Old Tech Never Dies

Why is the US banning more Chinese technology? Reed Albergotti (Semafor) fills us in on the robot ban and what it means for American innovation. Then, new research on why Chinese open-source AI models may not be as big a threat as Washington makes it seem. Taylor Lorenz (User Mag ...  Show more

What does it take to power the AI boom? Steve Vassallo, a roboticist turned General Partner at Foundation Capital, helped semiconductor company Cerebras figure it out. Steve and Oz discuss why AI workloads demanded an entirely new kind of chip, what "wafer scale" actually means, ...  Show more

As Japan axes the use of floppy discs for official government business, presenter Chris Vallance looks at other old tech that's still in use. From magnetic tape to a clockwork interplanetary rover, he discovers some vintage tech with a future. Also in this edition of Tech Life, w ...  Show more

Technology is always changing! Or is it...? Georgie and Phil discuss this and teach you some useful vocabulary.Find a full transcript and worksheet for this episode to help you with your English at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2024/ep-2 ...  Show more

Have you ever wondered why your smartphone or toaster oven doesn't seem to last very long, even though technology is becoming better and better? This week, in a special collaboration with Planet Money, we bring you the history of planned obsolescence – the idea that products are ...  Show more

Some technologies make so much sense that they just won’t disappear. T9 — the old text input from our trusty Nokia phones from the 1990s — is one of those throwbacks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices