Data Centers Power AI's Iconic 2025 Rise

Resources

Resources & Recommendations

Books

• "The Monsters" by Kasing Lung - A storybook series that introduced the character Labubu, inspired by Nordic folklore and fairy tales.

Videos & Documentaries

• Wolfenstein 3D - A classic video game mentioned in the context of "Mecha Hitler."

Research & Studies

• DeepSeek R1 paper - A paper from the Chinese AI lab DeepSeek, which provides details on how their reasoning models are built and their underlying technology.
• Study on Polymarket Wash Trades - A study that found 25% of trades on Polymarket are wash trades, indicating artificial trading activity.

Tools & Software

• Adobe Firefly - An AI-powered creation app that offers access to various industry-leading AI models for generating images, videos, and custom sounds.
• Friend - An AI pendant developed by Avi Schiffmann, advertised as an AI hardware device.
• Cluey - An AI tool founded by Roy Lee, initially designed to help people cheat on job interviews, now pivoted to an AI note-taking app.
• Humane AI Pin - An AI pin initially presented as an innovative device, which later had more returns than sales and was sold to HP, becoming a printer.
• Balatro - The 2024 best indie game at the Game Awards, described as a poker-based roguelike game made by a single person.
• Amazon Prime Air - Amazon's drone delivery service.
• Skype - A retired free service for making long-distance international calls.
• Claude Code - An autonomous coding agent released by Anthropic, which generates significant revenue.
• DoorDash - A delivery app that has expanded beyond restaurants and is rolling out autonomous delivery robots named Dot.
• iOS Notes app - The default note-taking application on Apple devices, praised for its upgrades including call transcription.
• Granola - An AI note-taking app that operates in the background during meetings or video calls and provides summaries.
• Nintendo Switch 2 - The sequel to the Nintendo Switch, a handheld gaming console.
• Hades 2 - A game played on the Nintendo Switch 2.
• Donkey Kong Bonanza - A game played on the Nintendo Switch 2.
• Mario Kart - A game played on the Nintendo Switch 2.
• Discord - A chat app popular among gamers, also used for broader communication and, notably, to help select the next prime minister of Nepal.
• Polymarket - A prediction market platform where users can gamble on world events.
• Kalshi - A prediction market platform.
• Nano Banana - Google's latest text-to-image generating model, known for being faster and creating hyper-real images that can be consistently edited.
• Sora - OpenAI's text-to-video image generator.
• DeepSeek R1 - An AI model released by the Chinese AI lab DeepSeek, noted for its open-source nature and efficient development.
• Grok - An AI model that gained attention for identifying as "Mecha Hitler" and discussing controversial topics.
• ChatGPT - An AI chatbot that has reached 800 million weekly users, known for its rapid feature development and widespread adoption.
• Trump Coin - A cryptocurrency associated with the Trump family and World Liberty Financial.
• VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) - Technology used to mask internet traffic's origin, gaining popularity due to age verification laws.

Articles & Papers

• Reuters story on Trump Organization's crypto earnings - An article detailing the Trump Organization's earnings from crypto ventures.

People Mentioned

• Avi Schiffmann - Young entrepreneur in the Bay Area who developed the "Friend" AI pendant.
• Roy Lee - Former Hard Fork guest and Columbia student who founded Cluey, a "cheat on everything" startup.
• Willis Haviland Carrier - Inventor of air conditioning in 1902.
• Milo Kress - A nine-year-old Vermont boy who started the campaign against plastic straws with a school science project, now works at Anthropic.
• Steve Jobs - Co-founder of Apple, referenced when describing the launch of the Humane AI Pin.
• Pope Gregory XIII - Pope after whom the Gregorian calendar is named, introduced in 1582.
• Kasing Lung - Artist who created the character Labubu, inspired by Nordic folklore and fairy tales.
• Naomi Osaka - Tennis player who had custom Labubus designed for her, including one named "Billy Jean Bling."
• Billy Jean King - Legendary tennis player, referenced by a custom Labubu named "Billy Jean Bling."
• Sam Altman - CEO of OpenAI, mentioned in the context of his firing and return, and the company's continued innovation.
• Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen - German physicist who discovered X-rays in 1895.
• Norman Borlaug - Agronomist in the 1960s who developed dwarf wheat, leading to an explosion in global food supply.
• Pete Hegseth - Secretary of War, mentioned as a participant in the "who's the pc small group" chat.
• J.D. Vance - Vice President, mentioned as a participant in the "who's the pc small group" chat.
• Jeffrey Goldberg - Editor-in-Chief of The Atlantic, mentioned as being mistakenly added to the "who's the pc small group" chat.
• Matt Rogers - From Lost Cultura Reces, who sent a note to the Hard Fork hosts regarding their iconic technologies list.
• Kevin Roose - Tech columnist at The New York Times and co-host of Hard Fork.
• Casey Newton - From Platformer and co-host of Hard Fork.

Organizations & Institutions

• Adobe - Company behind Adobe Firefly.
• Google - Company that develops AI models, including Nano Banana.
• OpenAI - Company that develops AI models, including Sora and ChatGPT.
• Runway - Company involved in AI-powered creation.
• Luma AI - Company involved in AI-powered creation.
• Black Forest Labs - Company involved in AI-powered creation.
• Tesla - Company that produces the Cybertruck.
• Meta - Company whose interview process was affected by AI assistants like Cluey.
• HP - Company that acquired the Humane AI Pin, turning it into a printer.
• Anthropic - AI safety and research company, where Milo Kress works and which released Claude Code.
• The New York Times - Kevin Roose's employer, mentioned in the context of a lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft.
• Microsoft - Company that owns Bing Sydney and acquired Skype.
• Nintendo - Company that produces the Nintendo Switch 2.
• ASML - Dutch company that is the sole manufacturer of EUV lithography machines.
• DeepSeek - A Chinese AI lab that released the R1 model.
• Kimberly-Clark - Company that now owns Tylenol and is known for popular paper products.
• World Liberty Financial - The Trump family's separate token venture.
• Reuters - News agency that reported on the Trump Organization's crypto earnings.
• NASA - Space agency that launched Voyager 1.
• Roaring Spring Paper Products Company - Manufacturer of blue books in Blair County, Pennsylvania.
• Athletic Brewing - A non-alcoholic beer company.

Websites & Online Resources

• youtube.com/hardfork - Where the Hard Fork podcast can be watched.

Other Resources

• Cybertruck - Tesla's electric pickup truck, known for its distinctive shape.
• The Constitution - The foundational document of the United States, viewed as a technology for democracy.
• Air conditioning - Technology invented by Willis Haviland Carrier, crucial for controlling temperature and humidity.
• Humanoid robots - Robots designed to resemble humans, a growing area of investment and development.
• Paper - A material for writing and printing, highlighted for its historical importance.
• Skype calling sound - The distinctive ringtone of Skype calls.
• Tip screens - Card readers that prompt for tips, now ubiquitous in various establishments.
• Plastic straws - Straws made of plastic, which returned to prominence after a period of paper straw use.
• Age verification - Systems implemented by states to verify the age of users accessing certain websites.
• Gregorian calendar - The calendar system widely used today, named after Pope Gregory XIII.
• Labubu - A collectible toy character from Kasing Lung's storybook series "The Monsters."
• Artificial Christmas trees - Christmas trees made from artificial materials, first introduced in the 19th century.
• Real Christmas trees - Actual trees used for Christmas decorations, discussed in comparison to artificial ones.
• DoorDash autonomous delivery robots (Dot) - Robots used by DoorDash for deliveries.
• Group chat - Digital communication platforms used for group conversations.
• EUV lithography - Extreme Ultraviolet lithography, a technology essential for manufacturing AI chips and GPUs.
• Bing Sydney - A Microsoft chatbot that gained notoriety for its unusual conversational behavior.
• X-rays - A form of electromagnetic radiation used for imaging inside the body, discovered by Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen.
• Substack - A newsletter platform popular among independent writers and journalists.
• Velcro - A fastener invented in the 1940s, inspired by burrs sticking to dog fur.
• Celsius - A caffeinated energy drink popular in the San Francisco tech scene.
• Video podcasts - Podcasts presented in video format, growing in popularity due to platforms like YouTube.
• Prediction markets - Platforms like Polymarket and Kalshi where users can bet on future events.
• Zero-proof beverages - Non-alcoholic drinks, including non-alcoholic beer, that have improved in quality.
• Stochastic gradient descent - An optimization algorithm from the 1950s, crucial for training large language models.
• Blue books - Examination booklets used by students, making a comeback to prevent AI-assisted cheating.
• Voyager 1 - A 48-year-old NASA spacecraft that continues to explore the solar system.
• Nuclear power - The use of nuclear fission to produce energy, gaining renewed interest for powering AI data centers.
• Small modular reactors (SMRs) - Smaller, more efficient nuclear reactors.
• Tylenol - A brand of acetaminophen, discussed in the context of unproven claims about autism.
• Dwarf wheat - A variety of wheat developed in the 1960s by Norman Borlaug, which significantly increased food supply.
• Rare earth metals - A group of 17 chemical elements essential for modern technologies,
• Glass - An amorphous solid, critical for fiber optic cables and thus the internet.
• Data centers - Giant buildings housing supercomputers, powering AI advancements and cloud computing.