Podcast
The Vergecast
Hosted by The Verge · EN
The Vergecast is the flagship daily podcast from The Verge about small gadgets, Big Tech, and everything in between. Every Friday, Nilay Patel and David Pierce hang out and make sense of the week’s most important technology news. And Monday through Thursday, David leads a selection of The Verge’s expert staffers in an exploration of how gadgets and software affect our lives – and which ones you should bring into yours.
129episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Of course Meta thinks gambling is the future
Yesterday01:23:32Summary readyMeta's business is doing just fine. But Meta as a company, and Meta as a series of products? That is, uh, messier. David and Nilay discuss the company's ongoing desire to be relevant and cool, the unceasing importance of Instagram, and why it makes perfect sense that Facebook would clone Polymarket. After that, the hosts talk about Apple's huge price increases, and the ways in which RAMageddon might change the gadget market forever. Then it's time for Brendan Carr is a dummy, the latest on the movie Artificial, and the looming fight over AI data. Further reading: The Steam Machine is the most ambitious game console I’ve ever played Valve prices the Steam Machine at $1,049 How much would the Steam Machine cost to build? Valve describes just how brutal RAM negotiations are in 2026 The Steam Machine is the start of an even more expensive future for game consoles I drove the Slate Truck — there’s more to it than EV minimalism The Slate Auto pickup truck starts at $24,950 Meta pauses employee tracking tool after internal leak. Now Meta will track what employees do on their computers to train its AI agents Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth Admits the Company’s AI Reorg Was ‘Atrocious’ | WIRED Zuckerberg reportedly wants a Polymarket clone — but without real money Polymarket paid creators to post fake videos of themselves placing and winning bets. Meta plans to release AI-powered prediction market app Facebook’s Creator Studio has been revived as an AI companion app Kaleidescape’s Strato E player blows streaming, and your wallet, away Something’s off with Midjourney’s pivot to body scanners People Inc. CEO says it’s “probably” headed for a confrontation with Google over AI crawling. ABC encourages viewers to back network amid FCC investigations Bob Iger’s Disney wanted Apple, Twitter, and 007 The film about Sam Altman has been dropped by Amazon MGM Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11. (Timestamps are approximate.) 00:01:00 Cannes Cold Open 00:07:00 Coach x Spotify Absurdity 00:10:00 Vox Media PMX Shakeup 00:14:00 Meta Chaos vs Money 00:26:00 Gambling as Engagement 00:33:00 Ramageddon Hits Gadgets 00:44:00 Slate Truck Price 00:45:00 Range And Truck Feel 00:48:00 Tech Bloat Backlash 00:50:00 BYD Versus Tesla 00:56:00 FCC Targets The View 01:04:00 Amazon Drops Artificial 01:08:00 Kaleidescape Versus Blu Ray 01:13:00 Bob Iger Merger Rumors 01:17:00 Blocking AI Crawlers 01:22:00 Wrap Up And Next Week Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
SummaryHow to train your data
Yesterday00:26:41Summary readyTraining data is the raw material of the AI industry. Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, and the rest are built on top of oceans of stuff. What is that stuff? Books. Blog posts. YouTube videos. Reddit comments. All of it and more, in virtually incomprehensible quantities. Alex Reisner, a staff writer at The Atlantic who has been investigating training data, explains how AI companies get all this data, why they'd really prefer you not know what's in it, and whether training data could ever be a fair trade. Further reading: Apple raises prices on Macs, iPads, and more by hundreds of dollars | The Verge Disney agrees to pay $50 million to YouTube TV and DirecTV subscribers | The Verge Two handlebars are better than one, right? | The Verge At Least 15 Million YouTube Videos Have Been Snatched by AI Companies The Hypocrisy at the Heart of the AI Industry The Millions of Songs Mashed Into AI-Generated Music Common Crawl Is Doing the AI Industry’s Dirty Work Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
SummaryGoogle's new speaker and your smart home questions
2d ago00:35:23Summary readyGoogle is shipping its first smart speaker in six years, and we're starting to test it. The Verge's Jennifer Pattison Tuohy joins the show to explain why the Home Speaker matters, whether Google actually cares about the smart home, and more. Then, she helps answer a few questions from the Vergecast Hotline (call 866-VERGE11 or email vergecast@theverge.com!) about the power of Ikea and the future of your thermostat. Further reading: The Google Home Speaker sounds good and looks great — but it’s finicky Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
SummaryWhy Big Tech can't quit smart glasses
3d ago00:43:03Summary readyA huge portion of the tech industry has decided that smart glasses are the next big thing. But why? Smart glasses are incredibly hard to make, hugely socially complicated, and require users to want to wear a gadget on their face. The Verge's Victoria Song helps us figure out which features, if any, will make smart glasses worth all the trouble. Further reading: All these smart glasses and nothing to do Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
SummaryIs the Steam Machine worth the wait?
4d ago00:37:34Summary readyValve has been trying to crack the living room for more than a decade, and the new Steam Machine is its best attempt yet. It's a little bit PC, a little bit console, and a lot pricy — starting at $1,049, it had a lot to live up to. The Verge’s Sean Hollister has been testing the device, and shares his findings on whether the Steam Machine can hang with PlayStation and Xbox. He also explains why, despite a never-ending list of challenges, Valve is still trying to make this device work. Further reading: The Steam Machine is the most ambitious game console I’ve ever played Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
SummaryVersion History: Harmony remote
1w ago01:16:33Summary readyThe Harmony Universal Remote was supposed to be the only controller you needed for all the devices in your life. So what happened? David Pierce is joined by The Verge’s Nilay Patel and John Higgins, as well as Nest co-founder (and current Harmony user) Matt Rogers, to follow the Harmony's timeline from its origins as the "Easy Zapper," through Logitech's acquisition, all the way to its slow death at the hands of smart TVs. And their vastly inferior remotes. If you like the show, follow the Version History audio podcast feed to get every new episode. Version History is also on video! Check us out on YouTube. Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
SummarySnap's Specs look good on nobody
1w ago01:27:16Summary readyThe new smart glasses from Snap look like an impressive bit of technology, and some of the most advanced glasses we've seen. But Nilay and David start the show by wondering, does that matter if nobody wants to put them on? What would it take to overcome the ear-smashing? After that, they discuss the reasons for (and problems awaiting) Fox's acquisition of Roku, the latest updates from Matter, Facebook's wild AI Mode, and more. Further reading: Snap is finally about to ship AR glasses — and they cost a fortune Snap Unveils Specs Smart Glasses at AWE 2026 From CNBC: Snap CEO Evan Spiegel on new AR Specs: New opportunity to bring computing to the world around you Qualcomm’s latest chip hints that more powerful smart glasses could be on the way The Microsoft Surface Laptop 8 and Surface Pro 12 now come with Snapdragon X2 chips Commodore’s Callback 8020 is a retro flip phone with modern ideals Google’s first smart speaker in six years arrives next week Fox is buying Roku Fox wants to take over your TV — and the tech inside it Netflix was reportedly worried about antitrust scrutiny if it bought Roku instead of Fox. Fox is taking over Roku City How Stephen Colbert’s Replacement Is Helping Tank the Rest of CBS Will Matter finally be able to do what it should have always done? | The Verge Thread Direct looks to solve Matter’s biggest setup headache | The Verge Half a billion people are using Threads every month Facebook’s new AI Mode search gets its info from public posts Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11. (Timestamps are approximate.) 00:01:00 Intro 00:02:00 Snap Specs revealed 00:06:00 Snap software advantage 00:08:00 Price comfort reality check 00:10:00 True AR breakthrough 00:15:00 Demos vs daily life 00:21:00 Privacy and moderation risks 00:27:00 Fox buys Roku why 00:29:00 Distribution is power 00:33:00 Roku neutrality ends 00:37:00 Roku Lock-In Debate 00:41:00 Piracy Exit Ramp 00:42:00 Tubi Meets Roku Channel 00:46:00 Go90 Scale Rankings 00:52:00 Distribution Matters CBS 00:57:00 Hype Desk Movies 01:03:00 Knicks Laptop Festival 01:06:00 Brendan Carr Is A Dummy 01:10:00 Radio Ownership Waivers 01:12:00 Threads User Numbers 01:16:00 Meta AI Mode Risks 01:19:00 Matter Joint Fabric 01:28:00 Wrap Up and Plugs Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
SummaryThe best headphone mic we've ever tested
1w ago00:32:30Summary readyYour headphones' microphone matters. A lot. And yet we never know how we sound to others, or whether we're clear to our AI assistants! So from time to time, we like to grab a bunch of headphones and put their microphones through some tough real-world tests. This time, with the help of The Verge's John Higgins, we discover the best-sounding mic we've ever tested. And no, it's not on a pair of AirPods. Not even close. Further reading: Anker’s new earbuds have the best call quality I’ve ever heard AirPods Pro 3 review: tripling down on a good thing Sennheiser’s new Momentum 5 headphones have upgraded ANC and a replaceable battery The tech world is sleeping on the most exciting Bluetooth feature in years Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed.We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
SummaryThe Mythos mess and your AI questions, answered
1w ago00:31:15Summary readyAnthropic and the US government are once again at odds, this time over the Claude Fable 5 model that either is, or is not, or might be, far too dangerous to release to the world. The Verge's Hayden Field explains what's going on with Fable, Mythos, and the whole idea of American AI exceptionalism, before also answering your questions about how WhatsApp and Siri might one day work together, and whether Apple messed up by calling it Siri AI.[10:24 AM] Inside the fight over Claude Mythos 5 Anthropic cuts off Fable 5 and Mythos 5 access following government order I tried Siri AI, and so far it actually works Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Summary# The **epic** story of Markdown
2w ago00:34:52Summary readyMarkdown is a system for writing that makes it readable to both humans and computers. It's all about the symbols. You use - to make a list, * for emphasis, ** for even more emphasis. Brackets and parentheses turn into links. Once you know Markdown, you might begin to think in Markdown. Right now it is absolutely everywhere: people are maintaining their Claude.MD files for conversing with AI bots, and writing their notes in Markdown editors like Obsidian. So where did Markdown come from? It came from John Gruber. John joins the show, along with Anil Dash, to tell the story of where Markdown came from and how it took over the world. Further reading: The Markdown spec How Markdown took over the world Gruber on Apple Notes Markdown support 9to5mac: iOS 26 to bring new features for Messages, CarPlay, and more Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to vergecast@theverge.com or call us at 866-VERGE11. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Summary