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Hugh Wallace

@tumshie.me
1.3K followers 493 following 491 posts

Tech / gov / design / occasional snark. Usually found queuing for coffee ☕️ Digital and data for public good ✊ CIO @rds-scotland.bsky.social Chair @cfgsocial.bsky.social ✍️ Sign up to my newsletter: tumshie.me

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Reposted by Hugh Wallace
TJ McIntyre @tjmcintyre.com · 24/09/2026
This is a wonderful little story about children’s creativity in getting around Internet bans.
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Jason Koebler @jasonkoebler.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
have wanted to see more beef lately and this is a good one: karlbode.com/why-is-naomi...
karlbode.com
Why is Naomi Klein Funding Substack’s Hate Machine?
Writers of good conscience should not be building new media companies on the back of a platform that opportunistically coddles white supremacy.
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Giles Wilkes @gilesyb.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
Who cleans up after the vibe-coding party? - giftarticle.ft.com/giftarticle/... via @financialtimes.com Possibly the most informative article I've read this year
giftarticle.ft.com
Who cleans up after the vibe-coding party?
Our obsession with AI code-writing tools is overwhelming the web’s unsung human caretakers
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Kathryn Corrick @kcorrick.bsky.social · 01/07/2026
Whoop, the Society for Hopeful Technologists has arrived! Follow @hopeful.technology Our latest newsletter is out today full of hopeful things to read, listen and do over the summer: buttondown.com/society-of-h... Subscribe here: buttondown.com/society-of-h...
buttondown.com
#6: The Summer 2026 Hopeful Tech Index
Updates from the Society for Hopeful Technologists, plus recommendations for summer reading, listening, and gaming
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Sarah Drummond @rufflemuffin.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Bad Services is out today and we’d like to take this opportunity to announce our unwavering support for services that don't work. So much so that we've launched our new sister company - The Bad Services Corporation Welcome to your Bad Services Corporation staff induction. badservicescorp.com
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 23/06/2026
I started to write a tongue-in-cheek post about the way technology is portrayed in movies, and ended up with a fairly ranty piece on why the social media ban focuses on the wrong targets. Awkward juxtapose inc. tumshie.me/aliens-land-...
tumshie.me
Aliens land, social media banned
What do Steven Spielberg's latest movie and the UK banning social media for under 16s have in common?
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 20/06/2026
So enjoyed the latest episode of Vergecast, particularly @davidpierce.xyz and @reckless.bsky.social's jovial talk of "wearable bullshit" and AR glasses "giving good demo" but little else of worth or value to humanity. www.theverge.com/podcast/9521...
theverge.com
Snap’s Specs look good on nobody
On The Vergecast: Snap Specs, Fox / Roku, and Facebook AI Mode.
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Rachel Coldicutt @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
It is also absolutely typical that Elon Musk can do whatever he likes and the way to get it around it is to suppress young people's access to information and relationships.
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Anil Dash @anildash.com · 13/04/2026
Another way to put it is... if you don't use AI platforms because you have a moral objection to them, but you publish your words on Substack, you haven't really thought about this stuff.
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 21/03/2026
20 years since the very first tweet - unhappy birthday Twitter! tumshie.me/x-why-are-yo...
tumshie.me
X: why are you still here?
Twitter is no longer with us, but X lives on. In the run up to what would've been Twitter's 20th birthday, why does X's influence endure?
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Ethan Zuckerman @ethanz.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
Re: Meta's retreat from the metaverse: www.nytimes.com/2026/03/19/t... Told you so: www.theatlantic.com/technology/a...
theatlantic.com
Hey, Facebook, I Made a Metaverse 27 Years Ago
It was terrible then, and it’s terrible now.
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mia ridge @miaout.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
I'm volunteering as a parkrun marshall and scanner this weekend - the point about manual scanning promoting interactions is so true! 'Just enough technology' is a great mantra for life
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 19/03/2026
I wrote some words about the joy of parkrun, the thoughtful application of technology, and (somewhat inevitably) AI. tumshie.me/its-a-run-no...
tumshie.me
It's a run, not a race
When I turned 50 last year, one of the most noteworthy things I did was rack up my 50th parkrun. I'd realised a few months earlier that if I timed it carefully, the two things would coincide nicely. ...
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MJ Lira @mjlira.bsky.social · 12/03/2026
This is the Society for Hopeful Technologists. Brilliant, kind and thoughtful individuals looking to bring hope back into tech. Join us for updates. societyforhopefultechnologists.org
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steve @visitmy.website · 11/03/2026
Local government bods! Anyone with experience of getting permission for working in the open at your local authority? Need a couple of quotes from people who’ve done it before...
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Anita Chaudhuri @anitachaudhuri.bsky.social · 09/03/2026
Really insightful explainer and update on the dreadful Glasgow fire and its impact which must have been challenging to write today. Kudos to @libbybrooks.bsky.social and @severincarrell.bsky.social
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 09/03/2026
Absolutely gutting news about Glasgow - I got the train into Central Station on Friday night, and it's hard to fathom how much is now just gone. This photo from the 80s shows the extent: from the Irn Bru to the Bell's sign, almost completely destroyed by fire. www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/cd...
flickr.com
Your Other National Drink - Renfield Street early eighties
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 08/03/2026
As is tradition, here are my highlights from February a week later than intended (accompanied by a fitting photo to sum up the general state of things) tumshie.me/monthnote-fe...
tumshie.me
Monthnote, February 2026
Various goings-on during the shortest month.
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 06/03/2026
Powerful, provocative keynote on AI from @elmosmoe.bsky.social at today’s ‘Power and participation in public tech’ conference in Manchester. So good to have the ‘this is inevitable’ narrative challenged with many pertinent examples.
Steph Wright in full flow presenting in front of a screen and colourful stained glass
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 23/02/2026
In a v rare moment of tapping into the zeitgeist 😂 my Happy 20th Birthday Twitter post covers a lot of similar ground to John Oliver’s takedown tumshie.me/x-why-are-yo...
tumshie.me
X: why are you still here?
Twitter is no longer with us, but X lives on. In the run up to what would've been Twitter's 20th birthday, why does X's influence endure?
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 23/02/2026
Twitter would have been 20 years old next month, but it didn't make it beyond its teenage years 😢 I've written about the fact X still exerts a lot of influence over our public discourse, and why that's bad for all of us. tumshie.me/x-why-are-yo...
tumshie.me
X: why are you still here?
Get your party clothes ready people: next month would have been Twitter's 20th birthday! 🥳 For so it came to pass, on 21 March 2006, Jack Dorsey posted "just setting up my twttr" and an era-defining ...
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Karen Hao @karenhao.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
Episode 1 is OUT!! 🥳 🙌 This week on The Interface, we discuss: * That insane Superbowl ad for Ring * The US TikTok takeover * And the beef that launched ChatGPT Listen wherever you get your podcasts: app.magellan.ai/listen_links...
app.magellan.ai
The Interface
Listen to The Interface
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Ryan Broderick @ryanhatesthis.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
Here's my take on that big dumb post about AI going viral on X right now. www.garbageday.email/p/a-comfort-...
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Marisa Kabas @marisakabas.bsky.social · 07/02/2026
how do you write this story without noting there was a campaign literally called SUBSTACKERS AGAINST NAZIS in…2023
theguardian.com
Revealed: How Substack makes money from hosting Nazi newsletters
Exclusive: Site takes a cut of subscriptions to content that promotes far-right ideology, white supremacy and antisemitism
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 07/02/2026
The slightly bonkers backstory to the Opalite video (and the music vid itself) have made we smile today. www.theguardian.com/music/2026/f...
theguardian.com
Taylor Swift casts ‘insanely charismatic and lovable’ Graham Norton in music video
Opalite video reunites host and guests including Domhnall Gleeson and Lewis Capaldi from Swift’s October chatshow appearance
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 07/02/2026
A monthnote for January. Musings on data, language, context, AI, and keeping occupied while it’s dark and dreich 🌧️ tumshie.me/monthnote-ja...
tumshie.me
Monthnote, January 2026
What is this? This is my monthnote for January, a post where I reflect on the previous month's work, alongside other life stuff. The eagle-eyed amongst you may have noticed I wrote a few of these at...
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 19/01/2026
Started 2026 a bit too focused on the doom and gloom, so found a bunch of links that feel more glass-half-full 🥛 tumshie.me/2026-go-pop/
tumshie.me
2026 go pop 🎉
Kicking off the new year with links about Blue Monday, Buttondown and various musings on values.
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 31/12/2025
A round-up of some splendid sounds of 2025, if you fancy… tumshie.me/2025-mixtape/
tumshie.me
2025 mixtape
TL;DR: I've selected a bunch of my favourite tracks from 2025 and put them in one sparkling playlist. All were released, or remixed, this year: * listen on Apple Music * listen on Tidal * listen o...
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 18/12/2025
Back in the day, I used to work on some delightful self-contained projects. I wrote a piece about one of them - Capture the Museum - and reflected on the stuff we got right, the stuff we had to chop and change, and how 'innovation' funding works. Sometimes. tumshie.me/capture/
tumshie.me
The legendary Capture the Museum
As we crawl towards the end of the year, I thought I’d write about a nice digital thing. A little seasonal sparkle rather than my usual "bah humbug" vibe. It's a glass-half-full account of developing...
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 09/12/2025
I absolutely love @chriscolin3000.bsky.social's concept of an Admin Night, and am enthusiastically making it a priority for 2026. So if you're in Edinburgh and fancy tackling those never-get-done jobs... tumshie.ghost.io/admin-night/
tumshie.ghost.io
Admin Night, right?
As much as it feels like a clunking old cliché to be fired up by two men talking on a podcast, I got terribly excited when I listened to a recent episode of Roman Mars' always-engaging design and arch...
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GovCamp Cymru @govcampcymru.bsky.social · 28/11/2025
Great to catch up share reflections and learnings this morning from GovCamp Scotland and GovCamp Wales’ this year. Reflecting on growing communities and importance of unconferences for creating the space for conversations. Diolch @rossferg.bsky.social and @tumshie.me
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 02/11/2025
I goddam love Zadie Smith. Such a warm, topical, nuanced conversation. With a bonus pug interruption. podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/t...
podcasts.apple.com
EP.263 - ZADIE SMITH
Podcast Episode · THE ADAM BUXTON PODCAST · 02/11/2025 · 1h 14m
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 31/10/2025
People like real things! I wrote about the important stuff that's missing from the new wave of AI tools. tumshie.ghost.io/people-like-...
tumshie.ghost.io
People like real things
Thoughts on trust, authenticity and bubbles in response to the launch of Sora, OpenAI’s new video-sharing app.
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Neil Williams @neillyneil.bsky.social · 31/10/2025
👻 Halloweeknotes. More accurately, mooOOOoonthnotes. 🎃 neilojwilliams.net/autumnotes-o... #weeknotes #weeknote #blog @weeknotes-bot.bsky.social
neilojwilliams.net
Autumnotes: October 2025 | Neil Williams
These notes are a tool I use for reflecting, remembering (to counter my SDAM), networking within my profession, and public accountability. Read more here. Work, work, work Films, films, films Working ...
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 26/09/2025
Surprised it was a film review that flipped me to becoming a paid subscriber, but there you go. Happy to support+pay for Panic World and Garbage Day as IMO there’s nobody reporting on the state of the Internet/world better than @ryanhatesthis.bsky.social, @grantirving.bsky.social et al right now.
podcasts.apple.com
BONUS: How Eddington and Weapons hold a mirror up to our Panic World
Podcast Episode · Panic World · 24/09/2025 · Bonus · 40m
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 18/09/2025
Massive Attack on Spotify: “The band cited a ‘moral and ethical burden’ placed on artists by revenue from their work ultimately funding lethal technologies”
theguardian.com
Massive Attack remove music from Spotify to protest against CEO Daniel Ek’s investment in AI military
The band cited a ‘moral and ethical burden’ placed on artists by revenue from their work ultimately funding lethal technologies
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 17/09/2025
“If I'm so empowered, why am I such a coward?” Still completely awestruck by last night’s Self Esteem gig in Edinburgh, honestly one of the best shows I’ve ever been to. Standing (screaming) ovation at the end fully justified.
Rebecca Lucy Taylor on stage at the Usher Hall, Edinburgh, with a large crowd in front of her.
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 02/09/2025
Love this New York Times visualisation of tennis courts turning into pickleball courts. Such a simple way of communicating behaviour change on a pretty massive scale. 🎾🎾🎾 [sidenote: where's the pickleball emoji?] www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
Screenshot from New York Times showing lots of tennis courts being converted into pickleball courts, as seen from above.
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Alex Parsons @alexparsons.bsky.social · 27/08/2025
Let no one say I'm above retweeting praise research.mysociety.org/html/ai-fram...
research.mysociety.org
mySociety AI Framework
Our approach to AI in our experiments and services
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Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 27/08/2025
This is good. Next let's do 'core funding for supporting and rolling out what works' www.nesta.org.uk/blog/in-prai...
nesta.org.uk
In praise of ‘boring innovation’
The boring innovations that shaped our society and how dull can change the world
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Anil Dash @anildash.com · 26/08/2025
I think a lot of people in tech are probably feeling something close to despair about what to do about LLMs, since it’s clear that those with power are not going to relent with their advocacy, and they have enough uses that they’ve gained critical mass, yet the harms & risks are so wildly egregious…
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Charlie Warzel @cwarzel.bsky.social · 18/08/2025
Hello. I wrote a nice long essay about AI and this very strange moment where we're constantly told we're living in the dawn of a strange new future but the only thing that's actually clear is that everyone feels pretty unmoored and uncertain. I hope you'll read it
theatlantic.com
AI Is a Mass-Delusion Event
Three years in, one of AI’s enduring impacts is to make people feel like they’re losing it.
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 15/08/2025
Niche Scottish indie post (#3): the new Pictish Trail single is very, very good. youtu.be/Qx6IKWPi3Zw?...
youtu.be
Hold It
YouTube video by Pictish Trail - Topic
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 13/08/2025
Took the opportunity to pop into a fab #edbookfest event with a panel made up of @edinburghminute.bsky.social @greatergovanhill.com and @neiltosh.bsky.social - some excellent discussion of online advertising, facing up to the threat of AI, and how to fund + make local news cut through.
Spiegeltent at the Edinburgh International Book Festival
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Gordon Guthrie @foundationsofthedigitalstate.com · 09/08/2025
Time for GovTech to come in from the cold digitalpolicy.substack.com/p/in-from-th...
digitalpolicy.substack.com
In from the cold
Integrating the GovTech ecosystem with the wider ones
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Ken Burnside @kenburnside.bsky.social · 03/07/2025
"The problem with AI isn't that it can do your job. It can't. The problem with AI is that your MBA-brained boss's boss doesn't know how your job works and thinks AI can do your job at fractions of a penny on the dollar, and hears the siren song of 'maximize shareholder value'." MBA-brain is real.
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 05/07/2025
New Kae Tempest album is unfeasibly good - urgent, angry, insightful, uplifting. Absolutely on top of their game. www.kaetempest.com
kaetempest.com
Kae Tempest | Official Site
Kae Tempest is a recording artist, lyricist, performer, author, playwright, and poet. They have released four critically acclaimed studio albums.
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 03/07/2025
Knackered as I pull into Edinburgh at midnight, but elated after an amazing #CampDigital. Kudos to fellow presenters @jukes.ie @herahussain.bsky.social @sharonodea.com @blangry.bsky.social @acuity.design + the superb efforts of @catcutmore.bsky.social @shaungomm.bsky.social & all @nexerdigital.com
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Hugh Wallace @tumshie.me · 02/07/2025
Fab to have made it to Manchester for #CampDigital tomorrow, here’s the venue looking windswept and interesting. Hope to catch some @bsky.app folk in there.
The exterior of the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester
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