In this episode of the Future Tech & Policy (FTP) Podcast, the panel returns from winter break with a look at the light-hearted "Worst In Show" awards for products from the recent Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the US Executive Order toward federal AI regulation preemption over state laws, the new "Head of Preparedness" officer being hired by OpenAI to investigate risks and challenges with their models, and the recent licensing agreement between Disney and OpenAI to use everyone's favorite Disney characters on the company's AI products like ChatGPT and Sora.

*Links to articles discussed*

- CES Worst in Show Awards Website
https://www.worstinshowces.com

- ‘Worst in Show’ CES products include AI refrigerators, AI companions and AI doorbells (AP)
https://apnews.com/article/ces-worst-show-ai-0ce7fbc5aff68e8ff6d7b8e6fb7b007d

- “Worst in Show” Returns at CES 2026, Calling Out Gadgets That Make Things Worse (iFixIt)
https://www.ifixit.com/News/115344/worst-in-show-returns-at-ces-2026-calling-out-gadgets-that-make-things-worse

- Trump tries to block state AI laws himself after Congress decided not to (Ars Technica)
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/12/trump-tries-to-block-state-ai-laws-himself-after-congress-decided-not-to/

- Trump’s AI executive order promises ‘one rulebook’ — startups may get legal limbo instead (TechCrunch)
https://techcrunch.com/2025/12/12/trumps-ai-executive-order-promises-one-rulebook-startups-may-get-legal-limbo-instead/

- OpenAI is looking for a new Head of Preparedness (TechCrunch)
https://techcrunch.com/2025/12/28/openai-is-looking-for-a-new-head-of-preparedness/

- Disney invests $1 billion in OpenAI, licenses 200 characters for AI video app Sora (Ars Technica)
https://arstechnica.com/ai/2025/12/disney-invests-1-billion-in-openai-licenses-200-characters-for-ai-video-app-sora/

- Disney has accused Google of copyright infringement on a 'massive scale' (Engadget)
https://www.engadget.com/ai/disney-has-accused-google-of-copyright-infringement-on-a-massive-scale-163737642.html

- Extracting books from production language models (arxiv)
https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.02671


*Panelists*

- Zachary McDowell, Associate Professor, Communication, University of Illinois Chicago
https://comm.uic.edu/profiles/zachary-mcdowell/

- Jeremy Riel (Host), Assistant Professor, Educational Psychology, University of Illinois Chicago & IGPA Science and Technology Working Group Co-Lead
https://education.uic.edu/profiles/riel-jeremy/

- Gagandeep Singh, Assistant Professor, Computer Science, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign & IGPA Science and Technology Working Group Co-Lead
https://siebelschool.illinois.edu/about/people/faculty/ggnds

- Ken Suh, Adjunct Professor, Law, University of Illinois Chicago
https://www.linkedin.com/in/kensuh


*About The FTP Podcast*

The FTP podcast brings together a panel of interdisciplinary faculty experts across the University of Illinois System to discuss trends and news from recent weeks in tech and policy while looking toward the future. Produced by the Science and Technology Working Group, Institute of Government and Public Affairs (IGPA), University of Illinois System.

https://igpa.uillinois.edu

All opinions expressed on the FTP Podcast are those of the individual panelists and not the opinions of the University of Illinois System, The Institute of Government and Public Affairs, or the three UI universities in Urbana-Champaign, Chicago, or Springfield.

In this episode of the Future Tech & Policy (FTP) Podcast, the panel discusses some interesting cases for forgotten passwords and cybersecurity, the US Executive Order on the new Genesis Mission for AI research infrastructure via the NAIRR program and high-performance computing resources, Canada's new AI Register that inventories AI technologies being used by the Canadian federal government, the potential use of AI facial recognition technology with children who play the game Roblox, and the persisting question of whether AI is sentient.

Links to articles discussed

• Magician forgets password to his own hand after RFID chip implant (The Register)
• Cryptographers Held an Election. They Can’t Decrypt the Results (The New York Times)
• Trump signs executive order launching AI initiative being compared to the Manhattan Project (NBC News)
• Launching the Genesis Mission (The White House)
• Government of Canada AI Register (Minimum Viable Product) (Government of Canada)
• Roblox will require age estimation to chat starting next year (The Verge)

Panelists

• Zachary McDowell, Associate Professor, Communication, University of Illinois Chicago
• Jeremy Riel (Host), Assistant Professor, Educational Psychology, University of Illinois Chicago & IGPA Science and Technology Working Group Co-Lead
• Gagandeep Singh, Assistant Professor, Computer Science, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign & IGPA Science and Technology Working Group Co-Lead
• Ken Suh, Adjunct Professor, Law, University of Illinois Chicago

About The FTP Podcast

The FTP podcast brings together a panel of interdisciplinary faculty experts across the University of Illinois System to discuss trends and news from recent weeks in tech and policy while looking toward the future. Produced by the Science and Technology Working Group, Institute of Government and Public Affairs (IGPA), University of Illinois System.

https://igpa.uillinois.edu

All opinions expressed on the FTP Podcast are those of the individual panelists and not the opinions of the University of Illinois System, The Institute of Government and Public Affairs, or the three UI universities in Urbana-Champaign, Chicago, or Springfield.

In this episode of the Future Tech & Policy (FTP) Podcast, the panel discusses the recent federal and state debates regarding AI regulation and who should be responsible for AI policy, AI-infused toys and teddy bears and their recent safety testing results, and how AI products and initiatives might be insured.

Links to articles discussed

• Here’s the Trump executive order that would ban state AI laws (The Verge)
• Trump administration might not fight state AI regulations after all (TechCrunch)
• Amazon Still Selling Multiple OpenAI-Powered Teddy Bears, Even After They Were Pulled Off the Market (Futurism)
• Do Not, Under Any Circumstance, Buy Your Kid an AI Toy for Christmas (Gizmodo)
• AI is too risky to insure, say people whose job is insuring risk (TechCrunch)
• Insurers retreat from AI cover as risk of multibillion-dollar claims mounts (Financial Times)

Panelists

• Jeremy Riel (Host), Assistant Professor, Educational Psychology, University of Illinois Chicago & IGPA Science and Technology Working Group Co-Lead
• Ken Suh, Adjunct Professor, Law, University of Illinois Chicago
• Gagandeep Singh, Assistant Professor, Computer Science, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign & IGPA Science and Technology Working Group Co-Lead
• Alvin Chin, Visiting Clinical Assistant Professor, Information and Decision Sciences, University of Illinois Chicago

About The FTP Podcast

The FTP podcast brings together a panel of interdisciplinary faculty experts across the University of Illinois System to discuss trends and news from recent weeks in tech and policy while looking toward the future. Produced by the Science and Technology Working Group, Institute of Government and Public Affairs (IGPA), University of Illinois System.

https://igpa.uillinois.edu

All opinions expressed on the FTP Podcast are those of the individual panelists and not the opinions of the University of Illinois System, The Institute of Government and Public Affairs, or the three UI universities in Urbana-Champaign, Chicago, or Springfield.