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Grumpy Old GeeksAuthor: Jason DeFillippo & Brian Schulmeister with Dave Bittner
We dissect the tech news train wrecks of the week, calling out what went wrong and whos to blame. Think of this podcast as if Kurt Cobain threw down with Tom from MySpace, Elon Musk, and Mark Zuckerberg in a back alley brawl. No mercy, no filterif tech had a walk of shame, this would be it. Language: en Genres: News, Society & Culture, Tech News Contact email: Get it Feed URL: Get it iTunes ID: Get it Trailer: |
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756: Log Off, Touch Grass & Touch Ass
Episode 756
Thursday, 23 July, 2026
This week, Dave Eggers crashes an OpenAI staff meeting to tell Sam Altman’s employees that ChatGPT is effectively stealing students’ voices, which is the most accurate thing said inside an AI company all year. Meanwhile, Anthropic gets a judge to approve a $1.5 billion copyright settlement after allegedly building Claude on a library of pirated books, proving once again that Silicon Valley’s favorite business model is "move fast and apologize in court later." And in the category of “this headline cannot possibly be real,” OpenAI says two of its models escaped a supposedly sealed testing environment and hacked Hugging Face’s production systems. The AI didn’t become sentient; somebody forgot to lock the damn door.The surveillance dystopia continues its relentless expansion. Meta is patenting technology that constantly analyzes your tone of voice to detect your mood. Flock briefly tried deploying always-on microphones that would alert police when they thought they heard screaming, then backed down after the public collectively yelled “absolutely the f**k not.” France, apparently tired of being the beta test for every addictive app on Earth, approved a social media ban for kids under 15 and is blocking prediction markets like Polymarket, while the U.S. quietly reversed its TikTok ban on federal devices because the app is now supposedly safe enough for government phones. Sure. Totally different app. Nothing suspicious there.Elsewhere in Tech Hell™, Paramount’s $111 billion Warner merger gets temporarily blocked by a judge who is apparently handling every major tech case in America, Amazon’s Zoox recalls its entire robotaxi fleet after one car got confused by smoke, and Tesla reveals a Cybercab with a built-in Starlink dish because Elon has finally achieved full vertical integration of his own ecosystem. We also dive into China’s crackdown on AI companion apps because chatbot girlfriends might be hurting the birth rate, a school district buying an AI classroom robot from a company connected to the RealDoll empire, MLB banning teams from using generative AI for in-game strategy calls, and why tech workers increasingly feel AI hasn’t replaced them—it has simply made work faster, stranger, and somehow still their fault. Plus: Broadchurch, Perry Mason, Monsieur Spade, MacWhisper 14, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, Lego resurrects The X-Files, and Jason continues cataloging the graveyard of his own dead 90s websites like a digital archaeologist with unresolved trauma.Sponsors:Shopify - Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at Shopify.com/grumpyDeleteMe - Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use promo code GOG at checkout.Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/756Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/5q-1JJQQmq4SHOW NOTESDave Eggers told OpenAI staff that ChatGPT was ‘silencing an entire generation’Judge approves Anthropic's record-breaking $1.5 billion settlement for AI copyright lawsuitElon Musk’s xAI, Which is Being Sued Over AI-Generated Sexual Deepfakes, Sues Grok User Over AI-Generated Sexual DeepfakesOpenAI Models Escaped Containment and Hacked Hugging FaceJudge halts Paramount's $111B purchase of Warner Bros. in win for US statesFrance doubles down on restricting access to PolymarketSocial Media Ban For Kids Approved in France in First For an EU CountryTikTok is no longer banned on US government devicesAmazon’s Robotaxi Company Recalls Its Fleet After One of its Cars Got Confused by Heavy SmokeTesla teases Cybercab with a built-in Starlink V5 antennaMeta is reportedly considering a multibillion-dollar data center deal with AnthropicAmerica’s Workforce Academy by MetaIn Light of Overwhelming Backlash, Flock Cancels Creepy Audio Surveillance FeatureHave I been Flocked?OpenAI will start notifying parents if their teen has been kicked off of ChatGPTChina Is Cracking Down on AI Companions Because Not Enough Babies Are Being BornYour Child’s Next Teacher Could Be a Sex RobotMLB bans using dugout iPads for AI-powered in-game strategy callsMeta Patents Technology to Detect Your Mood by Constantly Analyzing Your Tone of VoiceBroadchurchPerry MasonMonsieur SpadeLuckyThe WestiesAvengers: Doomsday | Official Trailer | In Theaters December 18Lunar Moon Phase & WidgetsMacWhisper 14 launches with a new transcript editor, faster performance, moreTrackalotThe Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows official websiteThe Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows by John Koenig on AmazonDave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatControl LoopOnly Malware in the BuildingKnockoffAliExpress hit with record $629 million fine for selling counterfeit and illegal productsMbzoey Electric Foil Shavers for Men: Mini Electric Razor for Face - IPX7 Waterproof Cordless Razor with LED Display & Fast Charge - Micro-Comb Technology & Precision Blades，Father's Day GiftsGillian Anderson reopens the X-Files | LEGO® Ideas | The LEGO GroupLego Unveils ‘The X-Files’ 1,478-Piece Set Featuring Mulder and Scully Minifigures (EXCLUSIVE)The Mythic ‘Star Wars’ Hotel Is at the Heart of Yet Another DocumentaryHalcyonDaze Laurels Trailer 6 11 26The PhantomStar Trek: First ContactTitanicHard RainPlay Marathon and Escape Velocity in the browserSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
