1 00:00:04,440 --> 00:00:12,319 Speaker 1: Welcome to Tech Stuff, a production from iHeartRadio. Hey there, 2 00:00:12,320 --> 00:00:15,680 Speaker 1: and welcome to tech Stuff. I'm your host, Jonathan Strickland. 3 00:00:15,720 --> 00:00:19,360 Speaker 1: I'm an executive producer with iHeart Podcasts and how the 4 00:00:19,440 --> 00:00:24,000 Speaker 1: tech are you? It is Friday, January twenty sixth, twenty 5 00:00:24,320 --> 00:00:26,920 Speaker 1: twenty four, and I thought maybe we would talk about 6 00:00:27,000 --> 00:00:29,920 Speaker 1: some tech news. And we've got a lot of news 7 00:00:29,920 --> 00:00:31,960 Speaker 1: that we could touch on due to the fact that 8 00:00:32,040 --> 00:00:34,480 Speaker 1: I was out of commission for most of the month. 9 00:00:34,680 --> 00:00:37,519 Speaker 1: But I figure we're just going to focus on what's recent. 10 00:00:37,960 --> 00:00:41,200 Speaker 1: So first up, this week, Tesla held an earnings call, 11 00:00:41,720 --> 00:00:45,479 Speaker 1: and the results didn't fill investors with optimism. The company 12 00:00:45,520 --> 00:00:49,640 Speaker 1: did not meet market expectations last quarter, and Elon Musk 13 00:00:49,720 --> 00:00:52,400 Speaker 1: indicated that twenty twenty four is likely to be a 14 00:00:52,479 --> 00:00:55,640 Speaker 1: slower year than what the company had hoped for. So 15 00:00:55,760 --> 00:00:58,720 Speaker 1: in response, investors lost a little bit of confidence in 16 00:00:58,760 --> 00:01:03,840 Speaker 1: the EV company and stock prices dropped around twelve percent. 17 00:01:04,200 --> 00:01:07,679 Speaker 1: Tesla is currently working on a new vehicle, which is 18 00:01:07,760 --> 00:01:11,720 Speaker 1: code named Redwood. This EV is said to be targeted 19 00:01:11,800 --> 00:01:14,520 Speaker 1: for like a lower price point. It's meant to be 20 00:01:14,560 --> 00:01:18,039 Speaker 1: a mass market vehicle and it's rumored to be in 21 00:01:18,080 --> 00:01:23,120 Speaker 1: the compact crossover category. Musk said it'll actually be sometime 22 00:01:23,240 --> 00:01:27,080 Speaker 1: in the second half of twenty twenty five when It's 23 00:01:27,160 --> 00:01:31,400 Speaker 1: Texas manufacturing facility will actually begin production. He also indicated 24 00:01:31,800 --> 00:01:36,440 Speaker 1: that Tesla employees should anticipate some very long work days 25 00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:39,360 Speaker 1: leading up to that production. He flat out said they 26 00:01:39,360 --> 00:01:43,320 Speaker 1: should expect to work long shifts and sleep at the 27 00:01:43,319 --> 00:01:47,400 Speaker 1: manufacturing plant. Once again, Musk shows he has a firm 28 00:01:47,480 --> 00:01:50,680 Speaker 1: grasp on how to motivate a workforce. In the meantime, 29 00:01:50,960 --> 00:01:54,680 Speaker 1: investors continue to worry about their nest eggs and they 30 00:01:54,840 --> 00:01:58,000 Speaker 1: shoot ugly glances at Musk whenever he gets bogged down 31 00:01:58,040 --> 00:02:03,480 Speaker 1: in X slash Twitter drama, which, as you imagine, happens 32 00:02:03,520 --> 00:02:07,080 Speaker 1: a lot. Next up, I've got a whole bunch of 33 00:02:07,160 --> 00:02:11,240 Speaker 1: social network related news, but mercifully I've left out the 34 00:02:11,240 --> 00:02:16,160 Speaker 1: stuff about X, because honestly, the recent X news is 35 00:02:16,240 --> 00:02:19,400 Speaker 1: just so ugly I can't even so. First up, Meta 36 00:02:19,480 --> 00:02:24,200 Speaker 1: announced that its platforms Facebook and Instagram will automatically block 37 00:02:24,360 --> 00:02:29,880 Speaker 1: any direct messages sent to teenage users unless those messages 38 00:02:29,919 --> 00:02:32,720 Speaker 1: come from someone who is already a friend of that 39 00:02:32,880 --> 00:02:36,960 Speaker 1: user on those platforms, and this applies even if both 40 00:02:37,000 --> 00:02:41,320 Speaker 1: of the users are teenagers. So if TEMA sends Team 41 00:02:41,320 --> 00:02:46,560 Speaker 1: B a DM but they aren't already friends on these platforms, 42 00:02:46,840 --> 00:02:50,040 Speaker 1: team B will not get that message. However, if they 43 00:02:50,080 --> 00:02:53,320 Speaker 1: are friends on the platform, the message will go through. 44 00:02:53,680 --> 00:02:57,680 Speaker 1: Also for Facebook Messenger, it's a little different. If Team 45 00:02:57,800 --> 00:03:02,160 Speaker 1: B is in Teena's phone contacts from why, I understand, 46 00:03:02,160 --> 00:03:04,680 Speaker 1: the message would then go through, but they have to 47 00:03:04,720 --> 00:03:08,720 Speaker 1: already be confirmed friends or contacts with each other. The 48 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:11,960 Speaker 1: age barrier is dependent upon the country you're in, so 49 00:03:12,080 --> 00:03:15,560 Speaker 1: in some countries this will only impact users who are 50 00:03:15,760 --> 00:03:18,560 Speaker 1: under the age of sixteen. In a few other countries, 51 00:03:18,880 --> 00:03:21,800 Speaker 1: that age is actually up to eighteen. This is not 52 00:03:21,880 --> 00:03:25,000 Speaker 1: a perfect system because I don't know if you've heard 53 00:03:25,040 --> 00:03:28,240 Speaker 1: about this, but there's this thing called lying, in which 54 00:03:28,280 --> 00:03:32,399 Speaker 1: someone could tell a social platform that they're older when 55 00:03:32,440 --> 00:03:37,760 Speaker 1: in fact they are not. I know, it's insidious, right. 56 00:03:38,480 --> 00:03:41,200 Speaker 1: Meta does have some systems in place that are designed 57 00:03:41,240 --> 00:03:43,840 Speaker 1: to predict a person's age to try and head that 58 00:03:43,920 --> 00:03:46,800 Speaker 1: thing off, to determine, Hey, is this person actually the 59 00:03:46,840 --> 00:03:49,360 Speaker 1: age that they claim to be? But I have no 60 00:03:49,520 --> 00:03:52,360 Speaker 1: clue how good it is, how reliable is this tech? 61 00:03:52,760 --> 00:03:55,880 Speaker 1: I don't know, And considering how some of my grown 62 00:03:55,920 --> 00:03:58,600 Speaker 1: ass friends act like they're five year olds. I'm really 63 00:03:58,600 --> 00:04:01,760 Speaker 1: curious how any Aisis can figure out anything at all. 64 00:04:02,320 --> 00:04:06,120 Speaker 1: Meta has been under a ton of scrutiny and litigation 65 00:04:06,600 --> 00:04:12,040 Speaker 1: regarding how it can impact users, particularly young users, and 66 00:04:12,080 --> 00:04:14,320 Speaker 1: clearly this is a move to try and mollify some 67 00:04:14,400 --> 00:04:17,680 Speaker 1: of the company's harshest critics. If you'd like to learn more, 68 00:04:17,760 --> 00:04:22,880 Speaker 1: I recommend Mary Ella Moon's article Facebook and Instagram will 69 00:04:22,920 --> 00:04:26,720 Speaker 1: block dms to teens unless they're from a friend and 70 00:04:26,760 --> 00:04:31,359 Speaker 1: that is on the site. In Gadget Gizmotos, Thomas Jermaine 71 00:04:31,400 --> 00:04:35,799 Speaker 1: has what is, in my opinion, a justifiably snarky article 72 00:04:35,960 --> 00:04:42,120 Speaker 1: titled NYC mayor calls social media and environmental toxin announces 73 00:04:42,120 --> 00:04:46,799 Speaker 1: it on social media. Oh the irony so. Jermaine explains 74 00:04:46,839 --> 00:04:49,960 Speaker 1: that Mayor Eric Adams of the Big Apple took to 75 00:04:50,040 --> 00:04:53,400 Speaker 1: the podium as well as the Internet's to declare social 76 00:04:53,440 --> 00:04:57,800 Speaker 1: media a public menace, something akin to guns and tobacco, 77 00:04:57,960 --> 00:05:00,599 Speaker 1: which just makes me think that like our four fathers 78 00:05:00,680 --> 00:05:03,240 Speaker 1: in the US would have traded these things back in 79 00:05:03,279 --> 00:05:06,400 Speaker 1: the day. You know, you ship guns and tobacco and 80 00:05:06,520 --> 00:05:11,400 Speaker 1: social media across the frontier anyway. Mayor Adams was arguing 81 00:05:11,440 --> 00:05:15,160 Speaker 1: that social platforms have made choices that have caused direct 82 00:05:15,279 --> 00:05:18,520 Speaker 1: or indirect harm to young people. And honestly, I do 83 00:05:18,600 --> 00:05:22,159 Speaker 1: think there is some truth in that. We've talked on 84 00:05:22,200 --> 00:05:26,080 Speaker 1: the show about how algorithms can reinforce messaging that at 85 00:05:26,080 --> 00:05:31,280 Speaker 1: the very least is unhealthy or promotes misinformation. And these 86 00:05:31,279 --> 00:05:34,880 Speaker 1: social platforms use algorithms in order to drive engagement and 87 00:05:34,960 --> 00:05:38,359 Speaker 1: to keep people tied to their services for as long 88 00:05:38,560 --> 00:05:42,640 Speaker 1: as is possible, all to serve as many ads to 89 00:05:42,760 --> 00:05:46,760 Speaker 1: them as is possible. And to the platforms, it doesn't 90 00:05:46,800 --> 00:05:50,240 Speaker 1: really matter if the messages they serve are good or 91 00:05:50,320 --> 00:05:53,320 Speaker 1: bad or whatever. They're kind of amorl when it comes 92 00:05:53,360 --> 00:05:55,880 Speaker 1: to that. They just want the messages to be effective 93 00:05:56,000 --> 00:05:57,760 Speaker 1: to keep them there and to keep them engaged. It 94 00:05:57,800 --> 00:06:01,960 Speaker 1: doesn't matter what other impacted the messages might have. If 95 00:06:02,000 --> 00:06:05,280 Speaker 1: the bad messages are more effective at keeping people there 96 00:06:05,480 --> 00:06:08,960 Speaker 1: than good messages are, well, them's the breaks. So yeah, 97 00:06:09,040 --> 00:06:11,919 Speaker 1: I do think these networks have engaged in activities that 98 00:06:11,920 --> 00:06:15,360 Speaker 1: are harmful to users, not just young ones, old ones 99 00:06:15,440 --> 00:06:17,800 Speaker 1: like me too. I mean, it's the reason why you 100 00:06:17,839 --> 00:06:22,000 Speaker 1: don't find me on nearly any social media these days now. 101 00:06:22,279 --> 00:06:25,960 Speaker 1: Germaine in his article makes a solid point. There does 102 00:06:26,040 --> 00:06:30,280 Speaker 1: appear to be a correlation between social media use and 103 00:06:30,320 --> 00:06:35,320 Speaker 1: a decline in mental health. But we all know correlation 104 00:06:35,640 --> 00:06:39,480 Speaker 1: is not the same thing as causation. It's a leap 105 00:06:39,920 --> 00:06:42,400 Speaker 1: to say that one is causing the other, and that 106 00:06:42,520 --> 00:06:48,280 Speaker 1: is valid. It's possible that social media dependency does lead 107 00:06:48,320 --> 00:06:52,560 Speaker 1: to poor mental health. That is possible. It's also possible 108 00:06:52,920 --> 00:06:57,520 Speaker 1: that people who already have poor mental health find themselves 109 00:06:57,600 --> 00:07:01,400 Speaker 1: drawn to using social media more so it doesn't become 110 00:07:01,800 --> 00:07:05,600 Speaker 1: causal in one direction, maybe it's in the other. Maybe 111 00:07:05,880 --> 00:07:08,920 Speaker 1: the situation is far more complicated than any of that. 112 00:07:09,480 --> 00:07:12,440 Speaker 1: So Jermaine goes on to point out how social platforms 113 00:07:12,480 --> 00:07:17,440 Speaker 1: can and do exacerbate real problems in our real world, 114 00:07:17,680 --> 00:07:21,000 Speaker 1: like the spread of hate speech or misinformation. So there 115 00:07:21,040 --> 00:07:25,360 Speaker 1: are valid reasons to be concerned about social media, though honestly, 116 00:07:25,640 --> 00:07:29,920 Speaker 1: we have to remember these platforms they're facilitators. It's not 117 00:07:29,960 --> 00:07:33,760 Speaker 1: like they're magically generating this material, right, The materials not 118 00:07:34,240 --> 00:07:40,000 Speaker 1: originating out of the platforms. Regular old humans are doing this, 119 00:07:40,360 --> 00:07:43,680 Speaker 1: sometimes with the help of AI. So sometimes it's AI 120 00:07:43,800 --> 00:07:47,400 Speaker 1: boosted human efforts to spread misery. But the platforms just 121 00:07:47,440 --> 00:07:51,040 Speaker 1: make it really easy to deliver and spread the messaging, 122 00:07:51,280 --> 00:07:56,240 Speaker 1: and Jermaine rightly points out that even Mayor Adams points out, 123 00:07:56,520 --> 00:08:00,800 Speaker 1: we don't know to what extent or what in what 124 00:08:01,080 --> 00:08:05,640 Speaker 1: way social media actually interacts with mental health. It just 125 00:08:05,680 --> 00:08:09,840 Speaker 1: appears to have a negative relationship, but we don't really 126 00:08:09,920 --> 00:08:13,680 Speaker 1: know very much about that. But Mayor Adams is convinced 127 00:08:14,080 --> 00:08:16,560 Speaker 1: that it's bad and it should be addressed, So I 128 00:08:16,600 --> 00:08:19,880 Speaker 1: recommend reading the article. I don't one hundred percent agree 129 00:08:19,920 --> 00:08:22,560 Speaker 1: with Jermaine's point of view, but I feel like we're 130 00:08:22,720 --> 00:08:25,720 Speaker 1: more in agreement than otherwise. I just think we differ 131 00:08:25,920 --> 00:08:29,200 Speaker 1: a tiny bit toward the tail end of the matter. 132 00:08:29,760 --> 00:08:33,800 Speaker 1: But I'm also quick to say Jermaine may be more 133 00:08:33,880 --> 00:08:36,560 Speaker 1: right than I am. But go check out that article 134 00:08:36,679 --> 00:08:40,320 Speaker 1: to learn more. Katie Kinderln of Good Morning America on 135 00:08:40,360 --> 00:08:44,200 Speaker 1: ABC News wrote an article titled Florida House of Representatives 136 00:08:44,240 --> 00:08:47,600 Speaker 1: approves bill to ban social media for kids under sixteen. 137 00:08:48,040 --> 00:08:51,320 Speaker 1: So here we see another example of lawmakers taking a 138 00:08:51,440 --> 00:08:55,240 Speaker 1: stand against these companies and their networks. The bill will 139 00:08:55,240 --> 00:08:58,079 Speaker 1: actually need to go to the state's Senate for approval, 140 00:08:58,440 --> 00:09:00,520 Speaker 1: and then, if approved, it would then go to the 141 00:09:00,520 --> 00:09:03,920 Speaker 1: governor's desk to be signed into law or vetoed, whichever 142 00:09:03,960 --> 00:09:08,280 Speaker 1: the governor decides, although I think DeSantis would probably uphold 143 00:09:08,360 --> 00:09:11,480 Speaker 1: this one. Kendalyn points out that the bill passed with 144 00:09:11,559 --> 00:09:14,839 Speaker 1: an overwhelming majority in the House one hundred and six 145 00:09:15,559 --> 00:09:18,320 Speaker 1: one hundred and six to thirteen, and that the bill 146 00:09:18,360 --> 00:09:22,800 Speaker 1: received a good deal of bipartisan support, and that's understandable. Again, 147 00:09:22,840 --> 00:09:26,880 Speaker 1: there's this perception that social networks are hurting users, particularly 148 00:09:27,120 --> 00:09:29,920 Speaker 1: young ones. So the bill would make it illegal for 149 00:09:29,960 --> 00:09:33,520 Speaker 1: these platforms to grant accounts to any Floridian user under 150 00:09:33,520 --> 00:09:36,840 Speaker 1: the age of sixteen, something that I suspect will be 151 00:09:36,920 --> 00:09:40,120 Speaker 1: difficult to enforce. I mean, a kid in Florida could 152 00:09:40,160 --> 00:09:43,600 Speaker 1: either lie about their age or maybe where they live 153 00:09:43,720 --> 00:09:47,040 Speaker 1: in order to get around this block. Sure, a network 154 00:09:47,080 --> 00:09:49,960 Speaker 1: like Facebook could take note of a person's physical location 155 00:09:50,240 --> 00:09:53,280 Speaker 1: while they attempt to make an account, But who's to 156 00:09:53,320 --> 00:09:55,520 Speaker 1: say you couldn't make an account while you happen to 157 00:09:55,559 --> 00:09:58,440 Speaker 1: be on vacation. Like if I happened to be a 158 00:09:58,440 --> 00:10:01,720 Speaker 1: fifteen year old kid from Georgia and I'm decided that 159 00:10:01,760 --> 00:10:04,679 Speaker 1: I want to make a Facebook account while I'm vacationing 160 00:10:04,720 --> 00:10:07,880 Speaker 1: in Florida, maybe because I'm surrounded by old people and 161 00:10:07,880 --> 00:10:10,120 Speaker 1: it's rubbing off on me. I should be able to 162 00:10:10,120 --> 00:10:12,680 Speaker 1: do that, right because I'm not a citizen of Florida. 163 00:10:13,520 --> 00:10:17,440 Speaker 1: But maybe that Florida law would argue that it covers 164 00:10:17,520 --> 00:10:20,160 Speaker 1: everyone under the age of sixteen who's in the state, 165 00:10:20,200 --> 00:10:22,520 Speaker 1: whether they happen to be a citizen of the state 166 00:10:22,600 --> 00:10:26,160 Speaker 1: or not. Anyway, I don't think it's really enforceable. I 167 00:10:26,200 --> 00:10:29,760 Speaker 1: also don't think it addresses the root problem. Like I said, 168 00:10:30,200 --> 00:10:34,160 Speaker 1: these networks, they exacerbate things that are already out there, 169 00:10:34,320 --> 00:10:38,959 Speaker 1: and cutting off the networks doesn't stop the harm at best, 170 00:10:39,000 --> 00:10:42,080 Speaker 1: it just slows it down. Anyway, we'll follow up on 171 00:10:42,160 --> 00:10:44,360 Speaker 1: this story once we know where it goes, when it 172 00:10:44,440 --> 00:10:47,559 Speaker 1: passes through the state Senate, or if it doesn't pass 173 00:10:47,880 --> 00:10:51,760 Speaker 1: we'll check back then. One story that passed me by 174 00:10:51,960 --> 00:10:54,439 Speaker 1: while I was recovering from my little adventure through the 175 00:10:54,480 --> 00:10:59,040 Speaker 1: American healthcare system was that a media company called Doodzy 176 00:10:59,280 --> 00:11:01,800 Speaker 1: released a v on YouTube that ruffled a lot of 177 00:11:01,800 --> 00:11:04,920 Speaker 1: feathers because of how it used AI to quote unquote 178 00:11:05,040 --> 00:11:09,080 Speaker 1: resurrect a beloved comedian who passed away years ago. That 179 00:11:09,160 --> 00:11:12,920 Speaker 1: comedian was George Carlin, a man known for making shrewd 180 00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:18,760 Speaker 1: satirical and often hilarious observations about culture, politics, media, and 181 00:11:18,800 --> 00:11:22,160 Speaker 1: everything else. He had a reputation for pointing out hypocrisy 182 00:11:22,200 --> 00:11:25,840 Speaker 1: and holding it up for public scrutiny. While the media 183 00:11:25,920 --> 00:11:30,480 Speaker 1: company created an hour long comedy special featuring what they 184 00:11:30,600 --> 00:11:36,000 Speaker 1: claimed to be was an AI generated impression of Carlin. So, 185 00:11:36,240 --> 00:11:41,080 Speaker 1: according to the video, the voice, the content, the cadence, 186 00:11:41,160 --> 00:11:44,720 Speaker 1: the delivery, all of it came courtesy of AI attempting 187 00:11:44,760 --> 00:11:50,280 Speaker 1: to copy Carlin's style while generating new material. Now, Carlin's 188 00:11:50,360 --> 00:11:54,439 Speaker 1: estate has filed a lawsuit against this media company, arguing 189 00:11:54,480 --> 00:12:01,160 Speaker 1: that Dudezi has infringed upon copyright and has effectively stolen personality. 190 00:12:01,520 --> 00:12:04,600 Speaker 1: The estate seeks damages and also the immediate removal of 191 00:12:04,640 --> 00:12:07,960 Speaker 1: this video. So Carlin's estate also argues that the special 192 00:12:08,040 --> 00:12:12,000 Speaker 1: harms the comedian's reputation and that it does represent theft. 193 00:12:12,559 --> 00:12:15,280 Speaker 1: It's one of the most high profile examples of creatives 194 00:12:15,320 --> 00:12:19,640 Speaker 1: criticizing AI content generation and arguing that the whole enterprise 195 00:12:19,720 --> 00:12:22,960 Speaker 1: depends upon plagiarism and that stands as a threat to 196 00:12:23,000 --> 00:12:25,920 Speaker 1: anyone who's actually in a creative field. This is one 197 00:12:25,960 --> 00:12:28,440 Speaker 1: of the big concerns that both the Writer's Guild of 198 00:12:28,480 --> 00:12:33,240 Speaker 1: America and sag Aftra had in their recent strikes against 199 00:12:33,280 --> 00:12:37,280 Speaker 1: producers in Hollywood that studios could use AI to bypass 200 00:12:37,320 --> 00:12:41,000 Speaker 1: real human creatives entirely while making something that lacks the 201 00:12:41,040 --> 00:12:46,200 Speaker 1: sole sincerity and creativity of human endeavor. If you'd like 202 00:12:46,240 --> 00:12:49,400 Speaker 1: to learn more, I recommend checking out J. Kim Murphy's 203 00:12:49,480 --> 00:12:53,920 Speaker 1: article George Carlin Estate files lawsuit against group behind AI 204 00:12:54,040 --> 00:12:58,360 Speaker 1: generated stand up Special, a casual theft of a great 205 00:12:58,400 --> 00:13:03,840 Speaker 1: American artist's work that's in variety. Wired's Paresh Dave has 206 00:13:03,840 --> 00:13:07,720 Speaker 1: an article titled open Ai Quietly Scrapped a promise to 207 00:13:07,800 --> 00:13:11,080 Speaker 1: disclose key documents to the public, and I think it's 208 00:13:11,120 --> 00:13:14,240 Speaker 1: well worth reading. It's another illustration of how the Open 209 00:13:14,280 --> 00:13:17,200 Speaker 1: Ai of today appears to be quite different from the 210 00:13:17,240 --> 00:13:22,240 Speaker 1: original concept of the organization. So back in the idealistic days, 211 00:13:22,559 --> 00:13:25,920 Speaker 1: the company's founders, which at the time included Elon Musk, 212 00:13:26,400 --> 00:13:29,800 Speaker 1: intended open ai to be a research center committed to 213 00:13:30,120 --> 00:13:34,839 Speaker 1: advancing AI technologies in a responsible, safe and helpful way, 214 00:13:35,200 --> 00:13:37,840 Speaker 1: and to share its findings with the world to best 215 00:13:37,960 --> 00:13:41,079 Speaker 1: ensure that we all enter a future in which AI 216 00:13:41,240 --> 00:13:45,280 Speaker 1: provides the most benefit and the fewest terminators, and that 217 00:13:45,600 --> 00:13:50,280 Speaker 1: requires a certain level of transparency. However, it seems that 218 00:13:50,360 --> 00:13:53,840 Speaker 1: open ai has now drifted a bit from those ideals, 219 00:13:54,120 --> 00:13:57,160 Speaker 1: which reminds me a lot of Google. Once upon a time, 220 00:13:57,320 --> 00:14:00,840 Speaker 1: Google famously had a motto that read don't be Evil 221 00:14:01,360 --> 00:14:03,560 Speaker 1: as part of its corporate conduct. In fact, it was 222 00:14:03,600 --> 00:14:06,679 Speaker 1: in the preface for its corporate conduct and was up 223 00:14:06,679 --> 00:14:11,440 Speaker 1: on the walls of certain Google buildings. But Google took 224 00:14:11,520 --> 00:14:15,760 Speaker 1: that motto off the preface and the walls and then 225 00:14:15,840 --> 00:14:18,000 Speaker 1: just sort of buried it at the end of the 226 00:14:18,840 --> 00:14:22,720 Speaker 1: corporate conduct statement. So it's still there, but it's just 227 00:14:22,840 --> 00:14:25,560 Speaker 1: now it's at the end of it, not prominently at 228 00:14:25,560 --> 00:14:29,840 Speaker 1: the very beginning, and it kind of was an indicator 229 00:14:29,840 --> 00:14:34,760 Speaker 1: that Google had changed its approach. Well. Anyway, Wired sent 230 00:14:34,840 --> 00:14:39,120 Speaker 1: a request for documents from open ai back in December 231 00:14:39,120 --> 00:14:41,600 Speaker 1: of last year, and they received a response saying that 232 00:14:41,640 --> 00:14:45,720 Speaker 1: open AI's policy of sharing governing documents has changed. That 233 00:14:45,960 --> 00:14:48,320 Speaker 1: changed back in twenty twenty two, and now the company 234 00:14:48,320 --> 00:14:53,160 Speaker 1: only sends financial statements. As Wired points out, this could 235 00:14:53,240 --> 00:14:57,480 Speaker 1: be one of several changes that prompted the former board 236 00:14:57,520 --> 00:15:01,280 Speaker 1: of directors of open ai to suddenly co founder and 237 00:15:01,400 --> 00:15:05,800 Speaker 1: CEO Sam Altman last year. Of course, that decision didn't 238 00:15:05,880 --> 00:15:09,200 Speaker 1: last very long, and soon afterward the entire board of 239 00:15:09,240 --> 00:15:13,680 Speaker 1: directors almost had changed and Sam Altman was back in 240 00:15:13,760 --> 00:15:17,960 Speaker 1: the saddle. But my point is, it looks like open 241 00:15:18,000 --> 00:15:22,120 Speaker 1: Ai has changed, perhaps gradually, to a point that it's 242 00:15:22,160 --> 00:15:25,160 Speaker 1: at odds with the original founding mission of the company, 243 00:15:25,240 --> 00:15:28,320 Speaker 1: and that the board was uncomfortable with how things were going. 244 00:15:28,640 --> 00:15:32,120 Speaker 1: It seems a bit like a boiling frog situation. You 245 00:15:32,120 --> 00:15:34,440 Speaker 1: know that idea that you got a frog in water 246 00:15:34,720 --> 00:15:37,120 Speaker 1: and you just gradually increase the temperature of the water 247 00:15:37,320 --> 00:15:40,360 Speaker 1: until the frog is done dead from being boiled, and 248 00:15:40,400 --> 00:15:43,120 Speaker 1: it never hopped out because you know you were increasing 249 00:15:43,120 --> 00:15:46,640 Speaker 1: that temperature so gradually you SICKO. Anyway, I recommend the 250 00:15:46,720 --> 00:15:49,240 Speaker 1: article to learn more about how things have changed, as 251 00:15:49,280 --> 00:15:52,160 Speaker 1: well as what this could possibly mean for open AI 252 00:15:52,600 --> 00:15:56,360 Speaker 1: and the way that companies tackle AI development in general. Okay, 253 00:15:56,520 --> 00:15:58,280 Speaker 1: we're going to take a quick break. When we come back, 254 00:15:58,320 --> 00:16:00,160 Speaker 1: we got a lot more tech news to go through. 255 00:16:09,560 --> 00:16:13,840 Speaker 1: We're back and still have a couple of AI things 256 00:16:13,840 --> 00:16:17,800 Speaker 1: to chat about. So Scott Foster of Asia Times has 257 00:16:18,240 --> 00:16:22,880 Speaker 1: a short article titled Samsung to build all AI no 258 00:16:23,080 --> 00:16:27,960 Speaker 1: human chip factories, So yes, the future of an all robot. 259 00:16:28,240 --> 00:16:32,440 Speaker 1: All automated manufacturing facility is around the corner. They would seem. 260 00:16:32,640 --> 00:16:36,160 Speaker 1: It's still gonna take some time right now. The projected 261 00:16:36,200 --> 00:16:39,960 Speaker 1: launch date would be sometime around twenty thirty. If it works, 262 00:16:40,280 --> 00:16:43,960 Speaker 1: then the manufacturing plant won't rely on human labor at all. 263 00:16:44,240 --> 00:16:48,480 Speaker 1: AI will design and build and package products all by itself. 264 00:16:49,000 --> 00:16:51,680 Speaker 1: Oh brave new world to have no people in it. 265 00:16:52,560 --> 00:16:55,840 Speaker 1: The Washington Post reported this week that the Securities in 266 00:16:55,960 --> 00:17:00,640 Speaker 1: Exchange Commission the SEC and the Department of Justice DOJ 267 00:17:01,120 --> 00:17:05,919 Speaker 1: here in the United States, the US are investigating GM's 268 00:17:06,160 --> 00:17:10,840 Speaker 1: Cruise division. That is, the division that's in charge of developing, deploying, 269 00:17:10,840 --> 00:17:14,160 Speaker 1: and operating driverless vehicles, which have been used as a 270 00:17:14,280 --> 00:17:18,600 Speaker 1: ride hailing service. Last year, one of the Cruise vehicles 271 00:17:18,680 --> 00:17:22,120 Speaker 1: was involved in an accident, and it included an incident 272 00:17:22,200 --> 00:17:26,240 Speaker 1: in which the cruise vehicle struck a pedestrian and dragged 273 00:17:26,280 --> 00:17:30,320 Speaker 1: her for twenty feet at approximately seven miles per hour. 274 00:17:30,720 --> 00:17:33,240 Speaker 1: While the vehicle should have immediately come to a stop 275 00:17:33,280 --> 00:17:36,040 Speaker 1: after striking the pedestrian, in fact, it shouldn't have struck 276 00:17:36,080 --> 00:17:38,120 Speaker 1: the pedestrian at all, but once doing so, it should 277 00:17:38,160 --> 00:17:42,000 Speaker 1: have stopped. Instead, it mistakenly interpreted the accident as one 278 00:17:42,000 --> 00:17:46,080 Speaker 1: that impacted the car's side and so it was attempting 279 00:17:46,119 --> 00:17:49,120 Speaker 1: to pull over and get out of traffic. The pedestrians 280 00:17:49,119 --> 00:17:52,359 Speaker 1: suffered additional injuries due to this error, as you can imagine. 281 00:17:52,359 --> 00:17:54,840 Speaker 1: I mean, if you're being dragged behind a car at 282 00:17:54,880 --> 00:17:59,360 Speaker 1: seven miles per hour, that's like twice the speed of walking. 283 00:17:59,760 --> 00:18:04,480 Speaker 1: That's going to hurt. So the next day, government officials 284 00:18:04,520 --> 00:18:07,680 Speaker 1: met with the company to investigate the incident, which makes sense, 285 00:18:08,080 --> 00:18:12,159 Speaker 1: and at that meeting, Cruise employees failed to, you know, 286 00:18:12,960 --> 00:18:16,280 Speaker 1: mention that their car had dragged a person twenty feet 287 00:18:16,359 --> 00:18:19,520 Speaker 1: down the road at seven miles per hour. So instead 288 00:18:20,359 --> 00:18:25,080 Speaker 1: their narrative largely focused on another vehicle, a Nissan that 289 00:18:25,200 --> 00:18:28,560 Speaker 1: was under human control, that was also involved in this accident, 290 00:18:29,080 --> 00:18:33,000 Speaker 1: and the implication appeared to be that Cruz was saying 291 00:18:33,119 --> 00:18:35,919 Speaker 1: it was really the driver of the Nissan, it was 292 00:18:35,960 --> 00:18:39,879 Speaker 1: their fault for the pedestrians injuries, and that the Cruise 293 00:18:39,960 --> 00:18:46,160 Speaker 1: vehicle really wasn't to blame. Now, according to Cruise, their 294 00:18:46,280 --> 00:18:49,919 Speaker 1: intention was to show a video of the incident to officials, 295 00:18:50,400 --> 00:18:54,560 Speaker 1: and this video presumably would have included the fact that 296 00:18:54,600 --> 00:18:57,800 Speaker 1: the pedestrian had been dragged behind the Cruise vehicle, but 297 00:18:57,920 --> 00:19:01,280 Speaker 1: a problem with their internet meant they couldn't get the 298 00:19:01,400 --> 00:19:05,320 Speaker 1: video to play. And then CRU's employees just sort of, 299 00:19:05,359 --> 00:19:09,439 Speaker 1: you know, didn't mention it. They didn't say, hey, you know, 300 00:19:09,480 --> 00:19:11,760 Speaker 1: the video would have shown this, and we probably should 301 00:19:11,840 --> 00:19:15,600 Speaker 1: tell you that our card dragged her for twenty feet. 302 00:19:16,240 --> 00:19:19,240 Speaker 1: They didn't. They didn't cover the gap that was left 303 00:19:19,240 --> 00:19:23,520 Speaker 1: by this lack of video, which seems pretty darn horrifying 304 00:19:23,600 --> 00:19:27,760 Speaker 1: not to mention stupid. I mean, you'd have to assume 305 00:19:28,280 --> 00:19:30,840 Speaker 1: that the truth would come out, and it did so 306 00:19:31,480 --> 00:19:34,879 Speaker 1: not being forthcoming and bringing it up yourself makes you 307 00:19:34,960 --> 00:19:38,439 Speaker 1: look even worse, which it has, at least in my 308 00:19:38,520 --> 00:19:44,280 Speaker 1: opinion it has. Anyway, since that incident, the division of 309 00:19:44,400 --> 00:19:48,720 Speaker 1: Cruz has changed quite a bit. Co founder Daniel Khan 310 00:19:49,359 --> 00:19:54,600 Speaker 1: resigned from Cruz, Kyle Vote, the CEO, left the company, 311 00:19:55,040 --> 00:19:59,040 Speaker 1: and GM also downsized nearly a quarter of the staff 312 00:19:59,119 --> 00:20:02,840 Speaker 1: working at cru So just another example of what can 313 00:20:02,920 --> 00:20:07,280 Speaker 1: happen when AI goes wrong, not to mention when people 314 00:20:07,400 --> 00:20:12,640 Speaker 1: fail to acknowledge when AI has gone wrong. Next up, 315 00:20:12,800 --> 00:20:16,040 Speaker 1: Apple is loosening its grip on iOS a little bit, 316 00:20:16,400 --> 00:20:20,320 Speaker 1: but only if you happen to live in the European Union. 317 00:20:20,800 --> 00:20:23,040 Speaker 1: This is, of course, so that Apple will be in 318 00:20:23,080 --> 00:20:27,520 Speaker 1: compliance with regulations that passed in the EU just last year, 319 00:20:28,119 --> 00:20:31,680 Speaker 1: and Apple is not happy about it. So it's not 320 00:20:31,720 --> 00:20:34,080 Speaker 1: like the company had some sort of massive change of 321 00:20:34,080 --> 00:20:39,000 Speaker 1: heart or anything. In fact, Apple representatives have indicated in 322 00:20:39,119 --> 00:20:43,800 Speaker 1: plain English that the company feels this is a terrible, 323 00:20:44,240 --> 00:20:47,920 Speaker 1: terrible mistake. But the changes mean that for the first time, 324 00:20:48,480 --> 00:20:52,360 Speaker 1: EU iPhone users will be able to install fully featured 325 00:20:52,440 --> 00:20:57,760 Speaker 1: browsers other than Safari on their iPhones. So you have 326 00:20:57,800 --> 00:21:02,000 Speaker 1: to understand that these browsers run on of browser engines, 327 00:21:02,400 --> 00:21:06,000 Speaker 1: kind of like how game engines provide a foundation for 328 00:21:06,080 --> 00:21:09,840 Speaker 1: certain types of video games, and that's why certain video 329 00:21:09,840 --> 00:21:12,440 Speaker 1: games feel very different from others, is that they might 330 00:21:12,440 --> 00:21:14,960 Speaker 1: be built on top of a different game engine. Well, 331 00:21:15,000 --> 00:21:21,240 Speaker 1: browsers are built on top of browser engines, and on iPhones, 332 00:21:21,280 --> 00:21:24,280 Speaker 1: at least up until now, all browsers needed to run 333 00:21:24,320 --> 00:21:30,159 Speaker 1: on top of the WebKit browser engine. However, several competing 334 00:21:30,240 --> 00:21:34,480 Speaker 1: browsers typically would use a totally different browser engine to 335 00:21:34,640 --> 00:21:39,640 Speaker 1: underlie their functionality. So in order to comply with Apple's 336 00:21:39,680 --> 00:21:43,280 Speaker 1: requirements and to be able to run on Apple devices, 337 00:21:43,600 --> 00:21:47,800 Speaker 1: these other browsers had to make a version of their 338 00:21:47,800 --> 00:21:50,680 Speaker 1: browser that could run on top of WebKit, and sometimes 339 00:21:50,680 --> 00:21:54,560 Speaker 1: that meant they had to shed features that would work 340 00:21:54,600 --> 00:21:58,040 Speaker 1: on their browser in order to be compatible with WebKit. 341 00:21:58,480 --> 00:22:03,400 Speaker 1: But now EU iPhone users can have other browser engines 342 00:22:03,440 --> 00:22:07,560 Speaker 1: on them, which means these alternatives like Google Chrome will 343 00:22:07,600 --> 00:22:12,399 Speaker 1: be able to exist fully featured on iOS devices for 344 00:22:12,440 --> 00:22:16,440 Speaker 1: the first time. Now that's just one change that's happening 345 00:22:16,600 --> 00:22:20,679 Speaker 1: with iPhones and other iOS devices in the EU. Another 346 00:22:21,280 --> 00:22:24,440 Speaker 1: is that Apple is going to allow users to sideload 347 00:22:24,640 --> 00:22:29,320 Speaker 1: apps onto their devices for the first time. Sideloading is 348 00:22:29,320 --> 00:22:32,600 Speaker 1: when you go to some third party source for apps, 349 00:22:32,800 --> 00:22:36,360 Speaker 1: so you're not going to the official iOS app store. 350 00:22:36,760 --> 00:22:39,600 Speaker 1: In the past, Apple only let you download apps from 351 00:22:39,600 --> 00:22:41,679 Speaker 1: the official store unless you went to some sort of 352 00:22:41,720 --> 00:22:45,600 Speaker 1: extreme like if you did a jail break on your iPhone, 353 00:22:45,600 --> 00:22:48,240 Speaker 1: which was not easy to do and sometimes could break 354 00:22:48,280 --> 00:22:51,200 Speaker 1: your phone, then you had to get all of your 355 00:22:51,240 --> 00:22:54,960 Speaker 1: apps from the iOS store. However, now EU users will 356 00:22:54,960 --> 00:22:58,520 Speaker 1: be able to access third party apps or third party 357 00:22:58,560 --> 00:23:01,440 Speaker 1: stores in order to get apps, and Apple says this 358 00:23:01,800 --> 00:23:07,160 Speaker 1: is dangerous for the Apple's longest running statement on this 359 00:23:07,359 --> 00:23:11,880 Speaker 1: is that the reason why they have this draconian control 360 00:23:12,000 --> 00:23:13,879 Speaker 1: over where you can get your apps on your phone 361 00:23:14,320 --> 00:23:17,640 Speaker 1: is in order to protect you. It's because you, as 362 00:23:17,640 --> 00:23:21,000 Speaker 1: a user are far too vulnerable and you're just a 363 00:23:21,080 --> 00:23:24,840 Speaker 1: naive little fond dancing through the woods, and meanwhile there 364 00:23:24,840 --> 00:23:28,800 Speaker 1: are predators all around you. So Apple says that allowing 365 00:23:28,840 --> 00:23:32,400 Speaker 1: people to sideload apps is a compromise to privacy and security, 366 00:23:32,440 --> 00:23:34,479 Speaker 1: but they have to do it. They have to comply 367 00:23:34,960 --> 00:23:38,560 Speaker 1: with these EU rules. So regulators have said the reason 368 00:23:38,600 --> 00:23:41,879 Speaker 1: why they've got to comply is because the policy Apple 369 00:23:41,920 --> 00:23:45,400 Speaker 1: had in place gave it a monopolistic hold on its 370 00:23:45,480 --> 00:23:50,119 Speaker 1: app system, and that this would open up the app environment. 371 00:23:50,400 --> 00:23:52,399 Speaker 1: And it'll be interesting to see what it all looks 372 00:23:52,440 --> 00:23:55,040 Speaker 1: like a year from now. So will the EU show 373 00:23:55,400 --> 00:24:00,000 Speaker 1: how an open environment benefits customers or will the entire 374 00:24:00,040 --> 00:24:05,160 Speaker 1: Higher Continent be reduced to sinders because regulators allowed chaos 375 00:24:05,200 --> 00:24:10,080 Speaker 1: to rain unchecked. We'll just have to wait and see. Recently, 376 00:24:10,160 --> 00:24:13,359 Speaker 1: Netflix revealed that one place you will not be able 377 00:24:13,400 --> 00:24:17,280 Speaker 1: to access its content is on the upcoming mixed reality 378 00:24:17,320 --> 00:24:21,920 Speaker 1: headset from Apple called the Vision Pro. You won't even 379 00:24:21,960 --> 00:24:24,560 Speaker 1: be able to launch the iPad version of the Netflix 380 00:24:24,640 --> 00:24:27,960 Speaker 1: app on the Vision Pro when it launches next week. 381 00:24:28,080 --> 00:24:31,200 Speaker 1: At least not as it stands right now. You will 382 00:24:31,240 --> 00:24:34,480 Speaker 1: be able to access Netflix if you use the vision 383 00:24:34,480 --> 00:24:36,960 Speaker 1: Pro and you go through Safari. So if you actually 384 00:24:36,960 --> 00:24:39,639 Speaker 1: do the web browser version, but you won't have a 385 00:24:39,720 --> 00:24:42,560 Speaker 1: native app for the headset, nor will you be able 386 00:24:42,600 --> 00:24:45,159 Speaker 1: to use the iPad version. So according to nine to 387 00:24:45,240 --> 00:24:51,159 Speaker 1: five Mac, Netflix's CEO actually just one of Netflix's CEO, 388 00:24:51,240 --> 00:24:54,280 Speaker 1: there are co CEOs, Greg Peters. He said that the 389 00:24:54,359 --> 00:24:58,600 Speaker 1: vision pro is quote unquote subscale. By that, he means 390 00:24:58,840 --> 00:25:02,640 Speaker 1: there wouldn't be enough un in circulation and enough interest 391 00:25:02,680 --> 00:25:06,280 Speaker 1: among the owners of those units to justify building out 392 00:25:06,320 --> 00:25:10,040 Speaker 1: an experiencement just for that platform. It would cost more 393 00:25:10,400 --> 00:25:13,120 Speaker 1: than what they would make back from the people who 394 00:25:13,160 --> 00:25:19,240 Speaker 1: actually owned these devices. Sick Burn. I mean, it's interesting 395 00:25:19,240 --> 00:25:22,040 Speaker 1: to me because for a very long time I would 396 00:25:22,160 --> 00:25:25,879 Speaker 1: joke that Netflix's strategy was to get on every single 397 00:25:25,960 --> 00:25:29,440 Speaker 1: screen it could, whether that screen was on a smartphone 398 00:25:29,840 --> 00:25:32,560 Speaker 1: or a tablet, or it was part of a video 399 00:25:32,600 --> 00:25:36,440 Speaker 1: game console, or maybe a smart refrigerator or perhaps your 400 00:25:36,720 --> 00:25:40,840 Speaker 1: washing machine. So for Netflix to say, yeah, we figure 401 00:25:40,880 --> 00:25:44,280 Speaker 1: that this is not a good return on investment. When 402 00:25:44,280 --> 00:25:47,080 Speaker 1: it comes to the Vision Pro, it seems at least 403 00:25:47,080 --> 00:25:50,760 Speaker 1: initially to be a pretty big slap to Apple's face, 404 00:25:51,320 --> 00:25:54,359 Speaker 1: but then we figure that Apple isn't producing a huge 405 00:25:54,440 --> 00:25:57,840 Speaker 1: number of these things. It's probably in the tens of thousands, 406 00:25:58,240 --> 00:26:01,480 Speaker 1: and the fact that they'd cost more than three grand 407 00:26:01,640 --> 00:26:04,200 Speaker 1: a pop means it is going to be a niche 408 00:26:04,200 --> 00:26:08,520 Speaker 1: product for the most part. There are always Apple fanatics, 409 00:26:08,600 --> 00:26:12,040 Speaker 1: there are developers who are interested in the platform, there 410 00:26:12,040 --> 00:26:14,879 Speaker 1: are companies that are interested in a platform. But still 411 00:26:14,920 --> 00:26:17,440 Speaker 1: it's kind of phenomenal in a world where we worry 412 00:26:17,480 --> 00:26:20,920 Speaker 1: about inflation and there's been so much talk about inflation 413 00:26:21,240 --> 00:26:25,399 Speaker 1: and making sure that you're spending money wisely, that people 414 00:26:25,440 --> 00:26:29,520 Speaker 1: are still willing to spend thousands of dollars on an 415 00:26:29,760 --> 00:26:34,280 Speaker 1: unproven mixed reality headset that appears to be a huge 416 00:26:34,400 --> 00:26:39,080 Speaker 1: compromise from Apple's original quote unquote vision. It just it 417 00:26:39,080 --> 00:26:41,720 Speaker 1: blows my mind. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. There 418 00:26:41,760 --> 00:26:44,919 Speaker 1: are people who have way more money than they have since, 419 00:26:45,480 --> 00:26:48,760 Speaker 1: and I guess that's always going to be the case anyway. 420 00:26:48,800 --> 00:26:50,679 Speaker 1: If you bought a Vision pro, by the way, no 421 00:26:50,800 --> 00:26:53,800 Speaker 1: shade on you, like you probably have legit reasons why 422 00:26:53,840 --> 00:26:58,320 Speaker 1: you did. I'm just still flabbergasted that they sold all 423 00:26:58,359 --> 00:27:01,440 Speaker 1: of the pre production units, or at least all the 424 00:27:01,480 --> 00:27:05,600 Speaker 1: ones that they plan on manufacturing in the near future. Anyway, 425 00:27:06,760 --> 00:27:09,679 Speaker 1: it's still pretty fair to say that it would be 426 00:27:10,040 --> 00:27:13,399 Speaker 1: a difficult sell to make something specific for the Vision 427 00:27:13,480 --> 00:27:17,439 Speaker 1: Pro just because the user base is going to be small. 428 00:27:17,520 --> 00:27:20,600 Speaker 1: In fact, that's probably going to be a big challenge 429 00:27:20,600 --> 00:27:25,480 Speaker 1: for Apple moving forward, convincing developers to spend the time 430 00:27:25,520 --> 00:27:28,560 Speaker 1: and money it takes to create new apps for the 431 00:27:28,720 --> 00:27:32,880 Speaker 1: Vision Pro knowing that there's a limited reach, like there's 432 00:27:32,920 --> 00:27:37,280 Speaker 1: just a limited user base, and are these developers willing 433 00:27:37,359 --> 00:27:42,880 Speaker 1: to perhaps take a loss on that initial launch group 434 00:27:43,400 --> 00:27:47,000 Speaker 1: in the hopes that it will establish a foundation for 435 00:27:47,200 --> 00:27:51,359 Speaker 1: a larger customer base moving forward. I don't know the 436 00:27:51,359 --> 00:27:54,080 Speaker 1: answer to that. I know that if I were developing apps, 437 00:27:54,080 --> 00:27:56,639 Speaker 1: I would be thinking twice before creating something for the 438 00:27:56,720 --> 00:27:59,800 Speaker 1: Vision Pro, just because I could spend that same amount 439 00:27:59,800 --> 00:28:03,320 Speaker 1: of time. I'm an effort developing for established platforms and 440 00:28:03,400 --> 00:28:05,440 Speaker 1: actually know that I have a good chance of making 441 00:28:05,480 --> 00:28:08,399 Speaker 1: a return on my investment rather than doing something that 442 00:28:09,040 --> 00:28:12,840 Speaker 1: might work out. But then it's Apple. Apple's got such 443 00:28:12,840 --> 00:28:18,680 Speaker 1: a long track record of making technology work when nobody 444 00:28:18,800 --> 00:28:22,199 Speaker 1: else could make it work. Before them. It's hard for 445 00:28:22,240 --> 00:28:26,480 Speaker 1: me to say anyway, it's it's going to be interesting 446 00:28:26,520 --> 00:28:31,040 Speaker 1: to see how things unfold once the product launches next week, 447 00:28:31,359 --> 00:28:35,520 Speaker 1: and I'm very curious to hear people's honest reviews of it. 448 00:28:35,760 --> 00:28:40,080 Speaker 1: I have a suspicion that the actual experience of using 449 00:28:40,120 --> 00:28:45,000 Speaker 1: the device is pretty darn impressive, but I'm not sure 450 00:28:45,320 --> 00:28:49,800 Speaker 1: it will be enough to convince someone like me to 451 00:28:49,920 --> 00:28:53,800 Speaker 1: start setting money aside to buy it. I just don't 452 00:28:53,960 --> 00:28:58,960 Speaker 1: think it's enough for me yet. Anyway, that's enough about that. 453 00:28:59,080 --> 00:29:01,600 Speaker 1: We're going to take another quick break and when we 454 00:29:01,640 --> 00:29:04,840 Speaker 1: come back, I've got a little bit more news to 455 00:29:04,880 --> 00:29:18,720 Speaker 1: finish off with, so we'll be back right after these messages. Okay, 456 00:29:18,760 --> 00:29:22,560 Speaker 1: we're back, and we've got a little bit of a 457 00:29:22,800 --> 00:29:26,560 Speaker 1: inspiring but sort of sad story, and that is the 458 00:29:26,920 --> 00:29:32,640 Speaker 1: Ingenuity helicopter has flown its final mission on Mars. This 459 00:29:32,840 --> 00:29:36,080 Speaker 1: was the little drone copter that could, and it last 460 00:29:36,160 --> 00:29:40,440 Speaker 1: flew on January eighteenth. It briefly lost contact with the 461 00:29:40,520 --> 00:29:44,520 Speaker 1: Perseverance land Rover that's the vehicle that it launched with 462 00:29:44,920 --> 00:29:48,240 Speaker 1: way back in the day, but the two regained connectivity 463 00:29:48,320 --> 00:29:51,200 Speaker 1: a little bit later, and at that point NASA engineers 464 00:29:51,240 --> 00:29:55,360 Speaker 1: discovered that at least one of Ingenuity's rotors had broken 465 00:29:55,480 --> 00:29:59,640 Speaker 1: during its final flight, so it will go flying no more. 466 00:30:00,320 --> 00:30:04,480 Speaker 1: But this little sucker had already achieved far more than 467 00:30:04,520 --> 00:30:08,160 Speaker 1: what NASA initially hoped. Now, let's set aside the fact 468 00:30:08,480 --> 00:30:13,080 Speaker 1: that NASA occasionally sets modest goals with the hopes of 469 00:30:13,120 --> 00:30:18,560 Speaker 1: exceeding them, kind of following in the footsteps of engineer 470 00:30:18,680 --> 00:30:22,280 Speaker 1: Scotty on Star Trek, who would always say he would 471 00:30:22,480 --> 00:30:25,960 Speaker 1: underpromise and over deliver. That way, it always seemed like 472 00:30:26,000 --> 00:30:28,719 Speaker 1: he was a genius. Right If he says, oh, I 473 00:30:28,720 --> 00:30:30,840 Speaker 1: have it to you in three hours, and then like 474 00:30:30,840 --> 00:30:33,040 Speaker 1: in an hour later he gets it done, it looks 475 00:30:33,040 --> 00:30:35,800 Speaker 1: like he just really busted his button got it done. 476 00:30:35,960 --> 00:30:38,880 Speaker 1: NASA kind of follows the same thing, like they're careful 477 00:30:39,480 --> 00:30:44,720 Speaker 1: with setting mission parameters because space is hard y'all. Like, 478 00:30:44,960 --> 00:30:47,920 Speaker 1: I don't want to take anything away from NASA. Being 479 00:30:47,960 --> 00:30:52,240 Speaker 1: able to do anything successfully in a space oriented mission 480 00:30:52,600 --> 00:30:57,040 Speaker 1: is a huge achievement, So being careful with your goals 481 00:30:57,240 --> 00:31:04,160 Speaker 1: is a good thing. So NASA's mission parameters for Ingenuity 482 00:31:04,680 --> 00:31:08,520 Speaker 1: were for it to do five test flights over the 483 00:31:08,560 --> 00:31:12,400 Speaker 1: course of thirty days. That was it. They thought, if 484 00:31:12,440 --> 00:31:14,320 Speaker 1: we can do five, like, we don't even know if 485 00:31:14,320 --> 00:31:18,240 Speaker 1: we can take off once because Mars's atmosphere is really thin, 486 00:31:18,880 --> 00:31:21,600 Speaker 1: so you have to you know, being able to provide 487 00:31:21,680 --> 00:31:24,760 Speaker 1: enough lift to get even a light drone off the 488 00:31:24,800 --> 00:31:28,280 Speaker 1: ground is challenging. You just you don't have the thickness 489 00:31:28,320 --> 00:31:30,320 Speaker 1: of atmosphere that you would have in a place like Earth. 490 00:31:30,720 --> 00:31:33,720 Speaker 1: But by the end of Ingenuity's time on Mars, it 491 00:31:33,800 --> 00:31:40,800 Speaker 1: had flown seventy two times phenomenal. It had even survived 492 00:31:40,920 --> 00:31:46,840 Speaker 1: Martian Winter like there was concern that the cold of 493 00:31:46,880 --> 00:31:53,320 Speaker 1: Mars's winter would really shut down all of Ingenuity systems, 494 00:31:53,360 --> 00:31:57,440 Speaker 1: and it did, but NASA was able to reheat those 495 00:31:57,480 --> 00:32:02,440 Speaker 1: systems and to reboot Ingenuities computer systems and have it 496 00:32:02,520 --> 00:32:08,600 Speaker 1: still be operational. They even sent updates to Ingenuities capabilities, 497 00:32:08,680 --> 00:32:11,560 Speaker 1: like they gave it firmware updates, and it suddenly was 498 00:32:11,600 --> 00:32:17,040 Speaker 1: able to do more autonomous activities like identifying safe landing zones. 499 00:32:17,240 --> 00:32:20,760 Speaker 1: It even did a couple of emergency landings and did 500 00:32:20,800 --> 00:32:25,320 Speaker 1: so successfully. It's just fantastic, and it means that there 501 00:32:25,400 --> 00:32:30,720 Speaker 1: was this huge amount of information and practical experience that 502 00:32:30,840 --> 00:32:33,280 Speaker 1: NASA was able to gather that they can then use 503 00:32:33,320 --> 00:32:37,200 Speaker 1: to build into future missions. And when you start to 504 00:32:37,200 --> 00:32:40,920 Speaker 1: think about how far drone technology has come over the 505 00:32:41,000 --> 00:32:45,600 Speaker 1: last decade because Ingenuities planning started like back in twenty twelve, 506 00:32:45,840 --> 00:32:49,680 Speaker 1: when you think about how far we've come with those advancements, 507 00:32:50,120 --> 00:32:55,240 Speaker 1: it really makes you get excited about the future of 508 00:32:55,320 --> 00:32:59,840 Speaker 1: space exploration and space travel because we can apply what 509 00:32:59,840 --> 00:33:02,880 Speaker 1: we know as well as the advances in that technology 510 00:33:03,240 --> 00:33:06,800 Speaker 1: to create even better, more capable drones in the future 511 00:33:07,400 --> 00:33:11,640 Speaker 1: and use them to conduct science that in the past 512 00:33:11,640 --> 00:33:15,920 Speaker 1: would have been impossible for us. So honestly, my head 513 00:33:16,000 --> 00:33:19,520 Speaker 1: is off for Ingenuity and the team behind it. Y'all 514 00:33:19,560 --> 00:33:24,440 Speaker 1: did good. This was an incredible achievement, one that I 515 00:33:24,480 --> 00:33:26,920 Speaker 1: don't think I would have imagined I would have seen 516 00:33:27,320 --> 00:33:31,440 Speaker 1: in my lifetime, so I'm so pleased that I'm wrong 517 00:33:31,480 --> 00:33:36,320 Speaker 1: about that. Now, that wraps up the main news items, 518 00:33:36,320 --> 00:33:38,200 Speaker 1: but before I go, I do have a couple of 519 00:33:38,320 --> 00:33:40,960 Speaker 1: article recommendations for you on top of the ones I've 520 00:33:41,000 --> 00:33:45,720 Speaker 1: mentioned already in this episode. Both of these recommendations involve 521 00:33:46,200 --> 00:33:50,560 Speaker 1: upsetting stories, so these are not happy stories. And first 522 00:33:50,600 --> 00:33:54,560 Speaker 1: up is a piece by Janie Rose of Motherboard, and 523 00:33:54,640 --> 00:33:58,480 Speaker 1: it's an article that's titled Taylor Swift is Living every 524 00:33:58,560 --> 00:34:03,640 Speaker 1: Woman's AI Nightmare. And as the title suggests, this is 525 00:34:03,680 --> 00:34:07,120 Speaker 1: about deep fake technology and how it enables people to 526 00:34:07,240 --> 00:34:11,280 Speaker 1: dehumanize victims. And let's face it, most of these victims 527 00:34:11,280 --> 00:34:15,879 Speaker 1: are women or they are female presenting, and they use 528 00:34:15,960 --> 00:34:22,000 Speaker 1: these to create all sorts of AI generated pornographic images 529 00:34:22,040 --> 00:34:25,440 Speaker 1: and then they spread them online and lots of platforms 530 00:34:25,480 --> 00:34:30,960 Speaker 1: have served as kind of distribution centers. X is a 531 00:34:31,000 --> 00:34:35,000 Speaker 1: big one. Reddit used to be. They've gotten better at 532 00:34:35,040 --> 00:34:39,360 Speaker 1: cutting back on that, but yeah, there are places online 533 00:34:39,360 --> 00:34:42,760 Speaker 1: where this just sort of runs rampant. You're not surprised 534 00:34:42,800 --> 00:34:46,520 Speaker 1: that it does so on X because Elon Musk famously 535 00:34:46,600 --> 00:34:50,520 Speaker 1: cut way back on content moderation when he acquired that 536 00:34:50,640 --> 00:34:55,720 Speaker 1: company and has shown very little interest in addressing these things, 537 00:34:55,840 --> 00:35:00,239 Speaker 1: so it becomes an ongoing issue over there. I think 538 00:35:00,280 --> 00:35:02,919 Speaker 1: the article is a really important read, and it does 539 00:35:03,000 --> 00:35:05,240 Speaker 1: tie in with some of the threads that I mentioned 540 00:35:05,280 --> 00:35:08,600 Speaker 1: in the George Carlin story in this episode, right, this 541 00:35:08,760 --> 00:35:15,520 Speaker 1: idea of using AI to victimize people in various ways. 542 00:35:15,960 --> 00:35:20,080 Speaker 1: The deep fake stuff is really disturbing. It's been really 543 00:35:20,120 --> 00:35:23,279 Speaker 1: troubling to me for a couple of years. Now and 544 00:35:23,320 --> 00:35:28,759 Speaker 1: it's only getting worse. And obviously the sexualization is one 545 00:35:28,880 --> 00:35:34,000 Speaker 1: element of deep fake technology, but there are other facets too, right, 546 00:35:34,160 --> 00:35:37,319 Speaker 1: Like there's the potential of using deep fakes to spread misinformation. 547 00:35:37,760 --> 00:35:42,520 Speaker 1: It's a really troubling topic, but I think it's an 548 00:35:42,560 --> 00:35:45,719 Speaker 1: important article to read. Again. That's called Taylor Swift is 549 00:35:45,760 --> 00:35:49,759 Speaker 1: Living every Woman's AI porn Nightmare. It's on Motherboard or 550 00:35:49,840 --> 00:35:52,960 Speaker 1: Vice if you prefer. It's by Jenis Rose. The other 551 00:35:53,080 --> 00:35:57,320 Speaker 1: article I want to recommend is from our old buddy 552 00:35:57,680 --> 00:36:01,280 Speaker 1: Thomas Jermaine, and by old buddy. Don't know Thomas Jermaine 553 00:36:01,280 --> 00:36:04,240 Speaker 1: at all. We just mentioned one of his articles earlier 554 00:36:04,280 --> 00:36:07,480 Speaker 1: in this episode. This is on Gizmoto. The article is 555 00:36:07,520 --> 00:36:12,680 Speaker 1: titled iPhone apps secretly harvest data when they send you notifications. 556 00:36:12,800 --> 00:36:17,080 Speaker 1: Researchers find so yeah, not happy, right, like to find 557 00:36:17,080 --> 00:36:20,920 Speaker 1: out that just by receiving a notification, an app may 558 00:36:20,960 --> 00:36:24,200 Speaker 1: be gathering information about you. In fact, is gathering information 559 00:36:24,280 --> 00:36:27,960 Speaker 1: about you and the implications that has on your own 560 00:36:28,040 --> 00:36:33,040 Speaker 1: privacy and security. It's it's not fun to read about, 561 00:36:33,120 --> 00:36:36,919 Speaker 1: but I think it is important to know about, particularly 562 00:36:36,960 --> 00:36:40,960 Speaker 1: if you have any concern at all about privacy and security. Now, 563 00:36:41,000 --> 00:36:44,880 Speaker 1: as always, I have no connection to these reporters, to 564 00:36:45,280 --> 00:36:49,160 Speaker 1: the writers, journalists, to the outlets. I just find their 565 00:36:49,160 --> 00:36:52,799 Speaker 1: work to be interesting and worth reading. So go check 566 00:36:52,840 --> 00:36:56,480 Speaker 1: that out. And that wraps up this tech news episode 567 00:36:56,520 --> 00:36:59,600 Speaker 1: for this week on January twenty sixth, twenty twenty four. 568 00:37:00,080 --> 00:37:03,160 Speaker 1: I hope all of you are well. I'm getting better 569 00:37:03,239 --> 00:37:06,680 Speaker 1: every day, which is nice. It's a nice change of pace, 570 00:37:07,239 --> 00:37:16,520 Speaker 1: and I'll talk to you again really soon. Tech Stuff 571 00:37:16,600 --> 00:37:21,120 Speaker 1: is an iHeartRadio production. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit 572 00:37:21,160 --> 00:37:24,640 Speaker 1: the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to 573 00:37:24,760 --> 00:37:25,680 Speaker 1: your favorite shows.