Veteran and entrepreneur Chad Grills of National Capital League discusses his experience with Big Tech and how building anything meaningful and lasting will likely not come out of Silicon Valley or places like California. He explains how Silicon Valley was seeded by DOD, the Intelligence Community, and DARPA. The culture of Silicon Valley and most major cities will not allow anything original or good for humanity to emerge. He argues we have neither communism nor capitalism, but a monopolistic system that keeps the little guy out. He stresses a need for better governance, creating good culture, maintaining personal integrity, and is optimistic about the ability of America to reinvent itself.

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National Capital League https://www.nclhq.com
X https://x.com/ChadJGrills
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Dustin Chambers: DOGE & America’s Chance to Cut the Government Down to Size https://geopoliticsandempire.com/2025/01/02/dustin-chambers-doge-americas-chance-to-cut-the-government-down-to-size

About Chad Grills
Chad is the former founder and CEO of a company backed by Founders Fund and Sequoia.

His previous clients include companies like: Salesforce (6x business units), Dell, Splunk, Twilio, and Government entities like Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

He was selected “Best of Year” by Apple for two podcasts he hosted. He has spoken at places like the Defense Foreign Language Institute, Coast Guard Academy, Salesforce World Tour, and the Spartan Up Podcast.

He’s a U.S. Army veteran with deployments to Iraq, Egypt, and has provided security for the 56th Presidential Inauguration.

He’s the author of three books. His upcoming book is on the Texas Miracle and the economic destiny of Texas.

He founded the National Capital League as a studios and labs to build media and technology products.

*Podcast intro music is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

Chad Grills: Is a 'Golden Age' Possible for America? #537

TM Studios' Wide Open Country re-sings for the country hour special on Sunny FM.
Voice Imaging: Kyla Carrier & Deron Fahlman
Weather VT: Yours truly

Sunny FM Feel-Good Country Hour Jingles

Georgian journalist Natalia Antelava worked at the BBC for nearly ten years. But she grew tired of producing stories without deeper context. She wanted to pursue journalism that truly focused on why and how things happen. That’s why, in 2015, she co-founded the online platform “Coda Story”. Reporting and storytelling that uncover and explore the root causes of global change form the core approach of her media outlet.

One of the current focuses of Coda’s journalists is Big Tech, Silicon Valley, and its cult-like status in today’s world. Natalia Antelava points to the unhealthy relationship between the media and tech giants. She draws an analogy with personal relationships — when someone realizes they’ve ended up in bed with the wrong guy, and he’s there not for love, but for self-interest. That’s why she urges media outlets not to accept funding from tech giants and to publish more independent stories about them. Silicon Valley, she says, promotes the idea that technological progress is the only kind of progress — pushing humanity out of the equation. At the same time, tech leaders have become some of the most powerful global players. Often, they are willing to align themselves with populist politicians and go against the foundational principles around which societal consensus once existed — both globally and within individual countries.

Journalist Angelina Kariakina speaks with Natalia Antelava about the cult of Big Tech and its transformation into a new religion, her disillusionment with the media industry and passion for journalism, information noise and CNN’s role in it, Coda’s impact, and the value of freedom for Georgians.

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Natalia Antelava — on the Cult of Technology and the Role of Journalists in the Digital World

On a quiet Thursday evening in May, the Mission College Symphony, driven by a group of passionated Silicon Valley volunteer musicians, took on Beethoven's 7th Symphony from a gloriously resonating Mission Santa Clara. It was also a time for good bye, a place for hello, and a moment for the OGs to gather. 

Beethoven 7th - movement 3- proc

Beethove 7th - movement 1 - proc

Beethoven 7th - movement 4 - proc

Tim and Ted celebrate their 180th episode by denouncing everything they've ever done before and throwing all their energy into their new project: founding their new company/app/invention that is going to change the world of tep, starting with coming up with an idea for what to found.

Support Tep Talk: www.Patreon.com/TechTalkPod

180. The Founders

Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, and Alan Dye, Apple’s vice president of Human Interface Design, are two of the most influential creative and technological leaders shaping how we experience the digital world. Together, they represent the rare combination of engineering and design at its highest level, shaping how Apple products feel and behave. They join live at the Apple Headquarters to discuss the much anticipated launch of iOS 26.

Craig Federighi and Alan Dye

As AI begins to fundamentally alter our lives, we're in urgent need of expert voices who both understand how the technology works and are capable of scrutinising its effects. In her new book, Empire of AI, tech reporter and former Silicon Valley engineer Karen Hao debunks the myths that surround AI and exposes the true costs of this global industry. She speaks to Aaron about Sam Altman’s origin story, the traumatising nature of content moderation work, and the striking similarities between Open AI and the British East India Company.

Help us build people-powered media: https://novara.media/support

Downstream: Exposing The True Costs of AI w/ Karen Hao

Palantir has emerged over the decade as a unicorn in the defense and national security space, leveraging its innovative roots to disrupt the legacy defense industrial base. As CTO and employee #13, Shyam Sankar has helped transform and scale Palantir from a Silicon Valley startup to a global leader in AI and data analytics software. Sankar joins CTRL + ALT + DEFENSE to share his vision for Palantir as it continues to cement itself as leader in the American national security space, his thoughts for how the Pentagon can continue to evolve to rapidly adopt technology at scale, what his new role as a member of the Army's Detachment 201 will entail, and much more.

Shyam Sankar: Inside Palantir's Vision to Transform U.S. Defense

Broadcast music composer, internet radio host, physical security subject matter expert, friend. 

Coming August 4: CTRL + ALT + DEFENSE podcast hosted by Billy Mitchell and Meagan Metzger! 
A raw, unfiltered new podcast from DefenseScoop and Dcode, exploring how cutting-edge technology, institutional barriers, and evolving national security priorities collide in today’s defense landscape.


CTRL + ALT + DEFENSE features candid conversations with leaders across defense, tech, venture capital, and policy—bringing forward diverse perspectives on the future of defense innovation.


From the front lines of government to the forefront of technology, this series examines the challenges and breakthroughs shaping tomorrow’s mission-critical decisions—with no spin, no agenda, and no filter.
⁠Stay tuned. ⁠


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About DefenseScoop 
DefenseScoop is the premier community-driven news source dedicated to the U.S. military’s acquisition, development and use of technology as a force for modern defense. As the Department of Defense moves in the direction of Joint All Domain Command and Control and other initiatives to connect the joint force and fight future battles, DefenseScoop will deliver the latest insights, trends and analysis on this pivotal transformation and engage Pentagon and service senior leaders to discuss ways technology can be a central fixture in our nation’s ability to understand threats, make decisions and take action in a rapid manner. ⁠https://defensescoop.com/about/

The Geopolitics & Empire Podcast conducts interviews with prominent international experts on a wide-range of topics.

Past guests have included diplomats, government officials, whistleblowers, soldiers, spies, economists, academics, scientists, wealthy investors, dissidents, journalists, and musicians.

The broadcast seeks to gain insight from guests who come from the left, right, and beyond. It should go without saying that the host does not always agree with beliefs espoused by podcast invitees, but maintains an open mind, and believes it important to respectfully listen to a multitude of voices and let listeners come to their own conclusions.

*Music used in podcast intro is from the song "The Queens Jig" by "Musicke & Mirth" from their album "Music for Two Lyra Viols": http://musicke-mirth.de/en/recordings.html (available on iTunes or Amazon)

Design Matters by Debbie Millman features interviews with designers, artists and cultural leaders, including Lawrence Weiner, Barbara Kruger, Malcolm Gladwell, Eric Kandel, Stefan Sagmeister, John Maeda, Jonathan Hoefler and Tobias Frere-Jones, Michael Arad, Milton Glaser, Massimo Vignelli, Paula Scher, Steven Heller, Jonah Lehrer, among others.

In 2011, Design Matters received the People’s Design Award from the prestigious Cooper-Hewitt National Design Awards.

Subscribe to Design Matters for free on iTunes, where new episodes are uploaded weekly: http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/design-matters-debbie-millman/id328074695

A tech podcast hosted by Tech Tim & Tech Ted, two regular dads who just happen to be experts in the world of tech! Each week, the guys give tips and tricks for fellow tech heads (and tech dads!) and explore exciting news, rumors and even gossip from the world of tech!

New tracks tagged #Silicon Valley