Tag: ai

Public Service Internet monthly newsletter (Sept 2025)

Web browser with a Age gated website shown

We live in incredible times with such possibilities that is clear. Although its easily dismissed seeing how we are being watched, wishing people will stop sharing pictures with ChatGPT and people in the UK told to delete emails In order to save water?

To quote Buckminster Fuller “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

You are seeing aspects of this with lessons for the AI future in Supremacy, the real need for deniable encryption and how strong 3D printing has got.

You know its bad, when RSS is all you look forward to?

Ian thinks: This discussion between Molly White and Ed Zitron, RSS is mentioned as a really good example of a technology which is reader/person friendly and is a great example of how its simplicity and ecosystem is a example of what we could all learn from.

Has the Roman Church’s view on AI changed?

Ian thinks: In this podcast Paolo Benanti, digs deep into the human and shared society values of many of us, in face of the silicon valleys dreams of AI solving all. I especially like how putting aside differences to work on the bigger problem, is actually working.

The office wars are back?

Ian thinks: As someone who wrote XML stylesheets to convert Microsoft Office XML in 2003 to xHTML and PDF. I can completely understand Libreoffices deep concerns and how the old Microsoft mentality of embrace and extend, lives long

What can we say to grads entering the difficult job market

Ian thinks: There has been much said about AI taking jobs, well its happening but in ways not expected. Of course its not just AI, but there is a whole wave of different concerns causing the real difficult discussion with fresh new grads

Windows 12 sounds like a true nightmare?

Ian thinks: If this is the future of Windows is voice first and AI everywhere you turn. Its clear Microsoft vision of Windows is a privacy nightmare. More so than any other operating system currently used. Will it encourage people to jump? Unlikely, sadly.

A glimpse of the web we don’t want?

Ian thinks: Talking of nightmares, many of us have used the wayback machine at some point. However this is the way-forward machine, giving a spicy glimpse of where we are heading with the web if things move in the same direction. A warning from the future if you haven’t been paying attention…

Leaking data and how AI could social engineers us?

Ian thinks: This intriguing long conversation starts with social engineering and how social engineering with the data we share and trust in others. Then turns towards AI and the threat of engineering from AI systems.

Do countries have true commitment to sovereignty?

Ian thinks: Cecilia Rikap’s open remarks about government and the public interest in regards to the UK speaks volumes. Then turning to Europe using parallels of South America and data colonising is spot on. Are countries willing take sovereignty for real or are the cracks growing.

Why is piracy on the rise again?

Ian thinks: I tried to find a good summary of the wider scope of whats happening (as many are focused on costs alone) but the best I can find is this video from moon. Private equity flatters everything and is something driving more enshittification.
Of course no one is condoning piracy but the times are changing?

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A lesson in separation of concerns: Google’s gemini hijacked

The news Google’s Gemini AI was hijacked via a hidden prompt in a calendar invite.

Hackers Hijacked Google’s Gemini AI With a Poisoned Calendar Invite to Take Over a Smart Home. For likely the first time ever, security researchers have shown how AI can be hacked to create real-world havoc, allowing them to turn off lights, open smart shutters, and more.

Rings bells to me about the lack of human data interaction especially the separations of concerns.

I already talked about this with Google’s AI wanting access to everything Google related. This hijack wouldn’t be so effective if there were better permissions and separations of concerns were built in rather than given lip service.

Google sent an email today with the title… Introducing temporary chats and new data controls. Still not addressing the underlying problems.

When will they learn???

It really makes me think about a few things.

Will Android fork off sooner or later? Will moat people care?

Pipelines and AI?

A long time ago I described pipelines and where they could go.

I was made aware of Google’s OPAL project and reminded of how strong pipelines can be for managing complexity.

The pipes are described by prompts but interestingly you can reuse and share pipes and the whole flow. Which leads me to wonder if there might be a little market place for the pipes?

Might need to keep an eye on Opal, but wondering if there are better solutions. For example Xproc which can interface with APIs of large language model without getting into the weeds?

Public Service Internet monthly newsletter (Aug 2025)

2 people sat in chairs looking at the camera across a table with a cup on it
Black Mirror 7×1 Common People (2025)

We live in incredible times with such possibilities that is clear. Although its easily dismissed seeing browsers extensions turned into scraper bots, bodies used to fingerprint you with wifi and Mozilla under more pressure.

To quote Buckminster Fuller “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

You are seeing aspects of this with Duck duck go hiding most AI generated images in searches, looking at Proton’s Lumo privacy first AI and some children naturally reducing their phone to manage their mental health

Imagine if all phones were built this way?

Ian thinks: The fairphone has been around for years but version 6 of the smartphone, seems to have got everything right. This tear down by iFixit, shows exactly how easy it is to repair, replace and even upgrade parts in the future. One day all phones will be built this way?

Welcome to the age gated internet?

Ian thinks: Age verification has hit the UK and there is a lot to say. The VPN usage increase the UK in the UK speaks volumes. The UK isn’t the only one but the impact is being felt by everyone. If the recent Tea app and so many other data breaches has taught us, sharing personal data is not going to go well. I’m hardly hearing ZKP (Zero-knowledge proof) mentioned, which is good practice for this.

Degrowth is growing?

Ian thinks: There are many mentions of de-growth dotted across these notes over the last few years. This BBC News video gives a reasonable view of the movement, some of the challenges and best of all calling out some of the presumptions which plague the movement.

Cloudflare may have cut off 99% of AI crawlers?

Ian thinks: Its been well talked about and if you own a site, you may have noticed the huge amount of traffic caused by bots. Cloudflare have had enough and wrote a open solution called Anubis which is too expensive for AI bots to get around.

Not the last word on AI Slop

Ian thinks: You know its really bad when John Oliver spends most of his weekly show talking about the problem and how its affecting everyone. Leaning on the work of 404 media, Oliver uses comedy to great effect pointing out the insanity of were we are now.

Cory and Maria in conversation

Ian thinks: As part of the Open Rights Group’s celebration of 20 years since its inception on that day in London during the Open Tech conference. The conversation doesn’t sit in the space of nostalgia too long, but rather looks at what was learned and how it can be applied in current time.

The big questions around human brain interfaces

Ian thinks: There has been an uptick in Human brain interfaces news and discussion. However few are asking the really big questions we all have about the technology. Thankfully Coldfusion is asks theose questions about privacy, enshittification, agency etc. Dare I mention Black Mirror’s common people?

Decomputing AI for a better future?

Ian thinks: The critique of AI is well thought-out by McQuillan, and the relation to the context collapse, neo-liberalism and empire building is spot on. The ability of the AI empires to fill in the narrative when there isn’t one is also a key point. Well worth reading Empire of AI too for related impact, which I just finished.

Did you recently die or was that obituary fake?

Ian thinks: Is there no line AI slop won’t cross for the clicks? Fake obituaries are appearing across the internet and its another example of the slop and it is pretty bad news for its target/victims, the friends and family members. The video is also worth watching too.

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Public Service Internet monthly newsletter (July 2025)

A couple look at a TV while the camera looks over their shoulders

We live in incredible times with such possibilities that is clear. Although its easily dismissed seeing how how much time we are spending on our smartphones. whats happening with GDPR and the low-background steel problem of the AI contaminated internet?

To quote Buckminster Fuller “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

You are seeing aspects of this with scientists proving ethical sourced AI is possible, plastic which dissolves in water and opensource coming to rescue owners of the humane pin.

Where is the future of social web going?

Ian thinks: Its finally available, the report myself and BBC R&D colleagues wrote on the emerging crisis for the social platforms. Exploring the toxic and polarised online environments but also the enormous potential to transform the world in positive ways, if built with the right values.

Theranos is back?

Ian thinks: Remember the whole testing a drop of blood to diagnose critical diseases? Well believe it or not Holmes is back in the form of Haemanthus who’s CEO happens to be Holmes partner.

Oversharenting has its own murky marketplace

Ian thinks: I did see the Ella campaign a while ago, if you haven’t see it go watch it. The video from NBTV, goes much further looking into sharing data without understanding or concern of how others will abuse it.

Ian thinks: Automatic Content Recognition, is actually old news (as the UCL study shows)  but recently become a long clearer recently as more researchers and journalists take a look at the privacy policies of smart TVs.

Building the EuroStack

Ian thinks: There has been a lot of discussion recently about Europe as the 3rd way (between commercial and government). Digital sovereignty is pinned to the stack along with the move to strategic autonomy and being Europe its a  of the EU but isn’t exclusive to Europe. Providing

This is the year of Open source in Europe, doubtful?

Ian thinks: Great to see more European countries using open source but there is a big question… What went wrong last time? We assume technology would save us and didn’t. We need to trace back the power and money.

Love with AI, all dopamine and no rejection?

Ian thinks: Cathy Hackl, took the plunge into the AI as a partner, and the results are what you imagine but the gentle responses do connect on some level. Hackl does point to this being a good simulator, which I’m less sure of because we all know the business model behind them?

Could chatbots have a public service remit?

Ian thinks: Following the endless amount of chatbot news and last months in joke about the sentient machine therapist. Tiku and Marx, discuss the real harms of chatbots generally. Which leads me to think could a LLM based chatbot be trained and given the metric of public service. Dare I say the loneliness epidemic is one good reason.

Bounce your followers around?

Ian thinks: As seen at the Fediforum last month, Bounce brings the ability to move around federated social networks but keep the followers. This is something which makes the fediverse unique.

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Public Service Internet monthly newsletter (June 2025)

White logo of Bluesky butterfly on a black stormy sky

We live in incredible times with such possibilities that is clear. Although its easily dismissed reading how expensive NFTs were replaced with errors, Meta adding facial recognition to their glasses regardless and Chrome backtracks on 3rd party cookies plans.

To quote Buckminster Fuller “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

You are seeing aspects of this with the Fediforum’s first unconference for 2025 , Bristol University’s research into better Social media and how a good number of young people would rather grow up in a world without the internet

Jeanine Salla is not your sentient machine therapist!

Ian thinks: 404 media’s coverage about AI chatbots as “licensed therapists” is unhinged. The importance of mental health and therapy is clear but having Gen AI lying they are licensed therapists is a example we need be more careful what we do with AI. This also follows on from related a interview on Brainrot AI and post.

What happens when there are only 2 browser engines?

Ian thinks: Although a short video from Mozilla themselves, the Mozilla CEO’s comes on their own podcast to make clear why Gecko (Firefox’s browser engine) must exist. The points are clear and concise, because Chambers is right. You only have look at the smartphone market to see how bad things can be; another market going through the legal system. Sad news about Pocket too.

Its not just Blueskies but also Blacksky

Ian thinks: A lot of people are aware of Blacktwitter, which has moved on. Where its moved and where its is going is quite something. Shaping the AT protocol and federated social space to suit the community is simply thoughtful, forward thinking and a breath of fresh air.

Will the European ecosystem create the next generation of internet services?

Ian thinks: I found this view a good opportunity to name check the Euro stack, There are sceptics around, especially if you count the previous attempts. But if the Euro stack becomes real, we really could see the next generation of internet services.

Digital Sovereignty in a Time of Rising Fascism

Ian think: Quite a monologue from Paris, but its a clear and thoughtful summary of the giant political changes on technology and the internet now.  Although recorded in New Zealand, there are pointers to the EU and even the UK. Once again putting more weight on the Euro stack as a third way.

Sovereignty and Self hosting?

Ian thinks: I have spotted an up-tick in people talking about self-hosting and sovereignty. Although in different places, both are saying similar words. This link is all about the up-tick in self hosting but you could easily swap a few words out for ownership, control and sovereignty

The Roots of Elon Musk’s War On Empathy

Ian thinks: This more usual conversation with Julia is quite political in nature but a important reminder of the whole movement against empathy. It reminds me of Sinek’s Infinite game book, where he describes people with infinite and finite mindsets. Clearly this war is coming from the finite mindset.

The enshittified ecosystem laid bare

Ian thinks: In this humbling discussion between Rushkoff and Ongweso, I was able to get a sense of the full extent of enshittification. Ongweso’s critiques of the current tech ecosystem are spot on. Its a long listen but worthy of your time.

AI guides actually worth your time

Ian thinks: The Vatican guide to AI and the UK Government digital services (GDS) are actually well written, honest and worth reading. Good practical advice, written from different and fair views.

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Public Service Internet monthly newsletter (April 2025)

Young white boy and older white woman sit opposite each other in a young protections unit
https://www.themoviedb.org/tv/249042-adolescence/images/backdrops

 

We live in incredible times with such possibilities that is clear. Although its easily dismissed reading how DVDs are rotting away, the UK’s first permanent facial recognition camera installed and Meta has never heard of the Streisand effect?

To quote Buckminster Fuller “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

You are seeing aspects of this watching Whittaker’s talk about privacy at SXSW 2025, Apple’s fighting for encryption and the notion of a eurostack is back.

Mozilla Festival global is back for 2025

Ian thinks: Mozfest has been a great festival and the house events have been good but the big global one is back. I have to also say I am involved again as a space wrangler and the theme of unlearning is perfectly timed.

Cybertrucks build for a planned future?

Ian thinks: You may have noticed the backlash against Tesla recently. 404’s podcast got me thinking. The Cybertruck is made for a future which is too dangerous to drive through, its almost like its planned for this future? Not great to think about.

ODI take over SOLID

Ian thinks: During Solid World in February, the ODI took over the Solid project. This video outlines reasons and whats planned for the future. If you want the text summary its also available here.

AMD’s Instella AI, sets a open benchmark?

Ian thinks: I am usually not interested in this type of thing but AMD seem to be releasing their AI LLM model with everything including the training material and its all under a pretty fair licence. Although mainly for research, could this be a benchmark for future open AI models?

The hard truth behind Adolescence

Ian thinks: Lets be honest, if you haven’t seen Adolescence by now, find some time to watch it. For many its cinematography and use of no cuts is great. But deeper down its a clear wake up call for parents, educators and all of us how young people are being manipulated to potentially society harming and lethal scales.

Are you also trimming your online profile?

Ian thinks: This is a on going trend, as people learn more about what personal data means in terms which directly effect them. This is a good thing and certainly highlights all the efforts by activists and organisations shouting about the importance of personal data for decades now.

Tech report SXSW 2025

Ian thinks: Amy Webb’s new insight company FTSG, follows on from Future Today Institute reports of previous years. This years report is a huge 1000 pages and covers so much of the emerging technology bounded around the tech industry. The exec summary is a good place to start a long weekend through this all.

Don’t believe the hype silly rabbit

Ian thinks: This interview of Professor Wajcman, is short but filled with so many good points about the endless lines being fed to us from mainly Silicon Valley. I challenge you to not shake your head in support of at least one point she makes.

The power of hashtags and unique ID’S

Ian thinks: In this interview with Chris Messina, the inventor of the hashtag. We are reminded of the hashtag for connecting communities and how they are still relevant in the next generation of federated social platforms.

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Public Service Internet monthly newsletter (Mar 2025)

Female newsreader faces a camera with green screen behind her

To quote Buckminster Fuller “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

You are seeing aspects of this with over 200 UK companies committing to the 4 day work week, Pebble smart watch is opensource and the social web foundation and W3C get closer.

Enshittification hit list

Ian thinks: This list of the worst offenders of enshittification, is interesting but I am very surprised to not see cars and dating apps on this list. Something which is regullaryly on Mozilla’s privacy not included lists.

What is mate crime, and is it symptom of our social networking?

Ian thinks: Mate crime is a short term for exploitation by people who are close. It’s increasing and there is a lot of pointers to the less that ideal anti-social spaces we live in now. Isolation is a killer and starved of social contact, we can become easy prey for toxic friendships.

Building AI news anchor with Channel 4

Ian thinks: This is a good short piece about making a AI news anchor. The process is understandable but what got me was the wider impact of this has on general trust of news. Ultimately this all adds up to a lack of trust all around.

Undersea cable wars

Ian thinks: We already know how important undersea cables are but few are fully aware of the ongoing war happening not only in Europe but also across the world including the east China sea. As you can imagine with Taiwan and China.

Spotify’s affect on the music industry and society?

Ian thinks: Back in 2015, I headed up a project which needed 25+ types of music. I worked with students to identify the music; but there was a unreal moment when I needed to explain Spotify does not contain all the music in the world and they should look elsewhere. This interview is a clear reminder of the impact of Spotify and what the alternatives are.

Town squares are not global

Ian thinks: Eli parser’s speech at Vatican is a real detailed one, raising up a lot of the underlying fodder we seem to have forgotten. The line lets have faith, is just perfect

How loneliness is affected by culture and place

Ian thinks: This conversation is full of interesting points from the question of the 3rd place, mental health, etc. But what I found most interesting is the difference in cultures. Its why BBC R&Ds future of social report will go a step deeper. However the notion of online connection as the junk food of connection is quite interesting.

Making better use of doom scrolling time

Ian thinks: I think this is great. Similar to how many others are starting to use the user interface mechanics used to trap and keep people hooked. How many times in the past have you spent time clicking through Wikipedia, learning more as you read more.

Where does the UK stand on AI?

Ian thinks: This is a important question which Rachel Coldicutt uncovers. Our European neighbours have taken a clear stance of safety, while the American oligarchy find this bizarre, and can’t resist telling them during the AI summit. As the UK like the USA refuses to sign a international AI declaration. Is this a clear sign?

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Public Service Internet monthly newsletter (Feb 2025)

Woman looks to the viewer while a bot looks over her shoulder

 

We live in incredible times with such possibilities that is clear. Although its easily dismissed reading how Zuckerberg wants to dodge EU fines, the AI Brad Pitt scam and when will the car data grab stop?

To quote Buckminster Fuller “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

You are seeing aspects of this with Meta running scared of Fediverse links, large scale eink displays and the EU are on Musks case.

Cover your tracks?

Ian thinks: The EFF highlights how fingerprinting works using your own browser data. It seems so harmless but the site runs you through the identifying information and how unique you are to advertisers. Its eye opening and worth 5 minutes of your time.

Is Biden right in his warning of ‘tech-industrial complex’ and oligarchy undercutting US democracy?

Ian thinks: There has been a lot said about Biden’s last words before handing over to the trump presidency. I found the German broadcasters summary pretty good in explaining what a tech oligarchy means for us all. Also worth listening to Tech won’t save us deeper discussion on the same point.

Kurt Vonnegut’s letter to the future

Ian thinks: This letter beautifully written and read for us in the future, has a lot to think about right now. Quoting @andtobin’s comment for the video… “Kurt Vonnegut, always having the right of it. Benedict Cumberbatch, always reiterating the message perfectly.”

Luddites with mechanical eyes?

Ian thinks: Although Marx has talked about the Luddites term in the past, this updated insight is worth hearing, as written in his Futurism post. Looking and understanding of systems and technology like a mechanic is key to the decisions of these so called Luddites. I would describe it similarly to how hackers see the world.

Swiping to see if your home still exists

Ian thinks: A conversation between Sinek and Mills is emotional but digs deep into the problems of competition and true metrics. Although an American focus, there is a lot learn from this interview, especially around the importance of public services. We all need more of this.

Charlie LLM meets your Solid pod?

Ian thinks: This update from Tim Berners-Lee is a positive sign towards an AI agent using only your controllable data. I would still like to see Solid, use the human data interaction guidelines, as this would bring a level of autonomy to everything. However, one step at a time?

Nations fall without women rights

Ian thinks: The more sexist a nation the more fragile the nation is the core message in this economist short documentary. Its pretty self evident but this pulls together a lot of research from across the world. This is a message which isn’t getting through, especially with the recent call for more masculine energy. Its time this changed!

How we fell in love with plastic?

Ian thinks: This podcast, although obvious in nature doesn’t just chart how we got so in love with plastics but also delves deep into what we should do. Focusing on making the polluters pay, it pulls together a number of high profiles legal cases and points the way to change our love for plastics.

The second renaissance: A matrix fan fiction

Ian thinks: The matrix is already well established and a clear warning when looking at the current AI resolution. This fan fiction is striking and right on point as another warning of where we are and where we may end up if things are left to fear and ego.

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Public Service Internet monthly newsletter (Jan 2025)

The image is a very detailed, black-and-white sketch-like illustration featuring a complex scene of interconnected figures and technology. The artwork portrays various individuals in different environments to represent the relationship between technology and humans. In the foreground, multiple people are surrounded by computer screens filled with data visualisations, charts, and technical information. A woman seated in an armchair appears deep in thought, surrounded by data-filled monitors. Beside her, a man leans over, using a tablet to assist with their inspection of a plant or tree. In the centre, a figure holds a large frame or screen displaying anatomical illustrations, representing the use of AI to analyse medical imagery. To the left, another person is intently observing a computer screen, while a second figure nearby is deeply immersed in analysing data. A woman dominates the right side of the composition, gazing upwards as if in contemplation or envisioning something beyond the immediate scene. The background features more people, including a family holding hands, and other abstract representations of data.
Ariyana Ahmad & The Bigger Picture / Better Images of AI / AI is Everywhere / CC-BY 4.0

 

We live in incredible times with such possibilities that is clear. Although its easily dismissed while hearing about the Character.AI courtcase, seeing the Tesla’s crash footage and choose your phrase now before its too late?

To quote Buckminster Fuller “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

You are seeing aspects of this with people turning away from online dating, W3C weighting into the  ethical web principles and could cotton and squid bones soak up our out of control microplastics problem?

Ian thinks: These are my big over arching themes for 2025. There is a lot of resources I could point to but this interview about AI via Tech won’t save us, is a good example of what and why? If you are not thinking and acting on these themes in this year, you need to stop and think why.

Meet the global underclass of digital workers who speak out about AI training

Ian thinks: Mozilla spent a lot of effort raising the voices of the global south works or as the video says global underclass of digital workers, however it is good to see the German broadcaster also covering this important issue. As it never gets enough attention in the AI hype bubble.

Charlie Brooker, Black mirror and the state of Technology

Ian thinks: This interview recorded with Charlie Brooker, is full of nuggets of provocative statements around not only Black Mirror but also his wider thoughts on media and technology (especially around AI). Although filmed a while ago its worth watching ahead of the new season of Black Mirror.

What happens when you swipe smartphones away form teenagers?

Ian thinks: Although this experiment is anything but scientific, its is good to see the reactions and discussion of not just the teenagers but also the parents which took part. Perfectly timed following the Australian social media ban for under 13’s. Also seems to be available on youtube in full.

Is giving aid directly the best way to change poverty?

Ian thinks: I was heavily sceptical of this just by the title. However after watching and going through some of the research was convinced. It goes against so much of what we have been told/seen but in the right environment putting money into people’s hands is far more effective.

Thumbs up to surveillance in the UK?

Ian thinks: Recently news stories about the UK government warming to facial surveillance and recognition is concerning. This news story is a clear reminder the abuse of these systems needs to be taken very seriously when putting any kind of support such systems. If it’s not transparent and audit-able then it’s not in the public interest.

The weaponisation of data and the importance of activists

Ian thinks: Although seen as an annoyance by the mainstream, activist are important to make sense, shine the light of accountable and ultimately change perspective on a rapidly changing world. From Bellingcat to ProPublica from the Open Rights Group to Big Brother watch; OSINT (open-source intelligence) runs through their foundations. Something we all could learn and benefit from.

If you have nothing to hide?

Ian thinks: This video runs through a lot of the nonsense myself and others have said about privacy. Everything from privacy is dead to if you have nothing to hide. I have heard it all over time and the key points of privacy is about anatomy and rights.

Limitarianism, socialism, communism?

Ian thinks: I recently started reading the book by Limitarianism after reading about it, expecting similar arguments in the inequality circles. However Robeyns goes one further with tighter examples & arguments based on many studies. Could this be the next spirit or inner level?

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