Every Friday
killing it together
Last year was a defining year for Relay in more ways than one. We fell deeper in love, took a few weekend getaways, said a goodbye or two, and drank gallons of Guinness.
Most of our work focused on building more abundant, more reliable, and more effective systems. Outside of work, we pushed a few personal boundaries like running marathons and ultramarathons in Iowa, Nashville and Tokyo, and choosing to pivot careers instead of starting grad school nearly days before classes started.
We’re coming up on a full year of Relay, and we’re sneaky bullish on year two. A lot is changing for all four of us, personally and professionally, and we’re excited to share what’s ahead. Thanks for sticking with us, and cheers to another beautiful — and likely twisted — new year. Lets get into it.
“I think about dying but I dont want to die. Not even close. In fact my problem is the complete opposite. I want to live, I want to escape. I feel trapped and bored and claustrophobic. There’s so much to see and so much to do but I somehow still find myself doing nothing at all. I’m still here in this metaphorical bubble of existence and I can’t quite figure out what the hell I’m doing or how to get out of it.”
— Matty Healy
“I love my shape, also. I want you to know that. I think I have a great shape. I mean, obviously I am three hundred fucking pounds and I’m a square. But I think I look gorgeous, like the shining light in this fucking bitter world.”
— Action Bronson
Top of Mind
The 26 Most Important Ideas For 2026, (Derek Thompson)
Some of our favorite writers came in waves this year, but two kept popping up — Lindy and Derek Thompson. We really loved Everything is Television earlier in the year, and this piece felt like the right way to open the year ahead. We’d recommend reading it for yourself, but here are a few of the ideas that stuck with us most as we step into the new year.
Get ready for a wave of anti-AI populism
At some point in 2026, data center construction could outstrip that of offices and warehouses. Love it or hate it, we are concentrating an enormous share of the economy on this AI bet, and you’re going to hear more from politicians who see an opportunity to funnel voter anger through a clear anti-AI populism.
Young Americans are becoming more disconnected from the economy
The share of people between 20 and 24 who are not in a job, or seeking work, or in school, or raising a child has nearly doubled in the last quarter-century in both the UK and the U.S.
The future will be hot, high, and lonely
In the last two decades, Americans under 25 have reduced the time they spend partying by 69 percent, which is not nice. Humanity will be extremely attractive, with better weight-loss drugs, better face lifts, better plastic surgery ... and fewer friends and parties. The future will be hot, high, and lonely.
ICYMI: Happy Hour Edition
“People care about where they live (and about who lives in the same country) much more than they care about where their capital is located (or what capital is in the same country). As a result, capital is much more mobile than labor: taxing even capital income in some jurisdiction, let alone capital itself, motivates its owners to rapidly shift their investment elsewhere, much more rapidly than labor income taxes produce emigration.”
“Even when it comes to American society, I see lots of quiet reasons for optimism. Our politics is dysfunctional and our media landscape resembles a demon-haunted wasteland, but underneath the surface, I see signs that our society is starting to knit itself back together after the unrest and chaos of 2014-2021. Health is improving. Violence is falling. Americans are starting to use technology more responsibly. Some of the economic sclerosis of the pre-pandemic years seems to be falling away.”
Best of Substack this Week
Pacers at Western States 100 mile Endurance Run: Emily Hawgood
Highlights From The Comments On Vibecession — Astral Codex Ten
This Week in Relay’s Shopping Cart
Chuck 70 Canvas, (Ian)
Going back to the basics here. I left these in the locker room a few years ago and have missed them ever since. Shoutout to whoever copped my old pair at Soho Nashville.
Wool Shag Sweater, (Ian)
Shout out Cole Townsend for putting us onto Gnuhr. Been waiting on this restock noti for way too long with no end in sight.
It’s Not That Deep, Randy
Thanks for reading—or for mega scrolling all the way down here.
The internet is an overwhelming mess of headlines, ads, and mid takes from the worst people you know. Big Tech owns our attention spans. Everything is content. Nothing makes sense.
We’re not here to “fix discourse” or “build a better internet.” Relay is just our attempt to riff on what we’re already talking about at happy hour without feeling like we’ve been hit by a content truck. Some analysis, some memes, call it a day.
You might like it. Tag along.
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is this elon photo real????