TNW 412: Epic Win: Google Slashes Play Store Fees - Changes Coming to the Google Play Store
Tech News Weekly (Audio)
Leo Laporte
4.0 • 1.2K Ratings
🗓️ 6 November 2025
⏱️ 64 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Abrar Al-Heeti of CNET joins Mikah Sargent this week on Tech News Weekly. Apple is reportedly considering a partnership with Google to integrate the Gemini AI model with Siri. A new AI-powered smart ring is in development to record users' thoughts. Google is making modifications to its Play Store regarding third-party accessibility. And a group of employees from a company specializing in negotiating cyber-attack ransoms has been indicted for running their own cyber-extortion scheme.
- Abrar shares how Apple plans to partner with Google to utilize the Gemini AI model in its updated Siri model.
- Mikah talks about a new AI-powered smart ring in development that you can speak into to record & ask questions.
- Ryan Whitwam of Ars Technica joins the show to talk about the changes Google has been ordered to make to its Play Store to better accommodate third-party apps following Epic Games' lawsuit against the company.
- And Mikah shares a story about a group of employees at a company that specializes in negotiating cyber-attack ransoms who were indicted for, ironically, running their own cyber-extortion scheme.
Hosts: Mikah Sargent and Abrar Al-Heeti
Guest: Ryan Whitwam
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Coming up on Tech News Weekly, Abrar Al-Hiti is here, and we kick off the show by talking about |
| 0:05.7 | Apple's plans to use Google's Gemini for its AI offerings. Then I talk about a ring you whisper to |
| 0:13.3 | to keep track of your thoughts during the day. Afterwards, Ryan Whitwam, of ours, Technica, stops |
| 0:18.3 | by to give us the latest on the Google versus Epic Saga. |
| 0:21.7 | And I round things out talking about a wild story involving ransomware and the people who are |
| 0:28.3 | supposed to protect you from it. |
| 0:30.0 | All of that coming up on Tech News Weekly. |
| 0:35.3 | Podcasts you love. |
| 0:36.9 | From people you trust. |
| 0:39.4 | This is Twitter. |
| 0:42.9 | This is Tech News Weekly, episode 412, with Abar Al-Hiti and me, Micah Sargent, |
| 0:50.2 | recorded Thursday, November 6th, 2025. |
| 0:53.8 | Epic win! Google slashes Play Store Fees. |
| 0:57.0 | Hello and welcome to Tech News Weekly, the show where every week we talk to and about the people making and breaking the tech news. |
| 1:05.0 | I am your host, Micah Sargent, and given that it is a new month, wow, so it is the first Thursday of the |
| 1:13.6 | month, we are joined today by the wonderful Abraar Al-Hiti. Welcome back to the show Abra. |
| 1:20.1 | Thank you so much. Not only have we entered a new month, but it's it's cozy season. |
| 1:23.6 | So it's cozy. |
| 1:24.6 | So exciting. |
| 1:25.6 | I go about it at 7 p.m. You know, it's great. Oh, my goodness. That is one thing. I've got my light therapy lamp out. I go under it like a lizard because of my time. I'm in Portland now, and it's like, it's 11 and I'm pretty sure it's dark outside. It's ridiculous. Yeah, I guess the perk of California is like, okay, in the daytime, it's bright and set. In the day, it's day. You're good. Yeah, but I'm glad you got it figured out. Yeah. So if you were tuning in for the first time, we kick off the show by sharing our stories of the week. These are stories that we think are awesome and wants to share with all of you. |
| 2:03.6 | And so, Abraar, if you would like to take it away with your story of the week, that would be wonderful. |
| 2:08.6 | I would love to. I wanted to talk about how, and I'm trying to figure out how to not trigger everybody's. |
... |
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