Hard Fork

Why Roomba Died + Tech Predictions for 2026 + A Hard Forkin’ Xmas Song

This week, iRobot, the pioneering American robotics company behind the Roomba, filed for bankruptcy and announced that it would be taken over by its Chinese creditor. Colin Angle, a co-founder and a former longtime chief executive of the company, joins us to explain why the company lost its market dominance and what America should do to protect its newest crop of A.I. and robotics start-ups from the same fate. Then, we settle the score on our high, medium and low predictions from last year and lay down our new ones — including a spicy take on who will take over after Tim Cook at Apple. And finally, we wish all of our listeners a very happy holiday season with our annual tech-themed Christmas carol.   Guest: * Colin Angle, iRobot co-founder and former chief executive for over three decades.   Additional Reading:  * Roomba Maker iRobot Files for Bankruptcy, With Chinese Supplier Taking Control [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/15/business/roomba-irobot-bankruptcy.html] * iRobot Is in Trouble, but Roomba Is Already Dead [https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/roomba-obit/] * Our 2025 Tech Predictions and Resolutions [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/03/podcasts/hardfork-predictions-resolutions.html?]   We want to hear from you. Email us at hardfork@nytimes.com [hardfork@nytimes.com]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/hardfork] and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@hardfork]. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts [http://nytimes.com/podcasts] or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher [https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher]. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Australia Kicks Kids Off Social Media + Is the A.I. Water Issue Fake? + Hard Fork Wrapped

This week, Australia implemented the most aggressive social media ban in a democracy to date, kicking children under 16 off 10 of the most popular social platforms. We discuss how the platforms lost the argument around child safety and whether others will follow Australia’s lead. Then, the blogger Andy Masley joins us to separate fact from fiction on the topic of A.I. water use. Is it a distraction from other more pressing environmental concerns? And finally, our first-ever “Hard Fork” Wrapped: We break down our favorite “Hard Fork” stats from 2025 and bring you up to date on three of our biggest stories of the year.   Guests: * Andy Masley, blogger The Weird Turn Pro [https://andymasley.substack.com/]   Additional Reading:  * A Grand Social Media Experiment Begins in Australia [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/07/world/asia/australia-social-media-ban-under-16.html] * The A.I. water issue is fake [https://andymasley.substack.com/p/the-ai-water-issue-is-fake] * Why Is Everyone So Wrong About A.I. Water Use? [https://youtu.be/H_c6MWk7PQc?si=S7dH0l-xb1Xe5OkH] * Trump Signs Executive Order to Neuter State A.I. Laws [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/11/technology/ai-trump-executive-order.html] * Trump Clears Sale of More Powerful Nvidia A.I. Chips to China [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/08/business/trump-nvidia-chips-china.html] * We Asked Roblox’s C.E.O. About Child Safety. It Got Tense. [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/21/podcasts/hardfork-roblox-child-safety.html]   We want to hear from you. Email us at hardfork@nytimes.com [hardfork@nytimes.com]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/hardfork] and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@hardfork]. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts [http://nytimes.com/podcasts] or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher [https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher]. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

OpenAI Calls a ‘Code Red’ + Which Model Should I Use? + The Hard Fork Review of Slop

It’s A.I. model rollout season in Silicon Valley, and OpenAI appears to be feeling the pressure. Sam Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, sent a memo to staff on Monday declaring a “code red” effort to improve ChatGPT and delay other initiatives. We explain why the latest frontier models from Google and Anthropic have OpenAI spooked and how the company is reshuffling priorities to respond. Then, we give our honest thoughts on which A.I models we like best and share how we’re using A.I. in our day-to-day lives. And finally, we take a look at some of the most popular A.I.-generated content on the internet this week in our latest installment of the Hard Fork Review of Slop. Additional Reading:  * What OpenAI Did When ChatGPT Users Lost Touch With Reality [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/23/technology/openai-chatgpt-users-risks.html] * Google Unveils Gemini 3, With Improved Coding and Search Abilities [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/18/technology/google-gemini-3.html] * Tourists Tricked by Fake Royal Christmas Market [https://www.bbc.com/news/videos/c4gjgwll6glo] * Deepfake of North Carolina lawmaker used in award-winning Whirlpool video [https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/11/30/deep-fake-whirlool-brazil/]   We want to hear from you. Email us at hardfork@nytimes.com [hardfork@nytimes.com]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/hardfork] and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@hardfork]. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts [http://nytimes.com/podcasts] or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher [https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher]. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Hard Fork’s 50 Most Iconic Technologies of 2025

Last year we debuted Hard Fork’s 100 Most Iconic Technologies list, in which we ranked the technologies from across all of history that best define life as we know it. To our surprise, it became one of our most popular episodes ever. So now we’re doing it again — with a twist. All year, we’ve been collecting ideas for the 50 Most Iconic Technologies of 2025, and this week we present them to you, along with our case for why each entry played an important part in defining this year, for better or worse.   Additional Reading:  * Check out last year’s list: Hard Fork’s 100 Most Iconic Technologies  [https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/29/podcasts/hardfork-iconic-100-technologies.html] * Meet the Artist Who Bedazzled Naomi Osaka’s Labubus [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/04/style/naomi-osaka-labubu-us-open.html]   We want to hear from you. Email us at hardfork@nytimes.com [hardfork@nytimes.com]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/hardfork] and TikTok [https://www.tiktok.com/@hardfork]. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts [http://nytimes.com/podcasts] or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher [https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher]. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

The Interview: How Wikipedia Is Responding to the Culture Wars

Last month our colleague Lulu Garcia-Navarro had a conversation with Wikipedia’s co-founder Jimmy Wales about the challenges the site is facing — including by right-wing influencers who claim it is biased and by A.I. chatbots that compete with its content. We found the conversation interesting, and think you might too. So to tide you over until our special holiday episode on Friday, we’re bringing you that conversation from the New York Times podcast “The Interview.”   Guests:  * Jimmy Wales, co-founder of Wikipedia and author of “The Seven Rules of Trust: A Blueprint for Building Things That Last”   Additional Reading: * The Culture Wars Came for Wikipedia. Jimmy Wales Is Staying the Course. [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/magazine/jimmy-wales-interview.html] * Elon Musk Challenges Wikipedia With His Own A.I. Encyclopedia [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/27/technology/grokipedia-launch-elon-musk.html] * Elon Musk Groks Wikipedia [https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/31/podcasts/characterais-teen-chatbot-crackdown-elon-musk-groks-wikipedia-48-hours-without-ai.html]   We want to hear from you. Email us at hardfork@nytimes.com [hardfork@nytimes.com]. Find “Hard Fork” on YouTube and TikTok. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts [http://nytimes.com/podcasts] or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher [https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher]. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.