687: Uncanny Spaceballs

687: Uncanny Spaceballs

Author: Jason DeFillippo & Brian Schulmeister with Dave Bittner March 8, 2025 Duration: 1:05:12
Techdirt has embraced politics as tech’s twin dumpster fire; Google’s AI Mode proves the internet is just Clippy with better PR; Billy McFarland’s Fyre Festival 2 is literally lost at sea; Tesla sales plummet as Elon’s antics spark protests; Sergey Brin wants engineers to work 60-hour weeks to build their replacements; Trump Media funneled cash to Don Jr. while indie musicians can’t afford to tour; Technicolor collapsed overnight, stranding 10,000 workers; SpaceX exploded—again; Netflix’s remake of A Different World became nightmare fuel; Y Combinator startups are coding on pure vibes; OpenAI is monetizing AI agents at $20K/month; Russian propaganda is infecting AI chatbots; hackers unbricked the Humane AI Pin to make it slightly less useless; ChatGPT now helps Mac developers introduce unexpected bugs; for escapism, read The Tempest by Peter Cawdron or On Tyranny by Timothy Snyder; and in peak dystopia, 82% of indie artists can’t tour—at least we still have humor.

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
709: Grumpy Old Gardeners [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:12:09
This week the geeks wade through the wreckage of modern tech, from the Tesla Diner's instant failure and the disastrous GPT-5 launch that created an army of digital mourners; they mock the billionaire class for building…
708: Spicy Mode [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:08:50
On this episode of Grumpy Old Geeks: AI takes over everything from driving to therapy to music, often with hilarious and alarming results; big tech shuffles the deck with layoffs and questionable product choices; and we…
707: Someone Spilled the Tea [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:55
Jason and Dave Bittner dive into a chaotic week of digital disasters and generational despair; from Gen X angst and Tom Lehrer tributes to dating app doxxings, AI-trained-on-porn scandals, and Tesla-fueled neighborhood n…
706: Let There Be Scams [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:24
This week, the Grumpy Old Geeks cover Elon Musk's absurd diner and "disadvantaged" multi-billion dollar startup; the worsening AI bubble, complete with hallucinated features and faked medical studies; the latest in crypt…
705: Vibe Defunding [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:22:02
This week, the Geeks dive into the AI dumpster fire as Nvidia's CEO admits his fear, Elon Musk aims for a cosmic religion, and Elmo's X account gets hacked. They also cover Tesla's desperate sales tactics, Jack Dorsey's…
704: I’m Lovin’ It [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:22:19
This week, the infamous Fyre Fest dumpster fire continues as Billy McFarland hawks the brand's remains on eBay. We dive into the latest AI-powered chaos, from Tesla's self-crashing robotaxis to Elon Musk’s Grok chatbot g…
703: None More Black [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:16:43
ICE raids and FuckLAPD.com highlight America’s surveillance circus; a Norwegian tourist gets booted over a JD Vance meme; Big Balls lands at Social Security; Tesla robotaxis need adult supervision; judges can’t decide if…
702: TikTaco [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:24:51
Trump punts the TikTok ban again; Tesla mows down dummies and dumps Cybertrucks like yard sale junk; AI kills jobs, fries budgets, and melts brains; Microsoft and Wikipedia pump the brakes; Altman wants your electricity;…
701: Dancing in the Streets [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:18:19
We light a candle for legends and torch bad takes; Molly White says truth still matters as apathy and flaming Waymos rise; “No Kings” protests erupt while Elon licks Trump’s boots; Uber reinvents the worse bus, Tesla del…
700: Going Antiquing [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:19:28
Elon and Trump’s feud torches billions while launching a sketchy crypto wallet; DOGE fires someone for praising government efficiency; Ukraine weaponizes open source code in a drone blitz; U.S. states fumble social media…