What happens when Barbie gets a large-language-model brain? Jenny and Greg Swan crack open Mattel’s new deal with OpenAI and take you on a 50-year joyride through “smart” toys—from the Speak & Spell to Teddy Ruxpin to the Furby that the NSA literally banned.
Then they unbox Gabo, a $99 GPT-powered plushie, and see if its kid-safe guardrails can survive three teenagers and Greg’s hacker heart.
Spoiler: dying batteries used to be the creepy part—now it’s data, subscriptions, and whether your toddler’s teddy is secretly on 5 G.
In this episode:
🧸 Speak & Spell → Teddy Ruxpin → Furby → Hello Barbie: how each wave of tech freaked parents out in its own way🤖 Live demo: Gabo the plush robot tells tiger tales, speaks Spanish (¡mono!), and politely refuses to gossip about Jenny🔒 COPPA, content filters, and why “guardrails are the new batteries”💸 $99 vs. monthly doll-brain fees—will parents revolt?🚀 What Mattel’s AI toys could look like under the 2025 tree (and why offline models might be the real MVP)
It’s not about making toys talk—it’s about helping kids stay human while they play.
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