A few short announcements this week: 1. We’re taking a little summer break - the pod will be back on August 21st. If you haven’t listened to all of Computer Says Kill or REAL Resistance, now’s your chance! www.themaybe.org/series/compu...

“Data is the last frontier of colonization. They took our land and tried to sell it back to us.  Now, they're taking our data and selling it back to us as a service.” Wealthy states still colonize Global Majority countries - only now instead of grabbing land, they grab minerals, labor, and data.

Meta’s NDAs are so tight, this is how they respond to requests for production. bsky.app/profile/them...

The Maybe@themaybe.org · 10mo ago

There’s nothing sweet about Project Sucre. Curious about this huge project with a euphemistic name? All you get is a fully redacted proposal from the parish. That’s what organizers like @kadeeja.blacksky.app are up against in Louisiana, a state with one of the most strained energy grids in the US.

"The promise of generative AI is that it can think for us, right? And that's a truly fascist idea..the idea of outsourcing thinking." @naomiaklein.bsky.social talks w @themaybe.org all over the subject. Yep, 3 weeks ago. I missed it. Maybe you too. "And what do we do then?" youtu.be/iEf-MNsyUiE?...

Naomi Klein: AI is a fascist idea

YouTube video by The Maybe

youtu.be

Immediately!! A huge red flag, thank you for having me @themaybe.org this was truly one of my favorite interviews ever!

The Maybe@themaybe.org · 2w ago

When @keshaunpearson.bsky.social heard that Elon Musk was coming to town, he knew that it meant trouble.

Give @keshaunpearson.bsky.social a follow. He and Memphis Community Against Pollution are doing great things vs Musk & xAI.

The Maybe@themaybe.org · 2w ago

@alixdunn.com sat down with @keshaunpearson.bsky.social to talk about his longstanding fight for Memphis residents, his vision for people-led governance, and how he plans to make that vision a reality. Listen to this conversation here: www.themaybe.org/podcast/the-...

When @keshaunpearson.bsky.social heard that Elon Musk was coming to town, he knew that it meant trouble.

AI chatbots are driving people to mental breakdowns and even suicides. Huge congrats to @efwebb.bsky.social and the whole team at @tbij.bsky.social for their excellent reporting on the horrifying consequences of the AI craze.

Effie Webb@efwebb.bsky.social · last mo.

WATCH 🎥 Misaligned: When AI Goes Wrong, the first episode in TBIJ’s series on AI. @tbij.bsky.social

@veenadubal.bsky.social nails it!

The Maybe@themaybe.org · 3w ago

In 2013, taxi drivers began noticing something unusual: unmarked, black cars were cutting them off in taxi lines and picking up their passengers. Little did they know, those black cars were the start of Uber — and that it wasn’t just going to destroy the taxi industry, but wage labor as we knew it.

In 2013, taxi drivers began noticing something unusual: unmarked, black cars were cutting them off in taxi lines and picking up their passengers. Little did they know, those black cars were the start of Uber — and that it wasn’t just going to destroy the taxi industry, but wage labor as we knew it.

NEW: Ep 2 of @tbij.bsky.social series Misaligned is out. We spoke to Meetali Jain, the lawyer behind the first wrongful death cases against AI chatbot companies. Hundreds have contacted her about harms linked to chatbots, including suicide, self-harm, delusions and severe dependency. 🔗 Watch now

I am grateful that @themaybe.org invited me to chat with the great @alixdunn.com and the great @cr0ft0n.bsky.social about one of our favorite topics: the networks that power surveillance in Mexico (and in the global majority), historically and in the present day www.themaybe.org/podcast/real...

I'm on @themaybe.org's latest podcast with Shazeda Ahmed, talking about building a movement for resistance against AI everywhere www.themaybe.org/podcast/real...

The Collective Fight for Our Humanity - REAL Resistance

Anna Bacciarelli and Shazeda Ahmed discuss what it takes to knit together a global community and resist the material harms of big tech.

themaybe.org

In this week’s Ctrl-Alt-Speech, @masnick.com and I discuss why Meta has little incentive to improve its ads T&S plus, for Patreon supporters, the closing in of who gets to use the big AI models. Have a listen! www.patreon.com/CtrlAltSpeec...

Sell Me Lies, Sell Me Sweet Meta Lies | Ctrl-Alt-Speech

Sell Me Lies, Sell Me Sweet Meta Lies by Ctrl-Alt-Speech on Patreon. Join Ctrl-Alt-Speech's community for exclusive content and updates.

patreon.com

Tech execs are doing everything they can to make the power they’re consolidating feel inevitable - as though there’s nothing we can do to stop it. So how do we counter that? We go deep, and we go networked.

Did you know that about every three months, surveillance companies and their clients huddle in different corners of the world to discuss new ways - and share new technologies - to tap communications and track locations?

“Donald Trump calls AI data centers electricity eating monsters, and he considers it a compliment.” America may be 250 this weekend, but its leaders are entangled more than ever in the fascist project of mass AI development.

Colonialism never ended, it just adapted to the times. Now, technocolonialism touches every corner of the world. We see it in data center expansion, in racist facial recognition surveillance, in dangerous conditions for people powering AI. But in every manifestation, we can also find resistance.

Anduril is literally writing laws to prevent people from fighting back. Excellent reporting by @tkbarnes.bsky.social for @inkstickmedia.com

Inkstick Media@inkstickmedia.com · last mo.

Newly released emails show a lobbyist for autonomous weapons manufacturer Anduril drafted legislative language exempting the company's Ohio factory from local referendum challenges after residents repeatedly tried to force votes on real estate developments. By: @tkbarnes.bsky.social

Newly released emails show a lobbyist for autonomous weapons manufacturer Anduril drafted legislative language exempting the company's Ohio factory from local referendum challenges after residents repeatedly tried to force votes on real estate developments. By: @tkbarnes.bsky.social

In Ohio, Who Really Gets a Say in Anduril Weapons Factories?

Residents of a small township in Ohio wanted a vote on a new Anduril weapons factory. Then the state changed the rules.

inkstickmedia.com

Was such a pleasure to speak with @alixdunn.com about automated governance alongside this stellar lineup

Alix Dunn@alixdunn.com · last mo.

I spoke with @gabrielgeiger.bsky.social, Maria Pilar Llorens, Purity Mukami, and Divij Joshi about the consequences of automated governing in Argentina, Kenya, and India. Catch the conversation here: www.themaybe.org/podcast/real...

Had a great conversation on the digital welfare state (across three continents). Thanks @themaybe.org for getting this great group together to discuss accountability concerns in public sector digitalisation.

The Maybe@themaybe.org · last mo.

Governments across the Global Majority are trying to tackle tough problems with tech. But instead of creating the oft-promised efficiencies, these tools are delivering deeper inequities–while making them harder to see and challenge.

Governments across the Global Majority are trying to tackle tough problems with tech. But instead of creating the oft-promised efficiencies, these tools are delivering deeper inequities–while making them harder to see and challenge.

Tech companies are making AI the front door to the internet—and it's distorting news, language, and knowledge as we know it. For our first episode of REAL Resistance, @alixdunn.com spoke with @klaudia.bsky.social, @aliyabhatia.bsky.social, and Yanick Kemayou about how AI warps the world’s info.

Re the news above, I highly recommend the recent @themaybe.org podcast with @heidykhlaaf.bsky.social (and the whole Computer Says Kill podcast series) to better understand developments like this csm.transistor.fm/episodes/com...

Computer Says Maybe | Computer Says Kill: The AI Safety Circus w/ Heidy Khlaaf

The AI industry loves to talk about safety, but their version of safety is putting us at risk.More like this: The Palestine Laboratory w/ Antony LoewensteinFor our second to last series episode of ...

csm.transistor.fm

Tech should be designed to serve our collective well-being. But today, a handful of billionaires pull the strings that shape our lives. To change that, we need to understand how these systems work, what a better technological future could look like, and how we can build it together.

HIGHLY recommend all the episodes from the recent series “Computer Says Kill” from @themaybe.org’s Computer Says Maybe podcast. I learned so much about the intersection of AI and militarism, which feels increasingly urgent to understand. More info on all episodes here: www.themaybe.org/podcast

Podcast

themaybe.org

Alix Dunn@alixdunn.com · 2mo ago

Why are robots making kill lists, and how the hell do we stop them? I spoke with @docmattmoudi.bsky.social from @amnesty.org and @marwasf.bsky.social from @accessnow.org about the demands in their joint statement on AI and warfare, and the path towards a better future. Listen to the conversation:

Honoured as ever to be in conversations with some truly special friends in @marwasf.bsky.social and @alixdunn.com, and to round off this critical series from @themaybe.org! Check out and sign the statement here as well 👇🏽👇🏽👇🏽 www.accessnow.org/press-releas...

Access Now - Joint statement on AI in warfare

We, the undersigned organizations and individuals, are deeply alarmed by the rapid militarization of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. AI systems embedded into military kill chains are accele...

accessnow.org

Alix Dunn@alixdunn.com · 2mo ago

Why are robots making kill lists, and how the hell do we stop them? I spoke with @docmattmoudi.bsky.social from @amnesty.org and @marwasf.bsky.social from @accessnow.org about the demands in their joint statement on AI and warfare, and the path towards a better future. Listen to the conversation:

"We look at it with horror, seeing armed conflict and violence spreading across the world, where they see it as business opportunities." @marwasf.bsky.social speaks with @alixdunn.com and @docmattmoudi.bsky.social about how tech executives view AI-powered warfare with dollar signs in their eyes.