Doom loopism; Ask Jeeves; Unoptimism
Issue #350
š”Think
Hey everyone š
Accidentally, Iāve managed to curate almost all of this weekās content around the topic of algorithms, data, and content recommendations.
I try to stay as far away from artificial intelligence as humanly possible, because I would much rather a life that is full of human connection rather than one driven by computers.
But I work in tech, and have a healthy addiction to Twitter, so thatās hardly possible š . We can try though.
Have a great week!
š· Look
š Read
ā¶ Doom loopism
I hadnāt heard of this phrase before, but it essentially posits that weāre living in a predictive simulation, because everything is automated. This article lays out all the things we think will go wrong with future tech developments (remember when everyone was scared of spam email), and offers us a hopeful, positive spin on what might happen instead.
ā· The vindication of Ask Jeeves
Remember Jeeves? The search engine dude you could ask questions to? Well, doesnāt that now sound a bit familiar with us essentially asking automated services questions? Weāve gone full loop, and this article analyses just how thatās happened. They also spoke to the original inventor of Jeeves (now a VC, of course) about what they think of the current landscape.
āø In defence of the unoptimised life
Iām sure Iām not the only one who has a tendency to try and make every minute count. āHow can I squeeze some productivity out of the ten minutes I have between calls?ā might seem familiar. This article suggests we abandon that obsession, because they find that in order to find creativity they need to live in a state where organisation is the last thing they strive for. Create when the idea hits, publish when itās ready. I like this idea.
ā
Bonus round
Did you see Spotifyās announcement about their new direction? Hint: more video, everywhere
š§ Listen
Curation in everything
Instagram recently announced that in 2023, they will be doubling their algorithmic content. What does this tell us about our own choices? This podcast analyses how at every angle right now, weāre being curated. Whether itās at art galleries, on social media, or in the way weāre recommended music. It also poses a frightening question ā can algorithms be weaponisd?
Listen to this podcast (29 minutes)
Spotify ā Apple Podcasts
Have a great week,
@disco_lu