This is The Stepback, a weekly newsletter breaking down one essential story from the tech world. For more on Hollywood trends and streaming culture, follow Charles Pulliam-Moore. The Stepback arrives in our subscribers’ inboxes at 8AM ET. Opt in for The Stepback here.
Technology
How soapy micro dramas became Hollywood’s next big bet
Once upon a time (read: a few years ago), there were a pair of upstart streaming services called Quibi and Go90 that were supposed to appeal to phone-addicted millennials. These platforms were supposed to compete with Netflix and Amazon by offering up short-form videos designed to be watched on the go. Both services were touted as being the future of entertainment, and they had sizable financial backing. But neither Quibi nor Go90 managed to gain any real traction before their names became shorthand for “bad ideas exemplifying how out of touch studio and telecom execs can be.”
Quibi and Go90 were not long for this world, and much has been written about how they were doomed from the jump. Quibi was oddly expensive, Go90’s landscape mode-focused branding confused people, and neither service made it easy to share their content on other platforms. Back then, people — especially here in the West — laughed at the idea of watching scripted series that were meant to be viewed on a smartphone. But that same basic concept began to take off in China as the covid-19 pandemic ground the entertainment industry to a halt and forced movie theaters to close. Some were supernatural period dramas, while others were romantically charged thrillers set in the modern day. And their stories were all filled with wild twists that played out over the course of dozens of episodes.
In 2025, “micro drama” companies like DramaBox and ReelShort have demonstrated that there actually is an audience willing to pay for content that can be consumed in small, quick bites. And the recent micro drama boom has been a fascinating case study in old, failed ideas finding wild success in the present day because the way people think about and interact with media has changed.
When you open up any of the dedicated micro drama apps, you can see that the companies behind them took notes from social media platforms like TikTok and streaming services like Netflix in order to create a new, slop-filled third kind of thing. You’re immediately presented with a grid of posters for multipart series whose “episodes” each run for about two minutes max. And the titles — gems like I Kissed a CEO and He Liked It, Betrayed Alpha Queen Rises from the Ashes, and The Unwanted Wife Strikes Back — are as self-explanatory as they are ridiculous. Almost all of the shows involve elements of pulpy romance and women getting revenge after being scorned for not embodying the “right kind” of womanhood or femininity.
Many of the series frame fertility, motherhood, and werewolf / Omegaverse culture as the things that define their heroines’ sense of self. And while these female characters are often introduced as people who are able to fend for themselves independently, their main goal is usually to find a man who can sweep them off their feet and take care of all their worldly needs.
Micro dramas’ overwhelming focus on stories about downtrodden damsels in distress speaks to the fact that female viewers make up a substantial chunk of these platforms’ subscriber base. On some level, these series are tapping into the same kind of tawdry energy that kept the romance lit space humming along even as the larger publishing industry has seen a steady drop in sales. But unlike romance novels from traditional publishing houses with rigorous editorial processes, there’s a slapdash shoddiness to micro dramas’ production values that reflects how incredibly inexpensive they are to make compared to a Netflix or Hulu original.
That relative cheapness is one of the major reasons that ReelShort and DramaBox — which are backed by Chinese and Singaporean companies, respectively — have been making a bigger push into Western markets over the past few years. That’s also why US-owned studios like GammaTime and MicroCo are starting to pop up. It doesn’t seem to bother viewers that basically everything about micro dramas, from the writing to the acting to the lighting, is absolutely terrible. Globally, the micro drama industry is expected to rake in about $3 billion by the end of the year thanks to the platforms’ surprisingly aggressive and gamified pricing strategies. And with Hollywood execs deciding to get more serious about making micro dramas, the business has become something of an unexpected boon for young actors, writers, and production workers trying to maintain careers within a contracting job market.
Though you would be hard-pressed to find a micro drama that felt like a strong piece of storytelling, there’s no denying that people are paying to watch them at a time when traditional streamers have been struggling to draw in new subscribers. Are series like Carrying His Triplets, Becoming His Wifey, and Found a Homeless Billionaire Husband for Christmas destined to become mainstream pop cultural phenomenons? Probably not. But these kinds of projects are keeping people employed and making enough of a profit to justify their existence.
By launching a new kind of labor contract designed to address “the unique needs” of actors working on serialized micro dramas, like ensuring they’re paid a fair wage and earn screen credits for their labor, SAG-AFTRA has sent a signal to the rest of the entertainment industry about this kind of content’s future potential. These shows might not be particularly good right now, but that could change if the studios put more effort into producing them. And even if micro dramas were to stick to their current style of stilted acting / lackluster directing / weak writing, their success right now suggests that their subscribers might not really be interested in something “better.”
As different segments of the tech and entertainment industries vie for people’s attention, micro dramas feel like an unusually strong contender. Micro dramas don’t quite add up to streaming series in the way we typically think of them, and they don’t exactly scratch the same “look watch some randos do stuff” itch that TikTok is built for. Ironically, ReelShort and DramaBox’s success feels like a direct byproduct of the way that TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube have gotten people into the habit of endlessly scrolling through vertically shot video. But these micro dramas are their own weird thing that have carved out a unique niche and found a ravenous audience in the process. And if these new platforms can keep their upward momentum going, it wouldn’t be at all surprising to see their streaming and social media competitors rushing to make the similar content of their own.
- More and more micro drama production houses are embracing generative artificial intelligence into their workflows to keep production costs down while churning content out even faster. As ill-suited as the tech generally is for more polished projects, it makes a lot of sense for the style these kinds of shows are known for. It’ll be interesting to see if micro dramas’ use of AI will become a point of contention for the human actors relying on these projects for work.
- Micro dramas’ rise in prominence also happens to coincide with a sharp downturn of film and TV production in Los Angeles. That’s another reason more performers are turning to the platforms to stay afloat, and this moment could be a choice opportunity for micro dramas to establish themselves as a viable source of entertainment.
- Though micro dramas are currently on the come up, this Puck piece does an excellent job of illustrating some of the challenges these platforms will be up against as their growth leads to market saturation.
- It’s important to understand just how hostile toward users basically all of the big micro drama apps are. Janko Roettgers’ recent piece here breaks down what makes these apps feel so predatory, and how many of them have been informed by mobile gaming’s freemium model.
- The Ankler had a great sit-down with ReelShort CEO Joey Jia about how the company’s approach to monetization turned it into a billion-dollar business. The piece also includes a chat with actor Kasey Esser about how working on micro dramas has had a profound impact on his career.
- SAG-AFTRA’s micro drama contract makes it seem like the union is being proactive about shifts within the entertainment industry. But this Variety piece digs into how the new contract was — at least partially — a response to the fact that some actors were just deciding to work nonunion.
Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.
Valve has some good news and bad news about Steam Controllers. The good news: if you make a reservation for a Steam Controller, the company will now show you one of three estimates of when you’ll be able to actually order your gamepad: by September 2026, by December 2026, or sometime in 2027. The bad news: any reservations made today “indicate a 2027 date for shipping,” Valve says.
“We have no plans to stop making Steam Controller,” according to Valve. “But as we look at the current demand compared to how many we know we can make by the end of the year, we want to manage expectations as much as we can with regards to when folks can expect to receive their order.”
Valve’s very good new Steam Controller went on sale in early May, and the initial rush led some people to run into frustrating problems with trying to check out ahead of the controllers eventually going out of stock. A few days later, the company announced that it would be implementing a reservations queue for interested buyers so they could get on a waitlist. If you’re on the waitlist, when you get notified that a Steam Controller is ready for you to buy, you have 72 hours to actually make the order.
“When we launched Steam Controller last month, we quickly saw that initial demand exceeded our expectations,” Valve says. “Switching to a reservation queue has (hopefully) cut down on the headaches on the customer side, and for us it’s also been helpful as we plan ahead and try to get as many out as quickly as we are able.”
All three of Valve’s big hardware products were delayed from a planned early 2026 launch because of the component crisis, Valve still hasn’t announced when the Steam Machine PC or Steam Frame VR headset might go on sale. However, just yesterday, Valve officially launched its big SteamOS 3.8 update with support for the Steam Machine. It’s also been importing a lot of hardware into the US as of late.
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
The next time you pull up to a McDonald’s drive-thru, the voice taking your order may not be human. McDonald’s is testing a new AI-powered system called ArchIQ at five U.S. locations. The company has not said where those restaurants are located. The voice assistant, nicknamed Archy, can take drive-thru orders and has shown it can handle both English and Spanish.
For anyone who has repeated “no pickles” into a speaker box more than once, this could sound helpful. However, if you remember McDonald’s last AI drive-thru experiment, you may also wonder whether your burger order could somehow turn into a bag full of surprise McNuggets.
Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy Report
- Get my best tech tips, urgent security alerts and exclusive deals delivered straight to your inbox.
- For simple, real-world ways to spot scams early and stay protected, visit CyberGuy.com – trusted by millions who watch CyberGuy on TV daily.
Plus, you’ll get instant access to my Ultimate Scam Survival Guide free when you join.
WOULD YOU EAT AT A RESTAURANT RUN BY AI?
McDonald’s is testing an AI drive-thru system called ArchIQ at five U.S. restaurants. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
What is McDonald’s AI drive-thru?
ArchIQ is McDonald’s new AI system for restaurants. It can take drive-thru orders and also help with operations behind the scenes.
In a post on X, McFranchisee, an anonymous McDonald’s franchisee account, said the system is currently in five test stores and has processed more than one million transactions. The account also said about 90% of orders were completed without a human stepping in. That number sounds promising. Still, McDonald’s has not confirmed a nationwide launch date. For now, this remains a limited test.
The system also appears to connect with a bigger McDonald’s plan called “McDonald’s > NEXT.” CEO Chris Kempczinski described the strategy as a way to bring in more customers and improve restaurant productivity. The plan also includes menu changes, restaurant redesigns, technology upgrades and more focus on hospitality.
Why McDonald’s is testing AI ordering
Drive-thrus can get chaotic fast. Someone changes an order after the total appears. A child calls out from the back seat. Road noise makes the speaker hard to hear. Then the driver remembers the extra sauce after everything has already gone through. That is the type of pressure McDonald’s wants AI to handle.
If ArchIQ works well, it could help restaurants move cars through the line faster. It may also reduce mistakes during busy hours. Workers could then focus more on preparing food, handling payments and helping customers who need a real person.
ArchIQ also appears to have a management role. In the same X post, McFranchisee described Archy as a tool that could alert managers to bottlenecks or other issues before they slow down operations.
STARBUCKS USES CHATGPT TO SUGGEST DRINKS BASED ON MOOD AS EXPERT WARNS OF HIDDEN DOWNSIDES
The AI assistant, nicknamed Archy, can take drive-thru orders and may also help managers spot restaurant slowdowns. (McFranchisee)
McDonald’s tried AI drive-thru ordering before
This new test follows McDonald’s earlier AI drive-thru experiment with IBM. That program involved more than 100 restaurants. McDonald’s ended the test in 2024 after customers complained about order accuracy. Some mistakes also went viral, creating an embarrassing moment for McDonald’s and raising questions about whether the technology was ready for the drive-thru. Customers reported wrong items, strange quantities and other order mix-ups. That history is why this new test will get extra attention.
This time, McDonald’s is working with Google technology. McFranchisee also claimed every McDonald’s in the U.S. is getting Google Edge Cloud hardware in anticipation of the rollout. McDonald’s seems to believe the newer system can perform better than the last one. The real test will come when regular customers use it during real drive-thru rushes.
How McDonald’s AI drive-thru could help customers
If McDonald’s gets this right, the most obvious benefit is speed. An AI ordering system does not get tired during a long shift. It may also help more customers order in the language they prefer. That could make a busy drive-thru feel less frustrating, especially during breakfast or late-night hours.
The system may also ask clearer follow-up questions and catch missing details before the order reaches the kitchen. That would be a win for customers who want to get in, get their food and get on with the day.
The biggest problem with AI drive-thru orders
The biggest concern is accuracy. AI can still misunderstand people. That gets frustrating fast when you are trying to grab lunch between errands or get your kids fed from the back seat. A wrong order wastes time. It also puts workers in the position of fixing a mistake the machine made.
There is also the customer service side. Some people like hearing a real person at the speaker. Others may find an AI voice cold or annoying, especially if the system gets confused.
Then there is the privacy question. If an AI system takes your order, customers may wonder what gets collected, how long it is kept and who can access it. McDonald’s has not publicly explained those specifics for this current ArchIQ test.
ALEXA+ LETS YOU ORDER FOOD LIKE A REAL CONVERSATION
A drive-thru menu board stands outside a McDonald’s restaurant in Hercules, Calif., on Oct. 23, 2024, amid an E. coli outbreak linked to onions in Quarter Pounder sandwiches that has sickened dozens and killed one person across the U.S. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
How to avoid AI drive-thru mistakes
Before you leave the drive-thru, take a moment to check the order screen. Make sure the items match what you said. Listen when the system repeats your order. Keep your receipt until you confirm the food is right.
Also, avoid sharing extra personal details at the speaker box. Your order should only require your food choices and payment.
If the AI gets confused, ask for a crew member. You do not need to keep going back and forth with a machine over fries.
What this means for you
For now, you probably will not notice a change at your local McDonald’s. The ArchIQ test appears limited to five U.S. restaurants, and the company has not said when it could expand.
Still, this gives customers a preview of where fast food may be heading. AI could soon play a bigger role in how restaurants take orders and manage the kitchen. That may speed up the line, though it could also make the experience feel less personal.
Watch the CyberGuy Live replay: Lock Down Your Phone in 30 Minutes
Your phone holds your email, passwords, photos, banking apps and personal data. In this free CyberGuy Live replay, Kurt the CyberGuy walks you step by step through simple phone security fixes you can do at your own pace. You’ll learn how to improve your privacy settings, spot the latest phone scams, use trusted security tools and walk away with a simple checklist to stay protected. Watch the replay and get our checklist here: CyberGuyLive.com
Kurt’s key takeaways
McDonald’s clearly wants AI to play a bigger role in its restaurants. From a business point of view, the idea makes sense. Shorter drive-thru lines could help franchisees and customers. Better restaurant data could also help managers fix problems faster. But I still want the human backup. Food orders can be messy because people are messy. We change our minds. We talk over each other. We forget the extra ketchup until the last second. AI may handle much of that one day. For now, I would treat it like any busy drive-thru interaction. Speak clearly. Check the order. Do not pull away until you know your food is right.
Would you trust an AI voice to take your McDonald’s order, or do you still want a real person on the other end of the speaker? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy Report
- Get my best tech tips, urgent security alerts and exclusive deals delivered straight to your inbox.
- For simple, real-world ways to spot scams early and stay protected, visit CyberGuy.com – trusted by millions who watch CyberGuy on TV daily.
- Plus, you’ll get instant access to my Ultimate Scam Survival Guide free when you join.
Copyright 2026 CyberGuy.com. All rights reserved.
Midjourney CEO David Holz just showed off the company’s first hardware product and plans to build a San Francisco spa, which he admitted is a bit different from the “cat pictures” produced by its AI image generator. Dubbed The Midjourney Scanner, it’s an ultrasound-based full-body scanner that uses a ring of sensors to capture vertical slices of the inside of your body, looking at the composition of your muscle, fat, bone, and organs to start. Holz said ideally, you could do this once a year or every single day, as it “aims for image quality comparable to MRI in many ways.”
He mentioned that one way he’d like to use it would be to see how his body changes in response to diet and workout changes, saying, “I’m not the most measured man on Earth yet, you know, but maybe I want to have that daily [measurable information].” A set of job listings advertises the company’s goal as trying to “build and launch the world’s first full-body ultrasound CT scanner, ultimately bringing safe, fast, and high fidelity preventative scanning to billions via a magical spa experience.”
The Midjourney Scanner was developed in a partnership with ultrasound tech company Butterfly Network, which said it uses “40 Butterfly Ultrasound-on-Chip imaging modules per system.”
The scanning process starts with stepping onto a platform that drops down into the water on rails through a ring of thousands of transducers that create ultrasonic waves. It then records the ripples passing through your body to analyze them and create detailed 3D images. The scan takes about 60 seconds. Holz said about a dozen people have been scanned so far.
It starts by stepping into a shallow pool of golden light. You then begin to descend into the water. Your body passes through a ring of underwater sensors, each acting like a dolphin, using its echolocation. The sensors send ultrasonic sound waves through your body from every angle. With enough waves, and enough angles, we form an image of what’s happening inside your body.
It combines those sensors with two petaflops of processing power. But after watching the livestreamed reveal, I’m still unclear on what Midjourney’s AI image generation tech exactly has to do with the Midjourney Medical effort, beyond an alternative business for otherwise-unused AI compute.
Holz hopes to put 10 of the scanners into a Midjourney Spa location in San Francisco’s Union Square that will open before the end of 2027 and offered to scan the hands of attendees at its launch event. The Midjourney Spa will have a gym, saunas, and cold plunges to go along with the hot tub–equipped scanning rooms where visitors will get into the water to be scanned.
He did mention that various medical applications would require FDA clearances, but for now, Midjourney Medical says it’s working on “body composition maps” that don’t require the same level of clearance as diagnostic imaging. It also says the “library of scans” users create can be shared with doctors, AI health tools, or others, and that, “We take data privacy seriously — more details on our data policies will come as we get closer to launch.”
Holz suggested that eventually these scans could become better than an MRI, without radiation, powerful magnets, or other complicating factors, to get a look at what’s going on inside people’s bodies “real fast.” In response to a question, he imagined a future where the FDA had a class of devices to look at “weird” things and allowed people to “just try to get as much data as we can.”
-
Illinois2 minutes agoBeecher City farm suffers heavy damage following ‘wicked storm’
-
Indiana7 minutes agoBraun asks regulators to reconsider $71 million AES rate increase
-
Kansas12 minutes agoMixed results for Kansas City World Cup start as some businesses struggle
-
Iowa15 minutes agoIowa High School Baseball Stats: Leaders On The Diamond This Summer
-
Kentucky22 minutes agoKentucky MBB players were dishing out smiles at the Kentucky Children’s Hospital this week
-
Louisiana29 minutes agoGov. Landry declares state of emergency after flooding, severe weather across Louisiana
-
Maine32 minutes agoImportant things to know about the Maine boys lacrosse state finals
-
Maryland38 minutes agoUniversity of Maryland football player arrested for harassment
