Premium – 280. Step into the Saudi Zone (Patreon)

We start with news about the latest attempt to build a smart city from scratch as a collection of venture capitalists have been secretly buying huge amounts of land near San Francisco to finally realize a dream that will never die. We connect this logic of the capitalist zone to an expansive analysis of Saudi Arabia’s global investments, geopolitical partnerships, and giant ambitions for a future where the world is a zone.

Stuff we reference:

• The Silicon Valley Elite Who Want to Build a City From Scratch https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/25/business/land-purchases-solano-county.html
• How Saudi Arabia is buying the world https://www.newstatesman.com/long-reads/2023/07/saudi-arabia-capitalsim-buying-world
• How Saudi money returned to Silicon Valley https://www.vox.com/technology/2023/5/1/23702451/silicon-valley-saudi-money-khashoggi

Hosted by Jathan Sadowski (www.twitter.com/jathansadowski) and Edward Ongweso Jr. (www.twitter.com/bigblackjacobin). Production / Music by Jereme Brown (www.twitter.com/braunestahl)