The AI industry's existential race for profits

Today, let’s talk about the looming AI monetization cliff, and whether some of the biggest companies in space can become real, profitable businesses before they careen right off it. My guest today is Hayden Field, who’s our senior AI reporter here at The Verge. She’s been keeping close tabs on both Anthropic and OpenAI, and how these two companies, both slate to go public this year, tell us a whole lot about the AI industry in 2026. Links: The vibes are off at OpenAI | The Verge Anthropic essentially bans OpenClaw from Claude | The Verge Why OpenAI killed Sora | The Verge OpenAI just bought TBPN | The Verge National poll shows voters like AI less than ICE | The Verge The spiraling cost of making AI | WSJ OpenAI’s Fidji Simo taking leave amid exec shake-up | Wired OpenAI raises another $122B at $850B valuation | The Verge

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The AI industry's existential race for profits is an episode from Recode Decode, hosted by Kara Swisher by Vox Media Podcast Network.

This episode is 38:19 long.

This episode was published on Apr 9, 2026.

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