AmberMac Blog

The AmberMac Show Ep046: Tech’s Wild Second Half of 2025 with TheOtherMac

by Amber Mac on December 30, 2025

In a special year-end episode, we’re looking back at the second half of an incredible year in tech through the lens of Jeff’s TheOtherMac segments on The AmberMac Show. Find out why the AI bubble is going to pop, how ChatGPT drove at least one youth to suicide, the real cost of humanoid robots, how Meta is the cornerstone of the online fraud economy, and lots more in this follow-up to our 2025 TheOtherMac summer special covering the first half of the 2025.

Be sure to follow our hosts…

Amber Mac: Bluesky | X/Twitter
Jeff MacArthur: Bluesky | X/Twitter

The AmberMac Show is a weekly SiriusXM radio and podcast production with Amber Mac, Jeff MacArthur, and guests that unpacks the latest tech, business, and digital news shaping our lives. Listen and subscribe using the links below (or click here for RSS and other links).

Playlist of Video Segments from this Ep

AmberMac Podcasts

More of The AmberMac Show

The AmberMac Show Ep048: CES 2026 Special - AI Chips, Robot Companions, & Smart Toilets

January 12, 2026

In our 2026 CES Special, powered by Intel Canada, Amber and Jeff break down the best in tech from the Consumer Electronics Show. From smart toilets to high-tech LEGO, we unpack the most innovative products that will change the way we live, work, and play. Plus, we explain the good,… Read More

The AmberMac Show Ep047: Musk’s Grok Undresses Women & Our Guest on Gander Killing Facebook in Canada

January 5, 2026

On this week’s episode, Ben Waldman, the CEO and co-founder of Gander, joins us to share when Canadians can log on to his homegrown social media platform. Plus, Amber and Jeff have an update on Elon Musk’s chatbot continuing to humiliate women, Drake’s class action suit’s relationship to a streaming… Read More

The AmberMac Show Ep045: Our 2026 Tech Wish List for Canada + Uber Safety Tips & Democracy at Work

December 22, 2025

In this special episode, Amber and Jeff break down their top 10 tech wish list for Canada in 2026, including saying so long to Facebook and using AI to save lives (and time) on our roads. Plus, Amber hosts a conversation on promoting democracy at work (recorded at the Canadian… Read More

The AmberMac Show Ep044: Guest Mark Critch on Trump's America & Disney's OpenAI Slopfest

December 16, 2025

On this week’s episode, Mark Critch of This Hour Has 22 Minutes fame joins us to talk about his new book, “Sorry, Not Sorry: An Unapologetic Look at What Makes Canada Worth Fighting For”. Speaking of President Trump, we’ll share the latest on how your social media presence could affect… Read More

The AmberMac Show Ep043: Elon Musk Takes on EU & Guest Mitch Joel on AI Job Chaos

December 8, 2025

On this week’s episode, Jeff and Amber chat about how Google is eating ChatGPT’s lunch, what Elon Musk wants to do to the European Union, how one author managed to publish more than 100 academic papers on AI in a year, and why Netflix has Hollywood so worried. Plus, guest… Read More

The AmberMac Show Ep042: AI Toy Dangers & Guest Catherine McKenna on Fighting Online Hate

December 1, 2025

On this week’s episode, Jeff and Amber discuss why Meta is in trouble again for choosing user engagement over safety, how divisive X has become, and some disturbing news about sexual deepfakes. Our guest this week is Catherine McKenna, Canada’s former minister of environment and climate change, who joins us… Read More

The AmberMac Show Ep041: Pornhub Begs Big Tech & Guest Don Tapscott on Identic AI

November 24, 2025

In this week’s episode, Jeff and Amber explain what Pornhub is begging big tech companies to do, what the loss of Meta’s Chief AI Scientist says about the path forward for AI, why Elon Musk’s Grok AI thinks Musk is more fit than LeBron James, how TikTok plans to serve… Read More

The AmberMac Show Ep040: Global AI Cyberattack, Gen(Z)AI, & Disney+ Slop

November 17, 2025

On this week’s episode on The AmberMac Show: We cover the first documented case of a global AI cyberattack, Disney’s unexpected embracing of AI slop, another AI band topping the charts, and OpenAI’s financial fumbling. We’ve also got Helen Hayes, Director of Strategic Development at McGill’s Centre for Media, Technology,… Read More

The AmberMac Show Ep039: Meta’s $16B Ad Scam & Guest Frank McCourt’s TikTok Bid

November 10, 2025

On this week’s episode on The AmberMac Show: We dig into how Facebook, Instagram, and other Meta platforms are raking in billions by scamming online users through deceptive ads and, speaking of scams, Elon Musk is taking his Tesla board for a ride for a cool one trillion dollars –… Read More

The AmberMac Show Ep038: Broken by Misinformation, Resisting the Robots, & Building a Better Facebook

November 3, 2025

On this week’s show, which tech companies are shedding thousands of jobs in the age of AI, why Character.ai is finally banning teens from its chatbot, what are the politics around one of the most popular video doorbells, and why Canadians are stepping up and opening their wallets for a… Read More

The AmberMac Show Ep037: Why the Internet Sucks with Cory Doctorow & A.I. Mistakes Chips for Guns

October 27, 2025

This week on The AmberMac Show, author Cory Doctorow joins us to talk about his new book, why everything is worse, and what we can do about it. We talk with Taylor Owen, founding director of The Centre for Media, Technology & Democracy (and host of Machines Like Us), and… Read More

The AmberMac Show Ep036: ChatGPT Gets Erotic & Musk Battles Bots

October 21, 2025

This week on The AmberMac Show, the makers of ChatGPT want to be a new home for erotic content. TechRadar Editor-at-Large Lance Ulanoff joins us to talk about what this means and why it’s so controversial. We also dive into the dangers of embracing crypto and why Pinterest is going to… Read More