This week, we break down the arguments about open-weight models unfolding in Silicon Valley right now. Nvidia released an open letter signed by over 230 companies opposing “premature restrictions,” but will the Trump administration listen?
Then, we’re joined by the author Claire Stapleton to discuss her new book about what she learned while leading employee activism inside Google.
And finally, can Substack stop the slop? We’ll talk about the platform’s new A.I. detector.
Guests:
<ul>
 <li>Claire Stapleton, author of “Don’t Be Evil: Bad Bosses, Fake Promises, and My Escape from Big Tech.”</li>
</ul>
Additional Reading:
<ul>
 <li><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/27/technology/nvidia-open-source-ai.html" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nvidia Forms Alliance to Back Open-Source A.I. Amid Debate Over Safety</a></li>
 <li><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/28/technology/open-weight-ai.html" rel="noopener noreferrer">What Is Open-Weights A.I.?</a></li>
 <li><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/28/technology/mark-zuckerberg-meta-ai.html" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mark Zuckerberg Blasts Centralization of A.I. Power </a></li>
 <li><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-weekend-essay/the-voice-of-google" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Voice of Google</a></li>
 <li><a href="https://post.substack.com/p/against-claudefishing" rel="noopener noreferrer">Against Claudefishing</a></li>
</ul>
We want to hear from you. Email us at hardfork@nytimes.com. Find “Hard Fork” on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/hardfork" rel="noopener noreferrer">YouTube</a> and <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@hardfork" rel="noopener noreferrer">TikTok</a>.
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Open Model Wars + Claire Stapleton's Dishy Google Memoir + Substack's Slop Fight

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