Tech News Weekly 378: Apple's Upcoming OS Overhaul
Released on March 13, 2025
Host: Micah Sargent
Guests: Amanda Silberling, Mark Gurman

Introduction

In episode 378 of Tech News Weekly, host Micah Sargent is joined by Amanda Silberling and Mark Gurman to discuss a range of pressing technology topics. The episode delves into OpenAI's creative writing advancements, Microsoft's venture into AI-driven gaming coaching, and culminates with an in-depth conversation with Mark Gurman about Apple's significant overhaul of its operating systems.

OpenAI's Creative Writing Model

Timestamp: [00:00] - [15:11]

Amanda Silberling initiates the discussion by responding to a tweet from Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, who shared an AI-generated piece of metafiction. The AI was tasked with writing about grief, and the resulting narrative was both technically proficient and unsettling.

Amanda Silberling
"This AI, like the writing has, like, technical skill. It has the cadence of something that seems like literary fiction, but it's not actually saying anything."
[04:23]

Amanda draws parallels between the AI's writing and the earnest yet often hollow attempts of teenage writers striving for profundity. She expresses both intrigue and skepticism about the AI's ability to convey genuine emotion and depth, noting that while the technical execution is impressive, the meaningfulness lags.

Micah Sargent
"I really liked that line [‘I am nothing if not a democracy of ghosts’]. It really gave me goosebumps."
[08:46]

Micah shares his appreciation for metafiction and acknowledges moments in the AI-generated text that resonated with him, despite broader criticism from peers. He highlights the AI's ability to produce content that, while technically sound, lacks authentic emotional experience.

AI as a Gaming Coach: Microsoft's Copilot for Gaming

Timestamp: [19:53] - [25:54]

Transitioning from creative writing, Micah introduces Microsoft's new initiative, Copilot for Gaming, an AI-driven coaching tool integrated into the Xbox ecosystem. This AI coach aims to assist gamers by providing real-time tips and post-game analysis to improve their gameplay.

Micah Sargent
"Microsoft is working on an AI coach for games. It's called Copilot for Gaming, and it will give you different tips and interactions whenever you're playing a game."
[19:53]

Amanda expresses cautious optimism about the tool, acknowledging its potential to aid players in complex games like Hades or solve intricate puzzles in titles like Breath of the Wild. However, she also raises concerns about how it might impact game guides and the competitive gaming landscape.

Amanda Silberling
"I wonder like, what this would do for people that write guides to games. And even with like Breath of the Wild, Tears of the Kingdom, in particular, like some of the puzzles are very not intuitive to me off the bat."
[22:00]

Micah and Amanda discuss the balance between providing helpful hints and maintaining the integrity of competitive gaming, pondering whether AI coaching might lead to an over-reliance on automated assistance or influence competitive play dynamics.

Apple's Operating System Overhaul with Mark Gurman

Timestamp: [29:32] - [39:32]

In a special segment, Micah welcomes Mark Gurman from Bloomberg to dissect Apple's ambitious plans to revamp its operating systems across iPhone (iOS 19), iPad (iPadOS 19), and MacBooks (Mac OS 16).

Mark Gurman
"This year, as part of iOS 19, iPadOS 19, and MacBooks 16, Apple will be unveiling its biggest revamps to iOS software, to MacBooks software. This will be the biggest change since the transition to Mac OS X over 20 years ago."
[30:14]

Gurman highlights that unlike previous updates which focused primarily on aesthetic changes, this overhaul aims to fundamentally reorganize user interfaces to be more intuitive and cohesive across all Apple devices. Drawing inspiration from Vision OS, Apple's mixed reality platform, the new interfaces will incorporate modern design elements to simplify user interactions.

Mark Gurman
"They're trying to appeal not only to the 2 billion plus devices in use today, but they want to be able to get the next 2 billion by making things a lot simpler, a lot more intuitive, a lot easier to use."
[33:05]

Discussing the motivation behind the overhaul, Gurman explains that Apple's interfaces had become bloated over time, accumulating features without rethinking the fundamental user experience. The new design seeks to eliminate this bloat by resetting interface paradigms to enhance usability and ensure seamless interaction across devices.

Micah Sargent
"Do you know if these design changes come at the expense of focus on Apple's AI intentions?"
[34:47]

Gurman clarifies that the UI redesign is a longstanding project, independent of Apple's recent ventures into Artificial Intelligence. However, he anticipates that the new design will eventually offer a better foundation for integrating AI features more deeply, moving beyond superficial add-ons like Siri.

Mark Gurman
"Well, just because the design is not polarizing doesn't mean it's going to be hugely different and annoy a lot of people. I think both can be true. I think people are going to love it, but it's going to take people a while to get used to."
[37:55]

Gurman reassures listeners that while the changes are significant, they are designed to enhance user experience without alienating existing users. He reminisces about the learning curve associated with the original iPhone, suggesting that users will adapt to the new interfaces over time.

AI Search Engines and Citation Accuracy

Timestamp: [42:00] - [60:19]

Returning from a sponsor break, Micah dives into a study conducted by the Tao Center in partnership with the Columbia Journalism Review, which investigates the citation accuracy of AI-powered search engines. The study scrutinizes eight different AI search tools, including Perplexity Pro and Gemini, assessing their ability to accurately cite news sources.

Micah Sargent
"According to the Tao center, the team randomly selected 10 articles from each of the publishers... and found that they were all bad at citing the news."
[47:32]

The study reveals that AI search engines often provide speculative answers even when uncertain, rather than acknowledging their limitations. Premium chatbots, despite charging users, frequently offered confident yet incorrect responses. Additionally, the research highlights issues with the Robot Exclusion Protocol being bypassed, leading to AI tools scraping and citing content without proper authorization or accurate attribution.

Amanda Silberling
"The robot exclusion protocol... some don't do that. And CJR's partner discovered that that definitely seems to be the case that they're not following those rules."
[51:09]

Micah discusses specific instances from the study, such as AI search tools fabricating links and improperly citing syndicated articles, which undermines the credibility of both the AI tools and the original publishers. The methodology involved extracting article excerpts and testing whether AI search engines could accurately identify and cite the correct sources.

Micah Sargent
"They ran 1,600 queries... evaluated the responses based on the retrieval of the correct article, the correct publisher, and the correct URL."
[53:16]

While some tools like Perplexity Pro showed better accuracy, overall, the study indicates a significant gap in reliable citation practices among AI search engines. Amanda adds her perspective on the study's relevance, noting that while it may be more informative for publishers and AI developers, it raises awareness about potential misinformation and the importance of accurate sourcing.

Micah Sargent
"It almost feels like inside baseball... rather than something for us to say, hey, don't trust these tools to do X, Y, or Z."
[59:32]

Micah concludes by emphasizing the need for users to remain critical of AI-generated search results and to verify information through traditional methods when necessary.

Conclusion

In this episode of Tech News Weekly, listeners are offered a comprehensive look into the evolving landscape of AI in creative domains, gaming, and information retrieval, alongside Apple's ambitious strides in redefining its operating systems. The discussions underscore the balance between technological advancement and the maintenance of authenticity and reliability in digital interactions.

Notable Quotes

• Amanda Silberling
  "The AI's writing has the cadence of something that seems like literary fiction, but it's not actually saying anything."
  [04:23]

• Micah Sargent
  "I really liked that line [‘I am nothing if not a democracy of ghosts’]. It really gave me goosebumps."
  [08:46]

• Mark Gurman
  "This will be the biggest change since the transition to Mac OS X over 20 years ago."
  [30:14]

• Mark Gurman
  "They've never taken a step back and said, instead of tacking on everything on top of each other, let's take a step back and see how can we rearrange all this for it to work and be more intuitive."
  [34:24]

• Micah Sargent
  "What is that actually telling us whenever it comes to this?"
  [60:19]

Further Resources

• Amanda Silberling's Work:

  • Twitter: @amandaOMG
  • *TechCrunch Articles
  • Podcast: Wow of True

• Mark Gurman's Articles:

  • Bloomberg.com
  • Social Media: Mark Gurman on Twitter*

• Tao Center Study:

  • Columbia Journalism Review Partnership
  • Full Report Available at CJR.org

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