2026 is shaping up to be banner year for the AI industry. Or is it? Our predictions panel share their thoughts on what next year will bring for AI, smartphones, streaming and algorithms.

Starring Sarah Lane, Tom Merritt, Robb Dunewood, Scott Johnson, Ron Richard, Amos.

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Disney reached a settlement with the Department of Justice over a COPPA violation, sources claim Nvidia approached TSMC to ramp up production of AI chips to meet large increase in demand from China, and GOG changes owners but not mission to sell DRM-free games.

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Online ‘prediction’ brokers Kalshi and Polymarket have been accused of partnering with social media accounts that push sports rumors from accounts posing as league insiders. These accounts will sometimes invent news stories while advertising their partnerships with the betting companies, and a few accounts have also been labelled as parodies. A Kalshi spokesperson says that the company tries to promote integrity but acknowledges that it is difficult to police every affiliate account on X. In a comment to The Athletic, corporate and securities lawyer Ariel E. Givner said, “Without consistent standards around disclosures, market resolution rules, influencer involvement and cross-border participation, platforms may unintentionally drift into gray areas”.

Source: The New York Times

The South China Morning Post reports a source claims ByteDance, known for TikTok and Douyin, aims to spend approximately 100 billion yuan, around $14 billion USD, on Nvidia’s AI chips in 2026. This would be an increase of approximately 85 billion yuan from 2025. The spend is dependent on if Nvidia is indeed able to sell the H200 processing units to Chinese customers in 2026 as Beijing has not yet greenlit any shipments since the US government recently allowed for the exports to the country.

Source: The South China Morning Post

A source told Reuters Nvidia approached TSMC about ramping up production of H200 AI chips due to a strong demand worldwide. Demand is particularly high from China, with Chinese companies placing orders for more than 2 million chips in 2026 while the source claims Nvidia holds less than a million in stock. An Nvidia spokesperson responded to the Reuters report saying, “Licensed sales of the H200 to authorised customers in China will have no impact on our ability to supply customers in the United States”.

Source: Reuters

On Tuesday, the US Department of Justice announced the settlement of a case against Disney over a failure to properly label some YouTube videos as aimed at children. The failure to label enabled Disney and partners to unlawfully collect children’s personal information without consent or notifying parents, which is a COPPA violation. Disney will pay $10 million dollars and set up an content review program to ensure strict compliance with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.

Source: Gizmodo

9to5google reports Android is slowly rolling out a Reading Mode redesign, making the feature easier to trigger. Previously, Reading Mode did not consistently appear on articles and the toggle button would shrink into a less-than-noticeable circle. The update presents ‘Show Reading Mode’ in the three dot menu under ‘Listen to this page’, and will use Material 3 Expressive Containers. The update is available on Chrome 143 in the stable channel and can be enabled through manual flags if the rollout has yet to reach a particular device.

Source: 9to5Google

Apple updated a support page to add more devices to its ‘vintage’ list. Products are listed as vintage once it has been over 5 years since available for sale, and those remain eligible for servicing until they get moved to the ‘obsolete’ list sometime in the future, usually 7 years after being discontinued. The newly listed vintage products are: iPhone 11 Pro, Apple Watch Series 5, the 2020 13-inch MacBook Air with Intel, the iPad Air 3 with Cellular, and the iPhone 8 Plus model with has 128GB of storage.

Source: 9to5Mac

Polish game developer CD Projekt Red, best known as creators of the Witcher series, divested itself of the game retail marketplace GOG.com, selling the platform to CDP and GOG co-founder Micha Kichinski, who will continue to run the site independent from the former ownership. The GOG store sells DRM-free classic games unavailable on other platforms, and Kichinski says this will still be a key part of the GOG mission. GOG will continue a marketing partnership with CDProjekt, ensuring that its games will continue to be available on the platform.

Source: Eurogamer

Responses to a survey by ResumeBuilder.com indicate job-seekers are turning to dating sites to increase the odds of getting through to a company, working around AI-screening tools. The survey says 1-in-3 used a dating app to find a job, and 1-in-10 admitting it was the primary reason for getting a dating app at all. Survey respondents looked for profiles working at the company they wanted to apply at in order to match with them for networking purposes. ResumeBuilder.com’s chief career advisor Stacie Haller told Bloomberg, “Networking is the only way people are rising above the horror show that the job search is today”.

Source: Gizmodo

Last year our predictions panel gave two predictions about what the future of tech would like in 2025 all the way back in December of 2024. What terrible and exciting things do we foresee and what did we get wrong? Find out!

Starring Sarah Lane, Tom Merritt, Robb Dunewood, Justin Robert Young, David Spark, Roger, Joe

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SoftBank Group has completed its $40 billion investment in OpenAI, Samsung TVs to integrate Google Photos starting in 2026, and China mandates 50% domestic chip equipment in facilities expansion.

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Meta Acquires AI Startup Manus for $2 Billion Amid U.S. Scrutiny

Meta Platforms is acquiring Manus, a Singapore-based AI startup that creates AI agents for tasks like job screening and vacation planning, for a reported $2 billion. The acquisition is important to CEO Mark Zuckerberg as Manus’s substantial annual revenue could alleviate investor worries regarding Meta’s infrastructure costs. However, the deal faces U.S. scrutiny, particularly from Senator John Cornyn, due to Manus’s parent company being founded in Beijing in 2022. Meta countered by asserting that after the acquisition, Manus will cut all ties with Chinese investors and halt all operations in China.

Read More: TechCrunch

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SoftBank Completes $40 Billion Investment in OpenAI

SoftBank Group has completed its $40 billion investment in OpenAI, according to a CNBC report citing sources familiar with the matter. This investment follows SoftBank’s agreement in early 2025 to lead a funding round of up to $40 billion in OpenAI, a deal that now stands as one of the largest private technology investments on record and aligns with founder and CEO Masayoshi Son’s strategy of building a vast private technology investment program focused particularly on artificial intelligence and its related infrastructure.

Read More: Reuters

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Samsung to Bring Google Photos to Its TVs in 2026

Samsung has announced plans to integrate Google Photos directly into its TVs starting in 2026, eliminating the need for users to cast or sideload the app to view their photos and videos on the big screen. The initial rollout will feature a six-month exclusive of the “Memories” feature, which curates photos and videos, and users will need to sign in to their Google accounts to activate the service. Additionally, Samsung plans to incorporate AI-powered features, including “Nano Banana-powered templates,” image generation and editing, and the “Remix” feature for style conversion, enhancing how users interact with their photo library on their television.

Read More: TechCrunch

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China Mandates 50% Domestic Equipment Use for Chipmakers

China has introduced a requirement, largely unwritten, mandating that chipmakers use at least 50% domestically made equipment when constructing or expanding facilities. This policy is Beijing’s response to stricter U.S. export controls and aims for a self-sufficient semiconductor supply chain. Authorities enforce this through the state approval process and procurement tenders, encouraging manufacturers to prioritize Chinese suppliers, with the eventual goal of 100% domestic use, though flexibility exists for advanced manufacturing where local equipment is less available.

Read More: Reuters

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CMU Researchers Develop Breakthrough Autofocus Lens Technology

CMU researchers have created a breakthrough “spatially-varying autofocus” lens technology that overcomes the limitation of traditional cameras by bringing an entire scene into sharp focus across the image. This innovative system uses a computational lens and two autofocus methods to effectively give each pixel an adjustable lens. While not yet commercialized, the technology holds significant potential for applications like improved microscopes, enhanced depth perception in VR, and clearer vision for autonomous vehicles.

Read More: The Verge

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U.S. Grants Samsung and SK Hynix Annual License for China Shipments

The U.S. government has granted Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix a temporary, annual license for 2026, allowing them to continue shipping chip manufacturing equipment to their facilities in China. This new system replaces the previous “validated end user” exemption that was set to expire, as the U.S. tightens export controls on advanced technology to China. China remains a vital production base for the South Korean firms, whose memory chip prices are currently high due to strong AI data center demand.

Read More: Reuters

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Satya Nadella Says 2026 Will Mark AI’s Shift to Widespread Use

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella sees 2026 as the year AI really hits its stride, moving past the initial testing phase and into “widespread diffusion”, meaning it will be deployed everywhere in the real world. He says this next stage is all about “sophisticated engineering” to build complex systems that basically act as “scaffolding for human potential.” Nadella made it clear that AI has to actually deliver real benefits for society and be smart about using resources like power and computing to get “societal permission.” He stressed that we’re only in the “opening miles of a marathon,” so the full scope of what this tech can do is still a long way off.

Read More: Economic Times

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Audiobooks Surge in Popularity, but AI Threatens Narrators

Audiobooks have become a significant success for publishers, with digital sales rising and often surpassing print sales for certain popular titles. This growth is attributed to the audience’s desire for a direct or highly engaging listening experience, often with consistent narration and lower price points, which is especially effective for celebrity and comedian memoirs. Despite this success, the industry’s future is uncertain as advances in AI, including voice cloning, pose a threat to the job security of professional narrators due to the potential for publishers to adopt cost-effective synthetic voices.

Read More: Wall Street Journal

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Warner Bros Discovery Expected to Reject Paramount’s Hostile Bid

Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) is expected to reject Paramount Skydance’s (PSKY.O) higher, $108.4 billion hostile takeover bid, despite a personal guarantee from Larry Ellison. WBD reportedly prefers a rival, lower-value $82.7 billion cash-and-stock deal with Netflix. The rejection of the Paramount offer is due to concerns over valuation, strategic fit, and the potential for greater regulatory scrutiny, as a combined WBD-Paramount would be larger than Disney. The Netflix deal is favored for its clearer financing and lower execution risks, though WBD would incur a $2.8 billion breakup fee if it backs out of the current agreement.

Read More: Reuters

Apple will challenge the October decision by the UK’s Competition Appeal Tribunal over £1.5 billion fine, the Cyberspace Administration of China posted draft rules increasing regulations on AI products, and a Kapwing study claims 20% of YouTube videos shown to new users are “AI slop”.

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Apple will challenge the October decision by the UK’s Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT), which ordered a fine of £1.5 billion, approximately $2 billion USD, on behalf of UK customers over overcharging fees in the App Store. After Apple’s appeal to the CAT was not granted, this challenge is directly to the UK Court of Appeal. If the appeal fails, UK customers could potentially receive a payout if they purchased anything in the App Store between 2015 and 2024.

Source: Engadget

OpenAI listed a new position for a Head of Preparedness role, following the establishment of a preparedness team back in 2023. The preparedness group studies “catastrophic risks”, from phishing attacks up to possible nuclear threats, though many members resigned over the last two years. CEO Sam Altman posted on X how AI models are “starting to present some real challenges” and there is a “potential impact of models on mental health”. The new head would earn $555,000, plus equity.

Source: TechCrunch

University of Pennsylvania researcher Ran Barzilay published “Smartphone Ownership, Age of Smartphone Acquisition, and Health Outcomes in Early Adolescence” with the American Academy of Pediatrics, about harms over screen time in minors. The analysis, involving over 10,500 children across the US, states minors with phones at age 12 had a 60% higher risk of poor sleep and 40% increased risk of obesity compared to those receiving a phone at 13. In a comment to The Washington Post, Barzilay said “It’s very important to me that this isn’t about blaming parents” and “Kids got smartphones at very young ages in the past because we didn’t know. Now we know.”

Source: The Washington Post

The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) announced remote exams will be discontinued in March 2026 due to the rise of cheating with AI tools. Chief executive of the ACCA Helen Brand told the Financial Times “We’re seeing the sophistication of systems outpacing what can be put in, [in] terms of safeguards.” Those with exceptional circumstances will still be permitted to take a remote exam.

Source: The Guardian

On Saturday, The Cyberspace Administration of China posted draft rules which would regulate AI products and services simulating traits similar to human personalities engaging with users through text, audio, video, and images. The draft proposes chatbots must have a human take over a conversation once suicide or self-harm is mentioned, must not generate violent, obscene, or gambling-related content, and be able to discern if a user is a minor and impose limits. Public consultation for comments will be open until January 25th, 2026.

Source: Bloomberg and CNBC

And, As translated by The Register, the draft rules also include a proposal preventing AI companions from serving as a simulation of relatives to the elderly. The Cyberspace Administration of China further calls for any AI companion to remind users every two hours that any interactions are not with an actual human.

Source: The Register

Beginning January 1st 2026, the UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CCA) change of regulations regarding drones will be in effect. A theory test will be required before being allowed to fly outdoors if the drone is 100g or more, which was previously only required for drones over 250g. Successfully passing the test grants a five-year Flyer ID license and any drone over 100g with a camera must also register with the CAA for an Operator ID.

Source: BBC

Online video editing platform Kapwing surveyed the top 100 YouTube channels in every country, approximately 15,000 channels, and found 278 of them exclusively posted AI content. Kapwing also claims over 20% of videos shown to new YouTube users are “AI slop”. These videos have over 63 billion views and 221 million subscribers, with estimated earnings of $117 million USD. A YouTube spokesperson told The Guardian “Generative AI is a tool, and like any tool it can be used to make both high- and low-quality content. We remain focused on connecting our users with high-quality content, regardless of how it was made.”

Source: The Guardian

2025 saw plenty of big tech stories take the headlines for DTNS. From broad public skepticism over AI to the increase in costs in computer components and devices as companies invest huge sums into data centers. So Joe put together the best conversations we’ve had all year, plus some of the more pithy comments from this year’s Live With It! and put them together here for you. Enjoy!

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To set the stage for our Prediction Result’s show we are replaying our 2025 Tech Predictions Show! Tom and Sarah along with Robb Dunewood, Justin Robert Young and David Spark brought two predictions each of what they thought would’ve happen to the tech landscape in the year 2025!

Starring Tom Merritt, Sarah Lane, Robb Dunewood, Justin Robert Young and David Spark.

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Big thanks to Dan Lueders for the headlines music and Martin Bell for the opening theme!

Big thanks to Mustafa A. from thepolarcat.com for the logo!

Thanks to our mods Jack_Shid and KAPT_Kipper on the subreddit

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Show Notes
To read the show notes in a separate page click here!

Tom Merritt and Jenn Cutter look back on the biggest tech stories of the year.

Starring Tom Merritt and Jenn Cutter

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LG unveils UltraGear evo lineup of premium gaming monitors, Xiaomi announces the 17 Ultra smartphone line, Disney crosses $6 billion in global box office revenue since 2019.

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Show Notes
New York to require warning labels on social media

New York State will require social media platforms to display warning labels when users interact with features the state considers addictive, including infinite scroll, autoplay, algorithmic feeds, and like counts. The law, signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul, applies to platforms accessed from New York and requires warnings at first interaction and periodically afterward, with a focus on potential mental health risks for younger users.

Source: Engadget

Oracle stock sinks amid AI spending worries

Oracle shares are down about 30% this quarter, putting the company on pace for its worst performance since 2001 as investors grow uneasy about its aggressive AI infrastructure build-out tied largely to OpenAI. Concerns include rising debt, heavy capital spending, weaker-than-expected revenue and free cash flow, and increasing dependence on OpenAI for future growth.

Source: CNBC

Google prepares Gmail address changes

Google is planning to let users change their existing @gmail.com address, according to a support page currently only fully visible in Hindi. The feature would allow users to pick a new username while keeping the old address as an alias for email and sign-in, with all account data unchanged, though changes would be limited to three and locked for 12 months.

Source: 9to5Google

LG previews 5K UltraGear gaming monitors

Ahead of CES 2026, LG unveiled a new UltraGear evo lineup of premium gaming monitors featuring 5K displays with on-device AI upscaling designed to reduce GPU demands. The lineup includes a 39-inch OLED, a 27-inch MiniLED with 2,304 local dimming zones, and a 52-inch large-format display, all offering high refresh rates and fast response times, with pricing and availability still unannounced.

Source: Engadget

LG to show humanoid home robot at CES

LG plans to showcase a humanoid home robot called CLOiD at CES 2026, featuring two articulated arms with five-fingered hands intended to assist with household tasks. The robot runs on LG’s “Affectionate Intelligence” system for adaptive, user-friendly interactions, though the company has not detailed specific capabilities or confirmed whether it will become a commercial product.

Source: Engadget

Apple to allow third-party app stores in Brazil

Starting in 2026, Apple will allow third-party iOS app stores to operate in Brazil and let developers use external payment systems following a regulatory ruling. Apple can still charge fees, must use neutral language in warnings about third-party options, and faces potential fines of up to $27 million if it fails to comply within 105 days.

Source: The Verge

Xiaomi launches 17 Ultra with Leica zoom ring

Xiaomi unveiled the 17 Ultra smartphone, including a Leica Edition that adds a physical manual zoom ring that can also trigger the camera. The phone features a 1-inch 50MP main sensor, a 200MP periscope telephoto camera, Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip, up to 16GB RAM, a 6.9-inch 120Hz AMOLED display with up to 3,500 nits brightness, and a 6,800mAh battery, with pricing starting around $995.

Source: Engadget

Intel reframes Wi-Fi 8 around reliability

Intel is positioning Wi-Fi 8 less around raw speed and more around reliability, low latency, and intelligence for the AI era. The standard emphasizes near-perfect packet delivery, seamless switching, smarter traffic prioritization, improved interference management, environmental sensing, and stronger security through advanced signal processing and coordinated access points.

Source: The Register

Disney tops $6 billion at the global box office

Disney surpassed $6 billion in global box office revenue in 2025 for the first time since the pandemic, driven by billion-dollar hits “Lilo & Stitch” and “Zootopia 2,” alongside strong performances from “Avatar: Fire and Ash” and several Marvel releases. The studio posted $2.3 billion domestically and $3.65 billion internationally, marking its strongest year since 2019.

Source: Variety

The Holiday season is filled with tech gifts from friends and family. So we put together this special gift support show to share our tips and experiences on supporting people who need might need a little more help with their gifts.

Starring Sarah Lane, Tom Merritt, Robb Dunewood, Jason Howell, Trisha Hershberger, Rich Stroffolino, Roger Chang, Joe.

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Show Notes
To read the show notes in a separate page click here!