The Vergecast

It's developer conference season, and one of the themes so far has been big swings at AI apps. We've seen Gemini Spark, Microsoft Scout, and so many other attempts to figure out what people, and companies, actually want their AI to do. Nilay and David discuss their experiences with the apps, before turning to Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's vision for the AI-filled laptop of the future. Finally, in the lightning round, it's time for the Hype Desk, Brendan Carr is a Dummy, a deeply dumb Meta hack, and the future of a favorite VR game.

Further reading:

⁠Testing Google’s Gemini Spark AI agent: it’s incredible, and creepy ⁠

⁠Gemini’s new AI agent is about as good as Google’s demo ⁠

⁠Microsoft Scout is a new AI personal assistant built on OpenClaw ⁠

⁠Microsoft’s Project Solara is an OS for AI agent gadgets ⁠

⁠As AI gets better, it reveals an empty promise ⁠

⁠Let us filter AI slop, you cowards⁠

⁠Microsoft and OpenAI broke up — now they’re ready to fight ⁠

⁠These are the first Nvidia RTX Spark laptops ⁠

⁠This is the Microsoft Surface Laptop Ultra with Nvidia RTX Spark ⁠


⁠A first look at Microsoft’s Surface Laptop Ultra and Surface Dev Box⁠⁠ ⁠

⁠Nvidia is already planning N2X and N3X chips — the goal is the Star Trek computer ⁠

⁠This could be Windows’ M1 moment — but expect it to cost a ton ⁠

⁠Computex 2026: All the news and announcements ⁠

⁠Meta’s own AI was exploited to hijack Instagram accounts⁠

⁠Apple’s strategy for smart glasses is the same as for smart watches ⁠

⁠It sure seems like the Vision Pro isn’t getting upgraded for a while — if ever.⁠

Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed.We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.

(Timestamps are approximate.)

00:01:00 Intro

00:03:00 New Verge Merch Drop

00:09:00 Gemini Spark Test Drive

00:13:00 Privacy Tradeoffs Debate

00:21:00 Software Brain Pushback

00:36:00 Jensen Huang Computer Future

00:39:00 Microsoft Build Reality Check

00:41:00 Nvidia Spark Recall

00:42:00 Microsoft Badge Agents

00:54:00 Escaping Apple Tax

00:57:00 Wearables Walled Gardens

01:05:00 Hype Desk

01:06:00 Bond Game Streaming

01:09:00 Summer Games Fest

01:11:00 State of Play Highlights

01:11:00 God of War

01:14:00 Wolverine Gore Talk

01:15:00 Widows Bay

01:17:00 Lightning Round

01:17:00 Brendan Carr is a Dummy

01:26:00 Apple Glasses Rumors

01:36:00 Privacy Backlash Risk

01:38:00 Meta AI Hack Fiasco

01:43:00 Supernatural Returns

01:47:00 Wrap and Next Week
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Microsoft's commitment to AI is not news. Copilot has been everywhere for... a while now. But at this week's Build developer conference, the company made clear that it wants — and needs — to be a bigger player in the space. The Verge's Tom Warren joins David to talk about the new Scout AI assistant, the Solara operating system concept, and whether Microsoft can hang with OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google. Also: How's the new era of Xbox going?

We’re also on video! Check us out on YouTube.

Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters and our ad-free podcast feed.

We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.
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How far can we push the limits of the human body? At the Enhanced Games in Las Vegas, a few dozen athletes tried to find out, and The Verge's Victoria Song was there to watch. She tells us the story of the swimmers, weightlifters, and other athletes who competed, the intense training and drug regimens they underwent, and the complicated mix of pseudo-science and actual science behind the event. Then, she tells us where this project goes from here — because the Enhanced Games experiment is just beginning.

Further reading:

⁠Roids were all the rage at the Enhanced Games⁠

⁠What would you be willing to put in your body?⁠

Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters, and our ad-free podcast feed.We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.

(Timestamps are approximate.)

00:00:00 90 Seconds Headlines

00:04:00 What Are Enhanced Games

00:06:00 Sport Science or Grift

00:07:00 Wellness Grifter Playbook

00:10:00 Rules for Doping

00:11:00 Allowed Drugs Explained

00:14:00 Clean Athletes Surprise

00:18:00 Harm Reduction Argument

00:21:00 Heat and Event Chaos

00:28:00 Peptides for Sale

00:29:00 Telehealth Friction Debate

00:32:00 Influencers vs Media Narrative

00:33:00 Athlete Payout Reality

00:35:00 Future Plans and Stock

00:37:00 Vegas Vibes and Sexy Water

00:37:00 Hotline

00:41:00 Ferrari Luce Listener Takes

00:44:00 Final Thoughts and WWDC Plug
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Nvidia is betting that AI is going to change the way you use your computer — and with a new chip, the RTX Spark, it's hoping to ensure it powers that new-fangled AI machine. During a big week for the PC industry, with the Computex trade show and Microsoft's Build developer conference happening simultaneously, The Verge's Sean Hollister explains what's inside the Spark, why Nvidia is taking on Apple, Intel, AMD, and the rest of the chip industry, and whether the world's most valuable company has a shot at reinventing the personal computer. Without costing a fortune.

Nvidia announces RTX Spark as ‘the most efficient PC chip ever built’

This is the Microsoft Surface Laptop Ultra with Nvidia RTX Spark

These are the first Nvidia RTX Spark laptops

AMD’s new pitch: our old tech is so good you should just keep using it

We’re also on video! Check us out on YouTube.

Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters and our ad-free podcast feed.

We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Vergecast is officially a daily show! We kick things off with the return of 90 Seconds on The Verge, a peek at the top stories on theverge.com. Then, we turn to our old pal Casey Neistat for some advice. Casey vlogged every day for 800 days straight, and has some thoughts on the pros and cons of daily posting, the state of YouTube in 2026, and how to make things every day without losing your mind in the process.

We’re also on video! Check us out on YouTube. Subscribe to The Verge for unlimited access to theverge.com, subscriber-exclusive newsletters and our ad-free podcast feed. We love hearing from you! Email your questions and thoughts to [email protected] or call us at 866-VERGE11.
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