Your World Tonight - Canadian holidayers trade places, AI drive thru servers, cash bets on the weather, and more

Episode Date: August 3, 2026

With the cost of holiday travel reaching new heights, more Canadians are trading places with homeowners abroad. Saving on accommodation so they can live like locals in the places they want to visit. An old idea that’s gaining a lot of new interest.And: Your order at the fast food drive through may soon be taken by an AI bot. The technology is getting a test drive in the U.S. with some mixed results.Also: Online betting is changing faster than the weather. In fact it’s now possible to place bets on what Mother Nature will do next. Some real world forecasters say that could lead to interference with the data they gather.Plus: News on two medical breakthroughs. A Canadian ALS patient is testing a brain implant that allows him to surf the internet using only his thoughts. And a simple blood test may soon mean cancer patients can skip some of the grueling procedures.

Hi, I'm David Rigen, host of CBC's award-winning investigative true-crime podcast, Someone Know Something. Each season, I investigate a different unsolved case, from a Canadian woman's disappearance in Costa Rica to a mysterious man's confession 15 years after an Ontario teen vanished. The New York Times calls SKS a consistently rigorous and intelligent gem, and the Guardian raves that you'll hang on every word. Find someone knows something wherever you get your podcasts. This is a CBC podcast. People are looking for what we call authentic experiences.

They want to be within the community. So at least they have a chance to pick and choose some neighborhoods in cities where they will feel like they live like a local. That's what a vacation means for more and more Canadians these days, living like a local by living in the home of a local. trading places with a person or family that takes over your home. The big reason for it? Cutting the cost of going on holiday.

The rising costs of airfare and accommodation have really put a damper and also hindered where I can go. So this really opens up the door to places all around the world. Good evening. Welcome to a special holiday edition of Your World Tonight. I'm Stephanie Skendaris. Also on the program, two medical advances, one of them developed here in Canada

that stand to vastly improve the lives of people with serious diseases. Plus, a controversial trend. Gamblers, not only predicting the weather, but placing bets on getting it right. Airline fuel surcharges, big hotel bills. They've eaten into travel budgets and have an increasing number of Canadians changing how they vacation.

More people are skipping hotels, even Airbnbs. and opting instead to swap their homes with strangers living in places they want to visit. As business reporter Aina Sidu tells us, it's an old idea getting new attention. The cottage is really only available for home exchange. Home exchange, what is that? What was depicted 20 years ago in the Hollywood vacation fantasy, The Holiday, is now gaining traction with Canadian travelers. It's a very different way to travel.

Instead of paying for hotels or vacation rentals, Members of home exchange platforms swap keys, often paying only an annual fee of a few hundred dollars. Tatiana Geberson is currently swapping her Calgary home with a family in Medford, Oregon. So the appeal is twofold. The primary appeal is immersion. Geberson has completed about a dozen exchanges as far away as France and Mexico. The secondary factor is obviously cost savings. Calgary teacher Christy Moore says that's what enticed her. The rising cost of airfare and accommodation have really put a damper and also hindered where I can go.

So this really opens up the door to places all around the world. Platforms behind the trend say they're seeing strong demand in Canada. Drew Satem, founder of Australia-based people like us, says membership has grown about 20% in the past year. Canada used to be our fifth largest country in the world and now it's our second largest. Emmanuel Arnault CEO of Home Exchange says they expect 15,000 exchanges in Canada this summer, a 30% jump over last year. It's the most cost-effective way for you to put a roof on top of your heads during your travel. A recent CIBC poll finds affordability is shaping travel plans, with 65% of people saying they're putting saving ahead of spending. Frederique DeMontch is a hospitality professor at Toronto Metropolitan University.

He says the trend reflects. a broader shift in how Canadians are traveling. People are looking for what we call authentic experiences. They want to be within the community. So at least they have a chance to pick and choose some neighborhoods in cities where they will feel like they live like a local. Like any sharing platform, trust is still the biggest hurdle. Users like Geiberson say reviews and video calls help build confidence before handing over the keys. The people that tend to want to do this, the personality types are very like, we're like Labrador Retrievers. We're friendly. We're trusting. We want to do this. We think the best of the world.

Giving more people the confidence to try a holiday that once seemed like something out of a movie. Ina Situ, CBC News, Calgary. Man, how do you, sir? Two whoppers, two Wopper juniors, and four Coca-Cola. And what I have to wait long if you made one whopper with no pickle and no lettuce? No, sir. Hold the pickle, hold the lettuce special. Those were the days. Personal service, custom orders, corny, Burger King jingles.

There are still friendly humans at most fast food places in Canada, but that may be about to change at the drive-thru window. Talking artificial intelligence bots are now replacing humans at drive-thrus in the U.S., and the same tech appears to be headed our way. Business reporter Nisha Patel popped across the border to get a... taste of what to expect. What drink would you like for your number four combo? The drive-thru at American Burger Chain White Castle in Detroit looks like any other, but it's artificial intelligence that's taking the orders.

Please pull forward to satisfy your craving. The company calls its AI chatbot Julia. It can listen to customers and respond to questions. If there's a problem, a real person takes over. Store manager Denise Harley says it helps get the orders in and out faster. We had a few hiccups, but we straighten them all out, and it's been doing good. Customers have mixed feelings. If you do something out of the ordinary, it doesn't recognize it.

They got our order correct and everything. I just hate that that's what the world is coming to. That just means less jobs for humans. Fast food companies have been testing voice AI for a few years. It hasn't always gone smoothly. Some customers try to trip up the AI on purpose. Others get disgruntled if the chatbot makes a mistake. Can you give me a cider ranch?

Want to add two cookies for 159? No, ranch. The technology isn't perfect yet, but it uses generative AI, which means it's always learning and improving. Chief Marketing Officer Jamie Richardson says White Castle has placed Julia in 40 locations. Ordering with Julia is better order accuracy than we experienced prior to Julia. so it's well above the 90% range. He says the chatbot frees up employees to take on other tasks like prepping food.

So we haven't used it as a way to reduce employment. We've used it as a way to be hopefully more productive. Major chains like McDonald's, Dairy Queen, and Taco Bell are also rolling out chatpots at their U.S. locations. Can I get you any hotter mild sauce? Two companies that develop voice AI told CBC News, chatbots could hit some Canadian drive-throughs within months. This is just happening at a speed which is outpaced any other technology change that we've seen. Labor organizers Chavon Weipon worries AI will have an outsized impact on young people looking for entry-level jobs

and says retraining will be more important than ever. That means there has to be a discussion with workers, with unions about how we design this, how it gets implemented. Over the next five years, the World Economic Forum expects positions like cashiers will be one of the fastest declining jobs, driven by automation. The role of fast food workers could shift rapidly if AI at drive-thrus goes mainstream. Sorry, did I make a mistake? Try saying add or remove. Nisha Patel, CBC News, Detroit. Coming right up, would you bet real money on whether it's going to rain tomorrow,

or a set record temperature? Sound too risky? Not for a growing number of online gamblers. Also, two medical breakthroughs offer glimmers of hope for people with cancer and ALS that could make their lives a lot easier. And later, school days are approaching. New research is telling us a lot more has to be done to make sure boys succeed at school, that old school methods are failing many of them

and they're finding validation online. There's something that is missing in schools that this collective online ecosystem of like fitness and success and relationships is filling for these boys. It's teaching them, I think, an alternate version of what success looks like. That's coming up later on Your World Tonight.

If there's a sure-bet topic to start a conversation, it's the weather. But these days, it's more than just a social icebreaker. What the weather will do is becoming a hot-button issue in the world of online gambling. More and more money is being wagered on Mother Nature's next move. And that's got some real-world weather forecasters worrying about the possible unintended consequences. Science reporter Anand Ram has that story. You'd be forgiven at Paris's biggest airport for not hearing anything over the sound of hundreds of flights taking off. And definitely for not hearing this.

But if you believe online chatter, a hair dryer might be the myth of choice behind two unusual temperature spikes in April, detected at Wasee-Shals-Degal Airport. ...investigating possible tampering with a weather monitoring device at Charles... Those spikes lined up perfectly with suspicious. But what's got the Internet and French investigators interested is whether a sensor was intentionally messed with so someone could make a huge payday on predictive markets. Have you heard about this prediction market, Kalshi? Platforms like Kalshi and Paulymarket have gained momentum for yes, no, gambles on anything,

even the weather and climate. Is it going to be 26 or 27 degrees today? Is the year going to set a temperature record? Will a hurricane hit before June? Easy as saying bet. You've created this new threat to the integrity of weather observation. Mark Ralston is an expert on prediction markets with Lancaster University in the UK. He says tampering for profit wouldn't be the norm. He also sees other potential. Weather markets might better incentivize scientists. Come up with better forecasting tools? Your research gets funded. It's a more efficient way to allocate money for research than making people write grant proposals. We're giving people money for forecasting based and grant applications is a bit like choosing your national track and field team with an essay competition.

But closer than that decidedly academic value, Moran Surf, a neuroscientist and business expert at Columbia University in New York, thinks the gambling can bridge divides, say, between climate deniers and believers. Guys, you don't believe, I believe. Let's put a bet. And the bet is the following. In two years, the water level in Miami is going to rise 10 inches. Would you take the bet?

By getting deniers to play, you might change their mind. but more powerful, having them engage in accurate climate information, even if just to win a bet. At some point, it kind of leaks because you keep making money from something that you say, I don't trust them. Climate change is not happening, but I keep making money from NASA saying it is happening. These unintended outcomes still have to navigate the very real moral and ethical issues of betting on climate-related disasters and the higher chance of them happening from planet-warming fossil fuels. But for now, it's an amusement.

and despite how much of a national pastime it is, Canadians can't engage in predictive markets legally. On the Dram, CBC News, Toronto. People surviving cancer are often haunted by the questions, will it come back? Am I cancer-free? Most endure invasive tests to try to find out. But that may soon be a thing of the past because new technology is now able to provide an answer. And all it takes is a simple blood. test. Health reporter Lauren Pelly tells us how it works.

That was getting ready to go for a radiation treatment. Paul Lonergan points to a photo of himself in a hospital bed. The Toronto resident battled tongue cancer through months of chemo and radiation. After his treatments finished, his oncologist told him the tumor was gone. But you still have fragments of cancer in your blood. Lonnergan got those astonishing results through a clinical trial studying liquid biopsies. This emerging technology looks for tiny fragments of tumor DNA in someone's bloodstream before it ever shows up on a traditional exam or scan. Now a team of Canadian scientists wants to

test it out on thousands of cancer survivors. And what we're trying to do is to see whether these sensitive tests can detect circulating tumor DNA. Dr. Lillian Sue is leading this massive research project. She's a senior scientist with the Princess Margaret Cancer Center, part of the Health Network in Toronto. And the hope, obviously, is when you detect it so early, we can do something about it earlier. In cases where researchers spot signs of someone's cancer coming back, the team will link them with other trials offering next generation treatments, such as new medications or experimental therapies.

For other patients, simple blood tests could give them the chance to watch and wait, potentially sparing them from enduring more treatment and side effects. Sue hopes to follow 7,000 cancer survivors over the next five years. And if we can provide that kind of data to provide the evidence, then this test will eventually become a routine test, a standard test, and that can benefit a large number of patients. Liquid biopsies aren't yet available to the vast majority of cancer patients outside of clinical trials.

But a growing body of research does show links between catching tumor fragments early and patients experiencing longer survival time. This is certainly an exciting technology, but it's early days. Dr. Christopher Booth is a medical oncologist and researcher with Queen's University. He said further studies on these tests will be crucial to figure out the best way to use them for cancer patients who've already endured grueling medical treatments. And then you add on top of that the possibility of a false negative or a false positive test,

and there can be significant emotional burdens. In Lonergan's case, once he found out there were traces of tumor DNA, still in his bloodstream, he just wanted it gone. I got to be a father. I want to keep playing hockey, and I've got some work to finish. And that's what's going through my head. Laundrigan ended up having experimental immunotherapy. Now he's considered cancer-free. Lauren Pelley, CBC News, Toronto.

Cutting Edge Tech is also being tested on people with ALS, the fatal cell disease that attacks the brain and spine. Using the tech, patients with special brain implants are able to control computers using nothing but their thoughts. As Lindsay Duncombe tells us, it's not without its critics, mostly because of the tech trillionaire who's behind it. I hear that chime. That's the chip waking up. Lee Martin's wife, Lisa, holds a charging device to his head, linking the chip embedded in his brain. And now I'm controlling the cursor. Using his thoughts alone, the 48-year-old brings up the Blue Jays score on his laptop.

It seems like science fiction. Martin is a sergeant with the Vancouver Police Department. Last year, he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS. The disease kills nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. There is no cure. In May, Martin received a neuralink brain implant, part of a clinical trial at Toronto Western Hospital. The device uses Bluetooth to help people who cannot physically move

use their thoughts to communicate through a computer. This is going to maybe improve my time that I've left and will allow me to be kind of a trailblazer. Under the supervision of neurosurgeons, a 2-meter-tall robot inserted more than a thousand tiny electrodes into Martin's motor cortex. Martin is the 26th person in the world to receive the implant. Two other Canadians, both with quadriplegia, had a similar procedure last year in Toronto,

and an ALS patient from Edmonton with dual citizenship received an implant in the U.S. But Martin's surgery was even more experimental. For the first time, the electrodes were inserted through the Dura. That's the layer of thick protective tissue around the brain. Dr. Andreas Lazano is the lead neurosurgeon at Toronto Western Hospital. We think that this is the first step towards scaling the operation to make the operation safer, which means that we might be able to offer this operation to hundreds and thousands of people. We're starting off with reducing human suffering.

Controversial trillionaire Elon Musk is behind Neurrelink. Toronto Western has been criticized for working with the company owned by a man who led cuts to global health care while he was the head of the short-lived U.S. Department of Government Efficiency. And Neurrelink has faced scrutiny for not being open with its data. Dr. Lazzano says the hospital reviewed the trial thoroughly before participating. It has gone through a series of ethical screens. Martin's wife Lisa says she hopes the device will help Lee communicate with his children ages 11 and 14 after he is no longer able to physically speak.

She says that will help with Mee. medical decisions, including those about a medically assisted death. So I'll take the guesswork out of things. Martin is planning on making playlists for his kids, even playing video games as his disease progresses, and his colleagues have teased the police officer with a new nickname. Robocop. Lindsay Duncombe, CBC News, Vancouver.

Alongside the medical advances are the enduring problems with health care in Canada. People who need to see a dermatologist. face months-long weights, even when they need critical care. The reason, our public health system has long been short of dermatologists. And as Christine Birak reports, it's getting worse because more doctors are shifting their focus to clients paying high prices for cosmetic procedures. I had family history of skin cancer. For over 20 years, Elizabeth Legg went for an annual checkup with her dermatologist in Toronto,

but recently she got an email. I will read it. Dr. X is a doctor X. fully retired from her medical practice. She will continue to do cosmetic treatments and as a courtesy, see her cosmetic patients medically. Which means leg is no longer welcome, unless she's paying out of pocket for something. Raise your eyebrows for me? Dermatologists can map moles and diagnose skin cancers, but they can also do things like Botox injections. Data shows Canada is short, about 400 of them. It's more than a year that this was growing on my face. Carol McArthur,

spent eight months trying to get a medical appointment in Ottawa. She feared a rash on her face might be cancerous. A dermatologist finally confirmed it was, and she needed major surgery. And I lost a chunk of my cheek. I lost the cartilage in my nose. And it was a year. It was one year. The most recent Canadian Dermatology Association report warns,

more dermatologists are shifting to cosmetics. So there is this exodus from public medicine into private medicine and that's more lucrative for some doctors. So I think it's multifactorial. Dr. Mark Kirchoff is head of the Canadian Dermatology Association. He warns, outdated fees a doctor can bill a province are squeezing medical practices. But Dr. Kirchhoff also argues taxpayers shouldn't be funding residency spots for just anyone. I do call into question people that get their medical training subsidized by the public system

and then end up just doing cosmetic dermatology for a private system for their entire career. A lot of times they just want somebody to look at them. 88-year-old Dr. Andrew Simone opens his dermatology clinic in Toronto every Saturday at 4 a.m. to see patients, even if they don't have a referral. He recently saw Winnipegger, who couldn't get a timely appointment, even after his family doctor warned, his moles might be cancerous. You have to understand the anxiety. When a doctor says, I think this is serious cancer, I don't think any human would want to wait four months. My skin reacts to everything. If her cancer returns, Carol MacArthur could face another months-long wait, while a Botox appointment can be booked within days.

I can't believe they're doing this to me. I really feel like they're throwing me away, and I don't matter. Some doctors warn, without oversight, public health care will continue losing ground to profit-driven clinics, and more Canadians will go without timely care. Christine Beirach, CBC News, Toronto. You're listening to Your World Tonight from, from... CBC News. And if you want to make sure you never miss one of our episodes, follow us on Spotify, Apple, wherever you get your podcasts. Just find the follow button and lock us in.

It won't be long before kids and parents start getting ready to return to school. An especially important time for boys, it seems. A recent report on male students in Quebec says increasingly they're falling behind. It says the reason is that traditional traditional school settings are failing them. And as Deanna Suminac Johnson tells us, the trend is raising concerns about the impact on the lives of boys after they leave school.

I noticed he found school hard and he would come home like kind of completely worn out. Jessica Sabatini is a mom of four and has worked as a teacher in three different provinces, but how differently boys fare in schools became more apparent to her

when her only boy, Anzo, started grade one. I guess for me, my concern for him, and specifically in school, is that he's not going to feel like he fits or belongs or can be successful in that space. And if he doesn't feel like he can be successful, that I worry he will give up. A recent report supports her observations.

It's authored by Quebec provincial politician Gabriel Nado Dubois and zeroes in on how Quebec's regular public schools highlight academic and disciplinary disparities between girls and boys. annual dropout rate for girls is 19.9% but for boys it's 27.1. On the standardized French proficiency test in secondary school, 71.2% of girls meet the provincial standard as opposed to just over 60% of boys.

Catherine Heck, professor of economics at the Universite de Montreal, says this is happening across Canada and affects young people's long-term prospects. If boys were graduating as much as girls are graduating from university, we would have over 65,000 more boys obtaining a university-level diploma. So it's a huge number. She and other experts say there are many reasons behind this, including the learning skills and behaviors students get evaluated on in early schooling

that tend not to favor boys. Generally, who has the night and neat and clean desk? It's usually the girls, right? The boys are generally, particularly when they're younger, a little more disorganized in that sense, right? Matthew Morris taught middle school for 15 years in Toronto and authored the bestselling book Black Boys Like Me. He says parents worry that their boys who struggle at school will have trouble finding a job or becoming a productive member of society. But there are also new dangers Morris says people should pay attention to, the draw of misogynistic ideologies online. There's something that is missing in schools.

that this manosphere, this collective online ecosystem of like fitness and success and relationships is filling for these boys, right? It's teaching them, I think, an alternate version of what success looks like. He and other experts believe this complex problem needs many different solutions, including smaller class sizes and more physical activity at schools, which would help boys self-regulate better but would be beneficial to students of all genders. Deanna Sumanak Johnson, CBC News, Toronto. That's it for this holiday edition of Your World Tonight for Monday, August 3rd. I'm Stephanie Skandaris.

Thank you for being with us. Good night. For more CBC podcasts, go to cbc.ca.ca.com.