682: We’re Gonna Need a Bigger Luigi

682: We’re Gonna Need a Bigger Luigi

Author: Jason DeFillippo & Brian Schulmeister with Dave Bittner February 1, 2025 Duration: 1:27:25
Brian and Jason kick things off with a look at why Gen Z grads are getting fired just months after landing jobs and a curiously viral declassified CIA sabotage guide. Speaking of sabotage, U.S. students are struggling with their lowest reading scores in decades, raising questions about the future workforce. Meanwhile, Google Maps’ controversial renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to “Gulf of America” for U.S. users has sparked some amusing geopolitical tit-for-tats. In the AI wars, OpenAI is fuming over claims that DeepSeek trained its models using OpenAI’s own stolen data—ironic, given OpenAI’s history of scraping the internet. As if that weren’t enough, California’s Attorney General warns AI companies that nearly everything they’re doing might be illegal, while the Copyright Office suggests AI copyright issues were settled way back in 1965. Oh, and OpenAI is now in the nuclear weapons game. What could possibly go wrong? In tech and business news, CVS is making customers jump through app hoops to unlock cabinets, Uber claims it’s the victim of an elaborate fake crash scheme, and Tesla promises a robotaxi business and humanoid robots in 2025—though Musk admits current Teslas will need new hardware to achieve full self-driving. Whole Foods workers have formed their first union since Amazon took over, and MoviePass is considering a pivot to crypto, because of course it is. Meanwhile, Elon Musk’s ventures keep making headlines, and Waymo’s driverless taxis are facing vandalism in Southern California. Law enforcement in California is also in hot water, having misused state databases over 7,000 times last year. For media lovers, Star Trek: Section 31 is on the horizon, while The Expanse‘s first three seasons are vanishing from Amazon soon. Behind the Music is back, and Ladies & Gentlemen… 50 Years of SNL Music offers a deep dive into the show’s musical legacy. On the gaming front, classic titles like Spaceship Warlock and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy are getting attention alongside newly accessible archives of 1,500 classic gaming magazines. The Night Agent Season 2 is here and it sucks, and Amazon is hiking the price of its Music Unlimited subscriptions. Finally, the episode wraps with a nod to Marianne Faithfull’s passing and China’s new “magic beans” shaking up American markets—because, in this chaotic world, even the beans are making headlines because AI wrote this terrible summary.

There’s a certain flavor of chaos that defines the technology industry each week, and Grumpy Old Geeks serves as your brutally honest guide through the wreckage. Hosted by Jason DeFillippo, Brian Schulmeister, and Dave Bittner, this isn't a polite roundtable discussion. Instead, it feels like grabbing a drink with friends who have seen it all and have absolutely no patience left for corporate spin or broken promises. They pick apart the biggest tech news stories with a seasoned, cynical eye, always asking the messy questions about what actually went wrong and who should be held accountable. Listening to this podcast is like getting the unfiltered post-mortem from veterans who remember when the internet felt different. The tone is sharp, often funny, and deliberately irreverent-picture a conversation that’s equal parts informed critique and cathartic venting about the state of digital life. You’ll hear them dissect the moves of figures like Elon Musk or Mark Zuckerberg not as distant celebrities, but as players in a ongoing saga of power and missteps. It’s a weekly ritual for anyone who loves technology but is deeply frustrated by the direction it often takes, offering analysis that’s as informed as it is impatient. If you’re tired of sanitized tech commentary and want a take that pulls no punches, this is the place.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Grumpy Old Geeks
Podcast Episodes
683: There IS a Spoon! [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:20:38
Elon Musk’s growing control over government tech sparks chaos, with DOGE employees facing restrictions, USAID crumbling, and U.S. officials warning of legal issues, while AI developments surge—Amazon bets $100 billion on…
681: Trough of Disillusionment [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:23:28
Brian, Jason, and Dave dive into the chaos of tech, media, and politics, covering everything from Elon Musk’s bizarre admission to paying people to play video games for him to Trump’s controversial pardon of Silk Road cr…
680: Failed Up [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:57
This week on Grumpy Old Geeks, Jason and Brian dissect the latest tech and cultural news, starting with a TikTok tempest. The Supreme Court’s decision to uphold a law potentially banning the app in the U.S. leaves the ba…
679: Set Sanity to Zero [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:23:49
In Episode 679 of Grumpy Old Geeks, “Set Sanity to Zero,” Brian and Jason tackle tech news, cultural trends, and AI advancements, from wildfire apps and deepfake legislation to Meta controversies and AI-powered innovatio…
1: Grumpy Old Geeks Trailer [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 0:57
As one of the longest-running podcasts, "Grumpy Old Geeks" discovers what went wrong on the Internet, and who's to blame. Every week they cut through the BS from big tech and tell you what's really going on. With wide-ra…
678: Stop Doing That! [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:20:46
WordPress has officially jumped the pineapple, forcing users to agree that pineapple belongs on pizza to log in. Critics call it a kindergarten move, especially when serious feature requests are ignored. Meanwhile, the c…
677: What’s in the Bag?! [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:37
In this episode, Jason DeFillippo and Brian Schulmeister dig into the Hawk Tuah meme coin disaster and where influencer-driven crypto schemes go off the rails, leaving chaos in their wake. They unpack WP Engine’s big win…
676: Gay Nuclear Frogs [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:14:57
We dive into the TikTok ban drama, Elon Musk’s Tesla pay controversy, and a Chinese ship crew allegedly sabotaging undersea cables. In the news, the former Celsius CEO pleads guilty, Canadian media takes on OpenAI, and E…
675: A Thanksgiving Blast from the Past with Tim Ferriss [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:01
This week, author Tim Ferriss is our special guest. Tim sat with us for an hour, and we talked about his new show on HLN, his fantastic new book club, cool stuff about the quantified self, sleep hacking, and more. We eve…
675: Your Own Personal Jesus [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:19:34
In this episode of Grumpy Old Geeks, we dive into the wild, wacky, and often worrying world of tech, media, and everything in between. From a Swiss church using AI to preach the gospel to OpenAI facing a copyright conund…