This week on Net Society, the conversation moves from Bay Area tech culture and a ground level look at San Francisco’s renewed energy into Frontier Tower as a real world example of hacker driven experimentation, DAO run spaces, and the return of the American tinkerer. From there, the group explores network states, regional innovation, and open systems before turning to DeFi, yield, and the Clarity Act, followed by a sober discussion on AI’s impact on labor, robotics, and where optimism starts to blur into real dystopian risk. The episode closes with reflections on identity and intellectual property in the age of AI, celebrity as a scalable asset, and what current TV and media reveal about the cultural moment.

Mentioned in the episode

Frontier tower in San Francisco https://frontiertower.io/

Minerva University https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minerva_University

Matthew McConaughey Trademark vs AI https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/matthew-mcconaughey-trademarks-himself-to-fight-ai-misuse-8ffe76a9

Creator of Industry on NY https://spectator.com/article/get-me-out-of-new-york/

Show & Hosts

Net Society: https://x.com/net__society

Aaron Wright: https://x.com/awrigh01

Chris F: https://x.com/ChrisF_0x

Derek Edwards: https://x.com/derekedws

Priyanka Desai: https://x.com/pridesai

Production & Marketing

Editor: https://x.com/0xFnkl

Social: https://x.com/v_kirra

• (00:00) - Peptides, Tech Culture, and Bay Area Vibes
• (03:53) - Frontier Tower and the Return of the Tinkerer
• (16:10) - Network States, Regional Innovation, and Open Systems
• (32:20) - DeFi, Yield, and the Clarity Act
• (41:45) - AI, Labor, and the Dystopia Debate
• (49:00) - Identity, IP, and the Celebrity-as-Asset Era
• (58:50) - Industry, TV, and Cultural Commentary
• (01:04:34) - Welcome & Disclaimer

This week on Net Society, Aaron and Chris open with a sense that the world feels eerily like 1989 again, marked by global instability, political volatility, and a constant acceleration of events. That backdrop leads into a discussion on AI solving meaningful math problems and why breakthroughs in math may be the real catalyst for long delayed progress in physics, materials, and applied science. From there, the conversation moves into crypto, touching on quantum risk, network resilience, and why the current moment feels more like quiet consolidation than collapse. The back half goes deep on agent based software, rethinking interfaces, self improving systems, and why the next generation of tools may give individuals more agency while reducing the noise and psychological cost of being online.

Mentioned in the episode

The Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2666.The_Bonfire_of_the_Vanities

NFT Paris Cancelled https://x.com/nft_paris/status/2008162329397961069?s=20

GPT-5.2 solving the Erdős problem https://x.com/slow_developer/status/2009553229932331110

Show & Hosts

Net Society: https://x.com/net__society

Aaron Wright: https://x.com/awrigh01

Chris F: https://x.com/ChrisF_0x

Derek Edwards: https://x.com/derekedws

Priyanka Desai: https://x.com/pridesai

Production & Marketing

Editor: https://x.com/0xFnkl

Social: https://x.com/v_kirra

• (00:00) - 1989 Vibes and Global Instability
• (05:17) - AI Solving Math and Fundamental Breakthroughs
• (11:39) - Crypto, Quantum Risk, and Network Futures
• (15:09) - NFT Events, Market Consolidation, and Release Drought
• (19:33) - Agents, Interfaces, and Rethinking Software Design
• (39:25) - Self-Improving Software and Human Agency
• (01:05:18) - Reclaiming the Internet and Mental Health
• (01:11:35) - Welcome & Disclaimer

It’s the 60th episode of Net Society and the first conversation of 2026, with just Aaron and Chris today. The episode kicks off with the recent surge in AI driven coding and why the “vibe coding” moment feels like a real inflection point as the cost of building software collapses. From there, the conversation moves into builders versus creators, how generalists may be better positioned than specialists, and why white collar work from software to law is likely to face deeper disruption than most expect. The back half widens out to wealth, taxation, trust in institutions, and what happens when legacy political and legal frameworks collide with AI systems, before closing on questions of meaning, identity, and where purpose comes from in a post productivity world.

Mentioned in the episode

Claude having its moment https://x.com/claudeai

Karpathy AI Comments https://x.com/karpathy/status/2004607146781278521?s=20

Clavicular looksmaxxer interview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8qj9RNA938

Show & Hosts

Net Society: https://x.com/net__society

Aaron Wright: https://x.com/awrigh01

Chris F: https://x.com/ChrisF_0x

Derek Edwards: https://x.com/derekedws

Priyanka Desai: https://x.com/pridesai

Production & Marketing

Editor: https://x.com/0xFnkl

Social: https://x.com/v_kirra

• (00:00) - AI Coding Inflection Point
• (05:00) - Builders vs Creators
• (12:57) - Meaning, Work, and Generalists
• (25:33) - Wealth, Taxation, and Trust
• (36:12) - Influence, Aesthetics, and Power
• (44:15) - AI, Law, and Governance
• (01:09:23) - Meaning After Productivity
• (01:29:22) - Welcome & Disclaimer