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Davey Alba

@davey.bsky.social
15K followers 1.2K following 246 posts

Bloomberg tech reporter / Google, Big Tech, misinfo / daveyalba.com / ask for my Signal

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Reposted by Davey Alba
Tim Newman @tnewmsblues.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
"Talking about AI as an autonomous entity reframes safety failures as evidence that containment is not possible. This reduces the focus on how tech companies may have conducted their experiments unsafely." www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
How Existential Fears Are Shaping the Debate Over AI
Some experts worry that heated rhetoric makes it hard to hold companies accountable, and sets back attempts to deal with environmental impact and job loss
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AI Now Institute @ainowinstitute.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Momentum is building around regulating the AI industry, but we need to parse out real world corporate negligence from the alarmist and distracting warnings manufactured by the industry itself. AI Now's @smw.bsky.social speaks with @davey.bsky.social: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
How Existential Fears Are Shaping the Debate Over AI
Some experts worry that heated rhetoric makes it hard to hold companies accountable, and sets back attempts to deal with environmental impact and job loss
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
New story: When we talk about AI doom, what aren't we talking about? Accountability, researchers tell us. Gift link: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Screenshot of a Bloomberg story with the headline, "How Existential Fears Are Shaping the Debate Over AI"

The dek reads: Some experts worry that heated rhetoric makes it hard to hold companies accountable, and sets back attempts to deal with environmental impact and job loss
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AI Now Institute @ainowinstitute.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Adding humans into the loop to evaluate AI isn’t a cure-all for the myriad harms of AI. AI Now's @smw.bsky.social spoke with @davey.bsky.social about why benchmarks that measure real world use are key for mitigating risks and getting the rules right: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
Ex-Googlers Are Planning AI-Human Hybrid to Prevent Rogue Models
A new nonprofit founded by former Google researchers wants to keep humans at the center of AI development to ensure that the powerful technology is safe and less likely to escape its creators.
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Mark Bergen @mhbergen.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
made a mark version of our chart
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
I dig this story - very thorough methodology. via @consumerreports.org www.consumerreports.org/money/questi...
consumerreports.org
Different Prices for the Same Ride: How Uber and Lyft Use AI to Get More Money Out of You - Consumer Reports
Consumer Reports found Uber and Lyft use algorithmic pricing to give different consumers very different prices for the same rides.
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 13/12/2025
!! congrats right back at you! 🐣
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 13/12/2025
kind of you to repost! thank you
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Nora Benavidez @attorneynora.bsky.social · 12/12/2025
A must-read from @davey.bsky.social :
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Alexios Mantzarlis @mantzarlis.com · 11/12/2025
I love this rallying cry by @davey.bsky.social on the value of humans in journalism. www.niemanlab.org/2025/12/in-2...
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Nieman Lab @niemanlab.org · 11/12/2025
“It’s a story about volume, value, and what journalism becomes when “content” grows functionally infinite.” - @davey.bsky.social www.niemanlab.org/2025/12/in-2...
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
Also, that’s it from me for a while as I take maternity leave after becoming Mother this week — my greatest and biggest project of the last nine months. I will catch up with everyone in mid-2026 🥲
Me with my new bb
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
New from me: A NiemanLab prediction! Have always admired this end-of-year package from the smartest people in media, so it was an honor to be asked to write this. Imo, in 2026, AI-written content online will outpace what humans produce. www.niemanlab.org/2025/12/in-2...
Davey Alba

In 2026, AI will outwrite humans

“It’s a story about volume value, and what journalism becomes when ‘content’ grows functionally infinite.”
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Rebecca Solnit @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social · 26/11/2025
AI slop. it's what's for dinner. Thanks tech overlords! Keep looking in the mirror while you sing the song about your utopian genius!
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Zoe Tillman @zoetillman.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
Public service journalism this holiday season courtesy of @davey.bsky.social & Carmen Arroyo: bsky.app/profile/dave...
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Matt Novak @paleofuture.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
"An AI-assembled version of Gargano’s Christmas cake, for instance, would have people cooking a 6-inch cake for 3 to 4 hours at 320°F (160°C). 'You’d end up with charcoal!' she said. Meanwhile, traffic to her turkey recipe is already down 40% year over year."
bloomberg.com
AI Slop Recipes Are Taking Over the Internet -- And Thanksgiving Dinner
Food bloggers see traffic dip as home cooks turn to AI, inspired by impossible pictures
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
NO, LEAH
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Shira Ovide @shiraovide.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
AI slop is ruining tamales now. by @davey.bsky.social www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Earlier this month, she posted two AI-generated tamale photos: one with sauce poured over the husks, and another showing tamales lying flat in a steamer. Both, she wrote, were obvious mistakes.

The husks aren’t meant to be eaten; you remove them before adding sauce. And tamales should steam upright so the masa cooks evenly. “Little details like this are big red flags,” she told readers. “When you search for recipes, make sure they come from trusted human cooks who actually test their food.”
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
a lauren kirchner endorsement is nothing to take lightly!! thank you!
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
NEW: AI “recipe slop” is overrunning search and social. Food creators say Google’s AI Overviews and glossy fake food pics are drowning out real, tested recipes — collapsing traffic and setting home cooks up for disaster, especially this Thanksgiving. Gift link: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
AI Slop Recipes Are Taking Over the Internet -- And Thanksgiving Dinner
Food bloggers see traffic dip as home cooks turn to AI, inspired by impossible pictures
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Zoe Tillman @zoetillman.bsky.social · 21/11/2025
Deep dive by @davey.bsky.social + Bloomberg colleagues into the growing number of small businesses marketing products around conservative political identity and their relationship with the right-wing influencer universe on YouTube bit.ly/4oR7fcF
bit.ly
YouTube’s Right-Wing Stars Fuel Boom in Politically Charged Ads
YouTube’s MAGA stars aren’t just talking politics—they’re selling it
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issielapowsky.bsky.social @issielapowsky.bsky.social · 21/11/2025
A totally fascinating deep dive by my pal @davey.bsky.social and her talented Bloomberg colleagues on the rising economy of MAGA-coded brands advertising on right-wing YouTube channels www.bloomberg.com/graphics/202...
bloomberg.com
YouTube’s Right-Wing Stars Fuel Boom in Politically Charged Ads
YouTube’s MAGA stars aren’t just talking politics—they’re selling it
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 21/11/2025
Graphics geniuses @rachaeldottle.bsky.social @elenamejia.bsky.social !! they are so brilliant 🌟🌟
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Mark Masterson @mastermark.me · 21/11/2025
This is such a big deal... And so poorly understood / visible to normies - who can only see the outcomes / downstream consequences in our society... Follow the fucking ad money. Every time
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Techmeme @techmeme.com · 20/11/2025
Analysis: YouTube's top conservative podcasters drive a boom in host-read ads targeting right-wing audiences; nearly 91% of 876 episodes had political ads (Bloomberg) Main Link | Techmeme Permalink
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Danny Groner @dannygroner.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
www.bloomberg.com/graphics/202...
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Drew Harwell @drewharwell.com · 20/11/2025
Such a great story from @davey.bsky.social & other star reporters on the politics of consumption and the MAGA ad machine www.bloomberg.com/graphics/202...
bloomberg.com
YouTube’s Right-Wing Stars Fuel Boom in Politically Charged Ads
YouTube’s MAGA stars aren’t just talking politics—they’re selling it
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
Grateful as always to co-authors @acookiecrumbles.bsky.social @leonyin.org @ashleycarman.bsky.social @julialove.bsky.social Graphics geniuses @rachaeldottle.bsky.social @elenamejia.bsky.social And editors @sarahfrier.bsky.social Yue Qiu for all the work behind this ❣️
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
YouTube has eased content rules in the Trump era, narrowing removals & letting controversial creators return—a shift experts say lets more hateful content persist. The platform is now where the politics of consumption flow freely. bloom.bg/3Kaio9w
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
There's a lot more reporting in our story & I hope you’ll read. But what I hope isn’t lost is how YouTube’s scale has let this niche content universe flourish. As George Farmer, who runs the Candace podcast told us, “YouTube is the printing press of the digital age, if you want to call it that.”
George Farmer, who runs the Candace podcast and is Owens’ husband, cast YouTube’s role in stark terms. “YouTube is the printing press of the digital age, if you want to call it that,” he said. He added that podcasting has leaned more conservative in part because many right-leaning voices were “pushed out of the mainstream orbit.” That dynamic has also shaped which advertisers show up: “If you’re pitching to a conservative listener, you’re going to want to be a more conservative brand.” Farmer is also the former chief executive officer of Parler, the social media site that had billed itself as a platform for “uncancelable free speech.”
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
Podcast ads are heavily themed, depending on the show: Candace Owens had 90%+ anti-establishment ads; Kelly/Carlson/Shapiro 80%+ ideology; Nelk Boys 96% masculinity/hobbies. Major brands like DoorDash & BetterHelp also appeared on Rogan & Von's shows. bloom.bg/3Kaio9w
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
And, using data from Podscribe, a 3rd party podcast analytics firm, we made an effort to quantify spending on right-leaning podcasts. The top 10 conservative brands quadrupled monthly ad spend from 2023 to 2025, reaching ~$5M/month in 2025. bloom.bg/3Kaio9w
The top 10 advertisers spending the most on host-read ads on the right-leaning podcasts are investing nearly four times more per month in 2025 than they did on average in 2023. So far this year, those brands have collectively spent about $5 million a month on podcast advertising, according to Bloomberg’s analysis of Podscribe data.
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
We also tracked themes used by the 188 unique advertisers to sell, sorting them into 5 buckets: 3/10 used ideological appeals ~1/4 leveraged alternative health ~1/5 each used anti-establishment or security messages 13% appealed to masculinity bloom.bg/3Kaio9w
Three in 10 advertisers relied on ideological appeals — emphasizing “pro-life,” Christian, pro-gun, “America first,” or pro-military themes, or attacking Democrats, gender identity or policies they described as liberal. Roughly a quarter promoted the “Make America Healthy Again” agenda or pushed health and wellness products that they framed as natural or an alternative to conventional medicine. About 16% leaned on safety and security themes, while another fifth invoked anti-establishment rhetoric, railing against big corporations, public agencies, or institutions in medicine, education and finance. Several also catered to a distinctly masculine audience, tapping into a segment of the population that, polling data show, came out in force for Trump last year — many of them electrified by the podcasts that were part of this analysis.

The strategy of using ideology to persuade someone to make a purchase — especially through an influencer — is powerful, said Emerson Brooking, a resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council who studies online networks. “American culture has built up the idea of brand choice as a political act,” he said. The rise of political — and often right-wing — podcasts, which are an extremely influential force in listeners’ lives and opinions, has “opened the door to a whole industry of politically coded kitsch products that seek to target this exact demographic,” he said.
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
The ads we reviewed were fascinating. They revealed products like Republican Red Winery, Black Rifle Coffee, and XX-XY Athletics—all targeting ideological consumers. Other advertisers included gold companies, debt services counseling for issues like porn addiction, and more bloom.bg/3Kaio9w
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
This was a follow-up to our story in Jan when we dug into how YouTube’s conservative podcasts led young men to the right. We listened to 876 episodes from 8 popular podcasters, noting every host-read ad. At least one ad with a political message appeared in 91% of videos reviewed. bloom.bg/3Kaio9w
bloom.bg
YouTube’s Right-Wing Stars Fuel Boom in Politically Charged Ads
YouTube’s MAGA stars aren’t just talking politics—they’re selling it
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 20/11/2025
NEW: For months, my colleagues and I dug into YouTube's conservative airwaves and found a flourishing network of host-read ads on right-leaning podcasts. This phenomenon has enriched hosts, YouTube, and businesses that use ideology to sell. bloom.bg/3Kaio9w
YouTube’s Right-Wing Stars Fuel Boom in Politically Charged Ads

By 
Davey Alba
Priyanjana Bengani
Leon Yin
Ashley Carman
Julia Love
Rachael Dottle
Elena Mejía Technology

Big Tech

November 20, 2025

On YouTube’s conservative airwaves, podcast hosts tout products that let people buy into the MAGA crowd: Republican Red Winery vintages for toasting the “silent majority;” Black Rifle Coffee for caffeinating gun owners; XX-XY Athletics for workout clothes symbolizing opposition to the “lunacy of the left social agenda.”The popularity of YouTube podcasts among conservatives is driving a boom in small businesses tailoring ads to their millions of listeners, paying hosts like Joe Rogan and Candace Owens to read out promotions in the hope that fans will place orders. The phenomenon has enriched both the hosts and YouTube, supporting further growth of the businesses using ideology to sell.

A Bloomberg analysis of host-read ads across nearly 1,000 videos from eight of the platform’s top right-leaning podcasters found that advertisers on the shows routinely tapped into political identity in marketing. At least one host-read ad with a political message appeared in 91% of videos reviewed.
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Techmeme @techmeme.com · 31/10/2025
In its Q3 earnings, Alphabet said the profit included "net gains on equity securities of $10.7B," in part from a private company, which sources say is Anthropic (Bloomberg) Main Link | Techmeme Permalink
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
Here's confirmationnnn www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
Google, Anthropic Announce Cloud Deal Worth Tens of Billions
Alphabet Inc.’s Google will supply up to 1 million of its specialized AI chips to Anthropic PBC, a deal worth tens of billions of dollars that deepens its partnership with the fast-growing artificial ...
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
Kind of a crazy scoop (given the amount money involved here) with colleagues @rachelmetz.bsky.social & Ed Ludlow: Anthropic is in discussions with Google for a massive cloud deal — computing power valued in the high tens of billions www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
Anthropic, Google in Talks on Cloud Deal Worth Tens of Billions
Anthropic PBC is in discussions with Alphabet Inc.’s Google about a deal that would provide the artificial intelligence company with additional computing power valued in the high tens of billions of d...
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 16/10/2025
also liked the interview with the kid tbh! that one was good, what a fun assignment
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 16/10/2025
Cybertrucks: Creating Divorced Men Since 2023
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Davey Alba @davey.bsky.social · 16/10/2025
this story is fun lol @zoeschiffer.bsky.social www.wired.com/story/owning...
wired.com
Spit On, Sworn At, and Undeterred: What It’s Like to Own a Cybertruck
“We were the targets.” WIRED spoke to seven Tesla Cybertruck owners about their most controversial purchase and why they're proud to drive it.
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Aaron W. Gordon @agordon.me · 30/09/2025
The amazing thing about the hundreds of billions of dollars being spent on AI development is it doesn't even include all the externalized costs like higher electricity prices for hundreds of millions of people.
bloomberg.com
AI Data Centers Are Sending Power Bills Soaring
Wholesale electricity costs as much as 267% more than it did five years ago in areas near data centers. That’s being passed on to customers.
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Karen Attiah @karenattiah.bsky.social · 24/09/2025
Some news.
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NPR @npr.org · 23/09/2025
Duterte was arrested in March by Philippine authorities on a warrant issued by the ICC. He is now being held at an ICC facility in the Netherlands.
n.pr
ICC charges former Philippine President Duterte crimes against humanity
Duterte was arrested in March by Philippine authorities on a warrant issued by the ICC. He is now being held at an ICC facility in the Netherlands.
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Kwame Opam @kwameopam.bsky.social · 23/09/2025
Speaking over a radio, the federal agent who told police that Villegas González tried to use his car as a weapon said his partner had suffered “a left knee injury and some lacerations to his hands.” “Nothing major,” the injured agent said. chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdog...
chicago.suntimes.com
ICE officer said his injuries were 'nothing major' after deadly shooting near Chicago, video shows
The immigration agent’s partner said he suffered a “knee injury" and "some lacerations to his hands,” according to police body camera footage obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times. But the feds reported h...
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Zahra Hirji @zhirji.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
This story isn't just a look back at what happened last hurricane season. It also looks forward at the threat today. bsky.app/profile/zhir...
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Zahra Hirji @zhirji.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
Oh, did I mention: We published all of the hundreds of FOIA docs with this story. Now you can look through them yourself: assets.bwbx.io/documents/us... bsky.app/profile/did:...
assets.bwbx.io
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Jason Leopold @jasonleopold.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
NEW: More than 500 pages of #FOIA docs @zhirji.bsky.social @davey.bsky.social & I obtained from FEMA detail previously unreported threats against personnel in the aftermath of Hurricanes Helene & Milton, including the swatting of then-FEMA Director Deanne Criswell 🎁 www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
This document details extraordinary steps taken to protect Deanne Criswell, the head of FEMA during hurricanes Helene and Milton. Criswell was a subject of a swatting incident 

The document says: Secretary Mayorkas determined that there was a clear and present danger to Deanne Criswell, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and that home-to-work transportation was essential for the performance of the duties of the FEMA Administrator. Because of recent serious threats to Administrator Criswell, he authorized her use of a government vehicle for home-to-work transportation ineluding use of an appropriate security detail provided FEMA and the Transportation Security Administration at FEMA's request."
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Zahra Hirji @zhirji.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
New docs obtained via FOIA reveal how the personal attacks to FEMA staff last hurricane season were much worse than previously known, including swatting & doxxing of officials. Story @bloomberg.com, w/ @davey.bsky.social @jasonleopold.bsky.social (gift link): www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
bloomberg.com
Chaos Inside FEMA as Death Threats Distract From Hurricane Response
Internal documents show how online conspiracies and personal attacks disrupted FEMA during back-to-back hurricanes last year.
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