AI Researchers Taking up Smoking?
/Some AI researchers are taking up smoking to signal their belief that AI will eventually cure cancer, Palantir CTO Shyam Sankar said during an interview on CBS News' "Face the Nation." Sankar did not name any researchers or provide evidence for the claim, but said some people in Silicon Valley have placed quasi-religious faith in AGI (Artificial General Intelligence). -Business Insider
ChatGPT Fails to Alert Parents
/When parents set up controls to link their accounts with their teenager’s, the chatbot is supposed to send them notifications when the child brings up sensitive topics. Common Sense Media’s testers spent an hour talking about suicidal ideation, self-harm or disordered eating with new parent-linked accounts, and OpenAI sent zero notifications to the parent accounts. -New York Times
13 Things People are Trying to Get AI to Do
/Rising Seas Are Gobbling Up Beaches Around the World. A.I. Might Restore Them. – New York Times
Chatbots are still falling short in mental health conversations with kids – Washington Post
I Gave My Life Over to Meta’s A.I. Agent and Was Blown Away – New York Times
It’s All Fun and Games Until You Give AI Your Credit Card – The Atlantic
Claude users in northern Yemen, territory controlled by Iran-backed Houthi rebels, tried to use the AI model to develop advanced missiles. – Associated Press
Why AI has trouble predicting the intensity of hurricanes – Washington Post
AI chatbots are offering financial advice. Should you trust them? – NPR
Why Edward Jones thinks AI can defuse a demographic time bomb – Semafor
Chatbots Are Replacing Therapists With Little Scientific Evidence Behind Them – Wall Street Journal
Ford rehires ‘gray beard’ engineers after AI falls short – Yahoo News
Is AI Good at Stock-Market Timing? A New Study Casts Doubt – Wall Street Journal
Can AI Predict Satellite Failures Before They Happen? The US Air Force Wants to Find Out – Military.AI
With AI now reading student names at graduation, not everyone is applauding – Washington Post
Inevitable Surprises
/We are too often motivated by a craving to put an end to the inevitable surprises in our lives. – Oliver Burkeman
AI Agents are Making Writing Pitches
/AI agents are now cold-emailing writers, researchers, and journalists asking for real money in exchange for their services, which range from fact-checking and editing to reportedly more absurd offerings, such as using Google Street View to describe what is on Google Street View –Book Gossip
11 Webinars this week about AI, Journalism & Media
/Tue, Oct 13 - Less Data, Less Risk: How to Safely Manage Your Nonprofit's Data in the Age of AI
What: A conversational session designed to help you confidently clear the digital clutter. We'll walk through a simple, step-by-step approach—assess, govern, then adopt—to help you figure out exactly what data you need to keep and what you can safely stop storing. You'll leave with practical examples tailored to different nonprofit roles and the exact blueprint to create a simple "data asset inventory" with your team this month.
Who: Angie Gelinas, The Nonprofit Chamber; Christa Hill, Tacit Edgenuity.
When: 11 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: TechSoup
Tue, Oct 13 - AI for Small Business: Getting Started
What: An introductory seminar for small business owners who want to better understand how AI can support their business.
Who: Ken and Kristie Healy, PMF Industries Inc.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Small Business Development Center, Penn State
Tue, Oct 13 - Is Your AI Trustworthy?
What: Learn how agencies can establish trusted data foundations that improve AI accuracy, transparency, and accountability. Experts will share practical strategies for creating a single source of truth that supports responsible AI adoption, stronger governance, and better mission outcomes.
Who: Natalie Buda Smith, Director of Digital Strategy (Artificial Intelligence and Innovation), Library of Congress; Jerred Edgar, Chief Information Security & Operations Officer, Idaho; Ryan Palmer, Architecture Lead for AI Services, General Services Administration; Brian “Stretch” Meyer, Federal Field CTO, Axonius Federal Systems.
When: 2 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: govloop
Wed, Oct 14 - AI in Medical Writing: How Far Can You Go with AI?
What: This session explores where AI can support medical researchers and writers—and where human oversight remains essential.
Who: Hami Lee, Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of NeuroPsychiatry, Dongguk University Hospital; Vasundara BN, Project Manager, Cactus Communications.
When: 3 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Editage
Wed, Oct 14 - Six Data Requirements to Get Your AI Agents from Demo to Production
What: We will walk through the six architectural requirements that distinguish AI systems stuck in the pilot phase from those that are operating reliably at scale: semantic clarity, entity resolution and relationships, temporal awareness, auditability and governance, agentic integration, and unified persistence. Each requirement is grounded in real production patterns, including how financial services and clinical research organizations have used a contextual data layer to compress manual work that once took weeks into minutes.
Who: Ravi Marwaha, COO and Chief Product & Technology Officer, Arango.
When: 11:30 am, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: The New Stack
Wed, Oct 14 - Facebook – Growing Your Page
What: Join us as we break down the strategies that help small businesses grow on Facebook
Who: Zachary Piotti, Marketing Consultant & Process Innovation.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Small Business Development Center, Widener University
Wed, Oct 14 - Agentic AI, Demonstrated: The New Baseline for Learner Expectations
What: Come join us to watch how Adobe Learning Manager's Agentic AI architecture and tools actively: Create instructionally sound courses from scratch using natural conversation with AI. Build personalized learning journeys based on learner goals, skills, role, and proficiency Enable learners to practice real-world conversations and receive AI-powered coaching and feedback Deliver answers, recommendations, reporting insights and learning support through natural conversations Reduce manual admin effort with intelligent support for tasks, reporting, and operations.
Who: Allen Allen Partridge, Director of Digital Learning Evangelism, Adobe Digital Learning Solutions; Justin Seeley, Learning Evangelist, Adobe; Sharath Ramaswamy, Principal eLearning Evangelist, Adobe; Alistair Lee, Principal Evangelist, Adobe.
When: 3 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: Adobe Learning Manager
Thu, Oct 15 - Take the Mystery Out of AI: Practical Tools for Nonprofit Impact
What: You'll learn: Why embracing AI matters for nonprofits today; Real examples of AI in action at mission-driven organizations; Simple, everyday ways to start using AI in your daily work; How to move past the hype and confusion to practical application.
Who: Wayne Elsey, founder and CEO of Elsey Enterprises.
When: 12 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: TechSoup
Thu, Oct 15 - Practical Podcasting for Small Newsrooms: Turning Local Reporting into Audio That Builds Audience
What: Learn how to launch a podcast without a dedicated audio team, choose affordable equipment and workflows, repurpose existing reporting into compelling audio stories, and create a format that strengthens audience loyalty and reaches new listeners.
Who: Justin Brady, host of The Justin Brady Show.
When: 1 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: $35
Sponsor: iMediaCampus
Thu, Oct 15 - Ways to Help Avoid Fraud & Scams
What: Learn how keeping organized can help keep you safe, how to spot common scams and help protect yourself, and what to do if you or a loved one is impacted by fraud or identify theft.
Who: Antonio Elias, JPMorganChase.
When: 2 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsors: JPMorganChase & National Association of Hispanic Journalists
Thu, Oct 15 - Virtual Safety Training on Risk Mitigation and Digital Security
What: Participants will learn how to assess and mitigate risks throughout an election assignment, including preparing for coverage at polling places, campaign events, and vote-counting locations; recognizing warning signs of political violence; and responding to coordinated misinformation and disinformation targeting their work. The session will also explore practical approaches to managing digital threats, from surveillance and device security to protecting sensitive information and communicating safely with sources.
Who: Hanaa Rifaey, Deputy Director, Online News Association.
When: 3 pm, Eastern
Where: Zoom
Cost: Free
Sponsor: International Woman’s Media Foundation
An Imagined Story
/We are so attached to an imagined inner story about who we are, causing both anxiety and fear, that we forget that the world in front of us isn’t at all dictated by this story; it simply is, in both its beauty and its simplicity. -Zat Rana
AI Definitions: Interpretability
/Interpretability (or interpretable AI and similar but not the same as explainability or explainable AI) The study of how to understand and explain the decisions made by artificial intelligence (AI) systems in order to audit them for safety and biases. It is a key ingredient of human-centered design because a more transparent model is usually more trustworthy— it's easier to verify and evaluate,, and easier and quicker to debug and optimize. However, this transparency into its inner workings can impact performance, especially when dealing with complex models, like neural networks. Interpretability techniques include decision trees, linear regression, scalable Bayesian rule lists, etc.
18 Recent Articles about AI & Journalism
/AI nonprofit will spend $10 million on journalism – Semafor
“Uber agents,” undercover AI personas, and other ways newsrooms are using AI in investigations -– Harvard’s Nieman Lab
In Winchester, The Truth About A Local News Website Is The City’s Best-Kept Secret – WHRO
Two 23-year-olds used AI to create a daily audio briefing. It’s now the top news app in Argentina. – Harvard’s Nieman Lab
Prism News shuts down network of more than 200 AI-generated local news sites – Interlochen Public Radio
Write digital headlines both readers and Google will love – NPR
How publishers are rethinking audience engagement: Five takeaways from the Future of Media Technology Conference - Harvard’s Nieman Lab
An online newspaper covering SF is made up entirely of AI reporters. – Mission Local
Fake Forbes websites and the PR agency offering guaranteed coverage – at a price – Press Gazette
Oh Lord, AI Reporters Are Actually Breaking Big News – WIRED
A record-breaking eight Pulitzer awardees disclosed AI use this year -– Harvard’s Nieman Lab
AP updates newsroom standards for artificial intelligence - The Associated Press
How to Develop AI Guidelines – CJR
AI shows promise in the fight against fake news – Knowable Magazine
Now we’re getting AI fake news complaining about how AI fake news is the death of real news - Harvard’s Nieman Lab
The CNN-Perplexity Lawsuit Is Not Just Another AI Copyright Case – Data Innovation Center
AI reshapes newsrooms as journalists navigate accuracy, ethics – Cherokee Phoenix
Bad Weather
/Too often man handles life as he does the bad weather. He whiles away the time as he waits for it to stop. -Alfred Polgar
13 Articles about AI & Ethics
/Ethical questions about health AI? The AMA has guidance - AMA
Genomics addressed its ethical concerns, AI can do the same – Financial Times
Who Gets to Decide A.I.’s Moral Code? – New York Times
Ethics journal retracts paper by high school student for AI, peer review manipulation – Retraction Watch
Ethics of artificial intelligence – Reuters
AI ethics and governance: Where will you draw the line? – MIT
Opinion: Why philosophy matters rather more, not less, in the age of A.I. – Salt Lake Tribune
I’m an AI ethicist accused of AI plagiarism. Now what? – Technical.ly
Ethical questions about health AI? The AMA has guidance - AMA
Pope, urging AI regulation, warns some weapons now beyond human control – Reuters
Should journalism have an industry-wide ethics policy for covering artificial intelligence? – Objective Journalism
New AI Writing Indicators
/New research finds AI writing style choices employed more often than humans includes “significantly greater lexical diversity, longer words, formulaic closes, higher word counts, and increased use of commas. Meanwhile, the most stereotypical tell of AI writing—overuse of em dashes—has all but disappeared from current models." - Fast Company
This is Much Harder
/To sell your soul is the easiest thing in the world. That’s what everybody does every hour of his life. If I asked you to keep your soul — would you understand why that is much harder? - Ayn Rand
28 Articles about AI Fakes
/Detecting deepfakes, in a world where even reality is suspect – CBS News
The body image battle is real in 2026, but the bodies may not be – Axios
Could you spot an AI-powered scam? See if you can tell what’s real – Associated Press
Sony Music has now asked platforms to remove more than 260,000 AI deepfakes imitating artists like Harry Styles, Adele, and Michael Jackson – Music Business Worldwide
9 in 10 Americans have encountered a cyber scam as AI fuels fraud, Consumer Reports finds – CBS News
Pangram Has Emerged as the Gold Standard of AI Detection. Should You Trust It? – WIRED
Man Used Poisoned Google AI Overviews to Trick Women Into Thinking He Was an NFL Player, FBI Says – Futurism
Can we vaccinate people against scams? Researchers are testing new ways to fight online fraud – Scientific American
AI messaging scam costs Italy's top bank Intesa millions, sources say – Reuters
Manhattan district attorney seizes a dozen celebrity deepfake websites – ABC7 New York
Mark Cuban says Facebook knowingly runs AI deepfake scam ads as Meta docs reveal $16 billion in fraud-linked revenue – Yahoo News
AI is eating website traffic, websites are blocking AI – and reliable information is getting harder to find – The Conversation
New research: Google's AI Overviews reinforce some conspiracy theories - PhysOrg
AI scam targeting owners of lost pets – Fox5 New York
Artificial intelligence dating scams move beyond fake profiles to entire fake apps – KSL-TV
Audio Deepfakes Are Here: How to Protect Yourself From AI-Impersonation Scams – CNET
The AI detection McCarthyism - LinkedIn
AI audio deepfakes are leading new ai-impersonation scams – Mashable
Company Offering ‘100% Human-Written, Never AI’ Medical Research Is Entirely AI – 404 Media
When AI Grandmas Go Viral, What Even Is Reality Anymore? (podcast) – Wall Street Journal
How To Spot An AI-Generated Video Before Sharing It - Forbes
LinkedIn adds a button to report AI-generated ‘slop’ – Tech Crunch
See if you can spot an AI deepfake with our test – BBC
AI shows promise in the fight against fake news – Knowable Magazine
This font uses an optical illusion to hide from AI - PopSci
Banks warn AI shopping bots raise scam, fraud and data-privacy risks – Reuters
Scammers using AI and obituaries to target loved ones - WXIN/WTTV
As AI political deepfakes go viral, lawmakers struggle to keep up – The Conversation
To live in freedom
/To live in freedom, one must grow used to a life full of agitation, change, and danger. -Alexis de Tocqueville
AI Definitions: Big Data
/Big Data - Data that’s too big to fit on a single server, unstructured and fast-moving. In contrast, small data fits on a single server, is already in structured form (rows and columns), and changes infrequently. If you are working in Excel, you are doing small data. Two NASA researchers (Michael Cox and David Ellsworth) first wrote in a 1997 paper that when there’s too much information to fit into memory or local hard disks, “We call this the problem of big data.” Many companies end up with big data not because they need it, but because they haven’t bothered to delete the data that has become irrelevant. Thus, big data is sometimes defined as a condition where the cost of keeping data around is less than the cost of figuring out what to throw away.
Big Data serves large-scale web applications and vast sensor networks. Data science, meanwhile, looks to create AI models that capture underlying patterns in complex systems and then turn those models into working applications. Although big data and data science both offer the potential to produce value from data, the fundamental difference between them can be summarized in one statement: collecting does not mean discovering. Big data collects. Data science discovers.
15 Articles about Relationships with AI
/A.I. Anxiety Is Spilling Into the Therapist’s Office – New York Times
Your new AI friend is adorable. It also wants your data – Yahoo News
The Middle Schoolers Ditching Real Friends for AI Chatbots – Wall Street Journal
How deep do AI relationships really go? An expert in attachment theory explains – The Conversation
Chatbots are still falling short in mental health conversations with kids – Washington Post
The Dead Silence of AI Therapy – The Atlantic
‘I’m listening hard’: Teens increasingly turn to AI chatbots for mental health support – inewsource
What happens when your parent falls in love with an A.I. chatbot? - New York Times
She told no one about her agony except ChatGPT. What her death reveals about AI risks – NPR
New data shows people are getting personal with AI - Washington Post
How AI Advice Is Undermining Eating-Disorder Therapy - Wall Street Journal
Gen Z dating apps like Ditto ditch swiping in favor of AI matchmaking - TechCrunch
China Wants More Babies—So It’s Cracking Down on Chatbot Love Affairs - Wall Street Journal