Tech Brew Ride Home

Latest Episodes:

Fri. 03/14 – E2EE For All! Mar 14, 2025

Show notes

The new RCS messaging standard makes encryption universal, and even Apple is getting on the bandwagon. OpenAI calls for a US ban of DeepSeek. Is Apple about to turn your AirPods into the Universal Translator from Star Trek? And, of course, The Weekend Longreads Suggestions.

Sponsors:

FactorMeals.com/factorpodcast and code FACTORPODCAST

Links:

Apple will soon support encrypted RCS messaging with Android users (The Verge)
OpenAI calls DeepSeek ‘state-controlled,’ calls for bans on ‘PRC-produced’ models (TechCrunch)
Apple Plans AirPods Feature That Can Live-Translate Conversations (Bloomberg)
Gemini can now personalize its answers based on your search history (The Verge)
Sony’s new RGB backlight tech absolutely smokes regular Mini LED TVs (The Verge)

Weekend Longreads Suggestions:

‘Ne Zha 2’s $2B+ Box Office Run: How It Happened And What Does Blockbuster Behemoth Mean For China & Hollywood Ahead (Deadline)
The End Of Children (The New Yorker)

Thu. 03/13 – Intel’s New Boss Mar 13, 2025

Show notes

Intel has a new boss and they seem to want to double down on the Foundry strategy. Meta is testing community notes. Sonos is abandoning its big streaming video hardware project. Is Adobe falling behind in AI? Is Oracle the leader to take over TikTok US? And why is John Gruber so mad at Apple?

Sponsors:

Shopify.com/ride

Links:

Intel appoints chip industry veteran Lip-Bu Tan as CEO (Reuters)
Intel CEO Signals That He’ll Stick With Contentious Foundry Plan (Bloomberg)
Meta unveils new community notes program; will not apply distribution penalties nor limit flow of information (Fox News)
Sonos has canceled its streaming video player (The Verge)
Microsoft’s new Xbox Copilot will act as an AI gaming coach (The Verge)
Adobe shares drop 13% as concerns about AI growth overshadow better-than-expected results (CNBC)
Oracle Is Leading Contender to Help Run TikTok in New Deal (The Information)
Something Is Rotten in the State of Cupertino (Daring Fireball)

Wed. 03/12 – Roomba Might Not Be Able To Clean Up This Mess Mar 12, 2025

Show notes

Niantic officially sells to that Saudi-owned game developer. iRobot says it might not be alive in about 12 months time. Sam Altman believes he has an AI that can write believable fiction. Is the cavalry coming to save Intel? And why can’t we create a true AI Einstein in a data center?

Sponsors:

Acorns.com/ride

Links:

Tue. 03/11 – Biggest Changes To iOS Since 2013 Mar 11, 2025

Show notes

Are we about to get the biggest overhaul of iOS since 2013? Is inference the way that everybody is going to eat Nvidia’s lunch? Exactly how much to AI search engines get it wrong? Why is the global smartwatch market shrinking? And apparently the new Mac Studios are the thing you want to get, if you can afford it!

Sponsors:

Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code RIDEHOME at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: http://incogni.com/ridehome
1password.com/ride

Links:

Apple Readies Dramatic Software Overhaul for iPhone, iPad and Mac (Bloomberg)
Exclusive: Meta begins testing its first in-house AI training chip (Reuters)
How ‘inference’ is driving competition to Nvidia’s AI chip dominance (FT)
Sony is experimenting with AI-powered PlayStation characters (The Verge)
AI Search Has A Citation Problem (CJR)
Global Smartwatch Shipments in 2024: Market Declines for First Time, China Leads for First Time (Counterpoint Research)
Apple Mac Studio (Early 2025) Review: Renewed vigor with M4 Max and M3 Ultra (Tom's Hardware)
Apple Mac Studio (M3 Ultra) first look: a weekend with an $8,000 powerhouse (The Verge)

Mon. 03/10 – Is Manus “DeepSeek” 2.0? Mar 10, 2025

Show notes

Well, do we have another DeepSeek moment on our hands? I tell you about Manus, which had some people losing their minds over the weekend. Now do we have the first signs of the AI M&A I’ve been looking for? Absolutely everybody wants to get in on the Stablecoin business. And the AI crisis at Apple delayed a product we might have seen this month.

Sponsors:

Links:

China’s Autonomous Agent, Manus, Changes Everything (Forbes)
Manus probably isn’t China’s second ‘DeepSeek moment’ (TechCrunch)
Undocumented commands found in Bluetooth chip used by a billion devices (BleepingComputer)
ServiceNow Nears Deal to Buy AI Assistant Maker Moveworks (Bloomberg)
Banks and fintechs join ‘stablecoin gold rush’ (Financial Times)
Apple Clears the Decks With Rare Early-Year Product Frenzy (Bloomberg)

(Omnibus) Week Of 03/03/2025 Mar 08, 2025

Show notes

(Omnibus) Week Of 03/03/2025

Subscribe to get this every week AD-FREE at tech.supercast.tech

Fri. 03/07 – “AI Wrappers” No Longer A Pejorative Mar 07, 2025

Show notes

Will Apple have to allow side loading in Brazil? The US Strategic Crypto Reserve becomes a reality. Larry Page has a new startup. The concept of a startup being nothing more than an “AI Wrapper” is no longer a pejorative. And, of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions.

Sponsors:

Tonal.com Promocode RIDE for $200 off

Links:

Brazilian court gives Apple 90 days to allow sideloading on iOS (9to5Mac)
Donald Trump signs executive order for Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (CoinTelegraph)
Drone Defense Startup Shield AI Lands $5.3 Billion Valuation (Bloomberg)
Larry Page Has a New AI Startup (The Information)
The Hottest AI Companies Right Now Are ‘Apps’ (Bloomberg)

Weekend Longreads Suggestions:

Thu. 03/06 – Tech IPO Spring? Mar 06, 2025

Show notes

More signs the tech IPO logjam is breaking. Another cheap new AI model from China. Would you pay 20 THOUSAND dollars a month to use an OpenAI agent? The umpteenth foldable iPhone rumor, though this time with dates. And let me introduce you to YouTube Premium Lite.

Sponsors:

LinkedIn.com/ride

Links:

Klarna to File for $1 Billion-Plus IPO as Soon as Next Week (Bloomberg)
Discord in Early Talks With Bankers for Potential I.P.O. (NYTimes)
Alibaba’s new open source model QwQ-32B matches DeepSeek-R1 with way smaller compute requirements (VentureBeat)
OpenAI Plots Charging $20,000 a Month For PhD-Level Agents (The Information)
Google Search’s new ‘AI Mode’ lets users ask complex, multi-part questions (TechCrunch)
Kuo: Apple's First Foldable iPhone to Feature Book-Style Design, Sell for Over $2,000 (MacRumors)
New M4 MacBook Air fixes the line's biggest problem (Apple Insider)
YouTube launches a $7.99 per month, ad-free Premium Lite subscription (TechCrunch)
YouTube Music hits 125 million subscribers, adding 2m subs per month on average over the past year (Music Business Worldwide)

Wed. 03/05 – Digg Is Back! Mar 05, 2025

Show notes

Elon can’t stop OpenAI, but the case will go on. Trump wants to stop the Chips Act immediately. Apple released more new Macs today. If you can believe it, Digg is back! They’re coming for Reddit! And the AI chatbot that might have passed the uncanny valley when it comes to AI generated speech.

Sponsors:

Oracle.com/techmeme

Links:

Musk’s Fight With OpenAI Set for Expedited Trial This Year (Bloomberg)
Trump Calls for End to $52 Billion Chips Act Subsidy Program (Bloomberg)
Apple launches new Mac Studios with M4 Max and M3 Ultra chips (The Verge)
Digg is coming back, thanks to its founder — and Reddit’s (The Verge)
Bored Ape Creator Yuga Labs Says SEC Closing Investigation in 'Huge Win' for NFT Sector (Decrypt)
Google Urges Trump DOJ to Reverse Course on Breaking Up Company (Bloomberg)
Eerily realistic AI voice demo sparks amazement and discomfort online (ArsTechnica)

Tue. 03/04 – The First IPO Of The AI Era Mar 04, 2025

Show notes

We have our first official IPO of the AI Era coming. Anthropic has a big new round. New iPads from Apple. New phones from Nothing. Waymo rolls out in Austin, Texas. And how the Kinnect technology lives on, as a tool for Ghostbusters.

Sponsors:

FreshBooks.com
IQBar: Text TECHMEME to 64000

Links:

AI cloud provider CoreWeave files for IPO (CNBC)
Anthropic Finalizes Megaround at $61.5 Billion Valuation (Bloomberg)
Apple launches a new M3-powered iPad Air (The Verge)
Waymo is now available exclusively on Uber in Austin (The Verge)
Nothing’s Phone 3A and 3A Pro use AI to organize all your stuff (The Verge)
Ghost hunting, pornography and interactive art: the weird afterlife of Xbox Kinect (The Guardian)

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected