Seems like a good time to be exploring ways out of our current technofascist trajectory. Come and join the discussion next week. 📅 Thu 24 Apr ⏰ 4 – 5pm 📍 Online via Zoom 🎟

Eventbrite

BRAID x IDI Hybrid Seminar - Dan McQuillan

Thursday, 24th April 2024 [Inspace / Zoom]

The nonsense about 'agentic AI' is a diversion from the fact that AI has always been about removing agency from the rest of us.

The Unstitching Datafication series starts tomorrow with Gavin Mueller's talk on 'Luddite Futures', and closes in July with mine on 'Decomputing as Resistance'. Eight great sessions on deconstructing and resisting today's tech supremacism https://www.mediacoop.uni-siegen.de/de/unstitching-datafication/

This sack of shit has taken the critique from 'Resisting AI' and turned it into a sales pitch: 'fascistic solutionism' ☑️ , 'constituent power' ☑️, 'states of exception' ☑️, necropolitics ☑️ - "ICE director envisions Amazon-like mass deportation system: ‘Prime, but with human beings’ " https://michiganadvance.com/2025/04/09/ice-director-envisions-amazon-like-mass-deportation-system-prime-but-with-human-beings/

Going to be chatting 'decomputing' at an online BRAID seminar. All welcome! 📅 Thu 24 Apr ⏰ 4 – 5pm 📍 Online via Zoom 🎟

Eventbrite

BRAID x IDI Hybrid Seminar - Dan McQuillan

Thursday, 24th April 2024 [Inspace / Zoom]

Here's the full version of 'Labour's AI Action Plan - a gift to the far right'

Labour's AI Action Plan - a gift to the far right

. Why an obsession with 'growth' is already paving the way for environmental harms and DOGE-like, public service-smashing eugenics here in the UK, and what we can do about it.

Non-critical embrace of LLM 'reasoning' models is the scholasticism of idiots.

Happy to be quoted in 'Is AI Worth It? A Growing Number of Artificial Intelligence Skeptics Is Raising Doubts About a Utopian Future' https://archive.ph/gjmCY. The mag is delivered to SF's most exclusive neighborhoods - hope some VC chokes on their Chai Latte while reading it.

Australian government: 'AI worse than humans in every way at summarising information'.

Crikey

AI worse than humans in every way at summarising information, government trial finds

A test of AI for Australia's corporate regulator found that the technology might actually make more work for people, not less.

UK government: 'Great, we'll use it to match medical conditions for Employment and Support Allowance claims!':

GOV.UK

DWP: Employment and Support Allowance Online Medical Matching

A tool which helps Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) agents match medical conditions for ESA claims.

🤖 ☣️

AI weaponisation is dangerous not because AI is all-powerful but exactly because AI is a bit crap. It's doesn't deliver for socially useful production but it's great for violent destruction where collateral damage (false positives/confabulation) is seen as a bonus.