UL Solutions CEO Jennifer Scanlon pulls back the curtain on the century-old safety giant behind the logo stamped on countless electronics, tracing how standards get made, enforced and ignored. The conversation moves from exploding lithium-ion batteries and e-bike rules to the far murkier challenge of testing AI systems in a market that resists being told no.

Evan Spiegel argues that durable consumer apps are won as much by distribution as by product-market fit, and that Snap’s survival has depended on building ecosystems and hardware that are harder to copy than software features. He describes a design culture built on relentless output, close contact with users, and a belief that AI’s future will be shaped less by technical possibility than by human acceptance.

A smooth but consequential leadership handoff at Apple has the hosts gaming out what John Ternus inherits: a stale but dominant company, an AI credibility problem, and a chance to revive excitement through new hardware. They also weigh OpenAI’s newly softer tone, Meta’s AI-fueled layoffs and employee surveillance, and the quiet absurdity of a tech economy charging more for less.

Aftermath’s hosts talk with Rebecca Valentine about moving from IGN to Kotaku, the shrinking room for investigative games reporting and the stubborn hope created by a few outlets that are still hiring. Along the way, they veer into internet discourse, labor, health care, game criticism and the problem of bringing new writers into a business that remains precarious for almost everyone in it.

The Vergecast crew sifts through Tim Cook’s quieter wins and cul-de-sacs at Apple, from the surprise staying power of AirPods to the dead ends that never made it past a keynote demo.