In less than a week, Twitter's blue checkmark went from a desired status symbol to a mark people want to avoid at all costs. What happened? Plus, news on GM phasing out the Chevy Bolt, Google abandoning a mega campus project and an update on the Apple vs Epic legal battle.

In less than a week, Twitter's blue checkmark went from a desired status symbol to a mark people want to avoid at all costs. What happened? Plus, news on GM phasing out the Chevy Bolt, Google abandoning a mega campus project and an update on the Apple vs Epic legal battle.

TechStuff is getting a system update. Everything you love about Tech Stuff now twice the bandwidth with new hosts, Oz Woloshyn (Sleepwalkers) and Karah Preiss (Sleepwalkers). 

Oz and Karah bring humour and wit to the table as they break down what's happening in tech...and what it says about us. 

TechStuff is the podcast where technology meets culture. 

We speak to the folks building the future to understand what tomorrow will look like and how our technology is changing us: how we live, how we love, how we work and even how we die. With a healthy dose of drama, too, as tech titans clash over their interstellar ambitions. 

Get in touch here: techstuffpodcast@gmail.com

TechStuff is getting a system update. Everything you love about Tech Stuff now twice the bandwidth with new hosts, Oz Woloshyn (Sleepwalkers) and Karah Preiss (Sleepwalkers).&nbsp;
Oz and Karah bring humour and wit to the table as they break down what's happening in tech...and what it says about us.&nbsp;
TechStuff is the podcast where technology meets culture.&nbsp;
We speak to the folks building the future to understand what tomorrow will look like and how our technology is changing us: how we live, how we love, how we work and even how we die. With a healthy dose of drama, too, as tech titans clash over their interstellar ambitions.&nbsp;
Get in touch here:&nbsp;<a href="mailto:techstuffpodcast@gmail.com" data-stringify-link="mailto:techstuffpodcast@gmail.com" data-sk="tooltip_parent" aria-haspopup="menu">techstuffpodcast@gmail.com</a>

TechStuff

TechStuff is getting a system update. Everything you love about TechStuff now twice the bandwidth with new hosts, Oz Woloshyn (Sleepwalkers) and Karah Preiss (Sleepwalkers) 

Oz and Karah bring humour and wit to the table as they break down what's happening in tech...and what it says about us. 

TechStuff is the podcast where technology meets culture. 

We speak to the folks building the future to understand what tomorrow will look like and how our technology is changing us: how we live, how we love, how we work and even how we die. With a healthy dose of drama, too, as tech titans clash over their interstellar ambitions. 

 

TechStuff is getting a system update. Everything you love about TechStuff now twice the bandwidth with new hosts, Oz Woloshyn (Sleepwalkers) and Karah Preiss (Sleepwalkers)&nbsp;
Oz and Karah bring humour and wit to the table as they break down what's happening in tech...and what it says about us.&nbsp;
TechStuff is the podcast where technology meets culture.&nbsp;
We speak to the folks building the future to understand what tomorrow will look like and how our technology is changing us: how we live, how we love, how we work and even how we die. With a healthy dose of drama, too, as tech titans clash over their interstellar ambitions.&nbsp;
&nbsp;

Tech News: The Blue Badge of Dishonor

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/c9781718-5a2f-49b1-af87-afef016344d6/transcript

Eliot Peper gets paid to dream about the future. He’s a science fiction writer who has stumbled into an unusual position: writing speculative fiction for Fortune 500 companies. He is also the Head of Story at Portola, which is an AI-companion company. Eliot is responsible for developing a whole new alien culture and forming the personalities of your new favorite AI creature. Karah and Eliot discuss the overlap between art and AI, what science fiction reveals about our current reality, and how he uses storytelling to help create ethical AI companions.

Eliot Peper gets paid to dream about the future. He&rsquo;s a science fiction writer who has stumbled into an unusual position: writing speculative fiction for Fortune 500 companies. He is also the Head of Story at Portola, which is an AI-companion company. Eliot is responsible for developing a whole new alien culture and forming the personalities of your new favorite AI creature. Karah and Eliot discuss the overlap between art and AI, what science fiction reveals about our current reality, and how he uses storytelling to help create ethical AI companions.

The Story: How Science Fiction Changes the Real World

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/8760c2cc-651e-4a34-aa33-b3d2002a145c/transcript

NASA and IBM have developed advanced AI foundation models that analyze satellite data to reveal patterns across Earth and beyond. These tools are already driving real‑world impact, from helping Kenya plan the planting of 15 billion trees to enabling the UK to track harmful algae blooms. This collaboration provides strategic insights for climate action, environmental monitoring, and emergency response.

This is a paid advertisement from IBM. The conversations on this podcast don't necessarily represent IBM's positions, strategies or opinions.

Visit us at https://www.ibm.com/think/podcasts/smart-talks

NASA and IBM have developed advanced AI foundation models that analyze satellite data to reveal patterns across Earth and beyond. These tools are already driving real‑world impact, from helping Kenya plan the planting of 15 billion trees to enabling the UK to track harmful algae blooms. This collaboration provides strategic insights for climate action, environmental monitoring, and emergency response.
This is a paid advertisement from IBM. The conversations on this podcast don't necessarily represent IBM's positions, strategies or opinions.
Visit us at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.ibm.com/think/podcasts/smart-talks" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.ibm.com/think/podcasts/smart-talks&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1768321767446000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2Cbi1tbIV07nDhp4CigtDk">https://www.ibm.com/think/podcasts/smart-talks</a>

NASA and AI: Decoding Our Universe

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/a9ba5d86-daff-4dab-a374-b3d0013a01b3/transcript

Would you live in a zero labor home – with a robot? This week, the latest trends and gadgets coming out of CES in Las Vegas and what Karah learned about consenting to biometric surveillance at a Wegmans. Then, Oz takes us to a peptide rave and Karah unveils how influencers and OnlyFans models are getting US visas — they can thank John Lennon.  

If you’ve used a chatbot in an unusual or surprising way, send us a 1–2 minute voice note at techstuffpodcast@gmail.com.

Additional Reading: 
What to expect at CES 2026 | The Verge 
NYC Wegmans is storing biometric data on shoppers' eyes, voices and faces | Gothamist 
Chinese Peptides Are The Latest Biohacking Trend In The Tech World | New York Times 
Influencers and OnlyFans models dominate US ‘extraordinary’ artist visas | Financial Times

Would you live in a zero labor home &ndash; with a robot? This week, the latest trends and gadgets coming out of CES in Las Vegas and what Karah learned about consenting to biometric surveillance at a Wegmans. Then, Oz takes us to a peptide rave and Karah unveils how influencers and OnlyFans models are getting US visas &mdash; they can thank John Lennon.&nbsp;&nbsp;
If you&rsquo;ve used a chatbot in an unusual or surprising way, send us a 1&ndash;2 minute voice note at <a href="mailto:techstuffpodcast@gmail.com">techstuffpodcast@gmail.com</a>.
Additional Reading:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.theverge.com/tech/851165/ces-2026-what-to-expect">What to expect at CES 2026 | The Verge</a>&nbsp;</li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://gothamist.com/news/nyc-wegmans-is-storing-biometric-data-on-shoppers-eyes-voices-and-faces">NYC Wegmans is storing biometric data on shoppers' eyes, voices and faces | Gothamist</a>&nbsp;</li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/03/business/chinese-peptides-silicon-valley.html">Chinese Peptides Are The Latest Biohacking Trend In The Tech World | New York Times</a>&nbsp;</li>
<li><a href="https://www.ft.com/content/8816fcec-4148-4cda-be7f-fc59d5bcbf59?accessToken=zwAGR3tytMEwkdOIFvzsQUhM2tO-f_xZ1by_WQ.MEQCIC6Ku_uWNHqdvHe49FlFdV1b5WWYmDmCJ2t_QLWKCONGAiBEIQInHHXJJt7wa1xJG5Fbg05Ur-mP-o0yck7HhGiCPQ&amp;sharetype=gift&amp;token=6be62e10-fae4-40d1-8811-316ef18f869a">Influencers and OnlyFans models dominate US &lsquo;extraordinary&rsquo; artist visas | Financial Times</a></li>
</ul>

Week in Tech: The Year of the Robot?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/4d481569-a63b-4d66-9edf-b3cd004941fa/transcript

Tech News: The Blue Badge of Dishonor

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