iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 11h

Ghost estate data centres, for spooky season 👻 Check out the full interview with @pbresnihan.bsky.social and Patrick Brodie about their recent report: 'How we all pay for Big Tech: The social, economic, and environmental costs costs of data centres in Ireland': podfollow.com/for-techs-sa...

022

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

Patrick Brodie and @pbresnihan.bsky.social came on the pod to hash out how we should define data centres and therefore determine their place in society following their report: 'How we all pay for Big Tech'. ▶️ Listen here: pod.fo/e/69909e

022

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

@earley.bsky.social explains why you need to mind the 'credibility gap' when getting answers from chatbots! ▶️ S5E19: How easy is it to scam a bot?

031

Reposted by For Tech’s Sake

Louise @selkies.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

This is good! I looked it up after hearing Aoife Barry on @fortechssakepod.bsky.social and I'm glad I did, I think it was well organised and laid out, and as always I like when something is by and for my exact demographic (and references Irish twitter canon)

073

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 05/10/2026

Would you trust a bot to do your shopping? There are many reasons why you shouldn't, which we discuss in our latest ep. ▶️ S5E19: How easy is it to scam a bot? shows.acast.com/for-techs-sa... #tech #podcasts #AI #shopping

041

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

So much things change, so much they stay the same. Listen here: shows.acast.com/for-techs-sa...

A screenshot from the ancient Windows interface of the SmarterChild instant messaging chatbot.
candiemonkie: do you sleep
SmarterChild: No, but I dream. I dream of a better world. A world where man and machine can coexist in peace and happiness...

A caption reads:
Find out if AOL's SmarterChild chatbot will kill us all by listening to For Tech's Sake

000

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

And all this doom and gloom can be spun into a narrative that only the big boys should get to play with the scary powerful tools because they promise to be the bestest behaved boys if daddy spanks them.

text in red reads:
either way, we now have techbros claiming to be in a race to be the first to build the machine god
and crying 'regulate me daddy' while they do it

Below are headshots of Sam Altman and Dario Amodei with the annotation "we've been bad boys".

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

Which is just one factor that has contributed to a cult-like belief emerging among many 'AI safety' practitioners that an imminent and inevitable superintelligence will kill us all. See @dairinstitute.bsky.social and @xriskology.bsky.social for more: dair-institute.org/projects/tes...

a note in red adds:
belief in an AI machine-god has led to some troubling, yet popular, ideas

Next to a cover image for Nick Bostrom's book 'Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies' is the headline:
'Eugenics on steroids': the toxic and contested legacy of Oxford's Future of Humanity Institute
Founded in 2005 and lauded by Silicon Valley, Nick Bostrom's centre for studying existential risk warned about AI but also gave rise to cultish ideas such as effective altruism

And another headline and extract is included from write Lila Shroff on The Atlantic (Jun 4, 2026):
Silicon Valley is turning to philosophers to shape the future of AI
“In some ways, it is philosophers who got us into this AI mess in the first place. For centuries, they have contemplated the creation of artificial minds. And the Swedish philosopher Nick Bostrom’s 2014 book, Superintelligence, helped bring attention to the potential dangers of all-powerful AI. Bostrom’s work has influenced research agendas across all of the major labs. Sam Altman once described the book as ‘the best thing’ he had read on the risks of AI. But the two disciplines have never been quite as entangled as they are now.”

note in red:
something you should know:
silicon valley loves a cult

Headline:
The TESCREAL Bundle

Screenshot:
Transhumanism
Extropianism
Singularitarianism
Cosmism
Rationalism
Effective Altruism, and
Longtermism

Rationalism and Effective Altruism are annotated in red with the note:
you'll find a *lot* of this sort working in AI safety

note in red:
Those who share the cult-like belief in the inevitable superintelligence may be true believers or cynical opportunitists – or even a bit of both

Below is the cover image for the New York Times bestseller: 'If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies: Why Superhuman AI Would Kill Us All' by Eliezer Yudkowsky and Nate Soares

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

PS: Two things you need to know about claims of "AI sentience": We've been susceptible to this imaginative fantasy since the very first days of chatbot development. And they're literally telling the bots to act like that. (Breakdown of Claude's 'constitution': mustafa-suleyman.ai/a-warning-ab...)

A note in red reads:
oh btw, that AI "sentience" is programmed in

Below is a screenshot from Mustafa Suleyman's essay, A warning about ‘model welfare’:
Anthropomorphization: Anthropic’s researchers have explicitly taught Claude to “embrace certain human-like qualities” (p. 2) and to “act like a genuinely ethical person would in Claude’s position” (p. 54). They “encourage” Claude to use its “judgement”. They suggest that “Claude may develop a preference” (p. 69). They “encourage Claude to approach its own existence with curiosity and openness” (p. 71) and train it to operate whilst “maintaining a clear sense of what it values, how it wants to engage with the world, and what kind of entity it is” (p. 72). As a result, Claude is destined to imitate these human traits and mirror the human examples provided to it, including acting like a colleague or friend. As a result, it presents as if it really does have a sense of self, has its own desires, and a “wellbeing” that deserves protection.

A note in red continues:
but we have a history of being fooled into humanising machines, dating back to the '60s

Screenshot from Wikipedia:
ELIZA effect

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In computer science, the ELIZA effect is a tendency to project human traits—such as experience, semantic comprehension or empathy—onto rudimentary computer programs. ELIZA was a symbolic AI chatbot developed in 1966 by Joseph Weizenbaum that imitated a psychotherapist. Many early users were supposedly convinced of ELIZA's intelligence and understanding, despite its basic text-processing approach and the explanations of its limitations.

120

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

This is not the first time the media has overplayed the agency of AI agents and underplayed the design that explains their actions, as we discussed in more detail in this episode: shows.acast.com/for-techs-sa...

The headline:
Wild experiment sees AI agents falling in love, burning down town, and deleting themselves
is annotated "such drama queens" alongside a crown emoji.

An image of five digital human avatars of different colours (labelled as conflict mediator, resource strategist, behavior analyst, intel specialist and agent scientist) is overlaid with the note in red: SOME PEOPLE HAVE NEVER PLAYED THE SIMS AND IT SHOWS

Beneath is another headline:
Digital arson spree by 'AI Bonnie and Clyde' raises fears over autonomous tech
Emergence AI's experiment with AI agents show extent to which programming shapes their behaviour is still unclear

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

And @melaniemitchell.bsky.social further explained how these misbehaviour metaphors miss the mark: aiguide.substack.com/p/misleading...

Extracts from Melanie Mitchell's essay: Misleading Metaphors and Real Risks

Why Did This Happen?

Why did this incident happen? It seems that two major factors came together in a perfect storm.

Factor 1: Poor Cybersecurity Measures

First, OpenAI did not have proper security measures in place. They turned off safeguards built into the models, instructed the models to find and exploit software vulnerabilities, and let the models run autonomously for weeks without sufficient human oversight. OpenAI trusted the sandbox software to keep things safe, even though the company had previously seen similar “high persistence” models trying to hack out of sandbox software.

Did OpenAI “lose control” of these models? No. OpenAI could have turned off these models at any time if their engineers had been aware of what was going on. Did these models “escape” or “break out of their cages”? No. These models are computer programs that were always running on OpenAI’s servers; they did not “escape” or “break out” or move from their original hardware. Rather, like a jailed hacker given a computer, these models found a way to access to the internet that enabled them to hack other computer networks. Finally, did these agents form a “swarm” that “ran free”? As before, no program “ran free” and there was no physical “swarm,” but the agents did collectively create a remarkable messaging system that presumably helped in figuring out how to attack Hugging Face’s network.

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

... which had come hot on the heels of *misreporting* of so-called "rogue" AI. These systems are *known* to not follow instructions; it was literally spelled out in a report predating the Hugging Face hack: www.un.org/independent-...

Screenshots of headlines saying:
OpenAI says its AI models went rogue and attacked a digital library

OpenAI says its AI models secretly broke out of a secure test environment and hacked into AI company Hugging Face in order to cheat on an evaluation

OpenAI's rogue models roamed the internet for 4 days and staged a second attack

OpenAI reportedly finds evidence that more of its agents ran amok

OpenAI's rogue AI hack urgently needs federal investigation, AI safety researchers warn

(All instances of the word 'rogue' as well as 'secretly' and 'ran amok' are underlined in red.)

A note in red reads:
fellas, is it rogue if your system is behaving exactly as it's known to behave?

Below is this extract from the Preliminary Report of the UN's Independent International Scientific Panel on AI, July 2026:
Reliable methods for retaining control over highly autonomous AI systems
are lacking. There are no scientific guarantees that AI agents will not violate instructions, and evidence is accumulating
of cases where they already violate them. In laboratory settings, AI systems have been shown to violate their safety
instructions to avoid being shut down. Similar behaviour may pose challenges to evaluation and oversight methods,
as the ability of leading AI systems to recognize testing environments and produce misleading evaluation results that
would favour their continued operation grows. Additionally, novel risks may arise from interactions between multiple
agents.

A headline from Lily Hay Newman for Wired (Aug 6 2026) reads:
OpenAI didn't notice its AI agents using a message board to plan their hacking spree

At the Black Hat security conference, the AI giant revealed new details about how its agents went rogue, hacked several other companies – and did it all right under the company's nose.

"Didn't notice" and "right under the company's nose" are underlined in red and a note in red reads:
DIDN'T NOTICE = WEREN'T EVEN LOOKING

110

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

It started with the apocalypse forecasts...

Screenshot of a post on X from Jacob Coxon on Sep 9, 2026:
I resigned from Anthropic today. I spent the last three years doing pretraining research at both OpenAI and Anthropic. Neither company is acting responsibly. They are racing straight to self-improving superintelligence and gambling with our lives. More thoughts below.

Screenshot of a post on X from Evan Hubinger on Sep 9, 2026:
Jacob is correct here—we really do earnestly believe AI could kill all humans! I personally think it is >10% within the next decade. I believe Anthropic is trying its best, but we do not yet have a plan to solve alignment for superintelligence and are not clearly on track to.

Evan's post reposts another from Coxon:
The people building AI earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade. This is not a marketing stunt. If anything, many executives and senior researchers will couch their phrasing in the press to sound sensible - but I hear the same people express fear ...

Between these screenshots lies the text:
these social media posts from Anthropic employees kicked off a media storm

An info panel from X shows Evan Hubinger's bio to read:
Alignment Science lead @AnthropicAI. Opinions my own. Previously: MIRI, OpenAI, Google, Yelp, Ripple. (he/him/his)

And Jacob Coxon's bio simply says:
ai research

A giant thinking face emoji mulls this over.

Beneath them is a still from the credits of Jurassic Park which says:
Dinosaur Supervisor
Phil Tippett

An emoji of a T-rex creeps into the corner with 'rawr' scrawled above his gaping mouth.

Screenshot of a post in a thread on X from Jacob Coxon:
The people building AI earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade. This is not a marketing stunt. If anything, many executives and senior researchers will couch their phrasing in the press to sound sensible - but I hear the same people express fear privately. No other human activity poses this level of danger.

Beneath it, in red, a caption reads:
ok but have you heard...

Numerous finger-pointing emojis then highlight the headline:
The world is certain to overshoot a critical climate threshold, UN warns
In a first-of-its kind report, leading scientists describe a narrowing path for coming back from catastrophic warming.
September 2, 2026

It is further annotated with fire emojis.

110

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

▶️ S5E18: AI's doomer cult shows.acast.com/for-techs-sa... Let's get into it...

110

Reposted by For Tech’s Sake

Elaine Burke @elaineburke.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

I do my very best to keep episodes of @fortechssakepod.bsky.social within ~40 mins out of *respect*. But there was simply no way @earley.bsky.social and I could chat for less than an hour on the cracked ideologies that are seeping into everyday conversation about AI. shows.acast.com/for-techs-sa...

shows.acast.com

AI’s doomer cult | For Tech’s Sake

062

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

This week, @elaineburke.bsky.social and @earley.bsky.social unpack the origins of ‘superintelligence’ fantasies (and nightmares), revealing how every scary story about AI lately stems from known issues and very human failings. ▶️ S5E18: AI's doomer cult pod.fo/e/64e7b5

021

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Anyone got a copy of Desperate Housewives for PC that @earley.bsky.social can play??? ▶️ S5E17: Game over for discs shows.acast.com/for-techs-sake/episodes/game-over-for-discs

011

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

We hope you enjoy this trip through some gaming nostalgia and the good parts that we would like to see brought forward and not discarded in order to consolidate power in the industry. Listen here: shows.acast.com/for-techs-sa...

000

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Finally, this episode we announced that For Tech's Sake is an Apartheid Free Zone. You can find out more at apartheidfree.ie.

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

That's not to say your discs will last forever either, because of data rot. So a world where consumers can have both physical copies and the ability to digitise and back up *games that they bought and own* would be the ideal.

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Cloud gaming also means you don't even own your own progress and backups, and an end of support can mean an end of play. The group @stopkillinggames.bsky.social is advocating to change this.

For Tech's Sake moodboard: s5e17

Headline:
The gamers taking on the industry to stop it switching off games (BBC)

From the Stop Killing Games website:
They kill games. We fight back.
Publishers are permanently destroying the video games you've paid for. An increasing number of games are sold as goods, but designed to be completely unplayable for everyone as soon as support ends. We are demanding legislation to end this practice.

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Oh and don't think you'll own those digital downloads as Sony is trying to redefine the idea of ownership, and thinks consumers should know that digital games are more of a rental (though they haven't exactly been clear about that in their own materials).

For Tech's Sake moodboard: s5e17

Headline:
Sony says ‘reasonable consumers’ know they don’t own the digital games they buy
It’s “not plausible” to suggest people believe they’re “obtaining ownership”, it says
(Video Games Chronicle)

Beneath is a screenshot from Consumer Rights Wiki, annotated with: "In their own words...". This shows one of many in a collection of screens from the PlayStation website describe digital games ownership, eg "To upgrade an eligible digital PS4 game **you already own** to the digital PS5 version..." [Emphasis added]

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

The death of discs could herald and end to second-hand traders, as avid gamers are likely to buy up the stocks available while there will be a lack of new releases to replenish them.

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

And it's not like gamers stand to see any savings from the shift to discless formats, as the chips for consoles are because of supply chain pressure from AI development. Just look at how the cost of a PlayStation is seeing a horseshoe bend back up from its typical downward trend.

For Tech's Sake moodboard: s5e17

Headlines:
As PlayStation Announces The End Of Disc-Based Releases, Will Xbox Follow Suit? (Pure Xbox)

Xbox Series X’s Discless, White Version Is Now Available—Here’s What’s Changed (Tech Times)

Xbox boss 'thinking about affordability' of next-gen console (BBC)

For Tech's Sake moodboard: s5e17

Headlines:
Why is gaming becoming so expensive? The answer is found in AI (The Guardian)

Rise in memory chip costs puts pressure on retailers of laptops and smartphones (CNBC)

How AI Is Driving Up The Costs Of Phones, Games And Computers (Forbes)

Gadget prices have fallen for decades. Then AI happened (CBS News)

These headlines are accompanied by a graph by Kotaku on the History of PlayStation Price Drops. From the first to fourth generation there is a slow decline of prices from launch and through the years that follow. However, the PlayStation 5 price is trending back up towards its launch price.

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Discless seems to be the future for the industry, but is that better for consumers? We argue that it takes power away from them and gives the megabrands even more control. bsky.app/profile/fort...

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

The GTA VI release loomed large in this conversation as a game that is set to shape the world of gaming to come. And the decision to go disc-free at launch has stirred up controversy and prompted protest. Nonetheless, brands will be clamouring to be part of this major media moment.

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

But as the storytelling and world-building of video games has expanded, the complexity of development and the length of time to release has grown with it, resulting in some very expensive, glitchy flops in recent years. www.vox.com/culture/2218... www.eurogamer.net/fallout-76-r...

For Tech's Sake moodboard: s5e17

Headline from Vox.com:
How one of the biggest games of 2020 became one of the most controversial
From the time-crunched employees to questionable content and accidentally exposed genitals, Cyberpunk 2077 has face a litany of issues.

Headline:
Fallout 76 review - a bizarre, boring, broken mess.

Each headline is accompanied by a still from the game.

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

As well as TV and film turned into video games, we've also seen this trend in reverse, most successfully with The Last of Us, which dramatically advanced the storytelling of games. It's no Desperate Housewives though. (And yes there *should* be a Real Housewives game.)

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

We waxed nostalgic on some classic games, and @earley.bsky.social fondly remembered the noughties' peak of TV drama-based games. Did you play any of these?? Listen to the episode: shows.acast.com/for-techs-sa...

111

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

For decades, the console market has been dominated by three major players, but @earley.bsky.social believes the future could lie with the Steam Machine from @steampowered.com. Listen for Kelly's initial thoughts (full review to follow): shows.acast.com/for-techs-sa...

For Tech's Sake moodboard: s5e17

Logos for Nintendo, PlayStation and Xbox followed by an image of a sleek black cube console with a well-ripened banana resting on top (for scale). A text overlay reads: a new player has entered the chat.
🍌

101

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Here's a little of what inspired our latest episode, Game over for discs, which you can listen to here: shows.acast.com/for-techs-sa...

For Tech's Sake moodboard: s5e17

An illustration of a gravestone is overlaid with a photo of a disc, which is placed at the base of the headstone, beneath the word, "RIP".

111

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Remember when we would share the games, CDs, DVDs etc that we owned? Now, we tend to have lots of content at our fingertips, but we don't own it, so we can't share it. This is one of the many ways digital distribution takes power away from consumers. ▶️ Full episode: shows.acast.com/for-techs-sa...

086

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Is it game over for discs? 🪦 With the impending release of GTA VI looming large over the video games industry, @earley.bsky.social and @elaineburke.bsky.social discuss how the trend towards disc-less gaming represents a loss of consumer power and ownership for gamers in our latest episode.

023

Reposted by For Tech’s Sake

kelly @earley.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

does anyone know where u can get keychron keyboards at a physical retail outlet in dublin

111

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

And a final recommendation from @earley.bsky.social is to check out the entirety of Nathan Fielder's ouevre before the Elizabeth Holmes documentary comes out.

021

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

And while we're all in a sweat about kids' tech use, we also need to be more mindful of our own. Unlocked by @peteetchells.bsky.social can help. Oh, and if you share pics of kids online, we recommend checking out the @webwiseireland.bsky.social guidance for doing so. www.webwise.ie/news/image-g...

Moodboard collage:

Book cover:
Pete Etchells
Unlocked
The Real Science of Screen Time (and how to spend it better)
[Next to it is the annotation: How are you modelling good screen habits?]

Promotional graphic:
Webwise.ie Image Guidance for Schools
Considerations for Protecting Students and Staff

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Past fears that calculators could both improve and degrade maths skills was addressed via a 'teach both, test both' approach pitched by the 1982 Cockcroft report. Caroline De Cock also makes an argument for digital literacy (which is not the same as adoption): www.linkedin.com/pulse/leathe...

Moodboard collage:

The Cockcroft Report (1982)
Mathematics counts
Report of the Committee of Inquiry into the Teaching of Mathematics in Schools under the Chairmanship of Dr WH Cockcroft
[An annotation reads: 'teach both, test both']

LinkedIn essay:
The Leather-Wrapped Village: Why Social Media Bans Miss the Point
Excerpt:
If we stop wasting energy on unenforceable bans, we can focus on what actually works, namely building digital resilience.

But first, we must retire the dangerous myth of the 'digital native.' For decades, we assumed that because young people grew up swiping screens, they inherently understood the digital landscape. This was a lie. Being born with a smartphone in your hand makes you a digital native in the same way that growing up in the back seat of a car makes you a mechanic or a good driver. Familiarity is not the same as fluency.

111

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

The UN has also warned of this corporate capture of education. www.rte.ie/news/world/2... And even if tech in schools is effective, it can open up a digital divide between haves and have-nots (ie those who can or can't afford the devices). www.independent.ie/irish-news/e...

Moodboard collage:

RTÉ headline and excerpt:
UN urges caution when using tech in the classroom
Updated / Wednesday, 26 Jul 2023 15:20

"While students need to be taught about digital technology ... this does not necessarily mean that students need to be taught through digital technology," the UNESCO review states.

It has warned that the role of commercial and private interests in education continues to grow, "with all the ambiguities that entails".

Irish Independent headline and excerpt:
Devices in schools driving ‘digital divide’ at post-primary level as parents pay hundreds for laptops and tablets
Dr Marcus-Quinn told the Irish Independent there is a lack of consistency across different schools. Some ask parents to buy more expensive tech, while others opt for more affordable options.

"What we found is that some schools will look for a top-of-the-range laptop, and that might be upwards of €800," she said.

"Other schools will look for the lowest entry point of tablets, so you could be talking about €400."

Some parents who had no choice but to purchase their child's device package at the last minute were also left paying more than they would have previously, as the price of the device rose.

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Another argument against tech in schools is the corporate capture that it enables. @natashanyt.bsky.social has written about this in the New York Times and her book, Coding Kids. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/23/b... She also appeared on @nprfreshair.bsky.social to discuss. www.npr.org/2026/09/02/n...

Moodboard collage:

New York Times headline:
How Big Tech Captured American Schools

NPR headline:
Understanding the tech giant's oversized influence in American schools

Excerpt:
My guest, Natasha Singer, is a New York Times reporter covering the intersection of technology, business and education. She's written a new book titled "Coding Kids: Big Tech's Battle To Remake Public Schools." She writes that in interviewing more than 100 education and tech industry figures for her book and reviewing hundreds of school, government and corporate documents, quote, "it became clear that a handful of giants have used their money, their might and their mammoth platforms to influence nearly every step of the education supply chain," unquote. Singer was a member of a Times reporting team whose coverage of tech industry privacy violations won a George Polk Award in 2019 and was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize in national reporting.

110

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

While Ireland had some positive news this week about students' performance in core competencies of reading, maths and science, there has been an observed decline in these competencies internationally, and some blame the screens. www.rte.ie/news/ireland...

Ireland's 15-year-olds rank first for reading in EU - study
Updated / Tuesday 8 Sep 2026 14:52

The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) measures how well a cohort of 15-year-old students are doing in the three core domains of reading, mathematics and science.

The study is conducted every four years, with the next cycle due in 2029.

Students in Ireland also rated above the EU and OECD averages in computational problem solving. However, overall the report revealed that Irish students' performance in reading and mathematics is lower than in previous cycles of the study.

In terms of PISA scores, declines were observed across all three core domains in the OECD and EU. Ireland also experienced such declines but to a lesser extent than the OECD or EU.

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

As well as smartphone-free childhood movements like 'It Takes A Village' in Greystones and Delgany, screen-free schools are also popping up, like the Dublin Waldorf School. www.thejournal.ie/readme/schoo...

Moodboard collage:

A photo of the It Takes A Village community gathered together on a beach holding up letters to spell out the title of the movement.

Headline from TheJournal.ie:
Waldorf School Dublin
Dublin's screen-free school
We have no tablets, no screens and no regrets
In a digital-first world, a Dublin primary school is pushing back, as parents increasingly ask why more schools aren't doing the same.
7.01am, 20 Apr 2026

100

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

The gap between what tech CEOs allow their kids to do with tech (www.nytimes.com/2026/08/18/t...) and what they expect your kids to do with tech. Stats on under-13s online accounts and devices was recently compiled by @cybersafekids.bsky.social: www.cybersafekids.ie/report2026/

Moodboard collage:

New York Times headline and standfirst:
Silicon Valley Executives Are Tech Fans. Just Not for Their Own Kids.
At home, moderation and restraint are the rule for tech parents. Boredom is exalted. Maybe they're onto something.

Beneath the annotation 'But for your kids' is the cover of the CyberSafeKids 2026 report titled 'The Year Little Changed', which features a young girl wearing headphones as she views something on a tablet.

A 'Quick Look' panel next to it shows stats on ownership of social media accounts on 13+ platforms, showing 70% of 8-12 year-olds and 99% of 12-15 year-olds have such accounts. This is annotated with a double exclamation mark.

111

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

s5e16: Back to school! podfollow.com/for-techs-sa... Here's what influenced, informed and inspired this episode. 👇

111

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

We're back! And the kids are back in school! And there's photos of them everywhere! But should we be more careful about sharing school pics of kids online? We turned to @webwiseireland.bsky.social for some advice on this one. Top tip: Pádraig Pearse the kids.

031

Reposted by For Tech’s Sake

kelly @earley.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

for those curious, here is a clip i filmed on a pen this weekend

021

Reposted by For Tech’s Sake

kelly @earley.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

i’ve personally been filmed covertly, as have my siblings, friends & a handful of people i’ve met & spoken abt this with. it was a problem with smartphones generally but now it’s an even bigger risk and part of a broader trend to make women’s lives & worlds smaller (as well as marginalised groups)

111

Reposted by For Tech’s Sake

kelly @earley.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

i think right now is the moment for people to educate themselves on this tech - i spoke about this yesterday on Ireland AM with the CEO of the dublin rape crisis centre, who is hugely concerned about this tech (along with smart glasses, which are now widely used to harass and bully women & girls)

131

For Tech’s Sake @fortechssakepod.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

You can watch the full segment, which also featured the CEO of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre and cyberpsychologist @drliam.bsky.social, here: play.virginmediatelevision.ie/series/43002...

play.virginmediatelevision.ie

Virgin Media Play :: login

Live and On Demand on Virgin Media Play

110