Trumponomics

Elon Musk may be an extreme figure, but the authors of Muskism: A Guide for the Perplexed argue he represents a much bigger dynamic that's quickly taking shape, one where promises of “sovereignty through technology” may permanently embed tech figures such as himself at the center of government and society. Stephanie Flanders speaks with Ben Tarnoff and Quinn Slobodian about how Musk turned close ties with government into extraordinary power, and what his rise tells us about the changing relationship between Big Tech, the state and the global economy.
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As Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with US President Donald Trump in Washington, this week's episode of Trumponomics asks whether the world’s leading AI powers can move beyond summit pageantry and start managing the dangers created by their technological rivalry. Host Stephanie Flanders speaks with Bloomberg Executive Editor Dan Ten Kate and Geoeconomics analyst Michael Deng about why distrust over chips, model distillation and open-source AI is making meaningful cooperation so difficult—and why rare earths and deeply intertwined supply chains mean neither country can truly decouple from the other.
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The US 10-year Treasury yield has breached 5%, but the forces pushing borrowing costs higher may run much deeper than the latest economic shocks. Stephanie Flanders is joined by Bloomberg Opinion columnist John Authers and Jamie Rush of Bloomberg Economics to discuss how demographics, rising government debt and the artificial intelligence investment boom are reshaping the price of money — and why 5% could prove to be a floor rather than a ceiling.
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Artificial intelligence companies are spending extraordinary sums on the promise that their technology will transform the global economy. Author and technology critic Cory Doctorow joins Trumponomics host Stephanie Flanders to challenge that sales pitch, arguing that AI may be useful without delivering the cost savings or profits investors expect — and warning of the consequences for workers, markets and the wider economy if the boom ends badly.
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In the US-China trade conflict, rare earth metals are Beijing's ultimate trump card. Last year, China ramped up restrictions on these key industrial elements, spooking industry, and forcing the US toclimb down. Since that wake-up call, the US has worked hard to reduce its dependence on China. It has spent huge sums backing mining companies, penned eye-catching deals and moved to collaborate with allies. But after a little more than a year, how much progress has it made in breaking China’s hold on the rare earths supply chain?
Featuring: Abigail Hunter of the SAFE Center for Critical Minerals Strategy; Gracelin Baskaran of the Critical Minerals Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies; Cory Combs of Trivium China; and FT commodities correspondent Camilla Hodgson.
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