Scott says if hundreds of millions follow someone religiously and see him as Jesus-like, a remark like "Kara wants to go to prison" carries a non-zero chance of physical harm to her or family. Kara says she received strange, unpleasant phone calls, though she wouldn't call them death threats.
Scott points to a pattern: when female reporters criticize Trump or Musk, the anger seems more visceral. He notes Musk calls women "piggy," not overweight men, and Kara says she dislikes overusing "misogyny" but still cannot ignore the connection. The contrast is with men who say the same or worse.
Kara says Musk was not throwing roughly $400 million at midterms because he believes in Trump; she says he believes in himself and is trying to save his own skin. Her reporting predicted congressional investigations, and Musk responded with a prison threat. That sequence shows political spending as self-protection.
Kara says much of SpaceX's money comes from selling compute, so an AI slowdown would hit it. Scott adds AI is now more than half of revenue, up ninefold, while two customers make up 38% of revenue and CapEx is nearly $20 billion. That is concentration risk hidden by rocket growth.
Scott calls the special committee a kabuki dance because Musk controls the bride, groom and officiant. Tesla's auto business is flat and trades at 330 times earnings, so he says SpaceX shareholders are effectively bailing out Tesla with a new narrative. He predicts the merger closes despite lawsuits.
Scott argues that when an unelected Musk can throttle Starlink for Ukraine, calls will grow to regulate or even nationalize it. Kara adds Delta, Canada and Europe are seeking alternatives, and Scott predicts a nation will eventually ban Starlink. That turns geopolitical control into business risk.
Scott says Meta grew revenue 26% while headcount fell 15%, ad prices rose 14% and impressions rose 10%. He calls it AI efficiency in one sentence: fewer people, more money, which is shareholders' dream and politicians' and workers' fear. That is the seminal AI earnings call.
Kara and Scott note Meta faces about $45 billion in legal costs this year, including a $25 billion New Mexico order. Scott says that is roughly a third of CapEx; harming teenagers is now a line item, but still not enough to change behavior. Kara expects the penalties will matter eventually.
Scott explains the two-for-one split creates non-voting Class C shares. If California's billionaire tax passes, Zuckerberg might need $12.5 billion and sell stock; the structure lets him raise money without losing control. Kara says he already controls Meta and likes California, so he will likely stay.
Meta announced Joel Kaplan, its policy chief, is leaving weeks before midterms. Kara says Kaplan had made Meta friendlier to conservatives; his replacement Dina Powell is softer and well-liked. She thinks Meta is preparing for a more hostile political environment. Casey Newton says Kaplan's work is done.
Sacha Baron Cohen says Borat singing "Throw the Jew Down the Well" was shocking in 2001 or 2002 because it exposed antisemitism; today it would not be interesting. A satirist must keep looking for what has not been said and reinvent the characters. He recalibrated by creating extreme left and right figures.
Sacha says democracy is not compatible with social media. He tried warning tech leaders and found them uninterested in protecting democracy. He also says a Facebook whistleblower told him viral Trump ads cost more than Hillary's stickier ads, so outrageous lies won. AI now metastasizes those conspiracies.
Kara says Character AI's prepackaged bankruptcy was a deal to acquire technology and hire staff while avoiding legal liabilities, including parents' lawsuits. The founder reportedly became Disney's chief technologist and shareholders were wiped out. She dislikes the machinations, especially from Disney. This shows AI liability can be shed through bankruptcy.
Scott predicts Meta wins AI, not NVIDIA or OpenAI. He cites 3 billion daily users, direct relationships with 500 million businesses, models at parity with Anthropic and OpenAI, and the free Muse app. Kara counters that Google could win by being the more useful utility.