GeekWire

"Our rule is, we risk capital — we don't risk people." That was the guiding principle for Everett-Wash.-based OceanGate, as described by its CEO, Stockton Rush, at the GeekWire Summit in October 2022. Rush's engineering decisions, and his tolerance for risk, as reflected in his comments at our event, are getting new scrutiny after the apparent implosion of OceanGate's Titan submersible, near the site of the Titanic wreck deep under the North Atlantic Ocean this week, killing Rush and four others on board.  On this episode of the GeekWire Podcast, we're joined by Alan Boyle, GeekWire contributing editor, who has been covering OceanGate for the past seven years. He tells the story of Stockton Rush and the company, discusses the tragedy of the past week, and contemplates what's next for OceanGate and the larger world of ocean and space exploration.  Now what? OceanGate sub tragedy sets off a torrent of questions without answers OceanGate submersible and crew declared lost after discovery of debris near Titanic Watch the full video: Stockton Rush at the 2022 GeekWire Summit Read an archived version of Rush's OceanGate bio, and a New York Times obituary. With GeekWire co-founder Todd BishopSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our guest this week is Jason Del Rey, a business reporter who covered Amazon, Walmart and the business of online retail for more than a decade at Recode and Vox Media. His new book is "Winner Sells All: Amazon, Walmart, and the Battle for our Wallets," which takes an inside look at what he calls "the defining business clash of this generation—a battle waged for our loyalty and wallets, with hundreds of billions of dollars at stake and millions of jobs on the line." With GeekWire co-founder Todd Bishop; edited and produced by Curt Milton.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week: the origins of data, and the future of the digital species. Our guest is business and tech leader Bob Muglia, a startup investor and advisor who played key roles in the emergence of Microsoft's database, server, and business software products, and served as the CEO of data warehouse company Snowflake Computing. He's the author, with Steve Hamm, of a new book called  "The Datapreneurs: The Promise of AI and the Creators Building Our Future," published by Peakpoint Press. Muglia connects the dots between early data innovation and the emerging era of artificial intelligence; talks about lessons from one of his favorite authors, Isaac Asimov; compares Microsoft and IBM to Microsoft and OpenAI; explains why he's ultimately an optimist about technology and humanity; and tells the story of the data center he built in his house when he was a Microsoft executive.  "We've gone from the verbal way of recording information ... to various forms of writing, to the printing press, to ultimately digital computers and the internet. And now data of every type is recording society in a way that essentially has a permanence attached to it. And these intelligent entities that we can create in the future will learn from all of this. ... It's a little scary, for sure, but it's pretty exciting." With GeekWire co-founder Todd Bishop; edited and produced by Curt Milton.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Apple CEO Tim Cook on Monday unveiled the company's new $3500 Vision Pro headset, declaring a new era for spatial computing, and it was difficult not to notice the similarities to Microsoft's unveiling of its HoloLens headset back in 2015.  The comparison of Vision Pro and HoloLens, and the way the devices match a certain historical pattern, is one of our topics this week in a broader discussion about the new Apple device and what it means for the future of technology and computing. Our guest is John Tomizuka, co-founder and CTO of Seattle-based tech startup Taqtile, which makes augmented reality work instruction software for enterprise companies. Taqtile has been working on HoloLens applications since the beginning, and the company said this week that it plans develop for the Vision Pro, as well.   Related Posts ‘Tears in my eyes’: Seattle startups sound off on Apple’s Vision Pro headset Analysis: Apple’s Vision Pro sets up a clash with Valve, Sony, Meta over future of VR/AR Apple vs. Microsoft: Vision Pro, HoloLens, and a familiar pattern in a classic tech rivalry See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hundreds of Amazon employees walked out of the office in Seattle this week, gathering in between the company's headquarters towers while holding signs, participating in chants and listening to speakers urge the tech giant to do better. It was part of a global walkout that organizers said drew participation from more than 2,000 Amazon employees worldwide.  So why did they walk out, and what do they hope to accomplish?  On this episode of the GeekWire Podcast, we hear from Amazon employees in the crowd and speakers at the podium, explain the company's perspective, and put the walkout in the larger context of the tectonic shifts taking place in the tech industry. With GeekWire reporter Kurt Schlosser and co-founder Todd Bishop. Related stories: Amazon employees walk out, seeking bolder climate action and end of return-to-office policy How big was that Amazon walkout crowd? Amazon employee groups expect nearly 2,000 workers to participate in walkout  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on the GeekWire Podcast, we're coming to you from our mobile recording studio, aka Todd's car, as he and John make the most of their time in a clogged parking garage to discuss the comments they had just heard from T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert at the Technology Alliance annual State of Technology luncheon. Topics include artificial intelligence, national security concerns over Chinese hacking, downtown safety, and getting employees back to the office. From there, we take an impromptu driving tour of Amazon HQ to see things first-hand. Stories discussed on this week's show: How T-Mobile plans to use AI to improve one of its most important business metrics ‘It’s your responsibility’: T-Mobile CEO exhorts tech industry leaders to return to the office Car and foot traffic data show impact of Amazon’s return to office mandate on Seattle commutes Microsoft says critical U.S. infrastructure targeted by Chinese hackers Amazon responds to walkout plan: ‘We respect our employees’ rights to express their opinions’ With GeekWire co-founders Todd Bishop and John Cook. Audio clips of Sievert provided by the Tech Alliance. See GeekWire.com for more coverage.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The theme at this week's GeekWire Awards was Star Wars, but we didn't need to go to a galaxy far, far away to find the force that promises to reshape the technology industry. The game-changing potential of AI was on the minds of many finalists and attendees, and integral to the business models of many of the companies featured on stage. This episode features conversations with finalists and attendees about the economy, artificial intelligence, and more ... plus lots of cool tech along the way. GeekWire Awards 2023 revealed: Community honors top innovation in Pacific Northwest tech Seattle Seahawks legend, NASA astronaut, ‘Love is Blind’ star share wisdom at the GeekWire Awards More Coverage: GeekWire Awards 2023See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're back this week on the GeekWire Podcast as humans, not bots, we promise, but we've still got a lot of AI to talk about. On this week's episode, Todd shares highlights from his visit to Google I/O, including two of the generative AI tools that demonstrated the potential of technology to change the way we process and convey information.  Todd and John wrestle with the implications of these AI tools for human creativity, consider the long-term impact on society, balance these concerns against their natural sense of awe and wonder about innovation, and discuss ways that new tech realities are shielding companies from scrutiny. Stories and topics referenced on this week's show. We had our AI voice clones read an AI-generated GeekWire Podcast script — listen to the result Microsoft’s optimistic view of AI sees technology ending the drudgery of ‘digital debt’ In search of AI’s killer app … and other notes from Google I/O Project Tailwind (Google) Google Workspace Duet AI (Google) Google teases Project Tailwind — a prototype AI notebook that learns from your documents (The Verge) Dan Deacon's pre-show Google I/O performance. (YouTube) How Gmail's New AI Feature Will Write Your Emails for You  (CNet) As storm clouds clear for travel, Expedia Group looks to become a bigger tech provider to industry Trump's Town Hall, Santos Charged, and STFU with Dan Lyons (Pivot) With GeekWire co-founders John Cook and Todd Bishop.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For all the hype over generative artificial intelligence, how far has AI really advanced? Where is the new line between humanity and technology, and what does it mean for the future of our daily lives and work? GeekWire is exploring these questions in our Bot or Not series, and this week on the GeekWire Podcast, we share and assess the preliminary results of an experiment that we’ve been doing as part of this effort. We created AI voice clones for GeekWire's John Cook and Todd Bishop, and had those clones read an AI-generated podcast script. You can hear a short clip from this experiment in the first segment of this week’s episode, followed by reactions from our colleague Kurt Schlosser, and from John, who was hearing his own voice clone for the first time. Stay tuned in the coming weeks for a more in-depth look at this process and the larger issues raised by AI voice cloning as part of our Bot or Not series. In the second segment, we get Kurt’s first-hand report from Amazon headquarters as the tech giant’s employees return to the office en masse for the first time in more than three years. In the final segment, listen for a preview of the GeekWire Awards, coming up May 18 in Seattle. Check out all of our GeekWire Awards coverage here, and learn more on the GeekWire Awards event site. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today's top STEM teachers embrace learning opportunities wherever they arise, whether it's baby squirrels that have fallen from their nest, or engineering design failures that literally go up in smoke. At the GeekWire Awards on May 18, we’re celebrating two STEM Educators of the Year: Ted Rodriquez, an instructor for high school juniors and seniors at the Sno-Isle TECH Skills Center in Everett, Wash. Melissa Pearcy teaches kindergarten-through-fifth-grade students in her role as a science specialist at Jefferson Elementary, which is part of Spokane Public Schools.  These teachers are among the best in delivering science, technology, engineering and math education. They're teaching students fundamental scientific principals -- but perhaps even more importantly, they're helping them learn how to solve problems, take risks, and recover from failure. The GeekWire Awards recognize the top innovators and companies in Pacific Northwest technology. Our STEM educator honorees were selected based on community nominations, along with input from GeekWire Awards judges. We recently spoke with the two teachers to learn more about their creative, engaging efforts to inspire the next generation of STEM leaders. Bank of America is the sponsor of this award, now in its third year.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.