Captured: how Silicon Valley's AI emperors are reshaping reality

The session will kick off with a 10-minute storytelling session describing Chris and Isobel’s investigation of Silicon Valley’s capture of journalism, labour, culture, and creativity. We’ll bring the audience into Silicon Valley’s mindset and sci-fi-inspired vision for the future — before discussing how best journalists can fight for their survival.
This time last year, Christopher Wylie was on his way to the Perugia Journalism Festival, travelling on a long-haul flight from East Asia. During a stopover in Dubai, a freak flood hit the desert city. All planes were grounded, and he found himself trapped. It just so happened to be Crypto Week in Dubai, and the city was packed with Silicon Valley venture capitalists and CEOs. The flood didn’t bother them — they partied on, holding “longevity” raves where people talked about living forever, connecting humans up to a hive mind, and building superintelligence unchecked by regulatory power.
Chris ended up at these parties, sending Isobel covert voice notes from the bathroom. Together, they reflected on a growing, radical disconnect: while journalists gathered on a hilltop in Umbria to discuss what AI really means for democracy, the tech bros seemed worlds away from caring about that issue.
No one in Dubai showed the slightest concern about how they were contributing to the decline of independent, rigorous journalism. And so an idea was born: to document Silicon Valley’s core beliefs and launch an investigation into the AI-powered future we’re all facing — and how Big Tech has captured our ability to fight back.
We’ll will explore whether journalists should engage more with the core beliefs of the tech elite and maintain an open dialogue, or instead forge their own way. Join us for a provocative exploration of the future of independent journalism in an AI-dominated world.
Moderated by Natalia Antelava.
Organised in association with Coda Story.