Issue 94 — How to Stop Reading Newspapers
Welcome to 500 Words.
When I worked as a news writer and producer, I acquired a habit that I am now trying to break. Back then, every day, I churned through as many print and internet sources as I could get my eyes on. Now, the more news I read, the worse I feel.
I’ve tried switching to blogs and newsletters, and found validation for this change in a piece from a Nieman Lab writer, Laura Hazard Owen. A journalist, she makes the argument that she should consume less journalism. She wrote, “Sometimes it’s healthy to do something you love less, and differently.”
She continued:
It didn’t take the 2024 presidential election to make me realize this is a bad way to live. I already knew I should stop. Last week, though, I realized I had to stop, before I got sucked down, before more years passed, before I spent my entire adult life this way.
I’m right there with her. This is a time to be selective about your inputs, nurture yourself, and seek more moments that benefit your mental health. We already have so many sources of information, we won’t miss anything if we check in with some favorite sources once or twice a day, instead of scrolling nonstop.
INTERROGATING AI
Niantic, the company that brought us the augmented reality mobile game Pokémon Go, is using data collected by its millions of players to create an AI model for the physical world. You thought you were just chasing cute animals in augmented reality? Actually, you were working for Niantic, helping the company make a Large Geospatial Model. The model will help computers understand physical spaces the way Google Maps allow computers to understand roads. Niantic says the model will be part of the world’s future operating system. Nice! Good thing you were well compensated for providing–oh, sorry. Just add this to the many ways that we humans helpfully enhance AI datasets without realizing it.
Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead is still dead, but his voice will live forever. His estate has sold the rights to his unique voice so that “Jerry Garcia” can narrate audiobooks and articles from the Big Jam Session in the Sky.
And this: Startup funding hit a record high in LA. This sounds good. But the big bump came from one big deal: a $1.5-billion funding round for Anduril Industries. The company creates autonomous weapons systems. This sounds bad.
I imagine Anduril products are like the self-driving Waymo cars we see around town, but with nukes. Actually, it’s more nuanced than that. Anduril is working on autonomous submarines and jet fighters that fly around by themselves and shoot things. It’s the 40th anniversary the release of The Terminator, so autonomous killing machines have moved out of movie theaters and into our world.
But might this be good? Why shouldn’t LA latch on to the AI boom, and score some sweet VC investment? I asked David J. Whelan, an LA-based life sciences ecosystem builder and advisor, what he thought about this.
He responded via email to say that the LA metro region has long been an innovator, from aerospace to entertainment, energy to life sciences, though often this activity goes under the radar. He’s happy to see investment funding flowing here, “especially life sciences and deep tech” and calls it a moment to celebrate.
He argues that such funding creates opportunity for new kinds of businesses to be born. “The recent focus on AI and other enabling technologies like biotech has created an opportunity for new kinds of businesses to be funded. Each of these businesses will turn around and invest more into the ecosystem — human capital, infrastructure, and partnerships — but also create growth in residential real estate and consumer products and services. The short-term benefits can be big, but the long-term benefits can be huge.”
There is something to that “float all boats” argument. Whelan says, “Personally, I would like to see more life sciences companies in LA get funded, but I recognize that there is much attention on other AI and deep tech companies here as well. My hope is that there are non-defense applications for some of the innovations that are being funded at Anduril. In the meantime, there are always new job opportunities for those that want to apply their technology expertise to life sciences, climate tech, and ag tech.”
I have divested my investments in any companies that directly make weapons, and I’m not eager to see autonomous weapons on the battlefield. The Terminator turns out to be a good guy in the sequel, but that doesn’t mean that your autonomous fighter jet would only kill the people you specified. Weaponized drones make mistakes, even today.
Thanks for reading,
Lee
SOURCES
I’m a journalist and I’m changing the way I read news. This is how.
Pokémon Go Players Have Unwittingly Trained AI to Navigate the World
Jerry Garcia’s AI-Created Voice Can Now Narrate Audiobooks, Articles and More
AI Startup Funding Hit a Record in Los Angeles
Anduril Unveils Plans for Huge ‘Arsenal’ Factory to Build Autonomous Weapons Like CCA
