The Big Tech Show

Technology editor Adrian Weckler reports on the results and concerns he had after taking a DNA test with online service 23&Me. He is joined by Stacy Detweiler, a genetics counsellor working for the company's medical team. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you were a billionaire, would you give most of it away? That’s what Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates says he’s doing. He’s the world's fourth richest man, worth €115bn. But he says he has an "obligation" to return his resources to society. He says he wants to drop out of the world’s rich lists. And he’s not alone in the tech elite. Mark Zuckerberg and Tim Cook, among others, also say they’ll giv...

Is the new M2 too expensive? Is the older M1 MacBook Air a better deal? Or might you be better off getting the new MacBook Pro M2, which is almost the same price? Adrian Weckler is joined by fellow reviewer, PocketLint.com’s deputy editor Britta O’Boyle, to discuss the pros and cons of Apple’s latest MacBook Air M2. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is it possible for a brand new phone from a brand new company to capture your Apple or Samsung-bound cash? The Nothing Phone (1) is the brainchild of OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei. This week, tech editor Adrian Weckler flew to the London launch to see what all the hype is about. He gives his verdict on the phone, as well as the views of some other experts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy inf...

How can you watch your Netflix series in a foreign Airbnb? Is it possible to avoid getting gouged when using your smartphone abroad? Adrian is joined by Colin Baker, gadget expert and managing director of Back From The Future to discuss 10 useful devices and services to enhance a summer holiday, either abroad or in Ireland. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 2007, Steve Jobs took to the stage to introduce what he called a “revolutionary new product”. This week 15 years ago, the first iPhone went on sale. Is it still an all-conquering device? What might September's iPhone 14 bring? And can the iconic smartphone stay at the heart of Apple’s world, or will smart glasses and cars become the company's new focus? Joining technology editor Adrian Weckler...

30 years ago, John Touhy set up the logistics and delivery company Nightline, which also spawned Parcel Motel. Having sold it to UPS for €30m in 2017, he's back with another offering in the field -- OOHPod. This is a smart locker service that is supposed to make it easy to pick up and return parcels in your own time. The company aims to place “out of home” lockers in 1,000 locations across the isl...

What’s it like being the CIO of one of the most iconic pandemic-era tech companies in the world? No-one knows better than Harry Moseley, Zoom’s chief information officer . The man from Rathfarhnam has been close to the helm of a company whose very name has become a verb in the English language. But what’s coming next? Is the drive for remote working stalling? And can Zoom pull back from a steep de...

Apple, Google and Microsoft are joining forces to kill off passwords. They say that they will try to replace passwords by using smartphones as two-factor authentication via things like a PIN number or a fingerprint, and using that for verification on an operating system or website. But will this work? And what should you be doing to protect yourself with the passwords you already use? Joining tech...

In recent weeks, Google and Apple have begun pulling all their Irish workers back into the office. Other big companies are starting to do the same, and it’s not just the tech giants here, such as Amazon, Intel and Salesforce. A glance at Indeed.com, the biggest recruitment site, shows that of 58,000 jobs currently advertised, just 4,000 — or around 7% — allow you to be remote. So here’s a question...

Alan Holland had a steady, comfortable life as a lecturer in artificial intelligence in University College Cork. But in 2012, he left it all to try and build a startup specialising in procurement automation. 10 years on, that company, Keelvar, has just picked up its latest funding round of $24m, with plans to increase headcount at the firm to over 100. Alan joins technology editor Adrian Weckler t...

Does Elon Musk, conqueror of low orbit space, pioneer of the electric car, the nearest thing we have to a real life Iron Man, actually intend to buy Twitter or not? Is he really being put off about spam bots, the defeat of which was one of the reasons he said he wanted to buy the platform? Is he trying to back out because of the tech stock crash? Having already signed a contract, legally, *can* he...

Over the last week, tech stocks have crashed. The likes of Apple, Google, Microsoft, Tesla and Amazon lost between €120bn and €200bn each in their market value. Some others, like Zoom and Netflix, are even worse, down between two thirds and three quarters in value. What the hell is going on? Are we all suddenly reassessing what we think the value of these tech companies is? Or is something else ca...

Elon Musk is a genius and an inspiration to millions. But he's also acting like an asshole in his drive to buy Twitter. So do you have to be a bit of a bully to succeed in tech? Do you have to mete out abuse like Steve Jobs… to achieve things like Steve Jobs? Or can you be a nice guy like a Collison and still get all the way to top? To discuss this, Adrian is joined by Conor Neill, the founder of...

Are the tech companies, with their high salaries and expanding campuses, making it unaffordable for everyone else? And does this make Dublin a blander, less interesting city? Joining technology editor Adrian Weckler to discuss the issue is Leonard Hobbs, director of Trinity College Dublin’s Research and Innovation; artist Claire McCluskey, whose inner city Richmond Road Studios workplace recently...

What everyday tech quirks really get on your nerves? Banking? Online players? Services not letting you cancel online? Adrian Weckler discusses some of the worst offenders with journalist Jonathan Keane and broadcaster Andy O’Donoghue. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ever wondered about raising cash for a startup? Unsure where to start or how to go about it? About grants? Or venture capital firms? Or investment ‘angels’? Or even asking family and friends? This week, Adrian Weckler gets answers to these beginners’ questions from Jack Cantillon, CEO and co-founder of the new Dublin-based startup Herd, which has just raised €600,000 with commitments for another €...

Electric cars are hot. But it’s really hard to get one. And there are still lots of basic questions that many people have, which often aren’t answered by dealers or pundits. Does the promised range fall drastically on a motorway? What’s the actual availability of public chargers? And what’s the likely resale value compared to petrol or diesel cars in a few years? For some plain-speaking questions...

Should Apple and Facebook be forced to allow you to send texts from Whatsapp to iMessage? That’s one of the possible ramifications from a new EU law that big tech firms are up in arms about. Will it break encryption? Could it cause spam? Or is it consumer progress? And what’s going on with the new data transatlantic treaty? To discuss these issues, Adrian is joined by Mark Scott, Chief Technology...

Fuel and electricity prices are going through the roof. There is one thing you can do, and help the planet while you’re at it — put in solar panels. But how easy or hard is that to do? How expensive is it? And how much of a dent might it really make in a country known for cloudy, rainy days and dark winters? Joining Adrian on this week’s episode is someone’s who done it – Castlebridge founder (and...

Electricity bills. Fuel costs. Diesel hikes. Streaming prices rises. Most of us are currently drowning under inflationary pressure that is ramping up our cost of living. Can tech help? Sort of. Adrian Weckler and consumer journalist Siobhan Maguire discuss ways that tech can help to cut your bills. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Some mock them, others worship them. But non fungible tokens – NFTs – look here to stay, at least for the foreseeable future. If you’ve a passing interest, how might you get started? How might you separate the real thing from the scams? And why are so many damn celebrities trying to sell you one? To explain all of this, Adrian is joined by Lory Kehoe, the newly-appointed director of NFT Success at...

Ireland has had relatively thin layers of protection against cyber attacks and IT threats. But after a catastrophic attack on the HSE, the state beefed up Ireland’s National Cyber Security Centre, doubling its staff and increasing its remit. Will it be enough? Or does Ireland remain dangerously exposed? What are the threats now from a Ukraine-centred cyber war? Joining Adrian Weckler to discuss th...

Who watches over the biggest tech firms in the world? Ireland’s Data Protection Commissioner. This week, we talk to Helen Dixon about the challenges her office faces, criticism she has received and some of the biggest issues on how big tech intersects with our lives. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How does your bank rate when it comes to keeping your everyday transactions safe and reliable? What are the larger cybersecurity challenges we’re now facing? Our guest on the show today is Paul Swift, Bank of Ireland’s Head of Technology, Media and Telecoms Sector. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.