Grab your flip flops and beach gear and join is us on this laid-back spring break episode, Sean and Andrew cover Apple’s latest hardware announcements, spotlighting the MacBook Air’s new M4 processor and the powerhouse M3 Ultra chip in the Mac Studio—both of which promise to accelerate AI workloads and offer impressive longevity. Andrew does his best to keep Sean from spending big $$$ on new computer hardware. Reminiscing about early computing nostalgia, they also explore the Future Today Strategy Group’s 2025 Tech Trends Report, discussing the merging of physical, digital, and biological technologies, the rise of humanoid robotics, and agentic AI pushing boundaries in research and day-to-day life. Along the way, they touch on metamaterials, tech alliances, the urgent innovations prompted by the climate crisis, breakthroughs in quantum computing’s error correction, and the burgeoning potential of private enterprises moving into cislunar space.

Links: 

• New Apple MacBook Air 
• New Mac Studio 
• Future Today Strategy Group 2025 Tech Trends 
• Making the most of the 2025 Tech Trends Report
• Apple's AI Platform Pivot Potential - [Stratechery]

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Modem Futura is a production of the Future of Being Human initiative at Arizona State University. Be sure to subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. To learn more about the Future of Being Human initiative and all of our other projects visit - https://futureofbeinghuman.asu.edu

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Host Bios:

Sean M. Leahy, PhD - ASU Bio
Sean is an an internationally recognized technologist, futurist, and educator innovating humanistic approaches to emerging technology through a Futures Studies approach. He is a Foresight Catalyst for the Future of Being Human Initiative and Research Scientist for the School for the Future of Innovation in Society and Senior Global Futures Scholar with the Julie Ann Wrigley Global Futures Laboratory at Arizona State University.

Andrew Maynard, PhD - ASU Bio
Andrew is a scientist, author, thought leader, and Professor of Advanced Technology Transitions in the ASU School for the Future of Innovation in Society. He is the founder of the ASU Future of Being Human initiative, Director of the ASU Risk Innovation Nexus, and was previously Associate Dean in the ASU College of Global Futures.

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