Tech Gets Real: Protect Yourself in the AI Era

Google's AI search revamp looks cool, but...

Google is overhauling its search experience to expand the role of AI – and make it even less likely that you will look at the list of web links that used to define Google Search. This will further erode investment in the web, and create new opportunities for propagandists. Tech Gets Real is a show about staying in control in a time of rapid technological change. I'm veteran tech journalist David Meyer, and I've been covering topics like online privacy and freedom for two decades. If you like this, please hit like and subscribe, and share it with others who might find it useful. REFERENCES: Google’s blog post on its search overhaul https://blog.google/products-and-platforms/products/search/search-io-2026/ [https://blog.google/products-and-platforms/products/search/search-io-2026/] Guardian on Eric Schmidt getting booed https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/18/eric-schmidt-ai-university-commencement-speech-booed [https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/18/eric-schmidt-ai-university-commencement-speech-booed]

We've always wanted tech to bring us together

Harvard Kennedy School fellow Krystian Łukasik joins Tech Gets Real to discuss his new project, the Techno-Optimism Archive. It’s a valuable reminder of how new technologies have been hyped since the nineteenth century – and a lot of these claims will sound very familiar to those tracking the hype around AI. Here’s the site: https://technooptimism.org/ [https://technooptimism.org/] Tech Gets Real is a show about staying in control in a time of rapid technological change. I'm veteran tech journalist David Meyer, and I've been covering topics like online privacy and freedom for two decades. If you like this, please hit like and subscribe, and share it with others who might find it useful. REFERENCES: Musk on work being optional https://fortune.com/2026/01/19/when-does-elon-musk-say-work-will-be-optional-and-money-will-be-irrelevant-ai-robotics/ [https://fortune.com/2026/01/19/when-does-elon-musk-say-work-will-be-optional-and-money-will-be-irrelevant-ai-robotics/] Pessimists Archive https://pessimistsarchive.org/ [https://pessimistsarchive.org/]

Hacker-friendly AI is changing everything

The latest AI models, which have serious cybersecurity capabilities, are having a rapid impact on policy in the US, where the Trump administration has suddenly realised it’s not a great idea to maintain its hands-off policy to AI development. But in Europe, which lacks early access to models like Anthropic’s Mythos and OpenAI’s GPT-5.5, the situation presents a threat to which the European Commission has no useful answer. Tech Gets Real is a show about staying in control in a time of rapid technological change. I'm veteran tech journalist David Meyer, and I've been covering topics like online privacy and freedom for two decades. If you like this, please hit like and subscribe, and share it with others who might find it useful. REFERENCES: UK AI Security Institute on GPT-5.5 https://www.aisi.gov.uk/blog/our-evaluation-of-openais-gpt-5-5-cyber-capabilities [https://www.aisi.gov.uk/blog/our-evaluation-of-openais-gpt-5-5-cyber-capabilities] My ISMG article on the MEPs’ letter to the Commission https://www.govinfosecurity.com/european-meps-push-for-stronger-post-mythos-cybersecurity-a-31599 [https://www.govinfosecurity.com/european-meps-push-for-stronger-post-mythos-cybersecurity-a-31599] Wednesday’s European Parliament IMCO committee debate https://multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/en/webstreaming/committee-on-internal-market-and-consumer-protection-ordinary-meeting_20260506-1430-COMMITTEE-IMCO [https://multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/en/webstreaming/committee-on-internal-market-and-consumer-protection-ordinary-meeting_20260506-1430-COMMITTEE-IMCO] CNN on OpenAI wanting to expand GPT-5.5 access https://edition.cnn.com/2026/04/29/tech/openai-cybersecurity [https://edition.cnn.com/2026/04/29/tech/openai-cybersecurity] New York Times on Trump administration’s change of heart https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/04/technology/trump-ai-models.html [https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/04/technology/trump-ai-models.html] US Center for AI Standards and Innovation announces early access deal with Google, Microsoft and xAI https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2026/05/caisi-signs-agreements-regarding-frontier-ai-national-security-testing [https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2026/05/caisi-signs-agreements-regarding-frontier-ai-national-security-testing]

Age verification comes to Europe, like it or not

The European Commission is forcing age verification on the EU internet to protect kids from the ills of social media, without creating a new law – and without admitting that it’s forcing social platforms to adopt the technology. My article on this for Information Security Media Group: https://www.govinfosecurity.com/europe-gliding-toward-mandatory-online-age-verification-a-31547 [https://www.govinfosecurity.com/europe-gliding-toward-mandatory-online-age-verification-a-31547] Including a detail I forgot to mention here – that the Commission is doing all this before hearing the findings of an expert panel who were tasked with advising it on exactly this subject! Tech Gets Real is a show about staying in control in a time of rapid technological change. I'm veteran tech journalist David Meyer, and I've been covering topics like online privacy and freedom for two decades. If you like this, please hit like and subscribe, and share it with others who might find it useful. REFERENCES: EC statement on Meta DSA breaches https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_26_920 [https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_26_920] Henna Virkkunen’s statement on age verification https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/speech_26_921 [https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/speech_26_921] BBC on Roblox and age estimation accuracy https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj94y9r0p10o [https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cj94y9r0p10o] Virkkunen’s press conference https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/media/video/I-288345 [https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/media/video/I-288345] Politico report stating eight countries aren’t keen on the app https://www.politico.eu/article/brussels-tells-eu-countries-to-use-its-age-check-app/ [https://www.politico.eu/article/brussels-tells-eu-countries-to-use-its-age-check-app/] Molly Rose Foundation research on Australia’s social media restrictions https://mollyrosefoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/MRF_Australia-Social-Media-Ban-Research_Briefing-April-26.pdf [https://mollyrosefoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/MRF_Australia-Social-Media-Ban-Research_Briefing-April-26.pdf]

xAI is a problem for SpaceX's IPO

This week’s TGR is a grab-bag of the latest interesting AI news, starting with SpaceX warning potential IPO investors about the risk posed by xAI and its Grok chatbot. Also included: Grok plays along with user delusions, Meta tracks its workers, the US accuses China of “industrial scale” AI intellectual property theft, and Mythos’s exclusive access program isn’t so exclusive after all. Tech Gets Real is a show about staying in control in a time of rapid technological change. I'm veteran tech journalist David Meyer, and I've been covering topics like online privacy and freedom for two decades. If you like this, please hit like and subscribe, and share it with others who might find it useful. REFERENCES: Reuters on SpaceX warning investors about xAI risk https://www.reuters.com/world/spacex-warns-that-inquiries-into-sexually-abusive-ai-imagery-may-hurt-market-2026-04-23/ [https://www.reuters.com/world/spacex-warns-that-inquiries-into-sexually-abusive-ai-imagery-may-hurt-market-2026-04-23/] Guardian on the paper about AI and delusions https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/apr/24/musk-grok-x-ai-researchers-delusional-advice-inputs [https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/apr/24/musk-grok-x-ai-researchers-delusional-advice-inputs] The paper itself https://arxiv.org/pdf/2604.13860 [https://arxiv.org/pdf/2604.13860] TechCrunch on Meta tracking employee mouse movements and keystrokes https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/21/meta-will-record-employees-keystrokes-and-use-it-to-train-its-ai-models/ [https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/21/meta-will-record-employees-keystrokes-and-use-it-to-train-its-ai-models/] Financial Times on White House’s China AI accusation https://www.ft.com/content/abde4e1e-c69a-4cc4-ad96-d88308314298 [https://www.ft.com/content/abde4e1e-c69a-4cc4-ad96-d88308314298] Bloomberg on outsiders accessing Anthropic’s Mythos https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-04-21/anthropic-s-mythos-model-is-being-accessed-by-unauthorized-users [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-04-21/anthropic-s-mythos-model-is-being-accessed-by-unauthorized-users] TechCrunch on Sam Altman throwing shade on Mythos https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/21/sam-altman-throws-shade-at-anthropics-cyber-model-mythos-fear-based-marketing/ [https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/21/sam-altman-throws-shade-at-anthropics-cyber-model-mythos-fear-based-marketing/]