The team at Light has been working on minimalist phones for more than a decade. Its last device had a lot in common with a smartphone, but the newest model, the Light Flip, is something very different. Light CEO Kaiwei Tang explains why Light made a flip phone, how the world's opinion of smartphones is changing, and whether you can cure your tech problems with more tech.

Further reading:

• ⁠Apple launches ‘Upgrade’ program to lease new devices⁠

• ⁠Apple’s reported ‘HomePad’ may launch as early as October⁠

• ⁠X Money is launching in the US starting today⁠

• ⁠The Light Flip is a minimalist flip phone with a point to prove⁠

• ⁠Light Phone III review: everything in moderation⁠

• ⁠The high hopes of the low-tech phone⁠

• ⁠There’s no perfect minimalist phone — yet⁠

⁠Subscribe to The Verge⁠ for unlimited access to ⁠theverge.com⁠, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ⁠ad-free podcast feed⁠.We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to ⁠[email protected]⁠ or call us at 866-VERGE11.

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Some of the biggest players in AI — in particular OpenAI, SpaceX, and Amazon — are heavily invested in creating a world after smartphones. They're also all rumored to be building devices that sound a lot like smartphones. Verge contributor David Imel helps us figure out what these companies might actually be building, what an AI smartphone looks like, and whether anyone can unseat Apple and Google.

Links:

• Elon Musk denies a report about SpaceX’s AI phone prototype
  
• 
  OpenAI is reportedly launching a phone for ChatGPT
  
• 
  Amazon is making an Alexa phone

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Google Zero continues to affect website after website, and publisher after publisher. David and Nilay discuss Google's increased focus on AI, the web companies finally starting to fight back, and whether there's a way forward for Google's pact with the open web. After that, they talk about a big week in AI detection software, which sometimes works and frequently doesn't. Then it's time for the Hype Desk, Brendan Carr is a dummy, the Light Flip, and more.

Further reading:

• Google hit with $1 billion fine for breaking EU antitrust rules

• Reddit might cut ties with Google as traffic drops. 

• From the NYT: How Google’s A.I. Search Is Imperiling the Open Web

• Google says Gemini now has 950 million monthly users. 

• Google earnings

• China delivers a one-two punch to America’s AI dominance  

• OpenAI says it accidentally hacked Hugging Face with a new AI system 

• Substack adds an AI detector to help spot blogs written by no one 

• Anthropic’s $1.5 billion book piracy settlement approved by judge 

• Jeff Bezos is getting involved with centering Amazon’s AI in Prime Video

• Meta made its own AI detection system. It should have just used Google’s 

• Ford picks Apple Maps for its next EV platform and updated BlueCruise

• Apple’s rumored ‘Upgrade’ program brings lease-to-own pricing for iPhones, Macs, and iPads

• iOS code could reportedly let Apple cut off apps when users miss iPhone payments 

• Framework’s premium laptop is shipping with less RAM 

• The higher-end prebuilt Framework Laptop 13 Pro now costs $800 more. 

• The Light Flip is a minimalist flip phone with a point to prove 

• Judge pauses Paramount’s attempt to buy Warner Bros. Discovery 

• Paramount’s Warner deal gets conditional approval in the EU. 

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We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.

(Timestamps are approximate.)

00:00:00 Intro

00:01:00 Claude Reads the Meters

00:04:00 Google Zero and Reddit Deal

00:15:00 AI Overviews Death Spiral

00:25:00 OpenAI Hacks Hugging Face

00:32:00 Substack AI Detector Debate

00:39:00 Prime Video Goes All In

00:44:00 Meta Content Seal Cynicism

00:53:00 Avengers Doomsday

01:03:00 Comic Con And Feige Reset

01:04:00 Brendan Carr Is a Dummy

01:12:00 Ramageddon Hits Framework

01:17:00 Apple Leasing Lockdown

01:21:00 Light Flip Phone Trend

01:26:00 Ford Picks Apple Maps

01:35:00 Paramount Merger Mess

01:35:00 Wrap Up And Plugs

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TikTok is endless. Netflix is already starting the next episode. Who's making time to read a book? Today we're chatting with The Atlantic's Rose Horowitch to discuss her story "The End of Reading is Here" and the role technology plays in reducing how much time — and attention — people have to read long pieces of writing. In a world where we're inundated with more text than ever from social media feeds, AI, and group chats, is it really possible that we're taking in less than before?

Further reading:

• ⁠The End of Reading Is Here⁠

Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed.We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.

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Samsung just kicked off phone season with the new Galaxy Z Fold 8, Fold 8 Ultra, and Z Flip 8, along with two new watches and a look at its smart glasses. David and Nilay talk through all the new devices, Samsung's overall case for foldable phones, and what it'll take for Samsung — or anyone — to convince people to spend $2,000 on a phone.

Further reading:

• Samsung’s wider Z Fold 8 feels just right

• 
  Samsung’s newest foldable finally feels Ultra
  

• 
  I almost forgot Samsung’s Z Flip 8 was a foldable
  

• 
  Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 9 and Ultra 2 bet big on battery
  

• 
  Samsung and Google’s smart glasses get two new designs

Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed.We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.

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So far, most electric vehicles have looked more or less like cars. But recently, a few companies have looked to another, smaller mode of transport for inspiration. The Verge's Andy Hawkins explains why companies like Amble and Chip are reinventing the golf cart, in the hopes of creating an entirely new kind of street-legal vehicle. As long as the speed limit stays low.

Further reading:

• ⁠The Light Flip is a minimalist flip phone with a point to prove | The Verge⁠

• ⁠Anthropic has to pay authors. | The Verge⁠

• ⁠The cost of GPUs goes far beyond AI data centers | The Verge⁠

• ⁠Is America ready for this quirky Jeep-looking EV that can park itself?⁠

• ⁠The ‘G-Wagen of golf carts’ could be the ideal second car⁠

• ⁠America’s cheapest new EV is smaller than a ping-pong table and tops out at 19mph⁠

• ⁠Zoox’s purpose-built robotaxi is getting a refresh⁠

Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed.

We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.

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Since the beginning of the AI revolution, a few companies have claimed to be building the best and most powerful AI models. All of them were American. More recently, a few Chinese companies seem to have caught up, shipping models that are much cheaper and maybe also just as good. The Verge's Hayden Field and Lauren Feiner join the show to explain how China made so much progress, the threat that progress represents to US companies and the US government, and what might happen next.

Further reading:

• ⁠China and the US are battling to become the world’s first AI superpower⁠

• ⁠Trump’s Anthropic shutdown just made the case for non-American AI⁠

• ⁠China delivers a one-two punch to America’s AI dominance⁠

Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed.

We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.

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It's public beta season, which means David and Nilay have been upgrading some devices this week. We talk through the good and bad of our early experiences with Siri AI, and what it'll take for next-gen Siri to be a hit. After that, we discuss the real reason Apple decided to sue OpenAI over trade secrets, OpenAI's forthcoming smart speaker, the new Pixel colors, our emoji strategies, Brendan Carr, and much more.

Further reading:

• Apple’s public betas for iOS 27 and more are out now 

• Siri AI makes the Apple Watch finally feel like a wrist computer 

• Siri AI is already changing how I use my iPhone 

• The macOS 27 public beta is worth it just for the Liquid Glass tweaks 

• Apple sues OpenAI for allegedly stealing hardware secrets 

• Suno snatched millions of songs from YouTube, Genius, and Deezer

• Sam Altman didn’t need another lawsuit 

• The 6 wildest claims in Apple’s lawsuit against OpenAI 

• Another turn in the Apple v. OpenAI dispute. 

• OpenAI has a new statement about Apple’s lawsuit. 

• OnePlus officially gives up on the US and Europe

• OnePlus is dead in the US. Did it ever have a chance?

• Samsung shows off ‘brand new shape’ for Z Fold 8 in Spider-Man teaser

• OpenAI may announce a ChatGPT smart speaker this year 

• OpenAI finally launches hardware… for Codex

• Pixel Watch 5 leak shows off four different finishes 

• The Pixel colors might rule this year 

• The PS6 sure sounds like a handheld 

• Brendan Carr plans to let broadcast giants dominate the airwaves

• X admits its broken algorithm made the site feel like a ‘battleground’ 

• States make last-ditch effort to stop the Paramount ‘media behemoth’ 

• Paramount lead trial counsel on state AG suit: This merger is pro-competitive

• The new cracking face emoji might be an all-timer. 

• Google’s Demis Hassabis says it’s time for a global AI watchdog — led by the US 

• Google and Epic give up fighting — third-party Android app stores are coming next week

Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed.We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.

(Timestamps are approximate.)

00:01:00 Intro

00:02:00 Apple Betas and New Siri

00:08:00 Gemini Car Assistant Fails

00:15:00 Apple Sues OpenAI

00:18:00 Trade Secret Law Explained

00:28:00 Settlement or Long Fight

00:35:00 OpenAI Home Device Doubts

00:42:00 Smartphone Platform Lessons

00:50:00 Pixel Colors and Naming

00:52:00 OnePlus Retreat Explained

00:55:00 Carriers and iPhone Lock In

01:05:00 Brendan Carr Bribery Scandal

01:14:00 Emoji Lightning Round

01:18:00 X Algorithm Rediscovery

01:23:00 Foothills Of Singularity

01:29:00 Paramount Merger Spin

01:33:00 Wrap And Plugs

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AI text detectors have been notoriously unreliable, but that's starting to change. This year, Pangram keeps coming up as the trusted source in identifying AI-written text. We sit down with Pangram CEO Max Spero to find out how the system was made, how much we should trust it, and where the line is between useful AI and AI slop.

Further reading:

• OnePlus officially gives up on the US and Europe⁠

• ⁠Google ordered to open Android and Search to rivals in Europe⁠

• ⁠Brendan Carr plans to let broadcast giants dominate the airwaves⁠

• ⁠⁠The literary world isn’t prepared for AI⁠

Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed.

We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.

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Valve's Steam Machine might be exactly the living room console you've been waiting for. Or it might be too expensive, totally pointless, a waste of everyone's money and shelf space. The Verge's Sean Hollister joins the show to talk through all the feedback we've been getting about our coverage and our review. Is Valve's history a pro or a con? Is the price reasonable or ridiculous? Who is this device actually for? We have much to discuss.

Further reading:

• Google and Epic give up fighting — third-party Android app stores are coming next week

• OpenAI may announce a ChatGPT smart speaker this year

• Another turn in the Apple v. OpenAI dispute

• ⁠The Steam Machine is the most ambitious game console I’ve ever played⁠⁠

• ⁠⁠The Steam Machine fits my TV, my desk, and my life⁠⁠

• ⁠⁠Valve will finally let you build your own Steam Machine with SteamOS for desktop⁠⁠

• ⁠⁠How much would the Steam Machine cost to build?⁠

Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed.

We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.

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AI-generated music is suddenly everywhere. On social media, music streaming services, and elsewhere, stuff made on Suno is becoming unavoidable. The Verge's Terrence O'Brien joins David to talk about where Suno came from, whether it can truly change the way we create and consume music, and how we can and should respond to AI music. We also have some thoughts on whether these songs might someday be bangers.

Further reading:

• X admits its broken algorithm made the site feel like a ‘battleground’ | The Verge

• The Pixel colors might rule this year | The Verge

• Pixel Watch 5 leak shows off four different finishes | The Verge

• New York becomes the first state to enact a data center moratorium | The Verge
  

• 
  Suno is a music copyright nightmare
  

• 
  Suno leans into customization with v5.5
  

• 
  Nobody wants to tell me why they only listen to their own Suno slop
  

• 
  Suno’s upgraded AI music generator is technically impressive, but still soulless

Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed.We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.

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