Mia Sato
@miasato.bsky.social
reporter at @theverge.com, and things of that nature. i cover social media/tech companies and life online. contact me securely on signal: @miasato.11.
I saw one of his pieces at the Palm Springs Art Museum and it was fabulous
Sarah Archer@sarcher.bsky.social · yesterdayIt's Textile Tuesday, and you know what that means: a piece by artist Faig Ahmed called "The Dragons of Karabakh" that's woven to look like an antique Central Asian carpet is melting off the wall into a puddle. More about the artist here: faigahmed.com
Wrote about the OpenAI influence trip, the limits and perils of tapping influencers to do your bidding, and how the whole thing just kind of seems like amateur hour, from a practical standpoint. Lots going on here! www.theverge.com/tech/975173/...
How an OpenAI influencer trip backfired
“People will literally sell their soul and their planet down the river for a nice free hotel room.”
theverge.com
In an effort to stuff AI search results with brand-friendly answers, marketers have descended upon Reddit, a platform that users have come to associate with unfiltered, truthful opinions. They will have to get past the moderators first. Read more from @miasato.bsky.social: buff.ly/EFbnTAk
Spoke with @theverge.com about some of the work we’ve been doing on r/indieheads in regards to self-promotional spam, burner accounts and dealing with the music industry. Thank you again to @miasato.bsky.social for talking with me for this great piece of reporting!
Mia Sato@miasato.bsky.social · yesterdayIs your favorite subreddit filled with brands blending in with real users while they promote themselves? Reddit is more important than ever. I wrote about the skincare brands, record labels, and weight loss apps descending on Reddit to get seen by people — and AI. www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
I’ve seen this in the cybersecurity community. Lots of obvious Reddit spam but also tons of skepticism on post authenticity
Mia Sato@miasato.bsky.social · yesterdayIs your favorite subreddit filled with brands blending in with real users while they promote themselves? Reddit is more important than ever. I wrote about the skincare brands, record labels, and weight loss apps descending on Reddit to get seen by people — and AI. www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
Is your favorite subreddit filled with brands blending in with real users while they promote themselves? Reddit is more important than ever. I wrote about the skincare brands, record labels, and weight loss apps descending on Reddit to get seen by people — and AI. www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
Can Reddit fend off a new wave of AI SEO spam?
The era of AI-powered search has made Reddit mentions highly valuable. Subreddit moderators are catching brands trying to take advantage.
theverge.com
New ice breaker question: So are your parents affected by the pied-à-terre tax?
Lol did Substack rip off the title for its new AI newsletter from Wired's AI newsletter?
Instagram says it will ban some of the creepiest kinds of content filmed with Meta glasses, like harassment. I wrote about how Meta gets to have it both ways: saying it will police bad behavior while creating the conditions for it to exist in the first place. www.theverge.com/report/97090...
Meta just created a moderation nightmare for its smart glasses
A new ban on some Meta glasses content is more complicated than it seems
theverge.com
I’m so tired from this week that I fell asleep during an MRI 👍🏼
!! Trump's longtime teleprompter operator is accused of making bets on Kalshi related to what Trump would say in speeches abcnews.com/US/white-hou...
White House teleprompter operator made more than $100K betting on Trump's speeches: Sources
President Trump's longtime teleprompter operator is believed to have made tens of thousands of dollars by placing bets on the contents of Trump's speeches, sources say.
abcnews.com
Acquired an absolute grail recently at an antique store: a very old (possibly pre-1920s!!) card catalog. It’s so solid and heavy and I love how weathered it is. Made by Library Bureau Sole Makers, (founded by Melvil Dewey of the Dewey Decimal system), that made furniture/supplies for libraries.
I wrote about Partiful, the event invites app, and the cloud over it that the company can’t seem to shake: Its founders background working for Palantir. Gift link: www.theverge.com/report/96063...
What is Partiful selling?
A Palantir-shaped shadow follows the event planning app.
theverge.com
Eating the occasional hotdog is like having the occasional cigarette
I kind of think 78 degrees is the perfect temperature to set your AC to
It was such a treat to chat with Tim Heidecker about The Onion's rebooted InfoWars, which launches this week. Tim is temporarily wearing Alex Jones' skin and I'm wearing @davidpierce.xyz's on the Vergecast. Watch and listen! www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlU3...
Meet The Onion's new and improved InfoWars | The Vergecast
YouTube video by The Verge
youtube.com
The tech industry people who suddenly say they care about “taste,” culture, visual arts, fashion, history, etc feels especially strange and grating, I think, because this moment of abundance for them is made possibly only through the displacement of folks who make the things in the first place.
It was such a treat to chat with Tim Heidecker about The Onion's rebooted InfoWars, which launches this week. Tim is temporarily wearing Alex Jones' skin and I'm wearing @davidpierce.xyz's on the Vergecast. Watch and listen! www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlU3...
Meet The Onion's new and improved InfoWars | The Vergecast
YouTube video by The Verge
youtube.com
The guru hingal (minced lamb over wide noodles) at Village Cafe in Midwood was one of the best things I’ve eaten in NYC all year
You’re laughing. You spoiled the whale’s name in Moby Dick for me and you’re laughing!!!!
“It broke me to realize that in the Hamptons, plants are covered for the winter while people are left outside in the cold with nothing.” www.nytimes.com/2026/06/21/r...
Where Billionaires Summer, a Gardener Died in the Snow
nytimes.com
UK staff at the foundation that runs Wikipedia seeks union recognition
UK staff at the foundation that runs Wikipedia seeks union recognition
Staff cited concerns over transparency, trust, and the future of the foundation
buff.ly
Liz Soto and Savanna Batten are 2 of those sentenced to 50 years in prison for Prairieland. I visited them in a north Texas jail—11 months into their incarceration over a July 4 noise demo—to meet the Trump admin’s “Antifa terrorists”. from behind glass, Soto said, “They didn’t like my book club.”
‘This is injustice’: how leftist zines were used to sentence anti-ICE protesters to decades in prison
Advocates sound alarm after zines were used as evidence to convict protesters of terrorism charges tied to 2025 protest at Texas ICE facility
theguardian.com
