This week, the Geeks wade into a swamp of tech meltdowns, governmental facepalms, and the usual Elon-flavored absurdity. Kicking things off, protesters take their beef with Tesla to the streets while Proud Boys decide this is the hill to vroom and die on. Meanwhile, Elon’s privacy prayers have finally been answered—thanks to new FAA rules, he and Tay-Tay can jet around untracked like it’s 1999. Oh, and while Earth dodges a killer asteroid, the Moon might be signing up for an unplanned smackdown. Sorry, Luna. In the news, Signal’s reputation as the go-to encrypted app takes a nosedive thanks to Republican Senate drama and an Inspector General with receipts. The NSA warned us. Nobody listened. Now it’s “SignalGate” season. Elon continues his narcissist Voltron strategy by having xAI buy X (from Elon). Trump, meanwhile, is moonwalking into a $2.3B Truth Social payday, while his meme coin tanks post-tariff tantrum. OpenAI flexes with new AGI funding and 700M AI-generated images (probably 699M of them cursed), while the first therapy chatbot actually helps someone and a brain-voice interface starts sounding a lot like Skynet: The Prequel . Oh, and in shocking news: Trump’s war on “information silos” is code for “your personal data is about to be someone else’s business.” Media Candy serves up a grab bag from punk docs ( Turn It Around ) to jungle pulp throwbacks ( Tales of the Gold Monkey ), and yes—Stephen Collins is still problematic. Apple’s prepping new AI-powered health apps, emoji drops, and a food tab for News+, because why not. WhatsApp now wants to be your phone, Alexa+ disappoints, and Zuckerberg tries to make Facebook usable again with a “Friends-only” feed. Meanwhile, Bill Gates pulls a nostalgia flex by dropping OG Microsoft source code like it’s a rare vinyl. In other dark corners: Kermit the Frog is now giving commencement speeches, Val Kilmer sadly exits stage left, and Elon fails in his bid to buy a state supreme court. Hands off, Elon. Just… hands off. Sponsors: 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 DeleteMe - Head over to JoinDeleteMe.com/GOG and use the code "GOG" for 20% off. Show notes at https://gog.show/691 FOLLOW UP Crowds Turn Out Across the U.S. for ‘Tesla Takedown’ Protests The Proud Boys and Militias Come to Tesla’s Defense Taylor Swift and Elon Can Finally Fly Private Without Being Tracked Thanks to New FAA Rule Earth Is Safe From Menacing Asteroid—but Our Moon Might Take the Hit IN THE NEWS Republican chair of Senate Armed Services Committee calls for investigation into Signal chat DoD Inspector General Says He’s Looking Into SignalGate Waltz’s team set up at least 20 Signal group chats for crises across the world NSA warned of vulnerabilities in Signal app a month before Houthi strike chat Trump administration fires director of National Security Agency xAI, Elon Musk's AI company, just purchased X, Elon Musk's social media company Trump kicks off sale of $2.3bn Truth Social stake You’ll Never Guess What Happened to Trump’s Meme Coin After He Announced His Tariffs OpenAI: New funding to build towards AGI Oxygen Levels in Earth's Lakes Are Plummeting, Study Reveals ChatGPT users have generated over 700M images since last week, OpenAI says First Therapy Chatbot Trial Yields Mental Health Benefits US Senate committee opens review into Meta’s efforts to gain access to China Brain-to-voice neuroprosthesis restores naturalistic speech Generative AI Leadership & Strategy Specialization President Trump’s War on ‘Information Silos’ Is Bad News for Your Personal Data MEDIA CANDY The White Lotus The Studio Orphan Black: Echoes Orphan Black She-Hulk: Attorney at Law Tales of the Gold Monkey Stephen Collins Turn It Around: The Story of East Bay Punk Genres are bustin’ out all over in Strange New Worlds S3 teaser Ferris Bueller's teacher schools Trump on tariffs APPS & DOODADS Project 2025 Tracker Apple is reportedly on track to launch the M5 iPad Pro and MacBook Pro later this year Apple is said to be developing a revamped Health app with a built-in AI doctor iOS 18.4 is available now with new emoji, Apple News+ Food and priority notifications Change the default apps on iPhone WhatsApp can be your default calling and texting app on iPhone Alexa+ is out, but missing a lot of features Amazon demoed last month Facebook’s new Friends-only feed ditches all the algorithmic junk Bill Gates Publishes Original Microsoft Source Code in a Blog Post Red Salsa THE DARK SIDE WITH DAVE Dave Bittner The CyberWire Hacking Humans Caveat Control Loop Only Malware in the Building Kermit the Frog named University of Maryland commencement speaker CLOSING SHOUT-OUTS Bletchley cod
