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Tech Brew Ride Home

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Silicon Valley's water cooler podcast. A tech news summary every day... 15 minutes and you're up to date. From Tech Brew, Morning Brew's tech hub.
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Episodes

The Biggest Tech IPO Since Uber

OpenAI is weighing legal action against Apple over a Siri integration it says fell far short. Cerebras opened at $350 in the largest US tech IPO since Uber. Mythos helped researchers crack macOS security, Anthropic restores OpenClaw access with Agent SDK credits, and 71% of Americans oppose local data centers. Sources: OpenAI is weighing legal action against Apple after expectations that ChatGPT's Siri integration would generate billions in revenue fell short (Bloomberg) Security researchers use...

May 14, 202620 min

Googlebooks

Google unveiled Googlebook, merging ChromeOS and Android into a unified laptop OS shipping this fall. WhatsApp launches Incognito Chat for private AI conversations. Anthropic's revenue run-rate is on track to hit $50B by end of June, and Anduril raised $5B at a $61B valuation. Google unveils Googlebook, its new laptop lineup featuring a unified OS merging ChromeOS and Android, with devices from Dell, HP, and others coming this fall (ZDNet) Google also unveiled Gemini Intelligence, bundling exist...

May 13, 202620 min

Hackers Get Paid

Today's tech news includes Instructure's undisclosed deal with ShinyHunters to recover stolen Canvas data and eBay's firm rejection of GameStop's $56 billion takeover offer, citing lack of credibility. The episode also explores OpenAI's launch of Daybreak for cybersecurity, integrating AI models to patch vulnerabilities, and delves into reports of Amazon employees inflating AI usage to meet internal targets. Finally, it highlights Mira Murati's Thinking Machines Lab, which unveiled a novel AI model designed for real-time, continuous human-AI interaction, aiming to revolutionize conversational AI beyond traditional Q&A patterns.

May 12, 202620 min

The AI Sec-Pocalypse Is Actually Nigh?

Google reported the first known case of hackers using AI to discover and weaponize a zero-day vulnerability. OpenAI launched a $4B+ deployment company and acquired Tomoro. Apple plans Liquid Glass refinements for macOS 27, TikTok rolls out an ad-free tier in the UK, and Ben Thompson argues agentic inference will reshape compute. Google's TIG reports the first known example of hackers using AI to discover and weaponize a zero-day; TIG's chief analyst says "this is the tip of the iceberg" (NYT) Th...

May 11, 202621 min

Chickens, Roosting

Nintendo raised the Switch 2 price to $500 amid a global memory shortage. ShinyHunters forced Canvas offline during finals season. Researchers found 5,000+ insecure vibe-coded apps, Mozilla credits Mythos for 423 Firefox bug fixes in April, and France escalates its Musk probe. Nintendo says it will increase the price of the Switch 2 globally on September 1, from $450 to $500 in the US, and the price of the original Switch in Japan (Bloomberg) Instructure disables its Canvas edtech platform, used...

May 08, 202622 min

XAI Is Just A Neocloud Now?

Dario Amodei revealed Anthropic could grow 80x in 2026, and the company signed a deal with SpaceX for 300MW of compute from Colossus 1. Musk dissolved xAI into SpaceX. Google launches the $100 Fitbit Air, and HubSpot's founder coins "strategic illegibility." At Code with Claude, Dario Amodei said Anthropic had planned to grow ~10x in 2026 but could grow 80x, calling its growth rate "crazy" and "too hard to handle" (NYT) Anthropic signs a deal with SpaceX for 300MW+ of compute from Colossus 1 in ...

May 07, 202623 min

Even 175-year-old Companies Can Join The AI Boom

Corning and Nvidia partnered to open three optical manufacturing plants in the US, with Nvidia investing up to $2.7B. Morgan Stanley launched crypto trading on E Trade, Google tests a personal agent called Remy, and Meta builds an OpenClaw-inspired agent called Hatch. * Corning and Nvidia partner to open three advanced manufacturing plants in North Carolina and Texas dedicated to optical tech for Nvidia, creating 3,000+ jobs (CNBC) Morgan Stanley rolls out a crypto trading pilot on E*Trade, char...

May 06, 202621 min

Will AI Models Have To Be Reviews By The Government?

The Trump administration discussed an EO to form an AI oversight working group, a stark reversal from its hands-off approach. Apple explored using Intel and Samsung to make chips in the US, Coinbase cut 14% of its workforce, and OpenAI fast-tracks an AI phone for 2027. Sources: the Trump administration is discussing an EO to form an AI working group that would examine AI oversight procedures, like vetting models before release (NYT) Sources: Apple held exploratory talks with Intel and Apple exec...

May 05, 202621 min

Welcome Back To The Arena, GameStop

GameStop made an unsolicited ~$56B bid for eBay as Ryan Cohen eyes a commerce empire. Anthropic finalizes a $1.5B JV with Blackstone and Goldman Sachs, Amazon opens its logistics network to outside companies, and a Harvard study finds AI outperforms ER doctors at triage. GameStop makes an unsolicited ~$56B offer to buy eBay after building a ~5% stake, offering $125/share in cash and stock, a ~20% premium on May 1's closing price (WSJ) Sources: Anthropic is finalizing a deal for a $1.5B JV with B...

May 04, 202622 min

My LLM Cutoff Is 1930

Apple beat Q2 estimates and forecast strong Q3 growth as the MacBook Neo and Mac Mini sell out. The Senate unanimously banned prediction market trading for senators, Intel closed its best month ever at +114%, and Musk admitted xAI "partly" distilled OpenAI models. Apple forecasts Q3 revenue above estimates, with sales expected to rise between 14% and 17%, and says memory expenses will climb "significantly higher" in Q3 (Bloomberg) Amazon debuts "Join the chat", an AI-powered feature that lets us...

May 01, 202621 min

Earnings Overload

Big Tech earnings landed — Alphabet soared on cloud growth while Meta dropped 10% after hiking capex to $145B. SoftBank plans an AI/robotics IPO called Roze, Anthropic weighs a $900B+ round, and Musk called himself a "fool" for backing OpenAI. Microsoft says Q3 Intelligent Cloud revenue was $34.68B, vs. $34.27B est., with Azure and other cloud services up 40% YoY; Microsoft 365 Copilot has 20M+ seats (CNBC) Meta raises full-year capex outlook to $125B–$145B, up from $115B–$135B; shares drop ~10%...

Apr 30, 202621 min

Elon V. Sam Day 2

The episode discusses the European Commission's preliminary findings against Meta for child safety failures on Instagram and Facebook, alongside YouTube TV's new multi-view customization. It also covers OpenAI's strategic shift away from its Stargate data center plan, a curious "goblin" instruction in its Codex model, and China's decision to suspend new robotaxi licenses after a Baidu outage. The main focus is the escalating Musk vs. Altman trial, where Elon Musk argues that OpenAI's pivot to a for-profit entity constitutes "stealing a charity" and sets a dangerous precedent, while OpenAI's defense contends Musk's past support for a for-profit structure.

Apr 29, 202621 min

Musk V. Altman

The Musk v. Altman trial seated a jury in California, with opening arguments set for today. Microsoft and OpenAI amended their partnership, removing the AGI clause. OpenAI missed internal user and revenue targets, Google launches Ask YouTube, and March saw 45,800 tech layoffs. A US judge seated a nine-person jury in the Musk v. Altman trial at a federal courthouse in California; Sam Altman and Greg Brockman were in attendance (CNBC) Microsoft and OpenAI amend their deal to let OpenAI serve all i...

Apr 28, 202615 min

Meta Needs To Rethink Manus

China blocked Meta's $2B Manus acquisition and ordered both sides to unwind the deal, closing the "Singapore washing" loophole for Chinese AI startups. OpenAI is developing smartphone chips with Qualcomm and MediaTek, Google controls ~25% of global AI compute, and SaaS pricing shifts to usage-based. China blocks Meta's $2B Manus acquisition, after reviewing whether it violated investment rules, and tells both to cancel it; Manus moved to Singapore in 2025 (FT) Kuo: OpenAI is working with MediaTe...

Apr 27, 202621 min

All The Headlines, All The Model Drops...

DeepSeek dropped V4 Pro and V4 Flash, undercutting US labs on price by roughly 5x. OpenAI fired back with GPT-5.5, reclaiming benchmark crowns from Claude. Meta confirms 8,000 layoffs on May 20, and Google plans to invest up to $40B in Anthropic. DeepSeek releases its new flagship models V4 Pro and V4 Flash in preview, saying V4 Pro trails the performance of state-of-the-art models by about 3 to 6 months (Bloomberg) Simon Willison's comparison chart of DeepSeek V4 pricing vs. US frontier models ...

Apr 24, 202624 min

Another DeepSeek Moment On The Horizon?

Microsoft considered buying Cursor but didn't pull the trigger before SpaceX's deal. Microsoft launches its first-ever voluntary retirement program, Anthropic's secondary market valuation hits $1T on Forge Global, and SpaceX's S-1 reveals plans to manufacture its own GPUs. Sources: Microsoft considered buying Cursor in recent weeks but didn't make an offer; Microsoft has been working to boost GitHub Copilot's popularity (CNBC) Microsoft announces the first voluntary retirement program in its 50-...

Apr 23, 202622 min

Elon Buys Cursor?

SpaceX struck a deal giving it the option to acquire Cursor for $60B or pay $10B, as xAI scrambles to catch up in AI coding. Google unveiled new TPUs and an agent platform, OpenAI shipped ChatGPT Images 2.0, and Mythos got accessed by unauthorized users. SpaceX says it's working with Cursor to build "the world's most useful models" and it has the right to acquire Cursor for $60B or pay $10B for the partnership (NYT) Google unveils a new TPU lineup consisting of the TPU 8t for AI training and the...

Apr 22, 202621 min

Tim Cook Rides Into The Sunset

Apple named John Ternus as its next CEO, with Tim Cook stepping up to executive chairman on September 1. Amazon agrees to invest up to $25B more in Anthropic, Bezos' Project Prometheus nears a $10B raise, and SpaceX's IPO prospectus reveals Musk's power moves. John Ternus, senior VP of Hardware Engineering, will become Apple's next CEO on September 1; Tim Cook will become executive chairman of Apple's board (CNBC) Amazon agrees to invest up to $25B in Anthropic, on top of the $8B that it has alr...

Apr 21, 202621 min

Robots Winning The (Literal) Race

Vercel confirmed a breach traced to an AI platform's compromised OAuth app. The NSA is using Anthropic's Mythos despite the Pentagon blacklist. Mac Minis face 12-week wait times from AI agent demand, and humanoid robots crushed the Beijing half-marathon. Vercel says its internal systems were accessed after a Vercel employee's Google Workspace account was compromised via a breach at the AI platform Context.ai (BleepingComputer) Sources: the US NSA is using Mythos Preview; one source says Mythos i...

Apr 20, 202622 min

Reed Hastings Rides Into The Sunset

This episode of Tech Brew Ride Home discusses Netflix's Q1 earnings, Reed Hastings' stepping down from the board, and the company's future strategy including ad revenue growth. It also explores Anthropic's new Claude Design for visual creation and OpenAI's updated Codex Desktop app with powerful new features like computer control and enhanced memory. Finally, the episode examines DeepSeek's pursuit of its first external funding and delves into how AI is creating an "existential reckoning" for India's massive IT outsourcing industry and revolutionizing film production.

Apr 17, 202622 min

Claude Opus 4.7

This episode covers Anthropic's release of Claude Opus 4.7, showcasing its improved software engineering capabilities and the introduction of government ID verification for some users, raising privacy concerns. It also highlights TSMC's robust Q1 earnings, fueled by strong AI demand, despite geopolitical risks. Additionally, X has launched Cashtags for real-time financial data as part of its "super app" ambitions, and Google's early investment in SpaceX is expected to yield a massive $100 billion return upon the company's anticipated $2 trillion IPO.

Apr 16, 202620 min

Our Shoe Company Is Now An AI Company

Snap is cutting 16% of its workforce—about 1,000 people—as Spiegel blames AI for making everyone more efficient (read: expendable). Allbirds, the shoe company that sold for $39M, is pivoting its shell to become an AI compute provider called NewBird AI. OpenAI drops a cybersecurity-specific model, Google launches a desktop search app and Chrome AI Skills, and law firms say AI-generated client docs are actually creating MORE work, not less. Snap CEO Evan Spiegel says the company plans to lay off ~...

Apr 15, 202620 min

Space Race Acquisition

Amazon's dropping $10.8 billion on Globalstar to beef up its Leo satellite network and challenge Starlink — and Apple's along for the ride. Plus, federal charges for the Sam Altman attacker, OpenAI acqui-hires a fintech startup, Google declares war on back button hijacking, data labeling startups are printing money, and Missouri voters revolt over a data center. Amazon agrees to acquire satellite operator Globalstar for $10.8B to expand Leo satellite network; Amazon and Apple say Leo will power ...

Apr 14, 202621 min

Sam Altman Attacked

Sam Altman's home has been targeted twice in three days, first a Molotov cocktail, then a shooting from a passing car. Apple is testing four designs for AI smart glasses. OpenAI is touting its Amazon partnership while publicly distancing from Microsoft. GPU prices are surging as an agentic AI compute crunch threatens the whole industry. And Mark Zuckerberg is still keen on photorealistic Metaverse avatars. Sam Altman's home targeted in second attack; two suspects arrested (SF Standard) Apple AI ...

Apr 13, 202619 min

Taking The Threat Seriously

The US government is taking the Anthropic warning seriously. Google is showing prediction markets alongside various search results. Europeans ARE beginning to decouple from US tech. Kicking the tires on SpaceX’s actual business. And, of course, the Weekend Longreads Suggestions. Anthropic Model Scare Sparks Urgent Bessent, Powell Warning to Bank CEOs (Bloomberg) Google rolls out Gmail end-to-end encryption on mobile devices (Bleeping Computer) Google News Now Prominently Featuring Polymarket Bet...

Apr 10, 202622 min

Meta’s Refreshed AI Play

Meta releases its first model in the great AI horserace catchup race. OpenAI is expecting to make as much money from ads as the biggest social media companies. Meta doesn’t want you to see ads encouraging you to join lawsuits against them. And Amazon’s big Starlink competitor is coming as soon as this summer. Meta releases first AI model since Zuckerberg’s spending spree (FT) AI Horserace Thread (@emollick) Anthropic Completes Tender Offer, But Employees Hold Onto Shares (Bloomberg) OpenAI Forec...

Apr 09, 202621 min

Anthropic DOESN’T Release A Model

This episode explores Anthropic's controversial decision to not release its Mythos AI, instead using Project Glasswing to proactively address the thousands of software vulnerabilities it autonomously discovered. The discussion highlights the immediate danger of powerful AI cyber capabilities, with Anthropic itself warning of severe fallout if such tools proliferate. Concurrently, Chinese AI firm ZAI has released an advanced open-source model, intensifying the global AI race and raising questions about responsible deployment versus rapid proliferation.

Apr 08, 202621 min

Tipping Point In The AI Horse Race?

Anthropic’s new deal with Google and Broadcom (and some newly released numbers) might be the tipping point in a couple of AI Horse Races. The gold rush/landgrab in the world model space. The dubious goldrush for SEO in the AI era. And an urgent wakeup call in the quantum computing will break cryptography space. Anthropic Tops $30 Billion Run Rate, Seals Deal With Broadcom (Bloomberg) Jeff Bezos’s new lab hires xAI co-founder from OpenAI (FT) How Accurate Are Google’s A.I. Overviews? (NYTimes) Ca...

Apr 07, 202624 min

Ain’t No Drama Like AI Drama

The Tech Brew Ride Home unpacks the latest AI industry shake-ups, starting with internal tensions at OpenAI regarding IPO timing and massive spending, and Anthropic's controversial decision to restrict third-party access to its Claude AI. The discussion also covers Samsung's shift to Google Messages and a surprising rebound in software engineering job openings despite widespread AI anxieties. Finally, it highlights venture capitalists funding college dropouts pursuing AI startups and exposes the alleged fraudulent practices of the supposed "AI unicorn" Medvi.

Apr 06, 202622 min

The Biography Of Demis Hassabis

This episode explores the fascinating journey of Demis Hesabis and the development of AI through the lens of Sebastian Malaby's book, The Infinity Machine . We delve into the minds of AI pioneers, their motivations, and the race to achieve superintelligence, offering insights into the future of technology and humanity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...

Apr 03, 202653 min
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