Inside the collapse of the internet economy (and what comes next)

In this episode of the podcast, Azeem Azhar interviews Matthew Prince, the CEO of Cloudflare, about the evolving internet landscape and the impact of AI. They discuss how the shift from search engines to AI-driven "answer engines" is disrupting the traditional content monetization model, where traffic was the primary currency. Prince suggests that AI companies should compensate content creators for using their material, similar to how music streaming services pay artists. The conversation explores potential market mechanisms for valuing and pricing content, the role of unique and local content, and the need for a new business model that rewards high-quality, original information. They also touch on the potential roles for private transactions, contractual agreements, and, if necessary, legislative action to ensure a fair and sustainable future for content creation on the web.