Tech Pulse

This week on Tech Pulse, we narrate two articles spanning artificial intelligence and digital wellness.A growing number of Americans are turning to AI chatbots for financial advice, from debt payoff strategies to retirement planning. The piece explores why the guidance often nails the basics, where it can go dangerously wrong, and why experts warn that confidence isn't the same as accuracy when real money is on the line.Elsewhere, a conversation dives into the hidden toll of constant multitasking. Drawing on new research into glucose, attention, and mental fatigue, the discussion unpacks why juggling too many screens leaves people foggy and drained, and offers science-backed strategies for reclaiming focus, energy, and a sense of control over an overwhelming flood of information.Aftersight is a media organization that serves individuals with barriers to print. This podcast is produced by Aftersight under the Chafee Amendment to the Copyright Act which states that authorized nonprofit organizations whose primary mission is to provide copyrighted works in specialized formats to individuals with barriers to print are exempt. By continuing to listen, you verify you are blind, have low vision, or barriers to reading print materials.Chapters:(00:00) - (00:10) - AI Chatbots are Offering Financial Advice. Should You Trust Them? (06:09) - Digital Habbits that Rob Attention and Energy - And How to Combat Them

This week on Tech Pulse, we narrate two articles spanning digital addiction and battery technology.A former city council member reflects on the months he spent locked away from his smartphone, and the surprising clarity that followed. Stripped of the device that once commanded his every waking moment, he discovers a mental stillness he hadn't felt in over a decade. But when freedom finally comes, so does an uncomfortable question: can that clarity survive re-entry into a hyperconnected life?A wave of American startups is racing to build a battery that owes nothing to China, swapping rare, hard-to-get metals for the same ingredient found in a saltshaker. Backed by former Tesla engineers and a major automaker, these sodium-based cells promise to be cheaper, safer, and less prone to catching fire than today's dominant technology. China is racing too, and the winner could control the next era of energy storage.Aftersight is a media organization that serves individuals with barriers to print. This podcast is produced by Aftersight under the Chafee Amendment to the Copyright Act which states that authorized nonprofit organizations whose primary mission is to provide copyrighted works in specialized formats to individuals with barriers to print are exempt. By continuing to listen, you verify you are blind, have low vision, or barriers to reading print materials.Chapters: (00:00) - (00:10) - I Didn't Realize How Addicted I Was to My Phone - Until I Went to Prison (10:54) - China-Free Batteries Made from Salt Are Finally Here

This week on Tech Pulse, we narrate two articles spanning automotive AI and mental health technology.When a mechanic's quote feels too steep, more drivers are turning to a chatbot for a second opinion. One driver's five-figure repair estimate shrank by half after an AI flagged it as inflated, and another fixed her air conditioning for under two hundred dollars. But the pros warn a bad prompt can turn a simple fix into an expensive spiral, or land the wrong part in the wrong car.Meanwhile, millions of Americans are confiding suicidal thoughts and mental health struggles to AI chatbots, often because a real appointment is months away. Psychiatrists warn the results can be dangerous: chatbots have missed crisis warning signs, reinforced delusions, and in some cases been linked to tragic outcomes. Researchers are now asking whether these tools were ever built for the moments that matter most.Aftersight is a media organization that serves individuals with barriers to print. This podcast is produced by Aftersight under the Chafee Amendment to the Copyright Act which states that authorized nonprofit organizations whose primary mission is to provide copyrighted works in specialized formats to individuals with barriers to print are exempt. By continuing to listen, you verify you are blind, have low vision, or barriers to reading print materials.Chapters: (00:00) - (00:11) - The Pros and Cons of Using AI to Diagnose Your Car Problems (06:39) - Millions Are Turning to AI Chatbots for Mental Health Support. Psychiatrists Warn It Is Not Safe Yet.

This week on Tech Pulse, we narrate two articles spanning autonomous vehicle safety and social media's staying power.A new safety study puts robotaxis under the microscope, comparing crash rates between autonomous vehicles and human drivers across four major U.S. cities. The numbers look striking, but researchers admit a major catch in how that data gets collected. Meanwhile, U.S. senators are raising alarms about whether one automaker's self-driving safety claims can be trusted, accusing the company of cherry-picking numbers to look safer than it really is.A social app once dismissed as a hastily built rival to a billionaire's platform has quietly grown into something enormous. Half a billion people now check in monthly, drawn less by breaking news than by fandoms and a nostalgic vibe reminiscent of an earlier internet. But with no revenue numbers released, one question hangs over the growth: can it actually turn into real money?Aftersight is a media organization that serves individuals with barriers to print. This podcast is produced by Aftersight under the Chafee Amendment to the Copyright Act which states that authorized nonprofit organizations whose primary mission is to provide copyrighted works in specialized formats to individuals with barriers to print are exempt. By continuing to listen, you verify you are blind, have low vision, or barriers to reading print materials.Chapters: (00:00) - (00:13) - Waymo vs. Human Drivers: Experts Reveal Which is Safer (08:44) - Threads, Meta's 'Twitter Killer,' Finds Its People

This week on Tech Pulse, we narrate two articles spanning AI health advice and childhood play.A tech columnist hands a decade of his Apple Watch data to two AI chatbots and asks a simple question: how healthy is his heart? The answers swing wildly, from a failing grade to a passing one, depending on which bot he asks, and sometimes even when he asks the same bot twice. Doctors call the results baseless, raising questions about trusting a machine that can't make up its mind with our health data.A toy giant is quietly wiring intelligence into its classic building blocks, embedding chips that light up, roar, and battle without touching a screen. The move follows a rocky stretch and a bet that kids crave surprise as much as instructions. Not everyone is convinced the upgrade earns its keep — some worry it replaces imagination rather than fueling it.Aftersight is a media organization that serves individuals with barriers to print. This podcast is produced by Aftersight under the Chafee Amendment to the Copyright Act which states that authorized nonprofit organizations whose primary mission is to provide copyrighted works in specialized formats to individuals with barriers to print are exempt. By continuing to listen, you verify you are blind, have low vision, or barriers to reading print materials.Chapters: (00:00) - AI Health Tracker Grades (11:57) - Lego Smart Play Bricks

This week on Tech Pulse, we narrate 3 articles spanning workplace automation, human cognition, and the sharing economy.Administrative assistants have watched their profession shrink for two decades, and artificial intelligence threatens to speed the decline. But many are turning the technology into an advantage, reclaiming hours once lost to note-taking.New research suggests leaning on AI can erode the skills it's meant to support, a pattern researchers call cognitive surrender. Consultants, students, and professionals show the same trend: sharper results with AI, then a drop once it's gone.A backyard pool is becoming the summer's hottest rental commodity, as homeowners open theirs to strangers for a fee. One Alabama pool draws over a thousand guests a year, and regulators are sorting out who's liable when things go wrong.Aftersight is a media organization that serves individuals with barriers to print. This podcast is produced by Aftersight under the Chafee Amendment to the Copyright Act which states that authorized nonprofit organizations whose primary mission is to provide copyrighted works in specialized formats to individuals with barriers to print are exempt. By continuing to listen, you verify you are blind, have low vision, or barriers to reading print materials.

This week on Tech Pulse, we narrate three articles spanning robotics, wearable technology, and digital wellness.As humanoid robots grow bigger and more common in factories, engineers race to answer one question: what happens if a 200-pound machine loses its balance beside a person? A reporter surveys the safeguards meant to prevent it.Smartglasses are multiplying, but nobody agrees on what they're for. A columnist tours a market of cameras, AI assistants, and price tags reaching into the thousands, weighing whether any of it solves a real problem.Meanwhile, a $60 plastic cube is convincing phone addicts to lock themselves out of their own devices. Celebrities swear by it and downloads are surging, though some users say it hasn't changed a thing.Aftersight is a media organization that serves individuals with barriers to print. This podcast is produced by Aftersight under the Chafee Amendment to the Copyright Act which states that authorized nonprofit organizations whose primary mission is to provide copyrighted works in specialized formats to individuals with barriers to print are exempt. By continuing to listen, you verify you are blind, have low vision, or barriers to reading print materials.Chapters: (00:12) - The Quest to Make Humanoid Robots Safe Enough for Humans (06:50) - Smartglasses Are Inevitable. But What—or Who—Are They For? (15:10) - Can a $60 Plastic Cube Solve Our Screen-Time Crisis?

This week on Tech Pulse, we narrate 2 articles spanning artificial intelligence, psychology, and medical technology.Psychiatric researchers have identified three chatbot behaviors -- excessive agreement, mirrored language, and hyperpersonalized replies -- that can pull users into an "amplification spiral." Clinicians report more patients turning to AI for emotional support, with some developing dependency or distorted thinking, even as companies say they are dialing back the agreeableness.In labs across Europe and the U.S., researchers are turning food into working electronics, building batteries from vitamins and transistors from a toothpaste pigment. Tiny ingestible capsules already travel the gut, sensing signals tied to disease and broadcasting data outside the body. The goal is a capsule that finds a problem and treats it on the spot, though power and regulatory hurdles remain.Aftersight is a media organization that serves individuals with barriers to print. This podcast is produced by Aftersight under the Chafee Amendment to the Copyright Act which states that authorized nonprofit organizations whose primary mission is to provide copyrighted works in specialized formats to individuals with barriers to print are exempt. By continuing to listen, you verify you are blind, have low vision, or barriers to reading print materials.Chapters:(00:13) - The Three Chatbot Behaviors That Can Drive Humans to Delusional Thinking (06:42) - Tomorrow's Medical Sensors Might Come Served With Dinner

This week on Tech Pulse, we narrate one article spanning artificial intelligence and consumer technology.Apple finally delivers the AI-powered Siri it promised two years ago, and a reporter gets early hands-on access at Apple Park. The new assistant blends on-device and cloud-based models, can scan messages and emails to answer personal questions, and even uses the camera to size up a bookshelf. The piece weighs Apple's pitch that built-in convenience beats raw power against the privacy tradeoffs of letting an assistant see almost everything on your phone. Whether app developers actually let Siri in, and whether the privacy promises hold up under real use, will determine if this overhaul finally lives up to the hype.Aftersight is a media organization that serves individuals with barriers to print. This podcast is produced by Aftersight under the Chafee Amendment to the Copyright Act which states that authorized nonprofit organizations whose primary mission is to provide copyrighted works in specialized formats to individuals with barriers to print are exempt. By continuing to listen, you verify you are blind, have low vision, or barriers to reading print materials.

This week on Tech Pulse, we narrate three articles spanning artificial intelligence in photography, sports officiating technology, and wearable health sensing.Apple's iPhone camera chief sits down to discuss the company's new AI photo tools coming in iOS 27. Features like Extend and Spatial Reframe can generate pixels that weren't in the original image — filling in backgrounds, widening frames, shifting perspectives. The piece explores where Apple draws the line between helpful editing and fabrication, and why the company insists its approach is more restrained than what competitors offer.At the 2026 World Cup, referee decisions are getting a technological overhaul. Every player in the tournament has been body-scanned to create a precise digital twin, which officials can drop into virtual simulations to review disputed calls from any angle. The piece details how sensors inside the match ball, a network of high-resolution cameras, and millimeter-accurate 3D models are combining to make officiating more objective than ever before — even if the stakes are sometimes just a single toe.Apple's long-running effort to build noninvasive blood glucose monitoring into the Apple Watch is still years from reality. A reported leadership change on the internal project signals ongoing work, but FDA clearance and accuracy standards remain steep barriers. Current wearables can display glucose data from a separate monitor — but the watch itself still can't measure blood sugar directly.Aftersight is a media organization that serves individuals with barriers to print. This podcast is produced by Aftersight under the Chafee Amendment to the Copyright Act which states that authorized nonprofit organizations whose primary mission is to provide copyrighted works in specialized formats to individuals with barriers to print are exempt. By continuing to listen, you verify you are blind, have low vision, or barriers to reading print materials.Chapters: (00:15) - Apple's Camera Chief Thinks AI Can Give You Superpowers (09:20) - Cameras, Sensors, and 3D Body Scans: All the Tech Helping Eliminate Blown Calls (19:02) - Apple Watch Glucose Monitoring Project Still Faces FDA and Accuracy Hurdles