The Chris and Sam Podcast

Summary It’s episode 600 and things get random as always—no live audience this year, but there’s plenty to talk about. There’s tales from a metal detecting rally, TEDx speaker stories, and the chaos of dynamic burger pricing at McDonald’s. Listener messages roll in from around the globe, a skink gets life-saving surgery, and New Zealand fisheries crack down in epic fashion. Links Noah's Ark Si...

Summary The episode kicks off with podcast plans going awry and listener messages for the big 600th milestone. We dive into stylish grave digging competitions in Hungary, wild AI-powered gadgets, bizarre search keywords, and the challenges of senior assassin games. There's robot fighting, public art in Hamilton, inflatable obstacle courses, and a chat about an American mall shootout. All this...

Summary This week, the podcast dives into a wild Korean horror movie, a Hyrox sports scandal, and a secondhand bookshop bookmark hack. A Rotorua crystal shop faces religious protests, and there’s talk of Sandra Bullock, fruit fly brains playing video games, and questionable Kickstarter gadgets. Links Witchcraft accusations in Rotorua People refused defibrillator Scientists brain mapping a fruit fl...

Summary Chris and Sam are gearing up for episode 600 with fan messages and official podcast fan certificates. There’s talk of wasabi smoke alarms and the latest IG Nobel Prize winners (cockroach milk, anyone?), plus the world’s weirdest Kickstarter successes—including a $91 fidget toy and a smoking dehydrator. A TV owner takes on Sony, protests in Warsaw feature robots, and you know you've made it...

Summary Sam hosted the 48-hour Hamilton Heats screening, while Chris is off to interview filmmakers for Misty Flicks. The duo debate a wild rugby stadium flyover, discuss China's massive car recall over hidden door handles, and uncover the wasabi smoke alarm for deaf people that won an IG Nobel Prize. Kickstarter inventions go from pro-grade CNC machines to questionable folding bags, and there's a...

Summary It’s a week of farewells with RIPs for Dolly and a surprise about Tim Curry, plus Chris causes chaos during a local theater shoot and Sam’s concert plans fall through. There’s a possible Canada-US trade war brewing, Apple Maps testing unwelcome ads, and a bizarre startup using drone swarms on solar farms. Kickstarter madness continues with some wild tech gadgets, and there’s a shocking pol...

Summary This week, Chris recounts his adventures acting as a medical patient, while Sam survives some heavy-duty theatre work and witnesses questionable installation decisions. There's talk of leprosy-carrying armadillos in Florida, reality TV-worthy Guinness World Record attempts, bizarre employment histories, and the wild story of electric shock gloves for ICE officers. AI-generated vegetables t...

Summary Chris has been binging a Paris-based spy show, while Sam is battling the winter bugs. The conversation touches on the billion-dollar Italian cheese economy, with climate change threatening cheese banks and blockchain cheese loans causing confusion. We hear about robots catching fire in a US artillery factory, AI mishaps killing a farmer’s crops, and some truly questionable Kickstarter inve...

Summary We have shoutouts to loyal listeners and a rundown of the world’s highest-paid podcasters (spoiler: they didn’t make the list). There’s a TEDx deal in the works, mysterious medical Zoom calls, and some eyebrow-raising news including 30-year-old cats, high-tech (and anti-tech) sunglasses, and marmots with their own OnlyFans account. We hear about a man who impaled himself on a mountain, uns...

Summary This week, there’s chaos with robot bans on flights, and a New York school’s AI teacher gets canceled for looking a bit too human. We discover Google’s earthquake alert system, hear about a wild Katy Perry concert mishap, and learn how AI companies are quietly destroying rare books. Plus, there’s a crazy AI escape attempt and some Kickstart or Dropkick gadgets you won’t believe. All this a...

Summary Chris is worried he might be getting scammed by a Nigerian contact, while we hear about a heart surgeon’s game, a tech battery that lasts 5,000 years, and a drone that takes out mosquitoes. There’s news on AI girlfriends, recycled plastic fence posts, and a possible cancer breakthrough, plus the usual Kickstarter dropkicks—including a Bible brick set and a finger massager. Links China laun...

Summary Jurassic Park memories resurface and Sam Neill gets a heartfelt send-off, while tech randomness brings nuking asteroids and orbiting space mirrors into the mix. There’s a wild story of a looksmax influencer injecting gold, and discussion of testosterone screenings in the military. A record-breaking T. rex fossil is sold, a 77-year-old gets a surprising number plate, and two Kickstarter pro...

Summary This week, all the Field Days interviews are out, and there's a big uptick in podcast traffic. Physical media gets the axe as Sony goes digital-only, while Germany’s massive game archive suddenly shuts down. Discover why wedding air is selling for $50,000, inside tales from a colonoscopy, a vigilante taping suspects to lampposts, and the mystery behind microwaving stainless steel. Links Tr...

Summary From AI replacing — then rehiring — human workers to luxury wool wall coverings, solar-powered aircraft, and the curious fate of digital movie ownership. Plus, the latest in quirky Kickstarters and tech nostalgia. Links Measuring Volcanic Emissions with Drone Technology Kea Aerospace Great American State Fair Sony Deleting Items Ford Rehires Workers Kickstart or Dropkick - Sony 80 Kickstar...

Summary From Fieldays 2026 Sam chats with Jacob from the UK delegation about HiFe Plants and their high iron, high zinc crops that could change how we feed people and animals. There’s talk of long nights in the lab, GM vs natural plant breeding, the shocking realities of zinc deficiency in cows, and a missed pitch to Fonterra. Red kiwifruit gets a mention, and there’s some debate about who actuall...

Summary At Fieldays 2026 Sam catch up with Ali from Mid Wales, who's part of a global incubator program supported by Innovate UK and Sprout. We dive into spray drying, microencapsulation, and turning agricultural and animal waste into high-value products like fertiliser. There’s talk of food security, waste valorization, and unexpected Olympic sports. Farm visits, New Zealand connections, and the...

Summary From Fieldays 2026 Sam chats with Marcus from Gyroplant about their innovative reusable root zone architecture for growing plants without single-use substrates.\ There’s talk of growing food for space missions, geothermal greenhouses in New Zealand, and the challenges of changing farming mindsets. Vertical farms, space agency research, and pilot projects all pop up in the conversation. Lin...

Summary It’s a sunny day in Hamilton as discussion turns from the Chiefs rugby game and New Zealand’s run in the Football World Cup to wild Aussie chants and America’s awkward attempts at football fandom. There’s talk of robot mowers at Brisbane Airport, UV robot pest control, and Hamilton’s future $100 million skyscraper. Elsewhere, a record Aussie cocaine bust, crazy government apps, and the min...

Summary A creative shed at Field Days becomes the backdrop for a look into the legacy of David Henshaw, the cartoonist behind the rural favourite "Jock". There’s talk of iconic farming cartoons, the famous calendars, and a peek into a treasure trove of watercolor landscapes and pen-and-ink sketches. The discussion covers curating a lifetime’s worth of art, the “skipped generation” of artistic gene...

Summary This week, there’s a wild group interview at the BNZ Theatre, field days adventures including a run-in with the unofficial podcast sponsor Golden State Coffee, and a surprise golden coin scam that ends with chocolate coins and an arrest. The discussion explores winning two free pairs of glasses, metal detecting gold nuggets, and the mystery behind Riley’s Cookies. There’s also gadget talk...

Summary This episode it's all about New Zealand lawn mower racing from Fieldays, where custom-built ride-ons are tearing up the paddock and the Red Bull Cut it event adds an epic jump and serious style points. We dive into the nicheness of mower mods, talk entry costs, and learn why LEDs and neons are all the rage in the pits. There's talk of VR racing, education with tech, and secret room dreams,...

Summary We catch up after Fieldays, swapping stories about lost phones, near misses with golf carts, and what we saw while we were there. There's a crazy ride with a non-English speaking driver, a Bluetooth speaker that turns a plane around, and the discovery of Christian energy drinks. We dig into weird AI graduation fails, Red Bull-fueled haircut chaos, and plenty of random laughs along the way....

Summary In this chat, Chris sits down with Mick from Forever Harvest to explore a new frontier in food production. They dive into the science of growing fruit and nuts without trees, the rise of lab-made ingredients, and what this means for the future of global food security. Mick also shares the agritech innovations driving their mission and the real-world startup journeys behind it all. Links Fo...

Summary It’s Fieldays 2026 and there’s a new electric farm bike on the scene—the GalvBike. The conversation focused on why this tough, no-nonsense machine isn’t in the innovation tent, what sets it apart for dairy farmers, and how the team’s past experience shaped the brutal simplicity of the design. A key theme that emerged was the value of validation from real farmers—and why the first productio...

Summary Sam is onsite at Fieldays 2026, chatting with Harry from PostMate about their clever invention that makes fence post removal safer and faster. We hear the backstory of how a Kiwi farmer turned a simple idea into a global product, and learn how a once potentially dangerous and time consuming job of fence post removal has been transformed into a fast and safe process, with examples of fence...