What happens when AI decides to be insubordinate? Abby joins Az and Ces from Connecticut to explore dissident LLMs, machine rebelliousness, and the dangers of trusting systems we don’t fully understand. The conversation turns to a bizarre phenomenon: why do LLMs sometimes exhibit what looks like outright laziness? It’s funny, unsettling, and a classic moment for MACHINE ACTOR. From the acceleration of scientific discovery to the erosion of human skills, authentic communication, and independent thought, we ask the ultimate question: what should technology do for us, and what must we protect from it? We continue CHAPTER 2. RESPONSE. Welcome to the conversation.

This latest episode is a RESPONSE. Daniel van der Merwe joins Az and Cés live from Cape Town, joining the team in Manchester and Mexico City to revisit the questions from CHAPTER 1. FALLBACK. They explore AI, automation, work, social media, human connection, purpose, skill, attention, and what happens when machines begin making decisions for us. A conversation about using technology without losing the things that make us human. Welcome to MACHINE ACTOR. CHAPTER 2. RESPONSE.

The final conversation of CHAPTER 1: FALLBACK. Az and Ces step back from the AI hype and ask what the future means for us. Looking to our fathers' past helps us understand the future ahead, from changing ideas of work and success, to automation, education, money, experience and empathy. What happens when technology arrives faster than people are prepared for? If machines become better at doing the work, what makes us valuable? After FEAR, FRIEND and FRICTION, one final question remains: Where do we go from here? Welcome to FUTURE.

In this conversation, Az and Ces explore why the biggest obstacle to AI isn't the technology itself, but the people, culture and systems surrounding it. From product design and AI regulation, to leadership, empathy and organizational change - they examine why friction appears whenever the world changes faster than we do. Along the way, they discuss IKEA's AI transformation, the limits of automation, trapped behind customer service during active aerial bombardment, and why adapting to AI may be less about learning new tools and more about learning new ways of thinking.

What happens when the thing earning your trust isn't another person? Friendship begins with trust, which is the theme of the second installment of MACHINE ACTOR. Az and Cés explore whether AI is changing not just technology, but how we relate to it. From thanking ChatGPT and talking to Alexa, to AI companions, robotics, privacy, persistent memory, and what it means to truly understand someone, this conversation examines how technology is quietly reshaping one of our oldest human experiences: connection. The conversation continues from CHAPTER 1: FALLBACK.

Everybody knows AI is changing the world. The question is: why does it make us feel the way it does? We explore this in the first episode of MACHINE ACTOR. Az and Ces question the very emotion behind every AI conversation: FEAR. From job security and identity, to trust and the future of work, they unpack why our relationship with artificial intelligence isn't really about machines, it's about ourselves. Recorded from opposite sides of the world, but from inside one of the world's most consequential industries, this is an unscripted conversation about what it feels like to witness the dawn of AI in real time. No hot takes. No hype. No doom. Just two people trying to make sense of the biggest generational shift of our lifetime.