📖 Long Reads: (No) Surprise! AI Apps Are Building Profiles On You As You Use Them...

Oof. This one is a gut punch. It’s quite long, but try reading at least the intro if you can.

For those of us gleefully firing queries at ChatGPT about everything from writing thank you cards to explaining blood test results, it’s good to remember what privacy agreements we’ve made with the companies that offer those products.

The author makes a lot of this information, to be sure, but the truth is plain to read in the agreements few of us ever bother to read. It’s well worth reading a piece that brings the scope into view, even if it is a little exaggerated.

From: The Generator, by Jim the AI Whisperer

Key word = sticking.

That’s a big statement from a16z. It’s only been a few years, but already we’ve seen ChatGPT thoroughly cement itself into both our personal and working lives. It’s hard to imagine this tool going away any time soon, so it’s time to start imagining what other AI tools will join the LLM-based chatbots in this new era digital toolbox.

a16z covers DeepSeek’s arrival along with the rise of “vibecoding” and breaks down the app categories that are making the most actual revenue. Well worth your time this Sunday.

From: a16z, by Daisy Zhao & Olivia Moore

A look on the bright, simpler side of AI for once. The Wall Street Journal’s “Future of Everything” explores Google’s Project Starline, which aims to make video calls more interactive and immersive.

In the post covid era, video calls are ubiquitous and certainly seem to be poised to remain a significant part of working (and non working) life.

Google’s Project Starline is a visually encouraging step towards a future where video calls are more interactive, and likely more productive.

Those work meetings where you can’t seem to stop opening new tabs on your computer while that boring co-worker speaks might be a little easier to remember with this more interactive set up.

From: The Wall Street Journal “Future of Everything”, by Steven Rosenbush