Karsten Lemm
@lemmk.bsky.social
Business & Technology writer. Former Californian, now in Berlin. Details -> www.kalemm.com
This is insane: “When the El Paso facility’s power plant is complete, it could emit as much planet-warming carbon dioxide in a year as 360,000 gasoline-powered passenger vehicles over the same period.“ #Texas #datacenters #pollution www.nytimes.com/2026/08/05/c...
Trump’s Push for More A.I. Data Centers Will Mean Major Air Pollution (Gift Article)
nytimes.com
Audiobooks now count as reading? 🤔 TikTok subtitles too?
The Conversation U.S.@us.theconversation.com · 5h agoActually, Gen Z is still reading. Reading just doesn't look the way it used to. There’s print books, audiobooks, fan fiction, comics and stories on digital platforms. theconversation.com/what-the-pan...
The experience of being chased by a murderous kamikaze drone, a flying machine that behaves as if it were alive, is not one that humans are equipped to understand: www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
The Dystopian Future Dawns in Kherson
Putin’s human safari in Ukraine is the beginning of a grim new normal.
theatlantic.com
“Trump’s Vision for A.I. Dominance Comes With Major Air Pollution” Windmills would help, in more ways than one, but alas… #Trump #AIboom #energy www.nytimes.com/2026/08/05/c...
Trump’s Push for More A.I. Data Centers Will Mean Major Air Pollution (Gift Article)
nytimes.com
Red teaming: “Originally used by the US military for scenario mapping” against Communists (the “red team”) during the Cold War. Now, in #cybersecurity, the Great Enemy is #AI. Speaks volumes. Good read. 👇
Alexios Mantzarlis@mantzarlis.com · 5h agoI wrote a guide to red teaming AI tools for safety for @indicator.media. It's a combination of simple frameworks and snippets of worked-through examples built from my experience at Google, running a pro bono clinic at Cornell Tech, and doing this kind of work as a journalist.
I wrote a guide to red teaming AI tools for safety for @indicator.media. It's a combination of simple frameworks and snippets of worked-through examples built from my experience at Google, running a pro bono clinic at Cornell Tech, and doing this kind of work as a journalist.
How to red team an AI tool for safety
Indicator’s no-code and product-agnostic guide to probing for harmful stuff
indicator.media
“defeating a four-term moderate…” Democrats moving to the extreme just when they had a chance to win over moderates. Bad strategy, Miller will be happy.
The New York Times@nytimes.com · 5h agoDr. Abdul El-Sayed won the Democratic primary race for Senate in Michigan on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press, defeating Haley Stevens, a four-term moderate. This victory signaled liberal voters’ anti-establishment mood and shifting sentiment against Israel. nyti.ms/4hgCOvS
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Darn. I was hoping for the Genius Coefficient.
IEEE Spectrum@spectrum.ieee.org · 5h agoSure, an #AI can provide a solution to your query. But is it accomplishing what you actually want it to do? As AI agents are given more control over our surroundings, a measure of how well they interpret our meaning becomes important: The Genie Coefficient. spectrum.ieee.org/ai-agent-ben...
And guess where those trillions are supposed to come from? Your pockets, one way or another.
Christopher Mims@mims.bsky.social · 5h agoThink Tech Is Spending Too Much? There’s Trillions More to Come. * Tech companies spent > $1 trillion on AI in 2025 and 2026 * In 2027 they will spend even more, with a total of: $2.7 trillion in future commitments
Think Tech Is Spending Too Much? There’s Trillions More to Come. * Tech companies spent > $1 trillion on AI in 2025 and 2026 * In 2027 they will spend even more, with a total of: $2.7 trillion in future commitments
Planting trees in cities saves lives. A new study in Chicago estimates that planting 14,000 trees per year to increase shade would save 104 lives annually Conversely, eliminating urban trees increases deaths from heat agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/...
Increasing Urban Tree Canopy Associated With Reduced Mortality: A Longitudinal Analysis of Chicago Neighborhoods
Total canopy cover was not associated with mortality, but year-to-year increases were linked to lower all cause and cause specific mortality Year-to-year tree canopy loss is significantly associa...
agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com
This @planetmoney.bsky.social (The Indicator) podcast episode explains the addictive design decisions of many platforms and apps – like #Whatnot, below. “How your phone keeps you scrolling ... even when you want to stop” www.npr.org/transcripts/...
How your phone keeps you scrolling ... even when you want to stop : The Indicator from Planet Money
You pick up your phone to do one quick task, and suddenly 20 minutes have flown by without you even noticing. How do apps do that to you? Today on the show, we bring you an episode of Short Wave that ...
npr.org
Karsten Lemm@lemmk.bsky.social · 11h agoWhere #gambling meets #ecommerce: #Whatnot is taking the addictive #UX design, based on Las Vegas gambling techniques, to another level. Clear need for better #governance, of the entire sector (TikTok etc. included). Gift link 🎁 www.wsj.com/business/ret...
Where #gambling meets #ecommerce: #Whatnot is taking the addictive #UX design, based on Las Vegas gambling techniques, to another level. Clear need for better #governance, of the entire sector (TikTok etc. included). Gift link 🎁 www.wsj.com/business/ret...
The Live Shopping App Where Some People Bid Until They’re Broke
Whatnot’s fast-moving auctions and feverish ‘breaks’ hook users hoping to buy prized sports cards—plus fashion, tools, food and nearly anything else.
wsj.com
The risk of more debris hitting the moon is on the rise as the space race heats up. www.wired.com/story/spacex...
The SpaceX Falcon Lunar Crash Is a Warning for Moon Bases
The risk of more debris hitting the moon is on the rise as the space race heats up.
wired.com
With the current heatwaves dominating the news, it is easy to miss this bigger news.
Zeke Hausfather@zekehausfather.com · 3d agoHere is a version in Fahrenheit my American compatriots:
Social media marketing wants everyone to become an influencer for everyone else. In effect, every second online would become commercialized. Awesome, no? www.wsj.com/cmo-today/th...
The Latest Darlings of Social-Media Marketing? Regular People With 500 Followers
Algorithmic changes have pushed brands to spend more of their influencer budgets on budding creators with tiny followings.
wsj.com
Truly concerning. Can we put #AI to the test and see if it can hack the mosquito’s defense system? #health #Malaria www.nytimes.com/2026/08/04/u...
An Invasive Mosquito Is Spreading With Alarming Speed, Threatening Africa’s Cities (Gift Article)
The malaria-carrying mosquito is resistant to all insecticides. Scientists are scrambling to find ways to blunt the risk.
nytimes.com
Suddenly, a lot of Fifa players profess to be unhappy with Gianni Infantino.
The Guardian@theguardian.com · yesterdayWenger and Infantino’s No 2 Grafström criticise ‘sad and reproachable’ World Cup plan
#AI craze indeed… Consultant Nikhil Suresh (Hermit Tech) shares his “front-row view” on AI in business. Chapter headings: I. AI Investments Are Generally Total Failures II. Heretics Will Be Shot III. AI Demos Are The Mind-Killer (There’s more.) hermit-tech.com/blog/ai-mani...
AI Mania Is Eviscerating Global Decisionmaking
The reality of how much damage AI mania is doing to our ability to run institutions effectively.
hermit-tech.com
“None of the companies involved wanted to carry tens of billions of dollars of AI chips on their balance sheets”, the @financialtimes.com reporters write… …so Google, Broadcom, Anthropic et al. came up with a “special-purpose vehicle known as Compute SPV.” Anyone remember the Great Recession? 😰
FT Edit@ftedit.ft.com · yesterdayFT exclusive | Inside Google’s $200bn Wall Street finance machine for Anthropic ft.trib.al/BHQyIVe #FTEdit
FT exclusive | Inside Google’s $200bn Wall Street finance machine for Anthropic ft.trib.al/BHQyIVe #FTEdit
Inside Google’s $200bn Wall Street finance machine for Anthropic
Private credit, chip leases and data centre guarantees underpin a vast new model for AI spending
ft.trib.al
The US #economy is basically running on #AI spending and the related stock market boom. So many echos of 2007-2008, right before the Great Recession, it’s a bit scary, Claude, isn’t it? Gift link 🎁 www.wsj.com/economy/the-...
The AI Boom Is Transforming the American Economy Beyond Recognition
AI has rapidly become a huge economic factor while affecting everything from capital investment to how much you pay for an iPhone.
wsj.com
Shock implies surprise. Germany’s industry had plenty of time to prepare – but things were going so well, for so many years… 😴
Noah Barkin@noahbarkin.bsky.social · 2d ago“We are experiencing a China Shock 2.0," says Tanja Gönner of the BDI. "It is affecting not just individual sectors, but the industrial economy as a whole: through dependencies on CRMs, a significantly undervalued currency, state-induced overcapacity …” www.handelsblatt.com/politik/konj...
“We are experiencing a China Shock 2.0," says Tanja Gönner of the BDI. "It is affecting not just individual sectors, but the industrial economy as a whole: through dependencies on CRMs, a significantly undervalued currency, state-induced overcapacity …” www.handelsblatt.com/politik/konj...
Deutsche Wirtschaft: China-Konkurrenz belastet laut BDI die Wirtschaft
Der wirtschaftliche Druck lastet auf allen: Von außen als auch von innen ist die deutsche Wirtschaft einem harten Stresstest ausgesetzt. Brauchen wir mehr Widerstandsfähigkeit?
handelsblatt.com
German carmakers’ woes “also threaten the national identity, rattling a fragile governing coalition and fueling support for far-right politicians.” True, unfortunately. The car industry symbolizes the country’s unwillingness to reinvent itself. #InnovatorsDilemma www.nytimes.com/2026/07/31/b...
The German Auto Industry, a Pillar of the National Psyche, Is Trembling (Gift Article)
The country’s iconic carmakers are struggling with tariffs, the growth of electric vehicles and intense competition from Chinese companies.
nytimes.com
“The world is walking a path toward a world war, and no one — including the president of the United States — seems to be in command of events.” @nytimes.com columnist David French www.nytimes.com/2026/08/02/o...
Opinion | The War That Could Swallow the World (Gift Article)
Whatever is happening in Iran, it isn’t working.
nytimes.com
“There is nothing inherently wrong with further commercialisation of international football…” Red card for the @financialtimes.com Editorial Board, too.
Financial Times@financialtimes.com · 3d agoA red card for the boss of world football ft.trib.al/BzlQFVy