Tim Cook is destroying his own legacy
What responsibility do you have to speak up about bad things happening in the world? Does that responsibility change when speaking up might affect your business? What about if you’re a sports creator, or the moderator of a deeply NSFW subreddit? What about if you’re just a little ol’ phone website? Ultimately, everyone has to make those decisions for themselves. But decisions have consequences.
On this episode of The Vergecast, David and Nilay start by talking about The Verge’s coverage of Alex Pretti’s killing and the ICE occupation of Minneapolis. Yes, there are plenty of tech angles to the story, but also: at some point, you build a big platform so that you can use it when the time comes. And to us, like so many others, this felt like the time.
Then the hosts turn to Apple CEO Tim Cook, who last weekend attended a screening of the Melania documentary at the White House. Cook’s actions, and a photo he took with director Brett Ratner, inspired a lot of backlash over the last few days. So we ask: how much are we allowed to be mad at Cook, or any of the other CEOs capitulating to the Trump administration? And how has this changed the way Cook will be remembered?
After that, it’s time for some gadget news. The hosts discuss the outrageous price for Samsung’s outrageous foldable, and wonder what it means that Samsung didn’t ship review units ahead of the Z Trifold’s launch. (Let’s just say it does not inspire confidence.) There’s also some news about Google’s Aluminium OS, an update on Moltbot — which has already changed its name again since we recorded — and more.
If you want to know more about everything we discuss in this episode, here are some links to get you started, first on Minneapolis:
And in the lightning round:
What responsibility do you have to speak up about bad things happening in the world? Does that responsibility change when speaking up might affect your business? What about if you’re a sports creator, or the moderator of a deeply NSFW subreddit? What about if you’re just a little ol’ phone…
Recent Posts
- How to watch World Cup Final 2026: Free Streams, TV Channels & Kick-Off time for Spain vs Argentina
- Orchid is a delightfully retro and approachable hipster synth
- Birdfy’s solar-powered smart feeder is down to one of its best prices
- Are OLED TVs still worth the premium in 2026?
- The Clapper was a bad smart home gadget — and a viral sensation
Archives
- July 2026
- June 2026
- May 2026
- April 2026
- March 2026
- February 2026
- January 2026
- December 2025
- November 2025
- October 2025
- September 2025
- August 2025
- July 2025
- June 2025
- May 2025
- April 2025
- March 2025
- February 2025
- January 2025
- December 2024
- November 2024
- October 2024
- September 2024
- August 2024
- July 2024
- June 2024
- May 2024
- April 2024
- March 2024
- February 2024
- January 2024
- December 2023
- November 2023
- October 2023
- September 2023
- August 2023
- July 2023