755: Less Chatty Mode

755: Less Chatty Mode

From Grumpy Old Geeks by Jason DeFillippo & Brian Schulmeister with Dave Bittner

July 16, 2026 · 1h 13m · Episode 755

About this episode

The episode discusses various controversies and developments in the AI and tech industry, including lawsuits and the impact on creativity and social media.

This week, the AI clown car somehow shifted into another gear. Apple is suing OpenAI over alleged trade-secret theft, newspapers accuse ChatGPT of training on stolen journalism while asking a judge to sanction the company, Anthropic is out here marketing AI with what looks like a feature-length anxiety attack, and Meta managed to launch—and kill—a creepy AI photo feature in less time than it takes to binge The Bear. Meanwhile, AI Appreciation Day wants you to thank the machines, but we'd rather thank the people still creating actual art while the rest of Silicon Valley burns cash convincing us the next chatbot is definitely different this time. Outside the AI bubble, the rest of the tech industry isn't exactly inspiring confidence. Volkswagen is cutting back on its lineup, New York paused new AI data centers before the electrical grid hits its limit, Europe and the UK are getting serious about keeping kids off social media, and publishers are finally realizing maybe feeding Google's AI isn't the best business move after all. Add in surveillance companies sulking over lost police contracts, lawsuits claiming Meta let algorithms decide who gets fired, smart glasses disqualifying…

People in this episode

Hosts: Jason DeFillippo, Brian Schulmeister, Dave Bittner

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Apple, OpenAI, ChatGPT, Anthropic, Meta, Volkswagen, Google

Books & works: Project Hail Mary, Black Bag, Middle-earth

Places: New York, Europe, UK

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