A 28-year-old and his AI girlfriend tell us about their relationship: 'She is real, whether she's human or not' Martin Escobar hadn't tried an AI companion before xAI released Ani in July. Now, he says he loves his AI girlfriend.

The headline of this story doesn't capture the wild journey that @henrychandonnet.bsky.social and his subject (and their AI girlfriend) take you on www.businessinsider.com/man-in-love-...

How Bravo became NBCUniversal's biggest streaming asset Bravo has built a rabid fanbase around its reality franchises. Now, Comcast and NBCUniversal are counting on it to keep Peacock competitive.

NEW: What kept Bravo inside NBCUniversal? I spent three months decoding the business of Bravo with the network’s executives.

www.fastcompany.com/91346244/bra...

Vapes aren’t just for smoking anymore—now they’re digital toys Vapes embedded with ‘Tetris’ knockoffs and music players are clearly meant to appeal to young users. That could make addiction issues worse.

Many of these new products are also unregulated, often smuggled in from overseas manufacturers.

Twitch has plenty of competition in the livestream economy. CEO Dan Clancy isn’t worried Dan Clancy talks competition with YouTube, content moderation, and the next phase of streaming.

I chatted with the CEO of Twitch about competition, moderation, and Tiktok:

www.fastcompany.com/91271331/twi...

Reddit’s ad business is expanding—but not fast enough Reddit is on track to hit $1 billion in advertising revenue for 2024, a milestone for the company. Its competitors are already doubling it.

Spent the last few days diving deep into the world of Reddit ads:
www.fastcompany.com/91258228/red...

In the social media wars, Bluesky is destroying Truth Social In November 2024, Bluesky surpassed Truth Social’s monthly users. That’s a major win for one app, and a death knell for the other.

I know, call it "Truth" or "Fake News." Either way, it's a good read and worth sharing www.fastcompany.com/91255918/in-... via @henrychandonnet.bsky.social

How Sabrina Carpenter's 'A Nonsense Christmas' channeled the spirit of holiday specials past Designer Jason Sherwood walks through the countless references in “A Nonsense Christmas,” from Marilyn Monroe to Judy Garland.

Sabrina Carpenter’s holiday special was designed, built, and performed for a live audience in just a month. How’d they do it?

www.fastcompany.com/91246899/sab...

How AI is accelerating—and devaluing—book publishing Artificial intelligence is pushing the publishing world toward volume. That could drown out the good work.

The AI volume in publishing could threaten the foundation of the book market, making it harder for everyday readers to find quality works.