More or Less Podcast – Episode Summary

Episode: SpaceX + xAI Merger, Google Earnings, and the Bot-Filled Internet
Date: February 6, 2026
Hosts: Dave Morin, Jessica Lessin, Brit Morin, Sam Lessin

Overview

In this lively, wide-ranging episode, the More or Less crew—longtime friends and tech insiders Jessica Lessin, Dave Morin, Brit Morin, and Sam Lessin—exchange fresh views on Silicon Valley’s latest seismic developments. The main topics are the much-hyped SpaceX and xAI merger, a critical look at Google’s surging Cloud earnings, the state of the Washington Post under Jeff Bezos, and a candid, sometimes hilarious tour through the wild new world of AI bots and agent-driven internet—right down to existential questions about the meaning of human interaction as bots increasingly flood online platforms.

Key Topics & Insights

1. ClawCon and the Return of OG Tech Meetups (00:53–03:48)

• The episode opens with the crew discussing ClawCon, a new, old-school style technical meetup co-hosted by Dave Morin and Michael S. Galpert (MSG).
• Notable Moment: Nostalgia for early, genuine “meetup culture”—a time when technical people built and shared projects IRL, now resurging in the age of AI agents and open source.
  • “It gives me a lot of memories of the old days when Silicon Valley had technical people running around in it all of the time.” – Dave Morin (03:03)
• The exclusivity and techie focus of these events signal, for the hosts, a revival of what made Silicon Valley dynamic in the first place.

2. SpaceX + xAI Megamerger: The New Cult Capitalism (04:28–13:51)

• Jessica transitions into the main event: SpaceX’s trillion-dollar merger with xAI.
• Key Insights:
  • The panel observes how “narrative assets” drive today’s valuations more than revenue, and that SpaceX investors are uneasy about xAI’s relative worth.
  • Sam Lessin sums it up: “It’s just the reconstitution of the Elon narrative into one mega narrative... none of it really makes sense from a DCF perspective, but that’s not the world we live in anymore.” (09:02)
  • Elon’s control of social narratives via Twitter/X amplifies the combined company’s valuation despite fundamental cash flow issues.
• Financial Snapshot:
  • SpaceX: $16B revenue, $2B EBITDA, $8B cash flow, buoyed by Starlink.
  • xAI: Burning ~$9.5B, negative profit.
• Tesla Next? The group predicts Tesla’s eventual inclusion, with Jessica joking: “I’d put the call she odds at 90%.” (11:56)
• Cult Capitalism:
  • Sam: “...everyone is in the Hail Mary for infinity ball game... at the same time, all these SaaS stocks are getting crashed.” (14:29)
  • The allure is less about financials, more about monopolistic vision and “inspiration premium”—the power of Elon’s narrative for retail and institutional backers alike.

3. Bezos, Blue Origin, and the Washington Post Dilemma (16:16–22:44)

• Discussion pivots to Jeff Bezos’s leadership of Blue Origin and the future of the Washington Post following massive layoffs.
• Jessica’s Plea:
  • “We really have to tell Jeff Bezos it is time to sell the Washington Post... there is no vision... you need that level of religious zeal for news to lead in news today.” (05:05/18:00)
• Host Perspectives:
  • Dave prefers the Post to the Times, valuing its approach—but Jessica attributes its struggles to diluted focus and lack of leadership passion.
  • Brit draws humorous parallels to Bezos potentially buying Snap for narrative control.

4. Google Earnings, Cloud Surge & AI Arms Race (22:47-29:53)

• Jessica highlights Google Cloud’s “crushing” growth (up to 48%) and positions Google as the rare company scaling both consumer and enterprise AI.
• Sam’s Skepticism:
  • “You can be so excited about AI... but the reality is, you can own Meta, you can own Google... maybe SpaceX. But these are hard, not good businesses to be in as a startup.” (24:52)
• Tension in Business Models:
  • The crew debates whether AI companies (esp. OpenAI) can sustain growth through multi-front strategies or if most tech giants inevitably default to 1–2 core revenue lines.

5. The Bot-Filled Internet & Dead Internet Theory (32:15–38:49)

• This segment, a genuine highlight, features Sam walking through his adventures with OpenClaw and bot-built agents, automating his LinkedIn presence and engagement:
  • “The funny part about all this is like, it’s pure dead Internet theory... now this was already happening with bot farms, but now, like, I just sit in Telegram all day long and dispatch agents spouting my bullshit all over the Internet.” – Sam Lessin (35:49)
• Brit confesses to a competing bot strategy, sorting connections and targeting engagement, and the group debates the (likely) illegality or rules-bending of such automation.
• Existential Tone:
  • Hosts joke about a coming “death” of social media as bot-generated content floods everything—“The only human network is the next obvious step.” – Sam (36:58)
  • Dave references a friend's melancholy about their code skills being obsolete: “He had this, like, simultaneous realization of how much fun it is on the one hand, but... now knows that his skill set is completely invalid and doesn’t matter anymore.” (49:09)

6. AI Fatigue, Agents, and Pivot Anxiety (39:54–42:11)

• Brit reflects on emotional fatigue for founders forced to pivot repeatedly for AI/agent narratives.
• Sam predicts a brutal selection for companies that can’t deliver tangible technical results—“at this point in history, if you can’t show me bits, I don’t even want to talk to you.” (41:51)
• Jessica adds a note of hope: “We can’t just lose sight of building something that solves a real problem that people need. That still works.” (41:51)

7. Pop Culture Corner: Human Experience Still Matters (43:02–49:40)

• Lighter, upbeat wrap-up touching on real-world entertainment (Disney, concerts, the Grammys). Jessica points out the future is moving toward human, in-person connection, citing Disney’s focus and Netflix’s live event push:
  • “We’re going to be back to connecting with people and trusting the things that come from those connections. And the rest is going to be cloudland.” – Jessica (43:37)
• Cher’s Grammy antics get a loving mention (“she’s Cher, and she just laughed it off... you got to love live TV and not AI stuff.” – Brit, 48:56)
• Final riff: Tech’s future may be bots, but humans and IRL experience still shine.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• On Narrative-Driven Valuations:
  • “Because narrative, Dave, that’s like the whole point. That’s what we’ve been talking about.” – Sam Lessin (10:59)
• On Cult Capitalism:
  • “We live in relativist Funny money land... you bought into the narrative game and... you’re down 20% on a made up number.” – Sam (05:52/06:45)
• On the Bot-Driven Future:
  • “I literally like my most recent LinkedIn post, which I didn’t even moderate, just got posted.” – Sam (36:35)
  • “If everyone starts doing this... Sam is dead. Like social media and all of these platforms.” – Brit (36:53)
• On Human Connection vs. AI:
  • “The person running Disney... is the person who runs the live people stuff, the parks... because that is the company Disney has become. Always was too.” – Jessica (43:02)
  • “You got to love live TV and not AI stuff.” – Brit (48:56)
• On Tech Founder Fatigue:
  • “I feel so bad emotionally for especially the pre-2022 founders who didn’t start off building an AI company... now are like, what the fuck? Now I also need, like, an agentic narrative...” – Brit (39:54)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• ClawCon & OG Meetups: 00:53–03:48
• SpaceX + xAI Merger Deep Dive: 04:28–13:51
• Bezos & Washington Post Crisis: 16:16–22:44
• Google Cloud Earnings & AI Business Models: 22:47–29:53
• Bot-Filled Internet & Agentic Engineering: 32:15–38:49
• AI Fatigue & The Pivot Race: 39:54–42:11
• Pop Culture Corner (Disney, Grammys, Human IRL): 43:02–49:40

Takeaways

• 2026 Silicon Valley is narrative-driven, rewarding vision and “cult” leadership over fundamentals—exemplified by Musk’s moves.
• AI is both an incredible engineering lever and a source of existential dread for tech workers and founders.
• The internet’s future may be overwhelmingly bot-driven, but there’s a concurrent human hunger for authenticity and offline connection.
• News and old-line media face brutal business realities; vision, not just funding, is critical for survival.
• Despite the AI hype cycle, building focused, truly useful products—or creating real in-person community—is still the path to lasting value.

For longtime Valley-watchers or those just curious about tech’s current moment, this episode is both a reality check and a reminder of why people still care about the future of Silicon Valley.