Material

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Material episodes

September 07, 2023428: Corporations Aren’t People
Google looks back on 25 years of search, just as it announces it's requiring disclaimers on AI-generation political ads. Also, did Android need a capital A?
Links and Show Notes:
Questions, shrugs and what comes next: A quarter century of change
Then and now: 5 ways we're continuing to improve Search
Election 2024: Google to Make Advertisers Disclose AI in Political Ads
Updates to Political content policy
Google Debuts New Android Logo, Adds AI to 'At a Glance' Widget
A new modern look for the Android brand
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1 hr 4 min
September 02, 2023427: I’m So Itchy
Andy and Flo are tired, but the show must go on. Google announces the next phase of AI infusion in Workspace. The company also leaked the new Pixel 8 before announcing a launch event in October. The modular Fairphone 5 is excellent but missing what makes everyone buy Apple and Samsung.
Links and Show Notes:
Welcome to Google Cloud Next ‘23
Duet AI for Google Workspace now generally available
Google’s Duet AI can now write your emails for you
Google is bringing generative AI to its security tooling
Google kills two-year “Pixel Pass” subscription after just 22 months
Google leaked Google’s flagship Pixel 8 Pro, again
Google might recreate Apple’s satellite SOS on Android
The Modular Fairphone 5 Is Good, but It's Still No Repairable iPhone
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1 hr 10 min
August 25, 2023426: Rhubarbs That Turn Into Donnybrooks
We answer burning questions, like what Google wants with Johnny Cash's likeness and why it ceased development on an AR/VR device with Samsung. Sorry, parents, YouTube has been targeting ads to kids.
Links and Show Notes:
YouTube is figuring out its AI strategy by working with music labels
Our principles for partnering with the music industry on AI technology
Google's augmented-reality dream turned into chaos. Insiders say constant pivots are delaying its master plan to chase Apple.
YouTube Ads May Have Led to Online Tracking of Children, Research Says
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55 min
August 17, 2023425: Hump Day
Robo taxis are a menace to society, or at least it seems that way in San Francisco. Flo shares her final thoughts on Samsung and Google's foldables. And Google introduces a batch of new AI tools to help summarize web pages on the fly.
This episode of Material is sponsored by:
Factor: Healthy, fully-prepared food delivered to your door.
Links and Show Notes:
These Women Tried to Warn Us About AI
Quick fix: restore Chrome download notifications to the bottom of the page
Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Google's Pixel Fold Cost the Same, but They're Very Different Devices
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 Review: The Best Folding Phone Still Costs Too Much
Driverless cars can now operate like taxis in San Francisco, raising safety concerns
Learn as you search (and browse) using generative AI
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1 hr 11 min
August 11, 2023424: Attention K-Mart Shoppers
Prepare to get more of Johnny Cash singing Europop hits, as Google is working with Universal on deep fake AI-based music. You can listen to it while making Android apps in your browser and sleeping in Google's hotel. The future!
Links and Show Notes:
Attention K-Mart Shoppers
"Ground Beef: Passport to Far-Away Eating"
Google and Universal Music negotiate deal over AI ‘deepfakes’ | Financial Times
Google's AI-powered code editor enables Android, iOS, and web dev online
Judge dismisses major arguments in Google antitrust case
$5 billion Google lawsuit over ‘Incognito mode’ tracking moves a step closer to trial - The Verge
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1 hr 11 min
August 03, 2023423: Fold vs. Fold
It's Taco Tuesday, even though we're recording on Wednesday and posting on Thursday: Flo has the Pixel Fold and Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 in hand, while Andy leads us in a game of "Is This Thing Google's Doing Evil, Or Not?"
Links and Show Notes:
Google’s nightmare “Web Integrity API” wants a DRM gatekeeper for the web
A 'deeply committed' Google working on 'supercharged Assistant' powered by LLMs
Scoop: Google Assistant to get an AI makeover
Google Tests A.I. Tool That Is Able to Write News Articles
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1 hr 11 min
July 28, 2023422: New Winds Ahead
Flo is back! Andy is elated! The two hosts catch up on life over the last nine weeks and discuss the results of Alphabet's latest quarterly earnings. Samsung also puts on a mediocre show for some foldables.
Links and Show Notes:
Alphabet reports better-than-expected quarterly results driven by growth in cloud
Alphabet CFO Ruth Porat leaving role to become president and chief investment officer
Samsung’s Galaxy Flip 5 and Fold 5 Unpacked event: biggest announcements
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1 hr 5 min
July 20, 2023421: The Me Show
Flo is back next week! So Andy is exploiting this final solo episode to make it all about Him. His frustrations about saving web archives from Chrome. His extended thoughts on Indiana Jones. To his credit, he did throw in some news about Google’s new AR Space Invaders game, just so that this Google podcast doesn’t lose its liquor license. But he still heroically pivots to his own opinions about technology’s responsibilities to move the needle.
This episode of Material is sponsored by:
Factor: Healthy, fully-prepared food delivered to your door.
Links and Show Notes: Support Material with a Relay FM Membership Google and Space Invaders launch an immersive AR game Indiana Jones Wiki | Fandom
1 hr 19 min
July 14, 2023 420: The Snowball of Trust
Andy’s joined by a special guest this week: Jason Howell, host of All About AndroidA new rash of civil lawsuits that content creators have filed against Google and other makers of AI language models. And then we talk phones.
Guest Starring:
Jason Howell
Links and Show Notes: Support Material with a Relay FM Membership Google hit with lawsuit alleging it stole data from millions of users to train its AI tools | CNN Business The environmentally conscious Fairphone 4 is finally coming to the US - The Verge LineageOS – LineageOS Android Distribution
1 hr 21 min
July 06, 2023 419: Oh...Canada.
Canada is the latest country to decide that somebody should be on the hook for the news industry’s financial issues, and it might as well be Google. And, just like the offside rule in professional hockey, this is a Canadian thing that Andy doesn’t really understand. Meanwhile, Google urges its AI models to both learn more and forget more. Isn’t this the sort of contradiction that made HAL-9000 go psychotic?
Links and Show Notes: Support Material with a Relay FM Membership Google says it will start blocking Canadian news stories in response to new law : NPR Our approach to news regulation ‘We must think beyond the memes’: Google’s Richard Gingras on the future of news in our societies - WAN-IFRA Google Says It'll Scrape Everything You Post Online for AI Announcing the first Machine Unlearning Challenge – Google Research Blog Opinion | The Alt-Right Manipulated My Comic. Then A.I. Claimed It. - The New York Times Sarah's Scribbles
1 hr 12 min

About Material

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Material is a weekly discussion about the Google and Android universe. Your intrepid hosts try to answer the question, “What holds up the digital world?” The answer, so far, is that it’s Google all…