In our new mini-series “Vaporstate,” we’re exploring what happens when public infrastructure goes digital (and thus more privatised). You’ll hear journalists, civil society groups, and lawyers uncover the impacts of digital public infrastructure all over the world.

Listen to the trailer here:

Now, governments are entering into expensive contracts with companies like Oracle and Google to manage like ID systems and payment platforms. These serve not only consumers who sign up for Gmail, but entire populations of countries.

What could go wrong? Well, a lot of things.

Also: In case you’re short on holiday gifts, we have 5 (!!) for you. We’ll be replaying some of our favorite episodes from this year, coming out over the next couple of weeks. Stay tuned!

Listen to the full episode here: www.themaybe.org/podcast/digi...

On this episode, hosts @alixdunn.com , Prathm Juneja, and Georgia Iacovou pick out the highlights of this year, play back some clips, and make some… interesting predictions.

@bencollins.bsky.social has big goals: to hire as many human comedy writers as possible, to gain a larger print circulation than the Washington Post by the end of 2026, and to buy Infowars. Seriously.

Check out his interview in our final installment of Computer Says Mozfest here:

@bencollins.bsky.social, sometimes affectionally dubbed “Tim Onion,” is the CEO of @theonion.com. He sat down with @alixdunn.com at Mozfest to tell us how they freed the satirist publication from the clutches of advertisers to make the best version of the paper they could.

Hear Audrey’s full conversation in our third installment of Computer Says Mozfest here: www.themaybe.org/podcast/audr...

@alixdunn.com sat down with @audreyt.org at #Mozfest to learn more about how we can train algorithms away from breeding outrage, how to make social media platform-agnostic, and how this could be possible with Audrey’s six-pack of care.

@audreyt.org argues that we can actually enact care ethics if AI operated more like kami - rather than producing massive algorithms bent on global maximization, we could train these systems to attend to the health of hyperlocal community, reducing their power-seeking incentives.

Thanks to @themaybe.org team for putting this episode together and to the @pulitzercenter.org for co-curating this panel.

You can watch the full discussion we had at the MozFest 2025 here: www.youtube.com/live/WQuXlMu...

@alixdunn.com chats with Luisa about Equilabs, how we can study and shape the tech that we’re steeped in, how we create participatory models in the modern age, and more.

Hear Luisa’s full interview in our third installment of Computer Says Mozfest here: www.themaybe.org/podcast/luis...

But as Luisa says, “everyone loves talking *about* the next generation, but I’m not sure they like talking *to* the next generation.”

Young people will inherit this world, which is why her organization EquiLabs engages youth to have a say in the technological decisions that inform their lives.

Luisa Franco Machado believes we’re in a crisis of imagination. That our idea of what tech can be is too limited by what we already exist in—and that we desperately need to reimagine what our digital futures should look like.

Check out the full article by @stevenleemyers.bsky.social and @stuartathompson.bsky.social here: www.nytimes.com/2025/12/08/t...

@samgregory.bsky.social says that social media companies need to step up their content moderation and AI labeling games. @nabiha.bsky.social says that these companies “should have been prepared” for AI-generated videos.

Hear @abeba.bsky.social's full conversation with @alixdunn.com in our second installment of Computer Says Mozfest here: www.themaybe.org/podcast/abeb...

In @abeba.bsky.social's words:

“Trying to convert these systems into AI for social good is like building with rotting wood and attempting to build a palace.”