1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:06,000 In the future, tech news will be delivered by a holographic host. It'll 2 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:09,840 be just like the doctor from Star Trek Voyager, except it'll probably be me or 3 00:00:08,080 --> 00:00:14,639 Lionus or Riley instead of Robert Picardo. But we are in talks with 4 00:00:11,920 --> 00:00:19,359 Picardo. Steam has set a new concurrent player record for itself. Data from 5 00:00:17,279 --> 00:00:24,320 Steam TV shows that Valve's platform recently surpassed 41.6 million 6 00:00:21,920 --> 00:00:28,880 simultaneous users. That's more than the population of Canada, bud. and nearly 7 00:00:27,199 --> 00:00:33,840 double the player count from just five years ago. Seems like PC gamer growth 8 00:00:31,439 --> 00:00:37,600 accelerated after the WHO declared a pandemic, the only world event that was 9 00:00:36,160 --> 00:00:41,120 notable enough to include on their chart. I bet about half that player jump 10 00:00:39,840 --> 00:00:44,879 was from Among Us. >> Pretty silk. 11 00:00:43,280 --> 00:00:48,239 >> Steam's new record high comes after Battlefield 6, Hades 2, and Hollow 12 00:00:46,719 --> 00:00:52,000 Knight Silkong all broke their own franchise player records as well. So 13 00:00:50,320 --> 00:00:56,800 clearly the lesson for gaming companies here is to keep pumping out sequels. 14 00:00:54,640 --> 00:01:01,120 That's what we all want, right? for Star Wars. >> Do it like the movies do. That said, I 15 00:00:59,680 --> 00:01:06,159 can't help but notice that the total number of users increased more than the 16 00:01:03,680 --> 00:01:09,520 number of users in game, which reads to me like people are spending more time 17 00:01:07,760 --> 00:01:14,000 staring at their bloated Steam backlog than actually playing their games. Let 18 00:01:11,840 --> 00:01:18,320 this be a call to action to you. Go beat something off the backlog. It's time to 19 00:01:16,400 --> 00:01:23,439 finally play Discolesium or Red Dead Redemption 2. No new games until you 20 00:01:21,200 --> 00:01:26,960 beat those ones. Open AAI has stopped letting people generate fake videos of 21 00:01:25,119 --> 00:01:31,759 Martin Luther King Jr. at the request of the late Dr. King's estate. Apparently, 22 00:01:29,200 --> 00:01:35,759 his family wasn't jazzed about OpenAI's slop only Tik Tok clone being filled to 23 00:01:33,520 --> 00:01:40,560 the brim with disrespectful depictions of MLK delivering a stirring speech on 24 00:01:38,240 --> 00:01:43,920 the beauty of the female form. >> That's not it was he was doing something 25 00:01:42,479 --> 00:01:48,079 more vulgar, James. >> Ah, it's yet another feature roll back 26 00:01:45,920 --> 00:01:52,240 from OpenAI who only seems to focus more on the latter part of the move fast and 27 00:01:50,320 --> 00:01:56,320 break things. But at least OpenAI isn't pulling a Facebook and rumaging through 28 00:01:54,000 --> 00:02:00,799 your phone's local storage and editing one of your photos with AI without you 29 00:01:58,560 --> 00:02:03,040 even asking it to like a cat bringing you a dead mouse. 30 00:02:01,920 --> 00:02:07,040 >> What am I supposed to do with this? >> I'm thankful that feature rolled out in 31 00:02:05,439 --> 00:02:12,000 beta this past summer and is now launching more widely for some reason. 32 00:02:09,119 --> 00:02:15,360 You can opt out at any time if you're aware that it's happening in the first 33 00:02:13,599 --> 00:02:19,120 place and didn't absent mindly press okay when the prompt asked you to and it 34 00:02:17,440 --> 00:02:24,720 just popped out like you know just how it does that and you're trying to do something else. Big tech is looking for 35 00:02:22,720 --> 00:02:28,879 extra uses for AI that people don't even want. It's no wonder they're all 36 00:02:26,560 --> 00:02:32,400 bringing back nuclear power. And even if that is probably a good idea, we should 37 00:02:30,879 --> 00:02:38,640 probably still want to set some ground rules for how AI is used. See MLK Jr. 38 00:02:36,000 --> 00:02:42,160 So, Pope Leo I 14th hosted a seminar at the Vatican this week urging global 39 00:02:40,640 --> 00:02:46,959 cooperation in regulating the technology. The Pope reminded attendees 40 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:50,959 that AI is above all else a tool. He's he's American though, right? 41 00:02:49,280 --> 00:02:57,440 >> He did the accent was weird. >> And so, we must be careful that in using 42 00:02:52,879 --> 00:03:00,720 it, we do not ourselves act like tools. 43 00:02:57,440 --> 00:03:02,159 Amen. And amen to our sponsor, Ground 44 00:03:00,720 --> 00:03:06,720 News, who are trying to do something about the fact that algorithms have divided up the internet into these 45 00:03:05,120 --> 00:03:10,640 information bubbles that stop you from getting a more complete picture of what 46 00:03:08,879 --> 00:03:13,920 the heck's going on because you're packed in. There were so many people you 47 00:03:12,239 --> 00:03:18,720 agree with and their breath is fogging up the glass. Ah, pop that bubble with 48 00:03:16,560 --> 00:03:22,879 ground news. They aggregate news stories breaking down the political leanings and 49 00:03:20,800 --> 00:03:26,400 ownership of each outlet. Take for example the recent story about Apple and 50 00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:31,040 Formula 1 signing a 5-year exclusive streaming agreement. 38% of the coverage 51 00:03:28,480 --> 00:03:35,360 leans left while only 13% leans right. Even though this is about cars going 52 00:03:32,720 --> 00:03:39,760 fast, which I thought was always a conservative thing, even though NASCAR 53 00:03:37,200 --> 00:03:45,120 races are just one big left turn. >> I guess I got to question my biases. 54 00:03:42,400 --> 00:03:48,720 >> Find out who's reporting on what, so you can understand why. Take the first step, 55 00:03:47,120 --> 00:03:53,440 get the transparency you deserve from the news, and save 40% on ground news 56 00:03:51,440 --> 00:03:57,840 Vantage Plan by using our link in the description. Robert Peardo frequently 57 00:03:55,599 --> 00:04:02,080 collaborates with director Joe Dante, who just so happens to be one of the 58 00:03:59,680 --> 00:04:07,040 Quickbits favorite directors. Gremlins is a Christmas classic and Phil Hartman 59 00:04:04,319 --> 00:04:08,319 is sublime in Small Soldiers. Small soldiers. 60 00:04:07,840 --> 00:04:14,000 >> Yeah, >> Kip Kelligan. >> They need We need a sequel to that. I'll take a sequel to that. 61 00:04:12,319 --> 00:04:18,720 >> What? There might have been a sequel. >> I don't think so. >> Apple is apparently cutting production 62 00:04:16,720 --> 00:04:23,280 of the new iPhone Air. According to Japan's Mizuo Securities, while the 63 00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:27,600 iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max models are seeing higher sales than their 64 00:04:24,560 --> 00:04:30,160 predecessors, the new iPhone Air is a 65 00:04:27,600 --> 00:04:34,639 sales letdown. Now, Apple is chopping production of the 66 00:04:31,840 --> 00:04:40,160 Air down by up to 1 million units this year. Down by up to what the language. 67 00:04:37,759 --> 00:04:45,040 Similarly, a report from News PIM in Korea alleges that Samsung has halted 68 00:04:42,639 --> 00:04:49,040 work on the Galaxy S26 Edge letting employees know that the product line is 69 00:04:46,880 --> 00:04:54,160 to be discontinued. The news isn't totally unexpected. The S25 Edge didn't 70 00:04:51,840 --> 00:04:58,880 sell well, and like Gizmodo said, slim phones might be on thin ice. Well, it 71 00:04:57,199 --> 00:05:02,400 looks like these thin phones are about to be skinny dipping in the discount 72 00:05:00,800 --> 00:05:06,960 bin. >> Splash. >> Got them. So good. Google Workspace is 73 00:05:05,120 --> 00:05:12,560 trying to steal some of Microsoft's business customers with the power of SAS 74 00:05:11,360 --> 00:05:17,759 sauce. >> Oh, or sauce if you're in the UK. After 75 00:05:16,320 --> 00:05:23,600 calling out the architectural brittleleness in Microsoft's infrastructure and saying Microsoft 365 76 00:05:21,360 --> 00:05:27,600 crashes are a question of when and for how long, not if, which I'm pretty sure 77 00:05:25,840 --> 00:05:32,479 is the software engineers equivalent of a glove slap. Google talks up its new 78 00:05:30,400 --> 00:05:36,560 cost-effective Google Workspace plans meant to help businesses transition away 79 00:05:34,720 --> 00:05:40,720 from Office, which is now called Microsoft 365. What a boring and 80 00:05:38,960 --> 00:05:45,440 confusing name. Wouldn't you rather subscribe to a workplace plan called 81 00:05:43,039 --> 00:05:51,199 business continuity or work transformation set? 82 00:05:48,240 --> 00:05:56,320 Wouldn't you? Uber is launching a new program that allows its contractors to 83 00:05:53,039 --> 00:05:58,320 earn additional cash by telling jokes as 84 00:05:56,320 --> 00:06:02,240 they drive. you know, testing out new bits. I'm just joking. Um, it's 85 00:06:00,080 --> 00:06:06,560 additional cash by completing micro tasks that train AI models. That's way 86 00:06:05,039 --> 00:06:10,400 worse. These tasks include everything from voice recordings to capturing and 87 00:06:08,560 --> 00:06:14,960 uploading images to submitting documents in a certain language in exchange for 88 00:06:12,880 --> 00:06:18,400 variable rewards. In this example, if you upload a picture from a Spanish 89 00:06:16,560 --> 00:06:24,000 restaurant menu, you could earn a whole shiny dollar. One, a green back. I've 90 00:06:22,000 --> 00:06:29,120 always dreamed of being a mental blood bag for AI. This move could help Uber 91 00:06:26,960 --> 00:06:33,520 use its army of freelance workers to challenge companies that train AI models 92 00:06:31,680 --> 00:06:36,880 by having humans annotate and label data. And besides, they're already 93 00:06:35,280 --> 00:06:40,639 constantly feeding customers via Uber Eats. Why not feed the hungry machine 94 00:06:38,800 --> 00:06:44,080 your time, energy, and knowledge as well? It's the same thing. 95 00:06:42,160 --> 00:06:51,360 >> It's that's my job. >> And PayPal's blockchain partner, Paxos, 96 00:06:47,120 --> 00:06:53,919 mistakenly minted $300 trillion in PYUSD 97 00:06:51,360 --> 00:06:58,080 stable coin. As pointed out by both CNBC and Ingadget, 300 trillion of these 98 00:06:55,840 --> 00:07:02,639 stable coins are worth more than double the world's estimated total GDP. It just 99 00:07:00,960 --> 00:07:07,039 seems like there's something terribly wrong when you can just accidentally 100 00:07:04,560 --> 00:07:11,840 mint more money than the global GDP. Thank thankfully this all appears to be 101 00:07:09,599 --> 00:07:15,280 a huge and embarrassing gaff. And don't worry, Paxos tweeted to assure folks 102 00:07:13,759 --> 00:07:19,280 that the issue was a technical error and that their customers funds are safe. 103 00:07:17,440 --> 00:07:23,280 Paxos even says they've burned the excess PYUSD. 104 00:07:21,599 --> 00:07:27,039 I've been known to burn through a lot of excess money myself, but I really hope 105 00:07:24,960 --> 00:07:30,240 that's not what they mean. The coin's still pegged. Don't worry, guys. 106 00:07:29,680 --> 00:07:35,840 >> Yeah. >> And you should know what I mean when I say peg when I tell you to come back on 107 00:07:33,919 --> 00:07:39,840 Monday for more tech news. I can't promise you we'll have holograms by 108 00:07:37,520 --> 00:07:42,639 Monday, but I swear I'm working really hard on Picardo.