EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 15/10/20263/ Consider how comfortable you are with product decisions driving education policy. Because if we want to maintain agency over how our schools work and approach education, we must recognize and reevaluate our dependency on these products in the months and years ahead 000
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 15/10/2026I asked them to do 3 things: 1/ Raise the burden of proof for VENDORS, not for parents & educators. We should not need to prove it does NOT work… they should have to prove that it does. 2/ Have an off ramp. Identify indicators of success & indicators of failure — if it’s not working, drop it. 110
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 15/10/2026Last week I testified at the DC Council’s public hearing on tech use in DC public and charter schools. My testimony was focused on highlighting how tech companies are essentially making education policy. Here’s what I took away, and what I told the Council. www.thehomescreen.org/p/notes-from...thehomescreen.orgNotes from DC’s hearing on tech in schoolsOver 100 people showed up to talk about technology in schools. Here’s what I took away, and what I told the Council. 3129
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 13/10/2026It’s not specific because that’s how pervasive it is. Want some specifics? Industry = tech (you know, the one we are literally talking about here) Platforms = TikTok, Roblox, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, X, chatGPT… to name just a few 000
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 13/10/2026While I agree w/ the sentiment, it’s worth saying that parents have had this challenge for a while now. Charlie Kirk is just one example where algorithms pushed horrifying violence to the feeds of kids. Yes, this absolutely takes it to the next level, but for parents and kids…this is far from new. 030
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 13/10/2026Continuing my quest to understand how ppl studying tech deal w/it in their own homes, I spoke w/ @noupside.bsky.social, who has spent her career studying online manipulation in all its forms. Her perspective was incisive & practical. Interview & highlights here www.thehomescreen.org/p/episode-4-...thehomescreen.orgEpisode 4: Renée DiResta parents for the workaround.Renée has spent her career studying online manipulation. She assumes her kids will get around every rule, so she teaches them how it all works and makes sure they can come to her for help. 041
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 13/10/2026The entire industry has actively dismantled even the little capacity that was focused on addressing harm on platforms. 100
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 11/10/2026Sure. But why not also take the very clear steps needed to protect actual humans? 100
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 11/10/2026Turns out there are limits to behavior on platforms — just not to protect humans. www.bbc.com/news/article...bbc.comAnthropic bans users from being 'cruel' to its AI systemsThe firm said users can no longer engage in "sustained and needless" abusive behaviour towards the tech. 572
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 09/10/2026How long until OpenAI rebrands to OpenSI? 🎉🍾 youtube.com/shorts/ml7Ed...youtube.comWe asked Sam Altman what he thinks of Trump's 'super intelligence' rebrandYouTube video by POLITICO 000
Reposted by EmilyTavJason Concepcion @netw3rk.bsky.social · 06/12/2025Couldn’t Sam Altman just ask ChatGPT how to make itself profitable 684608762
Reposted by EmilyTavStaci D. Kramer @sdkstl.bsky.social · 08/10/2026"Ms. Hamilton, who would bring her young daughter to work on weekends and evenings, is credited with popularizing the term 'software engineering' to describe the complexity of the work her team did, thus elevating software coding to a status equal to hardware design."nytimes.comMargaret Hamilton, Whose Software Guided the Apollo Missions, Has Died (Gift Article)Margaret Hamilton, the first female programmer hired to work on the space project at M.I.T., was 90. 12412
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 08/10/2026Everyone should read @zephoria.bsky.social’s new book — it’s a story about how the census survived the last wave of attacks. press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/bo...press.uchicago.eduData Are Made, Not FoundAn eye-opening story of the people who make the census, the United States’ largest and most consequential dataset, and the growing threats to their crucial work. By many measures, the US census is the... 04114
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 08/10/2026The entire interview is worth listening to… www.nytimes.com/2026/10/07/o...nytimes.comOpinion | ‘This Is Nuts.’ An OpenAI Insider Explains Why He Quit.David Robinson, who wrote OpenAI’s safety protocols, resigned last week over safety concerns. 021
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 08/10/2026In his interview with @ezraklein.bsky.social, David Robinson shared a story about Ilya S briefing the global affairs team “about how he believed that our future was merging with machines, that this was the ultimate triumph of capital over labor.” … hope that clears things up. 131
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/10/2026Tech companies are basically making policy decisions. (My testimony on this below) Google is so entangled into kids lives (because of the ubiquity of Google classroom) that their product choices have an outsized impact on kids, schools, families, & education. 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. 281
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/10/2026YES. This is why “keep AI out of schools” is not quite as simple as you might imagine. AI is not a separate technology —- it is an iteration of what we already have. These are ultimately product decisions, so when your org is dependent on that product, your priorities lose to product decisions. 1102
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. 1202
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 · 30/09/2026Now excuse me while I process the fact that the "front door" to U.S. Government services is powered by a chatbot that was quite literally trained on CSAM. 0397
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 30/09/20264. What is the accuracy rate for the responses? Who is tracking this? How? 5. What happens if a response is wrong? 6. Do responses differ based on the user? On their location? On other data collected about their lives or online behavior? 1151
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 30/09/20261. What did the user research behind this look like? 2. What are their indicators of success? 3. What are their indicators of failure? (aka... what would indicate this is not going as imagined, and are they prepared to take action on that?) 1171
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. 24584213877
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 · 06/08/2026Thank you! Thankfully, the medication is not life/death/super critical so we can get a generic over here… but it’s such a strong signal of how the entire system is designed to facilitate the operations of profit-making entities, while obstructing the daily operations of family life. 020
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/2026The whole system is designed to facilitate the operations of profit-making entities, while obstructing the daily operations of family life. 020
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 · 06/08/2026I totally get that the EU has complicated laws, requirements, and fees. But as a customer, I would expect an international shipping company to fold all of that into their process. Like isn’t that the point of working with a shipping company…? It’s crazy. 120
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/2026I don’t think so. I went through a bunch of the regulations & there is a new law that hit in early July… But the only thing that does is add a fee. What I am hung up on here is the fact that DHL costs loads of $$$ yet says they know nothing about customs rules or costs. So what’s their value add? 110
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/2026It is just your life now. I bought myself this and hung it where I do laundry as a reminder… 040
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/2026Bingo. For companies they will move mountains to facilitate the flow of goods, but for individuals… for families? Eh. Let them eat cake. 010
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. 183
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 · 06/08/2026**PS: if you know anyone who could help me untangle this, or boost public visibility, please share or LMK! 070
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/202618/ oh and 3️⃣ DHL charges a standard fee of $56 for someone to RECEIVE a package, after the sender spent $230. This is new information that we are hearing 10 days after my husband sent the package and 2 days into a back and forth with customer service. Yay! More surprises! 3150
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/202617/ But what is now clear: 1️⃣ There are required clearance forms that can just magically pop up upon arrival. Apparently DHL knows nothing about these, and it is just a fun surprise for everyone. 2️⃣ The $ the recipient has to pay to RECEIVE the package is also something DHL knows nothing about 🙈 2100
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/202617/ When a customer goes to DHL to ship something important, they assume that (1) the giant sum of $ they pay covers all fees, (2) the paperwork needed by customs is known & compete, and (3) the recipient doesn’t need to do anything to receive the package — it arrives at the correct address. 1110
EmilyTav @emilytav.bsky.social · 06/08/202616/ They continue to try to blame customs, but I’m not surprised that customs has crazy rules… THAT IS WHY PEOPLE GO TO COMPANIES LIKE DHL — to navigate that or clarify it for them. 1100