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Mark Vanderbeeken

@vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu
301 followers 238 following 1.2K posts

International customer insight, market research and digital innovation expert. And some more. vanderbeeken.eu All posts are personal.

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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 04/10/2026
Leaving citizens in the dark is an intentional strategy, pervasive in all 27 EU countries. Reporters of @lighthousereports.com made FOI requests in all 27 EU member states and faced mostly non-disclosure. They ended up making a legal filing. www.lighthousereports.com/investigatio...
lighthousereports.com
Data Centre Silence
How EU leaders sided with Big Tech over the public’s right to know about the true scale and environmental impact of the AI build-out, forcing a legal challenge to seek disclosure
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 04/10/2026
It seems repairable luckily. Earlier reports spoke about one of the pillars being hit. But it doesn't bode well for the future.
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Reposted by Mark Vanderbeeken
Dave Keating @davekeating.substack.com · 03/10/2026
European leaders have been unable to explain why releasing oil reserves just before a risky winter with likely supply disruptions due to the Iran War will help their citizens. They should just be honest: they felt they had no choice but to surrender to 🇺🇸extortion.
davekeating.substack.com
Yet again, Europe has surrendered to Trump
Yesterday leaders caved to Trump’s demand that they release Europe’s oil reserves ahead of a risky winter, to lower US energy prices before the midterm election.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 04/10/2026
Per chiarezza, non si tratta di una fabbrica (come le Gigafactory per la produzione di batterie al litio), bensì di un data center hyperscale per addestrare, ottimizzare ed eseguire modelli europei di IA di frontiera. Va nella giusta direzione, ma dovrebbe comunque funzionare con chip NVIDIA.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 04/10/2026
Europe is Running Out of Energy—and Ideas by @daliborrohac.bsky.social www.persuasion.community/p/europe-is-...
persuasion.community
Europe is Running Out of Energy—and Ideas
The continent is bracing for another crisis—but the solution is in its hands.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 03/10/2026
It's not just the right to know but also the right of decision makers in European municipalities to decide on those data centers in a well-informed manner. They already face the challenge of having to do this with limited competences. If they also lack key information, their decisions are blind.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 03/10/2026
Here is the complaint: www.lighthousereports.com/wp-content/u...
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 03/10/2026
Een jonge onderzoeker heeft gisteren een deck toegelicht over een enorm "hyperscale" datacentrum in Moncalieri (net buiten Turijn), op basis van publiek beschikbare informatie. Veel lacunes. Veel vragen. DM me voor het Engelse PDF. Het is een goed template voor analoge analyses elders.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 03/10/2026
Vandaag een analoog artikel in De Standaard. Met veel voorbeelden uit Spanje. www.standaard.be/buitenland/h... Wat opvalt in Italië (waar ik woon), is hoe weinig de lokale bevolking en de gemeentes er over weten.
standaard.be
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 03/10/2026
Here is an (Italian) deck that a young researcher pulled together on a huge hyperscale data center planned in Moncalieri, Italy (suburbs of Turin), based on the publicly available information. Many unknowns. Many questions. www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1... DM me for pdf.
facebook.com
Facebook
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 03/10/2026
Great reporting by @kaspergoethals.bsky.social in the Belgian @standaard.be newspaper about the resistence against data centers in Europe. What is striking here in Northern Italy,where I live, is how ill informed local populations and representatives are.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 02/10/2026
Collegata al dibattito è la posizione assunta da un esponente di spicco del PD, che ora sta seguendo la linea russa nelle sue proposte sull’Ucraina. Luciano Capone ne riflette qui: www.ilfoglio.it/politica/202... (disponibile anche in inglese – utilizzare il pulsante “Modalità Reader”)
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 01/10/2026
Thank you @jorisluyendijk.bsky.social. In qualche modo ha trovato la mia risposta e l'ha dato un "like". Ho volutamente evitato di coinvolgerlo in questa conversazione essenzialmente italiana, quindi non l'avevo taggato. Per tutti gli altri, ecco l'articolo in olandese: www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2026/...
nrc.nl
Opinie | Als we zonder vuist op tafel diplomatie bedrijven met Rusland, capituleren we
Oorlog in Oekraïne: In het operahuis van Lviv dacht Joris Luyendijk: zouden we ons zo weinig verbinden met de Oekraïners omdat zij ons confronteren met onze eigen kwetsbaarheid? Want kwetsbaar zijn we...
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 01/10/2026
According to the FT (11 Sep 2026), they are working on it: www.ft.com/content/de71...
ft.com
EU looks for new path to tap Russian assets for Ukraine
European Commission resumes work on finding legally sound ways to access Moscow bank funds as Kyiv spending crunch deepens
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 30/09/2026
Chi sa se ha anche parlato con Calenda...
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 30/09/2026
Un ragionamento più articolato, sostanzialmente sulla stessa linea, di @dmytrokuleba.bsky.social www.foreignaffairs.com/united-state...
foreignaffairs.com
Russia’s Plan to Break Ukraine
What Kyiv needs to survive.
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Reposted by Mark Vanderbeeken
Ciaran Martin @ciaranm.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
“Losing the data on 20 million federal employees to the Chinese was bad. But you knew the Chinese weren’t going to sell or publish it.” Me in The New York Times ($, £) on why the hack of the FBI could, if confirmed, be one of the worst data breaches of all time. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/28/u...
nytimes.com
Embarrassing Breach at F.B.I. Fuels Fears of Harm to Its Employees
In an internal memo, the F.B.I. said it believed the hackers may have stolen sensitive information on all of its employees.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 29/09/2026
Grazie. Ho trovato utile questa riflessione di un giornalista olandese (Joris Luyendijk) nel giornale olandese NRC in merito ad una posizione analoga da attivisti olandesi che domenica hanno organizzato una manifestazione contro "la febbre di guerra" e "il riarmo".
una posizione analoga da parte degli attivisti olandesi (che domenica hanno organizzato una manifestazione pubblica)
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 29/09/2026
Thank you. Perhaps the most interesting observation is the comment by Prof. Castellani on the struggle to govern together and the risk of instability, not irrelevant in voter choice and whether they will vote at all (see Calabria yesterday).
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 28/09/2026
@allankaval.bsky.social thanks for this article. I cannot find one article, interview or analysis in Italian or other language on what this position of the Five Star Movement actually implies and how it could work (if at all). It is a slogan for now, devoid of substance.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 28/09/2026
My post from December 2025 cites a Dutch article which speaks about “the Americans“ and “the Europeans” as shorthand for their representatives. You may want to contact the author.
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Reposted by Mark Vanderbeeken
Extreme Temperatures Around the World @extremetemps.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
EXTRAORDINARY HEAT IN EUROPE Almost 32C in Germany today,over 30C in Switzerland, 33C in France and this is just the beginning of a heat wave which will completely rewrite European climatic history with several thousands records smashed by even 5/6C margins. HISTORIC
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Extreme Temperatures Around the World @extremetemps.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Europe is living its most extreme heat event in its history with 6 days >40C at the end of September 41,3C yesterday at Seville Thousands of stations up to 5C above their late September records 4000+ stations in Western,Central and Northern Europe will break records next days.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 27/09/2026
Sure, so much LNG that they recently had to switch to "coal-powered stations" to supply Belgium with electricity Source: www.vrt.be/vrtnws/nl/20...
vrt.be
België heeft ruim dubbel zoveel stroom voor datacenters nodig tegen 2034, volgens netbeheerder Elia | VRT NWS Nieuws
Grote datacenters zullen tegen 2034 meer dan dubbel zoveel stroom verbruiken als nu. Dat blijkt uit cijfers van hoogspanningsnetbeheerder Elia. Nu al verbruiken de grote datacenters ongeveer evenveel ...
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 26/09/2026
Ou Giuseppe Conte du Mouvement 5 étoiles italien. Je suis ravi de constater que l'article est également disponible en italien.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 26/09/2026
Heel erg aanbevolen analyse. Hartelijk dank. Ik hoop dat de alleszins de eerste twee delen ook snel in het Engels kunnen gepubliceerd worden. @nrc.nl
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 25/09/2026
www.reuters.com/legal/govern...
reuters.com
AI messaging scam costs Italy's top bank Intesa millions, sources say
Fraudsters using AI to impersonate senior executives stole €95 million ($108 million) from Fideuram, the private banking arm of Italy's biggest lender ​Intesa Sanpaolo , two sources familiar with the ...
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 25/09/2026
The episode dates back to February, but was only reported on today.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 25/09/2026
The president of the Italian Fideuram bank, controlled by Intesa Sanpaolo, transferred €95 mln, tricked by a message purportedly from Carlo Messina, CEO of Intesa Sanpaolo, and by an AI-forged phone call by a trusted corporate attorney. 36m seems lost. He resigned. milano.corriere.it/notizie/cron...
milano.corriere.it
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noyb – European Center for Digital Rights @noyb.eu · 21/09/2026
🤖 Will the profits of #AI companies trump data protection? In a #leaked document, the Irish Presidency proposes to #EU Member States that, if they train or use an AI product, companies should automatically be assumed to have an overriding “legitimate interest”. 👉 Read more: noyb.eu/en/ai-eu-mem...
noyb.eu
AI: EU Member States plan “digital expropriation” of Europeans in the interest of AI companies
In a leaked document, the Irish Presidency proposes to EU Member States that the interest of AI companies to make profits should take precedence over the fundamental rights of Europeans.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 18/09/2026
Oggi un articolo di una pagina su Corriere Torino sullo stesso argomento (autore: Giacomo Pagani). @arlovan.bsky.social
Sono tutti data center o è solo speculazione?
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 18/09/2026
En in maart ook door Terna (het Italiaanse equivalent van Elia): www.qualenergia.it/articoli/dat...
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 18/09/2026
Er is ook veel speculatie, zoals aangeklaagd in Corriere della Sera vandaag. Bedrijven (vaak buiten de EU), zoals bvb. Logistics Capital Partners, nemen een aankoopoptie op tal van terreinen en vragen dan vergunningen aan. De vergunde terreinen worden dan met grote marges verkocht aan een Big Tech.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 18/09/2026
Met de correctie wordt deze prognose heel moeilijk te interpreteren. Op basis van welke criteria verwacht Elia dat data centers met een equivalent van meer dan 19 TWh capaciteit "uiteindelijk niet zullen worden gerealiseerd"? [Het originele cijfer was 27,3 TWh, nu is het "bijna 8 TWh".]
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 18/09/2026
En deze titel in het artikel is ook fout.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 18/09/2026
Dus dit is nu fout op Bluesky.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 18/09/2026
De prognose van Elia is dramatisch. Ik hoop dat het debat genereert.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 18/09/2026
Juist. Of ze moeten de extra elektriciteitskosten voor de bevolking en de industrie - indien dat kan bepaald worden - voor hun rekening nemen.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 17/09/2026
Now data centers (hence AI) also have a PFAS problem.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 15/09/2026
Jeffrey Sachs this weekend in Italy to speak "as expert" at "Forum dell’Indipendenza italiana", the festival of the far right Futuro Nazionale (Roberto Vannacci), where the AfD is guest of honor, and at "Nova", the festival of the populist left 5 Star Movement (M5S of Giuseppe Conte). 😵‍💫 #redbrown
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 07/09/2026
Reminds me, proudly, of my grandfather.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 03/09/2026
"The challenge is no longer about keeping a “human in the loop”, but ensuring that when we do, humans retain the skills, judgment and agency that make their presence meaningful." Very good point by @gevansjones.bsky.social in @theconversation.com theconversation.com/human-safety...
theconversation.com
Human ‘safety drivers’ in Uber robotaxis could lose skills if all they do is observe
The minicabs will include a ‘safety driver’, but as human skills turn from doing to watching, driving expertise can deteriorate.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 02/09/2026
"Europe installed 36 GWh of new battery energy storage systems (BESS) in 2025, bringing its total operational capacity beyond 100 GWh for the first time. This is enough stored energy to power around 75 million homes." Liam Gilliver in @euronews.com www.euronews.com/2026/09/01/h...
euronews.com
Why nuclear power won’t magically fix Europe’s energy crisis
The war on Iran has triggered calls to double down on nuclear power. But is it really ‘clean’, can Europe’s energy grid cope and will it survive the wrath of climate change?
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 02/09/2026
La Stampa riferisce oggi che non solo si dimetterà dai suoi incarichi, ma cederà anche le sue quote nella società Be Water, evitando così il problema politico.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 02/09/2026
“Data centres do not constitute sovereign AI capability. Countries may host facilities but dispersion of hardware does not equal decentralisation of power.”
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 01/09/2026
Lascerà gli incarichi, ma rimane terzo azionista di Be Water, che controlla Chora Media e Will. Il primo azionista è Tether (che ha anche contribuito alla sala da ballo di Trump) che ha investito 10 mln di €. È di proprietà di Paolo Ardoino, socio di Peter Thiel e la 4. persona più ricca d'Italia.
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 01/09/2026
The number of 11- to 24-year-olds in England with no close friends has risen fivefold since 2014 as a result of growing up in a “bleak world” dominated by austerity, the pandemic and social media. Fivefold. www.theguardian.com/society/2026... Source: www.ippr.org/media-office...
theguardian.com
Number of young people with no close friends has soared since 2014 in England
Data paints sobering picture of 11- to 24-year-olds growing up in ‘bleak world’ shaped by pandemic and social media
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 24/08/2026
“Orwell gave us the language for the world we feared; Huxley gave us the description of the one we’re now building with every willing decision. Europe has spent its regulatory energy preparing for the first – it is past time to prepare for the second.“ www.euractiv.com/opinion/our-...
euractiv.com
Our AI reality belongs to Huxley, not Orwell | Euractiv
We spent twenty years guarding against Orwell while Huxley let himself in the front door
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Mark Vanderbeeken @vanderbeeken.app.leafplaza.eu · 19/08/2026
"Amid the infighting over textual purity, individual users are being blamed for AI slop instead of the social media platforms that motivate its distribution. This prioritizes the symptom over the disease." www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
washingtonpost.com
Opinion | Why tools to detect AI-generated text are doomed
Human- and machine-written texts are converging.
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Reposted by Mark Vanderbeeken
Smaksked Skåne AB @smaksked.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
How to design a space habitat that supports its residents’ mental health A new online platform helps engineers look beyond survival mode when designing habitats for extreme living conditions. news.mit.edu/2026/how-spa...
news.mit.edu
How to design a space habitat that supports its residents’ mental health
The Human-Environment Connection and Interaction Atlas (HECIA) is a tool for designing habitats in space and other extreme environments, where crews can not just survive but thrive. Users can explore ...
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