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172: David Pierce – State of the Workflow

Overview

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172: David Pierce – State of the Workflow

Cortex

2025/10/21
Cortex

Cortex

2025/10/21
OverviewShownoteHighlightsTranscriptChaptersPins

Shownote

Myke talks to The Verge’s David Pierce about the workflow behind his Humane AI Pin review, how he collaborates to make podcasts like The Vergecast, and how his Installer newsletter helps him highlight the positive side of the internet each week. THIS EPIS...

Highlights

In this episode, Myke sits down with David Pierce, editor at large at The Verge, to explore the inner workings of tech journalism, from crafting in-depth product reviews to managing collaborative podcast production. The conversation dives into the real-world impact of critical feedback and how thoughtful workflows shape both writing and media creation.
00:53
The M4 Mac Mini is David's most important work device, used exclusively in his basement workspace.
09:18
Living with a device is the best way to understand its real value.
17:04
Video allows viewers to experience product usage alongside the reviewer
22:57
Netflix’s thumbs-up/down system avoids score inflation and misinterpretation.
30:32
Bad products fail because they are bad, not because of bad reviews.
43:23
The Installer Newsletter can cause unknowable spikes of traffic to apps.
45:05
Typora excels at maintaining formatting during copy-and-paste operations
46:46
Typos can boost engagement by making the writing feel more human and relatable.
54:37
Listeners feel a personal connection to podcast hosts, creating a responsibility to deliver meaningful content.
1:01:06
Google Sheet is now the team's central tool for content planning
1:21:17
Reminders act as a syncing engine for tasks mostly entered via Siri.

Chapters

David Pierce – State of the Workflow
00:00
Most Important Device
00:53
Product Reviews
04:26
How a Review Is Made
11:32
The Subtle Range is Back!
20:37
Scoring a Review
22:52
The Impact of a Review
30:32
The Installer Newsletter
36:28
Writing Tools
45:05
The Format of Email
46:46
Making The Vergecast
52:19
Podcast Team Collaboration
1:01:06
A New Podcast
1:06:17
David's Home Screen
1:13:57
Thanks for listening!
1:28:31

Transcript

Myke Hurley: Welcome back to Cortex. This time, I talk to David Pierce, who is The Verge's editor at large. I've been following David's work for years, from The Verge, when he went to Protocol, The Wall Street Journal, Wired, he's now back at The Verge aga...