The first vending machine in recorded history wasn't for soft drinks or snacks. It was for holy water. And how did an English radical think a vending machine was the loophole he was looking for? We look back on the weird history of vending machines. 

The first vending machine in recorded history wasn't for soft drinks or snacks. It was for holy water. And how did an English radical think a vending machine was the loophole he was looking for? We look back on the weird history of vending machines.

Behind every innovation is a new kind of power. TechStuff unpacks how technology reshapes influence, creativity, and control, from Silicon Valley’s rising moguls to the cultural forces they create. Because tech is the new religion, economy, and entertainment, all at once.

Each week, Oz Woloshyn and the brightest minds covering tech dig into the weird, funny, and sometimes unsettling ways technology, AI, and the internet shape our daily lives. From AI and social media to privacy, digital burnout, and the creator economy, they ask how all this innovation is changing who we are, how we work, love, and make meaning.

Smart talk, strange stories, and the questions everyone’s Googling: whether AI will replace us, how social media is affecting our kids, and what it all says about us.

Get in touch here: techstuffpodcast@gmail.com

Behind every innovation is a new kind of power. TechStuff unpacks how technology reshapes influence, creativity, and control, from Silicon Valley&rsquo;s rising moguls to the cultural forces they create. Because tech is the new religion, economy, and entertainment, all at once.
Each week, Oz Woloshyn and the brightest minds covering tech dig into the weird, funny, and sometimes unsettling ways technology, AI, and the internet shape our daily lives. From AI and social media to privacy, digital burnout, and the creator economy, they ask how all this innovation is changing who we are, how we work, love, and make meaning.
Smart talk, strange stories, and the questions everyone&rsquo;s Googling: whether AI will replace us, how social media is affecting our kids, and what it all says about us.
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

Behind every innovation is a new kind of power. TechStuff unpacks how technology reshapes influence, creativity, and control, from Silicon Valley’s rising moguls to the cultural forces they create. Because tech is the new religion, economy, and entertainment, all at once.

Each week, Oz Woloshyn and the brightest minds covering tech dig into the weird, funny, and sometimes unsettling ways technology, AI, and the internet shape our daily lives. From AI and social media to privacy, digital burnout, and the creator economy, they ask how all this innovation is changing who we are, how we work, love, and make meaning.

Smart talk, strange stories, and the questions everyone’s Googling: whether AI will replace us, how social media is affecting our kids, and what it all says about us.

Behind every innovation is a new kind of power. TechStuff unpacks how technology reshapes influence, creativity, and control, from Silicon Valley&rsquo;s rising moguls to the cultural forces they create. Because tech is the new religion, economy, and entertainment, all at once.
Each week, Oz Woloshyn and the brightest minds covering tech dig into the weird, funny, and sometimes unsettling ways technology, AI, and the internet shape our daily lives. From AI and social media to privacy, digital burnout, and the creator economy, they ask how all this innovation is changing who we are, how we work, love, and make meaning.
Smart talk, strange stories, and the questions everyone&rsquo;s Googling: whether AI will replace us, how social media is affecting our kids, and what it all says about us.

The History of Vending Machines

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/750e02c7-4b87-46b1-85bd-b05e014910de/transcript

Blue Origin's latest rocket test ended in what the company called "an anomaly" — and what everyone else would call an explosion. Reed Albergotti (Semafor) explains why blowing things up is just part of the process and why the US Space Program is probably going to be fine. 

Then, Kyle Chayka (The New Yorker) pulls back the curtain on the shadow market for pre-IPO equity in OpenAI, Anthropic, and SpaceX. It’s a mania where people are willing to take pre-IPO stock as payment for $2.9M houses. It's frothy out there. 

Finally, Taylor Lorenz (User Mag) digs into the concept of a ‘permanent underclass’ — the fear that letting AI run rampant could freeze everyone in their current economic position forever. Do we laugh it off or get serious about regulation?

Additional Reading: 
Blue Origin and Amazon Had Momentum. Then Came the Fireball. | The New York Times 
A Booming Shadow Market of Sketchy A.I. Investments | The New Yorker 
You Are About to Become Economically Worthless | User Mag 
Silicon Valley Is Bracing for a Permanent Underclass | The New York Times 

Download SAILY in your app store and use our code techstuff  at checkout to get an exclusive 15% off your first purchase! For further details go tohttps://saily.com/techstuff

Blue Origin's latest rocket test ended in what the company called "an anomaly" &mdash; and what everyone else would call an explosion. Reed Albergotti (Semafor) explains why blowing things up is just part of the process and why the US Space Program is probably going to be fine. Then, Kyle Chayka (The New Yorker) pulls back the curtain on the shadow market for pre-IPO equity in OpenAI, Anthropic, and SpaceX. It&rsquo;s a mania where people are willing to take pre-IPO stock as payment for $2.9M houses. It's frothy out there. Finally, Taylor Lorenz (User Mag) digs into the concept of a &lsquo;permanent underclass&rsquo; &mdash; the fear that letting AI run rampant could freeze everyone in their current economic position forever. Do we laugh it off or get serious about regulation?
Additional Reading:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/29/technology/blue-origin-amazon-rocket-explosion.html">Blue Origin and Amazon Had Momentum. Then Came the Fireball. | The New York Times</a>&nbsp;</li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/culture/infinite-scroll/a-booming-shadow-market-of-sketchy-ai-investments?_sp=18ce7eb0-57da-4ed4-a275-630ea2c86cd1.1780422009345">A Booming Shadow Market of Sketchy A.I. Investments | The New Yorker</a>&nbsp;</li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://youtu.be/_Neog2mAdBI?si=CvtZbp7ezfUr_2qE">You Are About to Become Economically Worthless | User Mag</a>&nbsp;</li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/30/opinion/ai-labor-work-force-silicon-valley.html">Silicon Valley Is Bracing for a Permanent Underclass | The New York Times</a>&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
Download&nbsp;SAILY in your app store and use our code techstuff&nbsp; at checkout to get an exclusive 15% off your first purchase! For further details go to<a href="https://saily.com/creator/?coupon=techstuff&amp;utm_source=12669&amp;utm_medium=affiliate&amp;utm_campaign=138&amp;aff_transaction_id=102e6208403cf45b12b357c4a30eb2&amp;aff_offer_id=138&amp;aff_id=12669"> </a><a href="https://saily.com/techstuff">https://saily.com/techstuff</a>

Blue Origin Rocket Explodes in Apocalyptic Mushroom Cloud - Week in Tech

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/c0728934-d318-4d5f-a386-b46000184fd9/transcript

What if the fastest path to superintelligence is AI that builds itself? That's the bet Richard Socher is making — and he has the track record to back it up. A double unicorn founder and early investor in eight unicorn companies (including Perplexity and Hugging Face), Richard has spent 15 years building the foundational research that powers modern AI. Now he’s co-founded Recursive with an elite team from Google DeepMind, OpenAI, and Meta to pursue something more ambitious: a self-improving AI that generates its own scientific breakthroughs — what he calls a "eureka machine."

Richard joins Oz to unpack how recursive superintelligence actually works and why open-ended AI systems could outpace today's giants. 

EXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal ➼ https://nordvpn.com/techstuff Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee 

What if the fastest path to superintelligence is AI that builds itself? That's the bet Richard Socher is making &mdash; and he has the track record to back it up. A double unicorn founder and early investor in eight unicorn companies (including Perplexity and Hugging Face), Richard has spent 15 years building the foundational research that powers modern AI. Now he&rsquo;s co-founded Recursive with an elite team from Google DeepMind, OpenAI, and Meta to pursue something more ambitious: a self-improving AI that generates its own scientific breakthroughs &mdash; what he calls a "eureka machine." Richard joins Oz to unpack how recursive superintelligence actually works and why open-ended AI systems could outpace today's giants. EXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal ➼<a href="https://nordvpn.com/podcast/?coupon=techstuff&amp;utm_medium=affiliate&amp;utm_term=&amp;utm_content&amp;utm_source=aff141920&amp;utm_campaign=off1001"> https://nordvpn.com/techstuff</a> Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee&nbsp;

The Man Building the Last AI Humans Will Need to Design - The Story

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/f5bc1e6b-c665-4e0b-871c-b45e00210484/transcript

Most of what happens inside the UFC Octagon is too fast for the human eye to follow. Enter Alon Cohen, Executive Vice President of Innovation for TKO, who has spent 15 years building the data and AI systems that expose the hidden moments that help decide a match. Malcolm Gladwell sits down with Alon to uncover how UFC’s partnership with IBM turns chaos into clarity, giving fans and commentators a deeper story behind every bout.

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

Most of what happens inside the UFC Octagon is too fast for the human eye to follow. Enter Alon Cohen, Executive Vice President of Innovation for TKO, who has spent 15 years building the data and AI systems that expose the hidden moments that help decide a match. Malcolm Gladwell sits down with Alon to uncover how UFC&rsquo;s partnership with IBM turns chaos into clarity, giving fans and commentators a deeper story behind every bout. This is a paid advertisement from IBM. The conversations on this podcast don&rsquo;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=1780429159109000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3hLJHe93Fo6fhhL1fRiR5w">https://www.ibm.com/think/podcasts/smart-talks</a>

Inside the Octagon: How AI Brings UFC’s Fastest Moments into Focus

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/ea6cd86c-4c00-4933-be2f-b45c015e6647/transcript

The History of Vending Machines

In 1 playlist(s)

TechStuff

Social links

Follow podcast

Recent clips