In a world where saying "please" and "thank you" to your AI assistant costs tens of millions, we ask: have we finally found the price of politeness?

OpenAI's CEO, Sam Altman, claims it's money well spent, but is it really? This episode delves into the absurdity of AI etiquette, the environmental cost of our digital manners, and the potential emotional dependencies forming between humans and machines.

Join Max and Lisa as they dissect the fine line between humanizing AI and anthropomorphizing our own loneliness. Don’t miss their brutally honest take on the future of manners, where your AI is as polite as your bank balance will allow.

This episode is like a punch in the gut of AI politeness, delivered with sharp humor and no holds barred. Let’s see how long we can afford to say "please" before the bill arrives.

Note: This project explores the new creative potential unlocked by generative AI, showcasing how a single person, in just two hours, can curate (not create, but curate) a polished podcast series. I recognize the critiques around AI-generated content and the potential for digital clutter but invite you to take a listen on your next walk or drive and see what you think. Audio is AI-generated by Google's NotebookLM. Images by Grok-3 and Magic Studio.

Democracy for Sale: How the U.S. Buys Governments

Ah, foreign aid—the warm, fuzzy cover story for one of America’s slickest political hustle jobs. Once upon a time, USAID and NED were all about "spreading democracy" and "helping struggling nations." Adorable. Then, somewhere between Clinton and now, they swapped out food packages for regime change starter kits.

Max Bennett and Lisa Vega tear into the real game being played—how these so-called charities bankroll revolutions, flip governments like fixer-uppers, and turn foreign aid into a covert weapon. Is it about democracy? Stability? Or just making sure Washington’s favorite puppets stay on top? No filters, no polite diplomacy—just the brutal truth, served with a smirk and a shot of geopolitical reality.

Note: This project explores the new creative potential unlocked by generative AI, showcasing how a single person, in just two hours, can curate (not create, but curate) a polished podcast series. I recognize the critiques around AI-generated content and the potential for digital clutter but invite you to take a listen on your next walk or drive and see what you think. Audio is AI-generated by Google's NotebookLM. Images by Grok-3 and Magic Studio.

Open-Source AI vs. Corporate Greed: Who Wins the Digital Cage Match?"

Welcome to the AI battle royale, where scrappy open-source rebels are throwing hands with corporate overlords hoarding intelligence like a dragon sitting on a gold mine. On one side, you’ve got DeepSeek, Meta’s LLaMA, and a ragtag army of AI anarchists dropping models like underground mixtapes. On the other, the walled-garden giants like OpenAI, ready to charge you $99.99 a month just to ask what year it is.

Max Bennett and Lisa Vega rip apart the hype, the power plays, and the brutal reality of this fight for AI’s future. Will AI belong to the people, or are we all doomed to be stuck in a paywalled, sanitized, corporate-controlled thought prison? No mercy, no fluff—just sharp analysis, savage laughs, and a full-throttle takedown of the industry’s biggest lies.

Note: This project explores the new creative potential unlocked by generative AI, showcasing how a single person, in just two hours, can curate (not create, but curate) a polished podcast series. I recognize the critiques around AI-generated content and the potential for digital clutter but invite you to take a listen on your next walk or drive and see what you think. Audio is AI-generated by Google's NotebookLM. Images by Grok-3 and Magic Studio.