Is technology really rotting our brains, destroying our society... or is that what everyone has always worried about with every technological advance, going back to tv, or telephones, or even writing letters? The new book, Bored, Lonely, Angry, Stupid: Changing Feelings about Technology, from the Telegraph to Twitter tries to look at this question from a historical perspective. Is it really different this time? But more importantly... to what degree has technological change impacted how we think...
Jul 21, 2019•39 min
So, today, July 20th 2019 is the 50th anniversary of human beings walking on the moon for the first time. As Glenn mentioned on Friday’s weekend longreads segment, Fast Company has been doing a 50 days to the moon thing. 50 different stories around the moon landing. They’re all from Charles Fishman, who wrote a book that came out this summer called One Giant Leap: The Impossible Mission that Flew Us to the Moon. Please buy that book if you want a super great summer long read, literal longread. B...
Jul 20, 2019•38 min
Microsoft makes boring pay dividends, Trump says he’ll use JEDI mind tricks to examine a Pentagon bid, Orlando ends a controversial facial-recognition test with Amazon, and your weekend long read suggestions. Sponsors Castro Fireside Links: Microsoft beats on earnings, stock ticks up (CNBC) Trump says he’s looking into a Pentagon cloud contract for Amazon or Microsoft because ‘we’re getting tremendous complaints’ (CNBC) Republican lawmakers urge Trump not to delay the $10 billion Pentagon cloud ...
Jul 19, 2019•17 min
Netflix's growth disappoints, but Stranger Things have happened. The Democratic National Committee tells candidates to avoid the photo-aging simulator FaceApp. Don't expect driverless cars any time soon, despite the hype. Can 5G networks give you cancer? No, no they can't. Finally, go ahead! Start that podcast. Don't listen to the naysayers. Sponsors: SVB.com/next Castro Links: Netflix subscription adds disappoint, stock drops (Variety) DNC warns candidates to stop using FaceApp, citing Russian ...
Jul 18, 2019•17 min
Google says Project Dragonfly is dead, Apple might be producing its own original podcasts, the Switch regular gets a refresh, and two long-time interesting companies: Neuralink and Boston Dynamics are ready for the spotlight. Sponsors: Castro SVB.com/next Links: Antitrust: Commission opens investigation into possible anti-competitive conduct of Amazon (The European Commission) A Google VP Told The US Senate The Company Has “Terminated” The Chinese Search App Dragonfly (BuzzFeed News) Apple Plans...
Jul 17, 2019•19 min
Facebook explains Libra to Congress, Amazon might be next in the EU’s woodshed, Google might be next in Trump’s woodshed, another Tesla lineup shakeup, a couple of interesting raises and Microsoft opens Windows up to all your digital assistants. Sponsors: SVB.com/next Firesideconf.com/ride Links: Senators aren’t sold on Facebook’s Libra project (The Verge) Highlights from Facebook's Libra Senate hearing (TechCrunch) Facebook Cryptocurrency Plans Have a Problem: Facebook’s Reputation (NYTimes) Am...
Jul 16, 2019•18 min
The FTC is readying a record fine for Facebook, but is it just a parking ticket? Qualcomm refreshes the Snapdragon lineup, governments want to make money off of selling your data also, Microsoft Office quietly winning in mobile, and the Air Force warns: do NOT storm Area 51! Sponsors: Rhone.com/ride Promocode RIDE for 20% off! Firesideconf.com/ride Links: FTC Approves Roughly $5 Billion Facebook Settlement (WSJ) YouTube's Trampled Foes Plot Antitrust Revenge (Bloomberg) Qualcomm's Snapdragon 855...
Jul 15, 2019•19 min
Remember that longread from Friday? I knew lots of physical retail was under threat from ecommcerce, but do we have to worry about the grocery store too? As I said, this was something I’ve never considered. So read the piece because I got in touch with the author, Joe Fassler to see what the story is. And yes, there are larger societal and cultural and even cyclical shifts imperiling the traditional grocery market, but yes, it’s tech and ecommerce too. A deeper dive into all this, plus at look a...
Jul 14, 2019•28 min
Remember the whole Superhuman kerfuffle of the last week or so? Mike Davidson wrote a blog post calling out some shady stuff in the Superhuman email product, all of silicon valley debated it, Superhuman walked things back a bit, and actually, I didn’t mention this, but Mike had a second post about this, which was even more in depth an eloquent than the first one. So, I reached out to Mike to talk about this whole thing, not because I wanted to re-litigate it, but because I wanted to poke at… wel...
Jul 13, 2019•31 min
Amazon is developing a high-end Echo speaker, the PC market’s not dead yet, Postmates is having second thoughts about going public and might shop itself around instead, and of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: Metalab.co Lightstream.com/ride Links: Amazon Plans High-End Echo, Ramps Up Work on Alexa Home Robot (Bloomberg) Gartner: PC shipments grew 1.5% in Q2 2019 (VentureBeat) Ford-VW alliance expands to include autonomous and electric vehicles (The Verge) Postmates has explor...
Jul 12, 2019•17 min
Apple quietly brings the hammer down on Zoom’s hidden web server, Apple also turns off Walkie Talkie in order to fix it, Google Assistant is listening in on you also, Amazon Music is a streaming dark-horse and dang is Bird losing a lot of money. Sponsors: SVB.com/next Metalab.co Links: Apple has pushed a silent Mac update to remove hidden Zoom web server (TechCrunch) Apple disables Walkie Talkie app due to vulnerability that could allow iPhone eavesdropping (TechCrunch) WHO’S LISTENING WHEN YOU ...
Jul 11, 2019•16 min
The Nintendo Switch Lite is a smaller cheaper Switch that doesn’t “switch,” HBO Max is ready for the streaming thunderdome, is Slack falling behind Microsoft Teams, and an effort to close a funny tax loophole for crypto investors. Sponsors: SVB.com/next Metalab.co Links: Nintendo announces a handheld Nintendo Switch Lite for $199 (TechCrunch) HBO Max will be the exclusive streaming home of 'Friends' (Engadget) BET Streaming Service Taps Netflix Alum as Leader (Exclusive) (The Hollywood Reporter)...
Jul 10, 2019•21 min
Apple culls the MacBook herd, YouTube returns to FireTV, a weird zero day exploit in Zoom’s video conferencing app, Elon Musk shakes up his autopilot team, and Stranger Things 3 breaks records for Netflix. Sponsors: SVB.com/next Metalab.co YouTube.com/jacksontaylortv Links: Apple stops selling 12-inch MacBook and previous generation MacBook Air (9to5Mac) YouTube is back on the Fire TV, and Prime Video launches on Chromecast starting today (The Verge) Instagram will test a feature that allows use...
Jul 09, 2019•16 min
Your driver’s license is already being used for facial recognition surveillance, VC investment in Chinese startups is plummeting, I have an answer to my question around cities paying ransom to hackers, and if this podcast thing goes away, I know my next hustle: professional dungeon master. Sponsors: Metalab.co Legacybox.com/ride Links: FBI, ICE find state driver’s license photos are a gold mine for facial-recognition searches (The Washington Post) Apple tests Face ID and Touch ID sign-in for iCl...
Jul 08, 2019•16 min
Part Two of the legendary Gary Kildall Story... Sponsors: Tiny.website CognitoHQ.com Subscribe to the ad-free feed! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jul 07, 2019•59 min
Part One of the legendary Gary Kildall Story... Sponsors: CognitoHQ.com Tiny.website Subscribe to the Ad-Free Feed! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jul 06, 2019•43 min
A Superhuman mea culpa, no mea culpa but Apple might be ready to tacitly admit the butterfly keyboards were a mistake, inside Walmart’s turf battles over ecommerce, HQ Trivia lays off staff, and the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: CognitoHQ.com Tiny.website Firesideconf.com/ride Links: Read Statuses (Superhuman) Kuo: Apple to include new scissor switch keyboard in 2019 MacBook Air and 2020 MacBook Pro (9to5Mac) HQ Trivia lays off ~20% as it preps subscriptions (TechCrunch) Inside the co...
Jul 05, 2019•19 min
Telsa sold a lot more Model 3’s than anyone expected, more signs of tech manufacturing fleeing China, Uber’s new Dine-In service is kinda brilliant, and have you seen the whole tech world arguing over Superhuman? Sponsors: TinyCapital.com Instacart.com Promocode RIDE at checkout. Links: Tesla sold a lot more Model 3’s than anyone expected in latest quarter (Digital Trends) HP, Dell and Microsoft join electronics exodus from China (Nikkei Asian Review) House lawmakers officially ask Facebook to p...
Jul 03, 2019•17 min
We know when the Galaxy Note 10 is coming, we don’t know why Microsoft is teasing Windows 1.0, Nvidia refreshes the RTX line, meditation app Calm is finding success in an interesting way, and Loon is about to have its first big test. Sponsors: FiresideConf.com/ride TinyCapital.com Links: Samsung confirms next Unpacked event will be Aug. 7 in New York (CNET) Microsoft is teasing Windows 1.0, and everyone is confused (Engadget) Microsoft finally details its plans for Windows 10 19H2 (WindowsCentra...
Jul 02, 2019•15 min
Was Jony Ive burned out at Apple or was he burned out BY Apple? Again, Roku as the quiet mega-player in the streaming wars, how TikTok is spending its way to ubiquity (on the backs of those it wants to supplant) and how tech is revolutionizing Archeology. Sponsors: FiresideConf.com/ride Pantheon.io/ride Links: Jony Ive Is Leaving Apple, but His Departure Started Long Ago (WSJ) Roku Will Soon Have 70% More OTT Devices in Global Streaming Market Than Next Closest Competitor (Multichannel News) Str...
Jul 01, 2019•18 min
I didn’t cover it, but you might have noticed that this week, bitcoin did indeed cross that magical $10,000 mark, in fact, got to $13,000 a coin only to flash crash back down again almost to $10,000. But look, seemingly the crypto spring is upon us and I was just curious as to why, so I asked Aaron Lammer, co-host of the only crypto podcast I listen to, CoinTalk to try to find out what is behind this rally. TLDR, it’s a little bit market cycles and a little bit Facebook Libra. Sponsors: HappyCog...
Jun 30, 2019•32 min
Is it really different this time? Is the regulatory hammer about to come down on Silicon Valley? Matt Stoller is a fellow at the Open Markets Institute; he’s writing a book on the history of Monopoly power; and he has direct experience with this stuff. He was a Senior Policy Advisor and Budget Analyst to the Senate Budget Committee. He also worked in the U.S. House of Representatives on financial services policy, including Dodd-Frank, the Federal Reserve, and the foreclosure crisis. How is monop...
Jun 29, 2019•27 min
Jony Ive is leaving Apple, health tech is having its first big IPO, Amazon looks like it is finally ready to kill UPS, I’ve got issues with Google’s new reCAPTCHA’s and the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: WeWorkRemotely Gabi.com/ride Links: Apple's Longtime Design Chief Jony Ive Leaving to Start New Design Company With Apple as a Primary Client (MacRumors) History Will Not Be Kind to Jony Ive (Motherboard) Jony Ive Is Leaving Apple (Daring Fireball) Jony Ive on leaving Apple, in his own...
Jun 28, 2019•18 min
Twitter still allows public figures to break its rules, but it will warn you when they do, Zuckerberg says you need him on that wall, the US Wireless Emergency Alert system can be easily spoofed, and the mystery that is Superhuman. Sponsors: SVB.com/next WeWorkRemotely.com Links: Twitter will now hide — but not remove — harmful tweets from public figures (The Verge) Mark Zuckerberg Is Rethinking Deepfakes (The Atlantic) Mark Zuckerberg: We can’t stop Russian election interference by ourselves, U...
Jun 27, 2019•17 min
Apple buys Drive.ai, the days of the phone notch might be numbered, the first solar powered electric car, fighting over the streaming rights for The Office, and why streaming music hasn’t been kind to classical music. Sponsors: SVB.com/next WeWorkRemotely.com Links: Apple acquires self-driving startup Drive.ai (Axios) Oppo unveils the world’s first under-screen selfie camera (The Verge) Airbnb’s New Luxe Tier Includes a $1 Million Polynesian Island (Bloomberg) 3D printing platform Carbon raises ...
Jun 26, 2019•18 min
LinkedIn’s changes mean peak newsfeed is truly behind us, hackers have been stealing a massive amount of phone data without touching phones, early impressions of the recent Apple beta releases and Bill Gates fesses up to his greatest career failure. Sponsors: WeWorkRemotely Tech.FidelityCareers.com Links: Exclusive: LinkedIn goes niche (Axios) Microsoft’s new OneDrive Personal Vault protects a folder with 2FA (The Verge) Hackers are stealing years of call records from hacked cell networks (TechC...
Jun 25, 2019•19 min
The Raspberry Pi 4 might finally be a full PC replacement, the first real bipartisan bill around data collection has arrived, is the Echo Show 5 the best Echo ever or just the best smart alarm clock ever, and why tonight’s Falcon Heavy launch might be the biggest test for SpaceX yet. Sponsors: SVB.com/next WeWorkRemotely.com Links: Raspberry Pi 4 on sale now from $35 The Raspberry Pi 4 Is Here and Wants to Replace Your Desktop PC for $35 (Vice) Scoop: Bipartisan senators want Big Tech to put a p...
Jun 24, 2019•16 min
E3 was last week, not even this past week, but I did want to get a debrief on what went on there, so I had to wait for everyone to get back from E3 and Brian Heater of TechCrunch is here to file a report. Where is gaming in this transition to streaming? What were the headline games announced at E3? What about Project Scarlett? Sponsors: Pantheon.io/ride Rhone.com/ride Promocode RIDE for 20% off! Subscribe to the ad-free premium feed! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...
Jun 23, 2019•22 min
Well, given the news of the week, I knew we needed to do a deep dive on Libra, so I called up our friend Brady Dale at CoinDesk and we get into it. What do crypto folk think of Libra? Is he surprised by the governmental backlash? And since by the time you hear this, bitcoin might already be back above $10k dollars? Are we out of the crypto winter and into crypto spring? Sponsors: PaintYourLife.com: Text the word TECH to 48-48-48 Rhone.com/ride promocode RIDE at checkout Subscribe to the ad-free ...
Jun 22, 2019•25 min
Google is getting out of the tablet business, there’s a MacBook Pro recall but not because of keyboard issues, a startup is aiming to disrupt the billable hour in the legal space, the world’s “first” electric plane is here, and, of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: Castro Lighstream.com/ride Links: Google's officially done making its own tablets (Computerworld) GOOGLE WAS NEVER REALLY SERIOUS ABOUT TABLETS (The Verge) Apple launches recall program for select MacBook Pros due t...
Jun 21, 2019•17 min
