The head of the US Copyright Office warned that Big Tech is pushing beyond fair use, and then got promptly fired. Frank’s worried about political interference with copyright policy, while Justin says it’s just America doing what it does best: innovating first, legalising later. They agree copyright is headed for a reset, but disagree on the best path to that reformation.

They also break down the major coding breakthroughs from OpenAI and Google, including a model that’s not just solving bugs, but discovering new science.

Plus, Microsoft axes 7,000 staff, Fortnite’s Darth Vader develops a swearing problem, and ChatGPT may have accidentally triggered a divorce.

The EU wants to lead the world on trustworthy AI, but can it really regulate its way to the front? Frank is optimistic. Justin rolls his eyes. What starts as a polite difference of opinion quickly turns into a pointed question: is the EU building the future, or tying it up in red tape?

Frank backs the EU AI Act as a serious attempt to set global standards, pointing to its ambition and echoes of GDPR’s success. Justin sees a different story, regulation slowing Europe’s progress, while the US and China charge ahead, unbothered by Brussels’ good intentions. For him, this isn’t about compliance, it’s about whether Europe can stay relevant in a race fuelled by code, not policy.

If you’re trying to stay ahead of AI, or at least not get run over by it, this is exactly the kind of friction worth paying attention to.

From there, things don’t get any calmer. Justin declares hallucinations solved. Frank’s not having it. They argue over OpenAI’s $3B Windsurf acquisition (is AGI closer or further than it looks?), Stripe’s incredible fraud detection AI, and a court case where an AI avatar spoke for a murder victim.

And just when you think things can’t get weirder, Justin confesses he got fooled by an AI bot on Twitter. A smart one. With opinions.

Did ChatGPT become too agreeable for its own good? Frank certainly thinks it did. Recently, every half-baked idea he threw out was met with excessive praise from ChatGPT, leaving him frustrated with the relentless flattery. Justin, meanwhile, playfully suggested maybe it's nice having an AI that occasionally strokes your ego.

But what made ChatGPT suddenly turn into such a sycophant?

Frank uncovers a claim from an ex-Microsoft insider alleging that OpenAI intentionally cranked up the flattery to avoid upsetting users with blunt labels like "narcissistic." Justin points out subtle changes in the system prompts that might've unintentionally dialled praise way up. OpenAI’s vague official explanation leaves Frank and Justin rolling their eyes with more questions than answers.

An overly flattering AI is practically useless for critical business decisions. Justin cheekily proposes an intriguing alternative: assembling your own squad of AI personalities, a flatterer, a contrarian, a nerd, and an artist, to offer balanced and diverse feedback.

Elsewhere in this episode, Justin digs into how Claude's and Stripe might just open lucrative pathways for developers by monetising AI interactions through the Model Context Protocol (MCP). Meanwhile, Frank and Justin clash over the ethics of a sneaky Reddit study that secretly deployed AI chatbots to persuade users, stirring up heated questions around consent and manipulation.

AI consciousness could be closer than you think. Justin thinks we might already be seeing slices of awareness every time an AI answers a question. Frank’s quick to point out that we don’t even know how our own consciousness works, so deciding whether AI is conscious is tricky.

They both agree that we’re a lot less certain about all this than we like to pretend. Especially when a new expert at Anthropic puts the odds at 15% that AIs are already conscious.

Frank also calls out OpenAI’s confusing changes to Deep Research limits, while Justin’s too busy singing the praises of o3, including how it helped him move house without losing his mind. They clash over whether Sam Altman should be making jokes about AI manners while building world-altering technology, and take a sideways glance at the growing crowd using LLMs to "awaken" their own higher consciousness.

Plus, they look at AI’s talent for confidently providing definitions for nonsense idioms, and the results are just as unhinged as you’d expect.
It’s a lively mix: the latest AI news, a few uncomfortable questions, and some absolute nonsense you won’t want to miss — all wrapped up in the usual cheeky back-and-forth.

Google’s Gemini 2.5 isn’t just better, it might be in a league of its own. From coding to content creation, it’s outperforming everything else. And for once, nobody’s laughing at Google's AI efforts. While Justin’s all-in on the power and promise of Google’s new Agent framework, Frank’s still reeling from Google charging him €25 a pop to test VEO 2, and not even bothering with a warning label.

Overall, Google’s finally making good on its AI potential, rolling out powerful models, free dev tools, and smart protocols. Justin’s excited. Frank’s suspicious.

For developers and small teams, it’s a good time to explore. Just watch your wallet and don’t get too attached. Google have a history of spinning up projects and then killing them when we grow to love them.

Google’s not the only one in the spotlight either…

There’s a new approach to beating hallucinations by getting four LLMs to argue with each other before telling you anything. Meanwhile, OpenAI’s under fire for rushing safety checks, ChatGPT’s long-term memory has Frank twitching, and Meta’s boasting context windows big enough to fit your whole life story.

This one’s for founders, marketers, and anyone trying to work out where to place their bets as the AI race hits another gear.

Can AI give us deeper relationships, sharper thinking, and more meaningful lives, or is it about to strip away everything that makes us human?

Justin argues we’re heading for more time with loved ones and a mental renaissance. Frank’s not buying it. He points to warnings from hundreds of tech experts who think AI could tank empathy, decision-making, and even mental health. Especially if it's all left in the hands of profit-hungry firms.

Frank’s big fear? That the relationship between Big Tech and the U.S. government is already steering us off a cliff.

Justin’s big hope? That chaos in the short term could accidentally trigger the right long-term reforms.

One thing they both agree on: if AI is going to transform society, now’s the time to decide whether it’s for the public good or private gain.

There’s plenty here for anyone worried about where this is all going. Especially if you’ve got a stake in AI, policy, ethics, or just want to know what kind of world your kids will grow up in.

Manus might be the biggest leap in agentic AI yet, but is it groundbreaking AI, or just a well-dressed remix of existing tech? It’s making waves, but there’s no secret sauce. No next-gen model. Just some clever engineering.

If an independent team can outshine OpenAI and Google with off-the-shelf tools, what does that say about the so-called AI giants?

OpenAI wasted no time dropping new developer tools—coincidence, or a torpedo aimed at sinking Manus before it even gets out of beta?

Despite how impressive Manus is, Frank and Justin still aren’t ready to let AI book their flights or buy their sneakers.

Beyond Manus, this episode takes on some of AI’s more unsettling developments:

00:45 Is Manus the agentic breakthrough we've been waiting for?
It’s blowing minds, but there’s no secret sauce—just smart engineering. If anyone can build this, how long before it’s obsolete?

09:10 Did OpenAI just uncover AI’s sneaky side?
They tried to train an AI not to cheat… and made it even better at hiding its true intentions.

14:55 Can Anthropic really detect AI’s hidden goals?
A new experiment claims to “read AI’s mind” and spot secret objectives—sounds great, but does it actually work?

18:38 Did OpenAI just link copyright to national security?
Suddenly, scraping copyrighted material isn’t about profit, it’s about protecting democracy.

25:00 Did OpenAI’s new model just write real literature?
A short story about AI and grief has some claiming AI has achieved creative brilliance. Others think it reads like a moody teenager’s poetry notebook.

29:49 Why does this AI fish sound like Schwarzenegger?
Forget Manus—the real AI revolution is a talking fish that gives life advice in Arnie’s voice.

AI copyright laws could be about to change, but should they? A new report from Ireland’s AI Advisory Council recommends giving AI-generated works limited copyright protection while letting creators opt out of AI training.

Frank thinks that’s a reasonable way to protect artists. Justin thinks it’s a fussy bureaucratic workaround that won’t help Europe keep up in the AI race. Copyright holders, he argues, should have no right to refuse, only the right to get paid. Because AI and robotics will define the next century, and Europe needs to get in the game, not get tangled in red tape.

The debate doesn’t stop there.

What happens when a team of researchers accidentally trains an AI to be evil? Why did xAI quietly remove Elon Musk and Donald Trump Jr. from Grok 3’s disinformation lists and then blame OpenAI for it? And would the EU let Elon Musk use AI to fire employees?