After departing her role as a senior technology columnist at The Wall Street Journal, Joanna Stern has launched New Things, a media company built around her new book 'I Am Not a Robot,' which chronicles a year of living with AI and offers a grounded perspective on the technology’s current and future landscape.
- Stern integrates AI into daily life, assessing practical impact.
- New Things blends independent media with NBC partnership.
- Wearable AI holds promise despite robotic tech limitations.
What happened
Joanna Stern, formerly a senior personal technology columnist at The Wall Street Journal and cofounder of The Verge, has embarked on a new chapter by founding New Things, an independent media company. Her launch coincides with the release of her book, I Am Not a Robot, which was published on May 12th. The book details a full year in which she incorporated AI into nearly every facet of her life, offering personal and professional reflections on the current state of artificial intelligence technologies.
In moving away from traditional journalism roles, Stern has also formed a strategic partnership with NBC to maintain a significant mainstream audience presence. This approach allows her to explore creative freedom while leveraging established media infrastructure, particularly focusing on the evolving digital landscape including platforms such as YouTube.
Why it matters
Stern’s experience provides a realistic counterpoint to the hype surrounding many AI advancements, especially humanoid robots, which she finds to be far from consumer-ready. Her yearlong experiment underscores how many AI-powered devices still face significant practical and technological hurdles before achieving widespread adoption or impact.
Despite skepticism around some areas, Stern is optimistic about the future of wearable AI technologies. She sees potential for a ‘killer app’ that could justify ongoing investments and tradeoffs in AI development. Her insights matter as the tech industry rapidly pushes AI innovation and the public remains cautious about its promises and risks.
What to watch next
Going forward, Stern’s New Things venture will be an important lens for observing how independent media can thrive alongside traditional outlets in covering fast-evolving AI topics. Her hands-on use of AI in content creation and audience engagement, including leveraging YouTube’s algorithm, will likely influence emerging journalism and tech communication models.
Additionally, her continued evaluation of AI’s role in daily life will offer valuable assessments of which technologies and applications gain traction, helping audiences separate genuine innovation from marketing hype. Watching how Stern balances editorial independence, mainstream reach, and technological trends will provide a bellwether for the broader AI and media ecosystem.