698: Watch Out for That Tree!

This week, we kick things off with the return of Space Karen’s meltdown tour: Elon Musk got flustered in an interview, sputtered out one-word answers, and called the journalist an “NPC,” which is rich coming from the guy whose only real upgrade since PayPal is yelling “freedom” in meme fonts. Meanwhile, 23andMe sold your DNA to Regeneron at a bankruptcy auction, proving once and for all that your spit is more valuable than most tech startups.IN THE NEWS is a parade of corporate idiocy and dystopian fuckery. Coinbase employees got bribed into leaking user data (because clearly we didn’t have enough crypto chaos), Klarna keeps flip-flopping between AI and human workers like it’s a bad Tinder date, and OpenAI is out here buying Jony Ive’s design firm for $6.5 billion because sure, what’s another billion when you’re trying to build a surveillance device to stalk 100 million users? Meanwhile, the Chicago Sun-Times is publishing AI-generated trash with imaginary authors, Anthropic’s new model attempts blackmail, and researchers dumped two billion Discord messages online just for kicks. And yes, Elon’s Tesla robotaxis will now only roam the safest parts of Austin, which is code for “we still can’t make this thing turn left.”In MEDIA CANDY, we’re watching Murderbot, Godfather of Harlem, and Hotel Cocaine because who doesn’t love a little synthetic assassin, crime drama, and coke-fueled nostalgia? Notepad.exe now writes for you (and probably files HR complaints too), and Audible is teaming up with publishers to replace narrators with robot voices. Yay, progress. Over in THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE, Bittner brings the malware, monsters, and a new theme park review that’s somehow less terrifying than the news. Bookworms, don’t miss Curepedia and The AI Con — one’s about goth gods, the other’s about taking down our techno-overlords. And pour one out for George Wendt — Norm from Cheers is now drinking with the angels.Sponsors:DeleteMe - Head over to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use the code "GOG" for 20% off.Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month.SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!!1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1passwordShow notes at https://gog.show/698FOLLOW UPElon Musk Gets Rattled by Hard Questions He Can't Answer, Calls Interviewer an "NPC" While Giving One-Word NPC-Like Responses Himself23andMe (and Your Genetic Data) Sold to Regeneron in Bankruptcy AuctionIN THE NEWSExtortionists bribed Coinbase employees to give them customer dataOpenAI buys Jony Ive's design startup for $6.5 billionSam Altman Tells Staff Plan to Ship 100 Million Devices That See Everything in Users' LivesKlarna Hiring Back Human Help After Going All-In on AIKlarna CEO and Sutter Hill take victory lap after Jony Ive's OpenAI dealKlarna used an AI avatar of its CEO to deliver earningsKlarna users are buying now, but not paying laterDOGE Used a Meta AI Model to Review Emails From Federal WorkersChicago Sun-Times publishes made-up books and fake experts in AI debacleWe’re Focused on the Wrong A.I. Problem in JournalismAnthropic's new AI model turns to blackmail when engineers try to take it offlineMIT Backs Away From Paper Claiming Scientists Make More Discoveries with AIResearchers Dump 2 Billion Scraped Discord Messages OnlineMusk says Tesla's self-driving tests will be geofenced to 'the safest' parts of AustinMEDIA CANDYMurderbotGodfather of HarlemHotel CocaineAPPS & DOODADSThe Grand Encyclopedia of Eponymous LawsApple confirms iOS 19 will end support for legacy Home app systemAudible to Partner With Publishers to Create AI-Voiced AudiobooksIn 3.5 years, Notepad.exe has gone from “barely maintained” to “it writes for you”AT THE LIBRARYCurepedia: An A-Z of the Cure by Simon PriceThe AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech’s Hype and Create the Future We Want By: Emily M. Bender, Alex HannaTHE DARK SIDE WITH DAVEDave BittnerThe CyberWireHacking HumansCaveatControl LoopOnly Malware in the BuildingFirst photos from inside Universal Studio’s new Orlando theme park Epic Universe revealedA Very Honest Review on Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment | Universal's Epic UniverseGadget recommendation - Electric Air Duster with FlashlightCLOSING SHOUT-OUTSGeorge Wendt, Norm From Cheers, Dead at 76See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.