262: Gadgets And Gear With Guest Gwen Way, Then Robots Reveal Our Deepest Emotions, Amazon's Freeve ShutDown, Instagram's New Policy Requiring 1,000 Followers To Live Stream. | Air Date: 8/5 - 8/11/2025 TechTime With Nathan Mumm podcast

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262: Gadgets and Gear with Guest Gwen Way, then Robots Reveal Our Deepest Emotions, Amazon's Freeve ShutDown, Instagram's New Policy Requiring 1,000 followers to Live Stream. | Air Date: 8/5 - 8/11/2025

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The digital landscape is shifting beneath our feet as free streaming services continue to vanish. Amazon's Freevee joins the growing list of casualties, leaving consumers with fewer no-cost options while paid services paradoxically charge premium prices yet still bombard viewers with advertisements. This troubling trend prompted a spirited discussion about the psychological tactics companies employ to normalize paying for content that still contains commercials.
A fascinating study reveals unexpected insights about our relationships with robots possessing different personality traits. While people generally enjoy interacting with confident, extroverted AI, they find neurotic robots surprisingly relatable—even attributing emotional depth where none exists. This anthropomorphizing tendency raises important questions about how we connect with technology and the blurring lines between human and machine interaction. As one host quipped, "This is technological schizophrenia," highlighting concerns about our growing emotional dependence on artificial companions.
Instagram's controversial new policy requiring 1,000 followers to live stream effectively eliminates a feature many small communities relied upon for intimate gatherings. This fundamental shift away from Instagram's original purpose of connecting small groups mirrors broader changes across social media, where platforms continually modify features to prioritize growth and revenue over community building. Yet despite frequent controversial changes, these platforms maintain their user bases, demonstrating the powerful hold they have on our digital social lives.
The episode also explores Natura AI, a polarizing new product combining earbuds with an AI assistant that responds to voice commands throughout the day. While one host saw potential benefits in having information instantly available, the other condemned it as promoting social disconnection. This tension between technological convenience and human connection underscores the central theme running through the show—how we navigate the complex relationship between innovation and our fundamental need for authentic human experience.

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Chapters

1. Show Introduction (00:00:00)

2. Top Technology Stories of the Week (00:01:52)

3. Monthly Whiskey Competition (00:23:01)

4. Gadgets and Gear with Gwen Way (00:27:44)

5. Mike's Mesmerizing Moment (00:39:54)

6. This Week in Technology (00:46:15)

7. Mark's Whiskey Mumble (00:47:33)

8. Technology Fail of the Week (00:51:20)

9. Nathan Nugget: Windows 11 Features (00:56:24)

10. Pick of the Day Whiskey Tasting (00:58:40)

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