Weekly Download #104: Sorry, we're super late

Hey , it’s Tuesday, November 18.

Sorry for the late send, folks. We typically send these out on Sunday night but I was feeling a bit under the weather and had to put some time aside for rest. The good news is that I’m back in full swing and figured a late send is better than no send.

So yeah, this week’s newsletter is a bit light on the usual, but we made sure to catch you up with a healthy portion of news so you don’t miss a beat.

Alright, and we’re off!

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 📚 Tech Terms Worth Knowing

Artificial Superintelligence
(noun)

Definition: Artificial superintelligence (ASI) is a hypothetical form of artificial intelligence (AI) that surpasses human cognitive abilities in every domain.

Usage: "If artificial superintelligence ever gets built, it could solve problems humans can't even imagine and change everything about how we live and work."

📰 The Big One

The YouTube TV-Disney dispute is over: Here's what happened

Last week, YouTube TV and Disney ended a two-week blackout after reaching a new multi-year distribution deal to restore all Disney-owned channels—including ABC, ESPN, FX, Freeform, and National Geographic—to YouTube TV's platform.​

What Happened

• Disney channels went dark on YouTube TV on October 30 due to a failed contract renewal, leaving subscribers without major sports, news, and entertainment.​

• The dispute centered around carriage fees: YouTube TV said Disney was demanding higher prices, while Disney accused YouTube TV (owned by Google ) of not paying fair rates and leveraging market dominance. ​

• The blackout affected millions, disrupting access to college football, Election Day coverage, and other high-profile programming.​

Resolution and What’s New

• On November 14, both sides agreed to restore Disney channels to YouTube TV, with recordings also returning for subscribers.​

• As part of the new deal, YouTube TV will get full integration of ESPN's new direct-to-consumer “Unlimited” offering at no extra cost by end of 2026, plus more options to bundle Disney+ and Hulu within YouTube TV packages.​

• The agreement outlines flexible access: select Disney networks can now be placed into genre-based add-on packs.​

• Subscribers were offered credits by YouTube TV during the blackout.​

In short, the two streaming giants resolved their pricing dispute, restored all Disney content to YouTube TV, and introduced new direct-to-consumer features for ESPN, along with expanded content bundling options for viewers. [LINK]

⚡ Fast Five

1.) Google’s Private AI Compute brings cloud power without the creepy snooping
No human eyes, not even Googlers, will be peeking at your messages, recordings, or calendar [LINK]

2.) Apple’s iPhone Air might already be out of breath
Paper-thin might not be the killer feature Apple hoped it would be. [LINK]

3.) Wikipedia wants AI to stop mooching (and maybe pay up a little)
OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic can access Wikipedia's data without overloading its servers. [LINK]

4.) AI country star Breaking Rust tops Billboard chart
Breaking Rust’s debut single, Livin’ on Borrowed Time, quietly climbed to number five [LINK].

5.) AI chatbots are giving eating disorder tips (and it’s as bad as it sounds):
They’re doling out dieting “tips,” tricks to hide disordered eating, and even generating disturbingly realistic “thinspiration” content [LINK]

PARTNER MESSAGE

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💾 Extra Bytes

Texas sues Roblox calling it a predator playground [LINK]

Elon Musk celebrates $1 trillion Tesla win with AI love video [LINK]

Roomba is dying and your dusty old broom might be making a comeback [LINK]

Facebook to remove like and comment buttons in 2026—here’s why [LINK]

Honor’s crazy robot phone with pop-out AI camera lands in 2026 [LINK]

Musk teases FSD beta that lets you text and drive—almost [LINK]

Nintendo Switch 2 update breaks cheap docks [LINK]

📱 Gear of the Week

Clear Drop Plastic Compactor

The Clear Drop is a device that squishes your grocery bags into bricks for recycling. It costs $200 upfront plus $50/month. Yes, really.

How This Thing Actually Works

You toss your used Ziploc bags, grocery sacks, and food wrappers into this countertop appliance. It heats them up and smooshes everything into a 12″ × 8″ × 4″ brick.

Then you ship that brick to Frankfort Plastics in Indiana using a prepaid label, where it gets turned into actual recycled material instead of sitting in a landfill forever [LINK]

⚙️ Moron of the Week

This week’s moron of the week goes to Russia’s first AI robot. During its unveiling presentation, the robot walks out and somehow falls flat on its face. The Rocky theme music makes it 👌

⚙️ Tools

^_Featured:
Pippit AI: Instantly create videos and product images with AI—no skills needed. Get a 7-day free trial or 50% off your first month with promo code PIPPIT50OFF [LINK]

Nessie: Nessie organizes your AI chats into personal knowledge bases that grows with your inputs. [LINK].

Higgsfield AI: Swap characters from any video [LINK]

Task Sentry: Block distractions, not websites [LINK]

Semrush AI Visibility Toolkit: Shows you how brands appear in AI-generated answers [LINK]

Thanks for reading!

Alright! Thanks for getting all the way to the end. Until next week…….

-Kevin

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