HS2: How difficult is it to build a £100bn railway?

HS2: How difficult is it to build a £100bn railway?

Britain’s next-generation high-speed rail network (HS2) was going to lay 530km of track, offer speeds of up to 225mph, cost around £33bn, and launch in 2026, when it was announced in 2012.  Now in 2026, it’ll cost up to £103bn, be under half the length (225km), slower, and won’t be completed until, potentially, 2043.  It’s gone laughably wrong. Even the government calls it “the world’s most expensive slow-motion car crash”.  Presenters Alex Hudson and Chris Stokel-Walker interview transport expert Adam Tyndall about how a slow-motion car crash is possible on a railway, exactly what’s gone wrong and why a bat tunnel costs £100m (yes, it does relate to HS2). Elsewhere, how much EU can an EU EU if an EU is in the EU? Brussels is preparing the Chips Act 2.0 for a reported launch on 27 May, as part of the wider Tech Sovereignty Package. They want to double Europe’s global semiconductor market share to 20% by 2030.  Chris is heading to Europe to find out if that’s possible (though we both think we know the answer). Follow Adam on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamtyndall/ To support, go to https://bit.ly/CrashedPodcast or search Crashed podcast Follow: Alex: www.instagram.com/alexhuds [https://www.instagram.com/alexhuds] / www.tiktok.com/@alexhuds [https://www.tiktok.com/@alexhuds] Chris: www.instagram.com/cstokelwalker [https://www.instagram.com/cstokelwalker] / www.tiktok.com/@st0kel [https://www.tiktok.com/@st0kel] Spotify: https://bit.ly/CrashedSpotify [https://bit.ly/CrashedSpotify] Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/4qkgmmV [https://apple.co/4qkgmmV] RSS: https://bit.ly/CrashedRSS [https://bit.ly/CrashedRSS] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Shein takes on Temu in fast fashion showdown

Shein, the fast-fashion brand accused by many of stealing designs and ignoring copyright, accuses fast-fashion brand Temu of stealing designs and ignoring copyright. What is going on? And what does this mean for the future of copyright law? Presenters Alex Hudson get into that, the latest developments in AI regulation, the ongoing UK and EU legislative efforts, and whether Minstrels belong in popcorn (answer: they do). Alex and Chris explore complex topics with humour and insight, making sense of a rapidly evolving landscape. keywords AI regulation, UK ICO, EU AI Act, fast fashion, copyright infringement, tech legislation, AI ethics, political predictions key topics UK ICO AI guidance and regulation gaps / EU AI Act delays and industry carve-out / Fast fashion industry and AI-driven IP theft / Political landscape and leadership uncertainties / Cultural biases in AI systems, Japan obsession To support, go to https://bit.ly/CrashedPodcast or search Crashed podcast Follow: Alex: www.instagram.com/alexhuds [https://www.instagram.com/alexhuds] / www.tiktok.com/@alexhuds [https://www.tiktok.com/@alexhuds] Chris: www.instagram.com/cstokelwalker [https://www.instagram.com/cstokelwalker] / www.tiktok.com/@st0kel [https://www.tiktok.com/@st0kel] Spotify: https://bit.ly/CrashedSpotify [https://bit.ly/CrashedSpotify] Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/4qkgmmV [https://apple.co/4qkgmmV] RSS: https://bit.ly/CrashedRSS [https://bit.ly/CrashedRSS] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Surveillance state expands as police roll out AI facial recognition

Presenters Alex Hudson and Chris Stokel-Walker explore the rise of surveillance technology, particularly by police, with investigative journalist Mark Wilding, of Liberty Investigates.  They also discuss digital ID systems, what self-sovereign identity would mean in practice, why nobody should say “purdah” any more, and the cultural significance of moustaches. Keywords: surveillance, digital ID, facial recognition, government policy, privacy, societal impact, technology ethics Key topics: Facial recognition and privacy concerns. Digital ID and government surveillance. To support, go to https://bit.ly/CrashedPodcast or search Crashed podcast Follow: Alex: www.instagram.com/alexhuds [https://www.instagram.com/alexhuds] / www.tiktok.com/@alexhuds [https://www.tiktok.com/@alexhuds] Chris: www.instagram.com/cstokelwalker [https://www.instagram.com/cstokelwalker] / www.tiktok.com/@st0kel [https://www.tiktok.com/@st0kel] Spotify: https://bit.ly/CrashedSpotify [https://bit.ly/CrashedSpotify] Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/4qkgmmV [https://apple.co/4qkgmmV] RSS: https://bit.ly/CrashedRSS [https://bit.ly/CrashedRSS] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Who wins in a fight between Elon Musk and Sam Altman?

The trial between Elon Musk and Sam Altman has reached the courtroom. Well-known philanthropist Musk claims that OpenAI, which was set up as a charity, has been stolen, is no longer open source and is sufficiently non-profit. The tail is wagging the dog, Musk has said. Presenters Alex Hudson and Chris Stokel-Walker look at how this case might actually have a huge impact on the future of AI, the future of charity law and whether or not Musk has any chance of winning. We also get into why the Lib Dems need a sub editor, why all the major parties appear to agree on new AI sovereignty plans, and something about how terrible apps allowing to switch off social media are. *Editor's note: The Liberal Democrat press office responded to us after the recording. They didn't respond to the points raised but did say they are calling for "a National Online Crime Agency to combat the surge in AI-enabled fraud (fraud, more widely, now accounts for 44% of all reported UK crime)." This is different from the press release, but they also "attached the proposal too, which is correct." It was.* To support, go to https://bit.ly/CrashedPodcast or search Crashed podcast Follow: Alex: www.instagram.com/alexhuds [https://www.instagram.com/alexhuds] / www.tiktok.com/@alexhuds [https://www.tiktok.com/@alexhuds] Chris: www.instagram.com/cstokelwalker [https://www.instagram.com/cstokelwalker] / www.tiktok.com/@st0kel [https://www.tiktok.com/@st0kel] Spotify: https://bit.ly/CrashedSpotify [https://bit.ly/CrashedSpotify] Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/4qkgmmV [https://apple.co/4qkgmmV] RSS: https://bit.ly/CrashedRSS [https://bit.ly/CrashedRSS] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.

Pollsters recording AI respondents rather than humans

Presenters Alex Hudson and Chris Stokel-Walker explore the emerging role of AI in polling and market research, examining its accuracy, ethical considerations, and future potential. Damian Lyons Lowe, CEO of polling company Survation, shares insights on synthetic data, the challenges of traditional polling methods, and how AI might reshape the industry. So can public polling work without the public? And if you asked the public, what would they think? Would it be the same as it you asked the AI? Also, are big AI firms struggling with growing (and profit) pains? And what does all this have to do with trying to buy Malted Milk biscuits in a supermarket? You can find Survation's research here: https://www.survation.com/ Keywords: AI polling, synthetic data, market research, political polling, polling accuracy, ethical AI, AI bias, polling industry, data science, future of polling Key topics: AI in polling and market research, synthetic data and its limitations, polling accuracy and bias, ethical considerations in AI-driven polling, future trends in polling technology To support, go to https://bit.ly/CrashedPodcast or search Crashed podcast Follow: Alex: www.instagram.com/alexhuds [https://www.instagram.com/alexhuds] / www.tiktok.com/@alexhuds [https://www.tiktok.com/@alexhuds] Chris: www.instagram.com/cstokelwalker [https://www.instagram.com/cstokelwalker] / www.tiktok.com/@st0kel [https://www.tiktok.com/@st0kel] Spotify: https://bit.ly/CrashedSpotify [https://bit.ly/CrashedSpotify] Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/4qkgmmV [https://apple.co/4qkgmmV] RSS: https://bit.ly/CrashedRSS [https://bit.ly/CrashedRSS] ---------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.