The Big Read

Page 10
All photographs courtesy of the subjects.
The Big Read

‘Defend the Country, Defend the Truth’: How 16 Ukrainian- and Russian-Born Tech Workers Are Responding to a Nightmare

By The Information Staff · Mar 4, 2022 11:00am PST · 2 comments
“My entire family is still there, in Kyiv,” says New York–based entrepreneur and investor Constantin Kogan. “When I’m communicating with them, I am feeling like this is the last time I’ll talk with them in my life.” For thousands of people in the tech industry, abject fear for their loved ones has dominated life over the past week. More than a... “My entire family is still there, in Kyiv,” says New York–based entrepreneur and investor...
Photography by Robert Ascroft /Showtime
The Big Read

Becoming Travis Kalanick: To Play the Pugnacious Ex-Uber Boss, a Star Taps Into His Animal Nature

By Josh Duboff · Feb 25, 2022 12:00pm PST
“Dude, it’s so fun.” Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt is on the phone from Los Angeles, describing what it was like to play against type as the notoriously volatile Uber founder Travis Kalanick in Showtime’s upcoming “Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber.” Though channeling that kind of character was fun for Gordon-Levitt, it wasn’t always comfortable. “... “Dude, it’s so fun.” Actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt is on the phone from Los Angeles, describing what...
Art by Mike Sullivan.
The Big Read

The Bunnies Have Left the Mansion: Inside Playboy’s Quest to Reinvent Itself as a Tech Company

By Annie Goldsmith · Feb 18, 2022 1:00pm PST · 4 comments
Mia Khalifa would be an obvious choice for a Playboy Playmate of the Month, if such a thing still existed. Instead, one of the biggest names in adult entertainment just signed up for its digital equivalent. Khalifa, a social media influencer and former porn star with 27 million Instagram followers, is set to join Playboy’s new subscription... Mia Khalifa would be an obvious choice for a Playboy Playmate of the Month, if such a thing still...
Art by Haejin Park.
Crypto’s Town Square Has Become “a Scammer’s Paradise.” Why Isn’t Discord Doing More to Clean It Up?
By Margaux MacColl · Feb 11, 2022 1:00pm PST · 3 comments
Art by Haejin Park.
The Big Read

Crypto’s Town Square Has Become “a Scammer’s Paradise.” Why Isn’t Discord Doing More to Clean It Up?

By Margaux MacColl · Feb 11, 2022 1:00pm PST · 3 comments
Kat Heart’s home was on fire. It was July 2021 and Heart, a part-time outdoor education instructor, was 3,000 miles away in White Plains, N.Y., teaching children how to forage for food and survive bear encounters. Meanwhile, an electrical flame crawled up the walls of her duplex in Arlington, Wash., collapsing the roof and destroying almost... Kat Heart’s home was on fire. It was July 2021 and Heart, a part-time outdoor education...
From top, Brit Morin, Tyra Banks, Jaime Schmidt and Mila Kunis. Art by Haejin Park. Photographs AP and courtesy BFF.
The Big Read

‘The Boys Are Getting Loaded Rich.’ Now Women-Led Crypto Groups Demand Their Turn

By Kate Clark · Feb 4, 2022 12:30pm PST · 1 comment
For Mila Kunis, the actress known for her starring roles in “That ’70s Show,” “Bad Moms” and “Black Swan,” the journey down the crypto rabbit hole involved a lot of lost sleep and some new gray hairs. As she developed the adult animated series “Stoner Cats”, which launched last summer with a collection of non-fungible tokens that grossed $8... For Mila Kunis, the actress known for her starring roles in “That ’70s Show,” “Bad Moms” and “...
Art by Mike Sullivan. All photographs courtesy the Temple of Light.
The Big Read

Prayers of the Tuluminati: Down in the Yucatan, a Temple and Its Tech Shaman Chase Enlightenment

By Zoe Bernard · Jan 28, 2022 6:00am PST · 5 comments
Ben Way—serial entrepreneur, investor, and seeker of higher truths—stands over the stovetop in his airy hacienda in Tulum, Mexico, stirring an enormous vat of pea soup. Because he is in the midst of an annual detox, which began on January 1, the soup will be Way’s first meal in five days. Despite this lack of sustenance, Way exudes tremendous... Ben Way—serial entrepreneur, investor, and seeker of higher truths—stands over the stovetop in...
Art by Haejin Park. Photo courtesy Caroline Spiegel.
The Big Read

Caroline Spiegel’s Porn Revolution

By Annie Goldsmith · Jan 21, 2022 12:00pm PST · 8 comments
Birds chirp and wind rustles through leaves—the sounds of early fall. “Man, it’s beautiful out here,” remarks a deep, crackly male voice. “All the trees, the green. The leaves are just starting to turn colors. “What are you looking at me like that for?” he continues, chuckling. “No, I know that look. You are up to something naughty. “Whoa, whoa,... Birds chirp and wind rustles through leaves—the sounds of early fall. “Man, it’s beautiful out...
Art by Haejin Park. Photo by Bloomberg.
The Beltway’s ‘Bitcoin Lady’: How Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis Became Crypto’s Most Powerful Champion
By Nancy Scola · Jan 14, 2022 11:04am PST · 2 comments
Art by Haejin Park. Photo by Bloomberg.
The Big Read

The Beltway’s ‘Bitcoin Lady’: How Wyoming Senator Cynthia Lummis Became Crypto’s Most Powerful Champion

By Nancy Scola · Jan 14, 2022 11:04am PST · 2 comments
Sen. Cynthia Lummis, a Republican from Wyoming, has a nickname for her favorite cryptocurrency: “It’s freedom money,” she says of Bitcoin, which she holds to the tune of about a quarter million dollars. “It’s freedom money if you’re a libertarian; if you’re a progressive; a person on the far left; a run-of-the-mill Republican.” I’m sitting in... Sen. Cynthia Lummis, a Republican from Wyoming, has a nickname for her favorite cryptocurrency: “...
Clockwise from top left: Sneha Biswas, Anshul Rathi, Angad Daryani, Aryan Chauhan, Sameer and Pragya Goyal.
The Big Read

The Great Immigrant Resignation: Fed Up Indian Tech Workers Ditch the American Dream

By Anita Raghavan · Jan 7, 2022 9:00am PST · 12 comments
For four years, Sameer and Pragya Goyal lived the Indian American Dream. Newly immigrated from India to the U.S., the Goyals both worked for Amazon, notching six-figure salaries in their 20s. They lived in an apartment in downtown Seattle with floor-to-ceiling windows that afforded a precious glimpse of an inlet that flowed out to the Pacific... For four years, Sameer and Pragya Goyal lived the Indian American Dream. Newly immigrated from...
The Big Read

‘The Only Way to Find Out If You’re a Pariah Is to Stick Around’: Sophia Amoruso Looks to the Future

By Josh Duboff · Dec 23, 2021 12:00pm PST · 3 comments
Sophia Amoruso has complicated feelings about the word “girlboss.” “That poor word, I feel so bad for that word,” she says over the phone from her home in Los Angeles. “It must be so exhausted. It is exhausted. It does need to be put to rest. I have no attachment to it. I kind of cringe when people are like, ‘You’re a girlboss,’ or whatever. I... Sophia Amoruso has complicated feelings about the word “girlboss.” “That poor word, I feel so bad...
The Big Read

Tech’s Most Powerful Stories Are Being Written by Women

By E.B. Boyd · Dec 17, 2021 10:10am PST · 3 comments
So there she was. Julie Zhuo. Just two years out of Stanford. At 25, a newly promoted manager at Facebook, wandering around the business sections of Bay Area bookstores, desperately looking for something that would tell her how to lead the team she’d just been battlefield-promoted to run. And finding nothing. It was 2008, early days at Facebook.... So there she was. Julie Zhuo. Just two years out of Stanford. At 25, a newly promoted manager at...
Art by Haejin Park.
Scott Galloway Wants to Be “the Most Influential Thought Leader in the History of Business”
By Josh Duboff · Dec 10, 2021 9:00am PST · 27 comments
Art by Haejin Park.
The Big Read

Scott Galloway Wants to Be “the Most Influential Thought Leader in the History of Business”

By Josh Duboff · Dec 10, 2021 9:00am PST · 27 comments
Scott Galloway begins our phone call with an admission. “To be honest, I’m very uncomfortable with the idea of a profile,” he says before I’ve asked him any questions. “I suffer from imposter syndrome. I’m waiting for the profile that reveals me for the less talented, lower-character person I am.” He pauses. “Anyways, here I am.” Radical honesty... Scott Galloway begins our phone call with an admission. “To be honest, I’m very uncomfortable...
Photograph by Dave Zahrobsky. Art by Haejin Park.
The Big Read

The Inside Story of a Scorched-Earth Breakup Between Two Founder Friends

By Janice Min · Dec 3, 2021 12:41pm PST · 4 comments
At 31, Erica Johnson, a neuroscientist and engineer, had never been rich, and certainly not tech-unicorn, eff-you-money rich. At Stanford Medical School and University of California San Francisco, Johnson researched brain health and cognitive function, earning between $45,000 and $55,000 a year. Making big money would be great someday, sure, but... At 31, Erica Johnson, a neuroscientist and engineer, had never been rich, and certainly not...
Art by Haejin Park. Photo of Altman by Getty.
The Big Read

The Eternal Sunshine of Sam Altman

By Jon Steinberg · Nov 19, 2021 11:30am PST · 6 comments
It’s 10 a.m. on a radiant November morning in San Francisco, when Facetime pings with an unrecognized 917 number. “Hello, Jon, this is DVF.” DVF...DVF...Diane von Fürstenberg! Mother of the wrap dress. Muse of Warhol. Shipmate of Bezos. Wife of Diller. “Oh! Hello!” “I understand you’d like to talk... It’s 10 a.m. on a radiant November morning in San Francisco, when Facetime pings with an...