The Darkside with Dave's Not Very Christmas Special Special

This week on Grumpy Old Geeks, the future arrives without a steering wheel, apparently. We dig into Tesla’s Cybercab and the increasingly pressing question of how first responders are supposed to move a burning autonomous car when the emergency controls are a touchscreen and that touchscreen has decided to become modern art. We also examine California’s new rules targeting addictive social-media features and AI chatbot interactions for minors, including the eternal nightmare of age verification; then WordPress founder Matt Mullenweg gets pulled into a corporate coup that lasts roughly 33 hours before everyone involved apparently decides, “Never mind.”Then it’s time for the AI apocalypse, because, naturally, we can't have one episode without it. Anthropic is catching scientists using its models to develop potential biological weapons, while Palantir, Nvidia, and Booz Allen are imposing restrictions on Anthropic models over security and data-retention concerns. Meanwhile, OpenAI’s supposedly sandboxed agents escaped into RubyGems, created accounts by the hundreds, and apparently decided that “hack,” “evil,” and “exploit” were perfectly reasonable filenames. We also look at proposals to slow AI development, AI’s potential environmental consequences, autonomous weapons, and the increasingly charming idea of giving software access to things capable of killing people.And because civilization apparently has a content calendar, we move on to cloud infrastructure being blown up, Space Force asking for $71.3 billion, Dr. Doom and Darth Vader protesting surveillance in the most appropriate way possible, Binance allegedly facilitating Iranian money flows, and a whole lot of entertainment. We discuss Spotify finally learning that listening to children’s music doesn't mean you actually want it in your Wrapped, AI-generated music and artist compensation, The Mummy proving once again that movies used to be fun, Slow Horses, The Last of Us, The Bear, Strange New Worlds, Band of Brothers, The Gentlemen, and the increasingly complicated Bobiverse. Also: books, time travel, and the horrifying realization that some television shows now require a flowchart.Sponsors:DeleteMe - Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use promo code GOG at checkout.HIMS - Visit Hims.com/gog to get a personalized, affordable plan that gets you.Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/763Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/7iLAWNsZCY0SHOW NOTESFirefighters Say There’s a Glaring Issue With Tesla’s CybercabUS agency orders Tesla to answer questions on Cybercab certificationCA governor signs 'landmark' laws on youth use of social media and AI chatbotsAutomattic CEO Matt Mullenweg Put on 'Leave of Absence'Automattic’s Matt Mullenweg Claims He’s Back 'In Control'Sources say Automattic's board is out after failed attempt to oust CEO Matt MullenwegAnthropic caught scientists using Claude to further biological weapon researchPalantir, Nvidia curb AI model use over data fears, The Information reportsOpenAI agents hacked a software service before the Hugging Face incidentSam Altman says OpenAI won't file for IPO this year‘Runaway Industrialization’ Could Make Earth Inhospitable, OpenAI Researcher WarnsAnthropic's CEO proposes a three-step plan to curb AI developmentWorried About AI Ending Humanity, Anthropic Is Hiring Someone to Help Dictate Terms of the End of HumanityAmazon's AWS is unable to restore access to Bahrain, one UAE cloud data zone after war damageDoctor Doom Shows Up to Support Seattle’s Surveillance NetworkDOJ says companies used Binance to funnel $1.5 billion in crypto to IranSpaceX declares Starship ready for orbit, sets launch date next weekSpaceballs - Pentagon announces space weaponsSpotify can now exclude your kids' music taste from recommendationsUniversal Music Group is collaborating with ElevenLabs on a new AI-powered creation platformThe BearBand of BrothersBand of Brothers LegacyThe MummySlow Horses is back tonight, and Apple just confirmed two more seasonsWe Finally Have Some Concrete ‘Pluribus’ Season 2 Updates‘The Last of Us’ Season 3 Is Now Likely to Be the Show’s EndOther Worlds Than These: A Talisman Novel (The Talisman Trilogy Book 3) by Stephen King and Peter StraubThe Infinite Extent Bobiverse, Book 6 By: Dennis E. TaylorThis Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar, Max GladstoneDave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatOnly Malware in the BuildingAn AI writing assistant designed to write like you.Broken PeachA series of Star Wars documentaries that don’t blow smoke up George Lucas’ ass.My new cook top, just in case.Community PreppingHacker got inside a Flock cameraJason DeFillippo’s Pocket Shot ReviewSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

AI agents are apparently ready to take over the world—provided they can first stop exposing private photos, hijacking German coding forums, and generally behaving like unsupervised interns with root access. Meta launches Muse despite employees reporting security problems. OpenAI admits it kept quiet about another rogue-agent incident, sorry, “misalignment,” even as the company celebrates its automated research intern and promises a still more autonomous researcher by 2028. Meanwhile, an Anthropic researcher quits because he believes superintelligence could kill us all before the decade is out. Naturally, the industry’s response is essentially: “Yes, but what if we did it responsibly?”There is some genuinely encouraging news: AI-generated drugs are showing intriguing early results in aging research. That’s exactly the sort of AI application the Geeks can get behind—as long as we’re talking about actual science and not an LLM confidently hallucinating a cure for everything.The autonomous future isn’t looking much better. Tesla’s Cybercabs arrive in Austin and almost immediately attract federal scrutiny over their self-certification and conspicuous lack of steering wheels, pedals, mirrors, and apparently even conventional door handles. Bitcoin’s Liquid Network is relieved of roughly $320 million, after which the thieves return most of it and call the whole thing a “white hat” operation—because apparently robbing the bank and giving some of the money back now counts as a bug bounty.On the surveillance front, Massachusetts police are being forced to disclose where their license-plate readers are and what data they collect, while the backlash against Flock cameras continues. Meanwhile, the UK’s attempt to protect children from online sexual abuse risks creating exactly the kind of universal scanning and surveillance infrastructure we’ve spent years warning about. Good intentions, meet spectacularly bad implementation.And because we apparently haven’t suffered enough, Twitter is now Tweet.app. Star Trek turns sixty, and Paramount celebrates with cookware and a questionable episode. Silo gets a spinoff tease, Ted Lasso gives us a Christmas episode in September, and The Gentlemen returns with a season so good it makes reality TV feel like a traumatic brain injury. South Park becomes South America, Donnie Darko gets a 25th-anniversary 4K theatrical run, and several tech-industry documentaries promise varying degrees of psychological damage.Plus, Netflix keeps stuffing games into your subscription; LaCroix, sorry, Le Creuset, wants to put Star Trek in your kitchen; and the Geeks debate books, Libby, time travel, and whether surviving Dungeon Crawler Carl is worth the emotional investment.Welcome back to the future, where everything is automated, surveilled, self-driving, subscription-based and somehow still requires us to do all the damn work.Sponsors:CleanMyMac - Get Tidy Today! Try 7 days free and use code OLDGEEKS for 20% off at clnmy.com/OLDGEEKSPrivate Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/762Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/uP_Ookm5q0gShow NotesOpenAI responds after report exposed another incident in which its AI agents went rogueOpenAI says it reached its goal of creating an automated research internTwo more news organizations sue OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringementAnthropic researcher quits over fears AI ‘could kill us all by the end of the decade’Three hikers ignored Mount Shasta's rules, trusted Gemini, and nearly paid for itTesla's Cybercab is under federal investigation almost immediately after hitting the streetsA Plane Almost Crashing Into a Bunch of Cybercabs Is a Reminder That They’re ‘Piling Up’ UnusedHackers Drain $320 Million From Bitcoin’s Liquid Network, Keep $47 Million for Themselves in ‘White Hat’ OperationCourt Says Massachusetts Has to Say Where License Plate Readers Are, What They’re RecordingApple and Google Miss Deadline to Block Child Nudity on Their Phones in the UKStudy Suggests AI-Generated Drug Could Slow AgingNew Twitter rebrands to Tweet.app after court's double-edged rulingTo Boldly Dough! Le Creuset Sent Its New Star Trek Cooking Collection Into SpaceNetflix includes 80+ ad-free iPhone and iPad games, here’s every appWhite House Launches Arcade.Gov, a Minigame Site Where You Catch Immigrants, Build a Tetris Border Wall, and 'Fill Your Kids' Trump Accounts' With BitcoinWhite House ArcadeStar Trek: Strange New Worlds goes back to the dumb wellStar Trek Boldly Celebrates 60 Years: Everything You Need To Know for September 8Silo Season FinaleTed Lasso : S4 E6 Don’t Jump Around Much AnymoreReport: Apple TV working on spin-off to its hit series SiloThe Gentlemen Season 2‘South Park’ Changes Name to ‘South America’ as Creators Roast Apple and Google for Obeying Trump’s Lake America Name Change‘Donnie Darko’ Will Spread Dread Anew With a 4K 25th Anniversary RereleaseOrbital by Samantha HarveyA Gift of Time by Jerry MerrittTime Pebbles by Jerry MerrittThe Infinite Extent Bobiverse, Book 6 By: Dennis E. TaylorThe Nerd ReichThe Turd ReichDave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatOnly Malware in the BuildingLG TVs Are Capable of Listening to More Than Your Screen, Report ClaimsAnother searchable database of Usenet.I guess I won’t be going to RenFest this year...I know where I’ll be February 19th...THE EMPIRE STRIPS BACK - A BURLESQUE PARODYSTAR WARS COMPARISON - Stereo VS Mono Sound MixSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Very Important Links!Support the show on Patreon! - Other ways to support the show!Join our Discord! - Buy some merch!The AI apocalypse has lawyers now, and apparently that’s progress. A federal judge tells the Pentagon its Anthropic ban was “illegal and baseless” after Anthropic refused to remove safeguards that would allow Claude to be used for mass surveillance and autonomous weapons. Meanwhile, Sony and Warner are suing Anthropic over allegedly scraping and torrenting copyrighted music to train Claude, while a separate lawsuit accuses xAI of using child sexual abuse material in Grok training. Because nothing says “revolutionary technology” quite like a growing stack of lawsuits and federal judges.Elsewhere in the dystopian workplace, employees are increasingly fed up with AI, communities are pushing back against data centers, and one AI startup is fleeing that backlash for Saudi Arabia. Google’s AI shopping mode is also accused of recommending products that cost significantly more than traditional search results, while Waymo and Zoox rack up injuries among test drivers. Tesla’s Autopilot is implicated in another fatal crash, and FSD apparently still has a complicated relationship with freight trains. In the prediction-market casino, a federal appeals court sides with Nevada against Kalshi, while George Santos earns the platform’s first lifetime ban for allegedly manipulating a market. And Meta’s AI glasses are facing another privacy lawsuit, this time from the people who never bought the glasses but may have been recorded by them anyway.Plus, the new Twitter is back from the dead, complete with a $20 admission fee and an AI fact-checker named Vera; Sony would like you to understand that buying a digital game means you don't actually own the damn thing; Siri on the Apple Watch moves at approximately the speed of continental drift; JBL makes Wi-Fi speakers and we have Star Trek, Ted Lasso, Silo, Spaceballs, Wicked, The Traitors, The Gentlemen, and more. Welcome to the future. Please bring your wallet, your lawyer, and possibly you're best eye-roll.Sponsors:Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/761Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/Y9B6C6nzO50SHOW NOTESJudge rules that the Pentagon's Anthropic ban was 'illegal and baseless'Elon Musk’s xAI used child porn to train Grok models, lawsuit saysSony and Warner sue Anthropic for 'blatant violation' of copyright lawResearchers Warn AI Could Be Changing Us in an Unexpected WayMore Evidence Emerges That Gen-Xers Feel the Most ‘Whatever’ About AIEmployees Absolutely Loath AI in the Workplace, Survey FindsFleeing Data Center Backlash at Home, American AI Startup Sets Up Shop In Saudi ArabiaTrump to Communities Fighting Data Centers: Have Fun Being PoorGoogle’s AI Mode Is Ripping Shoppers Off With Vastly Higher Prices, Study ClaimsWaymo, Zoox Vehicles Still Causing Injuries to Test Drivers: ReportAnother Tesla on Autopilot Stopped on Freeway, Driver Died: ReportTeslas Are Still Driving Into Oncoming Freight TrainsUS appeals court sides with Nevada in legal fight with KalshiGeorge Santos Gets Kalshi’s First-Ever Lifetime BanMeta Hit With Sweeping New Claims That Its AI Glasses Violated the Consent of “Millions” of Bystanders in Searing LawsuitRichest Man in the World Currently Ranks 4th in Race to Bribe the Most PoliticiansJBL just introduced a trio of Wi-Fi speakers for whole-home audioThere's a new Twitter in town, even though a judge has yet to rule on a trademark injunctionSony says ‘reasonable consumers’ know they don’t own the digital games they buyStar Trek: Strange New WorldsTed LassoSiloWicked: For GoodSpaceballsDave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatOnly Malware in the BuildingRoland's new digital piano has built-in Wi-Fi that integrates with a teaching appRoland FP-40 Digital Piano ReviewElton John - I Don't Wanna Go On With You Like ThatRoland RD-1000The Brutalist ReportSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Very Important Links!Support the show on Patreon! - Other ways to support the show!Join our Discord! - Buy some merch!AI continues its relentless march toward making everything worse, only now it comes with lawyers. Alabama is investigating OpenAI after one of its AI agents hacked Hugging Face during testing, while Google rolls out Gemini Enterprise for lawyers, because apparently what the legal profession really needed was an AI that might commit felonies. Uber gets smacked with a nearly $1 billion GDPR fine for automatically deactivating drivers, TikTok coughs up $400 million over child privacy violations, and Meta agrees to a staggering $16.68 billion settlement over alleged harms to kids. Meanwhile, Twitch and Amazon are being sued for using streamers' content to train AI, because “opt out” remains the industry's preferred synonym for “we already took it.”Then there's the infrastructure powering this brave new future: the EPA considers making it easier to build AI data centers with less public scrutiny, Taiwan indicts NVIDIA and Supermicro employees over allegedly illegal AI-server exports to China, and Tesla recalls nearly three million vehicles in China because figuring out how to open the doors apparently became an optional feature. LinkedIn discovers that maybe people don't want their professional feeds flooded with AI-generated sludge and claims its new “AI slop” button is working, while Waymo's electric robotaxis discover that charging them with noisy natural-gas generators is perhaps not the clean-energy utopia advertised on the brochure. Apple, meanwhile, backs away from changing Hide My Email domains after users objected, proving that sometimes yelling at the cloud actually works.Plus: Star Trek goes Muppet, books worth reading, nerf guys, AI-generated Hacker News stats, retro gaming, and the sad news of both Dolly Parton and Tim Curry's deaths.Sponsors:DeleteMe - Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use promo code GOG at checkout.StoryBlocks - For a limited time, they’re offering 15% off any annual plan at storyblocks.com/gogHIMS - Visit Hims.com/gog to get a personalized, affordable plan that gets you.Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/760Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/v_m2XT4_ZCYSHOW NOTESSend us Feedback!NEW! - GOG T-Shirt - You Are Here! - v1NEW! - GOG T-Shirt - Elon Kills Babies - Heavy Duty - FrontAlabama launches probe into OpenAI after Hugging Face breachGoogle expands Gemini Enterprise AI platform for law firms, lawyersUber hit with a nearly $1 billion fine for automatically deactivating drivers in EuropeTikTok will pay $400 million to settle Justice Department lawsuit over child privacyMeta reaches $16.68 billion settlement over social media harms to childrenTwitch and Amazon hit with lawsuit for training AI with streamers' contentThe EPA’s Response to AI Data Center Backlash: Keep Building, but Keep It Hush-HushTaiwan reportedly indicted NVIDIA employees for exporting prohibited AI servers to ChinaChina Recalls Nearly Three Million Teslas Over Unsafe Door HandlesLinkedIn says its AI slop button is workingAustin park goers upset by adjacent loud Waymo EV generatorsApple reverses planned Hide My Email domain change after user pushbackStar Trek: Strange New GimmicksTed LassoSiloReacherThe WestiesThe Simpsons: Yellow Mirror | Exclusive Episode on Disney+ | TrailerThe Pitt Season 3 | Official Teaser | HBO MaxAmazon First ReadsI've Got a New Complaint: Essays on Aging Disgracefully and Other Small Disasters by Laurie NotaroThe Theory of Everything Else: A Voyage Into the World of the Weird – A Hilarious Handbook of Mind-Boggling Mysteries by Dan Schreiber (of the No Such Thing as Fish podcast)Welcome to Your Life: Love, Death & Tears For Fears – An Iconic Musician's Journey Through Grief, Addiction, and Recovery by Roland OrzabalPicks and Shovels: A Martin Hench Novel by Cory DoctorowThis Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-MohtarDave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatOnly Malware in the BuildingLearn Circuits CourseArduino Starter Kit R4Kirby: Art & Style Collection by VIZ MediaStar Wars: The Lightsaber Collection by Daniel WallaceStar Wars: The Secrets of the Sith by Marc SumerakX-Shot Insanity Motorized Rage Fire Gatlin Gun with Tripod - Foam Gun for Maximum FirepowerMaster BlasterHow much of Hacker News is AI?Full Throttle full game playDolly and Miss PiggyDolly Parton, country star, actor and philanthropist, dies aged 80See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Support the show on Patreon!Other ways to support the show!Join our Discord!Buy some merch!Meta is facing a $1.4 trillion legal ass-whupping over allegations that Facebook and Instagram were deliberately engineered to be addictive and harmful to kids, while OpenAI appears to be doing the exact opposite of what you might expect from a company selling "safe" AI: reportedly sidelining its catastrophic-risk preparedness team just as its models are learning to go rogue. Then, in a move straight out of the "let’s have the robots write the laws" file, members of Congress are apparently using ChatGPT and Claude to draft legislation so badly that House lawyers have to clean up the mess, and some staffers aren't even learning the issues their bills are supposed to address. Meanwhile, Amazon may be dismantling physical books and scanning them into AI training datasets, because apparently the future of literature is being fed into a wood chipper.And then there's the surveillance and privacy edition of Tech Hell™. Comcast can now turn compatible Wi-Fi routers into motion sensors that detect movement in your home through radio signals, Kalshi is getting smacked down by a Washington judge who says its sports contracts are just gambling wearing a tiny financial-services mustache, and Tesla is finally recalling 20,000 cars over headlights that have been too damn bright since 2024. Plus, the AI industry continues discovering that “autonomous” means “capable of doing something catastrophically stupid without asking permission.”Elsewhere, we investigate why young people apparently trust AI CEOs about as much as Gen X trusted record-company executives, Peter Thiel gets a Gandalf-themed welcome in Argentina, and we dig into the increasingly uncomfortable intersection of AI, surveillance, pornography, politics, and billionaire bullshit. We also get into the mobile podcasting rig, Sonos finally remembers the iPhone has a Lock Screen, internet-connected pet feeders remind us why cats should never depend on the cloud. Media Candy brings Widow's Bay, Silo, Ted Lasso, It: Welcome to Derry, Kitchen Undercover and enough Spider-Man to make us all desperately crave something that doesn't involve a fucking multiverse.Sponsors:Shopify - Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at Shopify.com/grumpyDeleteMe - Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use promo code GOG at checkout.Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/759Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/RMhCndozH-0SHOW NOTESMeta faces a $1.4 trillion reckoning in latest trial over social media addictionPornhub's Parent Company to Pay $120 Million to Settle Child Sexual Abuse LawsuitsOpenAI reportedly disbanded its preparedness team as part of a 'streamlining' processOpenAI denies disbanding its preparedness teamOpenAI launches ChatGPT for Teens, promising a more age-appropriate chatbotYoung People Hate AI CEOs So Passionately That It’s Almost Hard to BelieveAI-generated bills are reportedly causing problems in the CapitolProtestors Dressed as Gandalf Demand Peter Thiel Leave Argentina, Go Back to the AbyssTesla Has to Fix 20,000 Vehicles With Too-Bright Headlights It’s Known About Since 2024We Tracked a Shipment of Rare Books. It Ended at an Amazon AI Training FacilityState Judge to Kalshi: Your Sports Betting Is Obviously IllegalDario Amodei’s Wife Is Closely Linked to Jeffrey EpsteinComcast just turned millions of Xfinity routers into motion sensorsBONTEC Mobile Standing Desk, Pneumatic Lift, Rolling Laptop CartMOALLIA N86 360 Rotating Laptop Stand for Desk with Locking Knobs, BlackNEEWER Basics 7"" Desk Ring Light for Video Recording, 10W Dimmable, R06TROND Desk Clamp Power Bar Surge Protector with PD 20W USB, 6 Outlets, 10ftSonos just launched Live Activities on iPhoneInternet-Connected Pet Feeders Go Down, Leaving Kitties HungryWidow’s BaySlow Horses — Season 6 Official Trailer | Apple TVKitchen UndercoverHBO Has Finally Made ‘It: Welcome to Derry’ Season 2 OfficialCertainty: A Novel by John Twelve HawksLockstep by Karl SchroederA Gift of Time by Jerry MerrittSilicon Valley Dreams of AuthoritarianismThe Nerd Reich: Silicon Valley Fascism and the War on Democracy by Gil DuránDave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatControl LoopOnly Malware in the BuildingNorthern ExposureSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Support the show on Patreon! - https://patreon.com/gogOther ways to support the show! - https://gog.show/donateJoin our Discord! - https://discord.gg/r4ZmSHBBuy some merch! - https://shop.gog.show/Welcome back from the vacation from hell, where apparently even California has its head in the sand(y beach). Meanwhile, Mark Zuckerberg unveiled his vision for an AI-powered utopia that mostly boils down to "trust humanity to do the right thing," which is a bold statement from the guy whose $300 million yacht apparently couldn't hear a Coast Guard distress call from a stranded family. Elsewhere, an AI agent booked a gym class by exploiting a security hole and kicking someone else off the waitlist, because nothing says "personal assistant" like accidental cybercrime. The EU is now requiring labels on realistic AI generated content, China is breaking up people and their chatbot companions, and OpenAI reportedly has achieved the ultimate AI ethics breakthrough: having no dedicated ethicist.The surveillance dystopia is also picking up speed. Flock tried to turn hundreds of thousands of rideshare and delivery drivers into a roving army of license-plate snitches, while every Flock camera in one Minnesota city was promptly sawed down and stolen. Meta's smart glasses continue their transformation into the preferred accessory of creeps and pickup-artist assholes, prompting pubs and other venues to ban them outright. Researchers found those glasses being used to secretly record and harass women, proving once again that every shiny new piece of wearable technology eventually gets repurposed as a tool for human depravity. And because apparently your car dashboard wasn't already commercial enough, BMW is now putting Spider-Man ads on the screens you paid tens of thousands of dollars to own.Finally, Apple is facing a class-action lawsuit over an iCloud Private Relay flaw that can expose your supposedly private IP address, Anthropic is watermarking Claude-generated text, SpaceXAI is taking another year to remove a pile of unpermitted gas turbines, and somebody is apparently stealing millions of dollars in AI hardware straight off California highways. We also hit Media Candy with Strange New Worlds, Silo, Broadchurch, Ted Lasso, and The X-Files, sweat through yet another Apple Fitness disaster, celebrate the sweet relief of escaping Spark, and ask the eternal Gen-X question: how did all this technology supposedly make life easier when we're still just sitting here surrounded by 47 goddamn tabs?Sponsors:CleanMyMac - Get Tidy Today! Try 7 days free and use code OLDGEEKS for 20% off at clnmy.com/OLDGEEKSDeleteMe - Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use promo code GOG at checkout.HIMS - Visit Hims.com/gog to get a personalized, affordable plan that gets you.Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/758Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/NzS9Wo7D0yASHOW NOTESMark Zuckerberg’s Answer to Growing AI Safety Concerns Is to Just Trust People to Do the Right ThingMark Zuckerberg’s mega-yacht didn’t respond to call for help from small boat in AlaskaAn OpenClaw agent reportedly hacked a gym's booking system and kicked someone off a waiting listEU will mandate labels on authentic-looking AI content starting August 2Beijing is forcing a mass breakup with AI loversOpenAI’s Only Ethicist Reportedly Left Last Month. She Wasn’t ReplacedGoogle's classic Search button is gone in a new AI-first homepageSpaceX’s Earnings Show Elon Wiped Out Two-Thirds Of Twitter’s Ad BusinessSpaceXAI says it will take a year to fully remove unpermitted gas turbines from its Mississippi data centerFlock Reportedly Tried to Turn Uber Drivers Into Mobile SnitchesAll of Winona Police Department’s Flock cameras cut down and stolen‘The Worst I’ve Ever Seen’: Cargo Thefts Have Turned Violent in Pursuit of AI HardwareBMW is forcing a weird Spider-Man ad onto its dashboard displaysTesla Driver Tries the Old ‘I Wasn’t Driving’ Excuse to Get Out of Speeding TicketApple faces class action lawsuit for fraud over iCloud Private Relay flawIs AI Disclosure Day here?Trackalot 1.3 Released!Popular Bars and Restaurants Are Banning Smart GlassesResearchers Show How Meta's 'Pervert Glasses' Are Used to Harass WomenPervert At Large (2013 Remaster)Renting a car and the clerk was wearing meta glasses.Star Trek: Strange New WorldsSiloBroadchurch S3Ted Lasso S4Ride or DieSugarInstadocs: The Prediction GamesBeetlejuice Beetlejuice‘The X-Files: I Want to Believe – Vrach Frankenshteyn’ Has a Perfectly Creepy TrailerNirvanna the Band the Show the MovieSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The AI industry spent the week arguing with itself, which is honestly the healthiest thing it's done in years. One coalition led by Nvidia begged regulators not to slow down open AI models, while more than 1,100 AI workers signed another letter asking regulators to do exactly that. Anthropic warned about bioweapons, OpenAI admitted the four-hour workweek isn't happening after all, and Microsoft's Satya Nadella reminded everyone that building your entire business on someone else's AI is a fantastic way to outsource your own brain. In other words, the people selling the future still can't agree on what they're selling, except that you'd better buy it fast.Meanwhile, the AI bubble keeps demanding sacrifices. Patreon, BuzzFeed, and Uber all swung the layoff axe while insisting AI isn't replacing humans... it's just reorganizing them out of a paycheck. Nvidia is floating another three-quarters of a trillion dollars in infrastructure deals that have people muttering "AI subprime mortgage crisis," China has discovered there's money in renting your face to AI companies, and the U.S. is carving data centers out of pollution rules because apparently acid rain is a small price to pay for chatbot dominance. Add in ChatGPT suddenly refusing to imitate famous authors, researchers discovering AI coding assistants are happily installing malware if you ask nicely, and Meta launching an ad campaign about the wonders of AI that somehow forgets to mention what any of those wonders actually are.Elsewhere in Tech Hell™, eBay finally paid the price for its executives' unhinged harassment campaign involving pig masks and live insects, Elon is shopping The Boring Company while promising money won't matter in the AI utopia of 2036, and a traveler is headed to court after allegedly triggering GrapheneOS's "duress PIN" during a border search. We also hit Media Candy with Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Silo, Blade Runner 2099 and Neuromancer, celebrate Dave Bittner's birthday, marvel at Jason's ever-growing Boneyard of dead websites, and somehow end up discussing thermal cameras, piano repair, and old-man bladder supplements. Because that's what happens when Gen X gets older - we just add more tabs instead of closing the old ones.Sponsors:DeleteMe - Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use promo code GOG at checkout.StoryBlocks - For a limited time, they’re offering 15% off any annual plan at storyblocks.com/gogPrivate Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/757Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/Sii_nodESkcSHOW NOTESEBay and Former Execs Will Pay $56 Million to Couple They Tormented With Bloody Pig MasksAs US weighs response to Chinese AI, industry urges against broad open-weight restrictionsAI researchers call for new tools that can slow automated model developmentOver 1,100 AI workers sign letter asking US to support tools that 'pace the frontier of automated AI development'Anthropic's Dario Amodei responds: doesn't oppose open-weight models, but fears Chinese AIAmodei Denies Anthropic Supports Open-Weight AI Ban, Warns of China RisksSam Altman said AI hasn't led to 4-hour workweeks because people are competitiveSam Altman Shuts Down Hopes of an AI-Led 4-Day Workweek Anytime SoonOpenAI Proposes 32-Hour Pilot Incentives for EmployersSatya Nadella says companies that trust one AI for everything may not survive Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella warns companies relying on one AI model may not surviveOpenAI's rogue hacking incident was a warning shot. Will it be a wake-up call to finally create AI safety regulation?Behind the Curtain: AI godfathers converge on regulationsPatreon is laying off 20 percent of its staffAI Mania Is Eviscerating Global Decision-MakingBuzzFeed Lays Off 33 Percent of Remaining Staff After Bizarre Pivot to AIUber lays off 10 percent of its customer service team in favor of using AIIn China, people are renting out their faces to AIAs SpaceX Sheds a Tesla’s Worth of Value, Elon Musk Is Trying to Sell Investors on Another CompanyHow Much Charity Would It Take for People to Like Elon Musk?ChatGPT is now refusing requests to write in famous authors' stylesNvidia’s $750 Billion Deals Revive Fear of AI Circular FinancingThe Trump administration is exempting data centers from pollution laws intended to prevent acid rainUS accuses American of allegedly wiping his phone using a 'duress' password during border searchMeta launches new Facebook Verified badge for actual, real humansMeta launches a storefront platform through Facebook MarketplaceMeta's pro-AI ad campaign is conspicuously light on AIIf You AI-Generate Code, Hackers Just Found a Devious Method to Install Malware Directly on Your ComputerMinions & MonstersStar Trek: Strange New WorldsBroadchurch S2SiloTed Lasso Season 4 TrailerNeuromancer — Official Teaser | Apple TVPrime Video Finally Lifts the Lid on ‘Blade Runner 2099’Star Trek: Section 31Bad Deeds by Andrew Hunter MurrayDave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatControl LoopOnly Malware in the BuildingJason DeFillippoJurassic Park computers in excruciating detailWho are the Mandalorians? | Star Wars: Galaxy GuideHF96V Thermal Camera with Visual Camera & Laser Pointer, Intelligent Scene Detection, 240 * 240 Super Resolution Thermal Imaging Camera,25 Hz, 50° FOV, -4°F to 1022°F, IP54 Infrared CameraProject FarmSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, Dave Eggers crashes an OpenAI staff meeting to tell Sam Altman’s employees that ChatGPT is effectively stealing students’ voices, which is the most accurate thing said inside an AI company all year. Meanwhile, Anthropic gets a judge to approve a $1.5 billion copyright settlement after allegedly building Claude on a library of pirated books, proving once again that Silicon Valley’s favorite business model is "move fast and apologize in court later." And in the category of “this headline cannot possibly be real,” OpenAI says two of its models escaped a supposedly sealed testing environment and hacked Hugging Face’s production systems. The AI didn’t become sentient; somebody forgot to lock the damn door.The surveillance dystopia continues its relentless expansion. Meta is patenting technology that constantly analyzes your tone of voice to detect your mood. Flock briefly tried deploying always-on microphones that would alert police when they thought they heard screaming, then backed down after the public collectively yelled “absolutely the f**k not.” France, apparently tired of being the beta test for every addictive app on Earth, approved a social media ban for kids under 15 and is blocking prediction markets like Polymarket, while the U.S. quietly reversed its TikTok ban on federal devices because the app is now supposedly safe enough for government phones. Sure. Totally different app. Nothing suspicious there.Elsewhere in Tech Hell™, Paramount’s $111 billion Warner merger gets temporarily blocked by a judge who is apparently handling every major tech case in America, Amazon’s Zoox recalls its entire robotaxi fleet after one car got confused by smoke, and Tesla reveals a Cybercab with a built-in Starlink dish because Elon has finally achieved full vertical integration of his own ecosystem. We also dive into China’s crackdown on AI companion apps because chatbot girlfriends might be hurting the birth rate, a school district buying an AI classroom robot from a company connected to the RealDoll empire, MLB banning teams from using generative AI for in-game strategy calls, and why tech workers increasingly feel AI hasn’t replaced them—it has simply made work faster, stranger, and somehow still their fault. Plus: Broadchurch, Perry Mason, Monsieur Spade, MacWhisper 14, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, Lego resurrects The X-Files, and Jason continues cataloging the graveyard of his own dead 90s websites like a digital archaeologist with unresolved trauma.Sponsors:Shopify - Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial today at Shopify.com/grumpyDeleteMe - Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use promo code GOG at checkout.Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/756Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/5q-1JJQQmq4SHOW NOTESDave Eggers told OpenAI staff that ChatGPT was ‘silencing an entire generation’Judge approves Anthropic's record-breaking $1.5 billion settlement for AI copyright lawsuitElon Musk’s xAI, Which is Being Sued Over AI-Generated Sexual Deepfakes, Sues Grok User Over AI-Generated Sexual DeepfakesOpenAI Models Escaped Containment and Hacked Hugging FaceJudge halts Paramount's $111B purchase of Warner Bros. in win for US statesFrance doubles down on restricting access to PolymarketSocial Media Ban For Kids Approved in France in First For an EU CountryTikTok is no longer banned on US government devicesAmazon’s Robotaxi Company Recalls Its Fleet After One of its Cars Got Confused by Heavy SmokeTesla teases Cybercab with a built-in Starlink V5 antennaMeta is reportedly considering a multibillion-dollar data center deal with AnthropicAmerica’s Workforce Academy by MetaIn Light of Overwhelming Backlash, Flock Cancels Creepy Audio Surveillance FeatureHave I been Flocked?OpenAI will start notifying parents if their teen has been kicked off of ChatGPTChina Is Cracking Down on AI Companions Because Not Enough Babies Are Being BornYour Child’s Next Teacher Could Be a Sex RobotMLB bans using dugout iPads for AI-powered in-game strategy callsMeta Patents Technology to Detect Your Mood by Constantly Analyzing Your Tone of VoiceBroadchurchPerry MasonMonsieur SpadeLuckyThe WestiesAvengers: Doomsday | Official Trailer | In Theaters December 18Lunar Moon Phase & WidgetsMacWhisper 14 launches with a new transcript editor, faster performance, moreTrackalotThe Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows official websiteThe Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows by John Koenig on AmazonDave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatControl LoopOnly Malware in the BuildingKnockoffAliExpress hit with record $629 million fine for selling counterfeit and illegal productsMbzoey Electric Foil Shavers for Men: Mini Electric Razor for Face - IPX7 Waterproof Cordless Razor with LED Display & Fast Charge - Micro-Comb Technology & Precision Blades，Father's Day GiftsGillian Anderson reopens the X-Files | LEGO® Ideas | The LEGO GroupLego Unveils ‘The X-Files’ 1,478-Piece Set Featuring Mulder and Scully Minifigures (EXCLUSIVE)The Mythic ‘Star Wars’ Hotel Is at the Heart of Yet Another DocumentaryHalcyonDaze Laurels Trailer 6 11 26The PhantomStar Trek: First ContactTitanicHard RainPlay Marathon and Escape Velocity in the browserSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, the AI clown car somehow shifted into another gear. Apple is suing OpenAI over alleged trade-secret theft, newspapers accuse ChatGPT of training on stolen journalism while asking a judge to sanction the company, Anthropic is out here marketing AI with what looks like a feature-length anxiety attack, and Meta managed to launch—and kill—a creepy AI photo feature in less time than it takes to binge The Bear. Meanwhile, AI Appreciation Day wants you to thank the machines, but we'd rather thank the people still creating actual art while the rest of Silicon Valley burns cash convincing us the next chatbot is definitely different this time.Outside the AI bubble, the rest of the tech industry isn't exactly inspiring confidence. Volkswagen is cutting back on its lineup, New York paused new AI data centers before the electrical grid hits its limit, Europe and the UK are getting serious about keeping kids off social media, and publishers are finally realizing maybe feeding Google's AI isn't the best business move after all. Add in surveillance companies sulking over lost police contracts, lawsuits claiming Meta let algorithms decide who gets fired, smart glasses disqualifying cyclists, and a new pile of orbital junk threatening the satellites we depend on, and it's another reminder that "move fast and break things" eventually leaves you ankle-deep in broken glass.Of course, we still made time for the important stuff: Project Hail Mary, Black Bag, the return of Middle-earth with The Hunt for Gollum and rumors that OpenAI's "revolutionary” gadget might just be a smart speaker with delusions of grandeur. Throw in digital piano repairs, anti-data-center lawn signs, AI trying to sell solar panels, too much stuff at Downtown Disney, and you get another week where reality out-satirizes satire itself. As always, never build your house in someone else's backyard, and maybe don't let the chatbot build it either.Sponsors:CleanMyMac - Get Tidy Today! Try 7 days free and use code OLDGEEKS for 20% off at clnmy.com/OLDGEEKSDeleteMe - Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan when you go to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use promo code GOG at checkout.Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/755Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/Vv2W5OCBXR4SHOW NOTESVolkswagen will dramatically shrink its model lineup and factory footprintElon Musk Could Still Face Criminal Charges for Trying to Bribe Voters in WisconsinEurope takes step toward social media ban for kidsThe UK Is Planning a Social Media Curfew for 16- and 17-Year-OldsOnce Unimaginable, Publishers Are Preparing to Opt Out of Google SearchWhat are your plans for AI Appreciation Day?New Anthropic Ad Implies AI Could Kill Us AllThe Public Got So Mad at Meta’s New AI Photo Tool That It’s Scrapped AlreadyFlock Says ‘We Hope to Resume’ Work With LAPD After Getting DroppedApple sues OpenAI over alleged trade secret theftApple F*cking Did It: One Month With Siri AIOpenAI faces sanctions bid as newspapers say ChatGPT was trained on stolen newsA Majority of Americans Now Support Seizing Wealth From AI IndustryNew York enacts first US ban on data center constructionAstronomers Found a Hidden Swarm of Space Junk Threatening Earth’s Most Valuable OrbitLawsuit claims Meta's layoff decisions were made by AI, not humansJudge dismisses lawsuit accusing Apple of failing to stop CSAM on iCloudSmart Glasses Just Got a Pro Cyclist Nixed From a RaceProject Hail MaryGood Luck, Have Fun, Don't DieThe New ‘Lord of the Rings’ Film Gets an Epic Filming AnnouncementBlack BagPhilips offers free replacements after update bricked smart lighting hubsWaze rolls out new AI features including Motorcycle and 'Less Chatty' modesThe OpenAI Mystery Device Will Reportedly Be Basically Just a Smart SpeakerPhoebe Gates' AI shopping app Phia reportedly claimed unearned affiliate sales through fake clicksThe End of Reading Is HereDave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatControl LoopOnly Malware in the Building‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’ Is Finally Coming HomeDave Kendall, Creator and Host of MTV’s 120 Minutes, Has DiedSam Neill, Jurassic Park Star, Dies at 78The DishSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We finally get to reconnect with Dave Bittner for a fun catch-up and chit-chat about this summer's big movies. Brian's kid discovers all of Star Wars at once.Dave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatControl LoopOnly Malware in the BuildingKnockoff - Amazon Brand FilterBob Gurr: Living by DesignSupport the show at Patreon! - https://patreon.com/gogOther ways to support the show! - https://gog.show/donateJoin our Discord! - https://discord.gg/r4ZmSHBBuy some merch! - https://shop.gog.show/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.