NEW: Meta reviewed, approved, and ran more than 50 ads containing AI-generated child sexual abuse material across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and Threads. They ran for nine months. Some were live this week. After WIRED asked about them, researchers found ~30 more

Meta Ran Ads That Contained AI-Generated Child Sexual Abuse Imagery

More than 50 offending image and video ads were published across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, or Threads, according to Meta’s ad library data. Some ran as recently as this week.

wired.com

"I strongly believe there are entire companies right now under heavy AI psychosis and it’s impossible to have rational conversations with them about it. I can’t name any specific people because they include personal friends" https://hermit-tech.com/blog/ai-mania-is-eviscerating-global-decisionmaking

AI Mania Is Eviscerating Global Decisionmaking · Radically Ethical Data Consulting

The reality of how much damage AI mania is doing to our ability to run institutions effectively.

hermit-tech.com

ICYMI last night, DHS is currently being fined every day for contempt of court until it coughs up the cell phone records of officers involved in immigration stops in L.A. last year that looked like racial profiling rather than reasonable cause. short thread -->

Gabriel Malor@gabrielmalor.bsky.social · 20h ago

Fed. judge holds DHS in civil contempt of court for refusing "intentionally and not in good faith" to provide plaintiffs with phone images they intend to use to prove DHS was racially profiling people arrested in Los Angeles without reasonable suspicion. Order from July 28, unsealed today.

I was a 911 dispatcher for a decade. To really understand how terrible an idea it is to have AI answer 911 calls, I'll present you with a single real-life call: Upon answer, the caller calmly began ordering a pizza. Large, pepperoni. Side order of chicken wings. To be delivered promptly.

Alex Hanna@alexhanna.bsky.social · 2w ago

AI has no place in 911 calls. From Mystery AI Hype Theater 3000’s latest episode “State of Emergency”. (with @emilymbender.bsky.social)

🔥

Emily M. Bender@emilymbender.bsky.social · 8h ago

Mystery AI Hype Theater 3000, ep 82 www.buzzsprout.com/2126417/epis... … in which @savasavasava.myatproto.social joins @alexhanna.bsky.social and me for a good hard look at “harm reduction” as misapplied to “AI”.

As opposition to data centers grows across the United States, the tech industry is "pulling from tried-and-tested playbooks" to bypass it, write Dean Jackson and Samantha Totoni—from nonprofit front groups to super PACs to tightly managed public forums.

Big Tech’s PR Playbook for Overcoming Data Center Opponents

The tech industry is pulling from tried-and-tested playbooks to bypass and securitize public opposition, write Dean Jackson and Sam Totoni.

techpolicy.press

On a recorded call, nominee for U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche lamented the Trump administration’s slowed efforts to restrict abortion, but said the Justice Dept was “working hand in hand” with federal health agencies and the White House to make the Dobbs decision permanent in every state.

Lon Burnam, former TX lawmaker was carried out of the courtroom. The proposal to reduce voting sites would cut Election Day sites by 45%, which would disenfranchise voters. The GOP has long decided democracy was a nice experiment that's over. Wonder when non-radicalized supporters figure that out.

Tarrant County judge removes attendees during public meeting about voting site reductions | KERA News

Former state lawmaker Lon Burnam was carried out of the courtroom by sheriff deputies after O’Hare called speakers disruptive.

keranews.org

I put together a timeline of the major Trump initiatives on the immigration/concentration camp front since January 2025—including many of the ways those plans have been thwarted—and looked ahead at what to expect in the coming months.

Breaking ICE

A timeline of Trump's war on immigrants, and what lies ahead.

degenerateart.beehiiv.com

https://www.techspot.com/news/113325-dozens-police-officers-accused-using-license-plate-cameras.html

Dozens of police officers accused of using license plate cameras to track women | TechSpot

The main tool being misused is Flock Safety, a network of roadside cameras that scan and catalog billions of license plates each month. The firm says its...

techspot.com

'Surely students wouldn't use generative AI to cheat on a voluntary library class??' is a credulousness no one should insist upon having anymore. Because they would. And have done. 🫠

I've loved Massive Attack since the 90s. https://ktla.com/entertainment/massive-attack-detained-by-police-in-singapore-after-concert

Trip hop pioneers detained by police, banned from Singapore after chants at concert | KTLA

Every member of the English trip hop band Massive Attack was detained following a concert in Singapore. The detainments occurred after the group had performed at the Star Theatre on July 29.  Accor…

ktla.com

#Flock Shifty proves time and time again why we cannot trust them! #Littleton, MA disabled "their" #ALPR cameras earlier this year, but after performing a status check they discovered that 5 of the 6 cameras had been reactivated by Flock "with no notification to the town." 🤯 #deflock #surveillance

Littleton claims Flock reactivated its cameras without notifying the town

Officials claim that five of Littleton’s Flock Safety cameras were switched back on by the company without informing the town after the town temporarily disabled the cameras earlier this year.

lowellsun.com

These absolute friggin' ding dongs. https://www.npr.org/2026/07/31/nx-s1-5914652/google-adds-ai-to-satellite-images-raising-fears-of-deepfakes-in-the-sky

Google pauses AI satellite images, after fears of deepfakes in the sky : NPR

Journalists, human rights advocates and open source analysts recoiled in horror at the initial decision: "The opportunities for abuse and disinfo are literally boundless," said one.

npr.org

Just freedom things! /s https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/articles/72-old-criticizes-florida-wildlife-155417133.html

A 72-year-old criticizes Florida’s wildlife agency. They searched his personal data 34 times

Like he had a dozen times before, Jim Watt stood behind the lectern and addressed Florida’s wildlife commission. “Good day, commissioners,” he began.

yahoo.com

"It's about a culture that increasingly searches for reward before effort and treats it as a problem to solve rather than a virtue to cultivate." https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2026/07/13/death-reading-america-blame-phones-books/90863364007 #genAI #LiteracyCrisis

This was an excellent, disturbing, and insightful podcast episode on the egregious ways would-be entrepreneurs are using generative AI to create BIPOC avatars to promote their dubious products. https://www.conspirituality.net/episodes/308-the-ai-slop-machine-is-worse-than-you-think-mallory-demille

Finish the 5: Campaign to Close Texas' Youth Prisons Fri 7 Aug '26 10A-3P Sunnyside Health & Multiservice Center, 4410 Reed Rd. Rm. 2127 RSVP: http://link.txcivilrights.org/FT5 Seeking youth aged 14-25. Youth can expect entry-level organizing education, breakfast and lunch, and fun games and swag!

Looks like Gavin Newsom is going to bat for California Forever, the Network State "tech utopia" project backed by Marc Andreessen and other tech billionaires. 70% of local residents oppose it. But the billionaires hired Newsom's favorite lobbyist. Welcome to Sacramento. nypost.com/2026/07/29/u...

Exclusive | Inside Gavin Newsom’s desperate bid to save billionaire pals’ dream city

Newsom has been quietly whipping support for California’s billionaire-backed megacity as it faces the loss of a key tenant.

nypost.com

13 Investigates asked "each commissioner's office and the judge's office what pushed Carter to the front and why the lead scorer in the first two rounds wasn't offered the job... ...None of them answered... https://abc13.com/post/hundreds-applied-411k-job-filled-late-congresswomans-daughter/19437686

Hundreds applied for $411k job filled by late Congresswoman's daughter - ABC13 Houston

13 Investigates how Harris County decided who to hire for its $411,000 county administrator position that about 400 people applied for.

abc13.com

Is that a lot. www.businessinsider.com/flock-camera...

George shared a pro-Israel song (Hebrew title) made w/ AI: “עוד נרקוד,” transl. “We Will Dance Again,” Lyrics “You say genocide, I say war / When you’re attacked, what’s what the army’s for" 🤢https://variety.com/2026/music/news/boy-george-drops-out-jesus-christ-superstar-pro-israel-song-1236824746

This is morally monstrous behavior. These are ordinary, innocent people that Trump is condemning to suffering & death out of political vindictiveness. Every decent human being, regardless of political party, should condemn it. Where is the fucking *anger*? From the press? From civic leaders? Pols?

FEMA said yes to Democratic disaster requests. Trump killed them anyway.

President Donald Trump cast aside bipartisan precedent when he rejected eligible disaster requests from four blue states.

eenews.net

GenAI reliance strikes again. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/30/government-map-mislabels-african-countries

US government map of Africa mislabels every country at global conference | US foreign policy | The Guardian

State department ‘takes full responsibility’ for erroneous, widely shared chart displayed at Aids conference in Brazil

theguardian.com

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/houston/article/harris-county-ice-resolution-lorenzo-salgado-22365788.php

Lina Hidalgo calls for ICE agents in Houston killing to self-identify

Harris County commissioners voted 3-1 Thursday to issue their formal support for the district attorney's investigation into the July 7 killing of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo by federal immigration...

houstonchronicle.com

“When I put that (shortfall) into our budget, it turns into faculty salaries. … It’ll definitely affect advising,” said Brenda Hellyer, president of San Jacinto College. “For us, it’s going to be a hard budget year.”

Texas community colleges brace for local cuts | AP News

Texas community college leaders are bracing for cuts because they’re missing out on millions that the schools earned but the state can’t afford to pay.

apnews.com

"The attacks are continued demonstrations of Iran’s ability to target U.S. bases across the Middle East and kill U.S. troops" despite months of claims by Trump & Kegsbreath that Iran’s military was annihilated. As this fiction collapses, U.S. CENTCOM refuses to discuss the scale of the strikes.

Iran Has Figured Out How to Overwhelm U.S. Air Defenses

As the U.S. runs short of interceptor missiles, Iran is carrying out strikes with a mix of attack drones and advanced ballistic missiles.

theintercept.com

Vivaldi rejects AI browsing: ‘Humans over hype’ https://www.pcworld.com/article/2892582/vivaldi-rejects-ai-browsing-humans-over-hype.html

Vivaldi rejects AI browsing: 'Humans over hype' | PCWorld

Vivaldi's CEO says that the company will not integrate an AI chatbot or summarization engine into its browser until more rigorous ways to do that safely are available.

pcworld.com

To protect surveillance cameras from the sun. 🫶https://makerworld.com/en/models/3107766-flock-sock-flock-camera-cover

'I Would Never Do This To You:' Protesting Flock, AZ Man Presents Plan to Surveil Gov't Officials “They didn't understand it was satire... until the end,” AZ resident Jacob Petrosky told 404. “They were not happy, they were very upset.” https://www.404media.co/casa-grande-arizona-flock-city-council

'I Would Never Do This To You:' Protesting Flock, Arizona Man Presents Plan to Surveil Government Officials

“They didn't understand it was satire in the beginning until the end,” Casa Grande, Arizona resident Jacob Petrosky told 404 Media. “They were not happy, they were very upset.”

404media.co