Tech News Weekly (Audio) TNW 414: Viral TikTok AI Pen Flunks The Test - Hyped AI Smart Pen Flops
Nov 21, 2025
Dan Moren, a seasoned technology journalist at Six Colors, joins Sabrina Ortiz from ZDNet and Elissa Welle from The Verge for a lively discussion. They delve into the expansion of Apple Wallet's digital ID feature and the potential dangers of AI-powered toys like the FoloToy. Sabrina highlights Google's Gemini 3 rollout and its sleek features, while Elissa shares her firsthand experience with a viral AI pen that promises academic advantages, but ultimately falls short due to poor accuracy and impracticality in real-world use.
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Mobile IDs Are Useful But Unevenly Rolled Out
- Mobile driver's licenses are slowly expanding across U.S. states but adoption varies widely by jurisdiction and hardware rollout.
- Digital IDs enable selective data sharing and contactless verification, improving convenience and privacy over physical cards.
Prepare For Liveliness Checks And Patchy Airport Support
- When adding a passport or ID to Apple Wallet, expect a quick selfie and liveliness checks and a short verification wait.
- Prepare acceptable identity documents and be patient for rollout inconsistencies at airports and checkpoints.
Airport Readers Lag Behind ID Rollouts
- Airport deployment of mobile ID readers can be inconsistent because hardware and software updates roll out unevenly across checkpoints.
- Expect transitional friction similar to early contactless payments until training and updates complete.