This Week in Tech (Audio)

* Pope Leo makes AI's threat to humanity a signature issue * Why We Don't Talk About Job Destruction * Israel-Tied Predatory Sparrow Hackers Are Waging Cyberwar on Iran's Financial System * Iran restricts internet access to ward off Israeli cyberattacks * The AI Slop Fight Between Iran and Israel * It's Official: Streaming Is Now the King of TV * AI search finds publishers starved of referral traffic * Mastodon updates its terms to prohibit AI model training * For the first time, social media overtakes TV as Americans' top news source * Trump extends TikTok ban deadline for a third time * The People Search Sites in the Suspected Minnesota Killer's Notebook Are a Failure of Congress * 40,000 Cameras, From Bird Feeders to Baby Monitors, Exposed to the Internet * Pavel Durov on his arrest in France, Macron, Russia, the FBI — and the fight for Telegram * WhatsApp's rollout of ads will change the app forever * Here's your first look at the rebooted Digg Host: Leo Laporte [https://twit.tv/people/leo-laporte] Guests: Jason Calacanis [http://calacanis.com/], Amanda Silberling [https://twit.tv/people/amanda-silberling], and Fr. Robert Ballecer, SJ [https://bsky.app/profile/padresj.bsky.social] Download or subscribe to This Week in Tech at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech [https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech] Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit [https://twit.tv/clubtwit] Sponsors: * spaceship.com/twit [http://spaceship.com/twit] * uscloud.com [http://uscloud.com] * canary.tools/twit - use code: TWIT [http://canary.tools/twit] * storyblok.com/twittv-25 [https://storyblok.com/twittv-25] * ZipRecruiter.com/Twit [http://ZipRecruiter.com/Twit]

* Opinionated Design: Early Reactions to Apple's Liquid Glass Design Language * Big Tech Is Dealing Flat Design a Death Blow * Apple gets over its hang-ups, and the iPad enters a new era * Apple Targets Spring 2026 for Release of Delayed Siri AI Upgrade * Apple's de-chatbot-ification of AI is nearly complete * Google launches Android 16, rolling out now to Pixel * Google offers voluntary buyouts to US staff across several businesses and units, including the one housing its core search team and much of the ads organization * IBM aims to build the world's first large-scale, error-corrected quantum computer by 2028 * Blue Origin Delays Second New Glenn Launch * Anne Wojcicki Wins Bidding for 23andMe * Twenty-seven states and DC sue 23andMe to oppose the sale of DNA data from its customers without their direct consent * YouTube says its ecosystem created 490K jobs and added $55B to the US GDP in 2024 * God is hungry for Context: First thoughts on o3 pro * Army reserve tech executives meta palantir * Nintendo Switch 2 Is Fastest-Selling Game Console of All Time - Slashdot * An Experimental New Dating Site Matches Singles Based on Their Browser Histories * Anker recalls 1.1 million power banks due to fire hazard risk * Local Malls Are Sitting Empty, and Becoming a Headache for Small Towns * Bald eagle live cam update: Babies are leaving nest. What's next? Host: Leo Laporte [https://twit.tv/people/leo-laporte] Guests: Jason Hiner [https://x.com/jasonhiner], Harry McCracken [https://bsky.app/profile/harrymccracken.com], and Jason Snell [https://twit.tv/people/jason-snell] Download or subscribe to This Week in Tech at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech [https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech] Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit [https://twit.tv/clubtwit] Sponsors: * oracle.com/twit [http://oracle.com/twit] * Melissa.com/twit [http://Melissa.com/twit] * drata.com/weekintech [http://drata.com/weekintech] * expressvpn.com/twit [http://expressvpn.com/twit] * zscaler.com/security [http://zscaler.com/security]

* Bill Atkinson, Macintosh Pioneer and Inventor of Hypercard, Dies at 74 * Folklore.org: Round Rects Are Everywhere! * OpenAI slams court order to save all ChatGPT logs, including deleted chats * A ban on state AI laws could smash Big Tech's legal guardrails * Federal judge blocks Florida from enforcing social media ban for kids while lawsuit continues * TikTok dodges U.S. ban — again — as Trump administration pushes deadline back * Supreme Court Gives Doge Access to Social Security Data * The IRS Tax Filing Software TurboTax Is Trying to Kill Just Got Open Sourced * The hidden time bomb in the tax code that's fueling mass tech layoffs * AI Startup Revealed To Be 700 Indian Employees Pretending To Be Chatbots - Slashdot * Google's NotebookLM now lets you share your notebook — and AI podcasts — publicly * Holding your cellphone while driving for navigation is illegal, California court rules * Volvo Debuts New IoT Seatbelt Design - Slashdot * Ending USB-C® Port Confusion * Walmart to Expand Wing Drone Deliveries to 100 Stores * Nintendo Switch 2 Has Record-Breaking Launch, Selling Over 3 Million Units - Slashdot * Calling All Cars Named Eleanor! The Ninth Circuit Has Decided You're Not Copyrightable After All * California county accused of using drones to spy on residents Host: Leo Laporte [https://twit.tv/people/leo-laporte] Guests: Sam Abuelsamid [https://twit.tv/people/sam-abuelsamid], Cathy Gellis [https://mastodon.cloud/@cathygellis/], and Larry Magid [http://www.larrysworld.com/] Download or subscribe to This Week in Tech at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech [https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech] Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit [https://twit.tv/clubtwit] Sponsors: * bitwarden.com/twit [http://bitwarden.com/twit] * shopify.com/twit [http://shopify.com/twit] * ZipRecruiter.com/Twit [http://ZipRecruiter.com/Twit] * threatlocker.com/twit [http://threatlocker.com/twit] * NetSuite.com/TWIT [http://NetSuite.com/TWIT]

* YouTube Is Swallowing TV Whole, and It's Coming for the Sitcom * Trump Taps Palantir to Compile Data on Americans * Trump makes a last-minute backtrack on his pick to lead NASA * Xbox co-founder J Allard is working on 'breakthrough' devices at Amazon * GitHub Users Angry at the Prospect of AI-Written Issues From Copilot * Using technology may sharpen aging brains, not harm them * We Bought a 'Peeing' Robot Attack Dog From Temu. It Was Even Weirder Than Expected * Humanoid Robots for $3000, Hugging Face Host: Leo Laporte [https://twit.tv/people/leo-laporte] Guests: Louis Maresca [https://twit.tv/people/louis-maresca], Doc Rock [https://www.createbetter.life/], and Iain Thomson [https://bsky.app/profile/iainthomson.bsky.social] Download or subscribe to This Week in Tech at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech [https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech] Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit [https://twit.tv/clubtwit] Sponsors: * zscaler.com/security [http://zscaler.com/security] * canary.tools/twit - use code: TWIT [http://canary.tools/twit] * expressvpn.com/twit [http://expressvpn.com/twit] * spaceship.com/twit [http://spaceship.com/twit]

In this jam-packed episode celebrating Towel Day, the TWiT crew dives into Apple's terrible week with Trump's tariff threats, Google and Microsoft's latest AI advances, the death of CAPTCHAs, and some wild new tech including laser-powered smart homes and sock-picking robot vacuums. * Trump's Phone Tariff Ultimatum - President threatens 25% tariffs on iPhones and Samsung devices unless manufacturing moves to the US, putting Apple in an impossible position between economics and politics * The Sock-Stealing Robot Revolution - Jennifer tests a $2,600 Roborock vacuum with an arm that picks up socks and occasionally tries to grab cats * Microsoft's AI Science Breakthrough - Microsoft Build showcases agentic AI platform that helped create new coolant liquids by analyzing scientific journals and generating novel molecular compounds * Windows Goes Agentic - Microsoft announces MCP protocol integration into Windows, raising both excitement about AI capabilities and concerns about data security * Gaming Industry Consolidation - FTC finally drops its challenge to Microsoft's Activision Blizzard acquisition after three years of failed legal battles * Meta's Monopoly Defense Strategy - Company argues that Instagram and WhatsApp acquisitions were beneficial rather than anti-competitive, as antitrust trial concludes * Google's Hyper-Realistic AI Videos - Veo 3 generates convincing fake videos that blur the line between reality and AI creation, raising concerns about misinformation * Revenge Porn Legislation Concerns - New "Take It Down" Act passes with bipartisan support but raises censorship worries about its 48-hour removal requirements * Smart Glasses Make a Comeback - Google announces Android XR partnerships with Warby Parker and Gentle Monster, signaling the return of consumer AR eyewear * The $6.5 Billion AI Hardware Gamble - OpenAI's record-breaking acquisition of Jony Ive's design firm sparks debate about whether AI needs dedicated hardware devices * Amazon's Smart Speaker Surveillance - Investigation reveals how much personal data Echo devices collect and store, highlighting the privacy costs of convenient AI assistants * The Death of CAPTCHAs - AI now solves visual puzzles better than humans, making traditional bot-detection methods obsolete and forcing a rethink of online security * America Abandons the Penny - The US will stop minting pennies due to production costs exceeding face value, ending a century-old currency tradition * Air Traffic Control Crisis Exposed - Newark Airport's radar failures reveal America's dangerously outdated aviation infrastructure held together by 1990s technology and hope * Fortnite's App Store Victory - Epic Games successfully returns to iOS after Apple quickly capitulates under legal pressure, ending years of bitter disputes * Brain-Computer Interface Competition - Valve's Gabe Newell announces Neuralink competitor, expanding the race to connect human brains directly to computers * Infrared Contact Lenses Enable Night Vision - Researchers develop contacts that let wearers see heat signatures even with eyes closed, promising superhuman vision capabilities * 23andMe's Genetic Data Gold Rush - Regeneron Pharmaceuticals acquires the DNA testing company for $256 million, raising questions about genetic privacy and * Stolen These show notes have been truncated due to length. For the full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech/episodes/1033 [https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech/episodes/1033] Host: Leo Laporte [https://twit.tv/people/leo-laporte] Guests: Jennifer Pattison Tuohy [https://twit.tv/people/jennifer-pattison-tuohy], Brian McCullough [https://bsky.app/profile/brianmc.bsky.social], and Mike Elgan [https://mikeelgan.substack.com/] Sponsors: * outsystems.com/twit [http://outsystems.com/twit] * expressvpn.com/twit [http://expressvpn.com/twit] * spaceship.com/twit [http://spaceship.com/twit] * uscloud.com [http://uscloud.com] * storyblok.com/twittv-25 [https://storyblok.com/twittv-25]