EP 88: Quitting The WSJ: Tech Journalist Joanna Stern on Her Year Embracing A.I. and Joining The Creator Economy

2026-06-16

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Imagine willingly opening up your life to as much A.I. as possible. Have a question? Ask A.I. first. Feeling blue? Talk to an A.I. therapist. Need a ride? Summon a Waymo. In journalist Joanna Stern’s New York Times bestseller “I Am Not a Robot: My Year Using AI to Do (Almost) Everything,” she did all of the above and more. She shares what's hopeful, what’s creepy, and how A.I. is already in your life, whether you like it or not. As she worked on her book in 2025, she was also facing another big question:...

Imagine willingly opening up your life to as much A.I. as possible. Have a question? Ask A.I. first. Feeling blue? Talk to an A.I. therapist. Need a ride? Summon a Waymo. In journalist Joanna Stern’s New York Times bestseller “I Am Not a Robot: My Year Using AI to Do (Almost) Everything,” she did all of the above and more. She shares what's hopeful, what’s creepy, and how A.I. is already in your life, whether you like it or not.

As she worked on her book in 2025, she was also facing another big question: whether or not to quit her job of 12 years at the Wall Street Journal. She was weighing the pros and cons of leaving legacy media and making the leap to the creator economy as an independent journalist - and would it pay off. She even asked A.I. for its input. For the record: A.I. said she should make the move - and she ultimately agreed. She is now CEO - Chief Everything Officer - of her new venture: New Things. There, she does what she does best: producing humorous videos and writing (in this case, a newsletter) all about the latest in tech.

💬 In this episode, we explore:

How A.I. is already in our lives, whether by invasion or by invitation
Why Joanna believes the pushback to A.I. is a good thing
Her experience with an A.I. therapist and an A.I. boyfriend
Why A.I. robots are not yet fully capable of taking over chores like cooking and cleaning
How she approached the difficult decision to leave the Wall Street Journal and how she views that move now
The challenges and rewards of being her own boss and running her own venture, New Things

Resources:

📸 Follow Joanna Stern on Instagram

📸 Follow Joanna Sternn on LinkedIn

💻 Check out New Things

💻 Watch New Things Videos on YouTube

🎧 New episodes of How She Does It drop every Tuesday. Be sure to follow us so you never miss an episode.

Ready to stop worrying about outliving your money? Pre-order Jean's new book, The Forever Paycheck, and get the roadmap to a retirement that actually pays you back.

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