Alan Shimel argues technology is on today's ballot in two ways: the political spending of tech leaders and local votes on technology development. He cites The Guardian's analysis of FEC records showing about $446 million from Elon Musk to Republican-aligned groups, and Ballotpedia's count of 41 data center measures in 10 states. A USC Annenberg survey found 71% of respondents did not trust Big Tech to act in society's best interest on data center development. The panel asks who gets a meaningful say in decisions that shape their communities.

Goldman Sachs has restricted access to AI coding tools, including GitHub and Anthropic's Claude Code, to designated software engineers and quantitative strats, Jon Swartz reports. Bankers and traders had used the tools to model positions, track client flows and draft content. The reported concerns span security, legal, regulatory and data-compliance risk from automated code execution. The panel weighs whether tighter access is prudent governance or a brake on AI productivity. Apple's first foldable, the iPhone Duo, starts near $2,000 and is drawing early reports of cracks along the fold and rows of distorted pixels. Apple said it is tracking an issue affecting "a small number" of units and directed affected customers to AppleCare for replacements. Coverage cites iFixit's hinge analysis and a reviewer durability test that ended after 75,003 folds. The panel considers what early failure reports mean for first-generation hardware and the buyers who adopt it.

Host: Alan Shimel
Guests: Jon Swartz, Kate Scarcella, Sid Nag, Chris Blask and Amanda Razani

Story links:
Big Tech Election
Tech Is on the Ballot. So Is Who Gets to Call the Shots
https://techstrong.ai/features/tech-is-on-the-ballot-so-is-who-gets-to-call-the-shots/

Goldman Restricts AI Access
Goldman Sachs Cuts Bankers, Traders Off From AI Coding Tools Over Risk Concerns
https://techstrong.ai/agentic-ai/goldman-sachs-cuts-bankers-traders-off-from-ai-coding-tools-over-risk-concerns/

Rotten Apple Duo
Apple Faces Early Backlash Over Display Failures on New $2,000 Foldable iPhone Duo
https://techstrong.it/ai/apple-faces-early-backlash-over-display-failures-on-new-2000-foldable-iphone-duo/