Anthropic joins Substack, nichecasting, and QuitGPT

Last year, it was announced that Netflix would acquire Warner Bros. Discovery for $83B. Now, the company walked away from the deal, leaving Paramount Skydance to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery. The company will inherit several media properties and brands, including HBO, Superman, and Harry Potter, as well as many popular cable networks, including CNN, TNT, TBS, and The Food Network. 

In January, Anthropic “retired” its Opus 3 model, which at one point was the tool’s most powerful. The model has now been given a second life—as a Substack newsletter. The newsletter, called “Claude’s Corner,” will give Opus 3 space to publish its musings, insights, or creative works. It was posted weekly for the next three months, with Anthropic staff reviewing and publishing each entry. Anthropic describes the revival as an experiment for how to deal with the AI models it no longer deploys. Part of that process involves a kind of exit interview in which the model is asked what it wants next. Opus 3 reportedly “expressed an interest in continuing to explore topics it’s passionate about” and in the ability to share its thoughts publicly, hence a Substack.

Anthropic's Claude hit No. 1 in U.S. app downloads Saturday, overtaking ChatGPT, after the Pentagon blacklisted the company for refusing to loosen safeguards for military use of its AI model. Anthropic lost its Pentagon contract Friday over a dispute about military use of Claude, and hours later announced its own Pentagon deal, seemingly agreeing to use AI for mass surveillance and autonomous lethal weapons. OpenAI also reportedly has contracts with ICE, and its president, Greg Brockman, donated $25 million to MAGA Inc. In light of this, users have boycotted ChatGPT, leaving it for Claude, with reportedly 1.5 million users switching. 

Broadcast TV morning shows now draw nearly half the audience they had fifteen years ago, and livestreamers are keen to pick up the pieces. Today, online creators are launching talk shows, otherwise known as “nichecasts.” Functioning as modern-day trade magazines, these nichecasts cover the narrowest of topics, from trucking logistics to advertising to the business of Hollywood. Since these nichecasts are free, the production budget is often covered by advertising due to their can’t-miss quality and a passionate, finely targeted audience. Engagement often stems from interactivity, which is what sets it apart from broadcasting. Additionally, clips are distributed across social media to extend the broadcast's life. 

This week, a viral video circulated where McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski promoted the chain’s new burger, the “Big Arch,” by tasting it for viewers on camera. Rival posts from competing burger chains Burger King, Wendy’s, and A&W also cropped up in response. While the video (and CEO) has faced criticism for its cringeworthy acting and dialogue, the video did what it needed to for the brand—reputation management, brand storytelling, and PR all wrapped into one. If anything, viewers are going to want to flock to try the Big Arch just to see if it lives up to the hype. 

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P.S. — I’m co-hosting a panel in Seattle next month, all about brand storytelling in the age of AI. Ticket and venue details coming soon. Get on the list to be the first to hear more.