The Slatest for Nov. 20: Sam Altman’s Firing Is Just the First Skirmish in a War Over A.I.

There’s been lots of drama over at OpenAI as of late. First, CEO Sam Altman was fired! Then he was … maybe going to be unfired? Then he was hired by Microsoft! What?

To be clear, Nitish Pahwa writes, this saga, with all its twists and turns, was a little stupid—but not as stupid as it looks. He breaks down exactly what’s happened and explains why it’s best to consider it the first skirmish in a war over A.I.

Plus: Heather Tal Murphy homes in on the unexpected winner of the OpenAI meltdown.

Did you know that more than 30 states in the U.S. have laws that penalize individuals or businesses that boycott Israel over the treatment of Palestinians? Shilpa Jindia takes a look at the U.S. crackdown on protest in support of Palestinians, and finds it started long before Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre.

Jezebel, the iconic feminist website, shut down earlier this month. Moe Tkacik, a founding editor of the site, looks back on how bizarre it was to work there in the beginning—and how its legacy is a bit more mixed than most have been willing to admit.

A disturbing reality has been lurking behind #MeToo stories. Most people assume sexual assault is a single, traumatic incident—anything more, and they think the problem must be you. Amanda Machado takes apart this falsehood.

The worst part of cooking your Thanksgiving turkey is waiting for it to defrost. But James Beard Award–winning cookbook author Faith Durand is here with a piece of advice that will relieve a source of great mental stress this holiday season.

Plus: Ben Mathis-Lilley has some THOUGHTS on instant mashed potatoes and the only surefire way to make yours taste better.

… much like this playlist of “bardcore” music.

Thanks so much for reading! We’ll see you back here tomorrow.