Back to back speakers at an actual AI safety conference in DC
Tina Nguyen
@tinanguyen.bsky.social
Senior Reporter at The Verge and author of Regulator, covering Big Tech vs Big Government. Formerly Puck/Politico/Vanity Fair. Wrote a book called THE MAGA DIARIES. Send your juiciest/most apocalyptic goss to tina@theverge.com or @tina_nguyen.19 on signal.
How did Dan Crenshaw, the face of the post-Trump GOP, end up known for his influencer beefs? And how much was his online drama responsible for ending his career? The answer: way more than you'd expect. My latest for @theverge.com at the gift link below. www.theverge.com/features/916...
Behind the unraveling of Dan Crenshaw
He was supposed to be the internet savvy future of the GOP. Instead, he couldn’t log off.
theverge.com
🚨 VERGE HOMEPAGE REFRESH 🚨https://www.theverge.com/bulletin/914842/the-next-evolution-of-the-verges-homepage-is-here
The next evolution of The Verge’s homepage is here
We’re continuously improving how The Verge works for you.
theverge.com
I have an extra little bit from my Werner Herzog interview in @tinanguyen.bsky.social’s newsletter—Herzog tells us how he feels about the Trump admin posting clips of the penguin from Encounters at the End of the World.
Trump’s posting even more AI-generated Trump-Jesus fanart
Plus: what Werner Herzog thinks of the Trump penguin meme.
theverge.com
Nexstar argued the merger would help it compete for ad revenue with streaming services, thereby building more robust local journalism. However, the merger’s opponents believe that this is a basic violation of antitrust laws and principles. Read more from @tinanguyen.bsky.social:
The future of local TV news has taken a Trumpian turn
The schemes and shenanigans behind the Nexstar-Tegna deal.
theverge.com
I have offered a bounty in the latest issue of Regulator: this Ziploc bag of spare change (no quarters) to anyone who can send me verified, authentic, non-AI generated footage of Sam Altman fighting Jeremy Harris at the VF Oscars party.
I did something pretty appropriate for Friday the 13th: www.theverge.com/policy/89631...
I went to the Pentagon to watch Pete Hegseth scold war reporters
A second row seat to the reality TV White House’s propaganda push.
theverge.com
NEW w/ @haydenfield.bsky.social : Nearly 40 employees from OpenAI and Google — including Jeff Dean, Google’s chief scientist and Gemini lead — have filed an amicus brief in support of Anthropic’s lawsuit against the Pentagon. www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
Employees across OpenAI and Google support Anthropic’s lawsuit against the Pentagon
Nearly 40 employees of OpenAI and Google filed an amicus brief in support of Anthropic’s Monday lawsuit.
theverge.com
I would like to inform the Bluesky community that Undersecretary of Defense Emil Michael is crashing out on X right now
NEW: The New York Times confirms my reporting that the DOJ is withholding several FBI interviews with a woman who accused Trump of sexually assaulting her as a child www.nytimes.com/2026/02/25/u...
Epstein Files Are Missing Records About Woman Who Made Claim Against Trump
nytimes.com
NEW: Pete Hegseth brought some VERY interesting people with him to the Pentagon's negotiations with Anthropic over their acceptable use policy: Political appointees Emil Michael, formerly of Uber, and Steve Feinberg, the private equity billionaire founder of Cerberus Capital Management.
Pete Hegseth’s Pentagon AI bro squad includes a former Uber executive and a private equity billionaire
Meet the Pentagon’s AI bro squad
A former Uber executive and a private equity billionaire are working with Pete Hegseth to make Anthropic cave on its ethics policies.
buff.ly
Oh my god I didn’t even realize Emil fucking Michael is the CTO of the Defense Department until @tinanguyen.bsky.social pointed it out
Scott Horton@robertscotthorton.bsky.social · 7mo agoThis should be a much bigger story. Kegseth is essentially saying he wants to use the Anthropic software to commit war crimes and will therefore not agree to be bound to well established US and international law rules. Outrageous.
(Media) SCOOP: Weeks ago, the owner of the Washington City Paper had offered to purchase The Washington Post's sports and local sections, keeping their desks alive. The Post reporters were laid off and the desks were shut down instead. www.theverge.com/policy/87683...
Bezos could have saved WaPo’s sports and local journalists. He laid them off instead.
“The equation isn’t adding up.”
theverge.com
If you're going to read anything today, go read this
I grew up with Alex Pretti
The kind-hearted ICU nurse shot by federal agents was my childhood best friend.
theverge.com
Regulator is opening 2026 with an interview with someone who'd know a thing or two about the Trump-Nvidia chip deal: Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser under President Joe Biden, who had implemented the restrictions on selling high-end chips to China. www.theverge.com/policy/85681...
Did America just lose the AI race to China?
Biden’s national security adviser tells The Verge why the Trump-Nvidia chip deal could be catastrophic.
theverge.com
I went to the opening for PubKey, a Bitcoin bar originally from NY with a new location in downtown DC. It was wacky and wild and had several Santas, Chinese lion dancers, a mariachi band, and more. But the weirdest thing of all were the federal employees in suits. www.theverge.com/policy/84913...
Bitcoin does cultural diplomacy in a dive bar
Pubkey wants to “soften” Bitcoin’s rough public image in DC.
theverge.com
Today: - @elizabethkim.bsky.social on Mamdani's transition; - @elienyc.bsky.social on SCOTUS and executive power, - @tinanguyen.bsky.social on Trump & AI regulation; - @theatlantic.com's Valerie Trapp on self-checkout culture at the grocery story Live at 10 on 93.9 FM, AM820 or @wnyc.org
Big @tinanguyen.bsky.social scoop - the Trump MAGA / tech coalition continues to fracture as the hard right pushes back against David Sacks and his attempt to preempt state AI laws. Caught in the middle: Vance. www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
The far right is mobilizing against Trump AI czar David Sacks
A controversial executive order dictating America’s AI policy has MAGA scrambling against the White House and its Special Advisor on AI and Crypto.
theverge.com
We had to ensure several times that Nilay did, indeed, want this to be the official headline of this story
nilay patel@reckless.bsky.social · 10mo agoWrote another headline www.theverge.com/column/83693...
In Regulator's latest issue, I speak to Charlie Bullock at the Institute for Law & AI about the draft executive order that would have punished states for writing and enforcing their own AI laws, and its "chilling effect on state legislation." www.theverge.com/column/82993...
I did a deep dive into the White House's draft executive order that would have counteracted states' abilities to write and enforce their own AI laws. Boy, does it give David Sacks a lot of influence over setting federal AI regulatory policy! www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
David Sacks tried to kill state AI laws — and it blew up in his face
A leaked executive order reveals that the tech billionaire would have become America’s AI policy gatekeeper.
theverge.com
Seeking to kneecap states and hand even more power over to his big tech cronies, the ever power thirsty and David Sacks gets ratioed. For now at least — this group is like mold and always returns www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
David Sacks tried to kill state AI laws — and it blew up in his face
A leaked executive order reveals that the tech billionaire would have become America’s AI policy gatekeeper.
theverge.com
Great moments in Verge background policy here btw - @tinanguyen.bsky.social nailed this one
Kara Swisher@karaswisher.bsky.social · 10mo agoSeeking to kneecap states and hand even more power over to his big tech cronies, the ever power thirsty and David Sacks gets ratioed. For now at least — this group is like mold and always returns www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
the verge's reviews program has always been the heart of the site and one reason we jealously protect it and refuse to do brand deals is so we can just say the products are bad www.theverge.com/report/82215...
I obtained a draft of the WH's executive order that would ban state AI laws via at least FOUR agencies www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
Here’s the Trump executive order that would ban state AI laws
Trump is launching an all-out broadside against states with strict AI regulations.
theverge.com