
About this episode
This week, OpenAI released its much-anticipated flagship model, GPT-5. We break down what we know about the upgrade, drawing from our initial testing and a special news briefing with Sam Altman. Then, we explain why we were underwhelmed by Amazon’s new Alexa+, which is powered by generative A.I., and take our feedback to Daniel Rausch, vice president of Alexa and Echo, who helps us understand why powering Alexa with L.L.M. capabilities is a major computer science challenge.
Guests:
- Daniel Rausch, Amazon vice president of Echo and Alexa
Additional reading:
- OpenAI Aims to Stay Ahead of Rivals With New GPT-5 Technology
- Amazon Unveils Alexa+, Powered by Generative A.I.
We want to hear from you. Email us at [email protected]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok.
Also, you can still get a special-edition “Hard Fork” hat! For a limited time, you’ll receive one when you purchase an annual New York Times Audio subscription for the first time (U.S. only). Go to nytimes.com/hardforkhat.
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Get every episode summarized
Each time Hard Fork publishes, we email you a written briefing from the transcript — the topics, who appeared, and any specific claims, with the ad reads skipped.
Email me new episodesFree for 3 shows. No card needed.
Hosts & guests
No transcript yet
This episode has not been transcribed. Request it and it moves to the front of the queue.
More episodes
More from Hard Fork

The Ezra Klein Show: The A.I. Revolt Is Here
Hard Fork

The A.I. Mob That Attacked Hugging Face + METR’s Ajeya Cotra
Hard Fork

Meta Shifts the Blame + Do Data Center Bans Work? + The Final HatGPT
Hard Fork

OpenAI’s Two-Week Pause + Jill Lepore on the Threat of the “Artificial State” +...
Hard Fork