Brian Merchant is a tech journalist and author who writes Blood in the Machine, a Substack newsletter of reporting and essays on AI, technology, labor, and power, named after Brian's book Blood in the Machine: The Origins of the Rebellion Against Big Tech. Brian's first book is The One Device: The Secret History of the iPhone. Brian writes reports for the AI Now Institute, and was previously the technology columnist at the Los Angeles Times and a senior editor at Motherboard.1
At a glance
- Current roles
- Writer +1 more
- Companies
- Blood in the Machine, AI Now Institute
- Sector
- Independent
- Fields
- Teaching and writing
- Work listed
- 1
- Sources cited
- 3
- Profile reviewed
Career
Merchant was a senior editor at Motherboard and co-founded Terraform, VICE's speculative fiction outlet, before becoming the technology columnist at the Los Angeles Times. The AI Now Institute also credits Merchant with founding Automaton, a Gizmodo investigation into AI and work. Merchant now holds a journalist role at the AI Now Institute, whose contributor page describes a focus on AI, Silicon Valley, labor and power.123
Books and reports
Merchant's first book, The One Device: The Secret History of the iPhone, was published by Little, Brown in 2017, followed in 2023 by Blood in the Machine: The Origins of the Rebellion Against Big Tech, a history of the Luddite uprising. Merchant and the Terraform team published the anthology Terraform: Watch/Worlds/Burn with MCD Books in 2022.21
For the AI Now Institute, Merchant wrote "AI Generated Business: The Rise of AGI and the Rush to Find a Working Revenue Model," published in November 2024.3
Channel and publications
The Blood in the Machine newsletter, named after the 2023 book, publishes reporting and essays on AI, technology, labor and power, along with interviews and reviews. Its recurring features include the AI Killed My Job series and a monthly Critical AI Report for paid subscribers, and the site also hosts a podcast.1
Work and contributions
Blood in the Machine Show, channel or publication
Newsletter of original essays, reporting, and news rundowns about big tech, automation, and AI, including the AI Killed My Job series.1
Timeline
- Published The One Device, a history of the iPhone, with Little, Brown.2
- Published the Terraform anthology Watch/Worlds/Burn with MCD Books.2
- Published Blood in the Machine, a history of the Luddite rebellion, with Little, Brown.2
- Released the AI Now Institute report on AGI and AI companies' search for a working revenue model.3
Other documented roles
Roles the sources document that are not confirmed as current.
- Technology columnist, Los Angeles Times1
Where they work
- Blood in the Machine 1 person in the wiki
- AI Now Institute 2 people in the wiki
Related people
- Lenny RachitskyTeaching and writing
- Trevor HastieTeaching and writing
- Hayden FieldTeaching and writing
- Lilian WengTeaching and writing
- Marques BrownleeTeaching and writing
- Allie K. MillerTeaching and writing
- Duen Horng "Polo" ChauTeaching and writing
- Nathan LabenzTeaching and writing
- Andrew NgTeaching and writing
- David PierceTeaching and writing
Suggest a correction or removal
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References
3 sources · profile reviewed Oct 21, 2026 · data updated Oct 21, 2026