Skip to main content

Alec Cowan

Senior Podcast Producer

About

Alec Cowan is a senior podcast producer at KUOW, where he works on Booming and other podcast projects.

Alec has worn many hats at KUOW. He helped launch Soundside and brought many eclectic stories to the program, from a late-night patrol with real life superheroes to the sewing machine sounds of an artisanal sail loft. Additionally, he was previously a producer for The Record with Bill Radke and the Primed podcast.

Before joining KUOW, Alec worked in NPR's Story Lab, where he helped pilot the Louder Than a Riot podcast and assisted in producing a story on volunteerism in Iraq for Rough Translation. Originally from Grand Junction, Colorado, his roots in the Northwest begin in Eugene, where he studied English and philosophy at the University of Oregon and worked as a news reporter for NPR member station KLCC. He is likely neglecting his saxophone, growing book collection, and expanding personal project list in favor of boosting his online Xbox ranking.

He's proud to be KUOW's unofficial "boat guy."

Location: Seattle

Languages Spoken: English

Pronouns: he/him/his

Podcasts

Stories

  • What happens to Seattle if the AI bubble pops?

    Companies are spending hundreds of billions of dollars to build the AI infrastructure of the future. But companies are struggling to make a profit on the AI of today. So, is that future real, or just a mirage?  

  • BONUS: The future of Seattle's highways

    Live event recorded at the Seattle Public Library hosted by Joshua McNichols and Ian Coss about the future of Seattle's State Route 99.

  • Is coding dead? This professor doesn't think so

    Companies appear to be making big bets that AI can replace huge chunks of their workforces. But this computer science professor says the outlook isn’t so bleak for kids who still want a career in tech. 

  • Is trade school the new comp sci degree?

    When it comes to the white-collar workforce, warning signals are blinking red. That uncertainty has more kids going blue collar. Trade schools are booming. This bonus episode from our friends at Booming asks as artificial intelligence and economic uncertainty reshape the labor market, could trade schools be the new ticket to the American Dream?

  • Is AI fueling a trade school boom?

    When it comes to the white-collar workforce, warning signals are blinking red. That uncertainty has more kids going blue collar -- trade schools are booming.

  • Nine families, one roof: Urban cohousing in Seattle

    A growing number of people are building a different kind of housing to get the benefit of more space without the added cost. It’s called co-housing, where people come together with friends and strangers to live in modest apartments with more shared spaces -- all designed from scratch.

  • Can AI really cure cancer?

    In the debate over how fast we should be embracing artificial intelligence, one thing comes up again and again. The claim from tech CEOs that AI can cure cancer.  So can it?