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On this week's Short Fuse podcast, Duncan and Ollie dive into the latest tech intelligence dashboard to dissect the biggest stories shaking up the industry. From the persistent debates on government surveillance and job displacement to the "catfight" between AI giants, we break down what's hype and what's actually happening.

We explore the rise of local AI agents like "MoltBot" and the security nightmares they might bring, alongside Apple's fascinating (and slightly creepy) acquisition of Q.AI for silent speech. Plus, we discuss Elon Musk's latest moves with SpaceX acquiring xAI and what it means for the future of tech valuation.

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OpenAI is finally bringing ads to ChatGPT. In this episode, Duncan and Ollie decide if they are Long or Short on this strategy.

The cost of computing power is massive. We discuss whether advertising is the necessary answer for OpenAI or if it fundamentally breaks the utility of the product. The discussion covers the incentives behind the move, the likely impact on user behaviour, and what this signals for the wider industry.

We debate if this is a smart commercial play or a sign of trouble.

In this episode:

Are we Long or Short on ChatGPT ads?

The trade-off between user experience and revenue.

First principles: Why ad-supported AI might look different than search.

Subscribe to Short Fuse for more analysis on tech, culture, and where we are placing our bets.

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The Metaverse was promised as the next great leap for the internet—a decentralised, immersive world where we would work, shop, and socialise. But as we approach the dates set by major analysts for mass adoption, the reality looks very different.

In this episode of Short Fuse, Ollie and Duncan take a critical look at the state of Extended Reality (XR) and the Metaverse. We explore the massive disconnect between the aggressive predictions made by industry experts and the actual adoption rates we see today.

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Is the internet already dead?

The "Dead Internet Theory" suggests the web is no longer a human place but is dominated by bots and AI-generated content

In this episode, Duncan and Ollie use the Short Fuse Tech Tracker as evidence to debate the theory. We discuss how AI "slop" and bot-to-bot engagement (especially on LinkedIn) are killing authentic human interaction

This leads to a "bifurcation" of the internet: one layer for AI agents and transactions, and another, separate layer for verified humans

Full analysis at: shortfuseresearch.com

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Join Duncan Roberts and Ollie O'Donoghue for the Short Fuse October Tech Tracker review.

This month, the team analyses the biggest movers in technology. Cloud computing takes a significant dive, landing in the hype trap following major AWS and Cloudflare outages. Duncan and Ollie discuss the growing public backlash against "AI slop" and explore why Generative AI's sentiment is falling while technical AI (like machine learning) moves into the momentum zone.

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