iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 25/09/2025

Sam says a lack of compute means he must make an impossible choice: Whether to use his LLM to i) cure cancer or ii) give free education to everyone. Similarly, I can't achieve BOTH an Olympic gold AND a platinum album. Don't ask me whether I can achieve either. www.linkedin.com/posts/axelco...

linkedin.com

#ai #genai #llm #openai #nvidia | Axel C. | 71 comments

OpenAI's Sam Altman on painful tradeoffs due to "compute constraints" that hamper the AI industry ✨ ➠ "to cure cancer"; versus ➠ "offer free education to everybody on Earth" What if lack of (Nvidi...

021

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 17/07/2025

Even OpenAI's best models still suck at quoting their training data or external sources. GPT 4o can be useful to help interpret legal provisions pasted into the chat Ask it to draw upon anything outside of the chat and it breaks down. The first quote is wrong and the latter two are just made up.

031

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 06/06/2025

Any bets on whose companies are up next for a major three-letter-agency audit? The fact that this seems not just plausible but inevitable is both terrifying and kind of funny.

010

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 23/05/2025

Google plans to offer Gemini to US children under 13 without verifiable parental consent (parents can opt out if they use Family Link). As @epicprivacy.bsky.social notes, this seems like a blatant COPPA violation. I don't think Google would have had the gall to do this when Khan headed the FTC.

130

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 09/05/2025

I guess basically all US regulation relates to China now. Or "woke" stuff. Don't get me wrong—doing business with Chinese companies can present real risks to human rights and security But for a few years we had tech enforcement (from the DoJ and FTC at least) that wasn't quite so nakedly political

021

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 09/05/2025

This is beyond terrible. A speculative fiction novel with this plot would be so cartoonish and trite as to be unreadable. And I've enjoyed some pretty hackneyed novels.

13311

Reposted by Robert Bateman

DEF-G @scriban.bsky.social · 09/05/2025

This is what happens when lobbyists ask for “clarity” in a regulation.

222

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 09/05/2025

California's once pithy (and strict) definition of "automated decisionmaking technology" is on its way to becoming War and Peace. "Replace or substantially facilitate [humans]" becomes "replace or substantially replace" (?)—and the billable hours will rack up when figuring out all those exemptions.

432

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 02/05/2025

Here's a post I wrote back when GPT could barely strong a limerick together. Note that it is positively *littered* with em-dashes. Have people forgotten that Large Language Models are trained on stuff *we wrote*?

020

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 01/05/2025

This is not what I would call a "tightening"... www.theverge.com/news/658602/...

1377

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 14/04/2025

Surely these functions should be nowhere near each other, rather than combined into a single field...

2151

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 11/04/2025

The UK government has more plans for the ICO. From its recent paper "New approach to ensure regulators and regulation support growth" www.gov.uk/government/p...

3102

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 08/04/2025

Microsoft's "Copilot Gaming Experience" is a generative AI version of Quake 2, trained on gameplay data, that generates as you "play" it. Let's just say there is a LONG way to go before this is anything other than research a project. copilot.microsoft.com/wham?feature...

copilot.microsoft.com

Microsoft Copilot: Your AI companion

Microsoft Copilot is your companion to inform, entertain, and inspire. Get advice, feedback, and straightforward answers. Try Copilot now.

000

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 07/04/2025

Help me Bluesky Quite recently (NOT years ago) Max Schrems suggested that bringing a "Schrems III" against the EU-US DPF would be too expensive. It was in an interview or panel or something and has not been widely reported. WHERE DID I SEE THIS I need it.

451

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 30/03/2025

Genuine question—if Ghibli style 4o images violate copyright law, could these people asserting this while sharing such images for commercial purposes be liable under copyright law? I expect either "no", "it depends", or my preferred answer on AI and copyright—we'll see what the courts say.

240

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 21/03/2025

A bad idea in the worst possible circumstances. How can ANY Democrat think it's a good idea to team up with Trump on free expression?

000

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 20/03/2025

The AI Act should not distract us from the powerful and firmly established human rights protections that are already in place.

020

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 19/03/2025

It's painfully obvious when someone has only ever used generative AI to write little poems and answer simple questions. They usually think AI will save the world. Doing anything decent with it requires tight parameters, close supervision, and enough domain knowledge to know when it's bullshitting.

090

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 19/03/2025

It's hard hard to overstate the significance of Bedoya's enforcement of consumer rights law against privacy violations. The FTC did an astonishing amount of work during Khan's term. It's not surprising that Trump is forcing him out. Tech firms can now go back to doing whatever they want.

03725

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 17/03/2025

Well it looks like the Washington Post's new editorial policy is working out just fine. America's pain is "brief". It will usher in a new "Golden Age". But the government isn't explaining these two entirely true things "very well". See? They criticised Trump.

032

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 14/03/2025

The GPAI stuff is a weak spot for me. My AI Act training focuses on deployers and smaller providers Is the CoP really voluntary as the article says? If technically "yes"—is it de facto mandatory? Obviously lobbyists will lobby, but can anyone get me up to speed on Meta etc's specific complaints?

241

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 04/03/2025

Anyone remember the price of a "kitchen supper" with Cameron?

010

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 03/03/2025

EVERY ICO press release says something like, "My message is simple: Comply with the law" You can ALWAYS extract a simple message from a complex one. "Comply with the law" means nothing HOW you comply with the law—eg verifying people's ages, segregating children's data—is very fucking complicated.

130

Reposted by Robert Bateman

Lukasz Olejnik @lukaszolejnik.bsky.social · 03/03/2025

Microsoft forms (i.e. customervoice.microsoft .com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx...) are being used for phishing. It redirects to a fake Gmail login. Beware.

0127

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 23/02/2025

How surprising—a perfunctory, box-ticking PIA with mitigations that would have been ineffective even if they had been implemented (but which were predictably ignored).

010

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 22/02/2025

We continue to play Chinese tech whackamole across Europe and the US: Hikvision, Huawei, TikTok, DeepSeek, etc

100

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 21/02/2025

Apple pulls end-to-end encryption from UK users following the government's order under the Investigatory Powers Act 2016. I have seen some bragging about how Meta launched threads here earlier than in the EU (etc) due to our less rigourous regulatory environment. Here's the other side of the coin

132

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 17/02/2025

If someone told me this was a failed VR project from 2006, I'd believe them. Especially the "failed" part.

7264

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 15/02/2025

Worst thing about Bluesky vs X is the lack of music. Two gigs in two nights and not only don't the artists have profiles, their names barely appear in the search results. Data protection is but one of my many interests, the rest of which I rarely discuss on socials. We've got a long way to go.

3110

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

Is tech news just "news" now or am I in a bubble? Thank you to these outlets for doing the deep work necessary

000

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 13/02/2025

Writing about the state privacy laws that take/took effect JUST THIS YEAR I realised there's really no need for a federal US privacy law. Don't worry about it.

Application
Each of the eight privacy laws taking effect in 2025 applies slightly differently, providing various exemptions and thresholds.

The laws apply to an entity that conducts business in the relevant state and fulfills one of two thresholds:

It controls or processes the personal data of at least 100,000 consumers per year (30,000 consumers per year in Delaware and Maryland), or
It controls or processes the personal data of at least 25,000 consumers (10,000 consumers in Delaware and Maryland) and derives a specified percentage of revenue from selling personal data:
Delaware: 20%
Iowa: 50%
Maryland: 20%
New Hampshire: 25%
New Jersey: Any amount
Tennessee: 50%

The exceptions are Minnesota and Nebraska’s laws, which apply generally to all businesses processing personal data in each state, except small businesses as defined by the US Small Businesses Association (SBA).

130

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 13/02/2025

Should really be a ✖️ on that third point...

010

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 11/02/2025

Delaware District Court says AI training is not "fair use".

060

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 08/02/2025

I'm fascinated by this story about the UK government demanding access to Apple e2ee iCloud accounts. This was reportedly a warrant under the Investigatory Powers Act 2016. Neither the content nor the *existence* of such warrants can be made public. I wonder how many such warrants go unreported.

040

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 07/02/2025

Interim US Attorney for DC threatens—via a letter published exclusively on X—to "chase" people referred to him by Elon Musk "to the end of the Earth" if they have "simply acted unethically"—and not even illegally. Whether careless phrasing or not, this is flagrant contempt for the rule of law.

020

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 06/02/2025

Generating CSAM is apparently a "common legitimate practice" according to the Commission If it is indeed legitimate in some contexts, I still think it's a stretch to call it "common". It is also a crime in some countries, and I can't see that the AI Act makes it lawful.

020

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 30/01/2025

Tech firms honestly expect governments to treat AI development like the Manhattan Project—ploughing in public money, pulling up drawbridges and protecting their trade secrets for them. It appears to be working. darioamodei.com/on-deepseek-...

darioamodei.com

Dario Amodei — On DeepSeek and Export Controls

On DeepSeek and Export Controls

185

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 30/01/2025

A new proposed amendment to the UK Data (Use and Access) Bill that I cleaned up. Baroness Kidron proposes "sovereign data assets"—a licensing system for data held by public bodies (I guess primarily the NHS), with preferential access for UK organisations.

254

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 29/01/2025

The EDPB did not overstep its powers when directing the DPC to investigate Meta's use of special category data across its business So I guess the DPC will have to do implement part of the Binding Decision now In my view this challenge probably would not have occurred under the DPC's new leadership

251

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 29/01/2025

It's Data Protection Boxing Day and the UK's ICO registration fees have officially gone up. Not likely to break the bank but I doubt there is much support for this among businesses.

000

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

Last week's deep and nuanced judgment RTM v Bonne Terre is a fantastic read. A gambling firm used data about a person's vulnerabilities to target them with marketing—with his "consent". Here the judge explains how to balance respect for individual autonomy with the commercial benefits of data use.

161

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

Someone did a thing, some currency went up or down, yada yada who cares Trillions of dollars riding on this stuff.

180

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 27/01/2025

So who's doing the Deepseek complaint?

240

Robert Bateman @robertjbateman.bsky.social · 08/01/2025

The General Court has an individual €400 after he used the "Log In With Facebook" button on the Commission's website The court was satisfied that the claimant experienced non-material damages because "he found himself in a position of some uncertainty as regards the processing of his... IP address"

101