The Vergecast

Kids these days, you know? They love the '90s, they want everything to be colorful and bold and bouncy, and they really, truly love Snapchat. And the tech world is listening. On this episode, The Verge's Allison Johnson joins to talk about her review of the new Razr Ultra, the new-look Android 16, and why she thinks we're getting ever closer to a true flip phone resurgence. (Also: why we're not quite there yet.) After that, The Verge's Alex Heath explains what's going on with Snapchat, and how it's possible that the app is more popular than ever but still can't figure out how to cash in. It all makes us wonder: is there a business in chat at all? Finally, we answer a question on the Vergecast Hotline (call 866-VERGE11 or email vergecast@theverge.com [vergecast@theverge.com]!) about a possible outcome for Chrome after the Google search trial ends. Further reading: * Motorola Razr Ultra (2025) review: looking sharp [https://www.theverge.com/reviews/667277/motorola-razr-ultra-2025-review-battery-screen] * The best folding phones you can buy [https://www.theverge.com/tech/635839/best-foldable-phone] * Android’s youthful new design language just dropped [https://www.theverge.com/news/664316/android-material-three-expressive-design-ui-io] * Snapchat scraps ‘simple’ redesign as it loses users in North America [https://www.theverge.com/news/658306/snapchat-simple-redesign-losing-north-american-users] * Zuckerberg offered to buy Snapchat for $6 billion. [https://www.theverge.com/policy/649121/zuckerberg-snapchat-6-billion-offer] * Evan Spiegel explains why Snap is betting on Spectacles [https://www.theverge.com/2024/9/18/24248441/evan-spiegel-spectacles-ar-glasses-snapchat-interview] * Breaking down the DOJ’s plan to end Google’s search monopoly [https://www.theverge.com/2024/11/27/24302415/doj-google-search-antitrust-remedies-chrome-android] * Why are companies lining up to buy Chrome? [https://www.theverge.com/chrome/656613/google-chrome-buyers-openai-yahoo-perplexity] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

Names are hard — but they don't have to be this hard. Nilay, David, and The Verge's Jake Kastrenakes start the show with some personal news, before digging into the monumentally silly thinking behind Warner Bros. Discovery re-re-naming its streaming service HBO Max. After that, and some more streaming news, we turn our attention to the gadget news of the week, including the long-awaited release of CarPlay Ultra and the latest announcements from the Android team at Google. Finally, in the lightning round, it's time for Brendan Carr is a Dummy, some debate on the future of Airbnb, and a brief party speaker update. Because the mystery continues. Further reading: * It’s not Max, it’s HBO Max  [https://www.theverge.com/news/666707/hbo-max-returning-rebrand-warner-bros-discovery] * Max was an all-time bad rebrand [https://www.theverge.com/news/667047/hbo-max-rebrand-criticism] How HBO’s creatives survived corporate chaos [https://www.theverge.com/23588100/hbo-its-not-tv-book-interview-warner-media-discovery] ESPN’s standalone streaming app launches this fall for $30 a month  [https://www.theverge.com/news/666019/espn-standalone-subscription-service-price-disney-plus-hulu] Fox One streaming service will arrive just in time for football season  [https://www.theverge.com/news/664913/fox-sports-news-streaming-service-nfl-season-launch] Netflix’s ad tier is growing really fast — and that means more ads [https://www.theverge.com/news/667042/netflix-ad-supported-tier-94-million-users-upfront-2025] Netflix is bringing back Star Search as a live show [https://www.theverge.com/news/666960/netflix-star-search-live-show] YouTube will stream an opening week NFL game for free  [https://www.theverge.com/news/666236/youtube-nfl-week-1-free-game-stream-brazil-chargers] Peacock’s NBA coverage will add an overlay with live shot stats  [https://www.theverge.com/news/664513/peacock-nba-basketball-nbc-overlay-scorecard] * Apple’s CarPlay Ultra is finally here, if you have a new Aston Martin [https://www.theverge.com/news/667525/apple-carplay-ultra-aston-martin-launch] Apple’s fancy new CarPlay will only work wirelessly [https://www.theverge.com/2024/6/17/24180353/apple-carplay-wireless-system-features] Android 16 Material Three Expressive UI coming in beta this month  [https://www.theverge.com/news/664316/android-material-three-expressive-design-ui-io] Google’s splashy new Android UI is coming in beta this month.  [https://www.theverge.com/news/665707/googles-new-android-ui] It’s Dieter! [https://www.theverge.com/news/666082/its-dieter] * https://www.fastcompany.com/91324586/whatsapp-new-netflix-doc-f1-advertising-entertainment * Warner Bros. is launching a cinematic universe for brands [https://www.theverge.com/news/667562/wbd-storyverse-the-matrix-friends-harry-potter] * Here's How NBCU Is Integrating Brand Sponsors for SNL50 [https://www.adweek.com/convergent-tv/nbcuniversal-snl50-integrating-brand-sponsors/] * FCC threatens EchoStar licenses for spectrum that SpaceX wants to use [https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/05/fcc-threatens-echostar-licenses-for-spectrum-that-spacex-wants-to-use/] * Airbnb’s new app has all of your vacation extras in one place [https://www.theverge.com/news/666191/airbnb-new-app-services-experiences] 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]

The Verge's Will Poor recently came home from vacation and discovered he had an insect problem. More specifically, his Sonos speaker had an insect problem. Will brings us the story of what really happened there, and what he discovered about how the animal kingdom — and the electronics world — works. After that, The Verge's Andru Marino tells us about his research on all things AI podcasts. He tells us why people are so hooked on NotebookLM's Audio Overviews, where these generated shows fall short, and what all us human podcasters could learn from the bots. Finally, The Verge's Jennifer Pattison Tuohy helps us answer a question on the Vergecast Hotline (call 866-VERGE11 or email vergecast@theverge.com!) all about smart lights. Which get complicated faster than you think. Further reading: * Oh no, Google is turning everything into a podcast [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGtINs3R5EM] * Google’s NotebookLM AI podcasts add ‘interactive’ mode for some Q-and-A [https://www.theverge.com/2024/12/13/24318099/google-notebooklm-audio-overviews-talk-plus] * Steven Johnson on Google, NotebookLM, and AI research [https://www.theverge.com/24249388/notebooklm-google-steven-johnson-vergecast] * A guide to getting started with smart lighting: When to use smart switches and smart bulbs [https://www.theverge.com/23156554/smart-bulbs-switch-lighting-guide-how-to] * Inovelli smart switches [https://inovelli.com/collections/smart-switches] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

Where will Meta, Apple, and Google be three years from now? It's starting to look like they might all be very different. Nilay, David, and The Verge's Richard Lawler start the show with Eddy Cue's testimony in the Google search trial, in which Cue argued that AI is taking over — and that Google should be allowed to keep paying Apple gobs of money. The hosts also chat about the latest in the Meta trials, and how the recent Apple ruling is already changing the App Store. Then, there are some gadgets to talk about: the panopticon-slash-killer-app coming for Meta's smart glasses, the new Surface Pro and Surface Laptop, and a lot of new iPhones. In the lightning round, we do another round of Brendan Carr is a Dummy, then talk about some new Netflix designs and the latest in our worldwide hunt for party speakers. Further reading: * Eddy Cue is fighting to save Apple’s $20 billion paycheck from Google [https://www.theverge.com/policy/662974/google-search-remedies-trial-eddy-cue-apple-deal-ai] * Apple’s Eddy Cue: ‘You may not need an iPhone 10 years from now’ [https://www.theverge.com/news/662769/apple-iphone-may-not-need-10-years] * Google searches are falling in Safari for the first time ever — probably because of AI [https://www.theverge.com/news/662725/google-search-safari-ai-apple-eddy-cue-testimony] Google's statement about Search traffic [https://blog.google/products/search/statement-press-reports-about-search-traffic/] Apple is looking at adding Perplexity and other AI search engines to Safari [https://www.theverge.com/news/662656/apple-ai-search-alternatives-eddy-cue-testimony] Amazon now has a ‘Get book’ button in its iOS Kindle app [https://www.theverge.com/news/661719/amazon-app-ios-apple-iphone-ipad-kindle-buy-books] Epic will use an EU account to bring Fortnite back to the US App Store [https://www.theverge.com/news/661237/epic-games-fortnite-apple-us-ios-app-store-eu-account] Patreon’s iOS update allows creators to bypass in-app purchases [https://www.theverge.com/news/662449/patreon-ios-app-update-alternative-apple-payments] Apple is trying to halt the App Store ruling. [https://www.theverge.com/news/663154/apple-is-trying-to-halt-the-app-store-ruling] Apple files appeal to wrest back control of its App Store [https://www.theverge.com/news/661032/apple-epic-games-app-store-antitrust-ninth-circuit] A new bill would force Apple to allow third-party app stores [https://www.theverge.com/news/662180/app-store-freedom-act-apple-third-party-app-stores] DOJ’s proposed Google changes would ‘deeply undermine user trust,’ search chief says [https://www.theverge.com/policy/662198/doj-google-antitrust-trial-search-chief-privacy] Firefox could be doomed without Google search deal, says executive [https://www.theverge.com/news/660548/firefox-google-search-revenue-share-doj-antitrust-remedies] DOJ asks court to split up Google’s ad tech empire [https://www.theverge.com/news/661833/google-ad-tech-business-doj-break-up] Threads was originally going to live inside the Instagram app | The Verge [https://www.theverge.com/news/663390/threads-app-inside-instagram-mosseri] Instagram doesn’t want to be a ‘lean-back experience.’ | The Verge [https://www.theverge.com/news/663446/instagram-doesnt-want-to-be-a-lean-back-experience] ‘TikTok is probably the fiercest competition that we have faced.’ | The Verge [https://www.theverge.com/news/663526/tiktok-is-probably-the-fiercest-competition-that-we-have-faced] Instagram has spent up to $700 million in a year to lure creators. [https://www.theverge.com/news/663664/instagram-has-spent-up-to-700-million-in-a-year-to-lure-creators] Mosseri calls the first version of Reels his ‘biggest mistake.’ | The Verge [https://www.theverge.com/news/663633/mosseri-calls-the-first-version-of-reels-his-biggest-mistake] Meta’s new AI glasses could have a ‘super-sensing’ mode with facial recognition [https://www.theverge.com/news/663297/meta-live-ai-super-sensing-smart-glasses-facial-recognition-privacy] Apple is planning smart glasses with and without AR [https://www.theverge.com/news/663600/apple-smart-glasses-chips-ar-chip] Apple ‘iPhone Air’ rumor suggests a bigger screen coming in 2027 [https://www.theverge.com/news/661009/apple-iphone-air-2-slim-2027] Apple may stagger next year’s iPhones to make way for a foldable [https://www.theverge.com/news/660739/apple-may-stagger-next-years-iphones-to-make-way-for-a-foldable] Microsoft’s smaller Surface Pro has a 12-inch display and starts at $799 [https://www.theverge.com/news/658523/microsoft-surface-pro-12-inch-smaller-specs-release-date] Microsoft shrinks its Surface Laptop down to 13 inches, priced at $899 [https://www.theverge.com/news/658529/microsoft-surface-laptop-13-inch-specs-release-date] Microsoft’s new Surface devices ditch magnetic charging port for USB-C [https://www.theverge.com/news/660005/microsoft-surface-connect-port-replaced-usb-c-charging] How Microsoft shrunk its Surface devices [https://www.theverge.com/notepad-microsoft-newsletter/661617/microsoft-surface-hardware-engineering-labs-tour-notepad] Policing News, Policing DEI: The FCC’s Shifting Priorities Erode Its Credibility [https://www.aei.org/technology-and-innovation/policing-news-policing-dei-the-fccs-shifting-priorities-erode-its-credibility/] OpenAI abandons plan to become a for-profit company [https://www.theverge.com/openai/661303/openai-stays-nonprofit-sam-altman-employee-memo] Netflix is getting a big TV revamp [https://www.theverge.com/news/662407/netflix-tv-redesign-revamp-update] Netflix will try a TikTok-like feed on its mobile app [https://www.theverge.com/news/662408/netflix-tiktok-feed-vertical-video-mobile-app] I put four robot lawnmowers through a brutal backyard battle [https://www.theverge.com/reviews/661136/robot-lawnmowers-husqvarna-navimow-mammotion-dreame-head-to-head] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

The Verge’s Victoria Song joins the show to talk about a new genre of gadget, which both she and David have been testing a lot: the AI-powered, always-on voice recorder. Vee shares what she’s learned from devices like Bee, and why it’s going to be so hard for AI to figure out what really matters in our lives. After that, The Verge’s Nathan Edwards and keyboard maker Ryan Norbauer tell the story of the Seneca, a $3,600 keyboard that Norbauer built to his own incredibly exacting specifications. They tell David about what it really takes to make a great keyboard, and why making one is worth the effort. Finally, in the lightning round (call 866-VERGE11 or email vergecast@theverge.com!), we answer a couple of questions about the future of Chrome. Further reading: * Bee review: I outsourced my memory to AI and all I got was fanfiction [https://www.theverge.com/reviews/627056/bee-review-ai-wearable] * The Plaude NotePin is a great AI voice recorder, and it’s totally doomed [https://www.theverge.com/2024/9/14/24243781/plaud-notepin-review-ai-voice-recorder] * Friend: a new digital companion for the AI age [https://www.theverge.com/2024/7/30/24207029/friend-ai-companion-gadget] * The Norbauer Seneca [https://www.norbauer.co/pages/the-seneca] * The $3,600 keyboard that’s optimized for joy. [https://www.theverge.com/keyboards/633344/norbauer-seneca-3600-keyboard-peek] * Why are companies lining up to buy Chrome? [https://www.theverge.com/chrome/656613/google-chrome-buyers-openai-yahoo-perplexity] * Sundar Pichai says the DOJ’s antitrust plan could kill Google Search [https://www.theverge.com/policy/658738/google-ceo-sundar-pichai-testifies-doj-search-antitrust-trial] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]