We promise, this episode is only a little bit about header bidding. Nilay and David are joined by The Verge’s Alex Heath to talk about some big news in tech regulation: Google lost its ad-tech monopoly trial, which could reshape both Google and the internet altogether. And that’s not the only monopoly news! Meta’s trial also started this week, and Alex was there to see Mark Zuckerberg and others try to defend Instagram, WhatsApp, and the company as a whole. After all that, we talk about OpenAI’s plans to build a social network, and how this company seems to never run out of ambition. Finally, in the lightning round, it’s time for another round of Brendan Carr is a Dummy, and some news about viral cameras and the Switch 2. Which we’ll be yeeting into our homes as soon as possible

Further reading:

Google loses ad tech monopoly case

FTC v. Meta live: the latest from the battle over Instagram and WhatsApp

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg defends Instagram purchase in antitrust trial

Zuckerberg defends his empire during FTC antitrust trial

Mark Zuckerberg suggested spinning off Instagram

Mark Zuckerberg tells court that Meta made WhatsApp, Instagram better

Mark Zuckerberg once suggested wiping all Facebook friends lists to boost usage

Meta reportedly offered $1 billion to settle the FTC’s antitrust lawsuit.

Zuckerberg defends his empire during FTC antitrust trial

Google, Apple, and Snap aren’t happy about Meta’s poorly-redacted slides

Meta’s antitrust trial slide redactions aren’t actually hiding anything

OpenAI is building a social network

OpenAI debuts its GPT-4.1 flagship AI model

OpenAI might finally get better model names soon.

OpenAI’s upgraded o3 model can use images when reasoning

ChatGPT will now remember your old conversations

OpenAI is reportedly considering a $3 billion deal to buy AI coding tool Windsurf.

Netflix is testing a new OpenAI-powered search

Brendan Carr on X

The Media and Democracy Project on Bluesky

Trump excludes smartphones, computers, chips from higher tariffs

Smartphone tariffs are coming back in ‘a month or two,’ says Trump admin

TSMC is unfazed by tariffs.

Microsoft’s Phil Spencer: “I want to support Switch 2.”

In pursuit of a viral, five-year-old compact camera

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