The Vergecast

The Verge's Lauren Feiner joins Nilay and David to talk about the US government's proposal in its search antitrust case against Google. They discuss the future of Chrome, what a white-label search engine might look like, and how a Trump administration might change the course of this case altogether. Then Nilay and David talk about the week in AI and gadget news, from the latest on Amazon's new Alexa to Google bailing on tablets all over again. Finally, in the lightning round, they discuss Comcast spinning off its cable channels and the latest in the Threads / Bluesky competition. Further reading: * DOJ says Google must sell Chrome to crack open its search monopoly [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/20/24300617/doj-google-search-antitrust-chrome-breakup] * Google responds to DOJ’s ‘extreme proposal.’ [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/21/24302236/google-responds-to-dojs-extreme-proposal] * Google workers to DOJ: we need protections to make your breakup effective [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/20/24300616/google-alphabet-workers-union-doj-antitrust-breakup-remedies] * Apple fights to keep DOJ antitrust suit from reaching trial [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/20/24301660/apple-doj-motion-dismiss-antitrust-lawsuit] * Amazon announces new Echo Show 21 and Echo Show 15 smart displays [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/20/24301489/amazon-echo-show-21-smart-display-price-specs-release-date] * Google may be about to reboot its laptop and tablet hardware again [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/18/24299817/google-reboot-laptop-tablet-hardware-rumors-android-chrome-os] * Google reportedly cancels Pixel Tablet 2 and might quit the category — again [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/21/24302508/google-pixel-tablet-2-canceled-rumor] * Sonos’ smart TV plans might have found an OS [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/20/24301519/sonos-trade-desk-venture-tv-operating-system] * Windows 365 Link is a $349 mini PC that streams Windows from the cloud [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/19/24299789/microsoft-windows-365-link-device-cloud-pc] * Comcast is spinning off its cable TV business [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/20/24301310/comcast-spinning-off-nbcuniversal-cable-tv-business] * Trump names Brendan Carr as his FCC leader [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/17/24299207/brendan-carr-fcc-chairman-trump] * Strava closes the gates to sharing fitness data with other apps [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/19/24301056/strava-api-ai-data-sharing-policy-change-fitness-tracking] * Inside Elon Musk’s messy breakup with OpenAI [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/18/24299787/elon-musk-openai-lawsuit-sam-altman-xai-google-deepmind] * Threads’ custom feeds are already rolling out [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/20/24301587/threads-custom-feeds-rolling-out] * Threads’ algorithm will focus more on the people you follow [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/21/24302400/threads-algorithm-focus-people-you-follow] * Bose acquires premium audio brand McIntosh [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/19/24300618/bose-mcintosh-group-audio-acquisition] Email us at vergecast@theverge.com [vergecast@theverge.com] or call us at 866-VERGE11, we love hearing from you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

Richard Lawler joins the show to chat about the Tyson / Paul fight, and more importantly the fact that Netflix didn't seem to be able to keep up. As live sports — and TV in general — move toward streaming, are even the biggest names in tech ready for what's coming? After that, Roland Allen, the author of The Notebook: A History of Thinking on Paper, tells us about the history of the notebook, and why we've been writing things down about our lives for centuries. Even in a digital world, Allen argues, you just can't beat the notebook. Finally, a question from the Vergecast Hotline sends producer Will Poor down a TikTok Shop rabbit hole. Further reading: * Netflix served the Tyson vs. Paul fight to 60 million households [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/16/24298338/netflix-mike-ttyson-vs-jake-paul-fight-netflix-60-million-households-streaming-quality-buffering] * NFL fans worry Netflix’s bad Tyson vs. Paul stream means it can’t handle football [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/16/24298026/mike-tyson-jake-paul-netflix-livestream-quality-issues-buffering-dropped-stream] * Netflix adds Beyoncé to live entertainment juggernaut [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/18/24299402/netflix-beyonce-nfl-halftime-performance-streaming-live-sports] * Netflix snagged global streaming rights for NFL Christmas Day games [https://www.theverge.com/2024/5/15/24157289/netflix-nfl-game-streaming-global-christmas-day] * Roland Allen’s website [https://roland-allen.com/] * The Notebook: a History of Thinking on Paper [https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-notebook-a-history-of-thinking-on-paper/21106064?ean=9781771966283] Email us at vergecast@theverge.com [vergecast@theverge.com] or call us at 866-VERGE11, we love hearing from you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

For the third episode in our series about the future of music, we talk with Ge Wang. Ge is a professor at Stanford, a co-founder of Smule, the conductor of Stanford’s laptop orchestra, and has been at the center of technology and artistry for most of his life. We talk about how humans can use AI without giving in to it, what it means to truly play with technology, and the value of art and creativity and friction when it feels like all those things are being taken away. Further reading: * Ge Wang’s website [https://ccrma.stanford.edu/~ge/] * The future of computer music | Stanford University School of Engineering [https://engineering.stanford.edu/news/future-computer-music] * Ge’s viral TED talk: The DIY orchestra of the future [https://www.ted.com/talks/ge_wang_the_diy_orchestra_of_the_future?subtitle=en] * From Wired: Behind the Scenes With the Stanford Laptop Orchestra [https://www.wired.com/story/stanford-laptop-orchestra-tenth-anniversary-concert/] * Ge Wang: Human Well-Being Should Be AI Creators’ Goal [https://hai.stanford.edu/news/ge-wang-human-well-being-should-be-ai-creators-goal] Email us at vergecast@theverge.com [vergecast@theverge.com] or call us at 866-VERGE11, we love hearing from you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

Nilay and David talk about the future of social, in light of Bluesky's recent surge in growth. Threads is huge, Bluesky is ascendent, Mastodon is... around, but can any of them become the next Twitter? Is that even the goal? After that, Kylie Robison joins the show and the gang discusses Apple's smart home device (which is just an iPad), the AI scaling slowdown, and a new twist in the delivery wars. In the lightning round, it's all about disclosures, wireless carriers, and the sad end of Freevee. Further reading: * Twitter’s succession: all the news about alternative social media platforms  [https://www.theverge.com/23686584/twitter-alternative-social-media-platforms-mastodon-bluesky-activitypub-protocol] * One million people have joined Bluesky in the past week. [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/12/24294915/one-million-people-have-joined-bluesky-in-the-past-week] * Bluesky adds 700,000 new users in a week [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/11/24293920/bluesky-700000-new-users-week-x-threads] * The Guardian is quitting X. [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/13/24295452/the-guardian-is-quitting-x] * Remember the TikTok ban? [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/12/24294882/remember-the-tiktok-ban] * Apple’s rumored six-inch ‘AI wall tablet’ could control your smart home by March 2025 [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/12/24294975/apple-smart-home-display-march-2025-rumors] * Apple is reportedly working on an Apple Home security camera  [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/12/24294508/apple-home-camera-smart-security-camera-2026] * Anthropic co-founder Darius Amodei said we’ll have artificial general intelligence “in 2026 or 2027.” [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/12/24294528/line-go-up] * Just Eat is selling Grubhub to Marc Lore’s Wonder for $650M [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/13/24295454/grubhub-wonder-acquisition-just-eat-food-delivery-app] * Boost Mobile says it’s a real wireless carrier now [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/11/24291655/boost-mobile-5g-dish-wireless] * Amazon is shutting down Freevee [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/12/24295129/amazon-shutting-down-freevee-prime-video] * Trump says Elon Musk will lead ‘DOGE’ office to cut ‘wasteful’ government spending [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/12/24295165/trump-elon-musk-doge-cut-government-spending] Email us at vergecast@theverge.com [vergecast@theverge.com] or call us at 866-VERGE11, we love hearing from you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

On today's show: sleep gadgets, AI DJs, and sneaky TVs. Victoria Song joins the show to talk about her experiences with the Eight Sleep mattress pad, the Oura Ring 4, and other sleep gadgets. Can you really measure your way to a better night of sleep? After that, Allison Johnson gives us her take on Spotify's AI DJ, and we wonder exactly how an AI tool is supposed to help us find and listen to music. Finally, Nilay Patel comes on to answer a question from the Vergecast Hotline about the Samsung Frame TVs — and how to figure out whether you need a TV at all. Further reading: * Eight Sleep Pod 4 Ultra review: for sale, good night’s sleep, just $4,700 [https://www.theverge.com/24279552/eight-sleep-pod-4-ultra-review-tracking] * Ozlo Sleepbuds hands-on: resurrected and I’ve slept so good [https://www.theverge.com/2024/10/22/24275875/ozlo-sleepbuds-hands-on-bose-wearables-sleep-tracking] * Oura Ring 4 review: still on top — for now [https://www.theverge.com/24268024/oura-ring-4-review-smart-rings-wearables] * Spotify’s AI is no match for a real DJ [https://www.theverge.com/24290914/spotify-ai-dj-radio-kexp] * Samsung’s Frame TV is finally getting the knockoffs it deserves [https://www.theverge.com/2024/8/7/24215184/tcl-nxtframe-samsung-frame-tv-knockoff-price-announcement] Email us at vergecast@theverge.com [vergecast@theverge.com] or call us at 866-VERGE11, we love hearing from you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]