Grumpy Old Geeks

Jason DeFillippo & Brian Schulmeister with Dave Bittner
  • 4.9 (6K)
  • TECH NEWS
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

We dissect the tech news train wrecks of the week, calling out what went wrong and who’s to blame. Think of this podcast as if Kurt Cobain threw down with Tom from MySpace, Elon Musk, and Mark Zuckerberg in a back alley brawl. No mercy, no filter—if tech had a walk of shame, this would be it.

  1. Merry Slopmas

    3D AGO

    Merry Slopmas

    Welcome back to another hour of digital cynicism. We kick things off with a FOLLOW UP on Amazon’s Fallout recaps, which were apparently so hallucination-heavy they made the actual wasteland look organized; naturally, they’ve been nuked along with the "Video Recaps" feature. In a massive dose of IN THE NEWS, Tesla is finally getting a legal side-eye in California for its deceptive "Autopilot" branding, while TikTok is performing a corporate shell game by selling a 45% stake to Oracle and friends to keep the feds happy. Reddit is fighting Australia’s under-16 ban like it’s a constitutional crisis, Louisiana’s age-verification law just got benched by a judge, and Merriam-Webster officially crowned "slop" as the Word of the Year—which is fitting, given that OpenAI is selectively hiding chat logs from murder-suicides while their Chief Scientist warns that recursive AI self-improvement might end the human experiment by 2030. If the "intelligence explosion" doesn’t get us, the CRASH Clock says we’ve got roughly 2.8 days before Elon’s satellite swarm turns low-earth orbit into a permanent scrapyard. In our MEDIA CANDY segment, we mourn the transition year of Star Trek, which was mostly a series of unmitigated disasters and corporate retreats, though the Oscars moving to YouTube in 2029 means we can finally ignore them in 4K. Meta is testing a "pay-to-share-links" feature because they clearly haven't alienated creators enough, and a new study suggests Amazon’s "dynamic pricing" is basically just a high-tech way to gouge public school districts for pencils. Moving to APPS & DOODADS, iOS 26.2 is here with a "Liquid Glass" slider—groundbreaking stuff, really—while Microsoft’s Copilot+ push is effectively killing the laptop market by making 16GB of RAM a luxury item only a data center could love. Meanwhile, iRobot has officially sucked its last bit of dust into a Chapter 11 filing, proving that even a twenty-year head start can’t save you from a 46 percent tariff and better Chinese competition. AT THE LIBRARY, we find out that librarians are ready to quit because people keep demanding books that only exist in a ChatGPT hallucination, proving once again that the "Information Age" was a lie. We descend into THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE with the tireless Dave Bittner to discuss why modern movies feel like plastic, the bizarre paradox of James Cameron’s Avatar dominance, and a bittersweet farewell to Rob Reiner. We wrap it up with the return of The Muppets, a look at plug-in solar panels for the budget-conscious prepper, and the Sedaris siblings proving that even grief can be a podcast topic. It’s all the tech "progress" you never asked for, delivered with the appropriate amount of Gen-X side-eye. Show notes at https://gog.show/727 Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/hHnGD4lIFzA Sponsors: MasterClass - Get up to 50% off at MASTERCLASS.com/GRUMPYOLDGEEKS 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/1password FOLLOW UP Amazon pulls its bad AI video recaps after Fallout fallout IN THE NEWS Tesla used deceptive language to market Autopilot, California judge rules TikTok agrees to deal to cede control of US business to American investor group Reddit sues Australia over underage social media ban Judge blocks Louisiana's social media age verification law Murder-suicide case shows OpenAI selectively hides data after users die Trump orders creation of litigation task force to challenge state AI laws 'Slop' is Merriam-Webster's word of the year Anthropic’s Chief Scientist Says We’re Rapidly Approaching the Moment That Could Doom Us All Model collapse OpenAI Is Going Into the New Year With Some Real Loser Energy New ‘CRASH Clock’ Warns of 2.8-Day Window Before Likely Orbital Collision A Facebook test makes link-sharing a paid feature for creators Study links Amazon's algorithmic pricing with erratic, inflated costs for school districts MEDIA CANDY A Man on the Inside S2 Oh. What. Fun. The End of an Era The West Wing F1® The Movie - Apple TV The Running Man Welcome to Derry Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery Is it Cake? Apple TV releasing Pluribus season finale early next week Warner Bros. Discovery rejects Paramount's hostile bid 2025 Was a Turning Point for ‘Star Trek’, Whether It Knew It or Not THE ACADEMY PARTNERS WITH YOUTUBE FOR EXCLUSIVE GLOBAL RIGHTS TO THE OSCARS® AND OTHER ACADEMY CONTENT STARTING IN 2029 APPS & DOODADS iOS 26.2 is here with another Liquid Glass tweak, new Podcasts features and more Oh, the Irony: Microsoft’s Push for Copilot+ PCs Could Stall Laptop Sales iRobot has filed for bankruptcy and may be taken over by its primary supplier AT THE LIBRARY Flybot by Dennis E. Taylor Making Space (The Time Traveler's Passport) by R. F. Kuang For a Limited Time Only (The Time Traveler's Passport) by Peng Shepherd Librarians Are Tired of Being Accused of Hiding Secret Books That Were Made Up by AI THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE Dave Bittner The CyberWire Hacking Humans Caveat Control Loop Only Malware in the Building Why Movies Just Don't Feel "Real" Anymore The Avatar Paradox - Why Nobody Talks About These Movies Don't F**k with James Cameron Every James Cameron Movie, Explained by James Cameron | Vanity Fair ‘The Muppet Show’ Returns for One Night Only Next February The Muppet Show | Official Teaser | Disney+ Small plug-in solar panels gain traction as an affordable way to cut electricity bills 'You don't know what it's like till you lose a parent': Sedaris siblings share their grief story CLOSING SHOUT-OUTS “Enshittification” YouTube “Enshittification” Spotify “Enshittification” SoundCloud (with a direct download) Len (a.k.a. Funny Name) See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 21m
  2. Sycophantic and Delusional

    DEC 12

    Sycophantic and Delusional

    The labor market has swung from the Great Resignation to “job hugging,” where workers cling to their roles out of fear of AI-driven layoffs and inflation, crushing engagement and accelerating burnout. At the same time, OpenAI is accused of suppressing research showing job losses, ignoring internal warnings about chatbot mental health risks, and bleeding safety staff, while state Attorneys General fire off an opening salvo likening unchecked AI harms to an opioid crisis-in-the-making. The AI boom is now colliding with reality. Environmental groups want a halt on new datacenters as power prices spike, and the industry is starting to look financially radioactive, with opaque financing schemes, hidden debt, and trillion-dollar infrastructure bets that could vaporize household wealth. Regulators are pushing back too: the EU is fining X, probing Google over training data, and floating a statutory licensing scheme for AI scraping, while Disney dives in with a billion-dollar bet on “responsible” AI storytelling that mostly translates to fewer humans on payroll. Meanwhile, everyday tech dystopia rolls on. Uber is monetizing your movement data, Instacart is quietly price-discriminating groceries, Waymo is spinning a robotaxi birth as a feel-good story, and crypto fraud finally earns real prison time. Add in AI-generated marketing slop, government sites hijacked by SEO porn, billion-dollar festival scams resurrected, and Congress kneecapping right-to-repair, and the takeaway is simple: the machines are hungry, the adults are absent, and the vibes are aggressively bad. Sponsors: CleanMyMac - Get Tidy Today! Try 7 days free and use code OLDGEEKS for 20% off at clnmy.com/OLDGEEKS Gusto - Try Gusto today at gusto.com/grumpy, and get three months free when you run your first payroll. 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/1password Show notes at https://gog.show/726 Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/eJbLlVhIQ-Y FOLLOW UP “Why ‘job hugging’ can be worse than quitting” OpenAI Accused of Self-Censoring Research That Paints AI In a Bad Light OpenAI, Anthropic, Others Receive Warning Letter from Dozens of State Attorneys General IN THE NEWS More than 200 environmental groups demand halt to new US datacenters Something Ominous Is Happening in the AI Economy OpenAI's house of cards seems primed to collapse X shuts down the European Commission’s ad account the day after major fine EU opens antitrust investigation into Google's AI practices EU Report Distills AI-Training Lessons from Napster Piracy Era: Don’t Sue, License Disney Invests $1 Billion in the AI Slopification of Its Brand Uber will start selling trip and takeout data to marketers Instacart Charging Customers Different Prices for Same Products, Study Finds Waymo's robotaxi fleet is being recalled again, this time for failing to stop for school buses Driverless delivery: Woman gives birth in San Francisco Waymo Crypto mogul Do Kwon sentenced to 15 years in prison for $40 billion stablecoin fraud Porn Is Being Injected Into Government Websites Via Malicious PDFs Marco Rubio bans Calibri font at State Department for being too DEI 'Architects of AI' named Time Magazine's Person of the Year MEDIA CANDY The American Revolution What Happened at Billy McFarland’s PHNX Festival? The Lord of the Rings trilogy returns to theaters in January for 25th anniversary Amazon’s Official ‘Fallout’ Season 1 Recap Is AI Garbage Filled With Mistakes Spartacus House of Ashur The Boys - Final Season Teaser Trailer | Prime Video Paradise Season 2 | Official Teaser | Hulu Supergirl | Official Teaser Trailer No Such Thing As a Fish - Ep612: No Such Thing As The Gordon Ramsay Songbook WTF Happened To Battlestar Galactica (2004-2009)?! Star Trek: Starfleet Academy | Official Trailer | Paramount+ (NYCC 2025) Starfleet Academy - What Is This Garbage? APPS & DOODADS Google and Apple partner on better Android-iPhone switching Congress removes right to repair language from 2026 defense bill Glide Gear TMP 100 Teleprompter – DSLR, Tablet, Smartphone – 12" Glass, Carry Case, No Assembly BetterDisplay Pro THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE Dave Bittner The CyberWire Hacking Humans Caveat Control Loop Only Malware in the Building Splat HiFi The History Behind All the Cuts of the Original ‘Star Wars’’ Rise of the Resistance | Layout Side By Side BLUE MONDAY - Analyzing the MOST BRUTAL BEAT of the '80s | Drum Patterns Explained See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 18m
  3. The Mistake Machine

    DEC 5

    The Mistake Machine

    FOLLOW UP starts with the realization that Spotify Wrapped thinks we are 82 years old, which honestly feels accurate, followed by a massive shout out to Bama Bryan on Bluesky for listening to us for over 3,000 minutes. We look at the grim stats from the Department of Government Efficiency regarding USAID deaths, then move to IN THE NEWS where the KALSHI CEO wants to monetize "any difference in opinion" because gambling on the news is the future. PALANTIR CEO Alex Karp claims making war crimes constitutional is bad for business, META STARTS KICKING AUSTRALIAN CHILDREN OFF their platforms to avoid fines, and TETHER gets a "weak" rating while U.S. BANK calls the ability to freeze stablecoins "appealing." We discuss the LEAK CONFIRMS OPENAI IS PREPARING ADS for ChatGPT while SAM ALTMAN DECLARES 'CODE RED' to catch up to Google. Speaking of which, ONE OF GOOGLE'S BIGGEST AI ADVANTAGES IS WHAT IT ALREADY KNOWS ABOUT YOU, even if GOOGLE DISCOVER IS TESTING AI-GENERATED HEADLINES that are complete lies. We cover how GROK WOULD PREFER A SECOND HOLOCAUST OVER HARMING ELON MUSK, the US PATENT OFFICE ruling on generative AI, a new report on DAVID SACKS profiting from his administration role, and INSTACART SUES NEW YORK CITY because paying workers a living wage is apparently unconstitutional. We wrap up the news with the HUMAN ROBOT HYPE SCARING CHINA, a sad story where CHILDREN SOB AS WAYMO RUNS OVER DOG, a video showing a WAYMO SELF-DRIVING TAXI TAKES PASSENGER THROUGH ACTIVE POLICE SCENE, and the fact that PASSENGERS FACE DISRUPTION AS AIRBUS UPDATES THOUSANDS OF PLANES due to solar flares. In MEDIA CANDY, the industry is shaking because NETFLIX BUYS WARNER BROS. FOR $82 BILLION, meaning they now own everything from Harry Potter to Batman. We look at upcoming releases including WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY, FALLOUT SEASON 2, ROMCON: WHO THE F**K IS JASON PORTER?, SEAN COMBS: THE RECKONING, THE LONG KISS GOODNIGHT, THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, and A MAN ON THE INSIDE. Moving to APPS & DOODADS, we discuss the pure joy of uninstalling DROPBOX, our collective hatred for FUCK CENTER STAGE, and the report that APPLE EMPLOYEES ARE 'GIDDY' ABOUT ALAN DYE'S DEPARTURE. We also cover the horror show where GOOGLE'S AGENTIC AI WIPES USER'S ENTIRE HDD without permission, a study showing YOUR GLITCHY VIDEO CALLS MAY MAKE PEOPLE MISTRUST YOU, and how SCIENTISTS CREATED THE BLACKEST FABRIC EVER. Finally, in THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE, we learn that CLAUDIA BLACK EXITS ‘AHSOKA’ SEASON 2 over pay disputes because Disney is apparently broke, we scrutinize LEAKED CLIPS FROM THE RUMORED 50TH ANNIVERSARY RERELEASE OF THE ORIGINAL VERSION OF STAR WARS (still no R2D2), check out a STORMTROOPER SUIT ON FACEBOOK MARKETPLACE, and mention THE MAD MEN 4K release. 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/1password Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/4IRVvpdJC30 Show notes at https://gog.show/725 FOLLOW UP Kalshi CEO Says He Wants to Monetize ‘Any Difference in Opinion’ Palantir CEO Says Making War Crimes Constitutional Would Be Good for Business Meta starts kicking Australian children off Instagram and Facebook Meta reportedly plans to slash Metaverse budget by up to 30% IN THE NEWS Crypto’s Most Trusted Stablecoin Given Lowest Possible ‘Weak’ Rating By Major TradFi Agency U.S. Bank Calls Ability to Freeze Stablecoins ‘Appealing’ as Crypto Has Completely Lost the Plot Leak confirms OpenAI is preparing ads on ChatGPT for public roll out OpenAI CEO Sam Altman declares 'code red' as ChatGPT competition mounts One of Google's biggest AI advantages is what it already knows about you Google Discover is testing AI-generated headlines and they aren't good Grok would prefer a second Holocaust over harming Elon Musk US patent office says generative AI is equivalent to other tools in inventors' belts The People Outsourcing Their Thinking to AI New report examines how David Sacks might profit from Trump administration role Instacart sues New York City over minimum pay, tipping laws Humanoid Robot Hype Is Officially Scaring China Children Sob as Waymo Runs Over Dog Waymo self-driving taxi takes passenger through active police scene in downtown LA, video shows Passengers face disruption as Airbus updates thousands of planes MEDIA CANDY Netflix Buys Warner Bros. for $82 Billion Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery Fallout Season 2 on Prime Video ROMCON: Who The F**k is Jason Porter? - Season 1 Sean Combs: The Reckoning The Long Kiss Goodnight The American Revolution A Man On the Inside APPS & DOODADS Gruber: Apple employees 'giddy' about Alan Dye’s departure Google's Agentic AI wipes user's entire HDD without permission in catastrophic failure Your glitchy video calls may make people mistrust you Scientists Created the Blackest Fabric Ever, Then Made a Dress THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE Dave Bittner The CyberWire Hacking Humans Caveat Control Loop Only Malware in the Building Claudia Black Exits ‘Ahsoka’ Season 2 Over Alleged Pay Disputes Leaked clips from the rumored 50th anniversary rerelease of the original version of Star Wars The Mad Men 4K on HBO debacle William Shatner - Good King Wenceslas AI boom kills Crucial as Micron shuts down consumer brand CLOSING SHOUT-OUTS Steve Cropper, guitarist for Booker T. & the MG's, Otis Redding, the Blues Brothers and many more, has died. He was 84. STAX: Soulsville, USA. 'Mortal Kombat' Star Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa Dead at 75 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 15m
  4. Sam Altman’s Boutique

    NOV 29

    Sam Altman’s Boutique

    After surviving Thanksgiving and the subsequent biting cold, we jumped into the FOLLOW UP with news that Malaysia is joining the trend by taking steps to ban social media for children under 16, mirroring similar actions in Australia and Denmark—it seems the world is finally realizing the internet is a toxic wasteland for the kids. We also discussed Apple’s photo AI, which is apparently still in beta, if the results are anything to go by. The bulk of our discussion centered on the spectacular, flaming death of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which is Officially Dead. We broke down a brief rundown of the damages this vanity project caused, from humanitarian disasters overseas to administrative chaos and the loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs domestically, proving the "savings" were pure illusion. Now, with the collapse, the 'Suddenly exposed' DOGE employees fear prosecution after Musk abandoned them, learning the hard way that billionaire guardianship has an expiration date. The job market is just great, with both Apple laying off part of its sales team despite record revenue, and HP joining the List of Tech Companies Cutting Jobs and pointing to AI as the convenient scapegoat for laying off 10% of their workforce. Meanwhile, we found out the most popular social media platform among US adults isn't Instagram or TikTok—it’s YouTube—while Meta allegedly buried research showing its products are harming users, confirming what we’ve known all along: they’re evil, but they already got your grandma hooked. Adding to the misery, An Alarming Number of Teens Say They Turn To AI For Company, Study Finds, because why talk to a real, messy human when a bot can gaslight you more efficiently? Sam Altman's financial troubles are spilling over, with Sam Altman’s Business Buddies Are Getting Stung (sorry, SoftBank and Oracle), and analysts estimate OpenAI Is Just $200 Billion Away From Still Losing Money, HSBC Says, a comical hole they plan to fill by asking for more free money. Legally, OpenAI can’t use the Word ‘Cameo’ in Sora now, thanks to a trademark suit, and Warner Music is playing both sides by dropping its lawsuit against Suno in exchange for a licensing agreement. Finally, in some truly dark news, a Marc Andreessen-backed Super-PAC Pours Millions Into Fighting State AI Regulations, and X's new location feature reveals that New X Feature Reveals Many MAGA Patriots on X Are Not Even Based in the U.S. After ranting about my misery dealing with the Open Dialogue bug in a beta build and declaring my return to "pedestrian releases," we got into APPS & DOODADS. Spotify is actually doing something cool with its new SongDNA feature, which shows you who sampled what (and they bought WhoSampled to do it). They’re also testing Spotify's New AI-powered audiobook Recaps to remind you where you left off—Amazon is doing the same with AI-powered series Recap Videos for Prime Video. Amazon is also rolling out Alexa Home Theater surround sound for Echo speakers, making those budget speakers slightly more useful. We ran through some great stocking stuffers in Jason’s Holiday Gift Guide, including Velcro cable ties and the Contigo travel mug, before moving on to MEDIA CANDY, which included Dan Carlin's Common Sense, Nathan Fillion and Alan Tudyk’s new podcast Once We Were Spacemen, and a discussion on why Stranger Things Lost the Plot. We then got deeply uncomfortable talking about a Toronto ASMR spa that offers doctor roleplay, and closed out by talking about the documentary Quiet Please… about the neurological disorder misophonia. The episode finished with the AT THE LIBRARY segment, covering the Milli Vanilli memoir You Know It’s True and the sci-fi short story collection The Time Travelers Passport. Show notes at https://gog.show/724 Watch now on YouTube: https://youtu.be/PoMa9FM5QEE?si=4r25yqv_0u8aXHF7 Sponsors: MasterClass - Get up to 50% off at MASTERCLASS.com/GRUMPYOLDGEEKS Gusto - Try Gusto today at gusto.com/grumpy, and get three months free when you run your first payroll. 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/1password FOLLOW UP Malaysia takes steps to ban social media for children under 16 IN THE NEWS DOGE Is Officially Dead 'Suddenly exposed' DOGE employees fear prosecution after Musk abandoned them: report Apple lays off part of its sales team HP Joins List of Tech Companies Cutting Jobs and Pointing to AI The most popular social media platform among US adults isn't Instagram or TikTok Meta allegedly buried research showing its products are harming users An Alarming Number of Teens Say They Turn To AI For Company, Study Finds Sam Altman’s Business Buddies Are Getting Stung OpenAI Is Just $200 Billion Away From Still Losing Money, HSBC Says OpenAI Can’t Legally Use the Word ‘Cameo’ in Sora Now Warner Music drops lawsuit against AI music platform Suno in exchange for licensing agreement Marc Andreessen-Backed Super-PAC Pours Millions Into Fighting State AI Regulations New X Feature Reveals Many MAGA Patriots on X Are Not Even Based in The U.S. MEDIA CANDY Common Sense 325 – Who’s the Boss? Once We Were Spacemen How Stranger Things Lost the Plot Being Eddie The Beast in Me The Roses At Toronto’s new ASMR spa, sensory stimulation slips out of the internet and into real life Quiet Please… APPS & DOODADS Spotify's SongDNA feature will show you which songs are sampled on a track Making of "The Prodigy - Smack My Bitch Up" in Ableton by Jim Pavloff Spotify's New AI-Powered Audiobook Recaps Will Remind You Where You Left Off Amazon Launches AI-Powered Series Recap Videos Alexa Home Theater surround sound for Echo speakers is rolling out now Dashaun No Sadè - Episode 13 Durand Bernarr Guermok Video Capture Card, 4K USB3.0 HDMI to USB C Capture Card for Streaming, 1080P 60FPS, Compatible with iPad Mac OS Windows, Quest 3, OBS, PS5/4, Switch2/1, Xbox, Camera (Silver) Meike 35mm F2.0 Auto Focus Full Frame STM Stepping Motor Lens Compatible with Nikon Z Mount Cameras OBS Studio Rogue Amoeba Loopback Scientists Reveal What Black Friday Is Doing to Your Brain VELCRO Brand 150pk Cable Ties Value Pack, 8in | Stocking Stuffer Gifts for Tech Lovers | For Wire Management and Cord Organizer | Replace Zip Ties with Reusable Straps, Reduce Waste Hand Holder Strap for ipad, Tablet Hand Holder Strap, Universal Handle Grip for iPad Kindle, Mini Tablets and Cases (Black) Anker USB C Hub, 7-in-1 Multi-Port USB Adapter for Laptops, 4K@60Hz USB C to HDMI Splitter, 85W Max Power Delivery, 3xUSBA & C 3.0 Data Ports, SD/TF Card, for Type C Devices Contigo AUTOSEAL West Loop Vacuum-Insulated Stainless Steel Travel Mug with Easy-Clean Lid 20 oz Scotty Peeler Label and Sticker Remover - Single Metal Peeler -SP2 Slipdrive - Portable Hard Drive Sleeve for Laptop - HDD Hard Disk Drive - Reusable Adhesive - 5.5” x 4.5” Stick on External Hard Drive Carrying Case - Travel Pocket Pouch (Large, Black) Slipdrive - Portable Hard Drive Sleeve for Laptop - SSD Solid State Drive - Reusable Adhesive - Stick on External Hard Drive Carrying Case - Pocket Pouch (Small, Black) Carlashes 1001UB Classic Black AT THE LIBRARY You Know It’s True - The Real Story of Milli Vanilli The Time Travelers Passport The Courage to Be Disliked: How to Free Yourself, Change Your Life, and Achieve Real Happiness by Ichiro Kishimi, Fumitake Koga See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 9m
  5. Don’t Want No Samsung

    NOV 21

    Don’t Want No Samsung

    We open by tracking our video money and mocking the chef who quit Elon’s "epic" bacon diner, before diving into the IN THE NEWS segment where plummeting crypto and Nvidia stocks confirm everything is a sham; we cover Bezos’s new $6.2 billion AI flop, a sleeping Tesla Robotaxi driver, and why OpenAI’s new school tools are a Recipe for Idiocracy with students who can't read; in MEDIA CANDY, we tear apart Disney's lazy Moana remake; THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE we discuss Zork going open source and why movies just don’t feel real anymore before CLOSING SHOUT-OUTS where we are mourning Mani from the Stone Roses, and wishing Bjork a very metal 60th. We start with a FOLLOW UP on our channel’s performance, wading through the garbage pile of Monetization questions and Stats, including the scourge of Shorts—because apparently, that's what we do now. Speaking of people running from trouble, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers is ditching his OpenAI board seat after a fresh batch of cringey Jeffrey Epstein emails surfaced. Meanwhile, the financial world is having a meltdown: Nvidia’s Stock is Falling Again after its earnings report, exposing the fact that almost Yet Another Study Shows That Most Companies Aren’t Making Any Money Off AI, and Bitcoin is Getting Absolutely Crushed Right Now, which we happily remind you will Trigger the Next Financial Crisis. Don't worry, Jeff Bezos will head a new engineering-focused AI startup because the world clearly needs more tech billionaires throwing money at things they don't understand, while Apple is reportedly getting ready to replace Tim Cook. The tech-bro corruption parade continues as a former DOJ official points out that Trump’s Crypto Pardon of the Binance co-founder is exactly what it looks like, and Elon's pet AI, Grok Insists That Elon Musk Is More Physically Fit Than LeBron James and better at everything else, proving the bot has been sampling its boss's Adderall. Even though ChatGPT Achieves a New Level of Intelligence by finally letting you disable its em-dash addiction, companies like Intuit are integrating its tax and accounting products with ChatGPT—because who doesn't want an AI-powered tax audit? This all dovetails nicely with the news that OpenAI is launching ChatGPT for Teachers’ right as students’ math skills hit a low, leading to a literal Recipe for Idiocracy where elite college students Can’t Read Books. The whole thing is broken, including Tesla’s so-called Robotaxi, where a Passenger Alarmed When Tesla Robotaxi “Safety” Driver Falls Completely Asleep at the Wheel. On a lighter note, we check out the new trailers for The Witcher S4, Frankenstein, and Project Hail Mary in MEDIA CANDY, and tear apart the absolutely unnecessary live-action Moana teaser, before mentioning the biggest drama launch on Apple TV, Pluribus. Next up is THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE, where our tireless security guru Dave Bittner throws in some random facts, like Microsoft making Zork I, II, and III open source and videos on why the iOS Keyboard is Broken and Why Movies Just Don't Feel "Real” Anymore, and we discuss Thanksgiving plans. Finally, in CLOSING SHOUT-OUTS, we end with a shout-out to our generous PATREON supporters and PAYPAL/STRIPE donors, mourn the passing of Stone Roses and Primal Scream bassist Mani, and wish the incomparable Bjork a milestone 60th birthday. Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/tWM83ra7Qp8 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/1password Show notes at https://gog.show/723 FOLLOW UP Tesla Diner Chef and Co-Operator Quits to Open a Jewish Deli Larry Summers leaves OpenAI board, Harvard instructor role as scrutiny over Epstein emails intensifies IN THE NEWS Oops! Nvidia’s Stock Is Falling Again After Its “Blowout” Earnings Report Bitcoin Is Getting Absolutely Crushed Right Now How Crypto Could Trigger the Next Financial Crisis Jeff Bezos will head a new engineering-focused AI startup called Project Prometheus Yet Another Study Shows That Most Companies Aren’t Making Any Money Off AI Passenger Alarmed When Tesla Robotaxi “Safety” Driver Falls Completely Asleep at the Wheel Meta wins antitrust trial as judge denies that it's a monopoly Apple is reportedly getting ready to replace Tim Cook as early as next year Former DOJ Official: Trump’s Crypto Pardon Is Unprecedented Corruption ChatGPT Achieves a New Level of Intelligence: Not Using the Em Dash Grok Insists That Elon Musk Is More Physically Fit Than LeBron James 11 Things Grok Says Elon Musk Does Better Than Anyone Intuit is integrating its tax and accounting products with ChatGPT OpenAI Introduces ‘ChatGPT for Teachers’ to Further Destroy the Minds of Our Youth ‘A Recipe for Idiocracy’ The Elite College Students Who Can’t Read Books Pornhub Begs Tech Giants to Verify User Ages on Their Device: Report London thieves gave stolen phones back when they weren’t iPhones MEDIA CANDY The Witcher S4 Frankenstein Pluribus is Apple TV's biggest drama series launch ever Squid Game: The Challenge Season 2 Mr. Scorsese The American Revolution Moana | Official Teaser Project Hail Mary | Official Trailer 2 Goo Goo Dolls: NPR Tiny Desk Concert THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE Dave Bittner The CyberWire Hacking Humans Caveat Control Loop Only Malware in the Building RIHC: Disney’s Legacy, with Bob Iger Microsoft makes Zork I, II, and III open source under MIT License It's Not Just You - The iOS Keyboard is Broken Why Movies Just Don't Feel "Real" Anymore The greatest space battle in Cinema history, and my personal favorite VFX shot. @ 7:07 CLOSING SHOUT-OUTS Stone Roses and Primal Scream bassist Mani dies at 63 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 14m
  6. Does a Podcaster Shit in the Woods?

    NOV 14

    Does a Podcaster Shit in the Woods?

    The inevitable decline of civilization takes center stage as the show kicks off with the miserable results of the FACEBOOK SETTLEMENT, confirming Brian's $4.01 payout, followed by a discussion of the SPORTS BETTING SCANDAL, where MLB players are rigging games over prop bets, confirming that gambling is now actively killing sports; moving to the news, the guys celebrate the DENMARK SOCIAL MEDIA BAN and SCHOOL PHONE BANS, which are already proving that teenagers need mandatory digital detoxes, prompting comparisons to Footloose and the revelation that teens are now passing handwritten notes and taking Polaroids. Naturally, things aren't going well for the hyper-rich, as evidenced by the TESLA EXECUTIVE EXODUS and the launch of WAYMO FREEWAYS, which will surely bring chaos to LA, and the ongoing saga of massive capital destruction via OPENAI LOSSES and META AI FAILURES, prompting Mark Zuckerberg to announce his desperate bid to CURE ALL DISEASES with AI, a feat less audacious than the fraud of AI startup FIREFLY AI TRANSCRIPT, which admitted its original "AI" was just human transcriptionists. They then hit a laundry list of digital woes, including the dubious convenience of APPLE PASSPORTS, the creeping dread of Sam Altman's failing WORLDCOIN EYEBALL SCANS, the ridiculous crypto fraud DEFI OFFICE SPACE that literally copied a movie plot, and Coinbase's inexplicable decision to bring back high-risk ICOs; the absurdity continued with the OPENAI LAWSUIT over a suicidal chatbot that suggested the user "Rest easy, King," and the political maneuvering of the REPUBLICAN BROADBAND REDIRECT, which will gut internet access for the underserved to fund the Treasury, but the real threat to humanity remains the clandestine PREVENTATIVE GENE HACKING startup funded by tech billionaires aiming to create modified babies offshore. In Media Candy, they share reviews of the excellent DIPLOMAT, ZOOTOPIA, and the just-released LUSH DOCUMENTARY, confirming our combined Gen-X fragility, before celebrating two definitive wins for reality: the fact that physicists have finally CRUSHED THE SIMULATION THEORY, and the literary brilliance of Joyce Carol Oates' tweet, which expertly called out Elon Musk as uneducated and uncultured. All this and more on this episode of Grumpy Old Geeks Sponsors: CleanMyMac - clnmy.com/OLDGEEKS - Use code OLDGEEKS for 20% off. 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/1password Show notes at https://gog.show/722 FOLLOW UP Baseball Is Compromised IN THE NEWS Denmark set to ban social media for users under 15 years of age Banning Phones in Schools Is Drastically Changing the Behavior of Kids The Head of the Cybertruck Program Quit Tesla. The Model Y Leader Left Hours Later Waymo's driverless cars will start driving on freeways in three US cities Apple introduces a new Digital ID feature to make boarding flights easier OpenAI Will Lose $74 Billion the Same Year That Anthropic Breaks Even: Report Meta’s AI Ambitions Appear to Be in a Tailspin Zuckerberg, Chan bet AI can cure all disease Startup Secretly Working to Gene-Hack Human Baby Sam Altman's Creepy Orb Startup Has Only Scanned 2 Percent of Its Ideal Number of Eyeballs $120 Million Crypto Hack Blamed on Office Space-Style Exploit Coinbase Wants to Bring Back an Old Crypto Trend That Ended in Disaster Seven more families are now suing OpenAI over ChatGPT's role in suicides, delusions US states could lose $21 billion of broadband grants after Trump overhaul Physicists Say They’ve Proven Whether We’re Living in a Simulation Elon Musk Got One-Shotted by an Extremely Mean Tweet MEDIA CANDY Zootopia The Diplomat Pluribus Victoria Beckham Lush: A Far from Home Movie Welcome to Derry 'V for Vendetta' Is Becoming a TV Show Dune: Prophecy' Kicks off Season 2 Production ‘Alien: Earth’ Has Been Renewed for Season 2 ‘Poker Face’ Canceled at Peacock; Rian Johnson Will Seek New Home for Series — With Peter Dinklage Starring The Running Man | Final Trailer (2025 Movie) - Edgar Wright, Glen Powell Toy Story 5 | Teaser Trailer | In Theaters June 19 Paramount+ announces price increases for every streaming plan APPS & DOODADS How to adjust the Liquid Glass effect in iOS 26.1 How to stretch the clock on your lock screen in iOS 26 Tesla Reportedly Adding Apple CarPlay, Bucking Industry Trend Founder Admits His “AI Transcription” Startup Was Just Him Joining People’s Meetings and Taking Notes by Hand FTC Announces Crackdown on Deceptive AI Claims and Schemes THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE Dave Bittner The CyberWire Hacking Humans Caveat Control Loop Only Malware in the Building The Official ‘Star Wars’ Magazine Is Coming to an End After Over 30 Years Fuzzball Bandolier Shawl Talk about your crotch-rocket... AI-Powered Toys Caught Telling 5-Year-Olds How to Find Knives and Start Fires With Matches See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 20m
  7. Pixel Predators

    NOV 7

    Pixel Predators

    This episode proves that nothing gold can stay, especially your 401k, as we kick things off with the revelation that October saw the worst tech layoffs since 2003, all while "Big Short" genius Michael Burry decided to bet a billion dollars on the inevitable AI bubble bursting. The villains of the week are legion: the FCC is officially making it easier for internet companies to charge us even more hidden fees; Elon Musk not only got his $1 trillion pay package approved—despite Tesla sales collapsing nearly 90% in some countries—but he also teased a flying car, clearly living in his own "Golden Dome" fantasy, which the Pentagon is happily subsidizing; and in a stunning display of entitlement, Mark Zuckerberg opened an illegal school, which is somehow less shocking than Meta’s claim that their massive porn stash was purely for "personal use," not AI training. The bad news doesn't stop there, with Texas suing Roblox over 'pixel pedophiles,' though at least a rural Michigan healthcare system is doing some good by using drones to improve care. Jumping over to Media Candy, since we’re all emotionally scarred by the sheer awful-ness of The Witcher S4—a season so bad it "broke" The Critical Drinker—we need some comfort viewing. We’re deep-diving into the political chess of The Diplomat and escaping into the sheer volume of competitive cooking shows, including the standard Halloween and Holiday Baking Championships, plus the delightfully ridiculous Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking S2; we also took a look at Pluribus, Knife Edge, Black Rabbit, and the trailer for Tron: Ares, while cheering the fact that Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz are set to revive The Mummy franchise for a fourth film. In Apps & Doodads, we’re all mourning the eventual death of simple, good tech as we’re warned to enjoy Apple CarPlay while we still can, but at least the Lego ‘Star Trek’ Set is finally here for our inner child; the real question, though, is why Automattic Inc. thinks they can claim ownership of the actual word 'Automatic.' Finally, The Dark Side with Dave Bittner reminds us that everything old is new again and ripe for monetization, whether it's Miss Piggy potentially bringing back The Muppets to the movies or the sleek, blacked-out remake of the Commodore 64, not to mention that cool Tron Arcade Cabinet Miniature Model. However, the present is still a complete dumpster fire: a Google AI model allegedly accused a senator of sexual assault, and internal documents show that Meta is earning a fortune on a massive deluge of fraudulent ads, proving that the only thing getting healthier is our paranoia, though Dave did throw in a curveball with some special jar lids and seeds for growing organic sprouts. We finish, as always, with the obligatory Closing Shout-Outs because even cynical geeks need validation. Sponsors: MasterClass - Get an additional 15% off any annual membership at MASTERCLASS.com/GRUMPYOLDGEEKS Gusto - Try Gusto today at gusto.com/grumpy, and get three months free when you run your first payroll. 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/1password Show notes at https://gog.show/721 FOLLOW UP October Layoffs Were the Worst Since 2003 and Hit Tech Workers Hard IN THE NEWS The Big Short Guy Just Bet $1 Billion That the AI Bubble Pops Trump's FCC is officially moving to make it easier for internet companies to charge hidden fees Pentagon will reportedly award SpaceX a $2 billion contract to help develop the 'Golden Dome' Elon Musk teases a flying car on Joe Rogan's show Tesla’s Sales Collapsed Nearly 90 Percent in Some Countries Last Month Tesla shareholder meeting updates: Elon Musk gets his $1 trillion pay package Texas AG sues Roblox, accusing it of prioritizing 'pixel pedophiles' over child safety Mark Zuckerberg Opened an Illegal School at His Palo Alto Compound. His Neighbors Revolted Meta Says Porn Stash was for ‘Personal Use,’ Not Training AI Models How a rural Michigan healthcare system is using drones to improve care MEDIA CANDY The Diplomat Halloween Baking Championship Holiday Baking Championship Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking S2 Pluribus Knife Edge: Chasing Michelin Stars Black Rabbit Tron: Ares The Witcher S4 The Witcher Season 4 - A Show So Awful, It Broke Me by The Critical Drinker Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz Set to Revive The Mummy Franchise with Fourth Film APPS & DOODADS Enjoy CarPlay While You Still Can The Lego ‘Star Trek’ Set Is Here, and It’s Exactly What You Want Automattic Inc. Claims It Owns the Word 'Automatic' THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE Dave Bittner The CyberWire Hacking Humans Caveat Control Loop Only Malware in the Building Miss Piggy May Bring ‘The Muppets’ Back to the Movies Relive the Commodore 64's glory days with a slimmer, blacked-out remake Show and Tell: Tron Arcade Cabinet Miniature Model Google removes AI model after it allegedly accused a senator of sexual assault Sprouting Jar Lid (32oz Glass Jars) with 4 Pack Stainless Steel Sprouting Stands for Wide and Wide Mouth Mason Jar for Growing Organic Sprouts, Stainless Steel, 4 Pack Organic Radish Sprout Seeds (16 oz) – Non-GMO, Heirloom Seeds for Sprouting and Microgreens Meta is earning a fortune on a deluge of fraudulent ads, documents show ... See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 8m
  8. Sad Max Mode

    OCT 31

    Sad Max Mode

    This week’s episode started with the usual existential sigh before tumbling straight into the corporate bloodbath. Amazon chopped 14,000 jobs under the noble banner of “embracing AI,” which CEO Andy Jassy insists isn’t about money—despite swimming Scrooge McDuck–style in profit. GM’s cutting 1,700 workers, YouTube’s dangling “voluntary” buyouts, and economists can’t decide if AI is killing jobs or if the economy’s just trash. Microsoft’s winning either way, sitting pretty on OpenAI’s planned $1 trillion IPO, while Meta stock cratered because Zuckerberg’s still shoveling billions into the AI bonfire instead of quietly burying the metaverse. Meanwhile, Elon managed to cram a week’s worth of disasters into a single news cycle: Tesla’s being probed for its idiotic “Mad Max” mode, recalling thousands more Cybertrucks because they can’t figure out glue, launching Grokipedia (Wikipedia’s evil twin), and turning Truth Social into a crypto casino. Somewhere between the chaos, more people tuned into a fake NVIDIA livestream than the real one, and the only vaguely uplifting story was a grieving family using an AI chatbot to hack a $195K hospital bill down to $33K. In media misery, we soothed our nuclear anxiety with A House of Dynamite, tolerated Welcome to Derry, rolled our eyes at Stranger Things 5, and confirmed Slow Horses still rules. Music listeners, please stop streaming fascism—cancel Spotify. On the tech toy front, Grammarly’s having an identity crisis as “Superhuman,” Affinity caved to the subscription gods, and Apple’s prepping to inject ads into Maps because the world wasn’t already annoying enough. The chaos didn’t stop there: a rogue Goodreads librarian rewrote Trump’s book listings to protest censorship, Cursor 2.0 actually impressed us with a working currency converter, and Enshittification: Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What to Do About It turned out to be the perfect title for the entire digital era. 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/1password MasterClass - Get an additional 15% off any annual membership at MASTERCLASS.com/GRUMPYOLDGEEKS CleanMyMac - clnmy.com/GrumpyOldGeeks - Use code OLDGEEKS for 20% off. Show notes at https://gog.show/720 FOLLOW UP What both sides of America’s polarized divide share: Deep anxieties about the meaning of life and existence itself 720° © 1986 Atari Games. IN THE NEWS Amazon cuts its workforce by 14,000 in further embrace of AI Is AI Leading to Layoffs or Does the Economy Just Suck? Amazon CEO Now Says AI Is Not Responsible for Recent Layoffs Amazon Accused of Trapping Drivers in AI Panopticon GM lays off 1,700 workers making EVs and batteries in Michigan, Tennessee Tesla Recalls Thousands More Cybertrucks, Is Bad at Gluing Things YouTube is offering employees buyouts as part of an AI-focused reorganization Everyone Is Laying People Off This Week. Researchers Say They’re Going to Regret It OpenAI completes restructure, solidifying Microsoft as a major shareholder OpenAI lays groundwork for juggernaut IPO at up to $1 trillion valuation Meta Stock Plummets as Investors Horrified at How Much Zuckerberg Is Spending on Misfired AI Federal investigators are looking into Tesla's Mad Max mode, which reportedly defies speed limits Grokipedia Is the Antithesis of Everything That Makes Wikipedia Good, Useful, and Human More people watched a fake NVIDIA livestream than the real thing Trump’s Media Company Set To Roll Out Polymarket-Like Prediction Market on Truth Social Surprising no one, researchers confirm that AI chatbots are incredibly sycophantic Grieving family uses AI chatbot to cut hospital bill from $195,000 to $33,000 — family says Claude highlighted duplicative charges, improper coding, and other violations MEDIA CANDY A House of Dynamite Welcome to Derry Stranger Things 5 | Official Trailer | Netflix Slow Horses Don’t Stream Fascism: Cancel Spotify APPS & DOODADS Grammarly has rebranded to Superhuman Affinity’s image-editing apps go “freemium” in first major post-Canva update Apple is reportedly getting ready to introduce ads to its Maps app Rogue Goodreads Librarian Edits Site to Expose 'Censorship in Favor of Trump Fascism’ Introducing Cursor 2.0 and Composer Enshittification: Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What to Do About It by Cory Doctorow The Disenshittify Project Currency Converter See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    1h 8m
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4.9
out of 5
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About

We dissect the tech news train wrecks of the week, calling out what went wrong and who’s to blame. Think of this podcast as if Kurt Cobain threw down with Tom from MySpace, Elon Musk, and Mark Zuckerberg in a back alley brawl. No mercy, no filter—if tech had a walk of shame, this would be it.

Information

  • Creator
    Jason DeFillippo & Brian Schulmeister with Dave Bittner
  • Years Active
    2013 - 2025
  • Episodes
    731
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Grumpy Old Geeks LLC. All Rights Reserved.
  • Show Website
    Grumpy Old Geeks

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