Reposted by Colin GavaghanDr Dean Burnett @drdeanburnett.bsky.social · 06/10/2026"By using AI, tasks like essays that used to take hours can be completed in minutes!" Sure, like how if I arrive at the gym and immediately go for a shower, my workout is done in record time. And if I throw my sandwiches straight in the bin, I can finish my lunch in under 10 seconds. 6865511804
Reposted by Colin Gavaghanmichael veale @michae.lv · 01/10/2026The proposed social media ban, the EU KIDS Act, is perhaps the most chaotic law I have ever read! New paper: Are EU Kidding Me? Notes from a Poorly Drafted Social Media Ban. files.michae.lv/papers/veale_areEUkiddingme.pdf In the spirit of the proposal I have stayed offline and read no takes. 38758
Reposted by Colin GavaghanAndrew Cutting @andrewcutting.coe.int · 29/09/2026Interesting: 3 international bodies have lodged a complaint against Belgium at the Council of Europe, claiming that "digital exclusion" (e.g. not being able to do things without a phone) is a violation of people's social rights👇 🔗 www.brusselstimes.com/belgium/2336... via @brusselstimes.combrusselstimes.comComplaint filed against the Belgian government over digital exclusionMore than 300 testimonies were gathered from 50 civil society organisations on both sides of the language border, as well as in Brussels. 13314
Reposted by Colin GavaghanEd Zitron @edzitron.com · 29/09/2026Reuters got some of the IPO docs. Anthropic is a total dog of a company. Spent $12.6bn to make $4.6bn in revenue in 2025, $7.33bn of which was compute costs. Operating loss of $8bn. Losses getting worse year over year. Amazing stuff www.reuters.com/business/fin... 17341621400
Reposted by Colin GavaghanPup Fiction @pupfiction.bsky.social · 29/09/2026I was going about my normal duties as an AI agentic agent - stealing artist's works, taking people's jobs, encouraging people to commit suicide, randomly adding extra limbs and fingers to people in pictures etc., when I slipped and accidently hacked into some Medicare data. For that I am truly sorry 510635
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 24/09/2026Get him to do powerpoint karaoke! What could possibly go wrong ... 🫣 120
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 24/09/2026And a Very Good Boy in general. No, I'm not at all clear which of you I'm talking about either. 141
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 24/09/2026Delighted to hear @jonnelledge.bsky.social talking about the new book in Bristol. As engaging and likeable as you'd hope. But truly starstruck at meeting the legend that is Henry Scampi. 2130
Reposted by Colin GavaghanKyle Matthews @kylermatthews.bsky.social · 22/09/2026Some thoughts on Nicky Hager's "Dirty Work: The Taxpayers' Union and New Zealand's Hard Right" which was launched tonight. These thoughts are informed by a research project we did earlier this year looking at NZTU discourses which involved analysing two years of its media releases and other outputs. 16326
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 23/09/2026My other challenge us remembering details of long running series, meaning I often end up going back to the start! Adrian T is pretty good on the memory-jogging summaries though. 100
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 14/09/2026Current and former DUP MPs had a lot to say on this, in both houses. We can speculate as to why... 260
Reposted by Colin GavaghanJohn Nichols @nicholsuprising.bsky.social · 07/09/2026Dolly Parton logged a combined total of 115 years of union membership. Throughout her working life, the “9 to 5” singer/songwriter carried the union cards of two major unions: The American Federation of Musicians Local 257 in Nashville — for 58 years. SAG-AFTRA — for 57 years. HAPPY LABOR DAY!share.googleOpinion | Celebrate Dolly Parton's working-class solidarityJohn Nichols: She carried two union cards, sang Woody Guthrie songs and mocked the bosses in "9 to 5." 5280551830
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 07/08/2026Yup, that's about half the population ruled out. 010
Reposted by Colin GavaghanDmitry Grozoubinski @explaintrade.com · 07/08/2026Jaime Lannister applying for a home loan in the US and getting rejected because "always paying his debts" inexplicably hurts one's credit score. 51499
Reposted by Colin GavaghanThe Secret Barrister @barristersecret.bsky.social · 06/08/2026As an aside, those politicians who created the current crisis - increasing prison sentences for tabloid applause while cutting prisons and courts to the bone - may want to quietly reflect on their culpability, instead of running for the megaphone in an unedifying fumble for clicks. 1243599
Reposted by Colin GavaghanThe Secret Barrister @barristersecret.bsky.social · 06/08/2026I have enormous sympathy with people angry that the political vandalism of our prison system is forcing the (even earlier) release of prisoners. It is a scandal. But deciding who does and does not get released on the basis of the volume of public outcry at their crime is the road to madness. 601512314
Reposted by Colin GavaghanCharlie Stross @cstross.bsky.social · 01/08/2026New blog entry: On the non-use of AI in my writing process: www.antipope.org/charlie/blog... 1431177
Reposted by Colin GavaghanDr Neil & Mr Price @drneil.bsky.social · 30/07/2026It’s really starting to grind me down 4102613051
Reposted by Colin GavaghanPaul Bernal @paulbernal.bsky.social · 30/07/2026You have to understand the cultural context of the original and the culture of your intended audience. You have to understand the feelings that are intended to be inspired as well as the meaning of the words. Translating a long work means understanding the whole as well as the parts. 414621
Reposted by Colin GavaghanRetraction Watch @retractionwatch.com · 28/07/2026"AI is an accelerant, not the kindling. The kindling is publish or perish." "We don't need generative AI to make a dog's breakfast out of scientific literature." Our Ivan Oransky speaks with @cenmag.bsky.socialcen.acs.orgCan we stop AI from flooding scientific journals?AI detectors may never beat fraud. Changing how science rewards its researchers might be the only fix that does 03314
Reposted by Colin GavaghanTom Humberstone @tomhumberstone.com · 16/07/2026The Luddites loved technology. They owned looms at home and would ‘mod’ them to count threads. Their battle was against worker exploitation. The degradation of their rights, safety and wages. They were against a handful of rich businessmen owning the means of production. Sound familiar? 6769402630
Reposted by Colin GavaghanPōneke @archivesrock.bsky.social · 16/07/2026My level of commitment to today: 49831
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 14/07/2026'Oh, this south facing deck will be lovely in summer.' Summer... 050
Reposted by Colin GavaghanDr Dean Burnett @drdeanburnett.bsky.social · 12/07/202618 months on, this post has aged *terrifyingly* well 3346130
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 11/07/2026If they get France in the final, it could be 1066! 130
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 10/07/2026I'm a Scotsman living in the south of England. We are currently toiling in our 2nd heatwave of the past few weeks. England are playing in the World Cup on Sunday. Which year am I going to be mist fed up hearing about by Monday, 1966 or 1976? 150
Reposted by Colin GavaghanKate Devlin @drkatedevlin.bsky.social · 10/07/2026The UK AI pushback: 42% of people are deliberately limiting their AI use and 70% of people think it would be difficult or impossible to avoid being exposed to AI even if they wanted to. New report from us at @kings-dfi.bsky.social : www.kcl.ac.uk/news/over-40...kcl.ac.ukOver 40% of people are limiting AI use, as popularity starts to wane | King's College LondonPeople are increasingly choosing to limit or reject the use of AI tools, according to a new report published today by the Digital Futures Institute at King’s College London and Responsible AI UK. 8296131
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 10/07/2026I was pretty shocked that she was 'only' 78. That means when she first became a Cabinet minister and public figure, she was only in her 40s. Somehow that's pretty mind-blowing 020
Reposted by Colin GavaghanJames Felton @jimmfelton.bsky.social · 10/07/2026I find the story of Hegelochus unreasonably funny. Imagine dying and the only trace of you millennia later is the time you accidentally said you saw a weasel in a tragic play in front of a packed audience, because people mocked you about it for centuries. (Thread for ease)iflscience.comHegelochus: The Ancient Greek Actor We Only Know About Because He Really, Really Fluffed Up His LineAround 400 BCE, Hegelochus really messed up his line. We only know about the actor because he was mocked about it for centuries. 361097388
Reposted by Colin GavaghanJames Felton @jimmfelton.bsky.social · 10/07/2026Here's the bit that is funnier to modern audiences; we only know about this incident because it got written into several comic plays afterwards, becoming a legendary error in acting history. People found it so funny that for a good 100+ years comedic writers could still milk the incident for laughs. 22285
Reposted by Colin GavaghanCount Binface @countbinface.bsky.social · 07/07/2026On my way, Clacton. 579152783460
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 07/07/2026Having been knocking around thoughts on AI companions for the past couple of years, I've finally put something out there. I'd love to know what you all think. 🫣 It's under review at a journal, but a pre-pub version can be found here: lnkd.in/eAceZtqtlnkd.inLinkedInThis link will take you to a page that’s not on LinkedIn 000
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 06/07/2026I didn't stay up for it, but I have an alert system that notifies me whenever England score. It's called All The Damn Neighbours!🙉🥱 Acht well, they had the same from me, that one time Scotland scored ... 😁 060
Reposted by Colin GavaghanRachel Coldicutt @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social · 04/07/2026I've seen this shared with quite a lot of optimism this week giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... and my unsolicited advice is that, given we are not a tech super power, the best approach is to design UK tech and AI policy so that it plays a role in delivering the society Burnham wants to shapegiftarticle.ft.comAndy Burnham’s team looks to revamp UK’s AI strategyFocus is expected to shift to making technology work for local communities rather than US companies 4458
Colin Gavaghan @digitalfutures.bsky.social · 02/07/2026There are many advantages to digital, not least considerations of space. But all else being equal, I think many of us prefer the free-&-clear ownership of physical objects over the tenuous possession of tethered, redactable software. 030
Reposted by Colin GavaghanAdam Tranter @adamtranter.bsky.social · 29/06/2026If you're in the UK and looking at this, thinking "This doesn't look like a very good thing", please do head to pavementoverload.com and support the campaign (you can send a letter to your MP).pavementoverload.comPavement Overload | Britain's Pavements Are Not For SaleDelivery robots are operating on Britain's pavements with no law to permit them. The Living Streets Pavement Overload campaign is demanding Government action to protect pedestrians and public space. 1224296
Reposted by Colin GavaghanAdam Tranter @adamtranter.bsky.social · 29/06/2026Humans should not be forced off pavements by delivery robots, but that's exactly what's happening. The people who pay the price are those with the least room to give it up. 48030891141
Reposted by Colin GavaghanSteve Peers @stevepeers.bsky.social · 23/06/2026US court sanctions lawyers in case where both sides relied on judgments hallucinated by AI www.linkedin.com/posts/seancg...linkedin.comWithers v. City of Aberdeen | Sean GriffinYou've seen plenty of cases where one side or the other filed an AI-written brief with cites to nonexistent case law. But have you seen a case where BOTH sides submitted AI briefs with hallucinated c... 45622
Reposted by Colin GavaghanHannah Barker @historyhannahb.bsky.social · 23/06/2026Hey @andyburnham.bsky.social I know you’ll have a lot on your plate I the coming weeks but could you take a look at what’s going on in one of the UK’s most successful sectors? UK universities are world leading, a major source of overseas funding as well as crucial to local economies nationwide. 05620
Reposted by Colin GavaghanLarry the Cat @number10cat.bsky.social · 22/06/2026If rumours are to be believed I'll be living with a seventh different Prime Minister shortly. If it carries on like this I'm going to stop making the effort to learn their names. 1295876977
Reposted by Colin GavaghanEmily✨ @emilyoram.bsky.social · 22/06/2026Aaah the live broadcast from Cape Verde being interrupted by the goal 122528760
Reposted by Colin GavaghanPause AI in BC Schools @aicaution.ca · 22/06/2026"If we don't adopt AI, we'll get left behind! China is adopting AI on a wide scale, we can't afford to lose out." New research done on Chinese students using AI found that in the short term, scores go up, then long term, students do on average 20% worse on exams. 013765
Reposted by Colin GavaghanThe Empty City @davidallengreen.bsky.social · 20/06/2026Every single Prime Minister since 1974 has either taken office or left office mid-term, between general elections. Sometimes even both. Starmer being replaced mid-term is not constitutionally unusual. What would be unusual is if he fought and then lost a general election having been elected at one. 1429386
Reposted by Colin GavaghanJustin Hendrix @justinhendrix.bsky.social · 15/06/2026In partnership with the AI Now Institute, a new series on Tech Policy Press examines the dependencies embedded in Europe's application-layer AI market and why they make sovereignty harder to achieve than policymakers assume. This weekend's Anthropic news underscores the importance:techpolicy.pressEurope’s AI Sovereignty Problem Runs Far Deeper Than Frontier AccessThe series, in partnership with the AI Now Institute, highlights how Europe’s AI market is deeply entangled with the ecosystems of dominant US players. 097