Tag: Big Tech | Page 2 | Mind Matters

Smiling entrepreneur businesswoman talking on smartphone with colleague discuss business project, financial report or strategy. Cheerful female sales manager communicating with client on cellphone

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post

News
Date
June 28, 2023

Categorized
Technology

Tagged
AI, Artificial Intelligence, COVID-19, Pandemic, Seattle, Silicon Valley, Walter Meyers III}

The End of Silicon Valley?

_{What will remote work do to Silicon Valley in the longterm?} _{News
June 28, 2023

1

Technology}

The COVID-19 pandemic ushered in a new era of hybrid work, and allowed many workers to operate remotely. What does this mean for major tech centers like Silicon Valley and Seattle? And what are the advantages for competitors like Austin and Miami? In this lecture, hear a panel discuss these issues and related concerns at the 2021 COSM conference. We’ve been sharing a number of lectures from past COSM conferences. This video is just one of many you can find at the Bradley Center’s YouTube page. There you’ll find several lectures, interviews, and panels dealing with issues that range from economics, Big Tech, and artificial intelligence. Notable speakers include 2022 Kyoto Prize winner Carver Mead, venture capitalist Peter Thiel, and George Gilder, co-founder of Discovery Read More ›

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post

News
Date
June 27, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Tagged
Amazon, apple, Artificial Intelligence, Bard, Big Tech, ChatGPT, Google, Large Language Models (LLMs), OpenAI}

Don’t Tell Google Bard Your Secrets

_{Executives are warning employees of potential privacy leaks} _{News
June 27, 2023

2

Artificial Intelligence}

Google’s parent company, Alphabet Inc., advised its employees not to share personal information with the chatbot “Bard,” noting that doing so could lead to privacy leaks, which has reportedly already happened at Samsung. Kevin Hurler reports, Four sources close to the matter told Reuters that the massive tech giant has advised employees not to enter confidential information into chatbots like OpenAI’s ChatGPT or Google’s own Bard over fears of leaks. Alphabet is reportedly concerned with employees inputting sensitive information into these chatbots since human reviewers may sit on the other end reviewing chat entries. These chatbots may also use previous entries to train themselves, posing another risk of a leak. That risk is warranted, as Samsung confirmed last month that its own internal Read More ›

Artificial intelligence, robot thinking about world, looking at the city. Futuristic concept.

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post

Eric Holloway
Date
June 21, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Tagged
AI, AI and creativity, Big Tech, ChatGPT, Eric Holloway, Human creativity, Human exceptionalism, Information Theory, Shannon entropy, Silicon Valley}

Can AI Create its Own Information?

_{The simple answer is "no," but why? Eric Holloway explains} _{Eric Holloway
June 21, 2023

2

Artificial Intelligence}

AI is amazing. It is all the rage these days. Companies everywhere are jumping on the AI bandwagon. No one wants to be left behind when true believers are raptured to the mainframe in the sky. What makes the AI work? The AI works because of information it gained from a human generated dataset. Let’s label the dataset D. We can measure the information in the dataset with Shannon entropy. Represent the information with H(D). When we train an AI with this data, we are applying a mathematical function to the dataset. This function is the training algorithm. Labelling the training algorithm T, then we represent training as T(D). The outcome of training is a new AI model. The model generates new data. We Read More ›

COVID-19 coronavirus and crisis concept, US president Franklin`s eyes and face mask on 100 dollar money bill. Corona virus affects global stock market.

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post

Wesley J. Smith
Date
June 20, 2023

Categorized
Technocracy

Tagged
Biden, CDC, COVID-19, Nature, Pandemic, Technocracy, Technology, WHO COVID-19 investigation in China}

Is the Public Health Technocracy Faltering?

_{Technocrats don’t rely on mandates but eagerly impose policies that render society less free} _{Wesley J. Smith
June 20, 2023

4

Technocracy}

In February, I warned about a treaty being negotiated to empower the World Health Organization to declare a pandemic, which would trigger governments assuming mandatory emergency powers. From, “Transforming WHO into a Public-Health Technocracy“: The WHO director-general would be granted the power to “declare pandemics,” at which point emergency provisions of the treaty to impose public-health policies would go into effect. . . . The WHO would be able to dictate policies if international consensus were not obtained by a vote of the two presidents and four vice presidents of the WHO CA+. . . The International Court of Justice would also be granted decisive power. . . . It would centralize pandemic planning and response into itself. . . Read More ›

Peter Thiel on General Artificial Intelligence at COSM 2021

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post

News
Date
June 11, 2023

Categorized
Technology

Tagged
AI, Big Tech, COSM, Innovation, PayPal, Peter Thiel, United States}

Peter Thiel on Big Tech: A Throwback Lecture

_{Peter Thiel opens up about how artificial intelligence, 5G wireless, and blockchain security are converging in a new era} _{News
June 11, 2023

1

Technology}

We’ve been sharing and promoting several videos from the 2022 COSM conference, but there’s also a wealth of material to be found in the YouTube archives. Today, we’d like to share a lecture from the 2019 conference featuring prominent venture capitalist and technology innovator Peter Thiel. Peter Thiel opens up about how artificial intelligence, 5G wireless, and blockchain security are converging in a new era. In a substantive and wide-ranging discussion with tech guru George Gilder, Thiel outlines how new Internet and monetary systems can remedy the currently torturous relations between the U.S. and China, and how understanding money as time overthrows the prevailing economic and technological models and opens the way to a cornucopian future.

Mockup of social media app user interface in dark screen mode

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post

News
Date
June 8, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
AI, Big Tech, Child sex abuse, Child sexual abuse (online), Instagram, Meta, sex trafficking, social media, Twitter, Wall Street Journal}

The Dark Side of Instagram

_{An investigative report shows that Instagram algorithm promotes pedophilia networks} _{News
June 8, 2023

3

Social Media}

It’s an unfortunate fact that sex trafficking and pedophilia rings have benefitted from the invention of the internet. Even worse, Meta‘s Instagram is amplifying the problem – not because Meta wants to, of course, but because the algorithm promotes the activity. The Wall Street Journal did an investigative report in partnership with a team from Stanford University on Instagram’s promotion of pedophilia rings, with Jeff Horwitz and Katherine Blunt writing, Pedophiles have long used the internet, but unlike the forums and file-transfer services that cater to people who have interest in illicit content, Instagram doesn’t merely host these activities. Its algorithms promote them. Instagram connects pedophiles and guides them to content sellers via recommendation systems that excel at linking those Read More ›

VR virtual reality headset goggles worn by man 3D illustration with colorful abstract art showing creativity, fun, metaverse and more, with a white background.

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post

News
Date
June 7, 2023

Categorized
Technology

Tagged
AI, apple, Apps, Artificial Intelligence, Augmented Reality, Big Tech, CEO, Meta, metaverse, Productivity, social media, Tim Cook, Virtual Reality}

Apple’s Vision Pro Promises “Augmented Reality”

_{The goal? To seamlessly blend digital and physical space} _{News
June 7, 2023

3

Technology}

We’ve written here several times on Meta‘s struggling metaverse project; Zuckerberg‘s darling endeavor hasn’t gotten the traction he hoped for, with teetering investor involvement and an even more fragile consumer interest. But that didn’t stop Apple from chasing their own augmented reality project. The tech giant recently announced the Vision Pro, a headset that allows users to see apps and messages within their physical space. The product is a major development, and the main goal, according to Apple CEO Tim Cook, is to dissolve the boundaries between our physical and digital dimensions. Per a report from ABC News, “Vision Pro is a new kind of computer that augments reality by seamlessly blending the real world with the digital world,” Apple Read More ›

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post

News
Date
May 25, 2023

Categorized
Surveillance

Tagged
1984 (book), AI, Artificial Intelligence, George Orwell, Surveillance, Technocracy, Technology}

New Surveillance Tech in the UK

_{The debate over security and privacy rights is reaching a new level} _{News
May 25, 2023

1

Surveillance}

The government in the United Kingdom is reportedly working on a new surveillance technology that could monitor the online activity of millions of people. Critics say implementing the tech in practice would be a radical intrusion of privacy. Matt Burgess writes at Wired, Haidar of Privacy International says that creating powers to collect more of people’s data doesn’t result in “more security” for people. “Building the data retention capabilities of companies and a vast range of government agencies doesn’t mean that intelligence operations will be enhanced,” Haidar says. “In fact, we argue that it makes us less secure as this data becomes vulnerable to being misused or abused.” -Matt Burgess, The UK’s Secretive Web Surveillance Program Is Ramping Up | Read More ›

Finger touching phone with social media concept and dark background

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post

News
Date
May 24, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
Big Tech, Instagram, Jonathan Haidt, mental health, social media, Surgeon General, Technology, Vivek Murthy, youth}

Social Media is Hurting Kids. Does Big Tech Care?

_{Body image issues, low self-esteem, and social comparison are all typical outcomes of excessive social media use among teens and children} _{News
May 24, 2023

2

Social Media}

Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued a warning in a briefing this week on the negative impact of social media on kids, particularly teenage girls. Murthy called tech companies to provide “safeguards” to protect children who are at a critical stage in brain development. Early exposure to social media, numerous studies show, are correlated with anxiety and depression in young people. Murthy said, “We are in the middle of a national youth mental health crisis, and I am concerned that social media is an important driver of that crisis – one that we must urgently address.” Social media could harm youth mental health, U.S. Surgeon General warns | Reuters Problems like body image issues, low self-esteem, and social comparison are all Read More ›

Robot humanoid use laptop and sit at table for big data analytic using AI thinking brain , artificial intelligence and machine learning process for the 4th fourth industrial revolution . 3D rendering.

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post

News
Date
May 11, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Tagged
AI, Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), Artificial Intelligence, Big Tech, OpenAI, Robert J. Marks, Sam Altman, society}

Artificial General Intelligence is the Answer, says OpenAI CEO

_{The tech optimism talk just got a little vague} _{News
May 11, 2023

2

Artificial Intelligence}

The tech optimism talk just got a little more bizarre from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Altman is confident that artificial intelligence is going to better our world in countless ways; sometimes, however, he doesn’t specify just how that’s going to happen. Other days it seems like he’s actually on the doomsday train. Which is it? Is AI going to save us and pilot us into a transhumanist eternity or will it enslave us forever and diminish everything that makes us human? Maybe it’s both at this point! Maggie Harrison writes in a new blog at Futurism, It’s true that AGI could, in theory, give humans a helping hand in curing some of our ills. But such an AGI, and AGI Read More ›

TV News studio - recording and broadcasting media in a modern set design with blue background for journalists. Generative AI

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post

News
Date
May 2, 2023

Categorized
Artificial Intelligence

Tagged
AI, Artificial Intelligence, Google, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta, metaverse, Microsoft, News, Silicon Valley, Tech}

Media and Tech Companies Continue to Struggle

_{Vice reportedly is opting for bankruptcy, while Meta's metaverse flounders} _{News
May 2, 2023

2

Artificial Intelligence}

According to a report from The New York Times, Vice Media Group, the entertainment outlet, is expected to file for bankruptcy. The news arrives amid considerable downsizing in the once leading media giant. Vice has long been known for its outreach to younger audiences and popularizing itself on social media platforms. Buzzfeed also recently announced the closure of its news division. After years of edgy and “irreverant” reporting, it seems the act is over. Other major technology companies are cutting expenses and laying off employees. With Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta, the woes seem to amount to the failed metaverse project, which was apparently was supposed to be so groundbreaking that it merited a makeover of the company name. With its vague Read More ›

Cellphone, mental health and woman in her bed with depression while watching videos on social media. Tired, sleepy and depressed female with insomnia networking on a phone in her bedroom at home.

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podcast

Dawn Wible and Robert J. Marks
Date
April 20, 2023

Tagged
Big Tech, Dawn Wible, mental health, Robert J. Marks, Talk More Tech Less, Technology}

Working Towards Digital Flourishing

_{Dawn Wible and Robert J. Marks
April 20, 2023

1}

Dawn Wible, the founder of Talk More Tech Less, continues her conversation with Robert J. Marks on digital tech. How can we healthily use technology instead of being manipulated by Big Tech? In this episode, she lays out practical steps people can take to reclaim their time, relationships, and mental health. Additional Resources

Top view serene weary female lying on desk in modern office. Mugs of beverage and different documents locating on it. Job and fatigue concept

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News
Date
April 18, 2023

Categorized
Work

Tagged
Big Tech, Mark Zuckerberg, Meta, Microsoft, religion, Remote work, social media, Twitter, Wired, Work}

Work: The New Path to Self-Actualization

_{With layoffs plaguing Big Tech companies, how should employees start viewing their work?} _{News
April 18, 2023

2

Work}

The pandemic changed the way we work, with more people opting for online or “hybrid” schedules, office buildings emptying, and boundaries between work and other aspects of life starting to get blurred. But what is the general attitude towards work in the United States? According to Simone Stolzoff, author of the forthcoming The Good Enough Job, Americans are turning to their careers like people used to turn to religion: for meaning and a sense of self-worth. This new secular religion is called “workism.” In an interview with Wired, Stolzoff said, [Workism] is treating work akin to a religious identity. It’s looking to work not just for a paycheck but also for a community, a sense of identity and purpose and Read More ›

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post

News
Date
April 12, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
Babylon Bee on Twitter, BBC, censorship, COVID-19, Elon Musk (and Twitter), Free speech, NPR, social media, Technocracy, Twitter}

An Entertaining Day at the Blue Bird

_{NPR bids "adieu" to Twitter and BBC bungles interview with Musk} _{News
April 12, 2023

2

Social Media}

A few days ago, the tag “Government-funded Media” appeared underneath NPR’s masthead on Twitter. Today, the company announced its departure from the social media platform and laid out its intentions to proliferate content through email, an app, and “other social media platforms.” The official post reads, “NPR produces consequential, independent journalism every day in service to the public.” NPR claims editorial independence despite the tag denoting them as federally funded, and their decision to part ways with Twitter reflects their ire against Musk’s trepidatious move. A small percentage, according to NPR, is federally funded, but it is no secret that they lean heavy to the left in their commentary, especially in recent years. Musk resurrected a line from NPR (now Read More ›

Young woman relaxing at winter sea beach. Traveler resting by blue mountain

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post

News
Date
April 7, 2023

Categorized
Technology

Tagged
addiction, Andrew McDiarmid, Big Tech, Discovery Institute (mission), Life, Purpose, Technology, thinking}

In Defense of Daydreaming

_{Andrew McDiarmid encourages people to set aside their devices and embrace the discomfort of silence} _{News
April 7, 2023

3

Technology}

At the end of the day, do you ever feel like you’ve ingested so much information but have thought and contemplated so little? When do we take the time to simply be quiet and think? Discovery Institute’s Andrew McDiarmid encourages people to set aside their devices and embrace the discomfort of silence in a piece from The Epoch Times. He writes, A recent study reported in the Journal of Experimental Psychology suggests that the act of “just thinking” can be more rewarding than we might realize. The authors of the paper acknowledge that the ability to engage in internal thoughts without external stimulation is a unique characteristic in humans, yet we regularly underappreciate the benefits of doing so. This constant feed of Read More ›

Blue check mark logos on a heap on a table. Copy space. Verification concept

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post

News
Date
April 6, 2023

Categorized
Social Media

Tagged
Big Tech, censorship, Elon Musk, Jordan Peterson, social media, The Federalist, Twitter}

Is This the End of Twitter?

_{The social media giant has been struggling on multiple fronts since Musk's takeover} _{News
April 6, 2023

3

Social Media}

Twitter isn’t in such great shape at the moment. In fact, rumors of bankruptcy loom over the company as financial woes continue to mount, and solutions seem few and far between. Dave Karpf is a professor of “internet politics” at George Washington University and wrote an article describing Twitter’s current predicament. He writes, A few weeks ago, Elon Musk said that ad revenues had fallen 50%. The site has experienced major outages at a higher rate than usual. During one such outage, Elon was laser-focused on the important stuff: reply-guying Jordan Peterson. The Twitter Blue rollout was such a disaster that he fired almost the entire team. Yesterday, he appeared to backtrack on his big plan to revoke legacy checkmarks. Twitter hasn’t been paying rent on its office space. It recently tried Read More ›

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post

Peter Biles
Date
March 30, 2023

Categorized
Arts & Culture

Tagged
Applied Science, Arts & Culture, C.S. Lewis, Magic, Netflix, science, Scientism, Technocracy, Technology, The Abolition of Man, TV shows}

The Moral Genius of Arcane

_{The show reveals how pursuing knowledge for the sake of greater manipulation, power, and control can open the floodgates of chaos} _{Peter Biles
March 30, 2023

5

Arts & Culture}

The 2021 show Arcane, based on the video game League of Legends, is fantastic. The animation style, writing, and world-building all merit its 100 percent scored rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Apart from its entertainment value, which is formidable, Arcane explores the pertinent themes of power, progress, and the promises and pitfalls of technological advancement. It does this without heavy-handedness, “instructing by delighting,” in the words of C.S. Lewis. A Powerful Civilization and a Chaotic Underworld The story takes place in the utopian city of Piltover, which prides itself on its innovations in science, technology, and infrastructure. On the lower edges of the city lies the unruly Zaun, an oppressed underworld overrun with crime and an addictive drug called “Shimmer.” The Read More ›

Business times concept people walking overlay with time clock

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post

News
Date
March 29, 2023

Categorized
Technology

Tagged
Arts & Culture, Literature, Silicon Valley, Tech, Time, Wired}

It’s About Time

_{The cliche phrase "time is money" needs to be subverted by better metaphors, according to Odell} _{News
March 29, 2023

2

Technology}

Artist and writer Jenny Odell, author of the new book Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock, was recently interviewed by Wired. Odell’s 2019 book is called How to Do Nothing. In the interview, Odell discussed how the invention of the clock has altered the way people think about time, labor, and productivity. The cliche phrase “time is money” needs to be subverted by better metaphors, according to Odell, ones that emphasize meaning instead of mere activity. When she was asked how she avoided productivity “burnout” in her own writing life, Odell responded, If you’re not thinking of time as money, the other thing that you could be trying to find is meaning. That’s ultimately what I want out Read More ›

ChatGPT Chat concept AI, Artificial Intelligence. businessman using technology smart robot AI, enter command prompt, contact for business information analysis, Futuristic technology transformation.

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podcast

Jeffery Funk and Robert J. Marks
Date
March 16, 2023

Tagged
AI, AI Chatbot BARD, Artificial Intelligence, Big Tech, Blockchain (and NFTs), ChatGPT, Google, Jeffrey Funk, metaverse, Robert J. Marks, startups, Web3}

Jeffrey Funk on AI, Startups, and Big Tech

_{Jeffery Funk and Robert J. Marks
March 16, 2023

1}

In this podcast episode, technology consultant and author Jeffrey Funk joins Robert J. Marks to talk about the artificial intelligence industry, how it’s used by Big Tech, and AI’s exaggerated hype. How do we respond to AI when technology is changing every year? Additional Resources

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Jonathan Bartlett
Date
March 15, 2023

Categorized
Business and Finance

Tagged
Banking, Interest rates, Investment, Silicon Valley}

Aren’t US Treasury Bonds Supposed to be Safe?

_{How can you lose money selling treasury bonds?} _{Jonathan Bartlett
March 15, 2023

3

Business and Finance}

For context, read Bartlett’s two previous articles on the fall of SVB and interest rates. Some people are confused as to how you can lose money selling treasury bonds, since they are supposed to be “safe” assets (the government is not expected to default on its loans, and, if it does, the economy probably has bigger problems). Economist Bob Murphy put together a great explainer thread on Twitter, which I will largely follow here. Let’s say that there is an asset that always yields a 1% return every year on however much you have invested, but you never get the principal back except by selling it to someone else. Let us call this asset ABC, and let us say that it is Read More ›