748: Space Bone

This week on Grumpy Old Geeks, Brian and Jason stare directly into the flaming garbage barge of “the future” and discover that self-driving vehicles still can’t tell the difference between a road and an urban swimming pool. Waymo stranded robotaxis in both Atlanta and San Antonio, while Gothenburg’s brand-new autonomous bus service survived roughly one day before getting rear-ended by a tram like a lost RoboCop scene directed by Benny Hill. Meanwhile, Ferrari unveiled the Jony Ive-designed Luce EV, proving that if you give Apple designers enough money and untreated minimalist impulses, eventually everything starts looking like an uninspired bar of soap.The AI bubble keeps inflating like a cursed parade balloon nobody knows how to land. Uber admits it’s spending fortunes on AI without being able to explain what it actually improves, Starbucks killed its AI inventory system after repeated losses to dairy products, and Google’s AI search now struggles with advanced concepts like “ignore,” “stop,” and spelling “Google.” CEOs remain committed to replacing workers anyway, with 99% expecting AI-driven layoffs because apparently nothing says innovation like firing junior staff and replacing them with autocomplete that thinks there are two Ps in Google. Meanwhile, Spotify continues its transformation into the content equivalent of a casino buffet with AI-narrated magazine articles, while Pope Leo emerges as the lone adult in the room, suggesting humanity maybe shouldn’t hand civilization over to glorified pattern-matching slot machines.Elsewhere in dystopia, Trump Mobile exposed customer data to the open internet because, of course, it did, while the White House reportedly plans to force-install its official app on government phones in what feels like the world’s least subtle spyware rollout. Prediction markets are devolving into a legal cage fight between states and crypto gambling enthusiasts. A Google engineer allegedly made $1.2 million through insider trading on Polymarket because we’ve apparently rebuilt Wall Street out of meme apps, and researchers say your Wi-Fi router can now identify you by how your meat body disturbs radio waves. Add in SpaceX building a military sensor-to-shooter network straight out of a cyberpunk fever dream, China launching artificial embryo experiments into orbit to explore off-world reproduction, and Erin Brockovich mapping AI data centers draining entire towns' worth of water, and suddenly the most comforting thing this week might be watching The Grand-ish Tour and pretending the world still runs on gasoline and bad decisions.Sponsors: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/748Watch on YouTube at https://youtu.be/1ji4EPiTgQ4Links:The Mandalorian and GroguWaymos in Atlanta and San Antonio keep driving into flooded roadsGothenburg's self-driving bus trammed on day oneFerrari Luce unveiled: Here's the first car from Jony Ive's design houseUber president says AI spending is getting ‘harder to justify’Trump Mobile has exposed customers' personal data, including home addresses and phone numbersThe White House is reportedly forcing its official app onto all government employee phonesKalshi and Rhode Island sue each other in latest challenge to prediction marketsGoogle engineer charged with insider trading after making $1.2M on PolymarketGoogle is currently struggling to define words like disregard, stop and ignoreWhy Google's AI can't spell Google (or anything else)Starbucks abandons its AI inventory tool after only nine monthsMajority of Americans Support Ban on Surveillance Pricing and Electronic Shelf LabelsAnsel Adams' trust says AI-colorized version of his work was exhibited without permissionPeople used AI to recreate the voices of pilots killed in a plane crashSpotify now lets you stream narrated magazine articles, tooPope Leo calls for AI to serve humanity and not concentrate power99% of CEOs Expect AI-Driven Layoffs in the Next Two YearsUS Space Force confirms SpaceX will build sensor-to-shooter targeting networkStar Trek Title Card GeneratorErin Brockovich launches a crowdsourced AI data center mapResearchers Issue Warning About Tech That Could Turn Every Router ‘Into a Potential Means for Surveillance’China Launched Artificial Embryos to Orbit to Find Out If We Can Have Space BabiesI Am Not a Robot: My Year Using AI to Do (Almost) Everything by Joanna SternInside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better by David EpsteinThe Grand-ish TourSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.