Uncanny Valley | WIRED

It’s hard to remember what television on the internet was like before Netflix started streaming original programming on demand. But maybe that fact just underscores the massive influence the platform has had over the shows we watch and how we watch them. This week on Gadget Lab, Peter Kafka, cohost of season two of the Land of the Giants podcast from Recode, joins us to talk about the rise of Netflix, its influence on our culture, and how the pandemic has affected our use of the service. In the second half of the show, we broaden the discussion to talk about the state of streaming video in general, and Peter offers some advice on how to navigate the confusing trenches of the streaming wars.Show Notes: Listen to Recode’s Land of the Giants: The Netflix Effect podcast here. Read more about HBO Max on WIRED.com. Read Kate Knibbs’ story about Palm Springs here. You can also read all of WIRED’s coverage of Netflix here. Recommendations: Peter recommends the show ZeroZeroZero on Amazon Prime and also Vermont. Lauren recommends the movie Palm Springs on Hulu. Mike recommends the free streaming service Kanopy.Peter Kafka can be found on Twitter @pkafka. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Doomscrolling—everybody's doing it! You’re lying in bed, on your phone, trying to fall asleep, but then you end up staying awake for hours as your social media timeline fills you with anger and anxiety. This isn't just your garden-variety FOMO either. We’re in the middle of a pandemic, and it can feel like there's a fresh new calamity or setback every single day. Add displays of collective grief over racial injustice to the mix, and it can be even harder to look away. So how do you stay informed without growing enraged? How do you stay connected without spiraling into despair?This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED senior editor Angela Watercutter joins us to talk about our shifting relationships with social media and how we’re dialing back the doomscrolling.Show Notes: Read Angela’s story about how doomscrolling is eroding your mental health here. Read more about digital wellbeing tools on Android phones here and find all of WIRED’s suggestions and coverage of digital wellness here. Find Ram Dass’ Here and Now Podcast here. Our guide to the best Kindles is here.Recommendations: Angela recommends I May Destroy You on HBO. Lauren recommends The Netflix Effect: Land of the Giants by Recode/Vox. Mike recommends the music of Ennio Morricone and that you read John Zorn’s obituary of Morricone in The New York Times.Angela Watercutter can be found on Twitter @WaterSlicer. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Getting through this pandemic hasn't been easy. Each day can feel like a slog, especially when, for many people, the necessary shelter-in-place restrictions have no end in sight. While being cooped up and isolated from others isn't pleasant, there are some ways to make the experience more bearable.This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED service editor Alan Henry and WIRED senior writer Adrienne So join the show to talk about the gadgets, media, and lifestyle adjustments that have helped them get through quarantine so far.Show Notes: Find more WIRED recommendations for the gear and tips to get you through the pandemic here. Read Joe Ray’s review of Eat Your Books here. Read more about how to get free library books on your Kindle here. Read Alan’s guide on how to pump up your playlist here. That Vulfpeck song is “Wait for the Moment.”Recommendations: Adrienne recommends the Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids Edition tablet and the show The Expanse. Alan recommends Aukey T21 True Wireless Earbuds and Freefall Radio. Mike recommends the Zojirushi Micom Rice Cooker & Warmer and NHK World’s Dining With the Chef.Adrienne So can be found on Twitter @adriennemso. Alan Henry is @halophoenix. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference is normally an energetic, bustling affair. This year, of course, things are anything but normal. Instead of live talks in front of full crowds and attendees mingling face to face, WWDC was a virtual-only experience. During the keynote address, execs rattled off their announcements in pre-recorded video segments filmed on a very empty Apple campus. The slick, occasionally eerie production was a glimpse into just how lonely the tech world has become. This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED senior associate editor Julian Chokkattu joins us to talk about everything Apple announced and what this very weird WWDC means for the future of the tech conference.Show Notes: Check out everything Apple announced at WWDC here. Read Julian’s breakdown of all the new features of iOS 14 coming soon to an iPhone near you here. Also read Julian’s guide to everything you need to work from home here.Recommendations: Julian recommends the Post-it Flex Write Surface. Lauren recommends the episode of 9to5 Mac’s Watchtime podcast with Ish ShaBazz. Mike recommends Omni Calculator.Julian Chokkattu can be found on Twitter @JulianChokkattu. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

A package showing up on your doorstep normally gives you a little hit of excitement. But for one Massachusetts couple last year, the arrival of each new package triggered feelings of anxiety and dread. This week on Gadget Lab, we talk about the cyberstalking campaign that six former eBay employees allegedly launched against the married owners of a news website that’s often critical of the ecommerce industry. It’s a twisted tale featuring shipments of live roaches, a pig’s head mask, unwanted pornography, and a whole lot of bad feelings. WIRED’s own Brian Barrett joins us for the first half of the show to tell us about all the terrible antics the former eBayers have been charged with carrying out.Later in the episode, we’re joined by WIRED’s Lily Hay Newman to discuss a new, previously unknown Russian internet group that’s been spreading disinformation online. Secondary Infektion, as the group is known, has for years been trying to disrupt elections, sow discord among European nations, and spread nationalist Russian propaganda using thousands of temporary social media accounts. A new report from researchers at Graphika outlines the group’s activities.Show Notes: Brian Barrett’s story about the alleged eBay harassment scandal is here. Also read Lily on Grafika’s report about Secondary Infektion.Recommendations: Lily recommends keeping your tattoos and clothing logos hidden during public protests. Brian recommends Alabama Booksmith, which sells signed first editions of books. Mike recommends the Black Lives collection streaming for free on the Criterion Channel. Lauren recommends Duolingo for learning new languages.Brain Barrett can be found on Twitter @BrBarrett. Lily is @lilyhnewman. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Mike is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

As states and cities lift shelter-in-place restrictions, there’s still so much we don’t know about the coronavirus and how it spreads. Which has left a lot of people wondering: How safe is it, really, to start socializing again? Is wearing a mask a part of our lives for the foreseeable future—and is it possible to persuade stubborn family members to wear one, too? Are short flights safer than long flights? And, are single people destined to remain dateless in the time of coronavirus?This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED science writers Megan Molteni and Adam Rogers come on the show to try to answer some of these pressing questions. The short answer, of course, is that there are no easy answers; each decision we make is now a complicated labyrinth of potential exposure, personal circumstances, risk tolerance, and macro concerns about public health. We’re here to help guide you through this crisis.Show NotesRead Adrienne So's story about the dilemma of sending your kids back to daycare here. Read all of WIRED’s coronavirus coverage here.RecommendationsMegan recommends the book Little Eyes by Samanta Schweblin. Adam recommends the movie Footlight Parade. Lauren recommends HBO’s Run.Megan Molteni is on Twitter @MeganMolteni. Adam Rogers is @jetjocko. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Lauren is @LaurenGoode. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Across the world, millions of people have gathered to protest police brutality and systemic racism after an officer in Minneapolis killed George Floyd, an unarmed black man. Amid the outpouring of grief and support, tech companies like Google, Amazon, and Reddit have issued statements backing protestors and the Black Lives Matter movement. But these same companies also provide platforms and services that prop up communities of hate and help law enforcement disproportionately track and convict people of color.This week on Gadget Lab, a conversation with WIRED senior writers Sidney Fussell and Lily Hay Newman about hypocrisy in tech, police surveillance, and how to safely exercise your right to protest.Show Notes: Read Sidney’s story about tech companies’ relationships with law enforcement here. Read Lily and Andy Greenberg’s tips for how to protect yourself from surveillance while protesting here. Read Lauren Goode and Louryn Strampe’s story about what to bring and what to avoid at a demonstration here. Follow all of WIRED’s protest coverage here.Recommendations: Sidney recommends the documentary LA 92 about the aftermath of the Rodney King killing. Lily recommends Mission Darkness Faraday bags from MOS Equipment. Lauren recommends this Google doc of anti-racism resources. Mike recommends donating to Campaign Zero and Grassroots Law Project.Sidney Fussell can be found on Twitter @sidneyfussell. Lily Hay Newman is @lilyhnewman. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. And in case you really need it, dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

A political firestorm erupted this week when Twitter flagged two of President Trump’s tweets about mail-in voting, calling them potentially misleading, and amending them with some timid attempts at fact-checking. This action caused the President to lash out at the social media platform by signing an executive order demanding a legal review of the protections it enjoys under the Communications Decency Act. The order doesn’t just affect Twitter, but also Facebook, YouTube, and any platform that allows users to post their own content.This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED politics writer Gilad Edelman joins us to talk about Twitter's foray into fact-checking, why it enraged the President, and what potential fallout we could see from the White House’s actions. We also discuss the November vote—the very topic Trump was tweeting about when this whole mess started.Show Notes: Read about President Trump’s executive order targeting social media platforms here. Read Gilad’s stories about in-person voting and Twitter’s fact-checking efforts. Recommendations: Gilad recommends using a sleep mask and putting mayonnaise on your egg and cheese sandwiches. Mike recommends The Midnight Gospel on Netflix. Lauren recommends Bookshop.org.Gilad Edelman can be found on Twitter @GiladEdelman. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Silicon Valley loves its disruption. If any industry was prepared to handle the monumental changes brought on by the coronavirus, it’s big tech. Companies like Twitter and Facebook were some of the first to require their employees to work from home, even before official shelter-in-place orders went into effect. Now, they and others have extended their remote work policies to allow their employees to telecommute from home forever, even after the pandemic ends.This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED senior writer Arielle Pardes joins us to talk about the workplace goings-on in Silicon Valley. In the second half of the show, we discuss Clubhouse, the hot new social network keeping tech bigwigs connected.Show Notes: Read Arielle’s stories about Clubhouse and how Silicon Valley is rethinking the home office. Read Sarah Frier’s story in Bloomberg about tech workers wanting to escape Silicon Valley’s high rents here. Read more about automatic espresso machines from WIRED reviews editor Jeffrey Van Camp here. Read more about Eat Your Books from Joe Ray here.Recommendations: Arielle recommends the Gravity Blanket and Allbirds’ Dasher running shoes. Lauren recommends the Nespresso Creatista Plus. Mike recommends the online cookbook catalog Eat Your Books.Arielle can be found on Twitter @pardesoteric. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

In May of 2017, Marcus Hutchins saved the internet. A vicious ransomware attack known as WannaCry had infected computer systems across dozens of countries. It was the worst cyberattack in history at the time, and it seemed unstoppable. But Hutchins, a 23-year-old-hacker in Ilfracombe, England, discovered a secret kill switch that stopped the malware from propagating. Hutchins became a celebrity overnight, with the hacker community and the media hailing him as a hero. But all of the newfound attention was not good for him. Three months after defeating the malware, Marcus was arrested by the FBI—not for his involvement in WannaCry, but for a string of past illegal activities that he had kept secret.This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED senior writer Andy Greenberg joins us to talk about Hutchins' remarkable story. In the second half of the show, Andy gives us an update on the efforts to set up a contact tracing system to monitor the spread of the coronavirus.Show Notes: Read Andy’s cover story about the hacker who saved the internet here. His story about contact tracing in India is here. Also check out Andy’s book, Sandworm. Read more about the WannaCry ransomware attack here. Follow all of WIRED’s cybersecurity coverage here.Recommendations: Andy recommends the book The Mastermind by Evan Ratliff. Lauren recommends NPR’s Planet Money podcast. Mike recommends The New York Times Magazine story “What Happened to Val Kilmer? He’s Just Starting to Figure It Out.”Andy Greenberg can be found on Twitter @a_greenberg. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

While every economic sector in America has been upended by the coronavirus, few have been hit as hard as the transit and food service industries. It's not so easy to hop on a bus or train when there's a need for increased sanitation and social distancing. It’s equally as difficult to imagine sitting down in a cafe next to some strangers and ordering a nice salade niçoise as servers buzz around the dining room. As the country grows more desperate to return to something approaching normalcy, experiences like riding a bus, hailing an Uber, and dining out will soon look very different, with restaurant tables spilling into the roads, and the roads themselves closed to cars.This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED transportation writer Aarian Marshall joins us to talk about how the coronavirus is poised to change the design of city life.Show Notes: Read Aarian’s story about how cities are embracing outdoor spaces here. Catch up with Elon Musk’s Tesla tweetstorm here. Read more from WIRED about the state of transportation here. Follow all of our coronavirus coverage here.Recommendations: Aaarian recommends buying subscriptions to some print magazines so you’re not just staring at a screen all the time. Lauren recommends Billions on Showtime. Mike recommends Questlove Quarantine Live From the Qibbutz on YouTube.Aarian Marshall can be found on Twitter @AarianMarshall. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Back in March, counter-culture icon and founder of the Whole Earth Catalog Stewart Brand made a statement on Twitter that surprised some people: He had decided, and had communicated to his wife and the rest of his family, that if he got sick from the coronavirus, he wanted to refuse invasive procedures, including being put on a ventilator. It sparked a conversation about medical freedom and what it takes to have a sense of agency over death.This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED editor-at-large Steven Levy has a conversation with Brand and his wife Ryan Phelan about their decisions, and why it's important for people to have conversations about their medical wishes.Show Notes: Read more from Steven Levy’s conversation with Stewart brand here. Follow all of WIRED’s coronavirus coverage here.Steven Levy can be found on Twitter @StevenLevy. Stewart Brand is @stewartbrand. Ryan Phelan is @Ryanphelan6. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Depending on where you live, the stores, parks, playgrounds, and offices in your area could be shut down for the rest of this summer. Or, they could all be open again right now. State governments have differing opinions on when the best time is to restart normal life (and the economy) even though public health experts are advising us all to continue to shelter in place until we’re equipped to test and care for every American who falls ill.This week on Gadget Lab, we ask WIRED senior correspondent Adam Rogers how we would go about safely reopening the country. Then, a conversation about how we’re all coping with the coronavirus. (Mostly booze, but some other things too.)Show Notes: Read more from Adam about the White Houses’ plans for easing social distancing measures, and about how state alliances here. Follow all of WIRED’s coronavirus coverage here. Read all you’d ever want to know about alcohol in Adam’s book Proof: The Science of Booze.Recommendations: Adam recommends the book Forced Perspectives by Tim Powers. Lauren recommends the show The Affair. Mike recommends the re-released Wim Wenders film Until the End of the World.Adam Rogers can be found on Twitter @jetjocko. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Even amid a global pandemic, the world of tech keeps on turning. Some companies have responded directly to the outbreak, offering up smartphone-based contact tracing and wearable solutions to help slow the spread of the coronavirus. But none of these options is perfect, and many of them raise ethical concerns about the information they ask for in return.This week on Gadget Lab, we talk with WIRED senior writer Sidney Fussell about Apple and Google's plans for contact tracing and whether anyone is going to buy a new iPhone right now.Show Notes: Read Sidney and Will Knight’s story about contact tracing. Also read Andy Greenberg’s report on the strengths and weaknesses of the Google/Apple plan. Lauren’s story about wearables detecting COVID-19 is here, and her story about whether anyone is going to buy new smartphones is here. Follow all of WIRED’s coronavirus coverage hereRecommendations: Sidney recommends the show Devs on Hulu. Mike recommends the novel Days of Distraction by Alexandra Chang. Lauren recommends Sandra Upson’s WIRED story “The Devastating Decline of a Brilliant Young Coder.”Sidney Fussell can be found on Twitter @sidneyfussell. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Researchers around the world are toiling to develop a vaccine for the coronavirus. But the creation of a working vaccine that can be safely distributed to a broad population requires a tremendous amount of rigor and caution, so the process is likely to take at least a year. WIRED staff writer Megan Molteni has covered the novel coronavirus outbreak since the virus was first identified in early January. This week on Gadget Lab, we talk with Megan about where our efforts to make a vaccine currently stand. We also discuss why it’s been so difficult to get Americans tested for the coronavirus.Show Notes: Read more about the search for a coronavirus vaccine here. Read more about testing here. Also read Maryn McKenna on the potential dangers of rushing out a vaccine. Follow all of WIRED’s coronavirus coverage here.Recommendations: Megan recommends Bon Appétit’s “Test Kitchen Talks” video series. Lauren recommends Medea Giordano’s story about nonprofits, charities, and other companies helping people in need during the pandemic. Mike recommends an episode of the Under the Scales podcast with writer Jesse Jarnow.Megan Molteni can be found on Twitter @MeganMolteni. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.If you have feedback about the show, or just want to enter to win a $50 gift card, take our brief listener survey here. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The coronavirus outbreak is accelerating in the United States. According to projections, the number of Covid-19 cases in the US is expected to peak around the middle of April. Meanwhile, medical practitioners at hospitals and other health facilities across the country face a shortage of life-saving medical equipment. Without enough ventilators, masks, and tests, the task of dealing with the coming surge in patients becomes significantly more challenging.This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED senior correspondent Adam Rogers comes on the show to talk about medical supply shortages, why there's so much conflicting information about whether people should wear masks, and how a global crisis changes the way we communicate.Show Notes: Read Adam and Megan Molteni’s story about the math behind predicting the course of the coronavirus here. Read Lauren’s story about email etiquette during a pandemic here. Read Tom Simonite’s story about the shortage of masks here. Read Gregory Barber’s story about how hospitals are preparing to deal with equipment shortages here. Follow all of WIRED’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic here.Recommendations: Adam recommends the show Community. Mike recommends the Houseparty app (provided you hobble its data-collection abilities). Lauren recommends The Wire.Adam Rogers can be found on Twitter @jetjocko. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, it can be hard to keep track of what's real and what's not. There is a constant deluge of news from across the world, some of it is based on false assumptions or panicky reactions that fail to put data or science into the proper context.This week on Gadget Lab, a conversation about all the misinformation swirling around the coronavirus pandemic. We talk with WIRED editor-in-chief Nick Thompson about how to parse the information coming out of the White House, whether ibuprofen is harmful to people sick with the virus, and the sometimes surprisingly helpful responses of social media platforms.Show Notes: Read Maryn McKenna’s story about the controversy over ibuprofen here. Read more from Steven Levy about the possible end of the techlash here. Read Tristan Harris on how Silicon Valley could control the direction of the pandemic here. Recommendations: Nick recommends the Techne Futbol soccer training app and also The Naked Gun. Lauren recommends the Headspace meditation app. Mike recommends Bandcamp.com as a way to support your favorite music artists.Nick Thompson can be found on Twitter @nxthompson. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

As the number of coronavirus-caused quarantines has spiked across the globe, people are being driven into isolation en masse. In some countries, social distancing measures have been helping, but they also come a little too late.This week on Gadget Lab, we talk with WIRED science writer Matt Simon about why places like Italy have been hit so hard by the coronavirus and what it could predict as the outbreak ramps up in the U.S. Then, a conversation with WIRED senior writer Adrienne So about how parents can manage having their children locked at home with them after schools shut down.Show Notes: Read Matt’s story about how hard the coronavirus has hit Italy here. Read Adrienne’s story about how to entertain young children during a quarantine here. Learn about all the new, new dinosaurs at Curiosity Stream here.Recommendations: Adrienne recommends Lunch Doodles with Mo Willems. Mike recommends the new podcast Rivals. Lauren recommends the 18-piece Pyrex Simply Store set for saving all your WFH lunches.Matt Simon can be found on Twitter @mrMattSimon. Adrienne So is @adriennemso. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

As COVID-19 sweeps across the world, it has prompted thousands of people to isolate themselves to avoid spreading the virus. This week on Gadget Lab, we look at what happens when schools and universities close, conferences get canceled, and employees are told to work from home en masse. Then, we talk with WIRED digital director Brian Barrett, a longtime remote worker himself, about how to handle prolonged isolation without going completely bonkers.Show Notes: Read Brian Barrett’s tips for working from home without losing your mind here. Read Lauren’s story about how universities are handling the virus here. Read more about the rise of virtual conferencing here. Read Arielle Pardes’ story about the ethics of ordering food during a pandemic here.Recommendations: Lauren recommends the episode of Reply All called “The Case of the Missing Hit.” Mike also recommends a podcast: the Twenty Thousand Hertz episode, “Satanic panic”. Brian recommends just staying home, for god sakes.Brian Barrett can be found on Twitter @brbarrett. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Facebook started in 2004 as a simple network for connecting students at Harvard University. At the time, nobody could have predicted that it would grow to become the largest social network in the world, with 2.5 billion monthly active users, or that it would wield such tremendous influence over our lives, our politics, and our concept of free speech on the web.The progression of events between the Facebook of then and the Facebook of today is cataloged with great detail in Steven Levy’s new book, Facebook: The Inside Story. It’s the product of four years of reporting, including a series of exclusive interviews with Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg and COO Sheryl Sandberg. Levy, an editor-at-large at WIRED, joins the show this week to talk about Facebook’s past, present, and future.Show Notes: Read an excerpt from Steven Levy’s book here.Recommendations: Steven recommends Scrivener. Lauren recommends Peloton. Mike recommends the NYT Cooking app, which is now available on Android.Steven Levy is on Twitter @StevenLevy Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED senior writer and former show host Arielle Pardes drops by to talk about how Silicon Valley has ruined work culture. Then WIRED senior writer Lily Hay Newman comes on for a conversation about cybersecurity, encryption, and the hacker’s mom who infiltrated a prison.Show Notes: Read Arielle’s story about work culture here. Read Lily’s story about how a hacker’s mom broke into a prison here. All of WIRED’s cybersecurity coverage can be found here.Recommendations: Lily recommends Dangerzone, an application made by Micah Lee that takes PDFs you receive and basically scrubs them to make sure they’re clean before re-saving a safe version. Lauren recommends the book Whistleblower by Susan Fowler. Mike recommends Acid for the Children, a memoir by Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea.Lily Hay Newman can be found on Twitter @lilyhnewman. Arielle Pardes is @pardesoteric. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Many companies say they want to diversify their workforce. Far fewer have actually succeeded in doing so, even if they're earnestly trying. And one of the first hurdles can come before any candidates have even been interviewed: The language used in recruiting emails or job postings is often full of unconscious biases—phrases like "gentlemen's agreement" or even "ninja" can deter women or people of color from even applying in the first place. But how do we check our unconscious biases when, by definition, we don't know what they are? A Seattle startup called Textio says it’s using machine learning to help eliminate those biases in real time, by literally changing the writing of hiring managers who are composing the job postings. This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED senior writer Lauren Goode talks with Textio CEO Kieran Snyder about the way the software works, how tracking language patterns over time can reveal deep insights about how we see the world, and how this kind of “augmented writing” software could eventually be used in applications beyond job postings. Show Notes: Read more about Textio here. Check out other conversations from WIRED25 here.Lauren Goode can be found on Twitter @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

On Tuesday of this week Samsung held its annual Galaxy Unpacked event in San Francisco. It did what most tech companies set out to do when they host a big event: Announce shiny new products (Galaxy S20! Another folding phone! Some earbuds!) and get customers stoked for features like "sub-6 5G compatibility" and "Space Zoom." It was the kind of product launch that has become standard over the years for big tech companies.This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED senior associate editor Julian Chokkattu and WIRED contributor Boone Ashworth join co-host Lauren Goode to chat about all things Samsung and more. We dish all about the new products the company announced, but then we dig deeper to talk about how those products fit into the broader smartphone market. Does anyone really need to spend $1000 on a phone, in the era of the Pretty Darn Good Mid-Range Phone? And are these kinds of events even necessary when so much info about the products is leaked in advance?Show Notes: Read all about Samsung's big launch event here. Read Lauren’s hands-on impressions of the Galaxy Z Flip here. Check out Julian’s first look at the Galaxy S20 line here, and read his review of the Motorola Razr here. Read Shira Ovide’s story in Bloomberg about tech events here. And please watch this delightful clip of Michael Bay speaking at a Samsung event.Recommendations: Lauren recommends this episode of The Daily podcast, about Clearview AI. Julian recommends the Pixelbook Go as a lightweight replacement for the 16-inch MacBook Pro he’s been carrying around. Boone recommends The Circle, a reality series on Netflix. Julian Chokkattu can be found on Twitter @JulianChokkattu. Lauren is @LaurenGoode. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED digital director Brian Barrett joins us to talk about the app that derailed the Iowa caucus—and what it means for elections to come. Then, a conversation with WIRED staff writer Megan Molteni about how the spread of the coronavirus is claiming lives, disrupting the economy, and creating chaos in the global supply chain.[#iframe: https://playlist.megaphone.fm?p=DGT6274552575](100%x482)Show Notes: Read more about what the hell happened with the Iowa caucus here. Follow WIRED’s ongoing coverage of the coronavirus here. Read more of Megan Molteni’s coverage here, and find Brian Barrett’s work here.Recommendations: Megan recommends season 2 of Sex Education on Netflix. Brian recommends The End of Vandalism by Tom Drury. Lauren recommends season 3 of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Amazon. Mike recommends the podcast Freak Flag Flying.Megan Molteni can be found on Twitter @MeganMolteni. Brian Barrett is @brbarrett. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

It doesn’t take much to make people nostalgic anymore. With the rapid pace of technological advancement, folks get whimsical for even their clunky cell phones from 2005, or a defunct video service from just four years ago. Nostalgia sells—especially when you imbue a familiar screen with a bleeding-edge, high-tech foldable display. Companies are building devices meant to make you feel like you’re bounding into the future, while still invoking those good ol’ days. But does sentimentality make for a good product? Or is this all just marketing bluster?This week on Gadget Lab, we talk with WIRED staff writer Louise Matsakis about Byte, the reboot of the six-second video service Vine. Then, a conversation with WIRED senior associate editor Julian Chokkattu about the new Motorola Razr (but with a folding screen!).[#iframe: https://playlist.megaphone.fm?p=DGT6274552575](100%x482)Show Notes: Read Louise's story about Byte here. Read more about the folding Razr here. Read Brian Barrett’s story about why you should wait for glass in foldable devices here.Recommendations: Julian recommends the show Giri / Haji on Netflix. Lauren recommends following Megan Molteni’s coverage of the coronavirus. Mike recommends the Foodsaver space saving vacuum sealer.Louise Matsakis can be found on Twitter @lmatsakis. Julian Chokkattu is @JulianChokkattu. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

There's money in your mouth. Figuratively speaking (we hope). A growing number of startups and full-fledged companies are looking to bring their smart technology into your mouth. A toothbrush that uses AI to monitor your brushing, dental floss as a subscription service, wearables for teeth—oral hygiene is a booming business for tech companies, who see dollar signs every time you flash your pearly whites. But who does this actually help? Do we really need to spend $200 on a high-powered toothbrush toothbrush? Meanwhile, as if coming along to undo all that cleaning, a computational chemist has finally worked out the formula for the perfect espresso.This week on Gadget Lab, we talk with WIRED senior correspondent Adam Rogers about the latest in mouth tech and how to brew coffee with math.Show Notes: Read Adam’s story about the science behind espresso here. Read Luaren’s story about mouth tech here. For more coffee tips, check out our favorite portable coffee makers and our best latte and espresso machines.Recommendations: Adam recommends Star Trek: Picard. Lauren recommends Little Women. Mike recommends buying and selling tickets on Cash or Trade.Adam Rogers can be found on Twitter @jetjocko. Lauren Goode is @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

There’s an old joke about Steve Jobs, that he never wore a suit because he hated buttons. There’s some truth to that old trope about designers always trying to refine their creations to their absolute core. Minimize the clutter, clear the mind, purify the experience. That’s what consumer electronics manufacturers are still doing, and we explore this trend by pointing at two recent developments in our world: new smartphone designs totally devoid of buttons, and the rising numbers of one-wheeled vehicles on the streets and bike lanes designed for two- and four-wheelers.This week on Gadget Lab, we first talk with show producer Boone Ashworth about why people are obsessed with single-wheeled devices. Then, a conversation with WIRED senior associate editor Julian Chokkattu about the coming wave of buttonless phones.Show Notes: Read Boone’s story about single-wheelers. Also read Julian on the buttonless smartphone trend. Go back to the 2018 scooterocalypse with Alex Davies’ story about the streets of San Francisco.Recommendations: Julian recommends SwitchPod. Boone recommends I’m Sorry on truTV. Mike recommends the Muji 2020 Monthly Weekly Planner. Lauren recommends the latest episode of the Scriptnotes podcast with guest Greta Gerwig.Lauren Goode can be found on Twitter @LaurenGoode. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Julian is @JulianChokkattu. Boone is @BooneAshworth. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth. Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. You can also download an app like Pocket Casts or Google Podcasts, and search for Gadget Lab. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

CES, the all-consuming tech trade show, took over Las Vegas this week. Convention halls and hotels were jam packed with shiny gizmos, bleeding-edge technology, and dazzling devices. Of course, our intrepid Gadget Lab reporters were there in the midst of it all.This week on the show, Mike and Lauren talk with WIRED digital director Brian Barrett at CES. They'll guide you through the glitzy extravaganza, from folding laptops to high-tech sex toys, and highlight the most important trends that may be soon find their way inside a gadget near you.Show Notes: Check out our roundup of the best of CES here. Read more about the introduction of sex toys at CES here. Read more about Lenovo’s folding laptop here. Be sure to follow all of our CES coverage to check out all the cool stuff we didn’t get to talk about.Recommendations: After spending a week in a hotel room at the convention in Las Vegas, the crew shares their favorite tips for business travel. Lauren recommends carrying a Swell bottle and saving cocktail hour until the end of the trip. Brian recommends dissolving Nuun tabs in your water. Mike recommends investing in an Aeropress Go and a collapsible travel kettle.Lauren Goode can be found on Twitter @LaurenGoode. Brian Barrett is @brbarrett. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. You can also download an app like Pocket Casts or Google Podcasts, and search for Gadget Lab. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Next week, we’ll be bound for the largest consumer electronics showcase of the season. CES starts on January 7 in Las Vegas, and we’ll be heading into the fray to touch, swipe, drive, cuddle, ride, and otherwise experience all of the latest gadgets the consumer tech industry wants to put in front of our eager eyeballs. On this week’s show, Michael Calore, Lauren Goode, and special guest Tom Simonite run through all the trends we expect to see at CES, from the practical (5G, smartphone tech, autonomous driving features) to the ludicrous (flying cars, AI refrigerators, internet-connected vibrators).Show NotesRead more about folding screens. Qualcomm’s 5G announcements came early this year. Read up on Honda’s augmented driving initiative. Mashable on the overabundance of men as CES 2019 keynote speakers, and the Verge report about 2018. Follow all of our CES coverage.RecommendationsTom recommends shopping offline whenever you can, especially for things like shoes. Lauren recommends The Morning Show on Apple TV+. Mike recommends the Oxo Compact Cold Brew Coffee Maker.Lauren Goode can be found on Twitter @LaurenGoode. Tom Simonite is @TSimonite. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. You can also download an app like Pocket Casts or Google Podcasts, and search for Gadget Lab. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

2019 was a tumultuous time for technology. While product engineers created hybrid franken-gadgets and software companies turned nearly everything into a subscription service, we also grappled with the increasingly chaotic ripple effects of social media and the realization that there are people listening to our private home recordings. (Not to mention Elon Musk's new murdertruck.)On this episode of Gadget Lab, we're going to try to make sense of it all. We talk about the most important product developments of 2019 and look ahead to predict the trends that will matter in 2020.Show Notes: Read Lauren’s review of the Sonos Ikea Symfonisk Speakers here. Read the story about the making of the California Consumer Privacy Act in the New York Times. Read more about this year’s wild phone design choices here.Recommendations: Lauren recommends the iPad Pro. Mike recommends the Google Pixel 3a. Arielle recommends getting an Amazon Kindle.Lauren Goode can be found on Twitter @LaurenGoode. Arielle Pardes is @pardesoteric. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. You can also download an app like Pocket Casts or Google Podcasts, and search for Gadget Lab. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The cassava plant is one of the most important food sources in the world. In Africa, it sustains 500 million people and provides a stable income for farmers. The crop is also susceptible to viruses transmitted by the common pest known as the whitefly, which can devastate farms. Biologist Laura Boykin has found a way to stop the spread of these diseases. Boykin founded the Cassava Virus Action Project, where she and other scientists use a pocket-sized device called a MinION to sequence the DNA of cassava strains and help farmers select plants that are resistant to the local pathogens.On this episode of Gadget Lab, a conversation with Boykin about her work, the power of direct action, and the possibilities afforded by the technology we have today. The show was recorded with a live audience at the recent WIRED25 conference in San Francisco.Show Notes: Read more about the efforts of Boykin and her fellow scientists at the Cassava Virus Action Project website. Also learn more about Boykin and all of 2019’s WIRED 25 honorees.Recommendations: Lauren Goode can be found on Twitter @LaurenGoode. Arielle Pardes is @pardesoteric. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth). Our consulting executive producer is Alex Kapelman (@alexkapelman). Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. You can also download an app like Pocket Casts or Google Podcasts, and search for Gadget Lab. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

In May, Tesla, the electric vehicle manufacturer run by billionaire Elon Musk, filed a patent to put lasers on its cars. While this might sound like a step toward some kind of James Bond-mobile, the intent is actually to use the lasers to clean dirt and grime from windshields and the lenses of cameras used for self-driving features. It’s a high-tech ambition that hints at Tesla’s larger goals. The news also came the same week that Elon Musk takes the stand in a trial where he’s accused of defaming a British diver last year. It’s a tumultuous time for Tesla and Musk both.This week on Gadget Lab, WIRED transportation writer Alex Davies comes on the show to chat about Tesla's latest automotive machinations and what they mean for the company. (Of course we also talk about the Cybertruck.) Then the gang shares their best travel tips, just in time for the holidays.Show Notes: Read more about Tesla’s laser-Windex here. You can also keep up with Musk’s notorious "Pedo guy" trial and all the latest Tesla news here. Find more of our travel news and advice here and check out our Gadget Lab team's favorite gear to accompany you on your trip.Recommendations:Alex recommends How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman. (Also you should preorder Alex’s book Driven: The Race to Create the Autonomous Car.) Mike recommends The War on Cars podcast, in particular the episode with legal scholar Sarah Seo about how private car ownership has created an “automotive police state.” Arielle recommends the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows.Alex Davies can be found on Twitter @adavies47. Arielle Pardes is @pardesoteric. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Lauren is @LaurenGoode. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. You can also download an app like Pocket Casts or Google Podcasts, and search for Gadget Lab. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Former Facebook bigwig Chris Cox has been busy. In March, Cox left his position as chief product officer of the social media giant, where he had overseen Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger. Since then, he’s taken on advising roles with an environmental data company and a political firm gearing up for a 2020 marketing campaign. He’s also gotten a lot more partisan in the process.On this episode of the Gadget Lab podcast, a conversation with Cox about his post-Facebook activities, the merits of encryption, and how big tech companies affect climate change.Show Notes: Read more about Lauren’s talk with Cox here, and follow all the news about Facebook here.Lauren Goode can be found on Twitter @LaurenGoode. Arielle Pardes is @pardesoteric. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. You can also download an app like Pocket Casts or Google Podcasts, and search for Gadget Lab. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Tech companies say they want to serve their customers, but sometimes they’re curiously resistant to fixing problems with their products. Their solutions can be alternately welcome, or divisive. Last week, Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri announced that the company would soon start testing a feature to hide likes on its platform. The limitation is meant to both decrease social pressures and to curb bullying, and maybe at the very least it will make us all a little less narcissistic on the internet. So far, Instagram users have regarded the move as controversial.Elsewhere in Silicon Valley, Apple has been putting the same type of keyboard on its MacBooks for the past four years. There’s a problem, though: it’s awful. The so-called “butterfly switch” keys often got stuck or just stopped working entirely. But, at last, there is a solution! All you have to do is buy a brand new $2,400 MacBook Pro.This week on the Gadget Lab, we talk about these recent changes in consumer tech and what they mean for the people who use the products.Show Notes: Read Adrienne So’s story about how Instagram is testing hiding likes here, and watch Arielle’s full conversation with Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri here. Read Julian Chokkattu’s story about the new Macbook here. Read Sara Harrison’s story about how you probably need more sleep here.Recommendations: Lauren recommends the book How to Do Nothing by Jenny Odell. Mike recommends the One Eleven SWII solar watch made of planet-friendly materials. Arielle recommends the cover story of the December issue of The Atlantic called “How America Ends.”Lauren Goode can be found on Twitter @LaurenGoode. Arielle Pardes is @pardesoteric. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. You can also download an app like Pocket Casts or Google Podcasts, and search for Gadget Lab. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS … Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Given all the criticism, mistrust, and investigations that have been levied at Facebook in the past couple years, one might think that they would do their best to lie low for a while. Instead, Facebook has decided to rebrand to be as prominent as possible across the various apps it owns. In a similar flex of brand might, Google recently bought health tracking company Fitbit, in a bid to expand its reach into wearable tech. But what happens to the customers of these smaller companies when their overlords tighten the reins? Is it just marketing, or does the fundamental experience change?On this week's episode of the Gadget Lab, a conversation about how Big Tech is taking over disparate products and what that means for the people who use them.Show Notes: Read Arielle’s story about the rebranding of Facebook (sorry: F A C E B O O K) here. Read Louise Matsakis’s story about Google’s acquisition of Fitbit here, and check out Lauren’s story about what it all means for the future of wearables here. Listen to the full Marketplace episode with Fitbit CEO James Park here.Recommendations: Lauren recommends an interview with Edward Snowden on the Recode Decode podcast. Mike recommends The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen. Arielle recommends Leuchtturm1917 notebooks.Lauren Goode can be found on Twitter @LaurenGoode. Arielle Pardes is @pardesoteric. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme music is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. You can also download an app like Pocket Casts or Google Podcasts, and search for Gadget Lab. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed.https://www.wired.com/feed/podcast/gadget-lab Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

The way we listen to audio has evolved with technology. Headphones, once bulky skull-huggers that kept us plugged into a device, are going increasingly wireless. The simplicity makes it easy to wear your AirPods for hours at a time, and with the noise-canceling feature of the newly released Pro model, you can block out even more of the outside world. Inside our homes, smart assistants like Amazon's Alexa and Google Assistant sit ready and waiting to listen and record snippets of our lives, even when we don't want them to. On this week's episode of The Gadget Lab, Mike, Lauren, and Arielle take a look at the ways we use tech to listen, and how our tech listens to us.Show Notes: You can read Lauren’s story about the new AirPods Pro here. Read Lily Hay Newman’s story about how to keep your smart assistant voice recordings private here.Recommendations: Mike recommends the Los Angeles Times podcast This is California: The Battle of 187. Lauren recommends NPR's Up First podcast. Arielle recommends the wild tale of an Airbnb scam ring from VICE’s Allie Conti.Lauren Goode can be found on Twitter @LaurenGoode. Arielle Pardes is @pardesoteric. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Ask Parker Hall all about the AirPods Pro @pwhall. Our theme song is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Without video creators, YouTube wouldn’t be one of the world’s biggest social platforms. Without the platform, YouTubers wouldn’t be, well, YouTubers. But video creators are regularly facing new policy changes from YouTube that could impact their ability to make money from their work — and it’s not always clear what these changes are, or why YouTube is making them. Now, as part of a push for fair treatment, YouTubes are looking to collective action. And the effort is being led, in part, by an unlikely characters: A creator in Germany who makes high-powered slingshots for his audience of 2.3 million people. This week on the Gadget Lab podcast, we talk with WIRED staff writer Emma Grey Ellis about what YouTubers hope to get out of their unionization efforts, and what the movement means for the video giant.Also in the news: Mark Zuckerberg gets grilled by the House Financial Services Committee about Libra, Facebook’s proposed cryptocurrency...only, the hearing was about much more than just Libra. Show Notes: Read Emma’s story about the YouTubers union here. And here’s Steven Levy’s story about the Libra hearing in Washington D.C. Read Lauren's review of the Samsung Galaxy Fold here.Recommendations: Emma recommends the science and comedy podcast Ologies with Alie Ward. Mike recommends the book I Like to Watch by Emily Nussbaum. Lauren recommends the book Catch and Kill by Ronan Farrow. Arielle recommends Google’s experimental Digital Wellbeing features, like the one that batches your notifications for you. Emma Grey Ellis is on Twitter @EmmaGreyEllis. Lauren Goode can be found @LaurenGoode. Arielle Pardes is @pardesoteric. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme song is by Solar Keys.How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. You can also download an app like Pocket Casts or Google Podcasts, and search for Gadget Lab. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed.https://www.wired.com/feed/podcast/gadget-lab Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Despite a lack of evidence that more technology makes kids safer, facial recognition technology may soon be coming to a school near you. It’s part of a growing trend of increased surveillance and security in schools, and a WIRED story this week examined the delicate ethics of this technology. On the one hand, proponents say that the technology could help school staffers open gates for parents or staff, watch for persons of interest, ensure a child is leaving school with a guardian, and even deter school shootings. Parents protesting it, though, say they see it as a sign of creeping authoritarianism. On this week’s podcast, WIRED Editor in Chief Nick Thompson joins the show from New York to discuss this story with Gadget Lab co-host Lauren Goode. They also chat about Google’s new Pixel 4 smartphone (why is Google making its own smartphone, anyway?) and the surprising speech about freedom of speech that Mark Zuckerberg made on Thursday. Show Notes: You can read about Zuckerberg’s freedom-of-speech speech here. Learn all of the details of the new Google Pixel 4 phone here (and stay tuned for our full review next week). Read Tom Simonite and Greg Barber’s story on facial recognition technology in schools here. Recommendations: Nick Thompson recommends this Spotify playlist compiled by WIRED Senior Writer Jason Parham. It’s everything you need to power through the fall season. Lauren Goode recommends the This Week In Nope podcast, hosted by Rachel Dodes and Brian Hecht, who dissect the news of the week and assign “Nopes” and “Yups” to the bad and good. Nick Thompson can be found at @nxthompson. Lauren Goode can be found at @LaurenGoode. Arielle Pardes is @pardesoteric. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Boone Ashworth, who edited the show, can be found at @booneashworth. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme song is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

How long have you gone without checking your phone in the past week? 10, 15, maybe 20 minutes while you’re awake? Our screens have commandeered our eyeballs and taken hold of our lives. Our phones buzz constantly with notifications, even when we intentionally move them off the dinner table, away from our bedsides, and out of sight. Ten years ago, before smartphones had even become mainstream, filmmaker Tiffany Shlain felt like something was askew in her life—and believed that technology had something to do with it. So she and her family instituted a “Tech Shabbat,” one day a week where they refused to use any form of modern technology. It involved installing landlines, printing out maps, and actually looking one another in the eye during conversations, but a decade later Shlain has determined that the benefits of consciously disconnecting outweigh the short-term sense of accomplishment we get from being on our phones. Shlain joins this week’s Gadget Lab podcast to talk about her evolving relationship with technology, and the process of stepping away from film to write a full-length book. Show Notes: You can find out more about Tiffany Shlain’s book here. You can read Peter’s exclusive story about the PlayStation 5 console here. Lily Newman’s story about Twitter’s usage of your phone number for ad targeting is here. And for fun, you should read Boone Ashworth’s story about the big lure of tiny keyboards. Recommendations: Peter recommends Marvel Puzzle Quest, a mobile game that’s also available on PCs. Arielle recommends Fleishman Is In Trouble, a novel by Taffy Brodesser-Akner. Lauren recommends the Ask Molly newsletter, written by Heather Havrilesky, who is also the author of Ask Polly.Lauren Goode can be found at @LaurenGoode. Tiffany Shlain is @tiffanyshlain. Arielle Pardes is @pardesoteric. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Boone Ashworth, who edited the show, can be found at @booneashworth. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme song is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Microsoft surprised just about everyone this week by showing off a pair of new mobile devices with two screens apiece. The pocketable Surface Duo and the tablet-like Surface Neo won't actually go on sale for at least one year, but Microsoft trotted the devices out anyway to signal how it's positioning its future in the mobile landscape.The company’s hardware chief, Panos Panay, joins us on the show this week to talk about the Duo and Neo, and what they say about productivity in the mobile age. Also, Panay urges us not to call the Android-powered Duo a phone … even though it makes phone calls.Also, news from Facebook, a new app from Instagram, and some not-self-driving car news from Tesla.Show Notes: Read Lauren Goode on the dual-screen Surface devices, and everything else new in the Surface lineup. Facebook’s leaked audio is here. Aarian Marshall tells us about Tesla’s Smart Summon. Arielle Pardes tells us about Instagram Threads.Recommendations: Arielle recommends Stoic Week. Mike recommends the Open Ears Project. Lauren recommends catching up on HBO’s Succession, as well as this Outside podcast episode, titled “Getting Past Our Fear of Great White Sharks”.Michael Calore is @snackfight. Lauren Goode is @laurengoode. Arielle Pardes can be found at @pardesoteric. Boone Ashworth, who helps produce the show, is @booneashworth. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme song is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

For 25 years, Boston Dynamics has been building robots and releasing videos of the terrifying things running around, opening doors, and fending off stick-wielding humans. The company’s most famous creation is a four-legged, canine-esque robot called Spot. Now, for the first time, the company is unleashing Spot out into the world. Aimed at workplaces like construction sites, select customers will be able to lease one of the signature robots and get it to do their bidding.On this week’s episode of Gadget Lab, Mike and Arielle talk with WIRED science writer Matt Simon about his trip to Boston Dynamics, what it was like controlling Spot, and what robots like it mean for the future (and/or doom) of humanity.Also in the news: Amazon announces Echo wearables, and the FDA officially says that e-cigarettes are not safe.Show Notes: Read Matt Simon’s story about Spot the robot here. Read more about Amazon’s new Alexa glasses here and catch up on all of WIRED’s Amazon coverage here. Read more about the FDA’s stance on e-cigarettes here.Recommendations: Matt recommends Townsends, an 18th century-themed cooking channel on YouTube. Mike recommends the show Undone on Amazon Prime Video. Arielle recommends YouTuber Big Marvel and his rubber chicken cover of Toto’s “Africa.” (Yes, really.)Follow Matt Simon on Twitter @mrmattsimon. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Lauren Goode is @laurengoode. Arielle Pardes can be found at @pardesoteric. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme song is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

You may not realize it, but when you send a spit-filled tube off to a lab that’s going to analyze your DNA, you’re linking the most unique identifier possible (your gene sequence) to other sensitive personal information, like your name, home address, and credit card number. How can you know that the DNA lab will properly decouple your genetic data from your personal information? Well, you just have to trust them.Obviously, that arrangement isn’t ideal, which is why a new startup called Nebula is using robust digital privacy protocols—encrypted email, VPNs, and blockchain technology—to guard its customers’ information. WIRED reporter Megan Molteni joins us this week to talk about genetic sequencing, how personal data is handled, and what this startup is doing to change the best practices within the industry.Also, there’s a new Facebook Portal in the world, Amazon is cracking down on shady shopping apps, and we’ll tell you why you should wait to upgrade to iOS 13.Show Notes: Read Megan’s story about Nebula’s use of blockchain technology here. Tom Simonite tells us about the new Facebook Portal. Lauren Goode on iOS 13’s many bugs. Louise Matsakis on Amazon’s app crackdown.Recommendations: Lauren recommends the new Netflix series Unbelievable. Megan recommends the true-crime podcast In the Dark. Mike recommends the meta-interview show Everything Is Alive. Arielle recommends the book, Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb.Follow Megan Molteni on Twitter @meganmolteni. Michael Calore is @snackfight. Lauren Goode is @laurengoode. Arielle Pardes can be found at @pardesoteric. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme song is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

New iPhones! A shinier Apple Watch! So many camera lenses! On this week’s episode of Gadget Lab, it’s Apple week yet again. Lauren, Mike, and Arielle discuss all the new devices and services that made a splash in Cupertino. Also, they delve into the state of Apple events as a whole, and whether all the onstage excitement is a little removed from what’s happening in the rest of the world.In other news, California prepares to pass a law that would force ride-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft to classify their drivers as employees (and offer them a minimum wage, health benefits, and other worker protections). Also, social media companies experiment with removing the “likes” feature from their platforms, and nearly 300 email scammers are arrested in the biggest takedown of digital criminals ever.Show NotesRead about the new iPhones, Apple Watch, or follow all of WIRED’s Apple coverage here. Read Aarian Marshall’s story about Uber’s battle over its drivers here. Read Paris Martineau’s story about social media demetrication here. Read Lily Hay Newman’s story about email scammers here.Recommendations Arielle recommends the book Three Women by Lisa Taddeo. Lauren recommends that if you're in San Francisco, go see the art exhibit Pearl Jam: Live in Two Dimensions at the Haight Street Art Center. Michael recommends the podcast Lost Notes.Follow Michael Calore on Twitter at @snackfight. Lauren Goode is @laurengoode. Arielle Pardes can be found at @pardesoteric. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme song is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Once upon a time, there was a true unicorn, a startup named Uber. Led by CEO Travis Kalanick, the company broke all the rules of business and truly disrupted the way people move through the world. But with a meteoric rise comes a steep fall. As it turns out, an inherently unstable business model and an even more unstable leader do not bode well for long term success.On this episode of the Gadget Lab, we are Super Pumped to talk New York Times tech reporter Mike Isaac about his explosive new book (it’s called Super Pumped) that chronicles the tumultuous rise and fall of Uber and the man who ran it.Also in tech news, Sonos unveils its first Bluetooth speaker, and Facebook introduces a new dating service. (What could go wrong?)Show Notes: Learn more about Mike Isaac’s Super Pumped here, and read WIRED’s review here. Read Lauren’s first look at the Sonos Move here. Read more from Louise Matsakis about Facebook dating here.Recommendations: Michael recommends Thomas Campbell’s skateboarding film Ye Olde Destruction. Lauren recommends Bay Curious podcast and Lana Del Rey’s new album Norman Fucking Rockwell!You can follow Mike Isaac on Twitter at @MikeIsaac. Michael Calore can be found at @snackfight. Lauren Goode is @laurengoode. Arielle Pardes can be found at @pardesoteric. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme song is by Solar Keys. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

If you have both an Instagram and Facebook account, chances are they are connected, whether you like it or not. But what if you didn’t connect them in the first place, or if you have a Finstagram account that you really don’t want linked back to your main? Too bad, because once Facebook has enough data on you to sync your accounts together, it’s never letting go. (Yeah, that “unlink account” button? It doesn’t actually work.) This week, WIRED staff writer Paris Martineau joins the show to talk about how Facebook has tightened its grip on Instagram and the other apps it has dominion over.Also in the news: Apple revises its stance on having humans listen to your Siri queries, a former Google and Uber engineer goes to court after he was accused of stealing trade secrets, and Amazon defends its practice of heavily promoting its own products over those sold by other retailers on the site.Show Notes: Read Paris’ story about unlinking Facebook and Instagram accounts here. Read stories about Anthony Levandowski’s legal troubles from Aarian Marshall and Alex Davies here and here. Read Jay Greene’s story about Amazon’s self-marketing tactics at the Washington Post here.Paris Martineau is on Twitter at @parismartineau. Michael Calore can be found at @snackfight. Lauren Goode is @laurengoode. Arielle Pardes can be found at @pardesoteric. Bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab. Our theme song is by Solar Keys.Recommendations: Paris recommends the Bear Notes app for iOS and MacOS. Lauren recommends the movie The Last Black Man in San Francisco, available on demand. Arielle recommends the Chrome browser extension Safe Book. Michael recommends the show The Green Frontier on Netflix. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Plastic is everywhere. No, really, it is everywhere. Tiny bits of plastic waste, called microplastic, have come to permeate nearly every part of the planet. We drink it in our water. We breathe it in the air. It is inescapable. On this episode of the Gadget Lab podcast, WIRED science writer Matt Simon joins Mike, Lauren, and Arielle to talk about where microplastic comes from, how it gets into our bodies, and what, if anything, we can do about it.Also in the news: Reddit gets into the livestreaming game, the latest version of Android’s operating system gets a healthy name change, and reviews are in on Samsung’s new Galaxy Note 10+. The consensus is that it’s pretty darn cool. Show Notes: Matt Simon’s story on microplastics is here. Read Arielle’s story about Reddit’s livestreaming experiment here. Read Lauren’s review of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ here. Read more about Android’s new naming conventions here.Recommendations: Matt recommends a series of books about wildfires by Stephen Pyne. Lauren recommends an episode of the Bill Simmons Podcast featuring journalist Kara Swisher. Arielle recommends the podcast Carrier. Mike recommends the book How to Change Your Mind by Michael Pollan. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

For years, Google has flourished in large part because of its famously open internal structure. Leadership encouraged active and vocal communication between employees who held strong opinions or dissented with the company’s decisions. But over the past three years, that free-thinking atmosphere has become the breeding ground for deep divisions among Google’s workforce. Executive secrecy about controversial Google projects and a lack of unity on how to address charged political issues has steadily torn Google apart from the inside.On this week’s episode of the Gadget Lab podcast, Lauren and Arielle talk with WIRED senior writer Nitasha Tiku to discuss her cover story about Google’s three years of misery. Also in the news: WeWork files to go public and Apple responds to the controversy surrounding its batteries and right to repair.Show Notes: You can find Nitasha’s cover story here. Lauren’s story about iPhone battery swaps is here. And this is a good read on WeWork’s ambitions to “elevate the world’s consciousness.”Recommendations: Nitasha recommends “A Little Bit Alexis,” a song performed on season 5 of the TV show Schitt’s Creek. Arielle recommends a podcast called “The Anthropocene Reviewed” with John Green. Lauren recommends diving into season 3 of GLOW, which just became available on Netflix. How to ListenYou can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link. You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by tapping here. We’re on Spotify too. You can also download an app like Pocket Casts or Google Podcasts, and search for Gadget Lab. And in case you really need it, here's the RSS feed.https://www.wired.com/feed/podcast/gadget-labWe're also on Soundcloud, and every episode gets posted to wired.com as soon as it's released. If you still can't figure it out, or there's another platform you use that we're not on, let us know. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Amazon didn’t become the behemoth it is by accident. Its services, like Amazon Prime, and products, like the Echo smart speaker, were designed to learn everything about you and become essential fixtures in your daily routine. But the convenience that Amazon offers often comes at the expense of privacy. On this week’s episode of the Gadget Lab podcast, Lauren sits down with Jason Del Ray, host of Recode’s new podcast *Land of the Giants* to talk about how Amazon came to rule the retail landscape and become an integral part of our lives.Also in the news, Apple is now taking applications for its new credit card, and Samsung unveils its new Galaxy phones.**Show Notes:**You can find Jason Del Rey’s podcast *Land of the Giants* [here](https://podcasts.voxmedia.com/show/land-of-the-giants). Read Arielle’s story about the new Apple card [here](https://www.wired.com/story/apple-card-now-available/). Read more from Lauren about Samsung’s latest phone announcements [here](https://www.wired.com/story/samsung-galaxy-note10-and-note10-plus/).**Recommendations:**Mike recommends reading “[The Weird, Dark History of 8chan](https://www.wired.com/story/the-weird-dark-history-8chan/)” by Timothy McLaughlin. Arielle recommends [*Dead to Me*](https://www.netflix.com/title/80219707) on Netflix.**How to Listen** You can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how:If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just [tap this link](https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-gadget-lab-podcast/id266391367?mt=2). You can also download an app like Overcast or Pocket Casts, and search for Gadget Lab. If you use Android, you can find us in the Google Play Music app just by [tapping here](https://play.google.com/music/m/Iec5bnjozxz7wpye5n4m32mgsuu?t=The_Gadget_Lab_Podcast). We’re on [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/show/11hUjoJv4FxFnw9r0mHIsC?si=a252nTYbQvi47_kimwWwsA) too. You can also download an app like Pocket Casts or Google Podcasts, and search for Gadget Lab. And in case you really need it, [here's the RSS feed](https://www.wired.com/feed/podcast/gadget-lab). [https://www.wired.com/feed/podcast/gadget-lab](https://www.wired.com/feed/podcast/gadget-lab)We're also [on Soundcloud](https://soundcloud.com/wired), and every episode gets [posted to wired.com](https://www.wired.com/tag/gadget-lab-podcasts) as soon as it's released. If you still can't figure it out, or there's another platform you use that we're not on, [let us know](mailto:[email protected]). Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

From fledgling startups to automotive giants like General Motors, there’s a whole lot of companies looking to develop fully self-driving cars. But that goal is still a long way from reality. The world is a messy, unpredictable place, and it turns out that robots aren’t that great at handling the array of variables that come up when trying to move around in it. This week on the Gadget Lab podcast, WIRED transportation writer Alex Davies joins Mike, Arielle, and Lauren to talk about why it’s so difficult to program a fully autonomous vehicle, and how the companies making them have adjusted to the challenge.Show Notes: Read more from Alex Davies on GM’s robo-taxis, the startup developing self-driving vans for Walmart, and bike lane-bound autonomous delivery vehicles. Arielle has more on the Google Pixel 4’s gesture controls here. Lauren details Intel’s new processor line here. Read more from Lily Hay Newman about the Capital One security breach and the hacker who didn’t cover her tracks here.Recommendations: For all the baseball fans out there, Alex recommends MLB TV. Mike recommends letting a robotic-exoskeleton make you dance as part of the art project Inferno. Lauren recommends Workin’ Moms on Netflix. Arielle recommends Huji, the app that turns your phone into a disposable camera. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

This week, New York governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law a bill criminalizing the spread of nonconsensual pornography, or revenge porn. WIRED’s Emma Grey Ellis joins Mike and Lauren to talk about what the law does, and what it still fails to address.Also in the news, Samsung says that it has finally—finally!—fixed the problems with its Galaxy Fold smartphone, and the FTC wants to change the way Facebook manages privacy. Show Notes:Read Emma’s story about New York’s revenge porn law here. Read Lauren’s story about the Samsung Galaxy Fold here. Read more about the FTC’s beef with Facebook here.Recommendations:Mike recommends City on the Hill on Showtime. Lauren recommends Ikea Symfonish bookshelf speaker for $99. Emma recommends watching Jenna Marbles on YouTube. Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices