Phillip and Brian bring hot takes on eBay’s Met Gala presence, the latest tariff turmoil, and the future of autonomous driving. PLUS: Dissecting Warren Buffet’s retirement and new research on Gen Z vs. Millennial communication trends.
The Y2K Bug Zapped Us Into Postmodernism
Key takeaways:
- Trends that feel like youth trends are actually just internet trends. Their effects are now felt across generations, not siloed age groups.
- There has been a shift from modernism to postmodernism, and in turn, sincerity to ironic insincerity.
- Boy Meets World: 25 years after its series finale airs, we reflect on its sitcom era as a marker of TV’s transition from modernism and sincerity to postmodernism and ironic insincerity.
- Kendra Scott taps into Gen Alpha.
- eBay returns to Brian’s radar and then sponsors the 2025 Met Gala. Coincidence?
- “Understanding the society in which you live, and the cultural moment taking place, is taken for granted a lot.” – Phillip
- “The Y2K bug was actually just the end of sincerity.” – Brian
- “We’ve leaned so far into cheap goods for so long, there might be a memetic cycle happening now where we lean back into goods that are durable.” – Brian
- “Autonomous driving is extraordinarily disruptive—just like AI is for information, AVs are for how we live, plan cities, and think about ownership.” – Phillip
In-Show Mentions:
- The Guardian: Gen Z Is Turning to Voice Notes
- Dirt.fyi: The State of A24
- Titan Caskets: Grave Conversations
- Waymo Partners with Toyota
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