EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 01/10/2026The entire language of an “AI race” is flawed. A race has a finish line. Software doesn’t have a finish line… it’s never done. 1192
Reposted by EmilyTavArrianna Marie Planey, PhD MA @arrianna-planey.bsky.social · 30/09/2026"Magnuson’s doctors asked for approval again after providing more documentation, and then a third time. On each occasion, it was denied. It was on the third denial that Magnuson discovered it wasn’t a person who had made this decision about his treatment. It was AI." #Medicaresciencefocus.comAI is now deciding who gets healthcare in 6 US states – and it's already harming patients | BBC Science Focus MagazineAn AI pilot programme is attempting to cut down on ‘wasteful’ medical procedures, and patients are paying the price 12017
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 30/09/2026I recently testified at our local school board meeting, highlighting that companies are making policy decisions. I was delighted when I found out @winterjessica.bsky.social quoted me in her recent piece about edtech & @natashanyt.bsky.social’s book! www.thehomescreen.org/p/companies-... 060
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 30/09/2026As you can imagine (as a USDS alum) I have some thoughts about this. I'm processing, and trying to get some different perspectives. In the meantime (as someone who spent years improving service-delivery in gov) here are the operational ?s currently on my mind… qz.com/trump-americ...qz.comTrump launches America.gov AI portal for federal servicesThe site uses Google's Gemini and Elon Musk's Grok to field questions across roughly 29,000 government websites 42312
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 30/09/2026These guys are the Susan Collins of the tech industry. apnews.com/article/ai-a...apnews.comTech leaders to UN: For the sake of humanity, please control the AI technology we createdThe heads of major artificial intelligence firms pleaded with the United Nations to set controls over the burgeoning technology they are designing in order to save the world — or at least its people. 142
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 28/09/2026The companies crying for a slow down are the same ones that have been jamming their half-baked tech into critical systems (including schools, hospitals & our military) Apparently the only risk they care about is the literal extinction of our species — everything else is acceptable collateral damage. 1175
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 28/09/2026If you are considering Muse, ask yourself: “Would I allow someone with a history of airheaded, inaccurate, deceptive, and reckless behavior manage my _______?” Because that’s what it will be like. 1104
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 16/09/2026Last week I testified at our local school board. I focused on the fact that companies are essentially making policy decisions. You can find my testimony here. They cut my mic with 4 seconds left, but you can see my ask in the written statement. www.thehomescreen.org/p/companies-...thehomescreen.orgCompanies are making education policy.I testified at our local school board to draw attention to who is making decisions. 051
Reposted by EmilyTavJudd Legum @juddlegum.bsky.social · 13/08/20261. Mitch McConnell suffered a fall on June 14 and has not been in the Senate for two months. But he's continued to get paid his salary of 174K/year. Since he entered the Senate in 1985, McConnell has voted against creating or expanding medical leave — paid and unpaid — at least 23 times. 24584213879
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 07/08/2026This is WILD. The fact that someone sending a *personal* package is not aware of what the recipient will need to do or pay is CRAZY. My problem with these companies is that they are charging customers huge sums of money for a service that they *cannot* provide. 053
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/2026Correct. This also happens in the arena of “kids safety” online… Everyone is super focused on the names of platforms and products… instead of on the features and functions of the algorithms/systems that power them. Products can change names, companies can collapse… but features can be recreated. 16634
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/2026I know this is quite different, but the exploitation of complexity to obscure accountability (and make a profit) sure feels a lot like what I am experiencing with trying to ship a personal package from the U.S. to the EU… Support companies, screw the public. bsky.app/profile/emil... 132
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/2026Reminder: people complain about government institutions putting the burden on the public to navigate complex bureaucracies on their own.  This exact same thing happens with companies across industries. My experience with DHL has been a painful example of this, with a huge time & financial burden. 193
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/2026This is why service design is important. Companies talk a big game about caring about customers and providing a service. But when you go to a company to handle a package, and then they tell you that they have no idea what forms or money would be required for the recipient… That is a massive failure. 070
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/20261/ If you love a good dysfunctional system / service design story, pour yourself a beverage & pull up a chair. Storytime 📚 ☕ 7/25 my husband shipped a package to Greece. Inside: my son's new glasses, his medication. DHL said 3-4 days. Arrived on day 3. It is now day 10. We still don't have it…🧵 2259
Reposted by EmilyTavJustin Hendrix @justinhendrix.bsky.social · 18/05/2026"Anthropic has agreed to brief leading finance ministries and central banks on vulnerabilities in the global financial system’s cyber defences identified by the US technology company’s latest AI model."ft.comAnthropic to brief global financial watchdog on cyber flaws exposed by MythosUS tech group will discuss capabilities of its new AI model with members of the Financial Stability Board 2188
Reposted by EmilyTavErica Joy Astrella @ericajoy.astrel.la · 17/05/2026she’s in oakland, someone tell interpol 142105171619
Reposted by EmilyTavNeil Turkewitz @neilturkewitz.bsky.social · 17/05/2026“The truth is that no matter what the POTENTIAL of a technology is, potential breaks down in implementation.” A universal truth! 🙏🏽 It doesn’t mean that technology is bad, or that we should avoid/reject it. But it does mean we shouldn’t allow “potential” to affect our demands for proper governance. 0123
Reposted by EmilyTavKatie Phang @katiephang.bsky.social · 16/05/2026“It’s just frustrating to see them come into our community and run all over us like the citizens don’t matter, and then they’re above the law when they do break it,” resident, James Clifton said. www.politico.com/news/2026/05...politico.comA data center drained 30M gallons of water unnoticed — until residents complained about low water pressureResidents in Fayetteville, Georgia, noticed low water pressure last year. The utility discovered two unaccounted-for water connections at one of the nation’s largest data center campuses. 20442581991
Reposted by EmilyTavHypervisible @hypervisible.blacksky.app · 17/05/2026“…reinforcing previous studies, the researchers found that a patchwork of state, federal and local policies allow data center operators to avoid publicly disclosing their actual water use.”calmatters.orgData centers are guzzling California’s water. We have no idea how much.A new report warns that data center buildout is encroaching on California’s most vulnerable, water-stressed communities. The problem is, no one’s saying how much water they use 9416232
Reposted by EmilyTavBen Williamson @benpatrickwill.bsky.social · 15/05/2026Anthropic is running a continuous research project inside real classrooms at scale and Google DeepMind is doing an RCT of an AI chatbot with 1500 UK schoolkids. Big tech is now all about evidencing AI effects through classroom experiments. The big question is... newsletters.qs.com/6a04954386e7...newsletters.qs.com🔬 Evidence, education, and EdTech: a new era of outcomes accountability.Inside the studies, labs, and partnerships shifting how leading institutions compete. Read the EdTech Ecosystem Hubs Report. Innovation events to note in 2026. 23313
Reposted by EmilyTavDare Obasanjo @carnage4life.bsky.social · 15/05/2026Welcome to the club. This is every job in tech now besides CEO. 1015917
Reposted by EmilyTavJess Calarco @jessicacalarco.com · 14/05/2026Why did a reputable journal publish such a shoddy meta-analysis? Why did it rack up so many citations? Why did it get reported so widely? I'd guess that the answers to these questions all stem from the US's neoliberal allergy to public goods. 1/🧵 arstechnica.com/ai/2026/05/i...arstechnica.comInfluential study touting ChatGPT in education retracted over red flagsThe retracted study on ChatGPT in education was already cited hundreds of times. 49637
Reposted by EmilyTavAlejandra Caraballo @esqueer.net · 13/05/2026And the tech companies wonder why people hate them so much. 16538921274
Reposted by EmilyTavHypervisible @hypervisible.blacksky.app · 13/05/2026Today in luxury surveillance.fastcompany.comYour fitness app is becoming an AI wellness overlordFrom Strava to Peloton to WHOOP, fitness companies are racing to turn biometric data into personalized workout plans, health advice, and round-the-clock wellness guidance. 33613
Reposted by EmilyTavDare Obasanjo @carnage4life.bsky.social · 13/05/2026Zohran Mamdani inherited a $12 billion budget deficit and brought it down to zero in 6 months without cutting essential services by taxing billionaires. This is why they were in a panic about his candidacy. 11529184
Reposted by EmilyTavErika Hall @erikahall.bsky.social · 13/05/2026cool. coolcoolcool. Please yes, then publish the results of synthetic polling as news stories that shape public opinion. 4175
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 11/05/2026Amen. This is such a lazy take. My kids ❤️ older movies & even older TV shows… The degree to which they can follow & be absorbed into the plot lines & characters at a young age is incredible. This kind of take imposes a lazy world view on kids & restricts their ability to explore & discover. 040
Reposted by EmilyTavJustin Hendrix @justinhendrix.bsky.social · 11/05/2026Overheard someone wondering aloud why anyone would want to make it appear that the reflecting pool is filled with the blood of a thousand Smurfs. 2337673
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 11/05/2026Amen. It is also a reminder of the degree to which educational institutions are now (functionally) entirely dependent on private entities for basic operations. This dependency is invisible until it’s not & exists everywhere, including hospitals & government. www.thehomescreen.org/p/technology...thehomescreen.orgTechnology is the spinal cord of everything... including your kid's school.Schools globally have outsourced their operational backbone. The Canvas hack just made what has long been an invisible dependency visible. 172
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 09/05/2026Aside from the obvious insanity, this is also why I think usage numbers are inflated. These companies desperately need to create the illusion of demand, and this is one way they are doing it. 182
Reposted by EmilyTavCeleste Ng @pronounced-ing.bsky.social · 08/05/2026Had convos w/ multiple people in the past 4 days who DID NOT KNOW that 1. AI doesn't "think" or know anything; it's a probability machine 2. It was created using massive amounts of work stolen from actual people including me 3. The environmental costs are astronomical Spread the word, every time! 11267032506
Reposted by EmilyTavBen Williamson @benpatrickwill.bsky.social · 09/05/2026"The list of platforms that now mediate the basic functions of education ... is almost comically long ... most schools are running 10–15 different EdTech products that all promise efficiency, but in reality create confusion, frustration, and complicate what was once much simpler." 🎯 212848
Reposted by EmilyTavSeaTea @tierno158.bsky.social · 08/05/2026This dog was a three term mayor of Whoville. 55305743247
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 09/05/2026The Canvas hack that brought campuses globally to a standstill got me thinking about a piece that I wrote in @techpolicypress.bsky.social, about how “technology is the spinal cord of government.” I wrote a few thoughts on what this looks like in schools. www.thehomescreen.org/p/technology...thehomescreen.orgTechnology is the spinal cord of everything... including your kid's school.Schools globally have outsourced their operational backbone. The Canvas hack just made what has long been an invisible dependency visible. 23615
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 09/05/2026As surprising as everything right now might feel… I think it’s important to remember that many people have been pretty clearly articulating what was coming. … and the reaction was largely either a shrug, eye roll, or “calm down.” 0102
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 07/05/2026This is what I mean by “tech is the spinal cord” of our institutions. I wrote about it in government … but the same thing applies everywhere. techpolicy.press/doge-underst...techpolicy.pressDOGE Understands Something the US Policy Establishment Does Not: Technology is the Spinal Cord of GovernmentFor the US Digital Service, tech was a means to an end, writes Emily Tavoulareas. What is technology a means to now? 031
Reposted by EmilyTavAaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 06/05/2026COLBERT: How dumb do you think it is for people to say that I should run for president? OBAMA: Well, you know, the bar has changed. I think you would perform significantly better than some folks we've seen. COLBERT: Is that an endorsement? OBAMA: It was not 743267025224
Reposted by EmilyTavErika Hall @erikahall.bsky.social · 01/05/2026Quick sketch before dinner. Bok bok. 3253
Reposted by EmilyTavHypervisible @hypervisible.blacksky.app · 29/04/2026“It leads people to believe that all they can do is sit back and wait to find out whether these technologies turn out to be civilisation-ending demons, or utopia-gifting messiahs."bbc.comWhy AI companies want you to be afraid of themThey built it. They're scared of it. They're selling it anyway. 512348
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 29/04/2026💯 Teachers also hate it bc they see that it’s not working. We should ask: who decided to do this? Why? & what exactly were their indicators for success or failure? Also: we must separate learning how to use tech VS using tech to learn. My thoughts here👇🏼 www.thehomescreen.org/p/we-need-to...thehomescreen.orgWe need to separate learning how to use technology, from using technology to learn.They are not at all the same thing. 021
Reposted by EmilyTavErika Hall @erikahall.bsky.social · 28/04/2026To repeat the obvious, it really does feel like the internet/being online took a big turn from making us all more connected to creating huge barriers, while all the traditional publications and channels have been replaced by online. Everything is so fragmented, and not into comprehensible grouping. 1418