🎙️ Judy Garland just read me the news (and she died in 1969)

It’s a fabulous Friday, {{first_name | friend}}. Prepare to feel wildly underpaid. The average American brings in around $63,800 a year. That’s the dream for many.

⏱️ But for Jeff Bezos? That isn't a year of work. It’s a coffee break. Specifically, how long do you think it takes the Amazon founder to see his net worth grow by that same $63,800? A) 28 seconds, B) 15 minutes, C) 30 minutes or D) One hour. The answer’s waiting at the end. I promise, the math is as jaw-dropping as the tech we're covering today.

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💌 You showing up here? That’s no small thing. If you found value in today’s read, forwarding it helps me keep it going. Free, thoughtful and independent. And if not, I’m still grateful you gave it your time. — Kim

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⚡ TL;DR (THE SHORT VERSION)

📖 Read time: 2.5 minutes

This is something. Judy Garland read me a news article the other day. Not a recording from her movie archives. A brand-new story about AI regulation she never could have seen or imagined in her lifetime. She died in 1969. Her voice was so warm and expressive I almost forgot I was listening to an AI.

Welcome to the world where the dead don’t rest, they narrate and make money for their estate.

As someone who’s made a career with my voice (which some people call “soft and sultry” while others email asking why a dude by the name of Kim is hosting the show), this one hits close to home.

ElevenLabs has something called the Iconic Voices Marketplace. It’s exactly what it sounds like: a catalog of AI-cloned celebrity voices you can license for commercial projects. Along with Garland, we’re talking Burt Reynolds, James Dean, John Wayne, Maya Angelou and even historical figures like Thomas Edison and Mark Twain.

These aren’t unauthorized deepfakes. The company works directly with estates and rights holders. Liza Minnelli signed off on her mom’s voice. Michael Caine, still very much alive at 92, agreed to let them clone his voice for future use. Fiverr freelancers offer celebrity-style AI voice work starting around $115 for 60-second spots.

For everyday folks: Download the ElevenReader app (free tier gives you 10 hours/month), and you can have Burt Reynolds read you any PDF or article. James Dean reads your ebook. Sir Laurence Olivier narrates Sherlock Holmes. The premium tier runs about $11/month for unlimited listening.

For brands and creators: This is where it gets interesting. Want John Wayne to voice your Western-themed ad campaign? Maya Angelou to narrate your documentary? You submit a licensing request, negotiate with the estate, and ElevenLabs synthesizes the voice to say whatever you need. Expect to pay thousands for commercial use, but it’s fully legal.

I’d be fine with my estate making money off my voice after I’m gone, as long as AI Kim isn’t hawking crypto scams or reading scripts I’d never touch in real life. That’s the key. The estates have veto power over how these voices get used.

📲 Share the knowledge: Know someone who’d get a kick out of hearing James Dean read their ebooks? Forward this email or use the share icons below to spread the word. This is super interesting and most people have no idea this exists.

Forget your credit score. A hidden digital profile ranks you as a VIP or a problem child, and it affects everything from job offers to loan rates. I talk to Darius Belejevas, head of Incogni, who reveals what’s really in these files.

Listen on Komando.com →

🎧 Or search “Komando” wherever you get your podcasts. I’m everywhere.

💰 $20 for your pain: Did your Verizon phone go into SOS-only mode Wednesday and you couldn’t call, text or load anything for hours? You can get a $20 credit, but only if you open the My Verizon app and tap to accept. It’s per customer, not per line. And no, they won’t apply it automatically. So if your group chat went silent and you thought you were being iced out, go get your apology money now.

📸 Smile, Gemini’s watching: Heads up, Google turned Gemini into a nosy little genius. If you turn on Personal Intelligence, it’ll scan Gmail, YouTube and even your photos to give you better answers. Off by default, but once it’s on? It might reference your Vegas trip to explain your calendar habits. I’m not kidding. Paid personal accounts have access. In Gemini > Settings > Personal Intelligence, select Connected Apps. Google swears it won’t train on your license plate or breakup selfies. They are so funny.

Source code in aisle 5: Looks like hackers hit Target right in the bull’s-eye and leaked a full 860GB of internal source code. It includes backend logic, access keys and engineering docs. Basically, a hacker’s dream. The code was publicly accessible until now. That’s like parking a Brinks truck in Times Square, engine running, doors open, with a sign that says “Back in 5.”

🕵️ Myth buster about private browsing: Spoiler: It’s not private. Your internet provider still sees and sells every site you visit along with every search you make. Creepy. I use ExpressVPN to stop them. It encrypts your connection, so no one, not Big Tech and not your ISP, can spy on you. It’s the only VPN I trust to keep me safe. Works on up to 8 devices. Take back your privacy and get four extra months.*

Internet by any means: You know things are really bad when your Wi-Fi plan is to hope Elon’s feeling generous. Despite Iran’s near-total internet blackout during mass protests, Starlink is still connecting people. It’s banned, but folks in border towns are using it anyway. The regular internet’s at 1% of normal. Musk hasn’t said a word, but his satellites are quietly helping bootleggers in the sky.

🌕 Cratered investment: You can now put down a $250K deposit for a hotel room on the Moon. The kicker? The moola is for priority consideration, not even a guaranteed room. A 23-year-old Berkeley grad with one full-time employee launched the Y Combinator-backed GRU Space (yeah, like the Minions guy) and says guests could be moonbound by 2032. The hotel? Inflatable. The final version? Made of Moon bricks, modeled after San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts (the Palace of FArts, for short). Oh, it’s supposed to have a restaurant with great food but no atmosphere. (Was that a groan I heard or are you hungry?)

⚡️ 3-second tech genius: Want to know the perfect viewing distance for your smart TV? Take the screen size in inches and multiply it by 1.2. So if you have a 65-inch TV, sit about 78 inches, or 6.5 feet, away. Your eyeballs will feel less strained when you head to bed.

🔦 Dim your phone’s flashlight: There’s no reason to blind yourself at 2 a.m. looking for the remote. On iPhone, open the Control Center, long-press the Torch button and slide up or down to adjust the brightness intensity. On Android, swipe down for Quick Settings, long-press the Torch icon and use the slider. Brilliant.

Hide your Instagram likes: ICYDK, Instagram has a scary default setting that shows friends the Reels you’ve liked. You can see it by opening Reels and tapping the Friends tab. To turn it off, open the app and go to Settings and activity, scroll to Activity in Friends tab and set it to No one. Don’t have the option? Update your app.

🎓 Turn ChatGPT into a private tutor: If your kid needs help prepping for a test, the chatbot can help. Prompt something like: “My child is in 4th grade preparing for a history test on the American Revolution. Based on the notes below, create a practice exam.” After they take the test, follow up with: “Explain what they missed like they’re 10 years old.” Want to be first to know about new AI tools? Sign up to get my new weekly AI newsletter. It’s launching soon!

Add a second screen on Windows: Multitasking gets a lot easier with another monitor. Plug it in, right-click your desktop and open Display settings. From there, drag the screen icon left or right to match your setup, and change Display orientation to Portrait or Landscape mode. Psst, here’s a 27-incher on sale. It’s a great one!

Real puppies are great until they need walks, vets and physical and emotional stability.

Tombot builds robotic puppies designed for people dealing with stress, anxiety, loneliness and depression, especially older adults and kids who can’t safely care for real pets. These bots respond to touch, voice commands and even bark using recordings from an actual 12-week-old Labrador. 

They recharge overnight, update via software and never chew the furniture. Yet. 

The first litter already sold out. Turns out unconditional love is easier when it ships with firmware updates.

🚘 Tomorrow, I’ll look under the hood and detail what your car tracks and sells info about you. How you drive, your routines, even your garage codes. There’s a trade-off for all the convenience. OnStar ratted you out, and insurance premiums spiked. But I’ll share a step-by-step guide that walks you through deleting your data.

The answer: A) 28 seconds. Yep, Jeff Bezos makes the average American’s annual salary, $63,800, in the time it takes you to rush-brush your teeth. Based on estimates of his net-worth growth (roughly $2,300/second), the man basically earns your paycheck during a sneeze.

📊 Here’s how a few of the top dogs stack up in the rat race:

🤑 What does a sick billionaire say? I feel like a million bucks!

🚀 OK, this is where consistency counts: Keep moving forward with support that fits real life. Get up to 30% off, free shipping and a free gift with ImproveLife GLP-1 Support today.**

💦 Go with the flow. I’ll see you downstream! Appreciate you being here. — Kim

Kim Komando • Komando.com • 510+ radio stations • Trusted by millions daily

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Photo credit(s): ChatGPT, Honeywell, Tombot

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