May 15, 2025 • 39 mins
YouTube is integrating Google’s Gemini AI to place ads at the most engaging video moments, making them harder to avoid. This AI-driven tactic identifies “Peak Points” to maximize viewer retention during ad playback, indirectly pushing more users toward YouTube Premium. While ad blockers are being curbed, content creators may benefit from increased ad revenue. -Thinking … Continue reading YouTube’s New Ad Tactics Designed to Extract More Money from Viewers #1821
The post YouTube’s New Ad Tactics Designed to Extract More Money from Viewers #1821 appeared first on Geek News Central.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
The lead story for Thursday, May 15. YouTube
is integrating Google's Gemini AI
to place ads at the most engaging moments
in videos, making them harder to avoid.
This AI driven tactic identifies
peak points to maximize viewer retention
during ad playback,
(00:20):
indirectly
pushing more users towards
YouTube premium.
While ad blockers are being curbed, content creators
may benefit
from increased
ad revenue.
I wanna welcome you to episode 1,821.
I'm your host, Todd Cochran, and we are
back in the studio
in Southern Michigan.
(00:41):
So we'll talk about that here in a
second.
But, this first story up is with YouTube
is is wanting to extract
more dollars
out of everyone's pockets. And I I heard,
I was following a conversation
the other day
that
was an interesting
(01:03):
I guess for a better word, an interesting
analogy.
In that,
those that
are currently having to
sit through ads,
largely do it because they can't afford not
to. I thought that was a
interesting
(01:24):
dilemma. Now or interesting, you know, hypothesis. Now
I've been paying for YouTube premium for a
long time because I just got
sick and tired of
of all the ads, and I know a
lot of people are in the same boat.
And, you know, as I've come back and
now kinda getting settled in here over the
last couple of days,
(01:45):
you know, I'm starting to look at the
services
that I'm paying for month to month, the
stuff that I'm using,
and what I'm not. And it's one of
those times. It's kind of like spring cleaning,
time to cancel some services,
and so forth. But
with YouTube,
you know, there's a lot of people that
are outside The United States that cannot afford
(02:07):
the subscription, like, as an example where I
just came from in The Philippines. There's just
no way.
There's no way people can,
afford
to
to to pay for YouTube premium. It's it's
just
it it doesn't work.
And, you know, this is this is a
dilemma for those folks,
(02:30):
that are you know, they have to
to pay for you know, listen to the
advertising. So
do you think
that
those that are less
fortunate
are the ones that the advertisers are now
targeting?
Because if I'm paying for premium,
I'm I'm definitely not
(02:51):
being targeted.
Not no way, no how. Because I pay
for
I pay for the subscription,
and I and I I don't want it.
I don't want the ads.
So I'm curious. Let's say all of you
in this regard. But again,
this is a,
this is a big deal.
(03:12):
And and
and basically, gonna shove more ads strategically
at you,
while you're watching. So
I'd love to hear feedback. Geeknews@Gmail.com.
Of course, a shout out to our
incredible
sponsor,
at GoDaddy.
(03:33):
Big thank you
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And you too can take advantage of that
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But, really, in all honesty to all of
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you are the heartbeat of this show. And
if you wanna support the GNC mission, head
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(03:55):
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(04:16):
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(04:37):
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(04:57):
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(06:01):
So just a little bit
of an update. Rob and I did a
show yesterday, and it
it seemed like what could go wrong did
go wrong even though I had the studio
turned up and and running.
I I don't know. It's just one of
those things. The
the NDI
on the PTZ camera, which for those of
(06:22):
you who don't know is Ethernet,
video signal. It's just acting
hokey.
So,
I I basically am running SDI right now
until we figure out what's going on with
the network and why it's, you know, why
it's why it's choking per se.
So,
(06:43):
yeah. So, hopefully, the show today
goes off with a much better,
a much better without a hitch, I did
a whole bunch of additional testing.
Checked all the network connections,
made sure all the computers were right on
the right network that they were supposed to
be, even did a couple of minor changes
to couple of things that,
(07:04):
are, you know, watched here
in regards to the show.
And,
I I think
I think,
we're we're in good shape for today's podcast.
So, hopefully, everything,
and, you know, everything came up good.
But my travel back from The Philippines was
uneventful.
(07:25):
Got into Chicago
on Sunday night,
and then Monday took the train,
and then got in here about 6PM,
Monday night.
Right back in the grind of things Tuesday
and Wednesday. Of course, I'm getting ready to
go to London. I I'll depart for London,
Monday morning.
Actually, Monday afternoon.
(07:46):
But,
so I'm also you know, getting ready. I
haven't packed or nothing. Waiting some on some
deliveries,
and we'll load up and go to London
for the week. So in what's,
ironic
is that Memorial Day hits on the day
that I would have been back to do
the show.
So you guys are gonna be without me,
(08:06):
for a bit here.
So I apologize for no shows in a
row.
Just didn't just kind of the timing worked
out. So, again, I apologize about that.
But, we'll give a shout out to our,
to our insiders here in a few minutes.
But, let's go ahead and jump into the
(08:27):
full stack of of content. It just feels
surreal,
to be honest with you, to be home.
And even though I was working 9PM
to 4AM,
I was usually going to bed at about
5AM.
So my body still has had to adjust
and do a little bit of a time
shift,
(08:48):
being awake on the opposite end of the
spectrum than what it was. So
a little bit of jet lag, and, of
course, it's not gonna help leaving Monday for
London and and then, I'll be back. But
it doesn't look like
I'm completely
centered.
I don't know why. Let me,
let's look here. Am I centered up? Doesn't
(09:08):
look like it, does it?
It looks like we're, very,
very much zoomed in.
Am I zoomed out?
Yeah. We'll do that. We'll leave it at
that.
So, anyway, thanks. I'm rambling here. Let's go
ahead and get into the tech.
Now
some of you
may get a reaction from this headline.
(09:31):
Humans are giving off visible light that vanishes
when we die.
Yes. This is a science article.
Humans give off visible light that vanishes when
we die. A new study has been found.
So those of you that are believers
may go,
is that the soul turning the light off?
(09:53):
But but it turns out
the humans go the human glow
might not be just poetic.
A new study from the University of Calgary
and the National Research Council Canada has captured
physical evidence showing that living organisms
or
oh my goodness. Let me be careful here.
Organisms including mice and plants
(10:14):
emit a faint visible light that vanishes upon
death.
The barely there glow known as ultra weak
photon emission is produced by chemical reactions inside
cells.
While these bio
photons are far too dim for our eyes
to see, they're very real and scientists have
now observed the glow
(10:35):
flicker out in real time.
This is a very interesting
article.
Because I'm sure we've all seen
these videos that it looks like a soul
is leaving a body,
you know, a faint image of sorts.
(10:56):
But,
I guess we do shine,
And there is some science behind it, but
it makes you go,
doesn't it? It does me, for sure.
Max. Oh my god. They can't make up
their mind.
Max, which was once HBO,
is now reverting to HBO Max.
This is a second renaming in three years.
(11:18):
They they can't figure it out.
And, you know, didn't we talk about this,
on the show some time ago that that
they were they were flip flopping back and
forth again?
So, again, Warner Brothers announced today that streaming
services undergoing yet another branding change,
(11:38):
and it's probably because people didn't know
HBO.
They probably thought, where did HBO go?
So the streamer previously known as HBO Max
02/2018
to 02/2022,
then as Max twenty twenty two, twenty twenty
five, will henceforth be known as, again,
HBO Max.
(12:00):
Unbelievable.
I I think we all saw this handwriting
on the wall.
Now
I just talked about doing a little bit
of a health check on my subscriptions.
Well, according to a CNET survey, Americans spend
over a thousand dollars a year
(12:20):
on online subscriptions.
The economy has over half of subscribers second
guessing their monthly subscription charges.
And, you know, this is pretty this is
probably a pretty,
you know, probably pretty reasonable
to think about. And I think about, okay,
Netflix,
HBO,
(12:41):
think about YouTube,
and then some other subscriptions I got. You
know? Pretty quickly, we're getting up there
in in prices.
But this survey dives into how much US
adults are paying for subscriptions and found the
average US adult, again, spends a thousand 80
a year.
We got Netflix, Disney, they're all raising prices.
(13:04):
Over half, 61% of subscribers are second guessing
their subscription costs out of uncertainty in the
economy,
and 26%
have already canceled at least one
even though
subscription creep
creep is still on the rise.
Here's what you gotta do.
You have more than one credit card?
(13:26):
Many folks do. Right? Many folks have more
than one.
Put all of your
subscriptions
on one card.
And then when you get that monthly bill
every month, you see and don't put anything
else on that card. If you've got more
than if you get, like, a card you
hardly ever use,
put all your subscriptions
(13:47):
on that card.
And then
you keep an eye on it and see
how things are going up and down.
This is the best way
to do it. Now Apple I got a
bunch of stuff on Apple subscriptions too,
and, they give you kind of a report
on your daily spend and stuff as it
is now.
(14:08):
But
someone told me to do this. This is
isn't it this is not an originating idea
from me.
I've got a couple of cards that I
basically have had for a number of years
that I don't have nothing on them.
And,
you know, sometimes they threaten to cancel your
card if you don't spend no money and,
(14:28):
you know, it's probably a good thing anyway.
But I'm very careful in canceling cards, too
many cards, because what can happen is it
can really affect your credit rating.
So putting
the subscriptions on one card is a smart
way to track everything. If you move everything
over to that, then you're gonna know what
your month to month reoccurring
(14:49):
subscriptions are because now it's in amongst all
the other charges on your credit card bill,
and it's easy to
to lose
track of. So, this is a suggestion I
have for you, and,
I think I think it'll help you out.
The president is pushing Apple to make your
next iPhone in The United States, not India.
(15:12):
And, of course, Apple has agreed to up
production in The US according to the president,
and they're going doesn't say how much, though.
Speaking to the press in Qatar
or Qatar,
Trump said that a little problem with Tim
he said he had a little problem with
Tim Cook yesterday
regarding Apple's plans to ship production away from
China, India in a bid to avoid tariffs,
(15:32):
but the president has asked Cook
not to build out its Indian manufacturing base.
So but they're only gonna do a $500
billion investment in The United States.
And, of course, the cost
of labor
is the big determining factor here.
Again,
very inexpensive,
(15:53):
almost slave labor in China, same thing in
India.
So,
you know, your price of your phone will
go up if they bring manufacturing back to
The US because they have to pay a
living wage.
So well, you would hope they would.
May only be hourly, which really is, you
know, it depends on how much.
(16:15):
So we'll see what happens.
I I've got a T Mobile
phone.
My company pays for my Verizon phone.
And,
but, you know, there's a lot of perks,
and these perks are on credit cards too,
not just phones.
So just remember, if you've got a T
Mobile subscription
(16:35):
or Verizon
or any of those,
there's lots of perks on these phones. You
get discounts on stuff, get discounts on subscriptions.
Sometimes subscriptions are free.
So part of this consolidation
is if you're paying for a T Mobile
or Verizon account,
you need to use these perks that are
offered with your phone subscription.
(16:57):
Why not? Right? It's $20 here, $30 there,
whatever it may be,
or even a discount in savings.
So very, very smart way to save some
money here. So,
this is a great article.
Again, hidden US carrier
perks you might have not known about it.
And,
(17:18):
again, some stuff like free Disney plus from
Verizon, five g ultra wideband access in eligible
areas,
device trade in, T Mobile has T Mobile
Tuesdays, Netflix
on us in certain,
plans,
free scam protection. It just goes on and
on.
For me, T Mobile, the biggest, advantage is
international coverage.
(17:39):
As soon as I hit another country, I'm
I get data.
I get text. My phone rings like it
normally would. I don't have to even though
I do, because if you're I've gone too
much on your international plan on T Mobile,
even they start looking at you if you're
spending way too many months outside.
So I use a,
(18:00):
a monthly data plan that I get with
an eSIM,
and it cost me, like, 8 or $9
a month to have an eSIM. And that
way, I'm not racking up,
T Mobile's
data,
while I'm traveling. I'm just getting text and
phone.
Whereas my Verizon phone, I have to completely
be careful because
unless I pay for an international plan, it
(18:22):
gets very, very expensive very, very quickly. I
had to take a business call,
near the last day I was in The
Philippines, and it came in on my,
Verizon phone, which, again, no data plan because
I I don't answer the phone, but this
one, I had to. Forty five minutes on
the phone will probably be about one month's
worth of,
(18:43):
charges of for having been on international, but
that was the only time I had done
that.
So,
yeah, just one of those things you you
know, these these perks.
FTC has delayed click to cancel rule implementation
to July.
So the FTC has postponed enforcement
of consumer friendly click to cancel,
(19:03):
giving businesses two additional months to comply. We've
been working on this and, actually includes
the,
the requirement to email folks and let them
know that, hey. Your bill is going to,
it's going to update. It's gonna charge in
three, four, five days.
So this is all part of this click
to cancel,
(19:24):
that companies have to conform with.
Google is confirming plans to make Gemini.ai
directly into Chrome. That's really no surprise there.
But this has been confirmed.
The intent incorporated is Google AI assistant.
No idea when it will show up, but
it will
(19:45):
all work at Google IO twenty twenty five
that's happening,
in about six days.
So,
we we will see where this leads.
One thing there was a study that came
up for marketing AI, and they're talking about
how big companies
that already have a Google subscription are not
paying for other AI subscriptions for their employees,
(20:05):
which I thought was was curious.
But,
we will see where where this all goes.
Netflix is gonna use AI to make ad
breaks look less like ad breaks.
How is that? It's gonna make ads that,
make spots that blend in with the show
and movies.
(20:28):
Kind of hard to to stop that if
it's baked in
part of the content.
It's been announced the made of smart glasses
will soon provide detailed email, information regarding visual
stimuli. This has been designed to help the
blind and low vision community.
So these, Ray Ban Meta glasses are getting
upgrade.
The AI assistant will now provide a detailed
(20:49):
response regarding what's in front of the user.
Meta says it will kick in when people
ask about their environment. To get started, users
have to opt in
via device settings section in the Meta AI
app.
So they shared a video of the goal
of the tool. You can check that out.
Link will be up in the show notes.
Now this next action by Microsoft, I would
(21:10):
consider this to be a little bit on
the naughty side.
Microsoft
is
basically saying
your computer can't support this.
It's giving custom advice based on your PC
hardware.
The new feature is currently being tested. Expect
(21:30):
to roll out to all users within a
few weeks.
So the new feature can be found in
the settings
app,
and
it's basically, am I running the latest version
of Windows West? What is the latest Windows
version? How? And it basically is giving you
a breakdown
of what happens when you try to run
certain apps. To me, this just looks like
(21:52):
an absolute ploy
to get more money
out of customers and have them buy new
laptops. That's
what it really smells like.
According to the BBC, Elton John and Dua
Lipa seek protection from AI along with 400
other artists.
A letter signed by more than 400 British
(22:14):
musicians
addressed to sir Care Starmer
says failing to give that protection would mean
that giving away their work to tech firms.
So they're looking for a relief. They want
copyright laws to be updated
that protect them from AI.
I I I think they're gonna be slow
(22:34):
to react on this. I I just things
are moving so fast. I I don't know
what's gonna happen. Of course, the lawsuits are
coming already so or have come already, so
time will tell.
The Hummer EV
can navigate tight spaces with new king crab
rear steering.
So,
this Hummer EV does not look like anything
(22:55):
like the Hummer I'm used to,
and I'm not super impressed with what it
looks like. It's definitely big and it's definitely
expensive,
but it does have this crab walk feature
that lets the massive truck rotate all four
wheels
to drive diagonally at low speeds.
The 2026
(23:16):
model year Hummer EV is getting even more
crab like
called King Crab, and it allows for even
more maneuverability than before. At low speed,
King Crab turns the right rear slightly faster
than the front wheels,
enabling the hulk or Hummer dart in between
boulders or through a,
cups of trees.
(23:36):
How about getting your just getting around traffic?
I think that's probably,
more like it. Hey. I do wanna thank
our insiders.
I do wanna thank,
James Fletcher for his $2
sustaining donation, Nigel Cortrell for his $25
Alahi
chief donation,
Dale Taylor for his $25
(23:57):
Alahi chief donation,
and Andrew Palmer for his $5 Ohana donation.
We also had some boost come in. I
see that, Darren, your your boost are working,
so I think we're good now, good to
go
on that. And,
so I appreciate that. We've had some streaming
sets too that have come in, and, that's
(24:18):
always exciting to see,
all of that infrastructure working. It's all basically
on my
my little Umbrel,
disconnected from Albi and seems that cleared things
up. So,
yeah, boost away, ladies and gentlemen. You can
get, you can do that through a modern
podcast app at podcastapps.com.
(24:39):
So definitely
definitely check that out. But, again, thank you
to our insiders. If I missed anybody, I
apologize.
I went back through PayPal and looked, and
those are the ones that I was able
to pull out.
The largest US steel manufacturers put production on
the back burner after cyber attack.
Nucor,
(24:59):
one of the biggest steel manufacturing US was
forced to shut down.
Parts of the operation addressed an ongoing cyberattack.
The company confirmed the news in eight k
form filed with US Securities Exchange Commission.
So not much more detail
than that at, at this time.
The iPhone, of course, is the iPhone
(25:20):
is soon to turn 20,
but,
there's they're worried that they're gonna be pushing
on all glass model.
We know that Steve Jobs loved glass. If
you look at the
design of most Apple buildings, it's glass, glass,
glass.
And,
Jobs love the glasses reading your iPhone 16
(25:42):
is covered by Corning's Gorilla Glass,
plus it's really great glass.
But, they're saying that there might be, some
surprises coming on the on this next release.
Time will tell
where that goes. At the same time, Apple
Maps makes new expert ratings to make it
easier to find the best places to eat.
Experts have come in from from,
(26:04):
some stick in recent years, but, ultimately, their
insights are invaluable.
And according to Apple, we should listen to
them more, which is why Apple is now
utilizing
experts to improve Apple Maps for users.
I tell you, finding a good place to
eat.
Of course, I don't need a Michelin
(26:25):
recommendation. That's generally not
in the budget, to be quite frank.
So,
apparently, these map updates will happen in increments,
so we'll keep you advised.
Wix takes aim at Adobe and Canva with
a new online design platform
(26:46):
from website builder to visual design suite. So
Wix is expanding.
Again, it announced the release of Wixle, an
AI powered visual design suite that's affecting alternative
likes of Canva and Adobe Express.
According to the company, Wixel aims to democratize
visual design and other works designers and non
designers will now have the tools to create
professional grade content and assets.
(27:09):
Lot of of course, this just goes
all the way up against,
you know, a lot of lot of individuals
are gonna be impacted negatively from AI. We've
talked about this a lot.
You know, the work and fiber has dropped
dramatically because of
AI as well. Because
graphic guys like me that don't know how
(27:29):
to make any graphics
are able to make some pretty cool graphics.
I'll show you just some. For those of
you watching,
let's see if I can bring this up.
Let me
bring the the media up.
Let's see here. So these are some of
the stuff that I for those of you
watching,
this is some of the stuff I've been
(27:51):
creating with Sora
and different examples.
And, you know, the the output of this
is just,
I mean,
really awesome. I could have never,
in a hundred years, been able to
do what I've done with some of these
(28:11):
Sora
images.
And, again,
a lot of it's just text and a
little bit of images here and there. But
for me, this has just been a godsend.
Now there's one that came up today that
does not work.
Made me look like Mike Dell for some
reason, but you could see there was there
was
a
(28:31):
a overlap.
But if I go back and then look
at this one here,
you know, for the title of today's show,
YouTube's AI ad tactics make skipping harder than
ever. First, you know, good enough for me
for cover art for for YouTube.
I'm not as fancy as the majority of
people out there. So
for me, this was, you know, this just
(28:51):
works out well.
So,
again, I would have had horrible art or
no art.
Moving in a little more space news. Next
week's SpaceX Starship test still needs FAAF authorization.
They wanna go as early as the nineteenth
and I don't know. The week of the
(29:11):
nineteenth, but no earlier than May 21. Of
course, I'm in London when this goes down.
So we'll see, if they get their license
or not, but they're still they're still waiting
on that.
The LA Olympics
optimistically
names an official air taxi partner. That's kind
of funny. Archer's Midnight Evotal
still requires FAA approval for any operations, but
(29:33):
I guess they will be the official
air taxi provider for the twenty twenty eight
LA Olympic and Paralympic
games.
So but, again, that's a that's a very,
very, very, very big if if that's gonna
happen.
Alright. Scientists have calculated
universe is gonna end.
(29:53):
Yes. When it's gonna end.
It's sooner
than you think.
But
in all honesty,
let me give you the number.
It's a mind bending
10 to the power of seventy eight years.
Ten to the 78 power. So I know
that's a one
(30:15):
followed by 78 zeros.
I don't think any of us have to
worry about that.
That's unimaginably
far into the future.
However, in cosmic terms, this estimate is a
dramatic advancement
from a previous prediction to the 10 to
the power of one thousand one hundred years.
(30:36):
So now it's a a little we're we're
we're gonna, you know, go dark earlier.
Not that any of us will
be around for that.
Will the human race still exist?
That is a that's a question that's probably
in doubt.
NASA's punch spacecraft sees a cosmic rainbow in
(30:56):
the zodiacal
light,
whatever that means.
NASA's newest spacecraft aimed at studying the sun
have captured a colorful rainbow
in the warm glow of zodiacal light observed
above Earth. Oh, okay.
So it's a nice image.
(31:19):
I don't know what it fully means.
Link will be in the show notes.
A dog sized baby dinosaur has been unearthed
after a 66,000,000.
So you think about that, 66,000,000,
and we're just talking about 10 to the
78 or one to the seventy eighth power
or whatever it was.
(31:42):
Yeah.
That that's that's a relic.
A middle Jurassic dinosaur spinned end on earth
was the size of a large dog and
ate a vegetarian diet. The newly uncovered juvenile
from Scottish rocks is making waves among paleontology
fans.
Skeleton was first no noticed decades ago, but
(32:02):
stayed in place due to tricky access along
the Isle Of Skye.
But they are able to
get it out.
So and extract it wherever they're going to
take it.
The foldable iPhone could become a yearly staple
for Apple.
What do you guys think about this this
foldable
iPhone?
(32:23):
Is this is this something that makes you
go, yes. I want one immediately?
Is is this something you say yes has
to go on my list?
I'm kinda curious.
Do you need do you need more screen?
Do you know I wanna carry an iPad,
but you just need
more screen.
And I guess I just don't have enough
experience with these things to know if I
(32:45):
would want one or not.
Because do you have to open it to
use the full screen or is another is
it is there another screen on the other
side of the device?
That's the question.
I don't know. I don't know if I
need one of these. Wait. What say you?
Kkicknews@gmail.com.
(33:05):
Hey. The next gen CarPlay brand new CarPlay
Ultra starts rolling out today.
After months of delay, Apple officially announced the
launch of the next gen CarPlay.
And,
let's see. How is it gonna roll out?
The big question is the availability.
This launch was with was with just Aston
(33:25):
Martin.
That's pretty restrictive. Apple announced an expansion of
car manufacturer committed to Spartan CarPlay Ultra,
includes Hyundai, Kia.
Apple also approves the renders of what the
next gen CarPlay would look like in Porsche
vehicles, which,
again, way, way, way, way, way outside my
budget.
(33:46):
That is for sure.
Apparently, the AI Grokbot
was ranting about white genocide in South African
in a unrelated chat.
Apparently, that kept coming up. They they put
a fix in,
but,
it was basically,
sprouting stuff about white genocide in South Africa,
(34:06):
which may not be
entirely wrong based upon what's coming out of
the country. But,
there's definitely political stuff going on down there
that is,
is interesting.
But,
I guess they got it under control.
Google's iconic
excuse me. Google's iconic
feeling lucky
(34:27):
button is under threat from, yes, AI.
Have you ever I haven't used I'm feeling
lucky in years.
So I understand why they're considering changing it.
Some people in some beta tests have seen
this.
Also, if you use Chrome,
Chrome one thirty six update
(34:48):
with a patch vulnerability with exploit in the
wild.
So make sure when your Chrome browser says
upgrade to upgrade. Okay?
That's
a a very strong recommendation.
Again, there's a a
a
vulnerability
in the wild for this.
Chinese hackers hit a drone sector in supply
(35:10):
chain attacks.
So according
to the news,
dubbed Earth Emit and believed to be chied
to Chinese,
APTs, a hacking group was seen launching two
attack campaigns
targeting organizations across multiple sectors to compromise trusted
supply chains, but this apparently happened some time
ago.
(35:32):
In a fresh report, Trend Micro explains that
the campaign occurred prior to
they targeted service providers in Taiwan and heavy
industry firms in South Korea.
So,
you you know, this
this is a little bit of an old
report
reported today.
(35:53):
I'm sure a lot of techs go unreported
for sure.
Also, Android auto is getting a big Gemini
upgrade soon and also
a slightly baffling media control change.
So,
conversational prompts are coming to the car.
Not surprised
whatsoever. In that case, AI is going to
(36:15):
inudate
everywhere.
If you were one of the folks who
was affected by a Coinbase
cyber attack,
you will be able to get a financial
refund
from Coinbase, and they say this was up
to $400,000,000,
were moved in crypto based upon,
(36:37):
an email from an unknown threat actor.
So email is the vector right now. Be
super careful on your email. I'm telling you,
most of the attacks that are happening right
now via email
prompt you to open up a dock. And
that dock, you may be not be able
to read, but it then says, hey. Go
over here
and click this. You go you know, here's
(36:58):
the additional information. And that's where they get
you. Okay?
So be careful be careful out there, please.
Uber is introducing route share, a rush hour
version of pool. It's also launching new ride
passes for users including teens.
So,
be aware of this route share, which can
only be described as if Uber, pool, and
(37:19):
buses had a love child.
That's kind of a weird explanation,
but,
you'll be able to save some money there.
So
those of you that use Uber in the
city, maybe this will work out for you.
Toyota is bringing the C HR back to
US as an all electric crossover. The company's
2026
US EV lineup
(37:40):
now includes
two models.
And I don't know what this vehicle looks
like, to be honest with you. They kinda
got a picture in the article,
but,
I I don't think I've seen one in
a while. But, again, Toyota's announced the return
of the C HR to The United States,
but this time is an all electric model
built on its Itang platform.
(38:01):
And,
the crossover electric bill will be now the
second battery electric vehicle sold by k Toyota
in The United States.
So about a 290
mile range is what that will contain.
And part of its earnings report, Netflix says
its ad tier now has 94,000,000
monthly active subscribers.
Said that its cheaper ad supported tier
(38:23):
is up to 94,000,000.
That's that's amazing. Netflix also says,
cheapest tier reaches more eighteen to thirty four
year olds than any US broadcaster cable network,
which which makes sense.
Alright, ladies and gentlemen. This is gonna bring
me to the end of the show. Don't
forget to get over to geeknetcentral.com.
(38:43):
Don't forget to support the podcast by supporting
the sponsor.
You can become an insider at geeknesscentral.com
forward slash insider with your $2.05, $10.15,
20, or $25
monthly donations. You also can make a single
on the show. I definitely appreciate all of
your ongoing support of the podcast
and your emails and your your boost and
(39:05):
everything that's come in. Again, a couple of,
weeks of,
travel here or at least one week and
then a holiday.
So, but I appreciate y'all being here. Thanks
for staying subscribed.
Thanks for being part of the family,
and, we'll see you back here,
after
Memorial Day. Everyone, take care. We'll see you
next time. Bye bye.
The lead story for Thursday, May 15. YouTube
is integrating Google's Gemini AI
to place ads at the most engaging moments
in videos, making them harder to avoid.
This AI driven tactic identifies
peak points to maximize viewer retention
during ad playback,
(00:20):
indirectly
pushing more users towards
YouTube premium.
While ad blockers are being curbed, content creators
may benefit
from increased
ad revenue.
I wanna welcome you to episode 1,821.
I'm your host, Todd Cochran, and we are
back in the studio
in Southern Michigan.
(00:41):
So we'll talk about that here in a
second.
But, this first story up is with YouTube
is is wanting to extract
more dollars
out of everyone's pockets. And I I heard,
I was following a conversation
the other day
that
was an interesting
(01:03):
I guess for a better word, an interesting
analogy.
In that,
those that
are currently having to
sit through ads,
largely do it because they can't afford not
to. I thought that was a
interesting
(01:24):
dilemma. Now or interesting, you know, hypothesis. Now
I've been paying for YouTube premium for a
long time because I just got
sick and tired of
of all the ads, and I know a
lot of people are in the same boat.
And, you know, as I've come back and
now kinda getting settled in here over the
last couple of days,
(01:45):
you know, I'm starting to look at the
services
that I'm paying for month to month, the
stuff that I'm using,
and what I'm not. And it's one of
those times. It's kind of like spring cleaning,
time to cancel some services,
and so forth. But
with YouTube,
you know, there's a lot of people that
are outside The United States that cannot afford
(02:07):
the subscription, like, as an example where I
just came from in The Philippines. There's just
no way.
There's no way people can,
afford
to
to to pay for YouTube premium. It's it's
just
it it doesn't work.
And, you know, this is this is a
dilemma for those folks,
(02:30):
that are you know, they have to
to pay for you know, listen to the
advertising. So
do you think
that
those that are less
fortunate
are the ones that the advertisers are now
targeting?
Because if I'm paying for premium,
I'm I'm definitely not
(02:51):
being targeted.
Not no way, no how. Because I pay
for
I pay for the subscription,
and I and I I don't want it.
I don't want the ads.
So I'm curious. Let's say all of you
in this regard. But again,
this is a,
this is a big deal.
(03:12):
And and
and basically, gonna shove more ads strategically
at you,
while you're watching. So
I'd love to hear feedback. Geeknews@Gmail.com.
Of course, a shout out to our
incredible
sponsor,
at GoDaddy.
(03:33):
Big thank you
to GoDaddy here for for taking care of
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And you too can take advantage of that
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But, really, in all honesty to all of
you,
you are the heartbeat of this show. And
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(03:55):
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(04:16):
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(04:37):
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So,
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(04:57):
As a listener of this podcast,
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(06:01):
So just a little bit
of an update. Rob and I did a
show yesterday, and it
it seemed like what could go wrong did
go wrong even though I had the studio
turned up and and running.
I I don't know. It's just one of
those things. The
the NDI
on the PTZ camera, which for those of
(06:22):
you who don't know is Ethernet,
video signal. It's just acting
hokey.
So,
I I basically am running SDI right now
until we figure out what's going on with
the network and why it's, you know, why
it's why it's choking per se.
So,
(06:43):
yeah. So, hopefully, the show today
goes off with a much better,
a much better without a hitch, I did
a whole bunch of additional testing.
Checked all the network connections,
made sure all the computers were right on
the right network that they were supposed to
be, even did a couple of minor changes
to couple of things that,
(07:04):
are, you know, watched here
in regards to the show.
And,
I I think
I think,
we're we're in good shape for today's podcast.
So, hopefully, everything,
and, you know, everything came up good.
But my travel back from The Philippines was
uneventful.
(07:25):
Got into Chicago
on Sunday night,
and then Monday took the train,
and then got in here about 6PM,
Monday night.
Right back in the grind of things Tuesday
and Wednesday. Of course, I'm getting ready to
go to London. I I'll depart for London,
Monday morning.
Actually, Monday afternoon.
(07:46):
But,
so I'm also you know, getting ready. I
haven't packed or nothing. Waiting some on some
deliveries,
and we'll load up and go to London
for the week. So in what's,
ironic
is that Memorial Day hits on the day
that I would have been back to do
the show.
So you guys are gonna be without me,
(08:06):
for a bit here.
So I apologize for no shows in a
row.
Just didn't just kind of the timing worked
out. So, again, I apologize about that.
But, we'll give a shout out to our,
to our insiders here in a few minutes.
But, let's go ahead and jump into the
(08:27):
full stack of of content. It just feels
surreal,
to be honest with you, to be home.
And even though I was working 9PM
to 4AM,
I was usually going to bed at about
5AM.
So my body still has had to adjust
and do a little bit of a time
shift,
(08:48):
being awake on the opposite end of the
spectrum than what it was. So
a little bit of jet lag, and, of
course, it's not gonna help leaving Monday for
London and and then, I'll be back. But
it doesn't look like
I'm completely
centered.
I don't know why. Let me,
let's look here. Am I centered up? Doesn't
(09:08):
look like it, does it?
It looks like we're, very,
very much zoomed in.
Am I zoomed out?
Yeah. We'll do that. We'll leave it at
that.
So, anyway, thanks. I'm rambling here. Let's go
ahead and get into the tech.
Now
some of you
may get a reaction from this headline.
(09:31):
Humans are giving off visible light that vanishes
when we die.
Yes. This is a science article.
Humans give off visible light that vanishes when
we die. A new study has been found.
So those of you that are believers
may go,
is that the soul turning the light off?
(09:53):
But but it turns out
the humans go the human glow
might not be just poetic.
A new study from the University of Calgary
and the National Research Council Canada has captured
physical evidence showing that living organisms
or
oh my goodness. Let me be careful here.
Organisms including mice and plants
(10:14):
emit a faint visible light that vanishes upon
death.
The barely there glow known as ultra weak
photon emission is produced by chemical reactions inside
cells.
While these bio
photons are far too dim for our eyes
to see, they're very real and scientists have
now observed the glow
(10:35):
flicker out in real time.
This is a very interesting
article.
Because I'm sure we've all seen
these videos that it looks like a soul
is leaving a body,
you know, a faint image of sorts.
(10:56):
But,
I guess we do shine,
And there is some science behind it, but
it makes you go,
doesn't it? It does me, for sure.
Max. Oh my god. They can't make up
their mind.
Max, which was once HBO,
is now reverting to HBO Max.
This is a second renaming in three years.
(11:18):
They they can't figure it out.
And, you know, didn't we talk about this,
on the show some time ago that that
they were they were flip flopping back and
forth again?
So, again, Warner Brothers announced today that streaming
services undergoing yet another branding change,
(11:38):
and it's probably because people didn't know
HBO.
They probably thought, where did HBO go?
So the streamer previously known as HBO Max
02/2018
to 02/2022,
then as Max twenty twenty two, twenty twenty
five, will henceforth be known as, again,
HBO Max.
(12:00):
Unbelievable.
I I think we all saw this handwriting
on the wall.
Now
I just talked about doing a little bit
of a health check on my subscriptions.
Well, according to a CNET survey, Americans spend
over a thousand dollars a year
(12:20):
on online subscriptions.
The economy has over half of subscribers second
guessing their monthly subscription charges.
And, you know, this is pretty this is
probably a pretty,
you know, probably pretty reasonable
to think about. And I think about, okay,
Netflix,
HBO,
(12:41):
think about YouTube,
and then some other subscriptions I got. You
know? Pretty quickly, we're getting up there
in in prices.
But this survey dives into how much US
adults are paying for subscriptions and found the
average US adult, again, spends a thousand 80
a year.
We got Netflix, Disney, they're all raising prices.
(13:04):
Over half, 61% of subscribers are second guessing
their subscription costs out of uncertainty in the
economy,
and 26%
have already canceled at least one
even though
subscription creep
creep is still on the rise.
Here's what you gotta do.
You have more than one credit card?
(13:26):
Many folks do. Right? Many folks have more
than one.
Put all of your
subscriptions
on one card.
And then when you get that monthly bill
every month, you see and don't put anything
else on that card. If you've got more
than if you get, like, a card you
hardly ever use,
put all your subscriptions
(13:47):
on that card.
And then
you keep an eye on it and see
how things are going up and down.
This is the best way
to do it. Now Apple I got a
bunch of stuff on Apple subscriptions too,
and, they give you kind of a report
on your daily spend and stuff as it
is now.
(14:08):
But
someone told me to do this. This is
isn't it this is not an originating idea
from me.
I've got a couple of cards that I
basically have had for a number of years
that I don't have nothing on them.
And,
you know, sometimes they threaten to cancel your
card if you don't spend no money and,
(14:28):
you know, it's probably a good thing anyway.
But I'm very careful in canceling cards, too
many cards, because what can happen is it
can really affect your credit rating.
So putting
the subscriptions on one card is a smart
way to track everything. If you move everything
over to that, then you're gonna know what
your month to month reoccurring
(14:49):
subscriptions are because now it's in amongst all
the other charges on your credit card bill,
and it's easy to
to lose
track of. So, this is a suggestion I
have for you, and,
I think I think it'll help you out.
The president is pushing Apple to make your
next iPhone in The United States, not India.
(15:12):
And, of course, Apple has agreed to up
production in The US according to the president,
and they're going doesn't say how much, though.
Speaking to the press in Qatar
or Qatar,
Trump said that a little problem with Tim
he said he had a little problem with
Tim Cook yesterday
regarding Apple's plans to ship production away from
China, India in a bid to avoid tariffs,
(15:32):
but the president has asked Cook
not to build out its Indian manufacturing base.
So but they're only gonna do a $500
billion investment in The United States.
And, of course, the cost
of labor
is the big determining factor here.
Again,
very inexpensive,
(15:53):
almost slave labor in China, same thing in
India.
So,
you know, your price of your phone will
go up if they bring manufacturing back to
The US because they have to pay a
living wage.
So well, you would hope they would.
May only be hourly, which really is, you
know, it depends on how much.
(16:15):
So we'll see what happens.
I I've got a T Mobile
phone.
My company pays for my Verizon phone.
And,
but, you know, there's a lot of perks,
and these perks are on credit cards too,
not just phones.
So just remember, if you've got a T
Mobile subscription
(16:35):
or Verizon
or any of those,
there's lots of perks on these phones. You
get discounts on stuff, get discounts on subscriptions.
Sometimes subscriptions are free.
So part of this consolidation
is if you're paying for a T Mobile
or Verizon account,
you need to use these perks that are
offered with your phone subscription.
(16:57):
Why not? Right? It's $20 here, $30 there,
whatever it may be,
or even a discount in savings.
So very, very smart way to save some
money here. So,
this is a great article.
Again, hidden US carrier
perks you might have not known about it.
And,
(17:18):
again, some stuff like free Disney plus from
Verizon, five g ultra wideband access in eligible
areas,
device trade in, T Mobile has T Mobile
Tuesdays, Netflix
on us in certain,
plans,
free scam protection. It just goes on and
on.
For me, T Mobile, the biggest, advantage is
international coverage.
(17:39):
As soon as I hit another country, I'm
I get data.
I get text. My phone rings like it
normally would. I don't have to even though
I do, because if you're I've gone too
much on your international plan on T Mobile,
even they start looking at you if you're
spending way too many months outside.
So I use a,
(18:00):
a monthly data plan that I get with
an eSIM,
and it cost me, like, 8 or $9
a month to have an eSIM. And that
way, I'm not racking up,
T Mobile's
data,
while I'm traveling. I'm just getting text and
phone.
Whereas my Verizon phone, I have to completely
be careful because
unless I pay for an international plan, it
(18:22):
gets very, very expensive very, very quickly. I
had to take a business call,
near the last day I was in The
Philippines, and it came in on my,
Verizon phone, which, again, no data plan because
I I don't answer the phone, but this
one, I had to. Forty five minutes on
the phone will probably be about one month's
worth of,
(18:43):
charges of for having been on international, but
that was the only time I had done
that.
So,
yeah, just one of those things you you
know, these these perks.
FTC has delayed click to cancel rule implementation
to July.
So the FTC has postponed enforcement
of consumer friendly click to cancel,
(19:03):
giving businesses two additional months to comply. We've
been working on this and, actually includes
the,
the requirement to email folks and let them
know that, hey. Your bill is going to,
it's going to update. It's gonna charge in
three, four, five days.
So this is all part of this click
to cancel,
(19:24):
that companies have to conform with.
Google is confirming plans to make Gemini.ai
directly into Chrome. That's really no surprise there.
But this has been confirmed.
The intent incorporated is Google AI assistant.
No idea when it will show up, but
it will
(19:45):
all work at Google IO twenty twenty five
that's happening,
in about six days.
So,
we we will see where this leads.
One thing there was a study that came
up for marketing AI, and they're talking about
how big companies
that already have a Google subscription are not
paying for other AI subscriptions for their employees,
(20:05):
which I thought was was curious.
But,
we will see where where this all goes.
Netflix is gonna use AI to make ad
breaks look less like ad breaks.
How is that? It's gonna make ads that,
make spots that blend in with the show
and movies.
(20:28):
Kind of hard to to stop that if
it's baked in
part of the content.
It's been announced the made of smart glasses
will soon provide detailed email, information regarding visual
stimuli. This has been designed to help the
blind and low vision community.
So these, Ray Ban Meta glasses are getting
upgrade.
The AI assistant will now provide a detailed
(20:49):
response regarding what's in front of the user.
Meta says it will kick in when people
ask about their environment. To get started, users
have to opt in
via device settings section in the Meta AI
app.
So they shared a video of the goal
of the tool. You can check that out.
Link will be up in the show notes.
Now this next action by Microsoft, I would
(21:10):
consider this to be a little bit on
the naughty side.
Microsoft
is
basically saying
your computer can't support this.
It's giving custom advice based on your PC
hardware.
The new feature is currently being tested. Expect
(21:30):
to roll out to all users within a
few weeks.
So the new feature can be found in
the settings
app,
and
it's basically, am I running the latest version
of Windows West? What is the latest Windows
version? How? And it basically is giving you
a breakdown
of what happens when you try to run
certain apps. To me, this just looks like
(21:52):
an absolute ploy
to get more money
out of customers and have them buy new
laptops. That's
what it really smells like.
According to the BBC, Elton John and Dua
Lipa seek protection from AI along with 400
other artists.
A letter signed by more than 400 British
(22:14):
musicians
addressed to sir Care Starmer
says failing to give that protection would mean
that giving away their work to tech firms.
So they're looking for a relief. They want
copyright laws to be updated
that protect them from AI.
I I I think they're gonna be slow
(22:34):
to react on this. I I just things
are moving so fast. I I don't know
what's gonna happen. Of course, the lawsuits are
coming already so or have come already, so
time will tell.
The Hummer EV
can navigate tight spaces with new king crab
rear steering.
So,
this Hummer EV does not look like anything
(22:55):
like the Hummer I'm used to,
and I'm not super impressed with what it
looks like. It's definitely big and it's definitely
expensive,
but it does have this crab walk feature
that lets the massive truck rotate all four
wheels
to drive diagonally at low speeds.
The 2026
(23:16):
model year Hummer EV is getting even more
crab like
called King Crab, and it allows for even
more maneuverability than before. At low speed,
King Crab turns the right rear slightly faster
than the front wheels,
enabling the hulk or Hummer dart in between
boulders or through a,
cups of trees.
(23:36):
How about getting your just getting around traffic?
I think that's probably,
more like it. Hey. I do wanna thank
our insiders.
I do wanna thank,
James Fletcher for his $2
sustaining donation, Nigel Cortrell for his $25
Alahi
chief donation,
Dale Taylor for his $25
(23:57):
Alahi chief donation,
and Andrew Palmer for his $5 Ohana donation.
We also had some boost come in. I
see that, Darren, your your boost are working,
so I think we're good now, good to
go
on that. And,
so I appreciate that. We've had some streaming
sets too that have come in, and, that's
(24:18):
always exciting to see,
all of that infrastructure working. It's all basically
on my
my little Umbrel,
disconnected from Albi and seems that cleared things
up. So,
yeah, boost away, ladies and gentlemen. You can
get, you can do that through a modern
podcast app at podcastapps.com.
(24:39):
So definitely
definitely check that out. But, again, thank you
to our insiders. If I missed anybody, I
apologize.
I went back through PayPal and looked, and
those are the ones that I was able
to pull out.
The largest US steel manufacturers put production on
the back burner after cyber attack.
Nucor,
(24:59):
one of the biggest steel manufacturing US was
forced to shut down.
Parts of the operation addressed an ongoing cyberattack.
The company confirmed the news in eight k
form filed with US Securities Exchange Commission.
So not much more detail
than that at, at this time.
The iPhone, of course, is the iPhone
(25:20):
is soon to turn 20,
but,
there's they're worried that they're gonna be pushing
on all glass model.
We know that Steve Jobs loved glass. If
you look at the
design of most Apple buildings, it's glass, glass,
glass.
And,
Jobs love the glasses reading your iPhone 16
(25:42):
is covered by Corning's Gorilla Glass,
plus it's really great glass.
But, they're saying that there might be, some
surprises coming on the on this next release.
Time will tell
where that goes. At the same time, Apple
Maps makes new expert ratings to make it
easier to find the best places to eat.
Experts have come in from from,
(26:04):
some stick in recent years, but, ultimately, their
insights are invaluable.
And according to Apple, we should listen to
them more, which is why Apple is now
utilizing
experts to improve Apple Maps for users.
I tell you, finding a good place to
eat.
Of course, I don't need a Michelin
(26:25):
recommendation. That's generally not
in the budget, to be quite frank.
So,
apparently, these map updates will happen in increments,
so we'll keep you advised.
Wix takes aim at Adobe and Canva with
a new online design platform
(26:46):
from website builder to visual design suite. So
Wix is expanding.
Again, it announced the release of Wixle, an
AI powered visual design suite that's affecting alternative
likes of Canva and Adobe Express.
According to the company, Wixel aims to democratize
visual design and other works designers and non
designers will now have the tools to create
professional grade content and assets.
(27:09):
Lot of of course, this just goes
all the way up against,
you know, a lot of lot of individuals
are gonna be impacted negatively from AI. We've
talked about this a lot.
You know, the work and fiber has dropped
dramatically because of
AI as well. Because
graphic guys like me that don't know how
(27:29):
to make any graphics
are able to make some pretty cool graphics.
I'll show you just some. For those of
you watching,
let's see if I can bring this up.
Let me
bring the the media up.
Let's see here. So these are some of
the stuff that I for those of you
watching,
this is some of the stuff I've been
(27:51):
creating with Sora
and different examples.
And, you know, the the output of this
is just,
I mean,
really awesome. I could have never,
in a hundred years, been able to
do what I've done with some of these
(28:11):
Sora
images.
And, again,
a lot of it's just text and a
little bit of images here and there. But
for me, this has just been a godsend.
Now there's one that came up today that
does not work.
Made me look like Mike Dell for some
reason, but you could see there was there
was
a
(28:31):
a overlap.
But if I go back and then look
at this one here,
you know, for the title of today's show,
YouTube's AI ad tactics make skipping harder than
ever. First, you know, good enough for me
for cover art for for YouTube.
I'm not as fancy as the majority of
people out there. So
for me, this was, you know, this just
(28:51):
works out well.
So,
again, I would have had horrible art or
no art.
Moving in a little more space news. Next
week's SpaceX Starship test still needs FAAF authorization.
They wanna go as early as the nineteenth
and I don't know. The week of the
(29:11):
nineteenth, but no earlier than May 21. Of
course, I'm in London when this goes down.
So we'll see, if they get their license
or not, but they're still they're still waiting
on that.
The LA Olympics
optimistically
names an official air taxi partner. That's kind
of funny. Archer's Midnight Evotal
still requires FAA approval for any operations, but
(29:33):
I guess they will be the official
air taxi provider for the twenty twenty eight
LA Olympic and Paralympic
games.
So but, again, that's a that's a very,
very, very, very big if if that's gonna
happen.
Alright. Scientists have calculated
universe is gonna end.
(29:53):
Yes. When it's gonna end.
It's sooner
than you think.
But
in all honesty,
let me give you the number.
It's a mind bending
10 to the power of seventy eight years.
Ten to the 78 power. So I know
that's a one
(30:15):
followed by 78 zeros.
I don't think any of us have to
worry about that.
That's unimaginably
far into the future.
However, in cosmic terms, this estimate is a
dramatic advancement
from a previous prediction to the 10 to
the power of one thousand one hundred years.
(30:36):
So now it's a a little we're we're
we're gonna, you know, go dark earlier.
Not that any of us will
be around for that.
Will the human race still exist?
That is a that's a question that's probably
in doubt.
NASA's punch spacecraft sees a cosmic rainbow in
(30:56):
the zodiacal
light,
whatever that means.
NASA's newest spacecraft aimed at studying the sun
have captured a colorful rainbow
in the warm glow of zodiacal light observed
above Earth. Oh, okay.
So it's a nice image.
(31:19):
I don't know what it fully means.
Link will be in the show notes.
A dog sized baby dinosaur has been unearthed
after a 66,000,000.
So you think about that, 66,000,000,
and we're just talking about 10 to the
78 or one to the seventy eighth power
or whatever it was.
(31:42):
Yeah.
That that's that's a relic.
A middle Jurassic dinosaur spinned end on earth
was the size of a large dog and
ate a vegetarian diet. The newly uncovered juvenile
from Scottish rocks is making waves among paleontology
fans.
Skeleton was first no noticed decades ago, but
(32:02):
stayed in place due to tricky access along
the Isle Of Skye.
But they are able to
get it out.
So and extract it wherever they're going to
take it.
The foldable iPhone could become a yearly staple
for Apple.
What do you guys think about this this
foldable
iPhone?
(32:23):
Is this is this something that makes you
go, yes. I want one immediately?
Is is this something you say yes has
to go on my list?
I'm kinda curious.
Do you need do you need more screen?
Do you know I wanna carry an iPad,
but you just need
more screen.
And I guess I just don't have enough
experience with these things to know if I
(32:45):
would want one or not.
Because do you have to open it to
use the full screen or is another is
it is there another screen on the other
side of the device?
That's the question.
I don't know. I don't know if I
need one of these. Wait. What say you?
Kkicknews@gmail.com.
(33:05):
Hey. The next gen CarPlay brand new CarPlay
Ultra starts rolling out today.
After months of delay, Apple officially announced the
launch of the next gen CarPlay.
And,
let's see. How is it gonna roll out?
The big question is the availability.
This launch was with was with just Aston
(33:25):
Martin.
That's pretty restrictive. Apple announced an expansion of
car manufacturer committed to Spartan CarPlay Ultra,
includes Hyundai, Kia.
Apple also approves the renders of what the
next gen CarPlay would look like in Porsche
vehicles, which,
again, way, way, way, way, way outside my
budget.
(33:46):
That is for sure.
Apparently, the AI Grokbot
was ranting about white genocide in South African
in a unrelated chat.
Apparently, that kept coming up. They they put
a fix in,
but,
it was basically,
sprouting stuff about white genocide in South Africa,
(34:06):
which may not be
entirely wrong based upon what's coming out of
the country. But,
there's definitely political stuff going on down there
that is,
is interesting.
But,
I guess they got it under control.
Google's iconic
excuse me. Google's iconic
feeling lucky
(34:27):
button is under threat from, yes, AI.
Have you ever I haven't used I'm feeling
lucky in years.
So I understand why they're considering changing it.
Some people in some beta tests have seen
this.
Also, if you use Chrome,
Chrome one thirty six update
(34:48):
with a patch vulnerability with exploit in the
wild.
So make sure when your Chrome browser says
upgrade to upgrade. Okay?
That's
a a very strong recommendation.
Again, there's a a
a
vulnerability
in the wild for this.
Chinese hackers hit a drone sector in supply
(35:10):
chain attacks.
So according
to the news,
dubbed Earth Emit and believed to be chied
to Chinese,
APTs, a hacking group was seen launching two
attack campaigns
targeting organizations across multiple sectors to compromise trusted
supply chains, but this apparently happened some time
ago.
(35:32):
In a fresh report, Trend Micro explains that
the campaign occurred prior to
they targeted service providers in Taiwan and heavy
industry firms in South Korea.
So,
you you know, this
this is a little bit of an old
report
reported today.
(35:53):
I'm sure a lot of techs go unreported
for sure.
Also, Android auto is getting a big Gemini
upgrade soon and also
a slightly baffling media control change.
So,
conversational prompts are coming to the car.
Not surprised
whatsoever. In that case, AI is going to
(36:15):
inudate
everywhere.
If you were one of the folks who
was affected by a Coinbase
cyber attack,
you will be able to get a financial
refund
from Coinbase, and they say this was up
to $400,000,000,
were moved in crypto based upon,
(36:37):
an email from an unknown threat actor.
So email is the vector right now. Be
super careful on your email. I'm telling you,
most of the attacks that are happening right
now via email
prompt you to open up a dock. And
that dock, you may be not be able
to read, but it then says, hey. Go
over here
and click this. You go you know, here's
(36:58):
the additional information. And that's where they get
you. Okay?
So be careful be careful out there, please.
Uber is introducing route share, a rush hour
version of pool. It's also launching new ride
passes for users including teens.
So,
be aware of this route share, which can
only be described as if Uber, pool, and
(37:19):
buses had a love child.
That's kind of a weird explanation,
but,
you'll be able to save some money there.
So
those of you that use Uber in the
city, maybe this will work out for you.
Toyota is bringing the C HR back to
US as an all electric crossover. The company's
2026
US EV lineup
(37:40):
now includes
two models.
And I don't know what this vehicle looks
like, to be honest with you. They kinda
got a picture in the article,
but,
I I don't think I've seen one in
a while. But, again, Toyota's announced the return
of the C HR to The United States,
but this time is an all electric model
built on its Itang platform.
(38:01):
And,
the crossover electric bill will be now the
second battery electric vehicle sold by k Toyota
in The United States.
So about a 290
mile range is what that will contain.
And part of its earnings report, Netflix says
its ad tier now has 94,000,000
monthly active subscribers.
Said that its cheaper ad supported tier
(38:23):
is up to 94,000,000.
That's that's amazing. Netflix also says,
cheapest tier reaches more eighteen to thirty four
year olds than any US broadcaster cable network,
which which makes sense.
Alright, ladies and gentlemen. This is gonna bring
me to the end of the show. Don't
forget to get over to geeknetcentral.com.
(38:43):
Don't forget to support the podcast by supporting
the sponsor.
You can become an insider at geeknesscentral.com
forward slash insider with your $2.05, $10.15,
20, or $25
monthly donations. You also can make a single
on the show. I definitely appreciate all of
your ongoing support of the podcast
and your emails and your your boost and
(39:05):
everything that's come in. Again, a couple of,
weeks of,
travel here or at least one week and
then a holiday.
So, but I appreciate y'all being here. Thanks
for staying subscribed.
Thanks for being part of the family,
and, we'll see you back here,
after
Memorial Day. Everyone, take care. We'll see you
next time. Bye bye.
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