Ethical Dilemmas in Big Tech Careers

What should we make of the Iran war ceasefire announcement and where do things go from here ? If anything has surprised me over the last 24 hours, it's that Iran agreed to a ceasefire, and particularly that Iran agreed to a ceasefire after that outrageous message that President Trump put out. I'm Jake Sullivan. And I'm John Finer. And we're the hosts of the Long Game, a weekly national security podcast. This week we break down the latest news on Iran and share our net assessment The episode's out now. Search for and follow the long game wherever you get your podcasts. Megan Rapino here. This week on a touchmore, we're bringing you our live show in Phoenix with WNBA four-time champion Chelsea Gray and the Naism ith Coach of the Year, Shea Ralph. Together we talk about the NCAA semifinals, the crazy activity in the transfer portal, and of course the final matchup for the NCAA Championship. Check out the latest episode of a touch more wherever you get your podcasts and on YouTube . This week on Network and Chill, we're joined by Cody Sanchez, a Wall Street veter an turned business acquisition expert who's teaching everyday people how to build wealth through Main Street, not just the stock market. After 15 years in finance, Cody founded Contrarian Thinking, a multi-platform media empire that's demystifying mergers and acquisitions for regular investors, not just the ultra-wealthy. Get ready for an unfiltered conversation about financial literacy, growing your business, and how to stop trading time for money. Listen wherever you get your podcasts or watch on YouTube.com slash your rich BFF . Welcome to Office Hours with ProvG. This is the part of the show where we answer your questions about business big tech entrepreneurship and whatever else is on your mind. If you'd like to submit a question for next time, you can send a voice recording to officehours at propertymedia.com. Again, that's officehours at propertymedia.com or post your question on the Scott Galloway subreddit, and we just might feature it in our next episode . Our first question comes from Pristine Butterfly 961 on Reddit. They say, Prof, what are your thoughts on James Tallarico? I listened to your episode with him and Jessica. He was well spoken and seems to be a genuine down-to-earth guy. Seems like the Dem nominee is up in the air for twenty twenty eight. If Tallarico wins the Senate in Texas, how does that impact his ability to be a dem nominee in twenty twenty eight? Uh okay, so some data. Talarico won the Democratic primary on March third with uh fifty-three percent of the vote versus Crockett's forty-five point six percent, and she was a very strong candidate. Cal Street traders had Talo Rico at eighty-six percent likelihood to win the Democratic primary. Polls showed the race considerably too And then uh the Texas Senate winner, Calci is also stating that uh it's the Republicans have a 65 percent likelihood of holding the seat versus thirty-five percent for Democrats. So it's two to one right now. But that's down from four to one, eighty percent Republican odds in late twenty twenty five. So Taller Rico is giving uh it appears the markets are more hopeful about a taler rico nominee. Texas is sort of known for producing a Democrat that we all fall in love with and then get our hearts broken. And every time , you know, Democrats around the nation give money to a Texas candidate like a better O'Rourke, who was a very attractive candidate, especially against a guy named Ted Cruz, who was, you know, I would argue is an unattractive candidate for most people. And then we get our hearts broken that Texas is just pretty pretty deep red. But here we are again, hopeful that uh this uh outstanding candidate will change that. Um so if Talrecky does, in fact, win in November, it would be a major shift. Texas Democrats have not won statewide office in let me see, I think it was eighty-eight, so twelve years, so oh gosh, almost forty years. He'll face the winner of the Paxton versus Corning Republican runoff on May twenty-sixth. Right now, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton appears to be the favorite in the runoff, which would be great for Taller Rico, because Paxton, what's the term, is fucking crazy. And I mean, that's kind of the problem with our elec toral system is we send crazies from the left and crazies from the right. Talerico is seen as pretty moderate, mostly because he constantly cites scripture and his religious background and weaves it really elegantly into his politics. And I think that appeals to a lot of moderates and probably a lot of people on the right. He's pulled slightly better against Paxton than Senator John Cornyn, who's more moderate than Paxton . You know, this is this is very hopeful. Um and I said that if if Taller Rico were able to pull off a big win in Texas and maintain that popularity, that he would be, I think al,most immediately on any shortlist to be the VP candidate for the Democratic ticket for president in 2028. If people felt he could deliver Texas, if if anybody on the ticket delivers Texas for the Democrats in 20 28, it's game over. That means the Democrats win. So the prospect of it being, say, a one in three chance that they can get Texas versus a one-in-twenty chance by putting uh Talerico R on the ticket, it might be worth the risk. It is a risk, though, because they would be giving up the Senate seat, because my understanding is the likely Republican governor would then get to appoint someone to that Senate seat and would appoint a Republican. So given how close the majorities are in the Senate, I'm not sure they would give up the Senate seat. But if he won big, uh, he's immediately a candidate, as is John Osoff. If John if Senator Ossoff goes on to win uh decisively in Georgia, he'll be a likely presidential candidate. And I don't know if you've been watching Senator Ossoff, but he's he's made a really key strategic move and messaging and words are so important. Rather than demonizing the billionaire class, he's using this new term, the Epstein class, which is just genius and something the broader Democratic Party should adopt. Because if you start trying to, with this progressive rhetoric bullshit, self-inflicted wound of saying billionaires are evil, white people are racist, and young men are a problem, then all three of those cohorts are going to leave. And you know, 30 , you know, about 60% of the electorate is white, 30% of the electorate is white males. And if you start with this messaging around successful white males or young white males are, you know, just fundamentally bad by virtue of their identity, they're just gonna okay, fine, have at it, we'll vote Republican. So that's just really stupid messaging that might work, might be red meat in a uh primary, but in a general it's suicide. So he's elevated from that and is now going after what he calls the Epstein class. I think that's I think that's genius. Yeah. But in general, I think whether it's Talerico, Osof, Senators Murphy, Bennett, Clobashar. I could just got outreach from uh Senator Slotkin's office. My sense is she 's gearing up for a run. She seems to be very ambitious and going on a lot of programs lately. Good for her. Anyways, uh and I think they're all you know good or great. I think our bench is just incredibly strong. Governor Shapiro , Newsom , I think these are really strong candidates. And when I look at their bench, it's Rubio and Vance, which are, you know, sort of, I think Rubio's gonna have a tough time defending some of the past statements he's made. He just comes across as literally like an amorphous blob that'll say anything to try and advance his political career. I also think the war in Iran will land squarely on his shoulders. Um Also, Vance is just incredibly unlikable. And every president, I would argue, since Nixon has been, had one thing in common, and that is sort of likable. People say Trump isn't, but a lot of people say when you meet Trump, he's very likable and very charismatic. Anyway, I think our bench, when I say Army and the Democrats, is much stronger than the Republican bench. We're just going to have to be smarter about it. There is, uh Uh just to wrap this up, there's what's called a jungle primary in uh California, and there's a lot of good or a lot of decent Democrats running, but they're all splitting the vote, and the top two might be two Republicans and the top two advanced to the general election, so you might end up with a Republican because of the fact that there's a lot of decent Democratic candidates splitting the vote. This is where Speaker Pelosi or Obama or Governor Newsom need to weigh in and start getting deals done , or Senate Majority Leader, um Schumer, Senate Minority Leader, excuse me, need to step in and start promising Democrats some sort of appointments or something, or intimidating them, or threatening them and get them the fuck out of the race. Anyways, we never underestimate the Democratic Party's ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, but uh state representative Talarico brings a new dimension to the Democratic Party and that is the integration of his faith and um politics. And Democrats are seen as being openly hostile towards towards religion, which I think has really really hurt Democrats. Anyways, thanks for the question. Question number two also comes from Reddit. OK Share thirty six dash oh three asks, Hi Scott, I've been in the auto industry for fourteen years. The last eleven years I've been selling Ferraris. Woo hoo . In the last three years, I have noticed a major change in buying habits in the people who buy them. I've witnessed clients age before my eyes and they are not being replaced by the younger generation. Two questions. What advice do you have for people working in an industry that might look drastically different in five to ten years. And what advice do you have for someone who might be stuck in an industry because it's the only experience they have on their resume ? I get this question a lot. So according to the data, Ferrari buyers are actually getting younger. Uh 40% of new Ferrari buyers are now under 40, up from 30% in 2023, according to Ferrari CEO. I gotta think a lot of that's crypto. Uh sort of the crypto in the manosphere. I can't help it. Anytime I see someone under the age of 40 in a Ferrari, I think they're probably living with their mother or they rent. You should never own a nice car if you rent, in my view. And that is that's not the ultimate. I mean, the real brag is to have a nice home, is to have a place that's clean, well decorated, and comfortable. I think a car is really trying hard. Um you know, from someone who's owned a bunch of Range Rovers. Uh, this is how I can tell I can get I'm getting older. I'm actually looking at that new Ferrari 12 cylinder. I don't think I would fit in the thing, but I think, oh, it's so beautiful. I would just want to park it in my driveway. Yeah, so it looks as actually as if the buyer is getting young er, uh Ferrari shipped almost 14,000 cars in 2024 while generating one and a quarter billion dollars in profit. Waiting lists currently sit at two years. Jesus, that's amazing. 81 percent. They they manage scarcity almost as well as any brand in the world. The key in luxury is scarcity. And I'll come back to that, but I think it's a key point in managing your own brand. Anyways, eighty one percent of twenty twenty four Ferrari sales went to existing owners. That's right. They it they do the same thing with Birkin. I'm about someone in my life a Birkin bag and they asked me if I wanted to get on the list for another bag and I thought well, okay, if I need to be on a list, I want on the list. Forty eight percent uh to buyers already uh own multiple Ferraris. Wow. So half the people who buy Ferraris already own more than one. The new younger buyer is largely recycling with a closed loop. So in some, it does look like actually they're getting younger. But your broader question is what do you do when you're kind of have nothing but experience in a certain industry and looking to make a pivot? Uh what I would suggest is ask yourself why are you making the pivot? And is there a way to make the pivot internally? What do I mean by that? You might think I'm sick of sales and I want to be more in marketing or I want to be managing people. Is there a way to go to someone internally and say, okay, I've been here a while, would it be possible, is there a Ferrari management program? Is there is there a path to another part of Ferrari where you would get to scratch the itch to do something different? Uh because I would not I I don't when people say I don't like what I do, I'm just gonna quit and it'll force me to find something different. No, no, no, no. Don't leave a job until you have another one. Because unless you have rich parents and you can do whatever the fuck you want. Uh my sense is it is much harder to find a job uh when you don't have a job. And also to just be honest with yourself, do you have good momentum right now? Are you saving money? Are you good at what you do? And should you just tough it out? If none of that is true and you're truly miserable and want to make a pivot, then one, see if you can do a pivot internally, and two , maybe start a hot side hustle or start thinking about other types of jobs. Maybe you want to buy a business from a boomer that is giving a selling a vocational business. It's so situational because the questions I would ask you are what are you good at? Do you have any capital to invest in a business? Do you know anyone else at other companies who you might be able to join and do something else with a friend or someone you've known for a while? Have you been presented with any opportunities? What kind of money do you have saved up? It's very situational, but this is what you want to do. You want to put together a kitchen cabinet with two or three people that you trust and ask them for coffee and just lay it all out for them. Say, you know, I'm kind of I'm thinking about a career change. I would just love your advice. You're a smart person, and hopefully they'll ask you a bunch of questions and you can give them a full transparent lay of the land and they can advise you. But there's no one size fits all here. And I get a lot of outreach from people in the advertising and the agency business, which I used to be in technically as a brand strategist, saying, I'm in this industry, I know it's dying. What do I do? All right, if you're under the age of thirty-five and you have the ability to jump ship and go to a different part of the marketing ecosystem, specifically the digital part, then get out. But if you're 45 and your clients like you and you're making good money, yeah, I'd say ride it out and just start packing away money such that at 55 or 60, you can quit and do something else, whether it's teaching high school math or being an artist, and you have the money to do whatever you want. But I I just hate the idea of leaving when you have momentum. And I again don't know how much momentum you have at uh Ferrari. So what do you do? Um one, see if you could do a pivot internally, two assemble a kitchen cabinet of people who can advise you and ask you good questions and help you make this decision because you'd benefit from some outside questions. And I don't I don't make any decision, important decision anymore, without talking to a few people because I used to think leadership and masculinity was about assessing the situation and making bold, dramatic decisions. No, that's called being reckless. So absolutely start to talk to other people and uh and see what they say and then and then make a decision. And also put me on a list for the Ferrari 12, is it Chalindry type F-167, the front engine Grand Tour featuring a 6.5 liter naturally aspirated V12 engine producing 8 30 horsepower at 92 50 RPM. Not that I'm going through a midlife crisis. Thanks for the question. We'll be right back after a quick break. Support for the show comes from built rewards. Whether it's rent or a mortgage, the roof over your head is one of your biggest, if not the biggest, monthly expenses Well, in a time where it feels like you earn rewards on anything, why not earn something back on that? You can with Built. Built started up by rewarding members on their rent, but now as of 2026, Built members can also earn points on mortgage payments too, wherever they live. Every housing payment earns you points you can use toward trips with top travel partners, including United and Hyatt Plus. 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Question number three comes from SAGS on Reddit. Hi Scott, I'm 27 and just finished my PhD. I've secured a role in big tech, where the work aligns with my talent. The tension is that I don't fully align with the product's impact on society. The work, however, satisfies me intellectually. How do you recommend navigating this disconnect? You've already navigated it. You've made a question, so stop, you've made a decision. So stop beating up yourself. I don't I mean if it gets too much, I don't I don't know. How do you navigate it? Edibles, alcohol, I don't know, or just acknowledge that you're focused on your own economic security. I , you know, there's a lot of good people that work in Meta. Meta is not good for the planet. And uh but people have an obligation to make a living. Uh so I wouldn't you know, you've made the decision, boss. So you know, you can control what you can