Joanna Stern is not a robot, but she lived with them

In this episode of Decoder, Nilay Patel sits down with Joanna Stern, former Wall Street Journal tech columnist and co-founder of The Verge, to discuss her new book, 'I Am Not a Robot,' and her bold move into independent media with her new company, New Things. Stern recounts her year-long experiment of integrating AI into every aspect of her personal and family life, from using AI-powered robots in the kitchen to wearing recording bracelets and AI glasses. While she finds many consumer AI products still underwhelming—especially humanoid robots, which she deems far from ready—she is optimistic about wearable AI and enterprise applications. She highlights the profound trade-offs between convenience and privacy, particularly as AI becomes embedded in everyday tools and social interactions. Stern also reflects on the cultural and emotional implications of AI, including her unsettling experience creating an AI boyfriend and her concerns about children's exposure to emotionally manipulative chatbots. On the media front, she explains her strategic partnership with NBC News to reach broader audiences while maintaining creative control, rejecting algorithmic optimization in favor of meaningful storytelling. The conversation underscores a central theme: AI is already transforming life in ways we can't ignore, even if we resist it.