Lots of gadget news this week! David, Jake Kastrenakes, and Allison Johnson start by talking about the iPhone 16E, which is both the cheapest compelling iPhone in a long time and a deeply odd addition to Apple's phone lineup. They also discuss the end of the Humane AI Pin, the latest from the Rabbit R1, and whether AI gadgets are even going to be a thing. After that, it's time for the lightning round: David and Jake talk about Amazon Chime, Mira Murati's new startup, and the future of James Bond. Then, in a special DOGE lightning round, Lauren Feiner joins the show to discuss everything happening with Trump, Musk, DOGE, and the US government. Because there's a lot of it.

Further reading:

• Apple launches the iPhone 16E
• 8 important things to know about the iPhone 16E
• The iPhone is done with home buttons — here’s why I’ll miss it
• Verge staffers react to the iPhone 16E: what we love and don’t love
• Apple no longer sells new iPhones with Lightning ports
• How the new iPhone 16E compares to the rest of Apple’s iPhone 16 lineup
• Apple’s first in-house iPhone modem is the C1
• Oppo Find N5 review: the final evolution of foldables
• The world’s thinnest foldable phone doesn’t come cheap
• Humane is shutting down the AI Pin and selling its remnants to HP
• The Humane AI Pin never had a chance
• Rabbit shows off the AI agent it should have launched with
• Amazon’s revamped Alexa might launch over a month after its announcement event
• Microsoft announces quantum computing breakthrough with Majorana 1 chip
• A death knell for Chime
• Mira Murati launches rival to OpenAI called Thinking Machines Lab
• The New York Times adopts AI tools in the newsroom
• Amazon now has creative control over the James Bond franchise
• Spotify’s HiFi streaming could finally arrive this year
• Treasury inspector general will investigate DOGE payments access | The Verge
• Trump threatens 25 percent ‘and higher’ tariff on chips.
• Acer is the first to raise laptop prices because of Trump
• Trump issues an executive order claiming more oversight of independent agencies like the FTC and FCC.
• Trump administration cancels approval for NYC congestion pricing.
• DOGE’s alleged cost-cutting achievements included a few extra zeroes.
• A SpaceX team is being brought in to overhaul FAA’s air traffic control system
• Trump admin pulls hundreds of videos from CFPB’s YouTube channel
• DOGE can keep accessing government data for now, judge rules

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This episode is all about companies in flux. First, we chat with The Verge's Alex Heath about all things Meta — whether the company is still serious about the metaverse, why its AI plans seem to be going so well, what "OG Facebook" really means, and what headsets to expect this year. After that, The Verge's Chris Welch takes us through the last year at Sonos, from the disastrous app launch to the pretty good headphones that were totally derailed by the disastrous app launch. Can the company get it together in order to launch its next big swing, a set-top box codenamed Pinewood? Finally, we answer a question on the Vergecast Hotline all about business cards. Because, yes, it's 2025, but sometimes you still need a place to put a business card.

Further reading:

• Mark Zuckerberg tells Meta employees to ‘buckle up’ in internal meeting
• Meta says this is the make or break year for the metaverse
• Meta’s Ray-Bans smart glasses sold more than 1 million units last year
• Meta’s AR / VR hardware roadmap through 2027
• Meta CTO says the company is working to ‘catch’ leakers
• Zuck wants to bring the “OG Facebook” back.
• The Sonos app fiasco: how a great audio brand nearly ruined its reputation
• Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch
• Sonos’ interim CEO hits all the right notes in first letter to employees
• Sonos Arc Ultra review: don’t call it a comeback (yet)
• Sonos Ace review: was it worth it? | The Verge
• After a bruising year, Sonos readies its next big thing: a streaming box
• Adobe Scan

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On today's episode, once again, it's OpenAI and DOGE. And some other things! Nilay and David start the show by talking about Elon Musk's surprise bid to buy the nonprofit arm of OpenAI, along with the company's plans for new models and new rules for those models. After that, The Verge's Lauren Feiner joins to catch us up on what's happening with DOGE, how Musk and co. are making boring government information into something deeply fascinating and deeply confusing, and what it's like to work for the government now. Finally, in the lightning round, we talk about rumors of a new Apple Studio Display and iPhone SE, the new Powerbeats 2 Pro, Brendan Carr still being a dummy, and some surprising streaming moves from Apple and YouTube.

Further reading:

• Elon Musk just offered to buy OpenAI for $97.4 billion
• OpenAI apparently hasn’t actually received Elon Musk’s acquisition offer. 
• Altman feels bad for Elon 
• OpenAI lays out plans for GPT-5
• OpenAI is reportedly getting closer to launching its in-house chip
• OpenAI is rethinking how AI models handle controversial topics
• Scarlett Johansson calls for anti deepfake laws after AI video goes viral
• Thomson Reuters wins an early court battle over AI, copyright, and fair use
• AI chatbots are distorting news stories, BBC finds
• Waste.gov locks down after people discover it’s a WordPress template
• https://doge.gov/ exists
• Federal workers say they increasingly distrust platforms like Facebook
• The Trump administration restores federal webpages after court order
• Trump administration illegally allowed DOGE to access workers’ data, lawsuit alleges
• State Dept.’s plan to buy $400 million worth of armored Teslas hastily changed to ‘armored EVs’
• Constitutional crisis intensifies.
• Google Maps now shows the ‘Gulf of America’
• Apple Maps now shows the Gulf of America
• Bing jumps on the Gulf of America bandwagon.
• Trump wants news outlets to get on board with “Gulf of America” — or else. Will they?
• Apple’s next Studio Display could get a much-needed Mini LED upgrade
• Tim Cook teases a new Apple launch next week, and it’s probably the iPhone SE
• FCC to investigate Comcast for having DEI programs
• The FCC is a weapon in Trump’s war on free speech
• Trump’s MAGA Media Enforcer Is Having ‘the Time of His Life’
• FCC chairman Brendan Carr has vowed to target all of Donald Trump's enemies.
• Jeep’s Wrangler-like Recon EV is ready to launch this year
• Jeep warranty ads in the infotainment
• Apple TV Plus is finally coming to Android
• YouTube is now even bigger on TVs than phones
• Powerbeats Pro 2 review: the workout buds to beat
• Samsung Galaxy S25 and S25 Plus review: incredibly iterative

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AI and politics, politics and AI. That's the story of 2025. On this episode, The Verge's Kylie Robison joins the show to talk about ChatGPT's big new features, Operator and deep research, both of which promise to make the chatbot more useful and more autonomous. To access either one costs $200 a month — is it worth it? After that, The Verge's Liz Lopatto catches us up on the latest from Elon Musk and Doge, including why Musk is doing this thing, this way. Liz also makes the case that this isn't going to slow down anytime soon. Finally, Nilay Patel helps us answer a question from the Vergecast Hotline, and tells us how he felt about the Super Bowl's 4K stream.

Further reading:

• OpenAI’s new Operator AI agent can do things on the web for you
• ChatGPT’s agent can now do deep research for you
• I tested ChatGPT’s deep research with the most misunderstood law on the internet
• Elon Musk’s rapid unscheduled disassembly of the US government
• DOGE wreaked havoc on the government in just one week
• Federal judge blocks DOGE from accessing sensitive Treasury records
• How Elon Musk’s Department of Energy access could pose a nuclear threat
• What we know about President Elon’s government takeover

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Nilay, David, and Richard Lawler take on a big week in confusing news stories. First, they talk through the latest from Elon Musk's DOGE, which is running rampant through government computer systems with little pushback. Then they explain the latest on the US government's tariff strategy, and the mass confusion it's causing across tech. Then they pivot away from politics and talk about streaming: the Super Bowl coming to Tubi, the deeply confusing forthcoming Fox streaming service, whatever Comcast is doing this year, and more. Finally, in the lightning round, they talk about Sonos's streaming box, Brendan Carr's latest assaults on free speech, OpenAI's "new" logo, and more.

Further reading:

• DC is just waking up to Elon Musk’s takeover
• Elon Musk is staging a takeover of the federal budget
• Workers are reeling from chaos at federal agencies
• Can anyone stop President Musk?
• “For all practical purposes, I’d call that a coup.”
• Trump imposes sweeping tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China
• Canada will retaliate against Trump with tariffs on US goods
• Trump agrees to a one-month pause on Mexico, Canada tariffs
• Qwertykeys halts keyboard shipments to US over tariff costs and confusion
• Shein and Temu depend on a 100-year-old tariff loophole that Trump wants to close
• Your packages are about to get slower and more expensive
• USPS backtracks, will accept parcels from China after all
• China tariffs may already be hiking up import fees
• China opens Google antitrust probe in retaliation to tariffs
• Fox plans to launch a streaming service by the end of 2025
• Super Bowl LIX will stream for free on Tubi
• Comcast is adding Dolby Atmos to its ‘4K’ Super Bowl broadcast this year
• Warner Bros. is streaming full movies for free on YouTube
• Disney teases ESPN’s expansive sports streaming future
• Disney’s streaming business posts another profit.
• CBS is preparing to give Harris interview materials to the FCC.
• FCC launches probe into Soros-backed radio station that revealed live locations of undercover ICE agents
• After a bruising year, Sonos readies its next big thing: a streaming box
• Sonos lays off 200 employees as its struggles continue
• Google has ‘very good ideas’ for native ads in Gemini
• ChatGPT’s agent can now do deep research for you
• Here’s OpenAI’s new logo
• Chairs Are Like Facebook

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Today on the show, it’s all about the future of phones… and your data. The Verge’s Allison Johnson joins the show to talk about the new Samsung Galaxy S25, what’s new in this high-end phone, and what it means for all the other smartphones coming this year. After that, Cooper Quintin, a senior staff technologist at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, talks us through how to think about the privacy implications of RedNote, TikTok, DeepSeek, and all the other tech that puts us in contact with China. Finally, we enlist The Verge’s Jennifer Pattison Tuohy to help us answer a question from the Vergecast Hotline all about the Meta Portal. Remember the Meta Portal?? If you’re missing yours, we have some ideas.

Further reading:

• The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra isn’t so ‘ultra’ anymore
• Samsung Galaxy S25 and S25 Plus hands-on: more of the same
• Samsung Galaxy S25 vs. S25 Plus vs. S25 Ultra: specs comparison
• Trump signs order refusing to enforce TikTok ban for 75 days
• TikTok’s service providers still risk billions in penalties for bringing it back online
• TikTok is still on shaky ground in the US
• Chinese social media app RedNote tops App Store chart ahead of TikTok ban
• As Americans flock to RedNote, privacy advocates warn about surveillance
• Will RedNote get banned in the US?
• RedNote: what it’s like using the Chinese app TikTokers are flocking to
• Why everyone is freaking out about DeepSeek
• DeepSeek’s top-ranked AI app is restricting sign-ups due to ‘malicious attacks’
• US Navy jumps the DeepSeek ship.
• The Electronic Frontier Foundation
• Facebook’s new Portal Go is great for video calls, but not much else

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Nilay and David dig into the week's biggest story: the new Intel-powered Surface Pro. Kidding! They talk about DeepSeek, the out-of-nowhere AI company that sent both Silicon Valley and the stock market into uproar this week. Then, after the hosts debate what the real killer app for AI is — and whether we've even found one yet — we follow up on our question from last week about how people are actually using AI. We got so many good answers, and we talk through what to make of them all. Finally, in the lightning round, we talk about Brendan Carr being a dummy, the return of the Pebble, the continued rise of Bluesky and Threads, and Meta's $25 million check to Trump.

Further reading:

• Why everyone is freaking out about DeepSeek
• DeepSeek says its newest AI model, Janus-Pro can outperform Stable Diffusion and DALL-E 3.
• Microsoft makes DeepSeek’s R1 model available on Azure AI and GitHub
• OpenAI has evidence that its models helped train China’s DeepSeek
• China’s DeepSeek AI is hitting Nvidia where it hurts
• DeepSeek’s AI app is restricting sign-ups due to ‘malicious attacks’ 
• US Navy jumps the DeepSeek ship.
• DeepSeek wakes up Trump.
• OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on DeepSeek R1: “an impressive model.”
• Mark Zuckerberg tells Meta investors to not worry about DeepSeek
• The Pebble smartwatch is making a comeback, with some help from Google 
• Oracle and Microsoft are reportedly in talks to take over TikTok
• FCC chair says landlords can force bulk internet service on residents
• From NYT: F.C.C. Chair Orders Investigation Into NPR and PBS Sponsorships
• Meta agrees to pay $25 million to settle Trump account suspension suit
• Zuckerberg wants to Make Facebook Great Again
• Zuck wants to bring the “OG Facebook” back.

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The Verge’s Victoria Song joins the show to talk about the most popular and most-bailed-on New Year’s Resolution of all: getting in shape. She tells us about the apps that help you work out more without being rude about it, the data you really need to care about in your fitness tracker, and much more. After that, we talk to Anna Valtonen, one of the curators and researchers behind the new Nokia Design Archive. She tells us about the concepts, presentations, and overall culture that made Nokia such an important company in the history of phones. Finally, we answer another question on the Vergecast Hotline about how audio works on your phone. It’s all still too complicated.

Further reading:

• Ladder
• Fantasy Hike
• Stompers
• Runkeeper
• 5K Runner
• Our interview with Adrian Hon about Zombies, Run
• The Nokia Design Archive
• Nokia’s “Morph” concept
• The Nokia Communicator
• The Nokia Moonraker smartwatch
• From Apple: Share audio with AirPods and Beats headphones from iPhone or iPad
• Also from Apple: Play audio through multiple devices at once in Audio MIDI Setup on Mac
• From Samsung: Play music on two Bluetooth devices from your Galaxy phone

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Nilay, David, and The Verge's Allison Johnson run down all the biggest news from the latest Samsung Unpacked. The S25 Edge had everyone excited, but the other new Galaxy S25 models feel a little familiar. Then, The Verge's Lauren Feiner updates us on the many goings-on in the first days of the new Trump administration, from the TikTok ban delay to the executive orders on citizenship and AI. Finally, in the lightning round, David and Nilay talk about Netflix's price increase, smart-home standards, and more.

Further reading:

• This is the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge
• Samsung Galaxy S25 and S25 Plus hands-on: more of the same
• Samsung Galaxy S25 vs. S25 Plus vs. S25 Ultra: specs comparison
• Here’s what Samsung’s first Android XR headset looks like in person
• Samsung and Google are developing AR glasses together
• Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra stylus: back to boring basics
• Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra hands-on: smoothing out sharp edges
• Samsung claims its new Galaxy S25 Ultra glass can survive head-high drops on concrete
• Google Gemini now works across multiple apps in a single prompt
• The Stargate Project is a $500 million AI data center plan for OpenAI
• The United States Digital Service is now DOGE — here’s what it was responsible for. 
• Vivek Ramaswamy steps down from DOGE
• Trump signs order refusing to enforce TikTok ban for 75 days
• Trump says he’s open to Musk or Ellison buying TikTok
• TikTok’s service providers still risk billions in penalties for bringing it back online
• Bluesky and X launch new video feeds amid TikTok uncertainties
• Instagram announces a blatant CapCut clone
• Apple says it’s following the law by removing TikTok from the App Store
• Sen. Tom Cotton warns TikTok’s service providers of “ruinous liability” for hosting the app.
• Two lawmakers introduce a bill to repeal the TikTok ban.
• Trump is absolutely going to make ByteDance sell TikTok or shut down again.
• Netflix is raising prices again
• YouTube Premium gets more experimental features that can now be tested all at once
• Here’s the tech that could turn millions of Zigbee light bulbs into motion sensors with a single update
• Samsung is bringing ambient sensing to SmartThings

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First in this episode, a quick update on the TikTok ban (which didn't turn out to be much of a ban at all.) Then, Sportico's Jacob Feldman joins the show to talk about Venu, the much-hyped streaming service that planned to bring all sports into a single platform — and never even managed to launch. After that, The Verge's Kevin Nguyen tells us how to read more books this year, and how to turn all your aimless scrolling time into more productive reading time. Finally, we answer a question on the Vergecast Hotline about audio sources on your phone, and why you can't listen to a thousand things at once.

Further reading:

• TikTok ban: all the news on the app’s shutdown and return in the US
• TikTok is back, but where are Marvel Snap, CapCut, and Lemon8?
• Trump touts his plan to save TikTok during his victory rally
• TikTok isn’t back in the App Store yet
• Bluesky and X launch new video feeds amid TikTok uncertainties
• The new ‘Hulu for Sports’ streaming service has a name: Venu Sports
• Venu Sports shuts down before it ever launches
• From Sportico: YouTube TV vs. Fubo Sports Bundle Could Be Next Streaming Fight
• The Boox Palma is an amazing gadget I didn’t even know I wanted
• From GQ: How to Read a Whole Damn Book Every Week

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David Pierce and Richard Lawler are joined by The Verge's Ash Parrish and Andrew Webster to talk about the Nintendo Switch 2 launch — all the things we know, and all the things we don't. (There's a lot of both.) Then The Verge's Adi Robertson joins to talk about the latest machinations in the potential TikTok ban, plus a Supreme Court hearing about adult content that might just be about the future of the internet. Finally, in the lightning round, David and Richard talk about Patrick Spence leaving Sonos, the Blue Origin launch, Drake's latest beef with Kendrick Lamar, and more.

Further reading:

• Nintendo Switch 2 announcement: all the news on the next console
• The Nintendo Switch 2 has officially been announced
• Everything we know about the Switch 2’s Joy-Con controllers
• You’ll be able to try out the Switch 2 starting in April
• Nintendo announces Switch 2 Direct for April
• The Nintendo Switch 2 supports original Switch cartridges
• Nintendo teases a new Mario Kart for the Switch 2
• The Switch 2 is boring — and that’s exactly what Nintendo needs
• The Switch 2’s bigger screen is just what I wanted
• TikTok reportedly plans ‘immediate’ Sunday shutdown in the US if it’s banned
• TikTok ban: Sen. Markey tries to give a 270 day extension
• TikTok says it’s planning for ‘various scenarios’ ahead of possible US ban
• Elon Musk is reportedly trying to save TikTok 
• Donald Trump is reportedly considering an executive order to delay the TikTok ban.
• Duolingo is the real winner in the TikTok ban.
• RedNote: what it’s like using the Chinese app TikTokers are flocking to
• What is RedNote? The Chinese app gaining popularity as TikTok ban approaches 
• The Supreme Court could decide the fate of Pornhub — and the rest of the internet 
• Sonos CEO Patrick Spence steps down after disastrous app launch
• Sonos’ interim CEO hits all the right notes in first letter to employees 
• Sonos’ chief product officer is leaving the company
• The iPhone Air could be coming later this year
• Bezos’ Blue Origin successfully launches SpaceX rival
• Super Bowl LIX will stream for free on Tubi
• Drake sues his label, UMG, saying ‘Not Like Us’ is defamatory
• Drake axes ‘Not Like Us’ diss track petition against UMG and Spotify
• FTC sues John Deere for ‘unfairly’ raising repair costs on farm equipment

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