This week in tech

AI hallucinations nearly sparked an international crisis, Google dodged a breakup but faces new rules, and Meta's personal AI agent might be about to run your life. This week's episode ponders what's pragmatic, what's dangerous, and what's coming for everything from privacy to geopolitics.

• Judge Orders Data Sharing and Other Fixes to Solve Google's Ad Tech Monopoly
• US judge signals rejection of part of TikTok privacy settlement
• AI hallucination of Chinese nuclear components almost led to US military attack
• For the first time, the US military confirms it has deployed weapons in orbit
• OpenAI Discloses Six New Incidents of 'Concerning' A.I. Behavior
• Why AI pacing has become a false choice
• Iran and China Create First-of-Their-Kind Autonomous A.I. Influence Campaigns
• Hackers Got Inside a Flock Camera. Its Data Shows How the System Really Works
• Senate Votes to Block Crypto Bill in Major Blow to the Industry
• The EU Bans Social Media For Under-13s
• 'Maybe a year': Geoffrey Hinton gives the Senate a deadline on AI
• ZuckOff Is a Free App That Sees Meta Glasses Before They See You

Host: Leo Laporte

Guests: Owen Thomas, Jason Hiner, and Dan Patterson

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AI insiders are warning that artificial intelligence could wipe out humanity within the decade, but is this a real threat or a convenient narrative serving Silicon Valley's biggest players? Tune in as the panel untangles fact from hype and digs into the power plays shaping AI's future.

• Worried Anthropic researchers warn that AI 'could kill all humans'
• Anthropic Researchers Raise Alarm Over A.I. Acceleration, Warning of Threat to Humanity
• Countering misuse of AI: September 2026 / Anthropic
• Pluralistic: LLMs are real, AI is fake (12 Sep 2026) – Pluralistic: Daily links from Cory Doctorow
• New Apple Watches to get Siri AI 'Recaps' feature similar to AI wearables
• Apple Unveils the iPhone Duo, a Foldable Phone That Costs $1,999
• Key App Developers Have Yet to Embrace Apple's New Siri A.I.
• Why this month's Microsoft patch release is a doozy
• LG TV shown scanning LAN for third-party phones and other device
• The Flock backlash is coming for retail
• Automobile Camouflage to Hide from Flock Cameras
• A Secretive DHS 'Predictive Policing' Unit is Analyzing Americans' Financial Habits and Pulling Them Over
• Clearview AI Is Testing an AI Tool That Would Let Cops Unearth Your Life Online
• Some of Dyson's $500 toothbrushes are breaking
• iRobot unveils the Roomba Duo
• Husqvarna gets the first exception to the FCC's foreign robot ban for its mowers.

Host: Leo Laporte

Guests: Mikah Sargent, Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, and Daniel Rubino

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When politicians, parents, and platforms collide, who protects kids from tech's dark side? Dive into real stories of digital parenting, policy-making headaches, and the unexpected ways tech companies shape everyday life.

• US court rules Google will not have to sell ad exchange after losing antitrust case
• Why the Courts Are Hesitant to Punish Tech Giants Like Meta and Google
• John Ternus is now the CEO of Apple
• Apple, OpenAI legal fight keeps escalating. Here's how we got here
• Court Filings In A.I. Suit Invoke Copyright Law, Culture and Sports
• Meta accepts U.S. safety rules while pitching softer tools abroad
• FTC lawsuit alleges Amazon has been 'secretly and systematically' overcharging for ads
• Bernie Sanders Proposes Artificial Superintelligence Ban Amid Rogue AI Hackings
• Vance Called AI Satanic. He Struck a Chord Among Christian Republicans.
• Who Cares if AI Is Conscious—It's Basically Alive
• Nvidia Extends A.I. Spending Spree With $12.9 Billion Deal for Hugging Face
• Tesla's Cybercab Officially Launches Today. It's Already Under Investigation
• AI visionary Ray Kurzweil is joining a Silicon Valley startup developing a brain computer system that involves snorting nanoparticles

Host: Leo Laporte

Guests: Stacey Higginbotham, Jeff Jarvis, and Owen JJ Stone

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As AI-generated video blurs reality and new Macs hit five-figure price tags, the conversation digs into who's left behind in the race to automate and whether "democratizing" tech actually delivers on its promise. Find out how NVIDIA, Meta, and even Apple are reshaping the tech game, and why it might not be good news for everyone.

• Brief independent investigation of agents' behavior, reasoning and collaboration in the OpenAI / Hugging Face hacking incident
• NVIDIA's Profit Doubles to $59.69 Billion Thanks to A.I. Spending
• Bill Gates Is Warning That A.I. Is More Dangerous Than Big Tech Will Admit
• Apple Introduces M6 and M5 Ultra Chips, in New Mac Mini and Mac Studio
• How Apple Stumbled Into AI Hardware Success With the Mac
• Meta reaches $16.68 billion settlement over social media harms to children
• Meta Just Paid Nearly $17 Billion To Make Sure It Gets To Write The Kid Safety Rules For Every Other Social Media Platform
• The Meta Settlement Makes Big Tech Bigger
• 'Darth Vader' Wants You to Know He Definitely Supports Flock Surveillance
• The Data Center Backlash Bursts Into the Midterms
• With the Snip of a Gene, Scientists Hope To Erase High Cholesterol For Life - Slashdot
• Skynet went live yesterday
• Amazon service Bezos once called 'artificial artificial intelligence' is shutting down

Host: Leo Laporte

Guests: Jacob Ward, Harry McCracken, and Molly White

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