E17: Mike Solana on SF politics, tech & media fights, Tik Tok policy, and AI wars

Our guest this week is Mike Solana, founder and editor-in-chief of Pirate Wires (Piratewires.com). We discuss the broken local politics of San Francisco, tech and media fights, how we should handle Tik Tok,and why AI enthusiasts are losing. We record our interviews with Riverside. Go to https://bit.ly/Riverside_MoZ + use code ZEN for 20%.  We're hiring across the board at Turpentine and for Erik's personal team on other projects he's incubating. He's hiring a Chief of Staff, EA, Head of Special Projects, Investment Associate, and more. For a list of JDs, check out: eriktorenberg.com. RECOMMENDED PODCAST: The HR industry is at a crossroads. What will it take to construct the next generation of incredible businesses – and where can people leaders have the most business impact? Hosts Nolan Church and Kelli Dragovich have been through it all, the highs and the lows – IPOs, layoffs, executive turnover, board meetings, culture changes, and more. With a lineup of industry vets and experts, Nolan and Kelli break down the nitty-gritty details, trade offs, and dynamics of constructing high performing companies. Through unfiltered conversations that can only happen between seasoned practitioners, Kelli and Nolan dive deep into the kind of leadership-level strategy that often happens behind closed doors. Check out the first episode with the architect of Netflix’s culture deck Patty McCord. https://link.chtbl.com/hrheretics TIMESTAMPS: (0:00) Antonio’s EA rant (2:12) Local SF politics is changing (18:10) Tech vs. Media (26:30) Sponsors: Secureframe and Riverside (28:00 )Why does SF hate tech? (31:00) How to win over California (38:00) Institutionalist vs. anti-institutionalist (55:50) Taylor Lorenz (1:01:30) Tik Tok (1:03:40) Why Solana isn’t a libertarian anymore (1:07:55) Why is the onus on billionaires instead of government (1:14:20) Dan swears off Peter Zeihan (1:16:00) Anti-tech tech podcasts (1:18:20) AI criticism is coming from within tech (1:19:50) Aella (1:21:30) AI safety debate (1:32:00) What Solana is motivated by TWITTER: @MOZ_Podcast @micsolana (Mike) @eriktorenberg (Erik) @dwr (Dan) @antoniogm (Antonio) More shownotes and reading material released in our Substack: https://momentofzen.substack.com/  SPONSORS: Beehiiv | Shopify Head to Beehiiv, the newsletter platform built for growth, to power your own. Connect with premium brands, scale your audience, and deliver a beautiful UX that stands out in an inbox. 🐝 to https://Beehiiv.com and use code “MOZ” for 20% off your first three months -Shopify: https://shopify.com/momentofzen for a $1/month trial period Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. Shopify powers 10% of all e-commerce in the US. And Shopify’s the global force behind Allbirds, Rothy’s, and Brooklinen, and 1,000,000s of other entrepreneurs across 175 countries. From their all-in-one e-commerce platform, to their in-person POS system – wherever and whatever you’re selling, Shopify’s got you covered. With free Shopify Magic, sell more with less effort by whipping up captivating content that converts – from blog posts to product descriptions using AI. Sign up for $1/month trial period: https://shopify.com/momentofzen Thank you to Secureframe for sponsoring (Use "Moment of Zen" for 20% discount) and Graham Bessellieu for production.