404 Media’s latest weekly podcast episode focuses on three stories about technology leaking into ordinary life in strange, expensive, and mildly cursed ways: AI-generated flyers, a Waymo ride that ended with police waiting, and a $3,000 fitness suit that applies electricity to muscles.
Jason Koebler opens the episode with what 404 Media calls the “ChatGPT flyer pandemic.” According to the show notes, readers and listeners sent the publication examples of flyers that appear to bear the marks of generative AI. The episode frames the trend as widespread, though 404 Media does not provide a count in the podcast announcement.
The second segment turns to a Waymo incident reported by Sam Cole. According to 404 Media’s linked story, police said Waymo contacted law enforcement about teenagers who were allegedly drinking and shooting a toy gun. The show notes say the autonomous vehicle then drove the teens to a group of waiting police officers.
That detail is the part worth watching. Robotaxi companies often sell riders on convenience and reduced human friction. In this case, according to 404 Media’s description, the service also functioned as a reporting channel to police and a vehicle that carried passengers toward officers already expecting them. The announcement does not say what happened to the teenagers afterward.
The paid-subscriber portion of the episode features Joseph Cox discussing a $3,000 fitness suit that, in 404 Media’s phrasing, “electrocutes your muscles.” The linked story says Cox bought the suit and planned to send it back. The podcast announcement does not identify the suit maker or provide a technical breakdown of the product.
The episode is available through Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube, according to 404 Media. The publication says paid subscribers receive access to the bonus segment through a subscriber-only podcast feed hosted by Transistor, as well as an unlisted YouTube link for the extended video version.
The stories discussed in the episode are linked by 404 Media here:
- We Are Living in a ‘ChatGPT Flyer Pandemic’
- Cops Say Waymo Snitched on Teens for Allegedly Drinking and Shooting a Toy Gun
- I Bought the $3,000 Fitness Suit That Electrocutes You. I’m Sending It Back
This story draws on original reporting from 404 Media.
