The AI XR Podcast.

Hosted by Charlie Fink Productions

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316

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Oct 2026

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About the show

Get the inside story on the biggest tech developments from founders, former executives, and industry veterans who built companies like OpenAI, Google DeepMind, Meta Reality Labs, Apple Vision Pro, Microsoft HoloLens, and Unity. Join Charlie Fink (Forbes), Ted Schilowitz, (Red Camera, Fox, Paramount Futurist) & Rony Abovitz, (founder Magic Leap).as they interview startup CEOs, ex-Google/Meta/Apple insiders, Hollywood directors, and AI researchers reshaping spatial computing. Every week we break down the latest tech news with our signature hot takes, then dive deep with a founder or industry leader. We cover artificial intelligence breakthroughs, virtual reality hardware, augmented reality applications, synthetic media tools, and how enterprises are adopting these technologies. We're industry insiders who have the connections to get the biggest names on the show, but we're not afraid to ask the tough questions about where big tech is heading. Our guests trust us because we've been in their shoes. Listen now to get ahead of the next wave of computing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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November 7, 202655 min

Why Smart Glasses Are So Hard to Build ft. Karl Guttag, Writer and Analyst

Charlie, Ted and Rony open with a packed news week, covering the election results and the growing backlash over data centers, the XREAL Aura finally shipping, and hands-on impressions of Snap’s Specs. They also discuss layoffs at Schell Games, Beat Saber dropping support for older Quest headsets, Instagram’s new Edits app, and Rony’s new Fast Company piece on computational democracy. Karl Guttag, a longtime writer and analyst who was recently inducted into the AWE Hall of Fame, joins for a long overdue conversation. Karl traces his path from designing groundbreaking chips at Texas Instruments to becoming one of the sharpest voices on wearable displays, then explains why AR optics remain so difficult, with dozens of unsolved problems that all affect one another. The group digs into waveguides and the search for alternatives, Karl’s famously skeptical take on Magic Leap and Rony’s candid response, and where the real markets for smart glasses are today. Karl closes with his verdict on the XREAL Aura and Snap Specs. Key Moments: [00:02:34] The week’s election results and what they mean [00:04:06] The data center backlash and AI’s energy debate [00:07:32] XREAL Aura starts shipping and Ted’s hands-on with Snap Specs [00:11:13] Layoffs at Schell Games [00:13:09] Beat Saber drops support for Quest 2 and Quest Pro [00:16:32] Instagram launches its Edits app [00:17:08] Rony’s Fast Company piece on computational democracy [00:20:07] Karl Guttag joins the show [00:20:54] From Texas Instruments chip design to wearable displays [00:28:09] Why AR has at least 18 major unsolved problems [00:34:37] Diffractive vs. reflective waveguides and what comes next [00:39:20] Karl’s take on Magic Leap and Rony’s response [00:43:16] Where the real markets for smart glasses are today [00:51:15] Karl’s verdict on XREAL Aura and Snap Specs Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

November 2, 20261 hr 1 min

From Amazon Studios to Vertical Streaming ft. Roy Price, Founder of N1BW

Ted and Charlie open with a packed news week, from big tech earnings and the AI spending race to Apple’s new foldable, a New York law aimed at chatbots and minors, and the arrival of the XREAL Aura. They also look at Google DeepMind’s Genie 4 world model and a new feature film from Utop AI starring Antonio Banderas. Roy Price, the former head of Amazon Studios and global content for Prime Video, joins to talk about launching N1BW, a new vertical streaming site where AI creators upload their work and collaborate on shows. Roy looks back on building Amazon’s original content slate and the risks that paid off, explains why he thinks Hollywood has gotten stuck in a creative rut, and makes the case that AI is the next Roger Corman. He shares how N1BW is trying to stand apart from vertical apps like DramaBox and ReelShort, why he wants creators to own a piece of the company, and how the platform handles discoverability for filmmakers who are just getting started. Key Moments: [00:01:38] Big tech earnings and the AI spending race [00:03:28] Apple’s foldable and how it compares to Samsung’s [00:05:14] New York’s new law on chatbots and minors [00:07:26] XREAL Aura starts shipping [00:10:17] Google DeepMind’s Genie 4 world model [00:13:16] Utop AI’s feature film with Antonio Banderas [00:18:05] Roy Price joins to talk about N1BW [00:20:52] From Disney Animation to leading Amazon Studios [00:27:24] How Amazon built its brand with Transparent, Fleabag and Maisel [00:34:34] Roy’s thesis for N1BW and why low costs mean creative freedom [00:43:28] How N1BW differs from DramaBox and ReelShort [00:48:53] The founding filmmaker program and creator ownership [00:52:41] Why discoverability matters for AI creators Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

October 23, 202654 min

Inside the Vertical Streaming Gold Rush ft. Angela Yu, CEO of StoReel

Ted and Charlie open with a news roundup covering Colossal Biosciences’ real-world take on a Snow Crash robotic companion, a secretly recorded OpenAI meeting, and the wave of tech billionaires suddenly pledging away chunks of their fortunes. From there they dig into Robert Downey Jr. joining Snap, the relaunch of VR fitness app Supernatural, and why training and simulation keep proving to be VR’s most durable use case. Angela Yu, CEO and co-founder of StoReel, joins to break down the fast-growing world of AI-made vertical streaming. Angela explains how her platform builds entire micro drama series for a fraction of traditional production costs, why audience retention is the industry’s biggest unsolved problem, and how StoReel is using recurring characters and fan communities to keep viewers coming back. The conversation covers how China’s short drama boom is reshaping global entertainment, the economics of buying an audience through social platforms, and what happens as AI-made content moves from cheap and cheesy toward prestige projects with real studio partnerships. Key Moments: [00:01:28] A new robotic companion inspired by Snow Crash [00:03:44] The secretly recorded meeting at OpenAI [00:04:20] Elon Musk and Dario Amodei pledge away portions of their fortunes [00:08:00] Character AI shuts down as its CEO becomes Disney’s new CTO [00:10:17] Robert Downey Jr. joins Snap to help sell its new glasses [00:11:00] VR fitness app Supernatural relaunches [00:17:14] Angela Yu joins to talk about the vertical streaming boom [00:25:39] How StoReel is built to fix the industry’s retention problem [00:34:25] Inside StoReel hybrid model of in-house writers and outside creators [00:48:04] The staggering scale of content StoReel produces each month Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

October 9, 202657 min

Audience Is Dead. Meet the ‘Actience'. ft. Charles Melcher, Author of "The Future of Storytelling"

Ted and Charlie open with a quieter AI news week, giving them room to dig into XR hardware, including hands-on impressions of two new smart glasses, a Norway story on camera glasses restrictions, the shutdown of the XR Association, backlash over Meta’s Muse app, and a tour through AI’s fast-moving film scene. Charles Melcher, founder of the Future of Storytelling summit and author of the book of the same name, joins to talk about two decades spent studying how people want to experience stories. Charles explains why he thinks VR never quite broke through for mainstream audiences, walks through his theory of the “actience,” his term for audiences who now expect to participate rather than just watch, and makes the case that AI’s biggest opportunity in entertainment isn’t visual effects but deeply personalized, responsive storytelling. The conversation wraps with a tour through some of the best immersive entertainment happening right now, from the Sphere and ABBA Voyage to Meow Wolf and Vegas’s underground escape-room scene. Key Moments: [00:39] Hands-on impressions of Samsung’s Aura vs. Snap’s Specs [03:29] The ergonomics problem still holding back smart glasses [06:39] Norway’s new restrictions on camera glasses [08:26] The XR Association shuts down [10:00] Meta’s Muse app and the backlash over its user dossiers [11:47] A tour through the fast-moving world of AI filmmaking [18:00] Charles Melcher joins — the origin of Future of Storytelling [24:15] Why VR never had its mainstream moment [39:00] Charles’s concept of the “actience” [42:33] A tour of the Sphere, ABBA Voyage, and Meow Wolf Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

October 2, 202657 min

A Four-Day Coma Couldn't Stop This Game ft. Johnny Monsarrat, Founder of Turbine (MMO)

Charlie, Ted, and Rony open on the week's AI political theater, from the sudden rebrand of AI to "superintelligence" to Dario Amodei's uncomfortable White House appearance. From there, the conversation covers AMD's acquisition of Fei-Fei Li's World Labs, the curious divergence between OpenAI's and Anthropic's paths toward going public, and Rony's read on why liability risk may be the real story behind both. They also dig into Nvidia's push to regulate AI safety at the chip level, a stranger-than-fiction report about Anthropic bringing religious leaders in to discuss whether Claude might be conscious, OpenAI's new companion AI "Dots," and a candid look at where consumer VR actually stands right now. Johnny Monsarrat, founder of Turbine and now of Monserrat, joins to talk about building what he calls the next platform for outdoor gaming, ten years in the making. Johnny explains why Niantic, despite Pokémon Go's success, is really a mapping company rather than a game company, and how his own approach, built around full 3D game zones rather than map pins, is meant to unlock genres outdoor gaming has never supported. He also shares a genuinely harrowing story from just before this interview: a medical emergency that left him in a coma for four and a half days, unreachable, while his team had no idea whether he was alive. Key Moments: [00:25] AI's rebrand to "superintelligence" and a tense White House appearance [04:00] AMD acquires Fei-Fei Li's World Labs [05:28] OpenAI, Anthropic, and the liability question behind going public [08:37] Nvidia's push to regulate AI safety at the chip level [10:27] Anthropic brings religious leaders in to discuss AI consciousness [11:06] OpenAI's new companion AI, Dots, and the "Seven Sisters effect" [17:30] Where consumer VR actually stands right now [19:13] Johnny Monsarrat joins — and reveals he was just in a four-day coma [21:24] Why Niantic is a mapping company, not a game company [51:56] Johnny's pitch: outdoor gaming's "Atari moment" Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

September 25, 202658 min

How Quilty Is Opening Hollywood's Gates ft. Simon Horsman & Daniel Wood, Quilty.app

Cortney Harding steps in as guest co-host this week, joining Charlie to unpack a genuinely strong Meta Connect, new occluded VR glasses aimed squarely at the Vision Pro, a camera-free Ray-Ban, and Muse AI's surprise climb to the top of the app stores. From there, the conversation turns to Disney's newly created CTO role, the quiet fate of its big-money bets on Epic Games and Sora, and Jeffrey Katzenberg's open letter arguing entertainment has always been a technology business. They close out the news with a sharp exchange on Amazon's push into drone delivery and a pointed critique of DraftKings' use of AI to target its most engaged, and most vulnerable, customers. Simon Horsman and Daniel Wood, co-founders of Quilty.app, join to talk about building an AI-powered script coverage tool for screenwriters who have no access to Hollywood's traditional gatekeepers. The two walk through how Quilty scores a script the way a studio story analyst would, the leaderboard system built to surface strong writing, and a striking real-world comparison Simon shares from his years running a film fund: a big-budget historical epic north of $220 million versus a hybrid AI production covering similar ground for under a million dollars. The conversation closes with how Quilty is trying to connect writers directly to producers in a system that's traditionally shut most people out. Key Moments: [01:35] A confident, glitch-free Meta Connect and what it signals [11:35] Disney creates a company-wide CTO role, hired from Character AI [13:35] The quiet status of Disney's Epic Games and Sora deals [15:35] Jeffrey Katzenberg's open letter on tech and entertainment [19:35] The backlash brewing over Amazon's drone delivery push [21:35] DraftKings, AI, and the ethics of targeting engaged gamblers [24:35] Simon Horsman and Daniel Wood join to introduce Quilty.app [30:35] A real budget comparison: $220M studio epic vs. under $1M hybrid AI film [34:35] How Quilty scores scripts and connects writers to producers Brought to you by Zappar and Mattercraft, the leading visual development environment for immersive 3D web experiences. Start building at mattercraft.io. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

September 18, 202655 min

Peloton for Gamers: Virtuix Goes Public ft. Jan Goetgeluk, CEO of Virtuix

Charlie and Rony open with Charlie's hands-on take on Snap's $2,200 Specs launch and Rony's theory on how big tech companies let smaller players pioneer risky new hardware first. From there, the conversation turns to a tense week in AI safety, sparked by Dario Amodei's call for frontier labs to slow down, and a sharp debate over whether the industry's talk of needing regulation is really about something else entirely. They close out the news with a look at how China is approaching AI development differently than the West, plus a genuinely stunning breakthrough in brain-computer interfaces. Jan Goetgeluk, founder and CEO of Virtuix, joins to talk about the company's path from a Shark Tank rejection to a recent Nasdaq listing (VTIX). Jan walks through Virtuix's VR treadmill business, the surprising overlap between gaming and fitness that's driving consumer sales, and why the company is leaning harder into defense contracts and location-based entertainment than the crowded consumer VR space. The conversation closes with what it's actually like running a public company day to day, and Jan's outlook for the next two years, including a possible move into autism therapy. Key Moments: [01:35] Charlie's hands-on impressions from the Snap Specs launch [04:35] Rony's theory: why big tech lets pioneers take the risk first [06:35] Dario Amodei's essay and the case for pacing frontier AI [08:35] Is AI safety talk really about dodging product liability? [12:35] China's practical approach to AI vs. the race for AGI [15:35] A brain-computer interface breakthrough restores speech [20:35] Jan Goetgeluk joins — Virtuix's path to Nasdaq [30:35] The surprising fitness angle driving VR treadmill sales [32:35] Virtuix's pivot toward defense contracts Brought to you by Zappar and Mattercraft, the leading visual development environment for immersive 3D web experiences. Start building at mattercraft.io. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

September 11, 20261 hr 3 min

Revisiting "Cyberselfish": Silicon Valley's Libertarian Culture, Then and Now ft. Paulina Borsook

Recorded on the 25th anniversary of 9/11, this episode opens on a somber note: Charlie, Rony, and Ted remember where they were in 2001 and reflect on where they are now. By happenstance, Ted is actually in New York right now & is joined by the team behind GLO, a mixed-reality graffiti tour running through the streets of Manhattan on Magic Leap 2 headsets, live from their office. After a brief catch-up with friends (and a promo code waiting for you at the end of this description), the news turns dark fast. Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon's resignation, and his warning that AI could kill us all within a decade, sparks a pointed debate about why the AI industry has no equivalent of the FAA or FDA, and why "regulate it like we regulate everything else dangerous" isn't the same as stopping innovation. Paulina Borsook, former Wired writer and author of the newly re-released Cyberselfish: a Critical Romp Through the Terribly Libertarian Culture of High Tech , joins to talk about the 26-year throughline connecting her original critique of Silicon Valley's libertarian culture to today's AI safety crisis. The conversation covers the amorality she identified in tech back in the 90s & 2000s, some candid psychological reads on the Tech Fascists of today, and a shared frustration with "spreadsheet philanthropy" and effective altruism's obsession with measurable ROI over genuine selflessness. Key Moments: [07:15] A live mixed-reality graffiti tour through Manhattan with the GLO.city team [15:32] Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon's resignation and AI risk warnings [19:30] Why AI has no FAA or FDA equivalent [22:50] Paulina Borsook joins as today's guest to discuss the 26-year legacy of her book, Cyberselfish [30:22] Silicon Valley's libertarian culture, then and now [57:27] A psychological read on Zuckerberg's philanthropic reversals [1:01:00] Effective altruism, "spreadsheet philanthropy," and doing good without an ROI Cyberselfish by Paulina Borsook is being re-printed via Tin House in 2026 and is available for purchase on September 15th. Find out more on where you can purchase the book in your territory at https://www.cyberselfish.com/ . Special offer: Get 25% off your mixed-reality graffiti tour of New York with promo code AIXR25. Visit www.glo.city , click Book Now to select your date and time, and enter AIXR25 at checkout. Follow Glo.City on Instagram, Tiktok, and X at @GLOdotcity. Brought to you by Zappar and Mattercraft, the leading visual development environment for immersive 3D web experiences. Start building at mattercraft.io. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

September 4, 202647 min

VR Winter 2.0 Just Claimed Its Biggest Casualty ft. Steve Grubbs (Victory XR) & Malia Probst (Scout House)

Rony and Charlie (running the show Ted-less this week) open with hard news that Engage XR, one of the last two open-world VR platforms, is shutting down after losing its largest customer. This leaves VRChat as the only major player standing. Steve Grubbs, CEO of Victory XR, drops in to explain how his education-focused VR business avoided the fallout by diversifying off Engage years ago, and what happens now to the schools and developers left searching for a new platform. From there: Nvidia's Hugging Face acquisition and what it means for open-source AI communities, OpenAI's escalating legal fight with the New York Times (with an unusual amicus brief from the Justice Department), Google's push to license Hollywood content for its Veo platform, and Rony's case for "sovereignty" as the defining concept of the AI era. Malia Probst, founding partner at Scout House and co-founder of the WXR Fund, joins for the back half to reflect on 11 years in immersive tech; from producing early narrative VR to helping platforms like Meta Horizon and Google build out their creator ecosystems. The conversation covers why this VR downturn feels different, the data behind why founding teams with women tend to outperform, and a wide-ranging closing discussion on career longevity, AI's effect on Hollywood, and what Charlie, Rony, and Malia are each watching most closely over the next two years. Key Moments: [01:35] Engage XR shuts down, leaving VRChat as the last major open-world platform [04:35] Nvidia's Hugging Face acquisition and the open-source community question [07:35] OpenAI vs. The New York Times, and the DOJ's amicus brief [16:35] Google's push to license Hollywood content for Veo [18:35] Steve Grubbs hops on to add insight into how Victory XR avoided Engage's collapse [23:35] VRChat's business model and whether this is "VR Winter" all over again [28:35] Malia Probst joins as both guest and host, after 11 years building Scout House and the WXR Fund [32:35] The data on why women-founded teams outperform [40:35] Career longevity, AI's effect on Hollywood, and predictions for the next two years Brought to you by Zappar and Mattercraft, the leading visual development environment for immersive 3D web experiences. Start building at mattercraft.io. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

September 2, 202657 min

Causal AI: A Different Approach to Robot Intelligence ft. Biwei Huang, Founder of Aether AI

Charlie and Ted run through this week's news: a humanoid robot's 100-meter dash record at Beijing's World Humanoid Games, historical context on industrial robot safety, a 100-company consortium's statement on AI cybersecurity risk, Bill Gates's recent comments on AI oversight, OpenAI's disclosure on a large-scale agent red-teaming exercise, Stability AI's $76 million raise backed by major music labels, and Nvidia's $100 billion quarterly earnings report. Biwei Huang, a UCSD assistant professor and founder of Aether AI, joins to discuss her company's approach to robot intelligence. Aether AI builds causal world models, systems designed to learn the physical rules and causal relationships underlying how actions affect the environment. Biwei explains how this approach helps robots generalize to new environments, and the group discusses Aether AI's focus on manipulation tasks like cleaning a table or making coffee. The conversation also touches on interpretability in AI systems, the practical considerations around robot safety and controllability, and Aether AI's priorities for the next one to two years. Key Moments: [00:35] Robotics and AI news roundup, including industrial robot safety history [04:35] OpenAI shares details on a large-scale agent red-teaming exercise [08:35] Stability AI's $76M funding round [10:35] Nvidia's quarterly earnings report [16:35] A look at Google's Project Aura alongside XREAL and Viture [20:35] Biwei Huang joins and gives us an introduction to Aether AI [23:35] How causal world models differ from correlation-based approaches [47:35] A discussion of safety, controllability and interpretability in AI systems [52:35] Aether AI's priorities for the next one to two years Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.