This Week in Tech (Audio)

• TWiT 1033: Our Friend Zinc - Apple's $900 Million Tariff Nightmare

  In this jam-packed episode celebrating Towel Day, the TWiT crew dives into Apple's terrible week with Trump's tariff threats, Google and Microsoft's latest AI advances, the death of CAPTCHAs, and some wild new tech including laser-powered smart homes and sock-picking robot vacuums. Trump's Phone Tariff Ultimatum - President threatens 25% tariffs on iPhones and Samsung devices unless manufacturing moves to the US, putting Apple in an impossible position between economics and politics The Sock-Stealing Robot Revolution - Jennifer tests a $2,600 Roborock vacuum with an arm that picks up socks and occasionally tries to grab cats Microsoft's AI Science Breakthrough - Microsoft Build showcases agentic AI platform that helped create new coolant liquids by analyzing scientific journals and generating novel molecular compounds Windows Goes Agentic - Microsoft announces MCP protocol integration into Windows, raising both excitement about AI capabilities and concerns about data security Gaming Industry Consolidation - FTC finally drops its challenge to Microsoft's Activision Blizzard acquisition after three years of failed legal battles Meta's Monopoly Defense Strategy - Company argues that Instagram and WhatsApp acquisitions were beneficial rather than anti-competitive, as antitrust trial concludes Google's Hyper-Realistic AI Videos - Veo 3 generates convincing fake videos that blur the line between reality and AI creation, raising concerns about misinformation Revenge Porn Legislation Concerns - New "Take It Down" Act passes with bipartisan support but raises censorship worries about its 48-hour removal requirements Smart Glasses Make a Comeback - Google announces Android XR partnerships with Warby Parker and Gentle Monster, signaling the return of consumer AR eyewear The $6.5 Billion AI Hardware Gamble - OpenAI's record-breaking acquisition of Jony Ive's design firm sparks debate about whether AI needs dedicated hardware devices Amazon's Smart Speaker Surveillance - Investigation reveals how much personal data Echo devices collect and store, highlighting the privacy costs of convenient AI assistants The Death of CAPTCHAs - AI now solves visual puzzles better than humans, making traditional bot-detection methods obsolete and forcing a rethink of online security America Abandons the Penny - The US will stop minting pennies due to production costs exceeding face value, ending a century-old currency tradition Air Traffic Control Crisis Exposed - Newark Airport's radar failures reveal America's dangerously outdated aviation infrastructure held together by 1990s technology and hope Fortnite's App Store Victory - Epic Games successfully returns to iOS after Apple quickly capitulates under legal pressure, ending years of bitter disputes Brain-Computer Interface Competition - Valve's Gabe Newell announces Neuralink competitor, expanding the race to connect human brains directly to computers Infrared Contact Lenses Enable Night Vision - Researchers develop contacts that let wearers see heat signatures even with eyes closed, promising superhuman vision capabilities 23andMe's Genetic Data Gold Rush - Regeneron Pharmaceuticals acquires the DNA testing company for $256 million, raising questions about genetic privacy and Stolen These show notes have been truncated due to length. For the full show notes, visit https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech/episodes/1033 Host: Leo Laporte Guests: Jennifer Pattison Tuohy, Brian McCullough, and Mike Elgan Sponsors: outsystems.com/twit expressvpn.com/twit spaceship.com/twit uscloud.com storyblok.com/twittv-25

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• TWiT 1032: Cardboard, Plastic Bags, & Duct Tape - What's Going on in Montana?

  GTA 6 trailer 2 and anticipation Grok Pivots From 'White Genocide' to Being 'Skeptical' About the Holocaust Elon Musk's apparent power play at the Copyright Office completely backfired Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Explains How He's Making Himself Obsolete With AI How Finland's district heating systems are harvesting heat from data centers; Microsoft's project in Kirkkonummi will be the largest in the world when completed OpenAI launches Codex, an AI coding agent, in ChatGPT China begins assembling its supercomputer in space NASA engineers revive Voyager 1's dead thrusters from 15 billion miles away 25% of steam playeres play Blue Prince Jamie Lee Curtis publicly shamed Mark Zuckerberg to remove a deepfaked ad Fortnite players can speak with Darth Vader through a James Earl Jones-voiced AI Epic Games says Apple is blocking Fortnite from the US and EU App Stores Epic wants the court to compel Apple to approve Fortnite's return to the US App Store Nextcloud accuses Google of "Big Tech gatekeeping" over Android app permissions Samsung's Galaxy S25 Edge starts off the super thin phone era Square's $399 Handheld accepts tap-to-pay at your table Montana Becomes First State To Close the Law Enforcement Data Broker Loophole - Slashdot Republicans Try to Cram Ban on AI Regulation Into Budget Reconciliation Bill The first US hub for experimental medical treatments is coming The US Army is getting in on right-to-repair They're just giving up and calling it HBO Max again Host: Leo Laporte Guests: Wil Harris, Devindra Hardawar, and Harper Reed Download or subscribe to This Week in Tech at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: oracle.com/twit ziprecruiter.com/twit drata.com/weekintech monarchmoney.com with code TWIT Melissa.com/twit

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• TWiT 1031: My 3 Friends - The FTC Gets Busy

  Apple asks court to halt App Store rule changes while it appeals Proposed Amicus Brief – #1300, Att. #1 in UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. GOOGLE LLC (D.D.C., 1:20-cv-03010) – CourtListener.com Eddy Cue Causes a Stir for Google DOJ pushes for Google to sell its advertising platforms Google Will Pay $1.4 Billion to Texas to Settle Claims It Collected User Data Without Permission What Stacey has been doing Attorney General Bailey Files Groundbreaking Rule to End Big Tech's Censorship Monopoly and Protect Online Free Speech DOGE bro Kyle Schutt's computer infected by malware, credentials found in stealer logs The Signal Clone the Trump Admin Uses Was Hacked Samsung is paying $350 million for audio brands Bowers & Wilkins, Denon, Marantz and Polk Zuckerberg's Grand Vision: Most of Your Friends Will Be AI - Slashdot How AI Demand Is Draining Local Water Supplies Tom Brady, Stephen Curry and other big names are mostly off the hook from the FTX fallout FTC Bans Hidden Fees For Live Events and Short-Term Rentals - Slashdot The FTC puts off enforcing its 'click-to-cancel' rule 20 years to give away virtually all my wealth | Bill Gates Mexico is suing Google over 'Gulf of America' name change for US users Switzerland To Hold Referendum on Introducing Electronic ID Host: Leo Laporte Guests: Shoshana Weissmann, Wesley Faulkner, and Stacey Higginbotham Download or subscribe to This Week in Tech at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: expressvpn.com/twit bitwarden.com/twit threatlocker.com/twit NetSuite.com/TWIT shopify.com/twit

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• TWiT 1030: Journalism Comes In Second - Government Threatens Wikipedia's Editorial Freedom

  Judge Blasts Apple For Violating Antitrust Ruling Google's Sundar Pichai Calls US Remedies 'De Facto' Spinoff of Search - Slashdot Firefox could be doomed without Google search deal, says executive Visa Announces Plans to Give AI Agents Your Credit Card Information The Age of Realtime Deepfake Fraud Is Here The TAKE IT DOWN Act: A Flawed Attempt to Protect Victims That Will Lead to Censorship Congress Moving Forward On Unconstitutional Take It Down Act White House Slams Amazon After Report it Will Highlight Tariff Costs The Kickstarter you backed may soon ask for more money to cover Trump's tariffs Microsoft Raises Xbox Prices 20% as Tariffs Drive Up Cost of Development UPS will cut 20,000 jobs because fewer Amazon packages are coming Elon Musk's DOGE ties could get his companies out of $2 billion in potential liability President Trump's fiscal 2026 budget proposal suggests slashing $491M from CISA's ~$3B budget, claiming the cut "refocuses CISA on its core mission" Government Actually Threatens Wikipedia's Editorial Freedom; Self-Proclaimed Free Speech Warriors Suddenly Have Other Plans Mark Zuckerberg Sailed 5,300 Miles With Two Superyachts Only to Helicopter Up a Mountain and Ski Down in Billionaire Style - Sustainability Times Massive power outage in Spain, Portugal leaves millions in dark Wall Street Banks Sell Final Slug of Elon Musk's X Debt Elon Musk's SpaceX gets a company town in Texas Amazon deploys the first Project Kuiper internet satellites Researchers Secretly Ran a Massive, Unauthorized AI Persuasion Experiment on Reddit Users How Badly Did ChatGPT and Copilot Fail to Predict the Winners of the Kentucky Derby? - Slashdot Quantum message travels record distance over fiber optic network Photo appears to show Mike Waltz using Signal-like app that can archive messages Chinese university designed 'world's first silicon-free 2D GAAFET transistor,' claims new bismuth-based tech is both the fastest and lowest-power transistor yet The one interview question that will protect you from North Korean fake workers Host: Leo Laporte Guests: Owen Thomas, Iain Thomson, and Gary Rivlin Download or subscribe to This Week in Tech at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: canary.tools/twit - use code: TWIT outsystems.com/twit drata.com/weekintech coda.io/twit zscaler.com/security

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• TWiT 1029: Never Lick a Badger Twice - Selling Chrome, Modular Cars, Switch 2 Sold Out

  The Hottest AI Job of 2023 Is Already Obsolete NYT Asks: Should We Start Taking the Welfare of AI Seriously? Microsoft finally ships controversial Windows 11 "Recall" feature after year-long delay — now rolling out to all Copilot+ PCs Sam Altman says OpenAI is no longer "compute-constrained" — after Microsoft lost its exclusive cloud provider status Only Google Can Run Chrome, Company's Browser Chief Tells Judge What Happens When You Pay People Not to Use Google Search? 4chan Is Back Online, Days After The Infamous Hack That Leaked Its "Janitors" Emails Mark Zuckerberg Says Social Media Is Over Google is scrapping its planned changes for third-party cookies in Chrome Google's revenue tops Wall Street's expectations — and the stock climbs Google will stop supporting early Nest thermostats on October 25 PC shipments spike as Windows 10's end and U.S. tariffs loom Apple Aims To Source All US iPhones From India in Pivot Away From China Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders: Sold out at most retailers including GameStop, Walmart, Target, Best Buy and others The $20,000 American-made electric pickup with no paint, no stereo, and no touchscreen Tesla whistleblower says Musk wanted to deport her team for raising brake issue In a Boon for Tesla, Feds Weaken Rules for Reporting on Self-Driving Enter The Fourth Amendment, Yet One More Reason DOGE Is Such A Constitutional Nightmare Host: Leo Laporte Guests: Abrar Al-Heeti, Daniel Rubino, and Cathy Gellis Subscribe to This Week in Tech at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech Join Club TWiT for Ad-Free Podcasts! Support what you love and get ad-free shows, a members-only Discord, and behind-the-scenes access. Join today: https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: kinsta.com/twit monarchmoney.com with code TWIT outsystems.com/twit drata.com/weekintech expressvpn.com/twit

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