Someday Bunch

Your Friday morning banana peel and bowl of iced Saratoga.

Mar 28, 2025

Editor’s Note: Due to scheduling conflicts involving Ducatis and Little League baseball (separately, unfortunately), this pre-weekend update will take the place of a new edition of Sunday Bunch. Regularly scheduled programming will resume next week.

This week I re-published a 1907 short story from E.M. Forster (in the public domain, copyright nerds) called The Machine Stops. It’s eerily prescient and relevant to this effective accelerationist period in human history.

Take it along with you this weekend, it’s a brisk but immersive and thought-provoking read to pair with a morning cup of coffee or evening edible.

Read 'The Machine Stops'

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If Anthropic Succeeds, a Nation of Benevolent AI Geniuses Could Be Born
The other big AI company gets its Wired close-up. Also, this caption: Daniela is the president. Dario, the CEO, hosts a monthly vision quest at company headquarters. 1

H&M Knows Its AI Models Will Be Controversial
The Swedish clothing giant plans to use “digital twins” of real models in AI-generated imagery. Models will own their twins and be allowed to use them with other brands. 2

NBA, FIBA to take next steps toward new European league
Adam Silver starts sharing a plan to colonize Europe and better monetize the NBA’s international fanbase. He’s got Barcelona and Madrid on the line, but Paris might be a problem. 3

MLB Opening Day 2025
The Dodgers celebrated their World Series title with a win, Baltimore mashed six homers, multiple games were decided in the ninth. We’re back, baby. 4

Nick Denton on Betting Against Elon Musk and Aligning With Peter Thiel
The Gawker Media founder emerges from self-imposed exile to talk technocracy, Cybertrucks (and how his kid wound up with Elon as a middle name), and why it was actually a good thing Hulk Hogan and Thiel wiped out his empire.5

Quarter of brands cutting senior marketing leaders
Saving money on wages (58.4%) is the main reason cited for cutting and not replacing senior marketing talent. 6

Will the Viral Morning Routine Guy Be the End of Hustle Culture?

“Most of us aren’t trying to live a lifestyle so devoid of fun, excitement, and joy, but the proliferation of this approach to life has made some of us feel guilty about not doing enough. I am not saying that we should all be out drinking and doing cocaine without a care in the world, but what happened to balance?”7

We can’t look away from our split and severed selves
The Substance, A Different Man, Severance…why are we currently so entranced by the idea of pulling ourselves apart? 8

Gen Z and the End of Predictable Progress
How AI, volatility, and changing institutions are shaping young people's economic reality. 9

Edible Brands, Home of Fancy Fruit Bouquets, Enters the THC Space
Edible Arrangements now selling gummies, amongst other cannabis products. 10

Shelby Houlihan earns silver medal in return from burrito ban
The distance runner tested positive for a PED (nandralone), claimed it came from a tainted pork burrito. No indication on carnitas or al pastor, but stay away from the Chipotle Carnitas Cinema to be safe. 11

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