Key Moments
Microbes, Robots, and Ambition - Robin Sloan on His Novel Sourdough
Y CombinatorKey Moments
Author Robin Sloan discusses his novel Sourdough, exploring microbes, robots, and the intersection of old crafts with new tech.
Key Insights
Sourdough audiobook features AI-generated music, a fictional sound synthesized from Croatian folk singing.
Robotic arms in kitchens are a complex challenge due to the chaotic and unpredictable nature of these spaces.
Sloan's work often explores the "glorious crash" of new and old technologies/crafts, rather than an adversarial relationship.
He prefers "puzzle fiction" or "sci-fi inflected literary fiction" over dystopian narratives, focusing on characters readers miss.
The enduring nature of digital creations is a concern; unlike books, apps and websites can quickly become obsolete.
Sloan actively deletes his tweets to preserve the ephemeral nature of online conversation, likening it to a cafe chat.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN AUDIOBOOK PRODUCTION
Robin Sloan discusses the innovative use of machine learning in the audiobook for his novel, "Sourdough." Due to budget constraints, he couldn't hire composers for the fictional music within the book. Instead, he employed a machine learning model, SampleRNN, trained on Croatian folk singing (klapa) to generate alien-like, synthesized music. This marks a creative use of AI in audiobook production, embedding the output of a machine learning system into a traditionally published work.
THE COMPLEXITY OF KITCHEN ROBOTICS
The conversation touches upon the inclusion of robotic arms in "Sourdough," particularly their application in tasks like cracking eggs. Sloan explains that while robotic arms are impressive, kitchen environments present significant challenges due to their inherent chaos and the unpredictable shapes and angles of food items. He suspects that the "egg problem"—the difficulty of reliably cracking an egg—is a real technical hurdle that remains between widespread kitchen automation and AGI.
THE CONVERGENCE OF OLD CRAFTS AND NEW TECHNOLOGY
A central theme in Sloan's work, including "Sourdough," is the intersection of established crafts and emerging technologies. He views this not as a conflict but as a "glorious crash" where new and old elements pile up, creating richer possibilities. His books aim to rebut the idea that one must replace the other, celebrating the coexistence and mutual enhancement of both traditional practices and modern innovations.
REDISCOVERING JOY IN FICTION: "PUZZLE FICTION" AND OPTIMISM
Sloan categorizes his writing as "puzzle fiction" or "sci-fi inflected literary fiction," deliberately steering away from the prevalent dystopian narratives. He seeks to create characters and worlds that readers enjoy spending time with, offering a positive or at least a non-dystopian outlook. This contrasts with much of contemporary speculative fiction, which often focuses on brokenness and societal collapse.
THE EPHEMERAL NATURE OF DIGITAL CREATIONS
A significant concern for Sloan is the transience of digital works. Unlike books, which can endure for centuries, digital creations like apps and websites are vulnerable to technological shifts, platform changes, and obsolescence. He laments losing his app "Fish" due to iOS updates, highlighting the ongoing challenge for creators to maintain the longevity of their digital projects amidst a constantly evolving technological landscape.
RECLAIMING THE CONVERSATIONAL WEB THROUGH DELETION
Sloan has a deliberate practice of deleting his tweets on a regular basis. He views Twitter not as a permanent record but as a dynamic, ephemeral conversation, akin to a cafe chat where words fade into the air. This act of deletion is a conscious effort to resist the impulse to meticulously archive every online utterance, preserving a sense of spontaneity and preventing vanity from dictating his digital presence.
THE EVOLUTION AND DECLINE OF BLOGGING
The decline of blogging is attributed, in part, to the rise of social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook. Sloan reminisces about the early blogging era as a valuable cross-training ground for writers. He notes how the interconnectedness of blogs, facilitated by tools like Google Reader, created an ecosystem of ideas. The loss of platforms for direct linkage and the shift in audience attention fragmented this once-vibrant landscape.
ADAPTING TO CHANGING TECHNOLOGICAL LANDSCAPES
Sloan shares an anecdote about the New York Times website changing from image-based headlines to text links, an early lesson in embracing technological change despite initial resistance. This experience informs his perspective on shifts like the increase in Twitter's character limit. He appreciates how 280 characters allow for more nuanced dialogue within a single tweet, fostering a richer exchange of ideas than the previous 140-character constraint.
THE FUTURE OF CREATIVE TECHNOLOGY AND AI'S ROLE
Sloan remains fascinated by the creative applications of machine learning, viewing it as an arbitrage opportunity for artists. While acknowledging the practical and economic advancements of AI, he is drawn to its potential in art and storytelling. He is currently working on a novel that incorporates AI-generated text, aiming to create something meaningful and artistically valuable rather than a mere technological novelty.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE "SORTED" GENERATION
The line in "Sourdough" about a generation wanting to be "sorted" resonated deeply and became a social object online. Sloan views this as a reflection of a collective desire for belonging and direction. The widespread sharing of this quote illustrates how books can become cultural touchstones in the digital age, serving as personal affirmations and prompts for connection and discussion among readers.
THE SHIFT IN TECH COVERAGE AND ITS IMPACT
Sloan notes a distinct shift from the general optimism surrounding tech in his earlier work, like "Penumbra," to a more critical tone reflected in the current media landscape. This darkening tint in coverage is ongoing and influences his writing. He aims to capture the realities of Silicon Valley today without resorting to outright condemnation, seeking to offer a nuanced perspective rather than simply "burning it all down."
THE LEGACY AND FUTURE OF DIGITAL STORYTELLING EXPERIMENTS
Reflecting on "Epic 2014," a flash-based faux documentary from 2004, Sloan emphasizes its origin as a naive, pure-hearted experiment to vividly communicate ideas about media's future. The project's success taught him the value of closing a chapter after such a positive, unburdened creation. He considers future projects, but acknowledges the unique, guileless spirit of that initial media experiment might be inimitable.
Mentioned in This Episode
●Software & Apps
●Companies
●Organizations
●Books
●Concepts
●People Referenced
Common Questions
Robin Sloan used a machine learning tool called sampleRNN to generate unique, fictional music to accompany his audiobook. The tool learned patterns from input MP3s of Croatian folk singing (Klaapa) and produced alien-like sounds that fit the mysterious atmosphere of the book.
Topics
Mentioned in this video
A field of artificial intelligence that Sloan is preoccupied with, particularly its creative applications.
A genre tag suggested for Robin Sloan's books, which he likes the sound of.
The scholarship on microbes and the microbiome influenced Sloan to include microbial communities as characters in his book.
A type of Croatian folk singing, a cappella chorus of voices in odd harmonies, which inspired the fictional music in 'Sourdough'.
Mentioned humorously in relation to the visceral reaction to change or the 'rage' experienced by users.
An open-source machine learning library, specifically LuaTorch, which Sloan used for an audiobook experiment.
A children's book mentioned as part of a 'runaway mutant food' genre that influenced Sloan's work.
An earlier book by Robin Sloan that explored the intersection of tech and old crafts.
Robin Sloan's novel, which features a sourdough starter, mysterious music, and a machine learning experiment for its audiobook.
A children's book mentioned as part of a 'runaway mutant food' genre that influenced Sloan's work.
A book series cited as an example of a rosy vision of the future that influenced early tech founders.
A children's book mentioned as part of a 'runaway mutant food' genre that influenced Sloan's work.
Director who explicitly stated he did not want a technical advisor for a project, prioritizing imagination over reality.
A science fiction writer mentioned as based in San Francisco and creating non-dystopian but realistic works.
Robin Sloan's colleague at the Pointer Institute and co-creator of 'Epic 2014', who later became Executive Editor of The Atlantic Monthly.
A science fiction writer mentioned for creating non-dystopian but also not naive works.
Author of the Harry Potter series, whose writing style can be imitated by text-generating neural networks.
The author and interviewee, discussing his books, creative process, and thoughts on technology and media.
Mentioned for an early website design that rendered headlines as images, which Sloan initially praised but later appreciated the switch to text links for faster loading.
An institution in St. Petersburg, Florida, where Robin Sloan worked and collaborated on the 'Epic 2014' project.
A publication where Matt Thompson, co-creator of 'Epic 2014' with Robin Sloan, became Executive Editor.
A fictional language from Game of Thrones, mentioned as an example of a created language for which the budget was not available to hire experts.
A blog Robin Sloan wrote for, which he feels was killed in part by Twitter and Facebook, marking the decline of the blog era.
A version of Apple's mobile operating system, updates to which have rendered Robin Sloan's app 'Fish' non-functional.
A text editor for which Sloan built a plugin to integrate text-generating neural networks with composition workflows.
A publication where Robin Sloan worked, mentioned in the context of the changing tone of tech coverage.
A machine learning tool used to generate new music and sound by learning patterns from input audio files.
A defunct RSS feed aggregator that was significant in the blogging era; its loss is seen as a 'nail in the coffin' for blogging.
A fictional language from Star Trek, mentioned as an example of a created language for which the budget was not available to hire experts.
A platform where the Sourdough audiobook, featuring machine learning-generated music, is available.
A social media platform, which Sloan uses but also employs a script to delete his tweets to maintain a cafe conversation atmosphere.
An organization mentioned as a potential way to preserve digital content, similar to how printed books are preserved.
A platform used for research and learning, including how to perform tasks like cracking an egg with one hand, and for demonstrating robotic arm movements.
A book series used as an example of training data for a neural network that could generate text in the style of J.K. Rowling.
A faux future documentary in Flash created by Robin Sloan and Matt Thompson about the history of media, which became a viral web hit.
A TV series known for its dystopian themes, contrasted with Sloan's more positive or satirical approach.
A science fiction franchise cited as an example of a rosy vision of the future that influenced early tech founders.
A TV show for which maintaining consistent datelines requires sourcing old apps and simulations, highlighting digital obsolescence challenges.
A fictional school from Harry Potter, referenced in Sloan's book as a symbol of a generation's desire for guidance and belonging.
A podcast on which Robin Sloan was previously interviewed.
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