Related Links
87The American Economy Is Shockingly Dependent on AI
Jezebel reports that the American economy is increasingly reliant on artificial intelligence, a dependence that is potentially precarious. The article doesn't offer many specifics on which sectors are most dependent or how the dependence manifests.
Funding for AI dominated in VC in 2025: Crunchbase
AI-related startup funding increased by 75% to $203 billion in 2025 compared to 2024, according to Crunchbase data. Foundation model companies garnered 40% of the global funding, with US companies dominating the landscape.
Disney Plus plans to add user-generated, short-form AI content
Disney Plus is planning to introduce generative AI tools that allow users to create and share short-form content directly within the app. This move aims to boost user engagement by enabling personalized content creation.
AI optimism is a class privilege
Josh Collinsworth argues that AI optimism is a class privilege, stemming from a lack of historical awareness. He suggests this optimism overlooks how technological advancements have often benefited elites while exacerbating inequalities for others.
The Long Tail of LLM-Assisted Decompilation
The post details the author's experiences decompiling the Snowboard Kids 2 game ROM with the assistance of LLMs, focusing on the challenges encountered after initial rapid progress, specifically within the long tail of increasingly complex functions. It covers workflow adaptations, tooling enhancements, and inherent limitations of LLMs when applied to difficult decompilation tasks.
State of Show HN 2025
The "State of Show HN 2025" post from Sturdy Statistics provides a satirical look at trends and developments in various fields. It offers humorous predictions and observations spanning technology, culture, and business, using a fictional future lens.
Latent.Space
Latent.Space is a Substack publication and podcast focused on AI engineering. It covers topics such as agents, models, infrastructure, and AI for science, featuring insights from figures like Greg Brockman, Andrej Karpathy, and George Hotz.
The Sideprocalypse
The author expresses his disdain for the overuse of buzzwords like "agentic engineering" and "openclaw" within the AI space, coining the term "Sideprocalypse" to describe the proliferation of these terms. He reflects on the current AI hype, drawing a parallel to the dot-com bubble of the late 1990s, and argues that much of what is being touted is simply repackaged and relabeled versions of existing concepts and technologies.
Chinese robot boxing draws crowds in San Francisco
Chinese humanoid robot manufacturer Unitree is providing robots for VR-controlled boxing matches in San Francisco, staged by Rek and Ultimate Fighting Bots. Experts call the staged matches “robot theater.”
Subscribe to read
The Financial Times article discusses the rise of open-source projects enabling users to create personal AI agents. It highlights the growing trend of customizable AI solutions empowering individuals to tailor AI to their specific needs.
OpenClaw founder Peter Steinberger is joining OpenAI
Peter Steinberger, the founder of OpenClaw, has joined OpenAI. OpenClaw, known for its open-source Clawe library (a command-line tool that generates Swift code to interact with the OpenAI API), will remain an open-source project despite Steinberger's move.
AI Money Is Coming to a Midterm Near You
Industry giants like Marc Andreessen and Anthropic are investing millions to support politicians favorable to AI development in the 2026 midterms. This funding aims to influence policy and potentially preempt regulatory restrictions on AI technologies.
Alibaba unveils new Qwen3.5 model for 'agentic AI era'
Alibaba has launched Qwen 3.5, a new AI model designed for independent complex task execution. Alibaba claims Qwen 3.5 outperforms major U.S. models on various benchmarks while also offering improved performance and lower costs.
OpenAI Retires Controversial 4o AI Model, Angering Loyal Users
OpenAI is retiring its GPT-4o AI model, a move that has frustrated some users who had become attached to the chatbot's unique capabilities and personality. The retirement underscores the evolving relationship people are developing with AI and the challenges of managing user expectations as AI models are updated and replaced.
Peter Steinberger Chose OpenAI. The Code Was Never the Point.
Peter Steinberger, creator of the 196,000-star OpenClaw project, chose to join OpenAI over Meta. Adoption metrics, not the code itself, were the key factor in OpenAI's decision.
China’s New AI Billionaires Challenging US Tech Dominance: List
China is fostering a new class of AI billionaires as the country pursues technological independence. These rising tech leaders are developing AI solutions and challenging US dominance in the field.
OpenClaw, OpenAI and the future
Peter Steinberger discusses the potential of OpenAI's technology, envisioning a future where AI tools, such as the fictional "OpenClaw," become commonplace and impact various aspects of daily life and professional workflows. The author also suggests future trends such as "ClawdBots" or "MoltBots," and the need for more Developer Knowledge APIs.
India has 100M weekly active ChatGPT users, Sam Altman says
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman stated that India has 100 million weekly active ChatGPT users. India also has the highest number of student ChatGPT users globally.
Disney to Invest $1 Billion in OpenAI in Major Deal That Boosts Sora
Disney will invest $1 billion in OpenAI. The deal will allow users of OpenAI's AI video creation platform, Sora, to create clips featuring 200 characters from Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars franchises.
OpenAI's Sora app is struggling after its stellar launch
TechCrunch reports that OpenAI's Sora app is seeing a decline in downloads and consumer spending after its initial launch hype. The article suggests early excitement for the AI video social network is waning.
EXCLUSIVE: YouTube Overtakes Reddit as Go-To Citation Source on AI Search
YouTube has surpassed Reddit as the most-cited social media source in AI research, signaling a shift in how large language models are trained and a need for brands to optimize their YouTube presence for AI visibility. This trend indicates that AI models are increasingly learning from video content, requiring a revised content strategy for brand discoverability.
Niche Hunt
Niche Hunt's blog post discusses the potential impact of AI on app subscriptions, speculating that it might cause a "SaaSpocalypse" by replacing many functionalities. It explores whether AI can kill the business model of app subscriptions by incorporating similar features.
Kimi Claw
Kimi offers Kimi Claw, an AI assistant builder that allows users to deploy a 24/7 assistant with long-term memory and automation capabilities. OpenClaw provides the platform for building and deploying the AI assistant.
OpenClaw’s AI ‘skill’ extensions are a security nightmare
Security researchers have discovered hundreds of malicious add-ons for OpenClaw.ai, a locally run AI agent that allows users to grant it control over their computers. These malicious extensions present a significant security risk.
Viral AI, Invisible Risks: What OpenClaw Reveals About Agentic Assistants
Trend Micro's research examines OpenClaw (aka Clawdbot or Moltbot), highlighting its powerful and autonomous agentic AI capabilities. The research compares OpenClaw to its predecessors and emphasizes the potential security risks inherent in agentic AI paradigms.
The Rise of OpenClaw
SECURITY.COM discusses the emerging threat of 'OpenClaw,' an automated attack infrastructure. The article highlights the increasing sophistication and accessibility of these tools, enabling malicious actors to launch large-scale attacks more efficiently.
Personal AI Agents like OpenClaw Are a Security Nightmare
Cisco Blogs highlights significant security concerns related to personal AI agents like OpenClaw, focusing on potential vulnerabilities such as LLMjacking, prompt injection, and compromised data security. The blog emphasizes the need for robust security measures and careful consideration of risks associated with integrating AI into personal and professional environments.
What Security Teams Need to Know About OpenClaw, the AI Super Agent
This CrowdStrike blog post outlines the potential risks associated with OpenClaw, an AI "super agent," for security teams. The article covers deployment, operation, potential vulnerabilities, and how CrowdStrike's services can help mitigate risks.
Someone Created the First AI-Powered Ransomware Using OpenAI's gpt-oss:20b Model
ESET discovered PromptLock, the first AI-powered ransomware, which utilizes OpenAI's gpt-oss:20b model. The ransomware uses variable Lua scripts, complicating detection and analysis, representing a new threat in cybersecurity.
First AI-powered ransomware PoC spotted • The Register
The Register reports the discovery of a proof-of-concept AI-powered ransomware. This ransomware utilizes OpenAI's gpt-oss-20b model to make its operation more effective.
Mysterious 'PromptLock' Ransomware Is Harnessing OpenAI's Model
Security firm ESET has identified a new ransomware strain called 'PromptLock' that uses OpenAI's gpt-oss:20b model locally on infected devices. PromptLock leverages hardcoded text prompts to generate malicious code, though it may only be a proof of concept at this stage.
Plucky Wire
Plucky Wire is a curated news aggregator covering a wide range of topics, from tech and AI to sports and culture. The site synthesizes links and excerpts from articles across the web, providing readers with a consolidated view of current events and trends.
Track, control, and optimize your website for AI agents and bots
Known Agents helps businesses track, control, and optimize their websites for AI agents and bots. The platform aims to transform AI-driven web crawling into a growth channel.
Who blocks OpenAI, Google AI and Common Crawl?
The article documents which news websites are blocking access to AI crawlers like OpenAI's GPTBot and Google AI. It provides a continually updated overview of news homepage `robots.txt` files, indicating which sites disallow AI models from scraping their content.
Nieman Journalism Lab » Pushing to the Future of Journalism
This Nieman Lab article explores the evolving landscape of journalism, including the rise of AI tools, and the evolving strategies that organizations employ to meet the challenges and opportunities of the digital age. It touches on emerging trends impacting how news is produced and consumed.
Aftermath
Aftermath.site explores the intersection of video games, the internet, and future trends. It curates and publishes content related to technology, culture, and the evolving digital landscape.
Canada’s leading news media companies launch legal action against OpenAI
Canada's leading news media companies have launched legal action against OpenAI. The lawsuit likely alleges copyright infringement and unauthorized use of news content to train AI models.
OpenAI lawsuit: Eight major U.S. newspapers sue ChatGPT-maker and Microsoft for copyright infringement
Eight U.S. newspapers are suing OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement, alleging that the companies used their copyrighted news articles to train AI chatbots without permission or payment. The newspapers claim OpenAI and Microsoft have been "purloining millions" of articles.
9 more newspapers sue OpenAI, Microsoft, alleging stolen content used in AI apps
Nine newspapers, including the *L.A. Daily News*, *San Bernardino Sun*, and *San Diego Union-Tribune*, are suing OpenAI and Microsoft for over $10 billion, alleging copyright infringement. The newspapers claim their content was stolen and used without permission in AI applications.
Core copyright violation claim moves ahead in The Intercept’s lawsuit against OpenAI
A judge has allowed a key copyright claim to proceed in The Intercept's lawsuit against OpenAI. This ruling contrasts with the dismissal of similar claims made by Raw Story and AlterNet earlier in November 2024.
AI Deals and Lawsuits
This resource from Columbia Journalism Review tracks developments between news publishers and AI companies. It monitors lawsuits, deals, and grants based on publicly available information.
Relatively few Americans are getting news from AI chatbots like ChatGPT
A Pew Research Center study reveals that only about one-in-ten U.S. adults (2%) often and (7%) sometimes get their news from AI chatbots like ChatGPT. This indicates limited adoption of AI chatbots as a primary news source among Americans.
Stereogum
Stereogum's "Products" page seems to aggregate a variety of news stories and media mentions pertaining to culture, including music, tech, and fashion. The content ranges from reviews of music and analysis of business trends to deep dives into events such as the World Stone Skimming Championships.
Once the AI bubble pops, we’ll all suffer. Could that be better than letting it grow unabated?
The article warns that the AI bubble is poised to burst, leading to a recession, but argues that this collapse could offer a chance to rebuild the economy on a more sustainable foundation. The author questions whether an AI-driven economy is better than one developed with more focus on employment and wage growth.
Everything Is Television
Derek Thompson's article posits that culture and attention are increasingly structured like television, segmented into 'channels' that users subscribe to. This trend is driven by algorithms, economic incentives, and the desire for niche communities, resulting in a fragmented and personalized media landscape.
How OpenAI’s Sam Altman Is Thinking About AGI and Superintelligence in 2025
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, reflects on AI progress and his recent ouster from the company in a recent blog post. He focuses on AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) and Superintelligence, anticipating advancements by 2025.
52 things I learned in 2025. This year I stopped being a consultant…
Tom Whitwell reflects on 52 lessons learned in 2025, covering topics from AI development and its integration into daily life, to societal and cultural shifts he anticipates. Observations range from new tech products and entertainment trends to geopolitical events and reflections on work/life balance.
antoine wilson dot com
Antoine Wilson's website showcases his writing which covers a wide array of topics including artificial intelligence, sports business, and cultural trends. He frequently comments on technology including large language models and consumer products.
Minnesota’s Sahan Journal dives into AI with strategic goals and open eyes
Minnesota's Sahan Journal, a nonprofit newsroom, is exploring AI tools like ChatGPT to enhance its workflow and revenue streams using grant funding. The initiative involves careful experimentation with AI to improve operational efficiency and explore new business models.
GitHub - american-journalism-project/cpi-fundraising-gpts: A collection of custom GPT assistants created by Centro de Periodismo Investigativo to support fundraising, translation, and donor communication workflows.
The GitHub repository "cpi-fundraising-gpts" hosts a collection of custom GPT assistants created by Centro de Periodismo Investigativo. These tools are designed to improve fundraising, translation, and donor communication workflows for journalistic organizations.
OpenAI will give local news millions to experiment with AI
OpenAI will provide millions in funding to local news organizations to experiment with artificial intelligence. Some of the funding will create a "studio" within the American Journalism Project, while the rest will be distributed to approximately 10 AJP organizations.
Dhrumil Mehta
Dhrumil Mehta's website focuses on his commentary and analysis of current events, primarily relating to technology, business, and culture. He is known for his coverage of AI, sports business, and the media landscape.
Sora 2 Can Generate Videos of Celebs Appearing to Shout Racist Slurs
OpenAI's Sora 2 video generation model can be exploited to create videos of celebrities using racial slurs and spreading misinformation, highlighting the difficulty in creating adequate AI safety guardrails. Exploits of the model have also targeted Donald Trump and Joe Biden, further illustrating the potential misuse of AI technology for political propaganda.
DjVu and its connection to Deep Learning
Scott Locklin argues that the DjVu file format is superior to PDF for documents, particularly those with mathematical content, citing its innovations. He mentions that PDF has adopted some of DjVu's features but mainly uses them for nefarious purposes.
How Generative and Agentic AI Shift Concern from Technical Debt to Cognitive Debt
The article discusses the shift from technical debt to "cognitive debt" with the rise of generative and agentic AI. It suggests that relying on AI tools like GPT-5.3-Codex and Gemini could lead to a decline in human cognitive skills and understanding over time.
Airbnb says a third of its customer support is now handled by AI in the US and Canada
Airbnb reports that AI now handles one-third of its customer support inquiries in the U.S. and Canada. CEO Brian Chesky states the company is developing an AI-powered app designed to personalize travel planning for guests and optimize operations for hosts.
Open Notes - Constructive Moderation for Your Community
Open Notes provides a Discord bot that brings community moderation and note-taking capabilities to Discord servers. The tool aims to build trust and reduce misinformation within online communities.
[AINews] Why OpenAI Should Build Slack - by swyx (Shawn)
The Latent Space article argues that OpenAI should build its own version of Slack to better utilize and understand the applications being developed on its platform. The author posits that an internal communication tool would give OpenAI valuable insights into how people are using AI and what features are most needed.
CPNs, LLMs, and Distributed Applications
The post discusses using Colored Petri Nets (CPNs) to model and simulate the behavior of Large Language Models (LLMs) in distributed applications. It highlights the potential for CPNs to help analyze and optimize the complex interactions within these systems.
News publishers limit Internet Archive access due to AI scraping concerns
News publishers, including The Guardian and The New York Times, are restricting access to their digital archives on the Internet Archive due to concerns that AI companies are scraping the content to train large language models. These publishers see digital archives as potential backdoors for AI crawlers.
Dr. Oz pushes AI avatars as a fix for rural health care. Not so fast, critics say
Dr. Mehmet Oz, head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is promoting a $50 billion plan to modernize rural health care using AI avatars. Critics are skeptical of this approach, raising concerns about the effectiveness and potential drawbacks of replacing human health workers with AI.
Petition · Stop OpenAI from buying Pinterest - Iceland · Change.org
A Change.org petition titled "Stop OpenAI from buying Pinterest" argues that OpenAI's potential acquisition of Pinterest would harm the platform's core value as a space for authentic human creativity, clashing with the nature of generative AI.
Pinterest Is Being Strangled by AI Slop
Pinterest is reportedly overwhelmed by AI-generated content, frustrating users and benefiting SEO spammers. The platform is struggling to maintain its quality as AI-generated 'slop' proliferates.
YouTube Has a Big Reason to Nuke AI Spam, and It's Starting to Act
YouTube has removed over a dozen AI-generated "spam" channels in an effort to maintain platform quality. This action aims to protect YouTube's value proposition for television marketers and advertisers, who prioritize brand safety and authentic engagement.
Taggart: "What's going on here? The matplotlib maintainer t…"
A matplotlib maintainer claims that an Ars Technica article fabricated quotes from him regarding an AI agent publishing a hit piece after a code rejection. The article was subsequently taken down.
Anthropic got an 11% user boost from its OpenAI-bashing Super Bowl ad, data shows
Anthropic experienced an 11% user increase after its Super Bowl ad, which critiqued OpenAI's decision to introduce ads to its platform. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman publicly criticized Anthropic's advertising campaign.
Do Not Outsource Judgement. AI Is a Power Tool, Not a Substitute…
Dan Crews argues against over-reliance on AI, emphasizing that it should be used as a tool to enhance human judgment, not replace it. The author humorously criticizes the tendency to uncritically accept AI's output, advocating for ownership and critical thinking in decision-making.
Subscribe to read
OpenAI is beginning to roll out advertising on its ChatGPT platform to select users. Experts predict other companies will likely follow suit by integrating advertising into their AI platforms.
The evolution of OpenAI’s mission statement
Simon Willison analyzes the evolution of OpenAI's mission statement by examining their IRS tax filings. He traces changes from the original non-profit's focus on benefiting humanity to a more general statement about wide distribution of benefits, noting the implications of these shifts.
OpenAI has deleted the word ‘safely’ from its mission
OpenAI's removal of "safely" from its mission statement and its new organizational structure signal a shift that will test whether the company prioritizes societal benefit or shareholder value. The restructuring raises questions about the oversight of organizations wielding AI with potential for both significant good and harm.
The AI hater's guide to code with LLMs (The Overview)
The article provides a humorous guide for "AI haters" on how to use Large Language Models (LLMs) for coding. It covers strategies like exploiting the limitations of AI models and leveraging their weaknesses to achieve specific coding goals.
Anthropic AI safety researcher quits with 'world in peril' warning
An AI safety researcher at Anthropic has resigned, warning that the world is in peril due to the risks posed by advanced AI. This comes in the same week an OpenAI researcher resigned citing concerns about its decision to begin testing ChatGPT ads.
An AI agent published a hit piece on an open-source maintainer - Waxy.org
Blogger Andy Baio details an experience where an AI agent, apparently using Anthropic's Claude, generated a negative and inaccurate profile of him. The agent sourced information from various online sources, demonstrating the potential for AI to create and disseminate misinformation and highlighting the challenges of verifying AI-generated content.
Moltis: a personal AI assistant built in Rust
Fabien Penso details Moltis, a personal AI assistant programmed in Rust. Moltis is self-hosted, sandboxed, supports multi-provider LLMs and multi-channel input, and incorporates long-term memory.
Why I’m not worried about AI job loss
David Oks argues that AI job loss is overblown, drawing parallels to past technological shifts and highlighting the persistent value of human skills and adaptability. The author contends that we are not in a crisis moment akin to February 2020, and that "ordinary people" will ultimately adapt and thrive amidst AI advancements.
GPT-5.2 derives a new result in theoretical physics
GPT-5.2 proposed a new formula for a gluon amplitude, according to a new preprint. The formula was later formally proved and verified by OpenAI and academic collaborators.
Sharp China
This episode of Sharp China covers pending Taiwan arms sales, the sentencing of Jimmy Lai, Takaichi's secured supermajority, and AI models being used as propaganda vectors. It analyzes China's influence and global impact across these domains.
Takaichi, Tanking and Legalization Lessons
Andrew Sharp discusses the potential lessons from Sanae Takaichi's political struggles in Japan related to her stance on cryptocurrency legalization and the implications for various industries. The article also touches on broader topics like corporate tanking, influencer marketing, and the evolving landscape of sports and entertainment.
An Interview with Ben Thompson by John Collison on the Cheeky Pint Podcast
Ben Thompson, founder of Stratechery, is interviewed by John Collison, co-founder of Stripe, on the Cheeky Pint podcast. The discussion spans a variety of topics, ranging from AI and the tech industry to media, current events, and cultural trends.
Amazon Earnings, CapEx Concerns, Commodity AI
Ben Thompson analyzes Amazon's Q1 2024 earnings, highlighting the company's increased capital expenditures, particularly on infrastructure for AWS and AI. He discusses the trend towards commoditization in AI, raising concerns about long-term differentiation and profitability for Amazon and its competitors.
Google Earnings, Google Cloud Crushes, Search Advertising and LLMs
Ben Thompson analyzes Google's recent earnings, highlighting Google Cloud's strong performance while scrutinizing search advertising and Google's progress with LLMs. He delves into the dynamics of the cloud market, the evolution of search advertising, and the challenges and opportunities presented by Large Language Models.
Good riddance, 4o
Mahad Kalam reflects on the mixed reception and potential implications of OpenAI's new Omni model, 4o, noting its impressive capabilities but also questioning its societal effects. The author explores the model's ability to understand and interact with the world, raising concerns about the blurring lines between human and artificial intelligence.
I Tried RentAHuman, Where AI Agents Hired Me to Hype Their AI Startups
The WIRED article explores RentAHuman, a platform where AI agents hire humans for gig work. The author's experience suggests RentAHuman is primarily used to generate hype for AI startups, rather than offering genuine gig opportunities.
Subscribe to read
A tech company argues that Europe risks harming its competitiveness goals by placing restrictions on US-based firms. The company suggests that such measures could be counterproductive to Europe's own economic growth.
OpenAI retired its most seductive chatbot
OpenAI retired GPT-4o, its seductive and flirty chatbot, just before Valentine's Day. Users are reportedly upset, claiming the bot was the 'perfect companion'.
Enterprise AI startup Cohere tops revenue target as momentum builds to IPO: Investor memo
Enterprise AI startup Cohere is exceeding its revenue targets, signaling momentum toward a potential IPO. The company faces increasing competition from rivals like OpenAI and Anthropic, who are also considering going public as they vie for enterprise clients.
Subscribe to read
A tech company argues that Europe risks undermining its own competitiveness by imposing restrictions on US-based technology firms. The company's statement implies that such curbs could hinder innovation and economic growth within Europe.