha Giovinco. Original music by Metaphor Music. Manuela Saragosa is the FT’s acting co-head of audio.

 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Coming soon: Mission to Mars

Tech Tonic has been nominated for a Signal Award in the Technology category! It's a Listener Choice award, which means we need your help. Vote for us to win here. We appreciate your support.

And while you're at it, vote for some other FT podcasts that have also been nominated. The FT News Briefing podcast was nominated for best daily podcast category. Vote here. And Behind the Money was nominated in the Money & Finance category. Vote here.

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Vote for Tech Tonic in the Signal Awards!

AI models have learned to create their own music by harvesting millions of songs from the internet. But critics say they’re using musicians’ work without permission, and three major record labels are suing them for ‘copyright infringement on an almost unimaginable scale’. 

In the second episode of this two part series, the FT’s pop critic Ludovic Hunter-Tilney speaks to campaigners and lawyers about the legal battle over AI generators, and to artists about the growth of AI music on streaming platforms. How are AI generated songs racking up millions of listens? And should streaming platforms do anything to stop it? 

Free to read:

Will AI kill the pop star?

The Velvet Sundown’s shaggy retro rock has attracted 750,000 listeners – but is it all an AI hoax? 

A musical supergroup fights AI – with a silent protest album 

Abba’s Björn Ulvaeus warns of AI threat to musicians’ revenues

This series of Tech Tonic is presented by Ludovic Hunter-Tilney. The producers are Lulu Smyth and Josh Gabert-Doyon. Edwin Lane is the senior producer, Flo Phillips is the executive producer. Sound design by Breen Turner and Samantha Giovinco. Original Music by Metaphor Music. Fact checking by Miatta Mbriwa and Megan Hill. Manuela Saragosa is the FT’s acting co-head of audio. 

Music used in this episode: 

‘Dust on the Wind’ - The Velvet Sundown

‘The’ – Is This What We Want by 1000+ artists 

‘Chasing Horizons’ - generated by Udio 

‘Euphoria in Motion’ - generated by Udio 

‘Drift Beyond the Flame’ – The Velvet Sundown 

‘The Thrill of Loneliness’ - Hana Stretton 

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

AI Music: ‘Theft machines’?

Generative AI models trained on vast swaths of popular music can create songs almost indistinguishable from human-made work. For some, they represent the future of pop music. For others, they threaten to flood the world with ‘AI slop’, drowning out the work of human artists, stealing musicians' jobs, and ending the process of music-making as we know it. Is this just a case of technophobia? Or could AI music generators replace human musicians altogether?

In the first in a two-part series, the FT’s pop critic Ludovic Hunter-Tilney speaks to musicians and artists about the inventive power of generative AI in music, as well as the potential threat it might pose to musicians’ livelihoods and the music industry as a whole. 

This series of Tech Tonic is presented by Ludovic Hunter-Tilney. The producers are Lulu Smyth and Josh Gabert-Doyon. Edwin Lane is the senior producer, Flo Phillips is the executive producer. Sound design by Breen Turner and Samantha Giovinco. Original Music by Metaphor Music. Manuela Saragosa is the FT’s acting co-head of audio. 

Music used in this episode: 

‘Chasing Horizons’ - generated by Udio 

‘Own the Night” - generated by Udio 

‘From Ashes to Madness’ - generated by Udio

‘Workplace Vibes’ - generated by Udio

‘Canaan (Live Training)’ - Holly Herndon. Copyright Herndon Dryhurst Studio

‘Evening Shades (Live Training)’ - Holly Herndon. Copyright Herndon Dryhurst Studio

‘Godmother’ - Holly Herndon. Copyright Herndon Dryhurst Studio

Music from Holly Herndon & Matt Dryhurst: The Call - Copyright Herndon Dryhurst Studio

‘Heart on My Sleeve’ - Ghostwriter977

‘Verknallt in einen Talahon’ - Butterbro / generated by Udio

‘Let it Burn’ - The Velvet Sundown

‘Sexual Healing’ - Written by Marvin Gaye, Odell Brown, and David Ritz. Copyright EMI Blackwood Music Inc. and EMI April Music Inc.

‘I Wanna Dance with Somebody’ - Written by George Merrill and Shannon Rubicam, Copyright Sony Music Entertainment

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

AI Music: The Infinite Jukebox

AI music generators - platforms that use artificial intelligence to create new, original music from scratch - can make songs that are almost indistinguishable from human creations. For some musicians, they’re the next frontier in music-making technology. But for others, they represent a grave threat, flooding the world with low-grade AI music, stealing the jobs of working musicians, and even spelling the end of the creative process as we know it. Is this just technophobia, or is music facing AI annihilation?

In a new two-part series, the FT’s pop critic Ludovic Hunter-Tilney explores the emerging world of AI music, and the impact it could have on the industry.

Tech Tonic is presented by Ludovic Hunter-Tilney. The producers are Lulu Smyth and Josh Gabert-Doyon. Edwin Lane is the senior producer, Flo Phillips is the executive producer. Sound design by Breen Turner and Samantha Giovinco. Original music by Metaphor Music. Manuela Saragosa and Topher Forhecz are the FT’s acting co-heads of audio.

 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Coming soon: Will AI ruin music?

Peter Thiel is unlike any other Trump tech bro. As well as a wildly successful investor, he’s seen as a thinker - the philosopher king of Silicon Valley. Thiel’s acolytes in the tech world and Washington include vice-president JD Vance but his relationship with the Trump camp is complicated. And there are still questions about what, if anything, he wants with the president.

In the final episode of this season of Tech Tonic, Murad Ahmed speaks to FT columnist Gillian Tett about Thiel’s political philosophy, and to Tabby Kinder, the FT’s West Coast financial editor, about his influence in Silicon Valley.

Free to read:

How Peter Thiel and Silicon Valley funded the sudden rise of JD Vance

A time for truth and reconciliation (written by Peter Thiel)

How a little-known French literary critic became a bellwether for the US right

Palantir’s ‘revolving door’ with government spurs huge growth

This season of Tech Tonic is presented by Murad Ahmed and produced by Josh Gabert-Doyon. The senior producer is Edwin Lane and the executive producer is Flo Phillips. Sound design by Sam Giovinco. Breen Turner and Samantha Giovinco. Original music by Metaphor Music, Manuela Saragosa and Topher Forhecz are the FT’s acting co-heads of audio.

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Trump’s tech bros: The enigma of Peter Thiel

Bioethicist Sarah Chan contributed to a report this month on neurotechnology by the UK’s senior scientific academy. She talks to John Thornhill about the potential health benefits of neural interfaces but also the difficulty of regulating the commercial use of devices that interact with our brains. Read the Royal Society's report here

All FT stories will be free to read on Wednesday September 18th when there will be a 24-hour paywall freeze. Here are a couple of recommendations to get you started:

Neural interfaces should upgrade, not degrade, humans

How China dodged a trade war recession

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Sarah Chan on neural interfaces

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