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Mon. 05/01 – Why Hollywood Fears AI May 01, 2023

Show notes

Gurman says the big Apple Watch OS overhaul is nigh. I can already tell you what the biggest tech IPO of 2023 is going to be. Are there signs tech earnings have turned or a corner, or, at least, have bottomed out? And why the AI revolution is behind the potential of a major labor strike in Hollywood.

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Links:

Apple to Upgrade Its Watch Operating System With New Focus on Widgets (Bloomberg)
SoftBank's Arm registers for blockbuster U.S. IPO (Reuters)
Microsoft makes its AI-powered Designer tool available in preview (TechCrunch)
Big Tech Earnings Spark Hope That Worst Is Over (WSJ)
ChatGPT Will See You Now: Doctors Using AI to Answer Patient Questions (WSJ)
Will a Chatbot Write the Next ‘Succession’? (NYTimes)

(IHP Bonus) Mike Slade on Steve Jobs' Return To Apple Apr 30, 2023

Show notes

Another bonus episode from the Internet History Podcast. As promised, Mike Slade is back to tell stories from the period 1998 through 2004, when he was Special Assistant to Steve Jobs. Background details on the iMac, the iPod and the iPhone and more!

(IHP Bonus) Mike Slade on NeXT and Steve Jobs' Return to Apple Apr 29, 2023

Show notes

Another bonus episode from the Internet History Podcast. I originally wanted to talk to Mike Slade about Starwave, the innovative company that launched some major names onto the web, including ESPN.com, ABCNews.com, MrShowbiz.com, and after an eventual sale to Disney, put together the pieces that eventually became the Go.com portal play. But Mike is one of those guys who has had such a varied and interesting career, I couldn't help but go into other eras of his career. The dude worked at Microsoft in the early 1980s. He worked at NeXT in the early 90s. And from 1998 through 2004 he was Special Assistant to Steve Jobs as he saved Apple as a company, launched the iPod and kicked into motion the modern gadget era.

Fri. 04/28 – Microsoft Gets Out Of The Mice Business Apr 28, 2023

Show notes

More signs that vital communications infrastructure is abandoning Twitter. Reddit is testing Discord-like chat channels. Big layoffs at Clubhouse. Microsoft exits the peripherals business after 40 years. And, of course, the Weekend Longreads suggestions.

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Links:

New York City Subway Ends Twitter Service Alerts After Musk Raises Price (Bloomberg)
Reddit is testing Discord-like channels for community chat (TechCrunch)
Once-Hot Chat Startup Clubhouse Is Cutting Half of Staff (Bloomberg)
Pinterest announces multiyear ads partnership with Amazon alongside earnings beat (TechCrunch)
Microsoft’s mice, keyboards, and webcams are being discontinued in favor of Surface accessories (The Verge)

Weekend Longreads Suggestions:

Apple’s Siri Chief Struggles With Turf Wars as New AI Era Begins (The Information)
ASML, Europe’s Most Valuable Tech Firm, Is at the Heart of the US-China Chip War (Bloomberg)
The Unexpected Reason Apple Is Dominating the U.S. Smartphone Market (WSJ)
35 Ways Real People Are Using A.I. Right Now (NYTimes)

Thu. 04/27 – Meta Does Good Apr 27, 2023

Show notes

Meta reported earnings that surprised investors in the good way. But that doesn’t mean they’re backing off the Metaverse. Global smartphone shipments continue to plummet. Might congress ban children from social media? Amazon gets out of the health tracker business. And the interesting way that rejection of the Microsoft Activision deal is using a somewhat novel argument.

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Wed. 04/26 - The UK Is Blocking Microsoft’s Activision Acquisition Apr 26, 2023

Show notes

The UK is blocking Microsoft’s Activision Acquisition. A quick rundown of Microsoft and Alphabet earnings. The new Mavic drone is a beast. Cruise has actually expanded its self-driving taxi service. And a look at the mounting pressure on Binance and CZ.

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Links:

UK Blocks Microsoft’s $69 Billion Activision Deal (Bloomberg)
Microsoft Q3 2023: Windows, devices, and Xbox down again (The Verge)
Google’s cloud business turns profitable for the first time on record (CNBC)
Apple Plans AI-Powered Health Coaching Service, Mood Tracker and iPad Health App (Bloomberg)
DJI’s latest Mavic drone is a beast (TechCrunch)
Cruise continues to burn GM’s cash as robotaxis expand to daylight hours (The Verge)
OpenAI Offers New Privacy Options for ChatGPT (Bloomberg)
Binance Faces Mounting Pressure as U.S. Crypto Crackdown Intensifies (NYTimes)

Tue. 04/25 – The AI Revolution Comes For Drake Apr 25, 2023

Show notes

Methinks Coinbase is orchestrating laying the groundwork for a showdown with US regulators. Slack rolls out Canvas, which seems pretty cool. AI Guardrails from Nvidia. A browser built for AI tools from Opera. And I delve into the whole story about that AI generated Drake song that has gone viral.

Links:

Coinbase Asks Court to Force SEC to Clarify Crypto Regulations (Decrypt)
Slack launches Canvas, a docs app that lives inside your chat app (The Verge)
Google Authenticator now syncs 2FA with your Google Account, gets new icon (9to5Google)
Nvidia releases a toolkit to make text-generating AI ‘safer’ (TechCrunch)
Opera One is a browser designed for generative AI features (Engadget)
An A.I. Hit of Fake ‘Drake’ and ‘The Weeknd’ Rattles the Music World (NYTimes)
Grimes Tells Fans To Deepfake Her Music, Will Split 50% Royalties With AI (Forbes)
Sol Reader E Ink headset for hands-free e-reading makes CES debut (GoodEReader)

Mon. 04/24 – And More Twitter Stuff Apr 24, 2023

Show notes

Would you believe me if I told you there was more Twitter chaos over the weekend. More details on the Apple headset. Is ARM about to abandon its Switzerland strategy? Interesting data about how Netflix dominates TV watching. And sad data about the down rounds we can expect for the foreseeable future.

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