caseynewton

caseynewton, 4 days ago to random

There's yet another open letter from the AI safety crowd. If they want more people to take them seriously, they need to get more specific

https://www.platformer.news/tuesday-newsletter/

caseynewton, 5 days ago to random

After a new investigation in the WSJ, I am once again asking: what is the conflict of interest policy at OpenAI?? https://www.platformer.news/openai-altman-investments-conflicts-wsj/

caseynewton, 9 days ago to random

This year at Platformer we want to tell more stories about the web as it enters a state of managed decline. Here's @zoeschiffer interviewing a man whose independent games site was crushed by a change to Google's search rankings and its embrace of AI: https://www.platformer.news/google-retro-dodo-core-algorithm-change-ai-publishers/

Here's Retro Dodo's founder:

caseynewton, 11 days ago to random

I wrote about Google's AI search debacle, its leaked search ranking documents, and what they tell us about the future of the web https://www.platformer.news/google-ai-overviews-eat-rocks-glue-pizza/

caseynewton, 16 days ago to random

It’s Hard Fork Friday! This week: the Scarlett letter. Then, Noland Arbaugh, the first person to receive the Neuralink brain-computer interface, joins to talk about his experience https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/24/podcasts/scarjo-vs-chatgpt-neuralinks-first-patient-opens-up-and-microsofts-ai-pcs.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&sgrp=c-cb

caseynewton, 16 days ago to random

Did Altman pursue the Johansson deal on his own? No: the voice team knew about it, OpenAI told me today. My best effort to piece together the timeline: https://www.platformer.news/openai-scarlett-johansson-chatgpt-voice-her-altman/

caseynewton, 18 days ago to random

A few more words about the OpenAI / Scarlett Johansson situation https://www.platformer.news/platform-sales-tax-california-sb1327-glazer/

caseynewton, 19 days ago to random

The past week of news out of OpenAI illustrates how a company that once prized moving with caution is now dead set on winning at all costs, whatever Scarlett Johansson or anyone else thinks about it https://www.platformer.news/open-ai-scarlett-johansson-her-voice-sam-altman/

caseynewton, 23 days ago to random

When social justice protests swept the country in 2020, tech companies mostly welcomed employee activism. The Gaza demonstrations are getting a much different reception. @zoeschiffer talked to folks at Apple, Google Amazon, and Coinbase about it: https://www.platformer.news/tech-protests-gaza-israel-workplace-activism/

caseynewton, 25 days ago to random

With today’s announcements at Google I/O, the web has entered a state of managed decline https://www.platformer.news/google-io-ai-search-sundar-pichai/

caseynewton, 26 days ago to random

Most AI chatbots are cold and clinical. OpenAI's new voice mode for ChatGPT is warm and flirty. That could have big, unpredictable consequences https://www.platformer.news/openai-gpt-4o-chatgpt-voice-vision/

caseynewton, 30 days ago to random

It’s Hard Fork Friday! Kevin has 18 AI friends now and it’s time to interview one of them https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/10/podcasts/hard-fork-ai-friends.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&sgrp=c-cb

caseynewton, 30 days ago to random

I wrote about Reddit, Stack Overflow, and how this new more extractive era of the internet has changed the bargain between platforms and users https://www.platformer.news/ai-data-licensing-reddit-stack-overflow-protest-openai/

caseynewton, 1 month ago to random

How do you stop deepfakes from taking over social networks? OpenAI has some ideas. I spoke with some members of its policy team about how it's thinking about the problem ahead of the election https://www.platformer.news/open-ai-deepfakes-election-c2pa/

caseynewton, 1 month ago to random

There are a lot of good questions right now about what generative AI is actually for. But from chatbots to clinical trials, one pretty solid answer is starting to suggest itself: simulating people https://www.platformer.news/generative-ai-use-case-character-unlearn-synthetic-people/

caseynewton, 1 month ago to random

It’s Hard Fork Friday! This week: your wildest stories about using AI at work. Then, Hank Green joins us to share his thoughts on a TikTok ban. And finally, the deepfake that roiled a Maryland high school https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/03/podcasts/hard-fork-work-hank-green-deepfake.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&sgrp=c-cb

caseynewton, 1 month ago to random

Texas is leading a charge to make people show ID to view porn online — and in a surprise, the Supreme Court chose not to intervene this week. I wrote about the possibility it could reverse yet another long-settled precedent: https://www.platformer.news/scotus-texas-internet-porn-law-first-amendment/

caseynewton, 1 month ago to random

As publishers weigh whether to sue LLM makers or negotiate deals, it's hard not to wonder if they've taken their eye off the actual near-term future. With @zoeschiffer https://www.platformer.news/publisher-ai-deals-openai-alden-microsoft/

caseynewton, 1 month ago to random

Meta's Oversight Board is preparing for its first round of layoffs and hasn't found a second major funding source beyond Meta itself. I wrote about why it's struggling to have an impact https://www.platformer.news/meta-oversight-board-layoffs/

caseynewton, 1 month ago to random

It's Hard Fork Friday! This week: TikTok on the rocks, Tesla's flop era with @andyjayhawk, and a NASA engineer explains how they fixed a 47-year-old computer that is 15 billion miles away https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/26/podcasts/hard-fork-tiktok-tesla-voyager.html

caseynewton, 1 month ago to random

All your questions about the TikTok ban, answered! https://www.platformer.news/tik-tok-ban-bytedance-faq-timeline/

caseynewton, 1 month ago to random

A TikTok ban is about to pass the Senate. Can it withstand a First Amendment challenge? I spoke to three constitutional scholars, and everyone agreed the outcome is extremely hard to predict https://www.platformer.news/tiktok-ban-bill-senate-legal-challenge-first-amendment/

caseynewton, 1 month ago to random

From the US to Europe, the news just keeps getting worse for TikTok — and the company's plan to reward users for scrolling isn't helping https://www.platformer.news/tiktok-ban-house-vote-senate-lite-eu/

caseynewton, 1 month ago to random

It’s Hard Fork Friday! This week: the music episode! To everyone who asked for some lo-fi Hard Fork to study to, this one’s for you. PLUS: an interview with two of our talented composers https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/19/podcasts/hard-fork-music-episode.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare&ugrp=c&pvid=5135112A-0C5E-49CB-B074-6264D941FC6E&sgrp=c-cb

caseynewton, 1 month ago to random

My review of Airchat is that Clubhouse was actually a lot more fun!! https://www.platformer.news/airchat-naval-ravikant-audio-app-x-brazil/