Sam Bushman is joined by NPI marketing admin and musician Jake Oakes for a fast-paced tour through the ways modern tech can either protect you or quietly put you at risk. They start with one of today’s biggest business threats: email and payroll scams that impersonate bosses, HR, and vendors. Sam and Jake walk through practical steps to stop fraud before it happens: like always verifying banking changes by phone (using a trusted number), documenting confirmations in writing, and treating any request for sensitive data as suspicious until proven otherwise. Along the way, they highlight how Network Providers Inc. is trying to "secure, educate, and protect" with webinars, in-person events, and a growing video library to help business owners understand security, endpoints, HIPAA-sensitive environments, and more.

From there, the conversation zooms out to the bigger tech picture: phones that are always listening for “Hey Siri” and turning those snippets into eerily targeted ads; AI tools that can summarize everything but still can’t think beyond their training; and the growing temptation to let digital assistants guide every decision. Sam and Jake argue for balance; using AI as a powerful tool without letting it replace real human connection or common sense. They also dig into YouTube’s war on ad blockers, Meta’s profit-from-scammers problem, and Chrome’s new ability to autofill highly sensitive IDs, all through the lens of privacy, morality, and trust. To lighten things up, Sam shares a practical audio upgrade tip: ditching bulky desktop speakers for a sleek solution that transforms your computer into a surprisingly rich media station.

In this lively episode of TechWatch Radio, Sam Bushman and Jay Harrison dive into the outer and inner reaches of technology; from the Voyager spacecraft still running on 69 KB of memory, to Jeff Bezos’ ambitious plan for millions to live in orbit within decades. The hosts question whether such space ventures are realistic or simply futuristic fantasies, comparing them with down-to-earth innovations like an Australian nano-coating that passively cools buildings and pulls water from the air.

The conversation shifts to electric vehicle struggles and the post-subsidy sales slump, as Sam and Jay weigh whether the EV market can truly stand on its own. They spotlight Elon Musk’s Starlink as a game-changer for rural connectivity, discuss OpenAI’s $38-billion partnership with Amazon Web Services, and reflect on the soaring energy demands of AI. Wrapping up, they note how AI - especially ChatGPT - is reshaping daily life across industries, urging listeners to embrace its potential but keep human judgment in the loop!

In this episode of TechWatch Radio, hosts Sam Bushman and Jay Harrison dive deep into the evolving media and tech landscape—from YouTube’s high-stakes dispute with Disney to the skyrocketing costs of streaming that are driving viewers back toward ad-supported models. They unpack how traditional cable habits are resurfacing in modern streaming bundles and explore whether industry greed or inflated production costs are to blame for soaring subscription fees.

The discussion then shifts to a surprising new player in tech acquisitions—Italy’s “Bending Spoons,” the company quietly buying up major names like AOL and possibly Venmo. Sam and Jay analyze what this trend means for the future of global tech brands and innovation. They also explore Canva’s latest AI-powered design overhaul, the company’s ambitious challenge to Adobe, and whether it risks losing its “for-everyone” simplicity in the process.

Later in the show, the hosts spotlight a disturbing rise in AI-generated fake expense receipts; exposing how employees are committing digital fraud and how AI is now being used to detect it. Other segments tackle OpenAI’s mental-health data on ChatGPT users, massive password breaches affecting billions, Nvidia’s record-shattering valuation, Elon Musk’s “Grockapedia” project, and Microsoft’s bold move to bring Halo to PlayStation. As always, TechWatch Radio keeps an eye on the fast-changing world of tech so you don’t have to!