Decoder with Nilay Patel

Today were talking about the very real possibility that Google might be broken up by the United States government. And to do that, Im talking to Jonathan Kanter, the former assistant attorney general for antitrust under the Biden administration. Kanter left the DOJ after Trump was elected, but he was the architect of the major antitrust cases the Trump administration continues to pursue against Google. That means hes much more free to share his thoughts on what it took to build and win both of these cases and what should happen next.

Links:

Google loses ad tech monopoly case | Verge

Google is in more danger than ever of being broken up | Verge

OpenAI tells judge it would buy Chrome from Google | Verge

The high stakes of Googles monopoly trial | Verge

DOJ says Google must sell Chrome to crack open search monopoly | Verge

Google makes history with rapid-fire antitrust losses | NYT

Read the antitrust ruling against Google | NYT

Google ad monopoly ruling's surprise winner: OpenAI | Axios

DOJ antitrust chief is overjoyed after Google monopoly verdict | Decoder

DOJs Kanter says the antitrust fight against Big Tech is just beginning | Decoder



Credits:

Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Our producers are Kate Cox and Nick Statt. Our editor is Ursa Wright. The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As CEO of Verizon's consumer division, Sowmyanarayan Sampath oversees the biggest part of the company, which does business with roughly a third of the entire country. He's a longtime Verge reader, so we talked very directly about whether the huge 5G investment had actually paid off, and whether whether the race we were supposedly in with China was actually worth it, and what kinds of new apps and services actually come to light.

And while Verizon fought tooth and nail against regulations like net neutrality, the current Trump administration isnt nearly as hands-off when it comes to things like holding up deals because of DEI policies something thats happening to Verizon right now. So I had to ask Sampath if he was going to push back on that kind of government overreach as hard as Verizon has in the past.

Links:

The US government makes a $42 million bet on OpenRAN | The Verge

FCC scrutinizes Verizons $9.6 billion Frontier deal over DEI | USA Today

Verizon offers a three-year price lock but theres a catch | The Verge

T-Mobile updates its DEI policy to get Lumos deal approved | Fierce Network

We dont need net neutrality; we need competition (2014) | Ars Technica

Wireless and cable industries sue to kill net neutrality (2015) | The Verge

Everything Verizon says in this terrible video against net neutrality (2017) | The Verge

Report: Most Americans have no real choice in internet providers | ILSR

T-Mobiles merger promises couldnt make a carrier out of Dish | The Verge



Credits:

Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Our producers are Kate Cox and Nick Statt. Our editor is Ursa Wright. The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

One of the ways I’ve been trying to sort out the chaos of tariffs and trade wars is by talking to the people behind the software that makes the global trade system go. So today I wanted to bring back one of my favorite Decoder guests: Flexport CEO Ryan Petersen, whose software manages the logistics of moving things around the world, from factory to doorstep. 

We didn’t get too much into the numbers — those tariff percentages keep changing — so instead Ryan and I really focused on how this system works, how it’s supposed to work, and how it’s working now, if it’s working at all. 

Links: 

Flexport Tariff Live Blog | Flexport

US tariffs: how Trump’s tax is hitting Big Tech and beyond | Verge

How much will Trump’s tariffs cost U.S. importers? | NYT

How much are tariffs on Chinese goods? It’s tricky | NYT

How Trump’s tariff chaos is already changing global trade | Decoder

Can software simplify the supply chain? Ryan Petersen thinks so | Decoder

Why Flexport CEO Ryan Petersen took his company back | Decoder

The U.S.-China decoupling arrives | Axios



Credits:

Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Our producers are Kate Cox and Nick Statt. Our editor is Ursa Wright.  The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today, I’m talking with Vlad Tenev, the co-founder and CEO of Robinhood, which started as a way to open up stock trading. But the company’s ambitions have grown over time – and they’re getting bigger. Just a day before Vlad and I talked, Robinhood announced it would soon be offering bank accounts and wealth management services, which would really allow Robinhood to be involved with your money at every possible level. 

So I was very interested to sit down with Vlad and really hash out where Robinhood is going, and why he’s so adamant that certain big ideas, like prediction markets based around everything from sports games to presidential elections, are going to play a pivotal role in the future of finance.

Links: 

Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev on markets for everything | Hard Fork

Robinhood is launching bank accounts | Verge

Kalshi sues Nevada and New Jersey regulators | Esports Insider

Kalshi CEO: ‘State law doesn’t really apply’ to us | TechCrunch

Robinhood debuts a sports gambling hub | Verge

The SEC has ended its investigation into Robinhood crypto | Verge

Robinhood admits it’s just a gambling app | Verge

Massachusetts regulator subpoenas Robinhood over sports betting | CNN



Verge Transcript

Credits:

Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Our producers are Kate Cox and Nick Statt. Our editor is Ursa Wright.  The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Rohit Chopra was the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau head until the end of January, when President Donald Trump fired him and Elon Musk’s DOGE began trying to dismantle the agency. The CFPB has been pretty popular since it was founded in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis to protect consumers, so shutting it down has kicked off a bunch of controversies — not least of which was whether Trump and Musk even had the power to do it.

This all led me to ask several times who made the decision to fire him, who is currently responsible for the various policies of our government, and whether any of those things add up to a clear plan. Some of the most powerful executives in the world answer questions like this on Decoder all the time. But Rohit just didn’t know — and that should probably be as worrying as anything.

Links: 

Trump fires CFPB director Rohit Chopra | Associated Press

Trump orders CFPB to stop work, closes building | Associated Press

CFPB workers reinstated after court order but still can’t work | The Verge

Trump admin to appeal order blocking CFPB shutdown | Bloomberg Law

A shady tech bootcamp may be sneaking back online | The Verge

CFPB won’t enforce long-awaited payday lending rule | Bloomberg Law

CFPB seeks to vacate redlining settlement, refund lender | Banking Dive

CFPB signals it will drop rule regulating BNPL like credit cards | PYMTS

CFPB drops fraud lawsuit against banks, Zelle | CNBC



Credits: Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Our producers are Kate Cox and Nick Statt. Our editor is Ursa Wright.  The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices