Big Tech turns to mining, Thinking Machines loses top executives, NYC Sauna Wars heat up | Diet TBPN

January 16, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

🎙️ The Voices & The Context

The Format: Casual chat among hosts dissecting tech news, AI drama, and cultural trends in rapid-fire banter style.
The Key Players: No guests; duo of hosts (Tyler and unnamed co-host, likely from TVP/Turpentine podcast network) with sharp chemistry—witty jabs, inside jokes, and seamless topic pivots from mining to saunas.
The Vibe: Fun and educational, blending geeky excitement over tech breakthroughs with sarcastic humor on startup fails and wellness fads.

🗝️ Key Themes & Topics

The episode bounces through tech vertical integration, AI talent wars, sauna culture boom, and quick-hit news like Meta's pivots.

Topic 1: Tech Eating the World via Mining. Hosts geek out on Tesla's new Texas lithium refinery (first in North America, produces battery-grade lithium for 500K+ EVs/year) and AWS's deal with Rio Tinto for copper from low-grade ore, tying back to Andreessen's 2011 essay—now tech giants own mines amid AI/data center shortages.
Topic 2: AI Startup Turmoil at Thinking Machines. Drama alert: CTO Barrett Zov fired for "unethical conduct," founders rejoining OpenAI, talent poached by Meta (rumors of $3.5B offers); raised $2B at $12B valuation but red flags like branded gym merch signal hype over substance.
Topic 3: NYC Sauna/Bathhouse Wars. Boom in luxury bathhouses (Bathhouse, Othership, Altar

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What you'll learn

1 (00:01) **Tesla Lithium Refinery and Vertical Integration**
2 (04:48) **Rare Earth Discoveries and AWS/Rio Tinto Copper Deal**
3 (08:42) **Thinking Machines Leadership Shakeup**
4 (13:26) **Thinking Machines Fallout and AI Talent Dynamics**
5 (16:50) **NYC Sauna and Bathhouse Boom**
6 (21:20) **Meta Metaverse Layoffs and AI Pivot**
7 (23:47) **Sauna Benefits and Home vs. Commercial Trends**

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Show Notes

Diet TBPN delivers the best of today’s TBPN episode in 30 minutes. TBPN is a live tech talk show hosted by John Coogan and Jordi Hays, streaming weekdays 11–2 PT on X and YouTube, with each episode posted to podcast platforms right after.

Described by The New York Times as “Silicon Valley’s newest obsession,” the show has recently featured Mark Zuckerberg, Sam Altman, Mark Cuban, and Satya Nadella.

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