AI Is Supercharging the War on Libraries, Education, and Human Knowledge

This story was reported with support from the MuckRock Foundation. Last month, a company called the Children’s Literature Comprehensive Database announced a new version of a product called Class-Shelf Plus. The software, which is used by school libraries to keep track of which books are in their catalog, added several new features including “AI-driven automation and…

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Flock Wants to Partner With Consumer Dashcam Company That Takes ‘Trillions of Images’ a Month

Flock, the surveillance company with automatic license plate reader (ALPR) cameras in thousands of communities around the U.S., is looking to integrate with a company that makes AI-powered dashcams placed inside peoples’ personal cars, multiple sources told 404 Media. The move could significantly increase the amount of data available to Flock, and in turn its…

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Facial Recognition Company Clearview Attempted to Buy Social Security Numbers and Mugshots for its Database

Controversial facial recognition company Clearview AI attempted to purchase hundreds of millions of arrest records including social security numbers, mugshots, and even email addresses to incorporate into its product, 404 Media has learned.  For years, Clearview AI has collected billions of photos from social media websites including Facebook, LinkedIn and others and sold access to…

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In Unhinged Speech, Pete Hegseth Says He’s Tired of ‘Fat Troops,’ Says Military Needs to Go Full AI

Last week, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth called America’s Generals to Quantico to meet for an unknown reason. America’s top civilian military leader calling the generals home all at once is strange and unprecedented. It’s the kind of move that often presages something like a major war. But that’s not what he wanted. During a…

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Help Us Investigate Book Bans and Educational Censorship Around America

Over the last few years, some of our more meaningful (and unfortunately bleakest) reporting has been on the many ways in which the right wing has systematically targeted libraries, schools, authors, and educators over the things they teach, specifically with regard to the teaching of systemic racism, LGBTQ+ issues, science, and sex education. These targeting…

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Business Insider Founder Creates AI Exec For His New Newsroom, Immediately Hits On Her

On Monday, the co-founder of Business Insider Henry Blodget published a blog on his new Substack about a “native-AI newsroom.” Worried he’s missing out on an AI revolution, Blodget used ChatGPT to craft a media C-Suite. Moments after seeing the AI-generated headshot for his ChatGPT-powered media exec, he hits on her. Blodget called the feeling…

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