Week of May 25-31, 2026 | Briefing #1 The Pope enters the AI debate, Trump stalls regulation, OpenAI chases $1 trillion, and Silicon Valley delivers the Fail of the Week.

The governing logic behind China’s industrial expansion and securitization at home and abroad

Today on the podcast, we speak with Jacob Gunter, Head of Economy and Industry at MERICS, about how securitization, industrial policy, and power govern China’s economic choices and long-term strategy.

Original publish date Jan 5, 2026

What We're Escaping, What We're Building

From isekai manhwa to Yung Lean going viral in tech circles, everything I’ve been noticing lately points to the same undercurrent: people are hungry for a life that actually feels like their own.

This is the first in a series of dispatches on what’s catching my attention — in culture, technology, and the quieter question underneath both: how do you actually want to live? For me a mix of balance and excellence. Not just optimization and noise. I think in the midst of slop slinging we’re all hoping for the real thing.

What the US–China summit means for tech, trade, and the new global playbook.