AI Summary
5 min readAt first no one noticed. The receipts stopped piling up, the late nights vanished. Finance just worked. Quietly, smoothly, like the system started running itself. That ad for Ramp, which opened this episode of The Intelligence, was followed by two other sponsor messages before the first substantive segment. But the main story was anything but smooth: Russia has launched a new, multi-pronged campaign to make life in Kyiv unbearable before winter sets in.
Russia’s new terror strategy: "October is the new January"
Ukraine is heading into its fifth winter of war, and Russia has escalated its attacks on civilians in and around the capital. Oliver Carroll, the Economist’s Ukraine correspondent, reported that in the past week Russian bombs, drones, and missiles have hit supermarkets, data centres, playgrounds, a hospital, and Ukraine’s National Academy of Sciences in central Kyiv, killing two people. Carroll was 200 metres from the Academy attack when it happened and knew one of the victims. “There’s a sense all around that the net is getting closer,” he said. “And above all, there’s a sense that nothing is off limits any more.”
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What you'll learn
- 1 (01:44) **Ukraine faces a new Russian strategy of terror against civilians** - Oliver Carroll reports from Kyiv on a coordinated campaign of kinetic attacks, sabotage, and disinformation aimed at destabilizing life in the capital before winter.
- 2 (04:38) **The mismatch in offense and defense drives the new escalation** - The Kremlin is exploiting a gap in Ukraine's air defense capabilities, particularly against ballistic missiles and jet-powered drones.
- 3 (06:23) **Disinformation exploits war fatigue and government scandals** - Russian social media campaigns are leveraging corruption allegations and general chaos to erode morale, even as the front line sees Ukrainian successes.
- 4 (07:25) **Technical and psychological vulnerabilities in Kyiv** - The capital is better prepared than ever after lessons from last winter, but reserve capacity has eroded after years of war.
- 5 (09:11) **Good news on the front line contrasts with rear-area anxiety** - Ukraine's Operation Vivaldi has captured more territory than Russia has in the last year, but soldiers are deeply worried about the situation in the capital.
- 6 (10:43) **The "pervert glasses" backlash against Meta's smart eyewear** - Henry Tricks recounts being accused of covertly filming with his Meta Ray-Bans, reflecting a growing public unease about surveillance-capable glasses.
- 7 (13:40) **Tech companies double down on smart glasses despite controversy** - Meta, Snap, Google, Samsung, and Qualcomm are all investing heavily in new eyewear form factors, with global shipments of AI glasses growing.
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Guests on this episode
Show Notes
Russia has embarked on a new campaign to quell Ukraine, focused on supermarkets, playgrounds and other civilian targets. Our correspondent reports on the toll on daily life in Kyiv. Despite the backlash against “pervert glasses”, companies continue to develop AI-enabled smart specs. And how the pen changed history.
Guests and host:
- Oliver Carroll, Ukraine correspondent
- Henry Tricks, US technology editor
- Catherine Nixey, Britain correspondent
- Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”
Topics covered:
- Ukraine, Kyiv, civilian targets
- Smart glasses, Meta, pervert glasses
- Fountain pen, Simon Garfield
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