25 episodes

Traceroute is a fascinating glimpse into the inner workings of our digital world. Join a team of brilliant storytellers from Equinix and beyond as they peel back the layers of the stack to reveal the humanity in the hardware.

For more information, visit https://origins.dev/originals/traceroute

Traceroute Equinix

    • Technology
    • 5.0 • 168 Ratings

Traceroute is a fascinating glimpse into the inner workings of our digital world. Join a team of brilliant storytellers from Equinix and beyond as they peel back the layers of the stack to reveal the humanity in the hardware.

For more information, visit https://origins.dev/originals/traceroute

    21. The New Digital Wayfinders

    21. The New Digital Wayfinders

    "Aue, aue... when it's time to find home, we know the way."
    ⛵️  //  
    For the island nation of Tuvalu, the effects of climate change are more than a warning; they’re an eviction notice. Estimates vary as to when the small chain of coral islands could vanish beneath the waves, but experts agree that Tuvalu may be uninhabitable long before then, prompting its people to set sail for a new frontier… the metaverse. 
    Within this digital landscape, Tuvalu could potentially preserve its lands, heritage, and governance, effectively pioneering a new model for nationhood, in which a nation and its people exist in two realms—physical and virtual. But how does one go from sand to silicon while maintaining the essence of a culture? And what is the real-world environmental impact of storing a nation’s worth of data?
    Whether we take Tuvalu’s proposal literally or view it as a symbolic call to action, unpacking the logistics of such an ambitious project offers a glimpse at the expertise required to bring it to life—from tech experts grappling with blockchain governance to cultural preservationists digitizing traditional art and oral histories. The work forces us to ask: Can you really backup a country the way you backup a computer? And if so, what does that mean for the future of nationhood, identity, and the planet itself?
    Additional Resources
    Episode transcripts
    Connect with Grace Andrews: LinkedIn.
    Connect with Amy Tobey on LinkedIn.
    Connect with Mathr de Leon on LinkedIn.
    Connect with David M. Carballo at Boston University
    Connect with Ron Chapple on LinkedIn
    Connect with Jonathan Gliboff on LinkedIn
    Connect with Simon Kofe on LinkedIn
    Connect with George Siosi Samuels on LinkedIn
    Follow us on X and YouTube
    CreditsTraceroute is a podcast from Equinix and Stories Bureau. This episode was hosted by Grace Ewura-Esi and Amy Tobey, and was produced by Mathr de Leon with help from Lixandra Urresta.  It was edited by Joshua Ramsey, with mixing and sound design by Brett Vanderlaan, and additional mixing by Jeremy Tuttle. Our fact-checker is Ena Alvarado. Our staff includes Tim Balint, Mathr de Leon, Suzie Falk, Lisa Harris, Alisa Manjarrez, Sadie Scott, Stephen Staver, John Taylor, and Rebecca Woodward. Our theme song was composed by Ty Gibbons.
    Enjoyed This Episode?Post a review and share it! If you enjoyed tuning in, then leave us a review. You can also share this with your friends and colleagues! Introduce them to the people and organizations who played a role in inventing the internet.
    Mentioned in...

    • 48 min
    20. We Were Promised Flying Cars

    20. We Were Promised Flying Cars

    Or "Why You’ve Probably Never Heard of Waldo Waterman..."
    🛸  //  
    We were promised flying cars. We were told that by the year 2000, cities would float in the clouds, robots would cut our hair, and there’d be a computer in everyone’s pocket. Well, one out of three ain’t bad. 
    The question is, why? Why did we think the future would bring interstate moving sidewalks, but we ended up with the internet instead? In this episode of Traceroute, we take an in-depth look at why we get the technology we get…and our trail leads to three distinct factors. Helping us unravel the reason behind these factors is Mike Winterfield, Founder of Active Impact Investments, a VC firm that specializes in Green Tech. We also talk with Oliver Walker-Jones of Joby Aviation, one of several companies that are finally making flying cars, who shares his insight as to why it took almost a hundred years to get from the idea of the flying car to the reality of one. 
    Additional Resources
    Episode transcript 
    Connect with Grace Ewura-Esi
    Connect with Amy Tobey
    Connect with John Taylor
    Connect with Mike Winterfield
    Connect With Oliver Walker-Jones
    CreditsTraceroute is a podcast from Equinix and Stories Bureau. This episode was hosted by Amy Tobey and Grace Ewura-Esi, and was produced by John Taylor with help from Sadie Scott. It was edited by Joshua Ramsey, with mixing sound design by Brett Vanderlaan, and additional mixing by Jeremy Tuttle. Our fact-checker is Ena Alvarado. Our staff includes Tim Balint, Mathr de Leon, Suzie Falk, Lisa Harris, Alisa Manjarrez, Stephen Staver, Lixandra Urresta, and Rebecca Woodward. Our theme song was composed by Ty Gibbons.
    Enjoyed This Episode?Post a review and share it! If you enjoyed tuning in, then leave us a review. You can also share this with your friends and colleagues! Introduce them to the people and organizations who played a role in inventing the internet.
    Mentioned in this episode:
    Vote for Traceroute at the 28th Annual Webby Awards
    Visit bit.ly/traceroutewebby to cast your vote. Voting is open until Thursday, April 18th.
    Click to Vote for Traceroute Now!

    • 28 min
    19. The Synchrony Paradox, Part 2

    19. The Synchrony Paradox, Part 2

    You know we're two hearts believing in just one mind…  
    💗  //  
    In part one of our story, we sourced the perfect tool for jamming together from miles apart. Today, we’re gonna take it for a little spin.
    But between setup delays and spotty internet, a more nuanced issue begins to surface. Because, in navigating the challenges of remote music collaboration, we’re quickly reminded that adapting to new tech is not a one-size-fits-all endeavor. So what are we to do when the tech itself starts to harsh the vibe?
    And what even is this so-called vibe anyway? How are we supposed to capture it if we don’t know what “it” is? Stick around as we explore how tech both creates and disrupts our groove, and whether the secret sauce of in-person jams can really translate to the digital world. 
    Additional Resources
    Episode transcript 
    Connect with Amy Tobey
    Connect with Mathr de Leon
    Connect with John Taylor
    Connect with Ilias Bergström
    Connect with Alexander Carôt
    Connect with Russell Gavin
    Connect with Janine Hacker
    Connect with Pamela Pavliscak
    Connect with Arman Sedgwick-Billimoria
    Connect with Florian Simmendinger
    CreditsTraceroute is a podcast from Equinix and Stories Bureau. This episode was hosted by Amy Tobey and was produced by Mathr de Leon with help from Sadie Scott. It was edited by Joshua Ramsey with mixing and sound design by Brett Vanderlaan and additional mixing by Jeremy Tuttle. Our fact-checker is Ena Alvarado. Our staff includes Tim Balint, Suzie Falk, Lisa Harris, Alisa Manjarrez, Stephen Staver, Lixandra Urresta, and Rebecca Woodward. Our theme song was composed by Ty Gibbons.
    Enjoyed This Episode?If you did, be sure to follow and share it with your friends!
    Post a review and share it! If you enjoyed tuning in, then leave us a review. You can also share this with your friends and colleagues! Introduce them to the people and organizations who played a role in inventing the internet.
    Mentioned in this episode:
    Vote for Traceroute at the 28th Annual Webby Awards
    Visit bit.ly/traceroutewebby to cast your vote. Voting is open until Thursday, April 18th.
    Click to Vote for Traceroute Now!

    • 41 min
    18. The Synchrony Paradox, Part 1

    18. The Synchrony Paradox, Part 1

    As the Bard of Brixton once sang, 'that's just the way it is, things'll never be the same...'
    👨‍🎤 //
    These days, our producer John Taylor's got more on his plate than just production for Traceroute. You see, by night he's also… kind of a rock star. And his band is really more like a second family. Lately, though, that family is going through ch-ch-ch-ch-changes. For starters his keyboardist, Arman, has moved away and left John at a real crossroads. Does he hire a new face to fill the void? Or does he cling to the vibe he's shared with Arman for the past year and turn instead to tech for a solution? 
    In this episode of Traceroute, we delve into a quest for the perfect tool to help bridge the physical and digital divides that increasingly appear between musicians like John and Arman. From California’s Bay Area to the buzzing streets of Hong Kong, we find a host of technologists who, spurred on by the impacts of a global pandemic, are already hard at work tackling the kind of low-latency global networking solutions that just might be the key to keeping the band in one semi-remote piece. 
    But within this particular stack, there lies an even bigger conundrum. Because even if we somehow manifest the right tool for the job, is the magic of this so-called “vibe” even replicable? Or is there another solution altogether? 
    Additional Resources
    Episode transcript
    Connect with Amy Tobey
    Connect with Mathr de Leon
    Connect with John Taylor
    Connect with Ilias Bergström
    Connect with Alexander Carôt
    Connect with Russell Gavin
    Connect with Janine Hacker
    Connect with Pamela Pavliscak
    Connect with Arman Sedgewick-Billimoria
    Connect with Florian Simmendinger
    CreditsTraceroute is a podcast from Equinix and Stories Bureau. This episode was hosted by Amy Tobey and was produced by Mathr de Leon with help from Sadie Scott. It was edited by Joshua Ramsey with mixing and sound design by Brett Vanderlaan and additional mixing by Jeremy Tuttle. Our fact-checker is Ena Alvarado. Our staff includes Tim Balint, Suzie Falk, Lisa Harris, Alisa Manjarrez, Stephen Staver, Lixandra Urresta, and Rebecca Woodward. Our theme song was composed by Ty Gibbons.
    Enjoyed This Episode?If you did, be sure to follow and share it with your friends!
    Post a review and share it! If you enjoyed tuning in, then leave us a review. You can also share this with your friends and colleagues! Introduce them to the people and organizations who played a role in inventing the internet.
    Mentioned in this...

    • 41 min
    17. Under the Influence(r)

    17. Under the Influence(r)

    Hey! Let’s unbox this new phone! And this new thumb drive! And this multi-million dollar SaaS platform…
    🤳 //
    Chris Sean isn’t your typical tech influencer. He was homeless and looking for a way to change his life when a YouTube video about Bill Gates convinced him he didn’t need a degree to get into tech. Now, Chris vlogs about his life and career as a self-taught developer to help others like him find their way into the industry. For Chris, creating content is more than a way to make money: it's a mission; it's a vindication.
    In this episode of Traceroute, we peek behind the curtain of the exploding influencer marketing industry to understand who’s telling us how to feel about technology and why. We talk to Peter Kennedy, founder of influencer marketing SaaS technology platform Tagger Media, who discusses why tech workers make especially good influencers. We then go in-depth with co-hosts Grace and Fen, whose personal experience as Developer Advocate and Tech Evangelist reveals the greater truth behind this $250 billion industry: exactly who is influencing who?
    Additional ResourcesEpisode transcript available here.Connect with Grace Ewura-Esai: LinkedIn or Twitter.Connect with Fen Aldrich on Twitter.Connect with John Taylor on LinkedIn.Chris Sean on YouTubeConnect with Peter Kennedy on LinkedIn
    Traceroute is a podcast from Equinix and Stories Bureau. This episode was hosted by Amy Tobey and Fen Aldrich, and was produced by John Taylor with help from Sadie Scott. Our senior producer is Mathr de Leon. It was edited by Joshua Ramsey with mixing and sound design by Brett Vanderlaan and additional mixing by Jeremy Tuttle. Our fact-checker is Ena Alvarado. Our staff includes Tim Balint, Suzie Falk, Lisa Harris, Alisa Manjarrez, Stephen Staver, Lixandra Urresta, and Rebecca Woodward. Our theme song was composed by Ty Gibbons.
    Mentioned in this episode:
    Vote for Traceroute at the 28th Annual Webby Awards
    Visit bit.ly/traceroutewebby to cast your vote. Voting is open until Thursday, April 18th.
    Click to Vote for Traceroute Now!

    • 27 min
    16. AI, Part 3: A Game of Drones

    16. AI, Part 3: A Game of Drones

    Repeat after me. Humans are friends, not food… or statistical data points in algorithmic targeting systems designed for warfare.
    👾
    It seems impossible to have a discussion about AI without bringing up the fear that killer robots are going to wipe out the human race. And if this emerging tech is truly a mirror of its creators, then the fear is justified, right? In part three, we look at how this concern is playing out in the real world, and how our relationship with AI, like any relationship, can suddenly create a whole lotta drama.
    We talk with Dr. Catherine Connolly, of the aptly-named organization Stop Killer Robots, who is trying to pass laws to prevent AI from making autonomous life-or-death decisions. We also sit down with Mar Hicks, an Associate Professor of Data Science at the University of Virginia, whose insights on the history of technology help to put our relationship with AI in perspective.
    And in the end, we may just need to sit down with AI and hammer this whole thing out, Because, as John’s therapist often reminds him, the foundation of any good relationship… is communication.
    Additional ResourcesEpisode transcript: TBDConnect with Amy Tobey on Twitter.Connect with Fen Aldrich on Twitter.Connect with John Taylor on LinkedIn.Connect with Dr. Catherine Connolly on LinkedInConnect with Mar Hicks on LinkedIn or Twitter
    CreditsTraceroute is a podcast from Equinix and Stories Bureau. This episode was hosted by Fen Aldrich and Amy Tobey, and was produced by John Taylor with help from Sadie Scott. Our senior producer is Mathr de Leon. It was edited by Joshua Ramsey, with mixing and sound design by Brett Vanderlaan, and additional mixing by Jeremy Tuttle. Our fact-checker is Ena Alvarado. Our staff includes Tim Balint, Suzie Falk, Lisa Harris, Alisa Manjarrez, Stephen Staver, Lixandra Urresta, and Rebecca Woodward. Our theme song was composed by Ty Gibbons.
    Mentioned in this episode:
    Vote for Traceroute at the 28th Annual Webby Awards
    Visit bit.ly/traceroutewebby to cast your vote. Voting is open until Thursday, April 18th.
    Click to Vote for Traceroute Now!

    • 24 min

Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5
168 Ratings

168 Ratings

Sadie Eve ,

Strong storytelling, great conversation starters

I’ve become a regular listener and every episode has taught me something new or changed my perspective in some way. 100% recommend to techies and non-techies :-)

awilkinso ,

Learning about the hidden world of the internet INFRA that serves humanity so well!!!

So awesome to see the inner workings of a technology that is so foundational to the way the world works today.

HankandOlive ,

Humanizing technology

I love how this humanizes technology. As an older person, AI is a bit frightening. It’s reassuring that this brings forward the human element behind tech, that they break down how things work and who is responsible for helping put it back together. Really enjoying this series!

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