I can finally spill the Tea: I’m partnering with LinkedIn on their newest initiative, BrandLink Top Voices 360.

The program is launching with a small group of creators—I’m honored to be in the company of Steven Bartlett, Guy Raz, and Corporate Natalie—and enables them to partner more deeply with brands across the platform.

This partnership is a big moment for me as I expand Tea in Tech into a broader media platform—but it’s also incredibly timely for the market.

If you’ve been following me, you know that B2B marketing is changing:

📈 82% of B2B marketers say influencer campaigns are essential for measurable ROI
🎥 81% of B2B CMOs say video accelerates sales cycles
🤝 56% of B2B buyers rely on trusted creators in the final stage of decision-making

Creators and content aren’t “new media” anymore. We are the media.

I’m really excited to share more about this—and grateful for all of you and your continued support.

BrandLink announcement.

Message from Linkedin’s VP Marketing.

Ok, enough about me. Let’s get you your Tech Tea.

1. OpenAI announces plans for a ‘Superapp’

My Tea: You’re in the middle of a PR crisis—and now you want more user data? Read the room guys.

2. NVIDIA partners with Uber to launch autonomous robotaxis

My Tea: Announced at NVIDIA’s GTC, this move could define NVIDIA’s next big category.

3. Jeff Bezos plans $100B AI fund to automate manufacturing 

My Tea: Could this be what it actually takes to reinvigorate American manufacturing?

4. More tech layoffs, citing AI

My Tea: Atlassian and Meta announced further cuts. Everyone’s blaming AI—I think it’s a convenient cover for restructuring.

5. Meta employee’s AI agent causes sensitive data leak

My Tea: Companies are pushing employees to use AI tools. But are we ready with the right guardrails?

Last week was a whirlwind of filming and onsite visits with AI companies (more Tea on that soon!)

I also went to an Ad Council event on leadership in the age of AI. The room was full of conversations about what AI means for jobs and management.

But one moment from Adobe’s CMO stuck with me. She said:

“With AI, you might just end up in a world where more people can access a Harvard-level or art school education just through a conversational AI. Think about the incredible human good that could come from that.”

For me, it was a good reminder of the the potential—and access—AI could unlock

Something to sip on. ☕️

One thing the recent tech layoffs have made clear to me is the shifting power dynamics between employees and employers—driven largely by AI.

It’s not that AI is directly replacing workers at their jobs. But it is forcing a strategy reset for most companies. And by its very nature, it’s making individual employees less differentiated.

As AI standardizes more baseline skills, it raises the common denominator. More people can do the same work, create the same output—which means more pressure on the individual to be exceptional.

So what are we supposed to do? I don’t have a perfect answer, but like any good consultant, I do have a framework. I learned this one in a Negotiations class at Harvard Business School, and it’s stuck with me ever since:

The value you extract from your job should always be greater than the value your employer extracts from you. (When that equation shifts, it’s usually time to renegotiate—or move on.)

Right now, in tech, that equation feels broken. Employees are anxious. Employers are flexing. And no one is quite sure how much leverage they actually have.

So here’s how I think about recalibrating it:

When it comes to AI, take ownership. Build your leverage. Upskill, reskill, and keep your network warm.

AI is coming—but that doesn’t mean you sit back and let it happen to you. Now more than ever, it’s critical to work to stay above the mean.

And, maybe it’s time to start doing a regular check-in on the above framework: are you extracting enough value for your work? Are you actually getting what’s yours?

Jensen Huang said this week that if engineers aren’t using compute worth half their salary, they’re not working hard enough. I say: how convenient—coming from the guy selling it.

A lot of you have told me to take a break and go have fun with my friends. No one said they had to be human.

See you at the next brew,

Meghana