Derek Thompson

Person

Writer who argued that AI doomer narratives are largely speculative science fiction.


First Mentioned

2/28/2026, 10:59:32 PM

Last Updated

2/28/2026, 11:01:49 PM

Research Retrieved

2/28/2026, 11:01:49 PM

Summary

Derek Thompson is a prominent American journalist, author, and podcaster who specializes in the intersection of economics, technology, and culture. He served as a contributing writer for The Atlantic for nearly 17 years before transitioning to Substack in 2025. Thompson is the author of 'Hit Makers' and co-author of 'Abundance' with Ezra Klein, a book that advocates for a 'liberalism of abundance' to solve policy-driven scarcities. In the realm of artificial intelligence, he is known for countering 'Doomer' narratives regarding economic collapse, arguing instead that AI agents and automation may follow Jevons' Paradox, where increased efficiency leads to higher demand for human labor and software engineering. He also hosts the 'Plain English' podcast on The Ringer network.

Referenced in 1 Document
Research Data
Extracted Attributes
  • Birth Date

    1986-05-18

  • Nationality

    American

  • Notable Books

    Hit Makers: How to Succeed in an Age of Distraction; Abundance; On Work: Money, Meaning, Identity

  • Podcast Credits

    Plain English (The Ringer); Crazy/Genius

  • Primary Residence

    Washington, D.C., USA

  • Social Media Following

    251,000 followers on X (formerly Twitter)

Timeline
  • Derek Kahn Thompson is born. (Source: Wikipedia)

    1986-05-18

  • Joins The Atlantic as a writer and joins the X social media platform. (Source: X profile and Wikipedia)

    2009-05-01

  • Publishes his first book, 'Hit Makers: How to Succeed in an Age of Distraction', which becomes a national bestseller. (Source: Web search results)

    2017-01-01

  • Becomes the host of the technology and science podcast 'Crazy/Genius'. (Source: Web search results)

    2018-01-01

  • Begins hosting the 'Plain English' podcast for The Ringer Podcast Network. (Source: Web search results)

    2021-11-01

  • Publishes 'The Anti-Social Century' cover story in The Atlantic, analyzing the surge in American solitude. (Source: Web search results)

    2025-02-01

  • Announces his departure from The Atlantic after nearly 17 years to move his writing to Substack. (Source: X post from @DKThomp)

    2025-06-20

Derek Thompson (journalist)

Derek Kahn Thompson (born May 18, 1986) is an American podcaster and journalist. He is a contributing writer at The Atlantic. He is the author of Hit Makers: How to Succeed in an Age of Distraction and, with Ezra Klein, the co-author of Abundance.

Web Search Results
  • Derek Thompson (journalist)

    Thompson has been a writer at The Atlantic since 2009. Starting in November 2021, Thompson began hosting a weekly headline podcast entitled Plain English, part of The Ringer Podcast Network. In 2018, he became the host of the technology and science podcast Crazy/Genius, which was nominated for an iHeartMedia Best Podcast Award in its first year. [...] In 2017, Thompson published his first book, Hit Makers: How to Succeed in an Age of Distraction. It was a national bestseller and winner of the American Marketing Association's Leonard L. Berry Marketing Book Award for the best marketing book of 2018. Thompson coauthored his next book, Abundance "Abundance (book by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson)"), with Ezra Klein. The book argues that shortages of key pillars of "the good life" — housing, energy, healthcare, and innovation — are the result of artificial, policy-driven scarcities in liberal policy-making. [...] Thompson has written three cover stories for the magazine. The first, "A World Without Work", is a widely referenced essay on the meaning of work and automation's threat to the labor force. The second was a lengthy profile of X, the research and development division of Alphabet. The third, "The Anti-Social Century," published in the magazine's February 2025 issue, points out that Americans are spending more time alone than ever before. Thompson contends that this surge in solitude is fundamentally reshaping personalities, politics, and culture, noting that people are increasingly opting for solitude even when it doesn't make them happier.

  • Nobody Knows Anything - Derek Thompson

    what’s present at the bottom of it all is a genuine uncertainty, a vacuum into which storytelling is flooding. [...] the lens, nothing is clearer than the fact that little is clear. [...] we do to deal with the [AI] issue? It’s got to be business and government.

  • Plain English with Derek Thompson - Apple Podcasts

    here: If you have questions, observations, or ideas for future episodes, email us at PlainEnglish@Spotify.com. Host: Derek Thompson Guest: Joe Weisenthal Producer: Devon Baroldi Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [...] email us at PlainEnglish@Spotify.com. Host: Derek Thompson Guest: Josh Tyrangiel Producer: Devon Baroldi Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [...] Hello! I’m back from paternity leave just in time to talk about the biggest media earthquake of the year (so far): the Washington Post meltdown. For decades, the Post was a journalistic gem with superior coverage of politics. Last week, billionaire owner Jeff Bezos decided to gut roughly a third of the staff after the paper lost hundreds of millions of dollars in the last few years. Today’s guest is Jim VandeHei, the cofounder of Politico and Axios and a former Post reporter. We talk about the decades-long rise and fall of the Post before zooming out to talk about the most important changes in news media over the past 20 years, the secret of 21st-century media success, and the coming storm of AI. To read more about Derek’s opening comments on how the future of the news industry is going

  • Derek Thompson (@DKThomp) / Posts / X

    Derek Thompson (@DKThomp) / X Don’t miss what’s happening People on X are the first to know. Log in Sign up Also: Co-author of Abundance, host of Plain English, and contributing writer at The Atlantic. Washington, D.C.derekthompson.substack.comBorn May 18 Joined May 2009 2,050 Following 251K Followers Posts Replies Highlights Media Derek Thompson’s posts Pinned Image 3 Derek Thompson @DKThomp · Jun 20, 2025 Some personal news. Today, I’m leaving The Atlantic after almost 17 years and moving my writing to Substack. It would be convenient, for the purposes of crafting an exciting departure announcement, to have a dramatic exit story: a fight, a grievance, a shouting match with an Show more 316 356 6.5K 1.4M Image 4 Derek Thompson @DKThomp · Jul 20, 2022 [...] 1.4M Image 4 Derek Thompson @DKThomp · Jul 20, 2022 What happened is scientists discovered chlorofluorocarbons were bad for the ozone, countries believed them, the Montreal Protocol was signed, and CFC use fell by 99.7%, leading to the stabilization of the ozone layer, perhaps the greatest example of global cooperation in history. Quote Image 5 Matt Walsh @MattWalshBlog · Jul 20, 2022 Remember when they spent years telling us to panic over the hole in the ozone layer and then suddenly just stopped talking about it and nobody ever mentioned the ozone layer again? Readers added context [...] Image 18: Image 531 7.3K 30K 2.5M Image 19 Derek Thompson @DKThomp · Apr 5, 2023 This is just silly. If NPR receiving less than 1% of its revenue from federal government programs makes it "state-affiliated media," does Tesla accepting a $465m loan from DOE and benefiting from EV consumer subsidies make it "state-affiliated enterprise"? Image 20: Image 756 2.7K 18K 2.4M Image 21 Derek Thompson @DKThomp · Apr 12, 2025 Imagine trying to manage a supply chain right now. Every 48 hours, the White House is announcing, or un-announcing, or re-announcing, or creating massive carve outs to, a new trade rule. Why would anyone anywhere build a new factory under these conditions? Quote Image 22 Mark Gurman @markgurman · Apr 12, 2025

  • Derek Thompson - The Atlantic

    # Derek Thompson Derek Thompson is a contributing writer at The Atlantic. He is also the author of the books Hit Makers and On Work: Money, Meaning, Identity and Abundance, which he co-wrote with Ezra Klein. He is the host of the podcast Plain English. Newsletter Work in Progress Rogé Karma investigates the mysteries of a complicated economy. Subject to The Atlantic'sPrivacy Policy and Terms and Conditions ### Latest 1. ### The Affordability Curse Politics isn’t just about the words you put on your bumper stickers. It’s about what you do if the bumper stickers work. Derek Thompson 2. ### The Era of Step-on-a-Rake Capitalism Trumponomics isn’t about economics. It’s about creating pain and demanding tribute. Derek Thompson 3. ### The No. 1 Rule for Understanding Trump [...] Derek Thompson 8. ### There Is Only One Way to Make Sense of the Tariffs The policy is absurd. It’s also an extension of Trump’s chaotic personality. Derek Thompson 9. ### The Story of the Gilded Age Wasn’t Wealth. It Was Corruption. Richard White, the historian and author of The Republic for Which It Stands, explains what made the late 19th century gilded. Derek Thompson 10. ### The Political Fight of the Century For the first time in decades, America has a chance to define its next political order. Trump offers fear, retribution, and scarcity. Liberals can stand for abundance. Derek Thompson [...] A lot happens under this administration, but a lot un-happens, too. Derek Thompson 4. ### The Disturbing Rise of MAGA Maoism Trump seems to be ceding the future to China while emulating its past. Derek Thompson 5. ### Something Alarming Is Happening to the Job Market A new sign that AI is competing with college grads Derek Thompson 6. ### A Trade War With China Is a Very Bad Idea Yes, the U.S. has the larger consumer economy. No, that won’t be enough to avoid major (and majorly self-inflicted) pain. Derek Thompson 7. ### Trump Is Burning Down the House His tariff plan looks like an abject disaster for America, even judged against the benchmarks the administration has set for itself.

Location Data

Derek Smoluk Notary Public, 6th Avenue Bike Lane, Downtown Kamloops, Sagebrush, Kamloops, Thompson-Nicola Regional District, British Columbia, V2C 3R4, Canada

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Coordinates: 50.6751392, -120.3268588

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