Podcast Summary: TechLinked – "Year of the Robot at CES 2026, Intel + AMD Cheap Shots + More!"

Host: Linus Media Group
Date: January 9, 2026
Theme: A rundown of the biggest tech news at CES 2026, with a focus on robotics, chip wars, and AI industry moves.

Episode Overview

Main Theme:
This episode dives deep into the "Year of the Robot" at CES 2026, highlighting the explosion of robotics in both home and industrial contexts. Alongside, the host covers major confrontations between Intel and AMD, rapid pace in AI development, major silicon innovation in China, and significant platform and privacy news (OpenAI, Google, Bose, Roblox, GitHub).

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. "Year of the Robot" at CES 2026

Timestamp: 00:30–07:15 (approx.)

• Robotics Take Center Stage:
  • Nvidia's keynote focused on AI and robotics; numerous robot cameos.
  • Qualcomm revealed a new complete robotics tech stack aimed at powering everything from home robots to industrial and humanoid bots.
• Household & Humanoid Robots:
  • LG’s Cloyd Home Robot: Recognizes faces, helps with chores. ("Cloyd. That's my worst uncle. If he tries to high five you, you just roll away, pal. Stiff that guy." – Host, 01:20)
  • SwitchBot Oneiro H1: Modular robot butler; compared to "a slow moving Slenderman."
  • Boston Dynamics Atlas (Production Ready): Powered by Google’s Gemini AI, set for Hyundai factories in 2028; underscores robots taking over human industrial jobs.
  • Robots & Sports: Robot sports events, including humanoid bots racing and playing soccer, signal fast advancements. "Athletes might be losing some of their jobs soon too. I'm sorry LeBron, you might not get to play basketball until you're 50 after all." (Host, 02:15)
• Unusual Robots:
  • Lynx M20 Pro All-Terrain Robot: Stomps and rolls, can jump stairs like a skateboarder, won an innovation award.
  • Eufy S2 Robot Vacuum by Anker: Adds aromatherapy diffusion to its cleaning features.
  • Roborock Soros Rover: Experimental robot with legs capable of climbing stairs ("Damn, maybe this thing can ball too." – Host, 04:15)
  • Mammotion Spino S1 Pro: Pool cleaning robot that can pull itself out of water "like a Bond girl. Or Bond himself."

2. Intel vs. AMD Throw Shade Over Handheld Chips

Timestamp: 07:15–09:15 (approx.)

• Intel’s Panther Lake Launch:
  • First chips on new 18A process. An executive criticized AMD for "selling ancient silicon while we're selling up to date processors specifically designed for the gaming handheld market."
• AMD Fires Back:
  • AMD exec Raul Tiku: Intel's benchmarks unfair, compared "their highest end chip to AMD's mid tier."
  • Panther Lake likened to a "Swiss army knife that carries all of this baggage," suggesting it's not purpose built for gaming handhelds unlike AMD Z series.
• Irony in the Market:
  • Despite "ancient silicon" jabs, AMD’s Ryzen 7 5800X (Zen 3, 2020) was Amazon Germany's best-selling CPU last month (~2,000 units), thanks to lower DDR4 RAM costs.
  • ("Turns out when DDR4 is half the price of DDR5, people are happy to build ancient AM4 systems." – Host, 08:35)

3. AMD’s AI Ambitions vs. Nvidia

Timestamp: 09:15–10:00

• AMD MI500 Series Teased:
  • CEO Lisa Su claims a "1000x performance uplift" over the MI300X.
  • Host notes this is misleading: compares an 8-GPU node to an entire rack with unspecified GPUs — "Basically, AMD is that kid in high school who had a girlfriend who lives in Canada."

4. Silicon Frontier: China’s 2D Chips

Timestamp: 12:15–14:15

• Shanghai’s Molybdenum Disulfide Chips:
  • "Why does it matter? As silicon chips shrink, they hit physical limits..."
  • 2D material "lets electrical signals move more efficiently with way less heat."
  • "The wuji chip packs 5,900 transistors, which is nothing... But the previous world record was 115, so they just 50x the technology."
  • Roadmap: mass production line by June 2026, targets at 90nm this year, 28nm in 2027, 5 or 3nm by 2028.
  • "If China's timeline holds, which is a big if, they could have a fundamentally different approach..."

5. AI Expansions in Health & Email

Timestamp: 14:15–16:10

• OpenAI’s ChatGPT Health:

  • "Non-HIPAA compliant, non end-to-end encrypted health assistant."
  • Users link health data for advice, which "is not intended to provide diagnosis or treatment guidance."

• AI Prescriptions in Utah:

  • Utah lets an AI legally prescribe medication ($4/prescription, 190 conditions).
  • Pharmacists unhappy: "Complicated and unnecessary solution" and "It's insulting professionally that the state trusts a computer more than me."
  • AI matches doctors 81% of the time ("so only 1 in 5 of you might have a problem. Pretty good for our audience, honestly.")

• Google Gmail’s 'Biggest Update':

  • All about AI — Gemini-powered overviews in email search and a new AI inbox that auto-prioritizes to-dos & VIPs.
  • Opt-out required (default is on).
  • "If you don't, then Google's gonna read all your emails. ... Now they're gonna be weird about it." (Host, 15:55)

6. Platform & Privacy News

Timestamp: 16:10–End

• Bose Handles Speaker EOL with Dignity:

  • Instead of disabling smart products, Bose will release APIs/docs so enthusiasts can extend the devices' life.
  • "Bose looks like an absolute hero for just not bricking something that people have paid for. We're living in the age of the bare minimum level of decency here. It's so depressing. Thank you Bose."

• Roblox Faces Age Verification Lawsuits:

  • Now requires facial scanning to verify age for chat ("scan their face, then it’ll guess their age and sort them").
  • States like Texas and Louisiana still suing for safety concerns.

• GitHub Bans Adult Content Developers Without Warning:

  • Large number of devs for sex game mods/plugins suspended with little explanation ("Most weren't told what rules they broke").
  • Unclear policy, backlash leads some to migrate to "Git Goon."

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "I'm more machine than man now. Twisted and evil, but I know you guys want that Tech News." (Host joking about CES fatigue, 00:32)
• "Did you see the Oneiro H1's physique? I bet that thing can hoop." (Host, 02:25)
• "As for more practical bots, we got Anker's new Eufy S2 robot vacuum, which doubles as an aromatherapy diffuser so your house will smell clean and smell nice. La dee da. That's very fancy. But can it climb stairs?" (Host, 03:50)
• "Maybe this thing can ball too. Speaking of stupid, sexy Robots..." (Host, 04:15)
• "Turns out when DDR4 is half the price of DDR5, people are happy to build ancient AM4 systems." (08:35)
• "Basically, AMD is that kid in high school who had a girlfriend who lives in Canada. Turns out Canada is actually a real place..." (Host, 10:00)
• "So only 1 in 5 of you might have a problem. Pretty good for our audience, honestly." (Host on AI prescription accuracy, 15:00)
• "Please, everyone else, learn from this. It's crazy that Bose looks like an absolute hero for just not bricking something that people have paid for." (Host, 17:05)
• "We're living in the age of the bare minimum level of decency here. It's so depressing." (Host, 17:10)

Timestamps for Noteworthy Segments

• 00:30–07:15: CES robots, robot highlights and their uses
• 07:15–09:15: Intel vs. AMD – chip banter, market realities
• 09:15–10:00: AMD’s AI boast vs. Nvidia, the "girlfriend in Canada" analogy
• 12:15–14:15: China’s 2D chip manufacturing breakthrough
• 14:15–16:10: AI in healthcare (OpenAI, Doctronics), Gmail AI overhaul
• 16:10–18:30: Bose approach to device EOL, Roblox facial verification lawsuits, GitHub dev bans

Tone & Style

The episode is peppered with humor, sarcasm, and quick asides from the host, in keeping with TechLinked’s tradition. The language is casual, accessible, and often self-deprecating, with frequent analogies to pop culture and tech in-jokes.