AI
Tech Journalist Kevin Roose Tracks AI's Hidden History in New Book
After leaving the New York Times, Roose launches a media venture with NPR and releases a behind-the-scenes chronicle of the intense rivalries that shaped today's AI industry.
WIRED — AI
Kevin Roose spent over a year conducting 150 interviews to capture what he views as a critical historical moment: the rise of generative AI through the lens of the companies and personalities driving it forward. His book, The AGI Chronicles, weaves together the intertwined stories of OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google—three organizations whose leaders were sometimes allies before becoming fierce competitors in the race to build advanced AI systems.
The veteran tech journalist, who recently departed The New York Times after nine years, is now launching a new phase of his career. Along with Casey Newton, his former co-host on the Times' Hard Fork podcast, Roose has created Machine Gods Media, a new independent media venture that will distribute content through NPR rather than a traditional media company.
Why Roose Left Traditional Media#
Roose describes his departure not as a rejection of institutions like the Times, but as recognition of a fundamental shift in how audiences connect with journalism. Rather than following the traditional path of climbing an institutional ladder, talented journalists and commentators increasingly want direct relationships with their audiences and more creative control over their work. He suggests that media organizations hoping to retain top talent will need to rethink rigid employment structures and explore more flexible arrangements.
"I think there are a lot of ways this can work, but I think it all has to start from a recognition that the journalistic career path where you go in the mail room and you work your way up and you spend 25 years at the same employer and you eventually become an editor and then a manager of editors, that has broken down," Roose explained.
A New Show Focused on AI Realism#
The Machine Gods podcast, distributed through NPR, aims to fill what Roose and Newton see as a gap in AI coverage. They view the landscape as split between two extremes: dismissive skeptics who claim AI is just hype that will disappear, and uncritical boosters highlighting every flashy use case without acknowledging risks. Their approach, which Newton calls "AI realism," attempts to take the technology seriously while remaining clear-eyed about both its capabilities and dangers.
NPR's broad reach and independence appealed to Roose and Newton—they want to reach audiences beyond tech enthusiasts, including policymakers and people in local government who may encounter AI coverage for the first time on public radio.
