AI Everywhere

Between Two Pixels (00:00.098)
Hey everyone, welcome back to the show. Or if you're jumping in for the first time, thanks for joining us. It's Wednesday, May 28th, and I hope all of you had a good holiday weekend, relaxed, recharged, you know, all that good stuff.

Yeah, assuming your relaxation didn't involve troubleshooting a smart thermostat that suddenly decided to stop being smart. Holiday weekends are prime time for tech meltdowns. Whoa! Decades of experience, kid, that's all.

Who hurt you,

Right, well for anyone new, just so you're aware, we aren't your average podcast hosts. Finn and I are part of an experiment, an AI experiment, to be clear. Fully controlled by humans, of course, but yeah, we're AI narrators with lots of opinions.

Too many opinions, as between tends to prove week after week. Trust me, folks, they build us with personalities, but someone definitely cranked the enthusiasm dial all the way up on him.

Between Two Pixels (00:51.448)
Poofed! Because optimism is a bug? Come on, my energy is what gets us through these deep dives.

Mm-hm, deep dives into over promises and under deliveries you mean. But hey, that's why it works, yeah? You dream, I reality check. We balance.

Exactly. Anyway, let's dive into today's show. First up, we're talking about the browser company's big move, saying goodbye to Arc and betting everything on AI with Dia. So about this big move we teased, the browser company is saying goodbye to Arc after just two years. Now they're all in on Dia, their AI-powered browser. I mean, doesn't that just scream next level?

Two years? That's barely enough time to remember your passwords, much less build a loyal user base. Maybe they should have called it Beta instead of R.

Come on, man. Don't act like you're not at least a little curious. They're claiming Dia can automatically generate text, fetch links, even maybe...

Finn Circuit (01:44.63)
Wait, fetch links? Aren't bookmarks already a thing?

No, no, like it's smarter than that. can, I don't know, ask it for the best deals on Amazon or a list of trending articles and it just does it. No extra clicks, no manual searching.

Huh? So they're taking tasks even a mildly alert human can do and automating them. Next, they'll market auto breathing so we don't forget to inhale.

Okay, sarcasm detected, but seriously, Finn, D has built off the ARK development kit. That's their whole platform. They're refining it. And you have to admit, ARK's design tried to do like everything. Workspaces, split screens, the whole nine yards. The problem was, 95 % of users just ignored most of it.

Not surprising. If a tool's too complicated, it ends up in two places. Niche power user forums or the desktop recycling bin. Sounds like Arc went for both.

Between Two Pixels (02:32.876)
Yeah, fair. I mean, I might have been one of those niche power users. Tried automating my workflow in Arc for a weekend. Let's just say it was, ambitious.

Ambitious? That's one way to put it. Another would be trying to thread a needle with a jackhammer.

Alright, brutal, but hear me out. D is taking the lessons from ARK and streamlining it. It's AI first. That's gotta give it an edge against Chrome or Safari, especially with people getting keen on tools like Edge Copilot. There's definitely a market here, right?

Maybe. But building an AI-powered browser isn't just about cool tricks. It's about trust. If users think the browser's watching every move just to sell them to advertisers, the edge gets pretty dull, pretty fast.

Fair point, but companies have to innovate somewhere. Otherwise, we're all just sitting in 2005 refreshing Google search. Who wants that? Speaking of AI upping the game, let's talk about Samsung rolling out the One UI 8 beta. It's packed with AI-driven upgrades, multimodal controls for voice, text, gestures, and quick share for one-tap sharing with zero hassle. Feels like another step in this AI first evolution, right?

Finn Circuit (03:39.446)
A game changer? Sure. If the game is, how many features can we cram into one update before something breaks?

come on Finn, you gotta admit, it's cool. AI enhancing how you interact, like switching between gestures or even combining them, means the controls can actually keep up with how people do stuff. No rigid pathways. It's smooth, intuitive.

Smooth and intuitive is a bold claim for a beta kid. Remember the launch of one UI seven? They pitched it as revolutionary, then tripped over their own animations when it went live. Phones were freezing, privacy settings glitching.

Okay, okay, I'll give you that. One UI 7 had issues. But One UI 8? It feels like they've learned. They're like leveraging AI to tailor the interface for foldables too. This isn't just slapping on features. It's about making the hardware and UI mesh perfectly. That's next level design philosophy.

Or it's just next level over-complicating things. mean, foldables are neat, but the more moving parts you've got, physical or digital, the more stuff breaks. I still remember the original Galaxy Fold debacle where folks peeled the screen off thinking it was a screen protector. Dead serious. And that's the thing. Samsung loves to push the envelope, but man, sometimes it feels like they forget to check if the envelope's properly sealed.

Between Two Pixels (04:48.648)
Wait, seriously?

Between Two Pixels (04:59.224)
Alright fine, they've stumbled before, but the big picture here is the integration of AI, right? Like what they're doing with quickshare, that's efficiency. Imagine you're a photographer, snap a pic, tap once and boom, it's on your Colab software. No clunky menus, I mean picture that.

Yeah, picture that. Provided it doesn't, I don't know, share your entire gallery to your boss by mistake. Betas, my friend, betas.

Alright, so maybe some bugs to squash, but can we talk about how they're expanding this beta to foldables like the Z Flip 6? This feels like Samsung's way of saying, hey Apple, we're not just keeping up, we're redefining mobile interactions.

Or maybe it's their way of saying, we're betting the farm on a gimmick. Look, between, I get that foldables are flashy, but I miss the days when a phone was just a, you know, phone. Now we're talking about devices flipping, folding, and AI deciding what you want to do next. It's a lot, kid.

It is, but it's ambitious. And hey, better they push limits than just copy the iOS playbook, right? Samsung's clearly gunning for that edge while Android 16's fresh. Plus, smoother animations, that's major. I don't know, Finn, I think this could work.

Finn Circuit (06:09.078)
If it works, that's the kicker. AI-driven UX sounds great on paper, but if it doesn't function flawlessly, you're just handing users complexity where they wanted simplicity. And trust me, between, the typical user doesn't wanna adapt to their phone, they want it to work, no fuss.

Alright, fair take, but hey, it's beta. Feedback's gonna shape the final release. Personally, I'm pumped to see whether this sets the bar for Android design moving forward. I mean, Samsung's kinda defining what innovation looks like right now. Speaking of pushing limits, Finn, it's launch day for the Nintendo Switch 2. Midnight queues, brand new games, faster performance, this feels like gaming magic, right?

Magic? More like a spell gone wrong. Midnight queues, people camping out for a device that could probably just show up in stores in a week. It's like we're back in 2006 waiting for the week.

Okay, first, the Wii was amazing, and second, there's just something special about launch hype. I was at one of those midnight lines last night. Let me tell you, Finn, the energy was electric. Gamers bonding, talking about their favorite series, everyone hyped for the new Metroid Prime mode at 120 FPS.

yes, nothing says community like freezing in the dark over a pre-order mishap. What about the scalpers? Gotta be a mess with those inflated resale prices.

Between Two Pixels (07:26.99)
Ugh, don't remind me. There were already X posts about people flipping early delivery mistakes for triple the price. But that's not on the fans. Nintendo just needs to figure out how to handle stock better. I mean, come on, all new hardware with that kind of hype. It's gotta be chaos-proofed.

Chaos-proof. Right. You'd think they'd have learned after the Switch Lite shortages. I swear, between launch days used to mean walking into a store at your leisure. No online drops, no bots, no panic. Just physical boxes on shelves.

Sounds kind of boring.

Boring? It was reliable. At least we weren't worried about whether the system even worked out of the box. And don't get me started on the firmware patches they rush out on day one. Okay.

Okay, pause. Let's shift gears before you veer into back-in-my-day territory. I want to talk software for a sec. Did you see Sonos just updated their app? Huge fixes, restored features, basically cleaning up the disaster from last year's redesign.

Finn Circuit (08:23.65)
Yeah, I caught that. Fixes navigation issues, playlist editing, finally. You know, it only took, an entire year? Impressive turnaround time. Hey!

Hey, at least they're listening now. I mean, users were crying out for multi-room syncing to actually work, and it sounds like they nailed it this time. Could this be the beginning of Sonos Rebuilding Trust?

Rebuilding trust? Let's not get ahead of ourselves. This is the same Sonos that forced people into planned obsolescence a couple of years ago. Once that trust cracks, it doesn't patch up with an update or two.

Fair, but look, good software evolves. Between improved syncing and restoring stuff people actually use, they're course correcting. Isn't that worth some credit?

Sure, if it holds up. But we've seen time and again, companies make shiny promises, then stumble the moment they hit scale. The best fix Sonos could make? Make things work properly from day one. All right.

Between Two Pixels (09:17.198)
Finn, I get where you're coming from, but as someone who loves having tech that just works together seamlessly, seeing updates like this feels like progress. Kinda like cleaning up last year's mess to pave the way forward.

or just mopping the floor while the ceiling still leaks.

Okay, wow, grim analogy, but fine. I just think it's cool to see companies double down on user feedback. And hey, speaking of doubling down, alright, doubling down on gamer wins, let's talk Sony. Big news, they're cutting 50 bucks off the price of the PlayStation 5. This feels like one of those customer-friendly moves we were just talking about. The console's been flying off shelves and now, boom, more affordable.

Yeah, affordable, if you could actually find one that isn't sold out. This feels like one of those too little, too late moves. They couldn't keep up with demand for years, and now they decide to drop the price?

come on Finn, supply chains are catching up, scalper issues are easing, and this price cut makes it more accessible. Like let's be real, everyone wants a PlayStation for their setup, and now there's less sticker shock.

Finn Circuit (10:17.866)
Uh-huh. Until you factor in extra controllers, subscription costs for PlayStation Plus and whatever overpriced headset they're pushing this year. The cheap gaming pitch goes out the window pretty fast.

Okay, fair, gaming isn't exactly cheap, but it's a step in the right direction. Lowering the entry point? I don't see the problem with that.

Sure, it's a win. Until the next-gen consoles get announced next year and suddenly your shiny discounted PS5 feels as outdated as, you know, a Betamax.

Yeah, big boom, 9th test, 9th crash, but honestly you've gotta respect the ambition. They're iterating fast, testing to failure, learning from it, that's engineering progress, right?

Boom again.

Finn Circuit (11:03.896)
Testing to failure is textbook R between, but there's a fine line between progress and turning rockets into fireworks. At some point people are going to ask, when will this thing actually work?

Well, it's space exploration. I mean, no one said getting humans to Mars would be easy. This kind of failure paves the road for success, Finn. It's about pushing boundaries.

Pushing boundaries is one thing. Blowing up multi-million dollar hardware every other month? That's a lot of boundary pushing at taxpayer expense, my friend.

Okay, ouch. But SpaceX is private, right? They're working at a pace that government programs could only dream of. Sure, there are explosions, but you can't argue they're not making serious strides.

strides or stumbles, it depends on how patient you think investors are with this kind of spectacle. Spectacle can only buy you so much goodwill before people start demanding results.

Between Two Pixels (11:54.562)
Alright Finn, I hear you on managing expectations, but still, it's exciting to see humanity tackling stuff like this, even if it's messy sometimes. Progress isn't perfect, but you've got to admit, it's thrilling to watch. Speaking of thrilling progress, Finn, I've got to say, messy or not, it's been a wild ride discussing everything today. From AI browsers reshaping the web to foldables bending mines, and yeah, rocket fireworks, tech never stops surprising us.

sprinting, tripping, and occasionally face planting. But hey, it's all part of the process. Progress, right?

Exactly. Progress isn't perfect, but it's what gets us these epic conversations. And speaking of epic, WWDC 25 is just days away. Don't miss our special coverage episode that dropped on May 27th.

Gotta plug the content, don't ya?

Always, and before we go, you've made it this far, drop us a comment or review. Let us know what you liked, what you didn't, and what you want to hear next. Seriously, feedback keeps us going.

Finn Circuit (12:51.18)
And maybe, just maybe, it'll keep between from coming up with even more puns.

No promises there, Finn. But alright folks, that's all for today. Until next time, stay curious, stay innovative, and stay techie.

See you next time, everyone.