2026
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Engineers want their work to be an extension their autonomy as users, and their bosses want it to extend the will of capital.
Whether tech is a tool or a muzzle comes down to its mode of production. The freedoms afforded by open source for example are attributable to worker empowerment.
If AI has a future in a free and equitable society, it will be built by engineers and scientists. Models offered by capital, often explicitly to disempower or replace workers, will only give us better muzzles.
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cyberpunk 2027: Prompt injecting 911 dispatcher agents for an in-network ambulance.
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Subscription model with extra steps. #stopkillinggames
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AI watermarking wasn't just here already, it was staring us in the face.
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Hey friends and conspirators, hope to see you at #DEFCON.
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The slop era will be studied for centuries
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The ends are their means.
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I periodically poke AI capabilities, and one of my tests is ASCII art. ChatGPT got some sort of "egg man" update along the way
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Trillion dollar industry
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While not totally confirmed yet, killing your smartphone for missing a lease payment is unacceptable.
The core function of a phone varies from person to person. Yes you can still make a call, but clocking in to work? Shit outta luck
https://www.tomsguide.com/phones/iphones/leaked-ios-27-code-hints-apple-can-completely-lock-down-leased-iphones-over-missed-payments #apple #ios
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Just saying "install linux" is a band-aid when we really need regulation to cure the ailment of surveillance advertising...
but also, install Linux? There are games now!
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No sympathy for Google here, which bungled its search to the point it is useless without `site:reddit.com`.
But Reddit seems all to happy to kill the open web for licensing deals.
https://www.techspot.com/news/113199-reddit-major-publishers-consider-blocking-google-ai-search.html #reddit #threadiverse
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"Bullfrog can't decide to kill someone entirely on its own, at least not yet. But it demonstrates how close military AI is moving toward the point at which the decision to end lives is made by a machine."
Which, uh, _is bad_, in case it needs stating.
https://www.techspot.com/news/113197-us-marines-new-anti-drone-ai-gun-turret.html
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"If the DOJ can’t do their fucking job they shouldn’t be throwing people into jails, detainment centers, concentration camps, or anything of that nature."
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And to be clear, China's models have their own problems. But these shortcomings are /also/ remedied with more transparency and a more scientific and pro-social means of production.
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Big AI companies are stirring up panicking because China producing more efficient open-source models which undermine their moat.
The lesson shouldn't be giving them the TikTok app-nationalism treatment, but to put AI back where it belongs — in the hands of scientists instead of scammers.
https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/22/arcee-a-us-open-source-ai-lab-says-chinese-models-are-not-inherently-dangerous/ #ai
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Money money everywhere but not a dime for security. Extremely normal practices for a business that expects to be around in 2 years.
https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/22/openais-ai-spending-spree-has-ballooned-to-750b/
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Every blunder is a marketing opportunity.
https://techcrunch.com/2026/07/22/how-an-openais-human-mistake-led-to-the-ai-powered-hack-on-hugging-face/ #openai
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❌ "For your safety"
✅ "For our profits"Reddit continues to strangle its user-base for AI profits. Eager for the next tipping point for the Threadiverse
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On that note, I found this recent article to be a really reasonable discussion on "screen time" reflecting what I saw working in research.
In short, active engagement with a screen isn't too bad, but a passive trance-state activities should be limited.
(Same probably goes for adults...)
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It's hard to say how tech affects development, because development is not one unbroken trajectory and human-computer interactions are co-created.
That said I do think the use of LLMs at young ages is very concerning. Social play is the most important practice for <8yrs, and LLMs are not good playmates.
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"These sort of censorship algorithms don't work, and they wind up capturing and blocking a lot of lawful speech,"
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/first-of-its-kind-law-in-new-york-could-block-3d-printers-from-making-guns #pressquote
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“But courts have held that digital media doesn’t come with this same right, meaning no such protection is offered to digital purchases."
https://www.startupdaily.net/after-hours/gaming/gaming-from-game-owner-to-indefinite-renter/ #pressquote
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"The end goal is to turn the customer into a renter, stuck making regular subscription payments for access."
https://www.gamesradar.com/platforms/playstation/sony-killing-physical-playstation-games-is-the-latest-attack-on-our-diminishing-rights-leading-digital-rights-group-says-the-end-goal-is-to-turn-the-customer-into-a-renter/ #pressquote
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NY legislature vibe-drafted a software mandate in the budget that will surveil and censor creators, and will utterly fail at improving public safety.
As frustrating as that is, opposition did manage some harm reduction in the final text. My latest summary:
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/07/dont-repeat-nys-3d-printing-blunder
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The death of physical media shouldn't be the end of owning media. We need to fight the corporate control over culture.
https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/07/sony-nerfs-videogame-ownership #drm #videogames #sony
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Seeking new data for AI training is no excuse," Mir told CNET.
"Such disproportionate monitoring of workers is an abuse of power and highlights the necessity of legislation to protect worker privacy by requiring consent and due process." #PressQuote
https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/meta-backs-off-data-tracking-of-employees-train-ai-models/ -
Yeah, I'm preparing for the singularity (i.e., when we're all forced to share one big computer).
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"While it might come with money or a service upfront, the data you share has a way of coming back to bite you." #PressQuote https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cpwerjy20kyo
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That special little spark that makes you *you*?
Disgusting. Load up the AI to doxx you with it.
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The worst part is it has come for Amtrak.
Like my guy, I'm on a train. We're all getting the same microwaved meals.
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Yes, even if you aren't in the US, it turns out. Thank you comments/emails from the parallel dimension without US hegemony! Hope you're loving it there.
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RE: https://mastodon.social/@eff/116484403976130449
Newest blog up, on why Section 230 is important for the Fediverse.
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@cypurr And for folks still on it, check out Imani on Instagram (@y2kbug.zip). https://www.404media.co/trans-rights-privacy-online-cybersecurity-workshop-deadname-not-found/
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@cypurr (pt2)
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@cypurr In case anyone wants the zine, it's on the cypurr instagram and here (pt 1)
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So excited to have the work of @cypurr and Cache Me Outside highlighted.
Cryptoparties are back, now with DJs 😁.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/16/big-tech-breakup-parties -
RE: https://mastodon.social/@eff/116416379194582342
Take action now! New York State had /another/ delay in passing the budget. If we don't speak up bad provisions like this one will be rushed through, and we'll be stuck with state-mandated pixie dust (not in a fun way)
But seriously, please spread the word to stop this dangerous censorship/surveillance infrastructure before it's built
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"This could look like Nintendo blocking a Pikachu toy, John Deere blocking a replacement part, or even patent trolls forcing the hand of hardware companies. [...] Repressive regimes, here or abroad, could likewise block the printing of 'extreme' and 'obscene' symbols, or tools of resistance like popular anti-ICE community whistles."
https://www.theregister.com/2026/04/14/eff_california_3dprinted_firearms/ #PressQuote
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RE: https://mastodon.social/@eff/116399759026619275
New blog up— California needs to reject AB 2047!
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“Economic inequality is creating this perverse incentive for some people to have less privacy and more powerful people to have more privacy,” @IncMagazine
https://www.inc.com/chloe-aiello/would-you-share-your-phone-calls-with-a-company-to-make-money-this-startup-is-banking-on-it/91324133 #PressQuote
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Chaotic POSSE: The Beautiful Mess of Interop
It’s exciting that the open social web, and its underlying nest of interoperable wires, lets you engineer the perf... -
“It’s a constant arms race of attackers and defenders, and you’re setting yourself up best if you have the most up-to-date defense you can,” https://www.inc.com/chloe-aiello/iphone-security-russian-chinese-hackers-cybercrime-apple/91323179 #PressQuote