e556— AI With Extra Guac

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mortar, pestle and avocado preparation for guacamole

Photo by Mikey Frost on Unsplash

Published 8 June 2026

e556 with Michael, Andy and Michael – Michael R’s annual edu-cation, chatbot trickery, data center data visualization, LeRobot Humanoid open source robotics, LEGO and a whole lot more!

Michael, Andy and Michael get things started with Michael R’s annual edu-cation, Apple’s World Wide Developer Conference.  

Then the team turns to a news story about tricking Meta’s support chatbot into granting access to Instagram accounts.  This is not a new tactic – check out e429 for a link to try this out for yourself with lakera.ai‘s Gandalf game.

Next up is a data visualization for data centers across the United States.  And then, a solution for the energy needs of a data center: CrankGPT.  And harkening back to the earlier chatbot trickery, there’s a GitHub repo to get Chipotle’s chatbot Pepper to write python code and more.  Then, the team considers an article from The Atlantic that spells out a contrarian view that this is in fact the best time for a computer science degree.

A new robotics story captured the team’s attention – the LeRobot Humanoid.  Hugging Face developed this robotic set of legs as an accessible, low cost, open humanoid (well, humanoid legs) robot.  Another intriguing maker project is a 3D book that has printed on it’s pages the machine code needed to fabricate itself.   

Wrapping up the episode, the team takes a look at some of the newest LEGO sets featuring Gaudi’s architecture and SmartPlay sets featuring Nintendo’s Pokemon.  

What would you like to have your LeRobot do?  Have your bots 🤖 drop our bots 🤖 a line at @gamesatwork_biz (our home for now) and let us know! 

These show notes were lovingly hand crafted by a real human, and not by a bot.  All rights reserved.  That’s our story and we’re sticking to it.

Selected Links

WWDC 2026 coming up!

WWDC26 All systems glow.  June 8-12, 2026

From Apple: "Join us on Tuesday, June 9, for a screening of The Mandalorian and Grogu at Steve Jobs Theater. Doors open at 7 p.m. A pre-show presentation about the role of Apple technologies in the movie’s production, featuring a special guest, begins at 8 p.m."

— Paul Hudson (@twostraws)2026-06-01T19:14:54.728Z

Random Thoughts blog post: Getting Ready for WWDC And Building my HomeLab

AI

NEW: Hackers were able to hijack several Instagram accounts by tricking Meta’s AI-powered support chatbot into resetting the victims’ passwords. 

It’s unclear how many Instagram users were hacked due to this flaw. A Meta spokesperson said the issue has now been fixed. 

techcrunch.com/2026/06/01/hack

— Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai (@lorenzofb)2026-06-01T18:37:54.986Z

Games at Work e429: Promptly Engineering (for the discussion on the Gandalf AI prompt engineering game)

Tracking American AI Data Center Buildout

CrankGPT

GitHub cyberpapiii/chipotlai-max

The Atlantic article: There’s Never Been a Better Time to Study Computer Science

Makers

hackster.io article: Hugging Face Launches $2,500 DIY Humanoid Robot

Design Boom post: this fully 3D-printed book turns its own G-code into raised lettering

LEGO

LEGO Sagrada Familia Architecture 21065

Nintendo Life article: LEGO’s Pokémon Smart Play Sets Have Finally Been Officially Revealed

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 36:53 — 17.5MB) | Embed

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e555 — One Two, One Two

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sculpture - The Bean in Millennium Park, Chicago, IL
Photo by Michael Martine: The Bean in Millennium Park, Chicago, IL, June 2019

Published 25 May 2026

e555 with Andy, Michael and Michael – Ploopy’s The Bean and Lenovo’s TrackPoint, The Guild, The Movie, AI in commencement speeches, AI in podcasts, Virtual Worlds and Virtual OS museums and a whole lot more!

Andy, Michael and Michael get things started with an appreciation of Andy’s work to migrate the Games at Work hosting site to a new service in uninterrupted fashion for our listeners.  Next, a new piece of open source hardware that Andy’s purchased, the Ploopy The Bean.  After the cohosts wax poetic on the awesome sauce that is the TrackPoint, they turn their attention to The Guild.  Felicia Day and the team from The Guild are planning to launch a movie.  Andy, Michael and Michael are very excited about this!  

Switching to AI, and all of the recent stories about how university commencement audiences have been booing speakers extolling the virtues of AI, the team considers Woz’s take on AI being “Actual Intelligence”.  This reference is cheered and not booed.  Continuing on the theme, the cohosts discuss a recent play by Spotify of providing an authentication for podcasts recorded by actual humans (with actual intelligence).  This spurs a lively conversation on what that validation might entail, and what it means, especially given the prevalence of AI generated audio content.  

The team wraps up the show with a couple of virtual museums – one shared by friend of the show Ian Hughes – the Virtual Worlds Museum.  The cohosts all agree that Ian would make a fantastic spokesperson for this museum.  The other is a virtual OS museum.

Finally, Andy shares a tremendous social networking graph that traces letters sent between 285 cities during the years from 1363 to 1412,  Check it out, and give a listen to the song from Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 for how the Russians would write letters in the links below.

What would be a good name for AI generated podcast content?  Podslop?  Have your bots 🤖 drop our bots 🤖 a line at @gamesatwork_biz (our home for now) and let us know! 

These show notes were lovingly hand crafted by a real human, and not by a bot.  All rights reserved.  That’s our story and we’re sticking to it.

Selected Links

Shiny new things

Updated GamesAtWork.biz courtesy of Andy – you rock, Andy!

Ploopy, The Bean

Lenovo ThinkPad TrackPoint Keyboard II

The Guild

The Guild: The Movie

Photo of Felicia Day by Michael Rowe, June 2011

Games at Work e415: Pushing our Buttons (for The Guild)

Games at Work e96: The Professional Line Sitter (for the Guild’s Zaboo’s seat saving network idea)

AI

Fast Company article: This sentence about AI got Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak applause—not boos—for his commencement speech

Variety article: Spotify Officially Bans AI-Generated Podcasts That Impersonate Someone Else, Adds Verification Badges for Podcasts

Playlist Push blog post: How Spotify’s New Verification System Works for Artists

TechCrunch article: Google goes for the glitter with disco-ball icons: ‘Are y’all sure you still want this?’

Variety article: Spotify Says Disco-Ball Icon, Which Prompted Massive User Backlash, Will Go Away Next Week as Planned

The Verge article: Amazon Alexa Plus can now create AI-generated podcasts

Google’s NotebookLM

TechDirt article: Amazon Gets Into The AI Podcast Slop Business

Sixcolors post: New Apple accessibility updates focus on Apple Intelligence

The Atlantic article: Everything You Do Is Being Recorded

Virtual Worlds

Kickstarter project: Virtual Worlds Museum™

The Virtual OS Museum

Real World

Datini Letters Geospatial Explorer

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 36:27 — 17.3MB) | Embed

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e554 — SPI vs I

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cat in a briefcase peering over the edge, flipped and duplicated so that it appears two cats are looking at one another
Photo by Valérie Ungerer on Unsplash

Published 18 May 2026

e554 with Michael and Michael – stories and discussion on LLM phone number lookups, proctors returning to Princeton, lavish LEGO, LOTR and a whole lot more!

While Andy is away, Michael and Michael get things started with a discussion on the changing nature of sensitive and private information.  What was once published in a phonebook is now a central identify hub.  While Jenny most certainly had to change her phone number from 867-5309 and have the new one unlisted, she likely posts what would have been very personal photos on Insta, Mastodon or any number of social media services.  Michael R points out that while a phone book was available for a municipality, it was not available at a country level, preserving a degree of anonymity.

Continuing on the theme of social implications of technology, Michael and Michael consider the Atlantic’s article about the demise of Princeton’s honor code process.  Check out the link below for some fantastic quotes from the Daily Princetonian – sadly the newspaper online archives only go back to 2001.

Next up is an article from Thinking Machines’ full duplex capabilities for natural voice interaction with agents.  

LEGO is in focus for this episode (surprise!) with two intriguing sets.  First, a super cool LEGO Ideas Tetris arcade game cabinet with a hidden room.  This reminded Michael M of the set he built that also has a cool hidden room inside.  Then, Michael R shares a bit on the new Minas Tirith set – which has many elements from the movies, and includes the opportunity for a GWP (gift with purchase) of the battering ram Grond if you’re one of the first to plunk down your gold pieces for this build.

The fact that this is up on the Internets on 18 May is due to the hard work from Andy.  He migrated our hosting over the weekend, and this is the first post on the new service.  Hurrah, Andy!  

Do you still have a copy of your city’s phonebook?  Have your bots (or agents!) 🤖 drop our bots 🤖 a line at @gamesatwork_biz (our home for now) and let us know! 

These show notes were lovingly hand crafted by a real human, and not by a bot.  All rights reserved.  That’s our story and we’re sticking to it.

Selected Links

AI

Gizmodo article: ChatGPT Gave Out My Address and Phone Number

The Atlantic article: How AI Killed a 133-Year-Old Princeton Tradition

Princeton University The Undergraduate Honor System

Venture Beat article: Thinking Machines shows off preview of near-realtime AI voice and video conversation with new ‘interaction models’

Thought Machine

Android

Engadget article: Everything announced at The Android Show: I/O 2026 edition

The Verge article: Android Auto is now one (screen) size fits all

LEGO & LOTR

Retrododo article: Playable Tetris Arcade Set With Secret Room Arrives On LEGO Ideas

LEGO Arcade Machine 40805

Slashfilm article: LEGO Reveals A Massive, Expensive Lord Of The Rings Set For Minas Tirith

Brickfanatics article: LEGO The Lord of the Rings: Minas Tirith was ‘the right choice creatively’

LEGO Icons Minas Tirith 11377

Gizmodo article: ‘Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’ Is Returning in November

Games at Work e382: Know it when I see it (for Rings of Power discussion and cool flying toaster screensaver)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:44 — 14.7MB) | Embed

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e553 — Monks, Bots & Ghosts

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Prayer flags strung across trees in front of a waterfall in the North Carolina mountains
Photo by Michael Martine, North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains, May 2017

Published 11 May 2026

e553 with Andy and Michael M – stories and discussion on a robot monk, the Dead Internet Theory,  agentic autonomy, Happy Net Box, the Artemis II minifig.me crew and a whole lot more!

Andy and Michael M get things started with an article from the Smithsonian Magazine featuring a robot taking monastic vows in Korea.  This spurs an intriguing discussion on the nature of consciousness, programming and agentic autonomy.  This morphs into the Dead Internet Theory, the Boring Internet essay from Terry Godier, and eventually to some happy news with the Happy Net Box.

Interspersed are new applications such as a Chair Curling game for the Playdate, and a presentation engine powered by gestures called Hovercraft from Sandwich Vision.  The cohosts discussed the Theater app from Sandwich Vision back in Dec 2024 in e495.  

Knitting the ending together, Andy and Michael express their appreciation and gratitude for the awesomeness that is minifigs.me and Michael shares a story about the Artemis II crew.

Do you think the Internet is dead, boring or something else?  Have your bots (or agents!) 🤖 drop our bots 🤖 a line at @gamesatwork_biz (our home for now) and let us know! 

These show notes were lovingly hand crafted by a real human, and not by a bot.  All rights reserved.  That’s our story and we’re sticking to it.

Selected Links

Robot

Smithsonian Magazine article: Meet ‘Gabi,’ the Robot That Just Became a Monk at a Buddhist Temple in South Korea. It’s the Latest Robot to Take Up Religious Practice

Hovercraft is how I always wanted to share my slides. So I made it. It’s a virtual camera for macOS.

No more disembodied voice. No more “can you see my screen?” Just me, tossing around my windows like it’s 2027.

I like to say it’s a visionOS app in macOS clothing. And I hope you’ll give it a try, and let me know what you think.

sandwich.vision/hovercraft

— Adam Lisagor (@adamlisagor)2026-05-06T17:30:43.254Z

Sandwich Vision hovercraft

Games at Work e495: Personal Planetarium (for Sandwich Vision’s Theater app)

Gaming

Insider Gaming article: XBox No Longer Developing Copilot for Consoles

Playdate Games: office chair curling

playdate

Dead New and Old Internet

Fast Company article: Is the ‘dead internet’ theory coming true? New Stanford research calculates exactly how far we are—and it’s alarming

Wikipedia article: Dead Internet Theory

Kate Davies Designs post: Knitting Bull****

YCombinator Hacker News post: Agents can now create Cloudflare accounts, buy domains, and deploy

TerryGodier.com essay: The Boring Internet 

Mashable article: ask.com shuts down after 30 years

HappyNetBox.com 

Wikipedia article: Finger (protocol)

Space

AnilDash.com post: Why are the Artemis II Photos on Flicker?

kottke.org post: Animated Artemis II Photos Reveal Satellites Buzzing Around Earth

minifigs.me Artemis II Crew with Studtella!

Games at Work e550: Moontella (for the Nutella story on Artemis II)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:36 — 57.7MB) | Embed

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