Ian and Michael discuss the recent reports of AI models potentially engaging in blackmail, AI-powered recording devices and the surveillance state, and for a bit of levity - our very own AI-generated summer reading list!

(This episode features AI-generated content and speech)

Ian and Michael discuss a range of topics including smart phones and smart devices and their impact on our cognition, Youtubers and their need to reinvent themselves, and the idea of going completely offline for a digital detox. Plus, Emma Williams provides her AI-generated point of view in Emma's Artificial Reflections! (This episode features AI-generated content and speech)

Ian and Michael discuss AI-generated books and its impact on literature and reading, before going off a rant on the negative effects of social media on our attention spans.

With the recent passing of Pope Francis and election of Leo XIV, Ian and Michael get into the topic of AI and religion, including the recent experiments with an entirely AI-generated church service - and a detour into the world of smartwatches.

Ian and Michael discuss fish expressions, dead internet theory, the movies of Gene Hackman, and a number of other topics. Is there a common thread in these topics? If we happen to find one, we'll let you know.

Ian and Michael discuss the ongoing tariff saga and more or less immediately go off on a number of tangents, including consumerism, AI chatbots, the price of antiques, cryptocurrencies, and the Doomsday Clock maintained by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.

Ian and Michael discuss window shopping as a pastime, planned obsolescence in a variety of products, and the impact of our ever inceasing appetite for consumption. (This episode was recorded prior to the recent introduction of new US tariffs)

Ian and Michael go extraterrestial in their exploration of words pertaining to Jupiter - but quickly come back to Earth for other etymological mysteries. Plus, AI-generated contributor Emma Williams returns with a fresh instalment of Emma's Artifical Reflections!

(This episode features AI-generated content and speech)