NET Society

The Net Society crew welcomes Michael Connor, Executive Director of Rhizome, for a conversation about preserving digital culture as the organization celebrates thirty years. Michael traces Rhizome’s evolution from an artist mailing list to a memory institution for digital art, including its role in the early history of NFTs. The crew explores what blockchains can preserve and where institutions still matter, from keeping old software running to documenting the communities around the work. From there, a heated debate unfolds around AI agency, alignment, and whether we’re giving machines too much credit for human qualities. The conversation turns to the return of garage tech, cyberdecks, and artists building hardware to escape the attention economy. They revisit the strange creative possibilities of older AI models, the appeal of running tools locally, and what gets lost as outputs become more polished. The episode wraps with physical media nostalgia, surveillance concerns, and a back-and-forth on whether voice will become the default way we work with AI agents.Mentioned in the episodeSpecial guest Michael Connor from Rhizome https://x.com/michael_connorRhizome https://rhizome.org/Rhizome’s ArtBase digital art archive https://artbase.rhizome.org/Kevin McCoy and Anil Dash at Seven on Seven 2014 https://video.rhizome.org/w/2QnKYifBz9FoeRMWvN23UrOld Models Foundation, preserving historical generative AI models https://www.oldmodels.org/Suno AI music generation https://suno.com/Whisper open-source speech recognition https://github.com/openai/whisperLaurie Anderson on Puppet Motel and its restoration by Rhizome https://rhizome.itm.studio/m/laurie-anderson-on-puppet-motelShow & HostsNet Society: https://x.com/net__societyAaron Wright: https://x.com/awrigh01Chris F: https://x.com/ChrisF_0xDerek Edwards: https://x.com/derekedwsPriyanka Desai: https://x.com/pridesaiProducer/Editor: https://x.com/0xFnkl(00:00) - Michael Connor & Thirty Years of Rhizome (07:30) - Blockchains, Preservation & Cultural Memory (13:33) - AI Agency, Alignment & Human Control (29:43) - Garage Tech & the Hardware Revival (33:39) - Old AI Models, Creative Play & Local Tools (39:18) - Artist Devices, Emulation & Physical Media (46:18) - Surveillance, Digital Autonomy & AI Interfaces (55:16) - Welcome & Disclaimer

Aaron and Chris take the mic for a two-person edition of Net Society, opening with Seedphrase’s seven-trait CryptoPunk sale and a debate over rarity, taste, and NFT financing. They unpack the case for a crypto recovery, from clearer regulation to stablecoins and real-world assets finding practical uses. From there, Anthropic’s culture and a controversial AI pain experiment spark a debate over consciousness, anthropomorphism, and whether AI safety could become a justification for mass surveillance. They explore AI systems rediscovering physics and ask whether agent-run organizations could deliver on the original promise of DAOs. A detour into Göbekli Tepe, the Lion Man, and lost civilizations becomes a case for putting AI to work on archaeology, followed by a discussion of university expansion and immersive learning. The conversation then turns to realistic AI avatars, video Turing tests, and the visual cues people need to trust a machine. They wrap with Marfa, plotters, and how AI coding tools could bring makerspaces back, alongside a critique of generative art’s attachment to signature styles.Mentioned in the episodeSeedphrase sells the only seven-trait CryptoPunk through GONDI [https://x.com/gondixyz/status/2105705149515899044]San Francisco Fed research on stablecoins and demand for US Treasuries [https://www.frbsf.org/research-and-insights/publications/economic-letter/2026/09/stablecoin-issuers-growing-appetite-for-treasury-securities/]Daniela Amodei and Holden Karnofsky’s stuffed-animal advisory council [https://nypost.com/2026/09/30/business/anthropic-co-founder-daniela-amodei-and-husband-used-stuffed-animal-advisory-council-for-workplace-conflicts-report/]The AI “torture chamber” debate [https://x.com/AISafetyMemes/status/2101183174659490199]AI-Newton: research matching the discussion of AI rediscovering physics [https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.01538]Göbekli Tepe and early monumental architecture [https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1572/]The Lion Man: a 40,000-year-old Ice Age sculpture [https://www.britishmuseum.org/blog/lion-man-ice-age-masterpieceTavus Griffin: likely source for the video Turing test discussed [https://www.tavus.io/griffin]Art Blocks Marfa Weekend 2026 [https://luma.com/abmw2026]Show & HostsNet Society: https://x.com/net__societyAaron Wright: https://x.com/awrigh01Chris F: https://x.com/ChrisF_0xDerek Edwards: https://x.com/derekedwsPriyanka Desai: https://x.com/pridesaiProducer/Editor: https://x.com/0xFnkl(00:00) - Seedphrase’s Punk Sale & Crypto’s Thaw (06:24) - Anthropic, AI Consciousness & Surveillance (22:00) - AI Physics, DAOs & Agent-Run Organizations (29:30) - Ancient Civilizations, AI Archaeology & Universities (42:39) - AI Avatars, Turing Tests & Trust (49:28) - Marfa, Makerspaces & Generative Art (58:41) - Welcome & Disclaimer

The Net Society crew is deep in the prompt mines as Chris, Pri, and Aaron compare notes on AI obsession, productivity maxing, and whether talking to the box is making them less interesting. They explore the trade-offs of turning inward, from ambitious solo projects and automated life admin to spending less time absorbed in internet culture. From there, they revisit the collective energy of Ethereum and DAOs, asking whether cheaper, more social AI agents could bring that sense of participation back. The conversation shifts to agent wallets, stablecoins, and BlackRock’s AI-and-crypto thesis, setting up a debate over whether money opens new possibilities or brings regulation, extraction, and sameness. They dig into increasingly complex AI finance and the fight over prediction markets before asking whether we’re moving from a culture of spectators to one of doers. The episode wraps with a discussion of privacy, surveillance, and the risk that fears around AI become an argument for monitoring everything.Mentioned in the episodeInstinct — the personal AI assistant Pri discusses: https://instinct.com/Ethereum and DAOs — decentralized communities and collective participation: https://ethereum.org/dao/Muse and Stripe Link — wallets that let AI agents shop online: https://stripe.com/gb/newsroom/news/stripe-helps-meta-muse-shop-with-linkBlackRock’s “The Machine-Native Economy” — AI, digital assets, and tokenized compute: https://www.blackrock.com/us/individual/literature/whitepaper/the-machine-native-economy.pdfNew York’s prediction market crackdown — the lawsuit against Polymarket: https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2026/attorney-general-james-and-governor-hochul-announce-lawsuit-against-polymarketShow & HostsNet Society: https://x.com/net__societyAaron Wright: https://x.com/awrigh01Chris F: https://x.com/ChrisF_0xDerek Edwards: https://x.com/derekedwsPriyanka Desai: https://x.com/pridesaiProducer/Editor: https://x.com/0xFnkl(00:00) - AI Psychosis & the Prompt Mines (04:26) - Productivity Maxing & Turning Inward (15:31) - DAOs, Dopamine & Social Media Fatigue (28:04) - Social AI & the Network Plateau (32:01) - Agent Wallets, AI Finance & Regulation (45:40) - From Spectators to Doers (54:16) - AI Safety, Surveillance & Privacy (01:00:10) - Welcome & Disclaimer

The Net Society crew is back together in New York, with bullish ETH takes setting the stage for a wide-ranging conversation about crypto, AI, and everyday life. They kick things off with the CLARITY Act, agency rulemaking, and a debate over where meme coins fit in crypto’s future. From there, they explore whether agentic finance, stablecoins, and tokenized assets could drive Ethereum’s next wave of activity. Pri shares how personal agents are changing her routines and pushing her to spend more, sparking a back-and-forth on frictionless commerce, agent fatigue, and the privacy tradeoffs of handing over your digital life. The crew then digs into whether agents will make markets more rational and how AI productivity could reshape socializing, from quieter group chats to immersive digital spaces. The episode wraps with two-day workweeks, the future of education, and what it takes to preserve critical thinking when AI can do more of the work.Mentioned in the episodeCLARITY Act https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/3633SEC Crypto Task Force https://www.sec.gov/securities-topics/crypto-task-forceDogecoin https://dogecoin.com/dogepedia/articles/what-is-dogecoin/AI Agents on Ethereum https://ethereum.org/ai-agents/Stablecoins & Real-World Assets on Ethereum https://institutions.ethereum.org/rwaInstinct https://instinct.com/Hyperreal Hospitality https://www.amazon.com/Hyperreal-Hospitality-Chris-Furlong/dp/B0FPMPZM16Apple Secure Enclave https://support.apple.com/en-ca/guide/security/sec59b0b31ff/webShow & HostsNet Society: https://x.com/net__societyAaron Wright: https://x.com/awrigh01Chris F: https://x.com/ChrisF_0xDerek Edwards: https://x.com/derekedwsPriyanka Desai: https://x.com/pridesaiProducer/Editor: https://x.com/0xFnkl(00:00) - CLARITY Act, Regulation & Meme Coins (10:35) - ETH, Stablecoins & Agentic Finance (15:43) - Personal Agents & Consumer Spending (22:50) - AI Agent Hype, Security & Markets (33:49) - AI Productivity & Social Life (41:32) - Two-Day Workweeks & Civic Life (44:40) - AI, Education & Critical Thinking (53:06) - Welcome & Disclaimer

The Net Society crew is back as Pri brings a story from a dinner where the guests’ AI agents had a conversation of their own, setting the stage for a wide-ranging discussion about digital companions and the cost of compute. They dig into AI safety messaging and regulatory capture, before debating what AI-driven math breakthroughs mean for academia and human expertise. From there, they check in on New York’s fall energy, NFT NYC, and whether an abundance of AI art makes human-made work more valuable. The crew explores signs of life in crypto and the outlook for digital art before comparing notes on Astra, cloud agents, and the race to own the personal bot market. A detour through The Social Network, American history, and concert residencies leads into a debate about sports going global. The episode wraps with a look at robotaxis, asking how cheap, autonomous transportation could reshape public transit, family logistics, and everyday life.Mentioned in the episodeJacob Coxon AI doom viral tweet https://x.com/hilbertspaess/status/2097476196791709843Thoughts on Astra https://x.com/ChrisF_0x/status/2098073205365727412OpenAI upcoming movie https://x.com/DiscussingFilm/status/2097339330842763497NFL on Netflix https://x.com/netflix/status/2098056402472259962Robotaxi rolling out https://x.com/robotaxiShow & HostsNet Society: https://x.com/net__societyAaron Wright: https://x.com/awrigh01Chris F: https://x.com/ChrisF_0xDerek Edwards: https://x.com/derekedwsPriyanka Desai: https://x.com/pridesaiProducer/Editor: https://x.com/0xFnkl(00:00) - AI Dinner Guests & the Cost of Compute (07:19) - AI Safety, Regulatory Capture & Math Breakthroughs (24:06) - NFT NYC, AI Art & Crypto Market Energy (36:25) - Astra, Cloud Agents & Personal Bots (45:29) - Tech Movies, American History & Concert Residencies (55:35) - The NFL, Global Sports & Commercialization (01:01:14) - Robotaxis, Public Transit & Everyday Autonomy (01:08:37) - Welcome & Disclaimer