Somewhere on Earth: The Global Tech Podcast
Somewhere on Earth: The Global Tech Podcast - Tech That Actually Matters If you’re tired of hype, gadgets-for-gadget’s-sake, and the same recycled tech headlines, welcome to Somewhere on Earth (SOEP) - the weekly global tech podcast that digs way deeper. Made by and hosted by the ex-BBC World Service Digital Planet team (yes, the award-winning crew behind 21+ years of world-leading tech journalism and 1.5M annual downloads), SOEP uncovers the untold stories shaping our digital world. This isn’t a show about the latest shiny toy. It’s about technology that changes lives, cultures, and global societies. Each episode explores: ⚡ The real-world impact of emerging tech 🌍 New innovations driving social good 🔍 Under-the-radar digital trends you should be paying attention to 🧠 How tech is reshaping communities, culture, and the way we live 📰 The technology behind the week’s biggest world stories - explained simply Our mission? To build a tech-for-good ecosystem where new ideas, powerful insights, and meaningful innovation can grow. If you want smart, globally minded tech storytelling from journalists who’ve been doing this longer (and better) than almost anyone else - SOEP is your new must-listen podcast. 🌎 Somewhere on Earth: Where tech meets humanity. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/somewhere-on-earth-the-global-tech-podcast--6924871/support.
Episodes
October 20, 2026 • 24 mins
AI toys can talk, listen and become a child’s “friend”. Experts say: don’t buy them.
AI-powered teddy bears, dolls and companion toys can hold conversations with children, remember what they say and respond using generative AI. But the Safe AI for Children Alliance is warning parents against AI companion toys. CEO Tara Steele explains why, from inappropriate and potentially dangerous conversations to priv...
AI-powered teddy bears, dolls and companion toys can hold conversations with children, remember what they say and respond using generative AI. But the Safe AI for Children Alliance is warning parents against AI companion toys. CEO Tara Steele explains why, from inappropriate and potentially dangerous conversations to priv...
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New evidence of Russian-linked disinformation around European elections
The British Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, said that he was given a clear answer after entering Downing Street that Russia did interfere in the UK's 2016 Brexit referendum. Now new evidence reveals how Russian-linked disinformation campaigns are using AI-generated videos, cloned news websites, fake social media accounts and existing networks to spread fal...
The British Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, said that he was given a clear answer after entering Downing Street that Russia did interfere in the UK's 2016 Brexit referendum. Now new evidence reveals how Russian-linked disinformation campaigns are using AI-generated videos, cloned news websites, fake social media accounts and existing networks to spread fal...
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October 6, 2026 • 23 mins
AI Is Changing How Visas and Borders Work
AI is increasingly being used in consular services to check documents, detect patterns, flag potential fraud and help process huge numbers of visa applications. But when an algorithm influences what a human officer sees, where does human judgement end and machine influence begin? We speak to the authors of AI Use Cases for Consular Affairs Don Kilburg and Virginia Blaser about the ...
AI is increasingly being used in consular services to check documents, detect patterns, flag potential fraud and help process huge numbers of visa applications. But when an algorithm influences what a human officer sees, where does human judgement end and machine influence begin? We speak to the authors of AI Use Cases for Consular Affairs Don Kilburg and Virginia Blaser about the ...
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September 29, 2026 • 25 mins
Medical Devices, Critical Materials and the Race to Build Circular Devices
Digital healthcare is producing a fast-growing mountain of electronic waste. Glucose monitors, wearable sensors and medical devices can contain lithium, copper, gold and rare earth elements, yet many are discarded or incinerated rather than repaired, reused or recycled. The DiCE project has spent four years investigating how to keep these devices, compone...
Digital healthcare is producing a fast-growing mountain of electronic waste. Glucose monitors, wearable sensors and medical devices can contain lithium, copper, gold and rare earth elements, yet many are discarded or incinerated rather than repaired, reused or recycled. The DiCE project has spent four years investigating how to keep these devices, compone...
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September 22, 2026 • 26 mins
Myanmar, Customer Data and Human RightsAfter Myanmar’s military coup in 2021, authorities demanded access to sensitive customer information held by a major Norwegian telecommunications company. Data linked to customers suspected of opposing the military was handed over, according to allegations in a new civil case. Now, more than 1,200 customers are part of a legal action in Norway seeking damages over the sharing of their d...
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September 15, 2026 • 34 mins
The future of AI, self-improving systems, cybersecurity, AI for Good and the fight for global AI regulationHow powerful can artificial intelligence become — and can governments, industry and international organisations keep pace? We examine the rapid development of generative, autonomous and agentic AI, the cybersecurity risks that come with increasingly powerful systems, how AI can be used for good around the world, and whet...
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September 8, 2026 • 23 mins
10 Years of #KeepItOn: Documenting the Global Fight Against Internet ShutdownsFor a decade, Access Now’s #KeepItOn campaign has been documenting and fighting government-led internet shutdowns around the world. We look at why governments keep cutting people off, the impact on communities, elections and human rights, and what ten years of monitoring and campaigning has taught us. With shutdowns still increasing, has the fight t...
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September 1, 2026 • 23 mins
AI in Healthcare: 1,357 Medical Devices Cleared — Only 3 Tested on PatientsA new PLOS Digital Health study reveals a huge gap between AI medical devices being cleared for use and evidence that they actually improve patient outcomes. We look at what FDA clearance really means, who is being left out of clinical trials, and why countries such as Uganda could face particular risks.Apple Spyware: What Your Threat Notification Real...
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August 25, 2026 • 22 mins
Everything-to-Grid Energy: Turning Electric Cars, Batteries and Homes into Power StationsWhat if your electric car could do more than get you from A to B? Professor ZhaoYang Dong explains how electric vehicles, home batteries, solar panels and buildings could become active parts of the electricity grid – helping balance renewable energy and demand.From Broken Beans to Better Food: Bean Possible’s Waste-to-Protein Techno...
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August 18, 2026 • 24 mins
Brazil’s AI-Powered Technology Helping Women Escape Bureaucracy and Access SupportFrom Web Summit Rio, we hear about a company that uses technology and AI to help women experiencing domestic violence to navigate Brazil’s complex public-service system. Its platform digitises paperwork, protective orders and social assistance, helping women access support more quickly, including women in remote communities who rely on Wha...
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August 11, 2026 • 21 mins
Flying Boat Could Transform Amazon TransportIn the Amazon, where rivers are often the only roads, journeys can take hours or even days. Brazilian company Aero River is developing a “flying boat” that travels just metres above the water at speeds of up to 150 kilometres per hour, potentially transforming access to healthcare, education, business and essential services in remote communities.Endometriosis, AI & the Fut...
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August 4, 2026 • 21 mins
🦾 Affordable Bionic ProstheticsA Brazilian start-up is using 3D printing and muscle-controlled technology to develop affordable bionic arms, giving amputees greater independence at a fraction of the cost of traditional prosthetics.🧠 Can AI Diagnose Autism Earlier?Researchers have created an AI-powered screening platform that analyses home videos and eye movements to help identify children at risk of autism from as young as 16 mon...
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July 28, 2026 • 19 mins
💡 Bringing Light to the AmazonCan a recycled plastic bottle change lives? At Web Summit Rio 2026, Ania Lichtarowicz meets Rodrigo Eidy, President of Litro de Luz Brasil, to discover how simple solar-powered lighting systems are bringing safe, sustainable light to remote Amazon communities. It's a story of innovation, sustainability and technology creating opportunity where electricity has never reached.🤖 Robotics Giving People a ...
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July 21, 2026 • 21 mins
Can AI predict a tunnel collapse before it happens?As cities grow and become more crowded, we are increasingly building underground. But tunnelling beneath busy urban areas can be dangerous, with unstable ground, changing geological conditions and the risk of damage to buildings and infrastructure above. We explore how AI is bringing together geological and construction data to predict potential tunnel problems up to seven days in ...
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MIT’s flying and swimming robot takes inspiration from diving birds to explore the oceans of tomorrowMIT engineers have created a remarkable aerial-aquatic robot that can swim underwater, launch through the surface and fly through the air, just like diving birds. Professor Raphael Zufferey explains how nature inspired this breakthrough, why moving between water and air is such a complex engineering challenge, and how these ro...
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July 7, 2026 • 28 mins
Are AI Writing Assistants Quietly Shaping Public Opinion?A new study suggests that the AI tools many of us use every day on platforms like LinkedIn, X and Google may be doing more than improving our grammar and polishing our posts. Researchers found that AI writing assistants can subtly alter the direction of our messages on contested issues—and, over time, those tiny changes could influence collective opinion at scale. Joini...
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June 30, 2026 • 42 mins
435 Million Gig Workers, Secret Pricing Systems & The Global Fight for Transparency in the Digital Economy
The World Bank estimates there are more than 435 million online gig workers worldwide, yet most have little visibility into the algorithms that determine what they earn. In this special episode of Somewhere on Earth: The Global Tech Podcast, recorded live at Web Summit Rio, we explore who really benefits from t...
The World Bank estimates there are more than 435 million online gig workers worldwide, yet most have little visibility into the algorithms that determine what they earn. In this special episode of Somewhere on Earth: The Global Tech Podcast, recorded live at Web Summit Rio, we explore who really benefits from t...
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June 23, 2026 • 25 mins
How AI Agents Could Change Digital Payments
Brazil's Pix payment system has already transformed how millions of people move money. Now, fintech company Iniciador is exploring what happens when artificial intelligence can initiate payments on behalf of users. We speak with Chief Product Officer Gustavo Bressler about AI-powered transactions, security, regulation and the future of digital commerce.
Can Innovation Create Mor...
Brazil's Pix payment system has already transformed how millions of people move money. Now, fintech company Iniciador is exploring what happens when artificial intelligence can initiate payments on behalf of users. We speak with Chief Product Officer Gustavo Bressler about AI-powered transactions, security, regulation and the future of digital commerce.
Can Innovation Create Mor...
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June 15, 2026 • 28 mins
How Trust Became Fintech's Most Valuable Asset As artificial intelligence reshapes financial services, technology alone is no longer enough to stand out. Denise Johansson, co-founder and CEO of Enfuce, explains why trust is becoming one of fintech's most powerful growth strategies. From startup beginnings in Finland to powering payments for global brands including Porsche, Octopus Energy and Circle K, she reveals how credibility, r...
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June 15, 2026 • 25 mins
How Trust Became Fintech's Most Valuable Asset As artificial intelligence reshapes financial services, technology alone is no longer enough to stand out. Denise Johansson, co-founder and CEO of Enfuce, explains why trust is becoming one of fintech's most powerful growth strategies. From startup beginnings in Finland to powering payments for global brands including Porsche, Octopus Energy and Circle K, she reveals how credibility, r...
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