'No Opt-Out' Season 3 is HERE!
Conrad and Verena are back with a bang, sharing four new phone conversations between the US and South Africa.
The world feels very different since Verena and Conrad last spoke.
Season 3 of No Opt-Out has landed with four new episodes, the first half of eight conversations where two digital besties find a safe place to land amid all the chaos.
The new episodes include real talk about generative AI (warts and all), explores the growing tension between artificial intelligence and creativity, and returns to the ethics of it all. The season also highlights the urgent need for better efforts to improve digital literacy around the world.
Now approaching 24 hours of recorded calls together, the pair's steadily growing trust has led to the most open and reflective exchanges yet. As expected, unfiltered laughter and banter remain par for the course, too.
Four more episodes are on the way. For now, settle in and enjoy part one.
Listen now on your platform of choice:
New Episodes
Episode 1: The Boring Factor
Episode 2: More Human Stuff Please
Episode 3: Back to Ethics in the Wild West
Episode 4: Sink or Swim Digital Literacy
Episode 5: Coming soon!
Episode 6: Coming soon!
Episode 7: Coming soon!
Episode 8: Coming soon!
Part One Highlights
Postcard finale: After seven months, the “Postcard Olympics” officially wraps with laughter and disbelief.
The boredom bonus: Conrad’s screen-free weekend leads to an unexpected sense of creative pride.
Sibling rivalry, dog edition: Verena unpacks the boundary drama between Kevin and Ladybug.
Creative crisis: With so much same-same content online, they ask if AI-generated work is flattening human imagination and joy.
Teachers as tech ‘medics’: The pair discuss how educators are responding to generative AI, describing a possible new role: prescribed critical thinking.
Human writing feels better: Conrad rewrites a GPT draft of a blog article from scratch (!!!) and realises human-made work still hits different.
Literacy check-in: Verena and Conrad dig into what it means to be literate in 2025, touching on childhood libraries to AI-powered shortcuts and the vanishing pleasure of random discovery.
Back to two megapixels: Disposable cameras, college memories, and blurry photos take the pair on a trip to the 90s (you know, before everything lived on screens).
Pen Pal Appreciation
To see all thirty-seven pen pal letters Conrad and Verena have written each other over the past two years, take a look here.
Keep up with their shenanigans by signing up for future letters below.
About the Hosts
Verena is an educator from Las Vegas, USA. She is techno-curious and deeply mindful of the impact of emerging tech on education, creativity, and the power of fun.
Update: Since season two, Verena has become the primary caregiver to a 100-year-old and led her league to gold in her first basketball season as head coach.
Conrad is a writer and creative entrepreneur from George, South Africa. He has long experimented with balancing tech use to enhance creativity and sustain good mental health.
Update: Since season two, Conrad has paused development on his novel to prioritise his wellbeing, and landed a managerial job in the AI division of a tech company.
Contact
verena.tcg@gmail.com | conrad.tcg@gmail.com