Xbox Mode for Windows 11, Meta Threatens Access in New Mexico, AI Chatbot Age Restrictions + more!

Summary

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TechLinked Podcast Summary

Episode: Xbox Mode for Windows 11, Meta Threatens Access in New Mexico, AI Chatbot Age Restrictions + more!
Host: Linus Media Group
Date: May 2, 2026

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Overview

In this episode, TechLinked dives into a wide range of hot topics in tech and gaming, including Microsoft's rollout of Xbox Mode to Windows 11 PCs, Meta’s standoff with New Mexico over child safety laws, and a bipartisan push for AI chatbot age restrictions. The hosts also run through rapid-fire “Quick Bits,” touching on GPU news from China, DDoS attacks on Ubuntu, portable nuclear reactors, a controversial neuroscientist's career move, and Huawei's cinematic headlights for cars.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Xbox Mode Rolls Out to Windows 11 PCs ([00:30]–[01:50])

• What’s New:
  Microsoft has begun rolling out “Xbox Mode,” a fullscreen, console-like gaming interface, to Windows 11 PCs—not just handhelds.
• User Experience:
  • Aggregates game libraries from multiple stores into a single UI.
  • Accessible via Settings > Gaming > Xbox Mode or the Windows Key + F11 shortcut.
  • The rollout is gradual and selective by region.
• Context & Tone:
  The show pokes fun at Microsoft’s recent strategy confusion:
  • The “This is an Xbox” campaign (which positioned everything from phones to Fire TV sticks as Xboxes) was recently dropped.
  • Now, this new mode actually makes your PC feel like a real console.
• Quote:
  • “Six weeks later, here’s a feature that makes your laptop feel exactly like an Xbox.” ([00:54], Host)

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2. Meta Threatens to Pull Services over New Mexico Child Safety Law ([01:51]–[03:04])

• Backstory:
  New Mexico won a $375M suit against Meta in March for failing to protect kids from predators.
• Current Situation:
  • State wants to force age verification, CSAM detection, and restrict end-to-end encryption for minors.
  • Meta argues these requirements are “technologically impractical” and threatens to pull Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp if enforced.
  • Bench trial set for May 4 (“Star Wars Day”).
• Color Commentary:
  Meta’s threat is characterized as PR bluster by state officials, and the hosts mock Zuckerberg’s awkward image.
• Quotes:
  • “...Facebook CEO and man 99% of the way through a fish-to-human transformation, Mark Zuckerberg, calling harm to kids on his platforms an inevitability.” ([02:11], Host)
  • “[AG Raul Torres] is unmoved, calling the threat a PR stunt—truly, no one in the universe executes PR stunts as cringe as Zuckerberg.” ([02:45], Host)

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3. Proposed US Legislation: Ban AI Chatbots for Minors ([03:05]–[03:49])

• Legislation:
  The bipartisan Guard Act would mandate age verification for AI chatbot use and require bots to clearly disclose they’re not human.
• Trigger:
  • Sparked by lawsuits connecting large language models (OpenAI, Google, etc.) to teen harm.
• Political Hurdles:
  • Bill unanimously passed committee (22-0).
  • May face Senate pushback from tech-friendly politicians.
  • Texas Senator Ted Cruz has proposed a weaker, industry-friendly counter-bill.
• Quotes:
  • “Texas senator and retired member of the Nazgul Ted Cruz has already introduced his own watered down version of the bill in order to protect those innocent AI companies against the dark specter of child safety.” ([03:32], Host)

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4. Quick Bits: Rapid Fire Tech Headlines ([05:10]–[08:30])

Lijuan Tech’s Certified Chinese GPU ([05:11])

• News:
  Lijuan Tech becomes fourth-ever GPU manufacturer (after Nvidia, AMD, Intel) to get Windows Hardware Quality Labs certification.
• Potential Impact:
  Could open the Western budget GPU market if/when exports expand.

Ubuntu Knocked Out by DDoS ([05:47])

• Event:
  HackTVIS Group 3.13 launches a DDoS/extortion campaign, taking down Ubuntu’s servers.

World’s First Truck-Mounted Nuclear Reactor ([06:15])

• Innovation:
  Hefei Institute in China tests a portable 10 MW reactor, a “nuclear power bank” that could run for decades and be used in remote locations or space.
• Quote:
  • “They’ve basically made a USB-C charger the size of a shipping container that could also irradiate a small town.” ([06:38], Host)

Charles Lieber and Brain-Computer Research ([06:50])

• Update:
  After US conviction, ex-Harvard scientist Charles Lieber is rebuilding his lab in China, focusing on brain-computer interfaces—and possibly, according to US concerns, super-soldiers.

Huawei’s Interactive Car Headlights ([07:26])

• Feature:
  At Beijing Auto Show, Huawei debuts headlights that project full-color movies and interactive games (like hopscotch) for kids… right in front of parked cars.
• Quote:
  • “Finally, a car designed to let your kids play directly in front of it while it's running. This is what we've been missing. The kids are too soft. Bobby, go jump in front of that car. It's meant for it.” ([07:44], Host)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Meta is threatening to shut down Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp in New Mexico if state prosecutors get their way...because they hate children.” ([01:54], Host, sarcastically)
• “[Mark] Zuckerberg calling harm to kids on his platforms an inevitability.” ([02:16], Host)
• “Six weeks later, here’s a feature that makes your laptop feel exactly like an Xbox.” ([00:54], Host)
• “Texas senator and retired Nazgul Ted Cruz…” ([03:32], Host)
• “They’ve basically made a USB-C charger the size of a shipping container that could also irradiate a small town.” ([06:38], Host)

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Timestamps of Important Segments

• [00:30] Xbox Mode for Windows 11
• [01:51] Meta vs. New Mexico on child safety
• [03:05] AI chatbot age restriction bill
• [05:11] Lijuan Tech certified GPU
• [05:47] Ubuntu DDoS attack
• [06:15] Truck-mounted nuclear reactor
• [06:50] Charles Lieber's career move
• [07:26] Huawei’s headlights that project movies for kids

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Tone and Style

The episode blends biting sarcasm, pop culture jabs (“retired member of the Nazgul Ted Cruz”), and playful self-awareness about the world of tech reporting. The hosts use frequent humor to highlight both the bizarre and concerning corners of modern technology, while delivering a breezy but thorough update on the latest in tech and gaming.

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Transcript

[A]

No one goes to Hank's for his spreadsheets. They go for a darn good pizza. Lately, though, the shop's been quiet, so Hank decides to bring back the $1 slice. He asks copilot in Microsoft Excel to look at his sales and costs and help him see if he can afford it. Copilot shows Hank where the money's going and which little extras make the dollar slice work. Now Hanks has a line out the door. Hank makes the pizza. Copilot handles the spreadsheets. Learn [e-mail] work not a lot of

[B]

people know this, but the tech news is actually mined directly from our writer's subconscious using an elaborate Inception style setup. We had to go like three levels deep to get today's news. We lost some good men down there. Microsoft's Xbox Mode, the full screen gaming interface it originally built for Windows handhelds. As the full screen experience started rolling out to all Windows 11 PCs, and yesterday the timing is a little awkward, Microsoft killed its this is an Xbox campaign in March. You know, the one insisting your phone and fire TV stick were already Xboxes because it didn't feel like Xbox. Six weeks later, here's a feature that makes your laptop feel exactly like an Xbox Xbox Mode replaces your traditional desktop with a console style home screen, aggregating your library from multiple stores into one window. Once it shows up on your PC, you can flip it on under Settings and Gaming Xbox Mode or hit the Windows key plus F11 to drop straight in. Rollout is gradual and limited to select markets, expanding over the coming weeks, so if you don't see it yet, your Windows 11 PC is just being shy. It's okay little guy. You can beat Xbox too. It's allowed. Now Meta is threatening to shut down Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp in New Mexico if state prosecutors get their way in implementing a list of child safety changes because they hate children. The threat comes after New Mexico won a $375 million lawsuit in March with a jury finding Meta liable for exposing children to sexual predators on its platforms. I caramba. During the trial, taped deposition showed Facebook CEO and man 99% of the way through a fish to human transformation. Mark Zuckerberg calling harm to kids on his platforms an inevitability. Now, in a court filing, Meta is arguing that the Attorney General's proposed reforms, which include CSAM detection, age verification, and a restriction on end to end encryption for minors, are technologically impractical. According to Meta, the shutdown threat only kicks in if the judge sides with the state at the bench trial that begins May 4, Star Wars Day. New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torres is unmoved, calling the threat a PR stunt truly known in the universe as executes PR stunts as cringe as Zuckerberg Speaking of young people and AI miners in the US might not be able to use chatbots the same way in the future if a bipartisan bill goes through. The legislation, dubbed the Guard act, would require AI companies to verify the ages of their users in order to bar miners from interacting with AI companions. It would also force chatbots to disclose to all users that they are not human. They're not okay. The bill follows a number of lawsuits against OpenAI, Google, Microsoft and Anthropic over LLMs being involved in several instances of teen violence and self harm. The bill cleared committee with a unanimous 22 nothing vote and now heads to the Senate floor where it could face pushback from politicians who are subject to lobbying by big tech. The Money Texas senator and retired member of the Nazgul Ted Cruz has already introduced his own watered down version of the bill in order to protect those innocent AI companies against the dark specter of child safety. One thing they won't need protection from gross is our sponsor Shokz openfit Pro

[C]

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[D]

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[B]

The quick bits are a byproduct of the dream mining process. If we don't collect them and read them on air, they undergo catastrophic decompression in the dreamer's mind. It's like the Bends, but imaginary. It's messy Chinese GPU maker Lijuan Tech earned Microsoft's Windows Hardware Quality Labs driver certification for its upcoming LX7G100, a 4060 class gaming card launching in China this month. It's the first Chinese firm and only the fourth GPU maker to ever clear WHQL after Nvidia, AMD and Intel. The certification is basically a passport into the Windows ecosystem, meaning if these cards ever leave China, Western gamers might finally have someone new to root for at the budget end of the GPU aisle. Ubuntu's website and login servers have been knocked offline since Thursday by a sustained DDoS attack from Iran aligned HackTVIS Group 3.13 team, who paired the assault with an extortion demand. The group has previously hit Blue sky and Truth Social. Fair enough, but Ubuntu's parent company Canonical is their first major open source target. Bold strategy extorting a company whose main product is free to download, but I see you Chinese researchers at the Hefei Institute of Physical Science have tested the world's first 10 megawatt truck mounted nuclear reactor. That's a brand new sentence capable of running for decades on a single fuel load. The team is calling it a nuclear power bank and is now shopping it to potential customers with potential users, including remote islands ships that could go to remote islands data centers which could be located on remote islands and space stations. No connection to the previous They've basically made a USB C charger the size of a shipping container that could also irradiate a small town. Disgraced ex Harvard scientist Charles Lieber, who is one of the world's leading brain computer interface researchers, is rebuilding his lab in China. In 2021, Lieber was convicted of lying to the feds about accepting $50,000 a month from a Chinese state talent recruitment program. His work is focused on restoring movement in paralyzed people, something the US hates. Just joking, but this has the Pentagon concerned as the People's Liberation army wants to use the tech to create super soldiers with better mental agility and situational awareness. So good luck to Dr. Lieber in his new career and fingers crossed no one kidnaps his dog, forcing him to complete his current character arc of becoming a Cold War era state backed evil super scientist and Huawei unveiled a new version of its X Pixel headlight tech at the Beijing Auto show, capable of projecting full color movies onto walls in front of a parked car. Debuting on the 800M9. With more EVs to follow, the system can project interactive games for kids on the pavement, like hopscotch. Finally, a car designed to let your kids play directly in front of it while it's running. This is what we've been missing. The kids are too soft. Bobby, go jump in front of that car. It's meant for it. And you should jump back in front of the Tech News on Monday. That's our show. That's everything we pulled out of the writers heads today. All the tech news. At least there was an ungodly amount of stomping Tom Connors lyrics in there though. But those are for the weekend.

[E]

Some follow the noise. Bloomberg follows the money. Because behind every headline is a bottom line. Whether it's the funds fueling AI or crypto's trillion dollar swings. There's a money side to every story. And when you see the money side, you understand what others miss. Get the money side of the story. Subscribe [e-mail].