Pivot Podcast Summary
Episode Title: AI Spending Spree, Crypto Winter, and Kara's Message to Jeff Bezos
Hosts: Kara Swisher & Scott Galloway
Date: February 10, 2026
Overview
In this episode, Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway deliver sharp insights and signature banter on the biggest moves in tech, media, and economics. They tackle Amazon’s enormous AI/robotics investment, the new “crypto winter,” the state of Big Tech resistance campaigns, advertising—and culture wars—anchored around the Super Bowl, and, most pointedly, Kara’s direct message to Jeff Bezos about his media missteps. The episode offers a fast-paced blend of analysis, tough questions, and clever asides.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. The Big Tech Resistance Movement
- Scott’s Unsubscribe Campaign:
- Scott details his ongoing campaign encouraging unsubscribing from Big Tech services as a way to voice consumer pushback.
- Initial surge: ~100,000 unique visits per day, trending back up after a strategic media push.
- Conversion is “two to five unsubscribes per visitor,” translating to potentially $250M in Big Tech market cap impact.
- Scott: "I think I can notionally take about a quarter of a billion dollars in market cap out of these companies.” [05:53]
- Kara: “It gives you permission to do something you kind of were gonna do and it gives you a framework and instructions.” [06:10]
- Media Tactics: Scott discusses traditional vs. new media in driving protest effectiveness; media shaming still works for effecting corporate change.
2. Super Bowl Culture: Advertising, Halftime, and Social Contest
- AI and Advertising:
- AI dominated Super Bowl ad spends, echoing past tech booms: 15 of 66 ads were AI-focused—comparable to the tech-heavy dot-com and crypto eras.
- Scott: “If you look at economic history as a ratio of tech ads being above a certain amount, it implies this year is when AI crashes.” [13:40]
- Ad & Halftime Reactions:
- Kara and Scott debate the impact, tone, and authenticity of the ads, from “virtue signaling” to nostalgia to brilliant. Kara singles out the AnthropiC AI spots and finds humor in even the most corny productions.
- The Bad Bunny halftime show is lauded for its joy, innovation, and cultural significance.
- Kara: “For them to attack it, it shows just what a bunch of fucking losers they are… so beautiful and so life affirming and forward thinking and it is where our country is in a lot of ways.” [17:04]
- Scott: "The NFL is investing in the future because more than 50% for the first time ever of people under the age of 18 are nonwhite. ... Anyone can come to America and be an American. And that's uniquely what makes America America." [16:15]
3. Market Trends: AI Spending Spree
- Amazon’s $200B AI Bet:
- Amazon plans a massive 60% capex increase, eyeing $200B in 2026 for AI, chips, robotics, and satellite buildout.
- This matches Apple, Meta, Google, and Microsoft in a collective $660B splurge—triple global pharma R&D, and more than the Apollo and ISS programs.
- Scott: "The problem with our economy ... there’s just a small number of companies that can allocate this sort of capital." [30:35]
- Only Meta is showing immediate, reportable returns; Amazon’s unique analog+digital needs rationalize some of the spend but worry investors.
- Fears of further market consolidation: "Once it's spent, nobody can catch them ever, ever, ever, ever." [32:32]
- Socioeconomic Impact:
- AI may be a job eliminator in some sectors, an upskilling tool in others. Example: ATMs didn't kill bank tellers but transformed their roles.
- Winner-take-most dynamics risk creating even more unassailable tech giants.
4. Crypto Winter Returns
- Market Downturn:
- Bitcoin suffers its worst weekly crash in 3+ years, down ~45% from its 2025 high; MicroStrategy, Coinbase, and mining stocks plummet.
- Scott: “I am easily the worst crypto investor in history. ... I bought it at 14 and within 45 days I sold it at $4.50.” [20:44]
- Treasury signals no bailout for crypto; Trump White House delivered full industry deregulation, but the market still tanked.
- Investor Advice: Scott leans toward a diversified, low-exposure stake in BTC only: “I would argue that a little bit of money, 1 to 3% of your portfolio in bitcoin may not be a bad idea.” [23:10]
- Critique of “shitcoins” as a greater fool theory.
5. Corporate Tax Policy & Political Influence
- Amazon's Tax Bill Shrinking:
- Amazon’s tax liability fell from $9B to $1.2B year-over-year, despite soaring profits—thanks to Trump's tax code overhaul.
- Kara: “I can’t believe they went from 9 billion to 1.2 billion. That is savings.” [36:15]
- Scott: "As a percentage of GDP, corporate taxes have never been lower. ... corporate profits have never been a higher percentage of GDP." [35:24]
- Both hosts argue this comes at the direct expense of future generations.
6. Media News: Washington Post Crisis & Bezos Critique
- Bezos Under Fire:
- Recent layoffs, leadership turnover, and Bezos' silence have battered morale and traffic.
- Kara: “Jeff Bezos, let me speak to you directly. ... you don’t know squat about media at all. And to act like you’re an expert in this is really exhausting. And you’re not. You suck at it.” [42:54]
- Discussion of business realities: Good journalism isn’t sustainable if it isn’t a good business.
- Speculation: Is the Post fits for bankruptcy or acquisition by Bloomberg, NYT, WSJ, or another media house?
- Scott: “No solution here is elegant… It’s almost a perfect candidate for a prepackaged bankruptcy.” [42:10]
7. Media Mergers, Political Leverage, and Regulatory Capture
- Trump’s Favoritism:
- Trump blesses the Nexstar–Tegna merger, which could reach 80% of U.S. households—well above FCC limits.
- Kara notes hypocrisy: “They’re allowing this merger and then opposing the Netflix one. … Every time they turn around, they like one thing but not the other.” [51:54]
- Broad critique of politicization of antitrust, with both supporting more trust-busting, not consolidation.
- Netflix/Warner Bros and FCC/DOJ Politics:
- Trump and GOP targeting perceived “media bias” even as Ellison-backed deal threatens mass layoffs and AI replacement in entertainment.
- Scott: “Media companies are allowed to have a viewpoint. ... Netflix, as far as I can tell, is the most apolitical of all of them.” [53:13]
8. Higher Education – Access and Costs
- Scarcity and Rising Tuition:
- Scott riffs on early-decision tactics and lack of competitive pressure among U.S. universities driving up costs.
- Scott: "Our markets have become way too consolidated and the result is they have way too much... You know what we Have. We have two good schools in every major city. We need five." [57:47]
- Both hosts bemoan how middle-class families are being squeezed, and how the system reinforces generational inequality.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- On the Post-Bezos Era:
- Kara to Bezos: “You really need to do something else and not sell it to a hedge fund or the wrong owners. Just do the right thing. Just for the last time, do the right thing.” [47:07]
- Scott's Cheeky Banter on Resistance Campaign:
- “No, I'm not. I'm not a whore. I'm a horror. I'm a hoer. I'm a hoah.” [02:45]
- On the Bad Bunny Halftime Show:
- “Let him sing, let him cook.” (Scott, [11:07])
- On the Culture Wars:
- “They're so butthurt. Because they are not. The culture war is. They're not winning it. Nobody wants to watch Kid Rock.” (Kara, [16:15])
- On AI Investment:
- “It's the equivalent of spending about $2 billion a day on AI.” (Scott, [31:18])
- On the Failure of American Corporate Tax Policy:
- “The 3,600 paces, one by one. Kind of fuck the middle class.” (Scott, [36:33])
- On Tech and Economic Trends:
- “If you look at economic history as a ratio ... this is when AI crashes.” (Scott, [13:40])
- On Antitrust:
- “We need to go the other way.... You can't have three chicken companies, you can't have three pharmaceutical companies, you can't have four streaming media platforms. … You need to break all of these guys up.” (Scott, [52:17])
- On Education:
- “How on earth does any middle class family send a good but not freakishly remarkable kid to college these days? How does that happen?” (Scott, [59:14])
- On Love as Public Policy:
- “It sounds corny. It’s love. ... If any sort of discrimination is stopping people from loving each other ... we need to stop it.” (Scott, [65:00])
Timestamps for Key Segments
- Resistance & Unsubscribe Update: 03:00–08:30
- Super Bowl Ad Breakdown: 09:43–14:13, 17:04–18:39
- AI and Market Capital Discussion: 29:16–36:33
- Crypto Winter Analysis: 19:45–24:27
- Corporate Taxes and Political Influence: 35:24–38:25
- Washington Post & Media Business: 38:25–47:41
- Mergers, Antitrust, Regulatory Politics: 50:52–56:48
- Higher Education Rant: 57:47–61:33
- Wins & Fails – Love, Media, Trump’s Rhetoric: 61:33–71:33
Tone
The conversation blends incisive, data-driven analysis with wry, occasionally profane humor. Kara’s acerbic directness is counterbalanced by Scott’s satirical jabs and earnest economic takes. The episode is rich in skepticism toward Big Tech, Wall Street hype cycles, and political hypocrisy, with a recurring undercurrent of concern for social and generational fairness.
Summary Takeaways
- Big Tech’s new arms race is reshaping the entire economy and will entrench them further unless checked by regulatory will.
- Crypto markets are in chaos despite prior deregulation—speculation is no substitute for a resilient investment strategy.
- The future of legacy media (especially the Washington Post) hinges on leadership that understands both creative and business imperatives, not just data, not just cost cuts.
- Political favoritism in mergers is rampant—true antitrust, not consolidation, should be a policy priority.
- Cultural battlegrounds (like the Super Bowl) show who is winning America’s future—hint: it’s not the aggrieved culture warriors.
- Higher education and housing systems are increasingly rigged in favor of entrenched interests—deep reforms are needed.
- Love and dignity—at every scale, including economic policy—are worth defending and prioritizing.
Final Word
This high-density, wide-ranging episode offers everything from sharp investment analysis to media navel-gazing to old-school rants, proving once again that when it comes to tech, media, and business, no one banters (or bickers) quite like Kara & Scott.