The Current + Home Depot scam, Madonna flick, iPad trick, spying AirPod bosses and cinematic selfies - In partnership with Oracle NetSuite | Happy Friday, friend. Steve Jobs once banned a certain office tool from Apple HQ because he said it killed creativity. Not naming names, but your manager probably made you use it last week. Legend has it, if you said the word aloud in Cupertino, a trapdoor opened under your desk. Can you guess what business tool Jobs famously hated and banned from internal use: A) Microsoft Word, B) Google Docs, C) PowerPoint or D) Slack? Find the answer at the end! š¤ If this brightened your inbox, sharing it would mean a lot to me. Your friends deserve a good read, too. ā Kim š« First-time reader? Sign up here. (Itās free!) | TODAY'S DEEP DIVE Startups, scandals and shattered dreams Image: ChatGPT Iām way more into movies based on true stories. Real people, real drama, thatās my kind of thing. You can keep the wizards and aliens. Give me a story where something unbelievable actually happened. I put together this list for you as proof that tech isnāt just lines of code or shiny gadgets. Itās ambition, hype, brilliance and yeah, sometimes a total train wreck. Youāre gonna want to see each one. 1. The Dropout (Hulu) This is the true story of Theranos, the startup that promised to revolutionize medicine by testing your blood with just a tiny finger prick. Spoiler: It didnāt work. But founder Elizabeth Holmes still raised a billion dollars before it all collapsed. 2. BlackBerry (AMC+ & Amazon Prime) Before iPhones took over, BlackBerry was the phone. This funny film details how a couple of Canadian tech nerds built it and how ego, greed and missed deadlines brought it down. 3. The Billion Dollar Code (Netflix) Two German developers created early Google Earth tech in the ā90s, only to have Google steal it. Itās about big ideas, crushed dreams and the fight to prove who did it first. 4. WeCrashed (Apple TV+) Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway play the power couple behind the coworking cult that convinced investors it was worth $47 billion until it wasnāt. 5. The Great Hack (Netflix) This documentary shows how Cambridge Analytica mined your data and used it to influence elections around the world. Chilling, eye-opening and very real. 6. Jobs (Amazon Prime) Ashton Kutcher takes on Steve Jobs. Itās not just about iPhones. Itās about risk, obsession and building something no one believes in. 7. Super Pumped (Netflix) Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Uber founder Travis Kalanick. Youāll get the boardroom fights, power struggles and other potholes that nearly sent a rideshare app spinning out of control. 8. The Playlist (Netflix) Spotify didnāt just stream music, it rewrote the entire music industry. This dramatized series shows what it takes to take on the record labels. 9. Print the Legend (Netflix) A documentary about the early days of 3D printing. Founders battle it out for market share, bragging rights and the future of manufacturing. Nerdy? Yes. Fascinating? Also yes. 10. Tetris (Apple TV+) Yes, the block game. But the story behind it is a Cold War thriller. A developer risks everything to secure the rights to Tetris from Soviet Russia. Itās fast, fun and surprisingly emotional. If youāve seen any of these or have one I need to add to the list, let me know. I love hearing what youāre watching. Use the share icons below to give your friends something fun to add to their streaming wish list. |
DAILY TECH UPDATE Free TV is having a moment After years of paying for every streamer under the sun, young folks are waking up to broadcast TV. Listen on Komando.com ā |
WEB WATERCOOLER š¬ Got a weird text from Home Depot? Like āyour order is ready,ā but you didnāt buy anything? Someone mightāve typed in your number by mistake, but it could also be a scam. Hackers can spoof five-digit numbers to send āview your orderā phishing links. Donāt click anything. Log in to your account to check. Madonnaās biopic got scrapped: But donāt panic, weāre getting a Netflix miniseries instead. Honestly, thatās way better. You really think you can squeeze her entire, drama-packed life into two hours? Please. Word is Julia Garner might play her, but who knows whoāll take on Sean Penn or Warren Beatty. Either way, Iām watching. š Selfies, but cinematic: Googleās Gemini AI can now turn a single image into a full five-second video. Itās launching with the Honor 400, which sounds like a hovercar but is actually a smartphone. Finally, your brunch avocado toast can have its own origin story. 𩸠ChatGPT spotted it first: A woman had night sweats and itchy skin, but her doctor said everything looked normal. She ChatGPTād her symptoms, and it said blood cancer. The warning was ignored, and a few months later, she was back at the doctor with chest pain and fatigue. Turns out? It was Hodgkinās lymphoma. Your boss knows: Turns out your free āwork perkā might be a mic'd-up Trojan horse. Experts say company-issued AirPods can be linked to your bossās Apple ID and track your location. HR āsawā you at the happy hour, Karen. Enjoy your āperformance review.ā Youāll need to restore the AirPodsā factory settings manually to avoid this. š“ Itās not just beds anymore: Airbnb just leveled up with its new services live in 260+ cities. The app now offers spa treatments, private chefs, personal trainers and more. Basically, it evolved from ācouch in Berlinā to celebrity-led adventures like Megan Thee Stallionās anime-themed āOtaku Hottie Quest,ā whatever that means. šāāļø Iām not saying collagen is a miracle powder, but ⦠I take two scoops a day, and letās just say my hair and nails arenāt complaining. Collagen gives your bones extra support, helps smooth out those fine lines and adds a little strength where you want it most. Want to try what I use? Use this link for 45% off.* Your future self (and skin) will thank you. |
DIGITAL LIFE HACK New car buying scam Buying a car online? Even with video tours and snazzy websites, scammers are stealing thousands. Listen on Komando.com ā |
DEVICE ADVICE ā”ļø 3-second tech genius: On LinkedIn? You can turn off āseenā receipts under Settings > Communications > Read receipts. šØ A sneaky virus could be to blame. I always say itās better to be safe than sorry, which is why I trust TotalAV. For just $19 for the first year, you get rock-solid antivirus protection on up to five devices. Itās smart, simple and keeps your tech safe without breaking the bank. Tag, youāre it: Typing a long question for ChatGPT (or any bot)? Use XLM tags to help the AI follow your thoughts. They look like this: <example>your words</example>. For phrases with multiple words, use an underscore <like_this>. This helps avoid those pesky hallucinations, if you have lots of info. ā Rate and reward: Want more online reviews? Ask your customers to leave one on Google or Yelp for a giveaway. Use Google Forms to collect the entries and announce the winners in a social post or email. Pro tip: Thank them in a shout-out. This keeps the good vibes (and stars) rolling. Write swipes: Swipe up from the bottom right of your iPad to open a Quick Note and jot down an idea. Head to Settings > Multitasking & Gestures and toggle on Swipe Finger from Corner to turn this on. You can also choose what each corner does, like taking a Screenshot with a swipe from the bottom left. ā Watch these moves: Control your smartwatch with just a flick of your wrist. On an Apple Watch, head to Settings > Accessibility > AssistiveTouch. For a Samsung Galaxy Watch, go to Settings > Accessibility > toggle on Universal Gestures. When youāre done setting up, both offer a tutorial on the hands-free moves you can do. Neat. š Make your laptop battery last longer: Windows 11ās Dynamic Refresh Rate adjusts how often your screen updates for simple tasks. Go to Settings > System > Display > Advanced Display > Choose a refresh rate > Dynamic. |
BY THE NUMBERS $500 million How much funding Perplexity AI is about to land, pushing its valuation to $14 billion. For context, it was $3 billion last June. So whatās the buzz? Theyāre pulling in around $100 million in annual recurring revenue and plan to launch an AI agent web browser called Comet. You could say investors are seeing stars. $800 million The estimated value of unsold Cybertrucks collecting dust on Tesla lots. With over 10,000 cars sitting in dealer inventory, the stainless-steel behemoth is shaping up to be less āfuturistic tankā and more āElonās very expensive parking lot decor.ā Turns out the PS1-looking fever dream isnāt exactly Americaās sweetheart. $29.99 The monthly price of ESPNās new all-access streaming app. It comes with access to all ESPN live games, documentaries, fantasy sports and enough studio programming to make you forget you havenāt gone outside since football season started. |
WHAT THE TECH? | Image: https://neal.fun/internet-roadtrip |
| Somewhere in the great digital beyond, 1,000 people are crammed into a virtual clown car, attempting to road-trip across the U.S. using only Google Street View, chaos and vibes. Itās called Internet Roadtrip, and itās basically Twitch Plays Oregon Trail, if you replaced the wagon with a digital car full of Redditors. Participants slug through the worldās road trip capital on Google Maps, and every nine seconds, they vote on turns, radio stations and honking. The only rule? Forward only. Every intersection becomes a chat-fueled debate, like herding cats, but the cats are all screaming about route optimization. |
LOGGING OUT ... The answer: C) PowerPoint. Jobs was all about storytelling and visuals, and he insisted on no slides, just people showing up who actually knew what they were talking about. š£ļø Oh, this is so bad. Why did the PowerPoint presentation cross the road? To get to the other slide. (I warned you.) How do people actually know what theyāre talking about these days? Reading the #1 tech newsletter in the U.S. is a strong start, youāre already ahead of the game! š Join me on Instagram, X, YouTube and Facebook for more fun and reels. Tomorrow, the best travel tech goodies you will use time and time again. Until then, youāre the algorithm for awesome today! š§ ā Kim š£ Donāt keep me a secret: Share this email with friends (or copy URL here) | |
|
|