This week, the U.S. government takes another L in court as a judge rules that handing out personal data like free candy to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is, in fact, a privacy violation. Meanwhile, Elizabeth Holmes and Sunny Balwani’s dreams of walking free are crushed as a judge upholds their fraud convictions and massive fines. Sorry, no Silicon Valley redemption arc for you. Over in crypto, Bitcoin took a wild nosedive, sending traders into full panic mode before bouncing back. Trump Coin also rode the rollercoaster but, let’s be honest, it’s still circling the drain. In corporate chaos, Warner Bros. Discovery slashed its gaming division, Google axed more employees while crying about AI costs, and an AI-generated video of Trump sucking on Musk’s toes somehow took over HUD office TVs. Speaking of Musk, federal tech staffers are resigning en masse rather than work for DOGE, and the FAA is cozying up to SpaceX while pretending it’s totally not a conflict of interest. Over in Big Tech, Chegg is suing Google for stealing their content, and Meta can’t stop Instagram from flooding users’ feeds with violent and NSFW Reels. Also, Grok 3, Musk’s AI pet project, handed out chemical weapon blueprints like a particularly unhinged WikiHow before xAI scrambled to cover their tracks. On the media front, Andor is coming back with a binge-friendly release schedule, Kathleen Kennedy is finally exiting Lucasfilm, and Daredevil: Born Again is getting early buzz. YouTube now claims a billion monthly podcast viewers, Fyre Festival 2 is happening because we clearly learned nothing from the first one, and Jeff Bezos has decided The Washington Post will now be his personal capitalism fan club. Meanwhile, Microsoft’s AI Copilot is helpfully explaining how to pirate Windows, Skype is getting sent to the great app graveyard in the sky, and Google is making it slightly less impossible to remove your personal info from search results. All that, plus Paramount+ is giving us 50 classic MTV Unplugged episodes because nostalgia is the only safe investment these days. Buckle up, it’s a wild ride. Sponsors: Factor - Get started at FactormMeals.com/FACTORPODCAST and use code grumpy50off to get 50% off your first box plus free shipping. DeleteMe - Head over to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use the code "GOG" for 20% off. Private Internet Access - Go to GOG.Show/vpn and sign up today. For a limited time only, you can get OUR favorite VPN for as little as $2.03 a month. SetApp - With a single monthly subscription you get 240+ apps for your Mac. Go to SetApp and get started today!!! 1Password - Get a great deal on the only password manager recommended by Grumpy Old Geeks! gog.show/1password Show notes at https://gog.show/686 FOLLOW UP Judge: US gov’t violated privacy law by disclosing personal data to DOGE Holmes and Balwani's appeal falls flat as court upholds fraud convictions IN THE NEWS Bitcoin's slide continues as traders eye further big falls ahead Warner Bros Discovery slashes gaming business, closing three studios Google announces layoffs in its HR, cloud units as part of ongoing cost cuts AI Video of Trump Sucking Musk's Toes Blasted on Government Office TVs IRS Employees Told They Must Respond to Musk’s Bizarre Email by Midnight Federal technology staffers resign rather than help Musk and DOGE Amid a Musk-led overhaul, the FAA starts doing business with SpaceX Educational tech company Chegg sues Google over AI Overviews Grok blocked results saying Musk and Trump ‘spread misinformation’ Elon's Grok 3 AI Provides "Hundreds of Pages of Detailed Instructions" on Creating Chemical Weapons Anthropic reportedly ups its next funding round to $3.5B There’s Something Very Weird About This $30 Billion AI Startup by a Man Who Said Neural Networks May Already Be Conscious North Korea Stole $1.4 Billion in Largest Crypto Heist Ever, Researchers Say Fyre Festival 2 is coming, and it already sounds bananas (and not in a good way) The SEC is dropping an investigation into Robinhood The Securities and Exchange Commission issued guidance on Thursday saying it does not view most meme coins, which are crypto tokens that originated from Jeff Bezos Announces That Washington Post Opinions Will Now Exclusively Celebrate the Glories of Capitalism MEDIA CANDY The White Lotus Andor | Season 2 Trailer | Streaming April 22 on Disney+ Andor Season 2 Will Drop in 3-Episode Weekly ‘Chapters’ Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy to Retire, Ushering in a New Era for Star Wars Marvel's new Disney+ series 'Daredevil: Born Again' is drawing glowing first reactions by members of the press. YouTube passes 1 billion monthly active podcast viewers Will Trent Paramount+ adds 50 classic MTV Unplugged episodes Max reverses course, won't charge extra for live sports and news FCC Launches Probe Into iHeartMedia’s Alleged Payola Practices APPS & DOODADS Silicon Valley's next act: bringing 'vibe coding' to the world Meta confirms Instagram issue that's flooding users
