The AmberMac Show

On this week’s episode, one of President Trump’s biggest critics is joining us. Anthony Scaramucci is our guest with the latest on how the US commander-in-chief uses and abuses social media, what to expect in the upcoming midterm elections, how Trump became the Crypto King, and what the US really thinks about Canada. In tech news, Jeff and I chat about how children are adopting AI at a rate three...

This week’s special episode includes a nod to Canada’s 2026 technology newsmakers, including Cohere and Waabi, and a look back at the top Canadian technology inventions and not-so-tech innovations. Plus, in celebration of the upcoming 10-year anniversary of The Tragically Hip’s final concert with frontman Gord Downie, we’re including an encore of our conversation with the band’s manager, Jake Gold...

On this week’s episode: Amber and Jeff discuss social media bans and how they can help keep kids safer online, including what makes sense in Bill C-34 (Canada’s Safe Social Media Act) and why age verification isn’t impossible. Plus, we chat with keynote speaker and bestselling author Doug Stephens about his new book, The Future of Competitive Advantage, which unpacks why saving democracy is good b...

On this week’s episode, we unpack Canada’s Safe Social Media Act with Taylor Owen, founding director of the Centre for Media, Technology, and Democracy. We discuss Canada’s plans to keep kids – and maybe all of us – safer online, including what the Act proposes and how misinformation is getting in the way. Plus, Amber and Jeff chat about the rising costs of artificial intelligence and the countrie...

On this week’s episode, Canada finally has an AI strategy (six months behind schedule). Amber and Jeff unpack what this means for Canadians building skills for the future and where the plan falls short. We’re also going to speak to an expert about heat pumps who will demystify how they work, especially in cold climates. Paul Lambert, Founder & CEO at Quilt, joins us to share more. Plus, our se...

Amber and Jeff break down Canada's new AI plan, called AI for All (released Thursday, June 4, 2026). The plan includes three principles: trust, opportunity, and sovereignty. There are some solid initiatives in the strategy to improve AI literacy, power AI adoption, and build the foundation for Canadian sovereign AI. However, there is also room for improvement. Listen to today's conversation for mo...

On this week’s episode: Amber and Jeff are together in our Toronto studio to share what they learned at Toronto Tech Week about Canada’s future, including demystifying sovereignty, the untapped potential of physical AI, and the role of our government along the way. Speaking of themes for 2026, our guest this week is Dylan Reibling, the filmmaker behind The End of the Internet, a documentary that d...

On this week’s episode: What happens when everyday people fall in love with chatbots and AI companions? Victoria Hetherington, Host of Understood: Artificial Intimacy, joins us to share more. In this week’s headlines, Amber and Jeff chat about how Quebec is cracking down on Facebook’s crypto scams that are ruining the reputations of people in the public eye, robot workers at a Japanese airport, an...

On this week’s episode, Amano Co-Founder Arish Shahab unpacks how his team designed a $20 hearing device to help millions of people who need a more accessible hearing solution (also known as the world’s most affordable hearing aid). We also break down the first-ever “Christian mobile carrier”, why Netflix is being sued in Texas, how AI is changing the call centre experience (not always for the bet...

On this week's episode, we speak to Emily Howard, a visual artist and entrepreneur based in PEI, who lost her Instagram account and, with it, almost 40,000 followers. We also answer your questions about cybersecurity, including how to avoid AI scams that are creeping into every corner of our digital lives. In tech news, Amber and Jeff discuss what we know about OpenAI's violation of Canadian priva...

On this week’s episode, Prof G Media’s Research Lead, Mia Silverio, is going to help us answer the question: Is AI Making Us Dumb? We’re also going to dive into Meta’s latest professional hobby (making humanoid robots), and we’ll tell you which Canadian bank is getting into the business of predicting earthquakes. In TheOtherMac, from bedrooms to bathrooms, Jeff shares his top Euro technology fails...

On this week’s episode, if you’re thinking about buying an electric vehicle, we do a deep dive into the truth about EVs and how much money you can actually save (spoiler alert, it’s a lot). Our expert guest for this conversation is Rachel Doran, Executive Director of Clean Energy Canada. Speaking about making green choices, we also speak with Lourdes Juan, who just won $50,000 in investment commit...

On this week’s show, award-winning journalist and Oscar-nominated screenwriter David Sirota joins us to discuss what’s at stake if we start to lose the Wayback Machine and the history of the internet online. In tech headlines, Amber and Jeff share more on how a sneaker company is trying to get in on the AI boom with an unexpected pivot, what an AI tribunal company wants to do to intimidate the mai...

On this week’s show, Amber and Jeff break down why Anthropic’s latest AI model is not being released to the public, what META wants to do with your health data, the disgusting evolution of deepfake porn, and the mysterious history of the (possibly Canadian) inventor of Bitcoin. Plus, how satellites are destroying our night sky, what Greece is doing to protect young people on social media, and why...

In this week’s episode, Amber and Jeff discuss why OpenAI just acquired the world's most popular tech podcast, what happened when 100 robotaxis stopped in the middle of the street in China, and - if you're following along with the Artemis II mission - how to use Wikipedia to keep track of the astronauts' time in space. And speaking of space, we talk to Rod Prazeres, the astrophotographer whose pho...

This week on The AmberMac Show, part two of our conversation with the Godfather of AI, Geoffrey Hinton, who shares his thoughts on humans confiding in chatbots and his views on Russia’s President Putin. In TheOtherMac, Jeff breaks down what you need to know about last week’s landmark social media addiction trial. Plus, why OpenAI killed SORA, why HBO’s John Oliver might have inspired some changes...

On this week’s episode, part one of a two-part conversation with Godfather of AI, Geoffrey Hinton, who discusses with Amber how AI is shaping the future of work, why he is switching from ChatGPT, and lots more at RCIScience’s recent event. In this week’s news headlines, Jeff and Amber discuss how badly the internet is overrun with bots (and how much worse it will get), why Rivian will be coming to...

On this week’s episode, Amber has an in-depth conversation with tech journalist David Pogue about his new book, Apple: The First 50 Years, including the demystification of Steve Jobs. In tech news, we’ll share how much President Trump is getting for the US purchase of TikTok, a disturbing study about the dangers of chatbots facilitating violence, and the social media site that shut down because it...

On this week’s episode, Amber and Jeff share a Meta smart glasses warning about how your personal information might not be as private as you hoped. Plus, we have an update on Anthropic’s fight with the Department of War and OpenAI’s conversations with the Canadian government. We’ll also share more about the wearable tech company that recently acquired a Finnish AI-driven gesture-recognition compan...

Our guest this week is David Usher, a well-known musician, speaker, and author, who shares his thoughts on today’s AI risks, rewards, robots, and more. In TheOtherMac, Jeff breaks down Anthropic’s battle with the United States Department of War. Plus, in this week’s headlines, Amber and Jeff discuss how OpenAI is under pressure to make changes to boost safety measures after one of our country’s wo...

On this week’s episode, Amber and Jeff share which company is now America’s largest, the Canadian tech giant that wants us to shift our gaze away from Silicon Valley, and how the Epstein saga disrupted a major AI conference. In TheOtherMac, Jeff talks about his top 5 digital design fails that need to end right now. Plus, we have two great guests this week who are joining us to talk about innovatio...

In this 1-year anniversary special episode of The Amber Mac Show, author and activist Cory Doctorow shares more about the enshittification of our tech world. To build on the issue of online harms, Ed Elson, from the Prog G Markets Podcast with Scott Galloway, unpacks how social media is making kids lonely. Plus, to wrap up this week’s show, Canada’s favourite Internet dad Brittlestar explains more...

In this week’s episode, we speak with Taylor Owen from the Machines Like Us podcast about Canada’s second chance to protect Canadians online. Plus, we tell you about a new social network called Moltbook, built exclusively for AI bots. We also unpack the latest headlines about America’s TikTok takeover, including possible censorship, and we share more about a new Amazon Ring feature that will help...

In this week’s episode, our guest is Guy Kawasaki, who joins us to share more about the only app you should use right now to message your friends and family. Plus, we’ll tell you what happened with Facebook and teens in 2016 that was one of the first warning signs that social media wasn’t safe for kids. And if you follow news about Elon Musk and Tesla, we’re going to share why cars might not be th...

On this week’s episode, The Wealthy Barber’s David Chilton joins us with an updated version of his bestselling book, including common-sense ways to manage money and what you need to know about TikTok finfluencers. In this week’s TheOtherMac segment, Jeff has an update on what happened at Davos from a tech perspective. Plus, in tech news, Amber and Jeff share how deepfake videos and images are spre...