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The French government is ditching Zoom and Microsoft Teams for a home-grown alternative Jan 28, 2026

Show notes

It's part of a strategy to rely less on US services for government use.

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Mark Zuckerberg was initially opposed to parental controls for AI chatbots, Snap spinning off its AR glasses, and LinkedIn will let you show off your vibe coding expertise Jan 28, 2026

Show notes

-Meta has faced some serious questions about how it allows its underage users to interact with AI-powered chatbots. Most recently, internal communications obtained by the New Mexico Attorney General's Office revealed that although Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg was opposed to the chatbots having "explicit" conversations with minors, he also rejected the idea of placing parental controls on the feature.

-Snap’s augmented reality glasses business will now be its own entity, with the company establishing Specs Inc. as a wholly owned subsidiary. It will enable Snap to more easily secure investors and partnerships for its wearables, as well as to grow Specs into a distinct brand while running it within Snap Inc.

-LinkedIn is leaning into the rise of vibe coding by allowing users to show off their proficiency with various AI coding tools directly on their profiles. The company is partnering with Replit, Lovabl, Descript and Relay.app

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The EU is investigating Grok and X over potentially illegal deepfakes Jan 27, 2026

Show notes

X's lack of controls potentially 'exposed citizens in the EU to serious harm,' regulators said.

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Trump admin planning to use AI to write federal regs, people are uninstalling TikTok, and Google agreed to a settlement in voice assistant privacy lawsuit Jan 27, 2026

Show notes

-The Trump administration is planning on using Google Gemini to draft important federal regulations starting with the Department of Transportation.

-TikTok's newly formed US entity is off to a very bumpy start. As the app continues to face technical issues affecting the recommendation algorithm, view counts and other features, TikTok is also seeing a wave of frustrated users uninstalling it.

-Google has agreed to a $68 million settlement regarding claims that its voice assistant inappropriately spied on smartphone users. Plaintiffs claimed that the company’s Google Assistant platform began listening to them after it misheard conversations that sounded like its wake words.

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NTSB will investigate why Waymo's robotaxis are illegally passing school buses Jan 26, 2026

Show notes

The safety probe comes after Waymo did a voluntary software recall late last year addressing the same issue.

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Is OpenAI's GPT-5.2 model citing Grokipedia? Apple to reveal its Gemini-powered Siri soon, and US Congress members are calling for a 'thorough review' of EA's $55 billion sale Jan 26, 2026

Show notes

-OpenAI may have called GPT-5.2 its "most advanced frontier model for professional work," but tests conducted by the Guardian cast doubt on its credibility. According to the report, OpenAI's GPT-5.2 model cited Grokipedia, the online encyclopedia powered by xAI, when it came to specific, but controversial topics related to Iran or the Holocaust.

-According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple wants to announce a new Siri in "the second half of February" that will show off the results of its recently announced partnership with Google and offer demonstrations of the Gemini-powered capabilities.

-Before Electronic Arts goes private in a groundbreaking sale, some US lawmakers are pleading for some federal oversight. Democratic members of the US Congress, as part of the Congressional Labor Caucus, penned a letter asking the Federal Trade Commission to "thoroughly review" the $55 billion acquisition of EA.

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An AI pin is beneath Apple Jan 23, 2026

Show notes

Apple needs a better Siri, not an unproven wearable.

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TikTok' US deal finalized, David Ellison extended the deadline for the WBD takeover offer, and Elon Musk said Tesla will sell humanoid robots next year Jan 23, 2026

Show notes

-TikTok has finalized the deal for its US entity, with its parent company ByteDance selling the majority of its stake to a group of non-Chinese investors.

-Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison is apparently still hopeful that investors will approve his $108.4 billion hostile takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery.

-Elon Musk took the stage recently at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland and announced that Tesla's Optimus humanoid robot will be sold to the public by the end of next year.

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Amazon is adding AI-powered assistant to One Medical Jan 22, 2026

Show notes

The agentic "Health AI" will be integrated into the primary care provider's app.

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Apple overhauling Siri as an AI chatbot and developing a wearable AI pin, plus Meta expanding Threads ads to all users globally Jan 22, 2026

Show notes

-Apple's long-awaited Siri overhaul will allegedly involve transforming the voice assistant into an AI chatbot, internally called Campos.

-A report by The Information on Wednesday said that Apple is working on an AI pin. The wearable is said to resemble a slightly thicker AirTag and include multiple cameras, a speaker, microphones, and wireless charging.

-Threads has grown enough for Meta to fully integrate it into its advertising machine.

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