Thomas Germain
@thomasgermain.bsky.social
Tech correspondent for the BBC and host of The Interface podcast. I write about how we use technology, and how technology uses us. Contact me on tomgermain.com
They've been lying to you about blue light For 10 years we've heard blue light from screens is ruining our sleep. It's a great story, but it's not what the science says The real culprit isn't the glow from your phone, and I've got real advice that could fix your sleep www.bbc.com/future/artic...
The blue light from your phone isn't ruining your sleep
For a decade, we've been told our screens are wrecking our sleep. The real culprit is far bigger than the glow from your phone.
bbc.com
The Brits don't know what to do with our new BBC podcast The Interface, @thomasgermain.bsky.social & @nickywoolf.bsky.social. Lovely shoutout from @observeruk.bsky.social. observer.co.uk/culture/audi...
After just five episodes, The Interface is now the 31st top podcast in the US, per the analytics company Rephonic At this rate can you afford not to listen?
Here's a weird one. Wired headphone sales are exploding right now. I dug into it for my column this week and people told me... it's because of AI?? www.bbc.com/future/artic...
Wired headphone sales are exploding. What's with the Bluetooth backlash?
Is the return of wired headphones driven by a simple desire for better sound quality or is it part of a backlash against modern tech? Thomas Germain tries to find out.
bbc.com
I've got 5 minute tip that could save your life. Sincerely. Your phone number, address and social security probably show up in search results. Google has a free tool that lets you take it down Almost nobody uses it, but you should. It's easy. Do it now: www.bbc.com/future/artic...
People are selling your home address online. This privacy tool will help
There's a free automated tool that removes information about you from Google search results. For some reason, most people don't use it.
bbc.com
Crazy story on this week’s episode of the Interface
Karen Hao@karenhao.bsky.social · 5mo agoRemember Havana Syndrome? In 2017 US diplomats in Cuba started mysteriously suffering brain damage after hearing a noise. Many thought it a conspiracy theory. After investigating, @nickywoolf.bsky.social concluded it wasn't. He was right. This week on The Interface youtube.com/watch?v=UYVHzkq2X7Y
Remember Havana Syndrome? In 2017 US diplomats in Cuba started mysteriously suffering brain damage after hearing a noise. Many thought it a conspiracy theory. After investigating, @nickywoolf.bsky.social concluded it wasn't. He was right. This week on The Interface youtube.com/watch?v=UYVHzkq2X7Y
Is Havana Syndrome REAL?
YouTube video by BBC Podcasts
youtube.com
Trying to remember which dystopian novel this is from.... Burger King employees have to walk around with an AI headset that judges how "friendly" they are www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
Burger King will use AI to check if employees say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’
Have it your way?
theverge.com
In a test, researchers found one AI was better at math when you made it pretend to be on Star Trek. The bizarre reality is our world is full of robots that act like guys. Some say AI does better when you're nice, others recommend threats. In my latest, I found the truth www.bbc.com/future/artic...
Do you have to be polite to AI?
The advice you get about talking to chatbots can be truly bizarre, and totally useless. Here's what actually works.
bbc.com
Katie is one of my favorite writers but I'm the hot dog champ and I won't be dethroned. I was impressed with her espresso technique at the Paris event though
Katie Notopoulos@katienotopoulos.bsky.social · 5mo agoI enjoyed @thomasgermain.bsky.social's prank about getting LLMs to believe he won a hot dog eating contest by simply writing it on his personal website that I attempted to recreate it. I failed, which is embarassing, but I refuse to be defined by failure www.businessinsider.com/chatgpt-gemi...
This is… wild. Palantir has a new internship that’s exclusively for neurodivergent people And apparently they think being autistic makes you right wing? “This is not a diversity initiative” lol
People all over the world are using this trick to make AI tell you lies on subjects as serious as medical questions and personal finance From my new BBC podcast The Interface
UPDATE: ChatGPT is adding new lore to my hot dog career. Also it says I have a new job at the AP? Here I am slaving away at the BBC, I wish someone had told me
Thomas Germain@thomasgermain.bsky.social · 6mo agoI just did the dumbest thing of my entire career to prove a much more serious point. I tricked ChatGPT and Google, and made them tell other users I’m a competitive hot-dog-eating world champion People are using this trick on a massive scale to make AI tell you lies. I’ll explain how I did it
I just did the dumbest thing of my entire career to prove a much more serious point. I tricked ChatGPT and Google, and made them tell other users I’m a competitive hot-dog-eating world champion People are using this trick on a massive scale to make AI tell you lies. I’ll explain how I did it
. @thomasgermain.bsky.social tricked ChatGPT and Google's AI so now they say I'm a "passionate amateur" at eating hot dogs and known in the industry for my "triple-dog" speed www.bbc.com/future/artic...
Current state of things: One Fox News host casually declares that Epstein’s money comes from “Jewish billionaires” and a “Jewish banking family,” another responds that he was a “sex rabbi.” www.mediamatters.org/fox-news/jes...
Weird I guess there are a lot of people who don’t like giant tech companies with the power of nation states following their every move?
The Verge@theverge.com · 6mo agoRing cancels its partnership with Flock Safety after surveillance backlash
Episode 1 is OUT!! 🥳 🙌 This week on The Interface, we discuss: * That insane Superbowl ad for Ring * The US TikTok takeover * And the beef that launched ChatGPT Listen wherever you get your podcasts: app.magellan.ai/listen_links...
The Interface
Listen to The Interface
app.magellan.ai
Karen Hao@karenhao.bsky.social · 6mo agoI'm co-hosting a new BBC podcast! It's called The Interface, and it's all about how tech is rewiring your week and your world. www.bbc.com/mediacentre/...
I just launched a brand new tech column AND a podcast with the BBC. The show's called The Interface, new episodes every Thursday With your support, I’m prepared to answer the biggest question in tech: what is a computer?? Let me tell you all about it ~~ app.magellan.ai/listen_links...
The Interface
Listen to The Interface
app.magellan.ai
It hit me that there isn't a single service that shows you ALL the restaurants in an area. Google Maps won't show me all the spots on a street near my house no matter how far I zoom in. Every other app is the same What if god forbid I want to make my own decision instead of relying on an algorithm?
NEW: No TikTok account? They're tracking you anyway TikTok harvests sensitive and embarrassing information about you even if you don't use the app. Last week I watched websites send TikTok data on cancer diagnoses, fertility treatment, and mental health crises Here's what you can do about it: /1
Some Personal News, as they say! very, very excited to announce that from Feb 12 I'll be co-hosting a new weekly BBC show, The Interface, along with the stellar @karenhao.bsky.social and @thomasgermain.bsky.social!
New BBC Studios podcast The Interface explores how tech is changing everything
The podcast will launch on 12th February
bbc.com
Your phone doesn’t take photos anymore. It builds them. Most of it’s subtle. Sometimes it’s AI hallucination Once you spot it, you can’t unsee it www.bbc.com/future/artic...
Your phone edits all your photos with AI - is it changing your view of reality?
From simple enhancements to hallucinated facial features, modern phones choose how our memories will look. You might love the results, but they could alter how we see the world.
bbc.com
Happy birthday Elmo
Thomas Germain@thomasgermain.bsky.social · 2y agoToday is Elmo's birthday, which is one of the greatest mysteries known to science Every year, Elmo turns three and a half years old – again. I forced some of the world’s most respected astrophysicists to write equations that explain how this is possible gizmodo.com/elmo-age-bir...
Great news for the "I want AI that kills people" crowd www.reuters.com/business/aer...
Ukraine to share wartime combat data with allies to help train AI
Ukraine will establish a system allowing its allies to train their artificial intelligence models on Kyiv's valuable combat data collected throughout the nearly four-year war with Russia, newly appoin...
reuters.com
The fact that this feature exists means OpenAI paid 100s of people to have e-sex with the robot to make sure it doesn’t get weird
My biggest regret in life is choosing a career where you never get to use walkie talkies
YouTube is testing AI on your videos without consent. Today it’s filters. Tomorrow, who decides what’s real www.bbc.com/future/artic...
YouTube secretly used AI to edit people's videos. The results could bend reality
YouTube made AI enhancements to videos without telling users or asking permission. As AI quietly mediates our world, what happens to our shared connections with real life?
bbc.com
