The Vergecast

Latest Episodes:

Who is the $1,059 Steam VR headset for? Sep 14, 2026

Show notes

Sean Hollister got his hands and face on Valve's new VR headset, the Steam Frame. It's expensive, starting at more than $1,000. It's buggy — he and CNET's Scott Stein both felt like beta testers as they reviewed it. But it's also full of interesting ideas, including the promise that Steam games could one day come to your mobile phone. This week on The Vergecast, Sean and Scott discuss who exactly this device is for, in a world that mostly seems to have moved on from VR.

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We unfolded the iPhone Duo Sep 11, 2026

Show notes

Apple did the one more thing: This week it announced its much-anticipated folding phone. It also announced some surprising and controversial new AI features for Apple Watch, including "Live Rewind," which gives the user a text transcript of the last 15 seconds of real life.

On today's Vergecast, Allison Johnson and Vee Song report back from California after having more hands-on time with Apple's new devices. Plus, Nilay Patel and David Imel take another swing at discussing Mac Minis and local LLMs with AI researcher CJ Trowbridge. Finally, Allison and Jake tackle some non-Apple stories in the truly rapid-fire thunder round.

Further reading:

iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max: Our first hands-on impressions

The variable aperture isn’t the cool part of the iPhone 18 Pro’s camera

Hands-on with the foldable iPhone Duo

Hands-on with the new Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4

Apple Watch Series 12 has an always-on Siri that makes AI recaps of your day

Read the Apple document explaining how new listening features still protect your privacy

Mathematicians want proof OpenAI didn’t use their work

OpenAI’s sly mathematical breakthrough sends a chill through academia

Drama swirls around OpenAI’s legendary mathematical milestone

The Trump phone just got a $250 price hike

Six years later, Sony revisits its legendary XM4 headphones

Hori’s electronic Ocarina of Time requires no musical talent.

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Schools are catching onto tech’s playbook Sep 10, 2026

Show notes

For years, big tech companies have embedded their products into the classroom whether through Google's Chromebooks or computer science curricula developed by Apple or Microsoft. The industry pushed a generation of kids to foster coding skills with the promise of high-paying jobs. Now, those students are finding themselves less in demand as AI takes over, and the industry seems to be repeating its playbook. Senior policy reporter Lauren Feiner talks to Natasha Singer, author of the new book "Coding Kids," about how big tech worked its way into the classroom, and why Natasha is optimistic about educators’ response to the AI push.

Further reading:

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The folding iPhone Duo is finally here | The Vergecast Livestream Sep 09, 2026

Show notes

Live from Apple Park, Nilay Patel and Victoria Song join Jake Kastrenakes, Dominic Preston and Cameron Faulkner to talk about the iPhone Duo and the new Apple Watches. We also talk about the new iPhone 18 Pro's variable aperture and the AirPods 5.

Further reading:

All the news from Apple’s ‘Surprise and shine’ event

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The tech that made a 2-hour marathon possible Sep 08, 2026

Show notes

At this year's London Marathon, two runners completed the route in under two hours, becoming the first people to ever do so on an official course. It's a feat that Outside magazine's Alex Hutchinson once thought wouldn't be accomplished until 2075. The Verge's senior policy reporter (and marathoner) Lauren Feiner talks to Alex about "super shoes" and the other surprising technological advances that led to this moment.

Further reading:

The Fairphone 6 Plus is the midrange phone we desperately needed

The real reason your phone is getting more expensive

What to expect at Apple’s September 9th launch event

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AGI is whatever you want it to be Sep 04, 2026

Show notes

OpenAI announced its next big model, GPT-6 Astra, and also, by the way, that AGI is here now.
Today on The Vergecast, we've got an all-star panel to break down the news of the week.
First, senior AI reporter Hayden Field joins us to talk about our supposed AGI era and Nvidia's acquisition of Hugging Face. Then, our friend Joanna Stern pops in to talk about new Apple CEO John Ternus, old Apple CEO Tim Cook, and to, most importantly, speculate on the format of next week's Apple keynote.
We wrap things up with a super-special lightning round from the IFA electronics show in Berlin. Senior reviewer Jennifer Pattison Tuohy and editor Dominic Preston each pick out the five most interesting gadgets they saw at the show.
And two more things: Vergecast producer Travis Larchuk pops in to tell his tale of identity theft woe and warn you that he isn't the one DMing you on Twitter to ask you to be on The Vergecast. Plus, Brendan Carr is a dummy.

Further reading:

OpenAI’s next big AI model has ‘entered the AGI era’

Researchers fear safety disaster ahead of OpenAI’s Astra release

OpenAI delayed its new model’s development after the Hugging Face hack

Nvidia is buying Hugging Face for almost $13 billion

John Ternus sends first memo as Apple CEO teasing a ‘huge launch next week’

Phil Schiller is leaving his biggest jobs at Apple

Siri AI is already changing how I use my iPhone

IFA 2026: the biggest tech and gadget announcements

This might be the fanciest toothbrush launch ever.

Anker’s new MindBase is an AI-powered brain for your smart home

This NAS company wants to run your local smart home

I want to wrap myself in Hue’s new Liane rope lights

Homey just made the smart home controller I hoped Apple would

The robot butler dream doesn’t have legs

Here’s Xiaomi’s wide 18 Fold

I held the first truly bezel-free phone

Acer’s new concept hardware is a gaming handheld with a keyboard

Lenovo’s new MacBook Neo competitor comes in two sizes and seven colors

Packard Bell is back, and more colorful than ever.

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We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11.

0:00 Welcome
00:46 Fake Travis warning
03:01 OpenAI's Astra model
05:45 Safeguards and delays
08:55 Opaque recurrence fears
13:08 What Astra does well
18:08 Access tiers and rollout
19:53 Nvidia buys Hugging Face
23:04 Is this really AGI
26:28 AGI vibes and Microsoft clause
32:17 Apple event preview
33:41 Ternus keynote politics
39:43 Keynote Vibes Shift
40:23 Tim Cook Era Review
44:56 Services And Fees Machine
47:15 Phil Schiller Steps Back
49:52 Event Predictions Fold And AI
55:43 Siri AI Real Use Cases
58:32 Smart Home Display Rumors
59:47 Bets And Keynote Structure
01:05:19 Brendan Carr Is A Dummy
01:09:23 IFA Lightning Round
01:10:49 Philips Hue Smart Lighting
01:11:03 Hue Rope Light Rave
01:11:44 Sticker Shock Pricing
01:13:03 Xiaomi Wide Foldable
01:15:43 Dyson Camera Toothbrush
01:20:31 Tecno Bezelless Concept
01:22:42 Local AI Smart Home Hub
01:27:09 MacBook Neo Clones
01:29:35 Homey Dial Controller
01:33:39 Acer DualPlay Handheld
01:36:19 Dreame Humanoid Robot
01:39:44 Packard Bell Revival
01:42:17 Wrap Up And Credits

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Apple Home rumors, ranked Sep 03, 2026

Show notes

Apple's big hardware event is coming next week. iPhones are the main draw, but senior reviewer Jennifer Pattison Tuohy has her eyes on the rumors around — what else? — smart home gadgets. Andrew O'Hara from the Smart Home Insider podcast joins Jen to fire up the Rank-o-Matic and speculate on which rumored gadgets are most likely to see the light of day.

Further reading:

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What’s happening with US data centers? Sep 02, 2026

Show notes

Data centers have been a staple of Loudoun County since the early dot-com boom, but recent expansions have left some residents wondering how much more the county can take. In this episode, guest host David Imel talks to Lauren Feiner about her recent article detailing the buildout of “Data Center Alley,” what it means for residents, and what other counties reeling with similar buildouts can learn from it.

Further reading:

Is this the future of America?

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What the AI overlords get wrong about being alive Sep 01, 2026

Show notes

Elizabeth Lopatto recently wrote about Mark Zuckerberg's 6,500-word AI manifesto in her piece, "Mark Zuckerberg doesn't understand how to live." Today, she joins guest host David Imel and senior wearables reviewer Victoria Song for a freewheeling discussion about what happens when we let AI make decisions for us.

Further reading:

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We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11.

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Can Fairphone survive the US market Aug 31, 2026

Show notes

Skyrocketing RAM prices put a spotlight on product longevity and repairability, which makes this a particularly apt time for Fairphone to launch its first smartphone sold directly in the United States. Today, David Imel talks to CEO Raymond van Eck about the Fairphone 6+, the company's goals of user-repairability and ethically-sourced materials, and what place AI has in the future of Fairphone.

Further reading: