If you spend any time obsessing over how Silicon Valley actually works, you've definitely read Mark Sullivan. He’s the Senior Writer at Fast Company who has spent years basically living inside the transition from the old-school internet to our current AI-saturated reality. He isn’t just some guy typing up press releases; he’s the one interviewing Eric Schmidt about the existential risks of AI or getting the inside track on why a startup like Perplexity is suddenly the talk of the town.
Honestly, the tech world is full of "analysts" who just repeat what they hear on X (formerly Twitter). Sullivan is different. He’s a journalist's journalist.
Based in San Francisco, he’s perfectly positioned to watch the tectonic plates of the industry shift in real-time. Whether it's Apple’s latest pivot or the way ChatGPT is fundamentally warping our brains, he’s usually a few steps ahead of the curve. He’s been with Fast Company since 2016, and in that time, he’s become the go-to voice for anyone trying to figure out if the latest "innovation" is a genuine breakthrough or just more venture capital smoke and mirrors.
Why Mark Sullivan at Fast Company Matters Right Now
We live in a weird era. Everyone is shouting about AGI, but very few people can explain how it’s going to change your Monday morning meeting. This is where Sullivan’s "AI Decoded" newsletter comes in. It’s widely read because it doesn't treat the reader like an idiot, but it also doesn't hide behind a wall of impenetrable jargon.
He focuses on the why. Why is Microsoft betting its entire future on Mustafa Suleyman? Why did Peter Thiel decide to dump Nvidia stock right when everyone else was buying the hype?
Sullivan has this knack for looking at the hardware—the iPhones, the Samsungs, the Google Pixels—and seeing the software soul underneath. He’s spent decades covering the big platforms. Before he landed at Fast Company, he was putting in the work at VentureBeat, Wired, CNET, and PCWorld. You don’t get that kind of longevity in tech journalism by being wrong.
Breaking Down the AI "Chatbot" Myth
One of his most interesting recent takes involves how we’ve all been misled about AI. We think of it as a chatbot because that’s how OpenAI packaged it. But as Sullivan pointed out in early 2026, that paradigm is dying.
We’re moving toward "coworkers"—tools like Anthropic’s Cowork that don't just answer questions but actually participate in the workflow. It’s a subtle shift in language, but a massive shift in how we’ll use computers. Sullivan is the one tracking that transition from "search and find" to "delegate and execute."
He’s also been vocal about the "Apple Vision Pro" problem. While most reviewers were busy talking about pixel density, Sullivan was looking at the cultural impact. Is the killer app really an "AI girlfriend"? It sounds dystopian because it is, but he isn’t afraid to go there. He looks at how these devices might actually be used by real (and sometimes lonely) people, not just the idealized version in a keynote video.
The Background of a Tech Heavyweight
It’s easy to think tech reporters just appear out of nowhere once a new chip is released, but Sullivan’s path is actually pretty deep. He didn't start with code; he started with investigative journalism.
- Education: He holds a Master’s from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern. That’s top-tier stuff.
- Old School Experience: He worked at Reuters covering financial markets. He knows how money moves, which is why his reporting on tech stocks and VC funding feels so grounded.
- Awards: He’s a two-time ASME (Society of Magazine Editors) award winner. In the magazine world, that’s the equivalent of an Oscar.
Interestingly, there’s another Mark Sullivan out there who is a famous novelist (the guy who wrote Beneath a Scarlet Sky). Don’t get them confused. Our Mark Sullivan is the one dissecting the "American Manufacturing Program" and how Apple is trying to spend $600 billion to secure its supply chain against global instability.
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What He Gets Right (and What Others Miss)
Most tech news feels like a commodity. You can get the specs of the new Samsung Galaxy anywhere. But Sullivan’s work at Fast Company often focuses on the policy and the "culture of the thing."
He recently covered the tension between the U.S. and China regarding AI infrastructure. While most people are looking at the software, he’s looking at the "energy bottlenecks" and visa uncertainties that might actually slow down the scale-up of AI. It’s the "boring" stuff that actually determines who wins the next decade.
He’s also interviewed the heavy hitters:
- Brad Lightcap (OpenAI): Discussing the commercialization of models that weren't originally meant to be products.
- Mustafa Suleyman (Microsoft): Exploring the integration of AI into the world’s most used OS.
- Eric Schmidt: Talking about the reality of "frontier compute."
How to Follow the Work
If you want to stay informed without the fluff, you basically have to follow his specific beat.
First, subscribe to AI Decoded. It’s the weekly newsletter where he actually breaks down what happened in the last seven days without the usual hyperbole. It’s essentially a cheat sheet for anyone working in tech or business who needs to look smart in meetings.
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Second, watch his coverage of the Next Big Things in Tech. This is a Fast Company franchise where they honor everything from cellular broadband via satellite to autonomous beehives. Sullivan is often the one digging into these honorees to see if they actually solve a problem or if they're just "cool."
Actionable Insights from Sullivan’s Reporting
You can't just read the news; you have to apply it. Here is what we can learn from Sullivan's recent deep dives into the industry:
- Move Beyond the Chatbox: Stop treating AI as a search engine. Start looking for "agentic" tools that can perform tasks, not just provide text.
- Watch the Hardware/Software Split: Even as we go "cloud-first," the companies owning the silicon (like Apple and Nvidia) still hold the leverage. Watch their manufacturing investments.
- Prepare for "Coworker" AI: In 2026, the goal for any business should be integrating AI into the team structure, not just giving employees a login to a web portal.
Sullivan’s career reminds us that in a world of fast-moving "disruption," the most valuable asset is still a reporter who knows how to ask a tough question and wait for a real answer. His work at Fast Company continues to be a primary source for anyone trying to separate the signal from the noise in the loudest industry on earth.