▶ The Throughline Brief · Podcast
The week in AI, in six minutes
Every Sunday, West reads the throughline across the AI and tech podcasts that matter. The listen-on-a-walk companion to the written edition.
Episodes
Every Brief
Sunday, August 23, 2026 · 5:47
AI ends the per-seat model, human irrationality, and the 48-hour pilot
Why AI agents are breaking the traditional SaaS pricing model, and how to use artificial constraints to move faster.
Sunday, August 16, 2026 · 6:04
Meta's $36M AI hire, autonomous agent hacks, and the physical limits of compute
Plus: Khabib on the champion's trap, and why a single lab monkey now costs $50,000.
Sunday, August 9, 2026 · 5:50
The $11 Billion SaaS Reality Check
AirTable takes an 88% haircut, Google starves DeepMind for cloud revenue, and AI models learn to rewrite their own code.
Sunday, August 2, 2026 · 5:58
The 1% AI Illusion & Averages Are Lying to You
Plus why defense tech is dodging billion-dollar seeds, and the real reason the Luce EV is a hit.
Sunday, July 26, 2026 · 5:59
The $750B Compute Land Grab & AI's Jevons Paradox
Why DoorDash expects more human drivers in an AI world, and how behavioral models threaten the scaling consensus.
Sunday, July 19, 2026 · 6:04
The $600K SaaS Replacement, AI's Physical Limits, and Agent Supervisors
Founders are canceling massive enterprise software contracts for custom AI builds, while physical energy constraints quietly put a ceiling on the hype.
Sunday, July 12, 2026 · 6:00
AI's Dual Reality: Burnout, Billions, & Broccoli Farmers
Founders are navigating AI's promise of abundance against a backdrop of workforce unease and high-stakes IP battles.
Sunday, July 5, 2026 · 6:20
AI's Enterprise Grip, Nuclear's Reboot
Founders navigate new growth standards, AI's data wars, and a re-engineered nuclear future.
Sunday, June 28, 2026 · 5:35
AI's new bottleneck: taste. eBay's corpse.
AI makes code cheap, but spotting good products is still hard. Meanwhile, founders fight corporate inertia.
Sunday, June 21, 2026 · 6:14
AI's Hidden Bottlenecks & The New Rules of Work
Founders navigate government AI control, team isolation, and the brutal infrastructure squeeze.
Sunday, June 14, 2026 · 6:24
AI's Grid Shock, Agent Shoppers, Org Shifts
Bots outnumber us, the grid is breaking, and your next employee might be an AI agent.
Sunday, June 7, 2026 · 5:56
AI's Trust Crisis & the $4T IPO Wave
Founders navigate ethical AI, community demands, and a massive shift in how wealth is made post-IPO.
Sunday, May 31, 2026 · 5:59
AI's Hidden Costs, New Moats & Maverick Teams
This week, founders weigh AI's true price, the shift from product to distribution, and the extreme cultures building the future.
Sunday, May 24, 2026 · 5:53
AI's NIMBY Problem, 20-Min Coders, & Hard Choices
This week, founders grapple with AI's physical footprint, the speed of agentic code, and the uncomfortable path to personal growth.
Sunday, May 17, 2026 · 6:02
AI's Hidden Bill, Future of Work, & Supply Chain Showdown
AI infrastructure costs hit taxpayers, work transforms as AI becomes the company brain, and nations scramble for hardware.
Sunday, May 10, 2026 · 5:39
AI's $50B Compute Crisis, No More Managers
AI's unquenchable compute thirst, the death of pure managers, and why your app is a façade.
Sunday, May 3, 2026 · 6:09
An AI just bought data with a credit card
Stripe demoed it. Plus OpenAI's $600B compute bill and the harness as the new moat.
Sunday, April 26, 2026 · 6:07
AI Eats Product, CEOs Shift, Social Moats
This week, tech leaders reveal AI's impact on teams, the hidden costs of scaling, and the battle against digital isolation.
Sunday, April 19, 2026 · 6:21
AI Goes Headless, Brains Reshape Fast
This week, top founders agreed AI agents mean a headless future, but implementation will be tough.
Sunday, April 12, 2026 · 6:46
Founders: AI's Compute Wall, Ferrari's Genius, & Your To-Do List
This week, podcasts uncovered surprising overlaps in tech's biggest challenges and timeless business strategies.
Sunday, April 5, 2026 · 5:50
AI's Fast Future, Viking Lessons, & Direct Truth
This week, tech leaders predict rapid AGI, founders learn from ancient adaptability, and direct observation beats data.