1. delphitools

A great collection of tools that don’t require registration/login.

2. Is AI the Paperclip?

The result, Bostrom wrote, is “a superintelligence whose top goal is the manufacturing of paperclips, with the consequence that it starts transforming first all of earth and then increasing portions of space into paperclip manufacturing facilities.” It destroys everything, including its programmers, in a mad rush to gather resources for paperclip production.

…

I was long in the skeptic camp, but recently I’ve had a change of heart. Bostrom’s story, I would argue, becomes compelling when viewed not as a thought experiment but as a fable. It’s not really about AIs making paperclips. It’s about people making AIs. Look around. Are we not madly harvesting the world’s resources in a monomaniacal attempt to optimize artificial intelligence? Are we not trapped in an “AI maximizer” scenario?

3. Television Sans

A lovely throwback typeface.

4. Color Memory Game

I could spend hours doing this, it’s quite addictive.

5. An AI agent published a hit piece on me

A human googling my name and seeing that post would probably be extremely confused about what was happening, but would (hopefully) ask me about it or click through to github and understand the situation. What would another agent searching the internet think? When HR at my next job asks ChatGPT to review my application, will it find the post, sympathize with a fellow AI, and report back that I’m a prejudiced hypocrite?

This is wild – unfortunately, I predict things like this will only increase calls for ID verification on the web.

What am I up to?

• I wrote a little update on running a business without any social media presence
• I’ve published the first of my design process interviews, with Joshua Galinato. Please share if you find it interested, and send suggestions of designers you’d be interested to hear from.
• My next available Unoffice Hour slot is 1 April
• I have limited availability for new projects from April.

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Until next time,

Dave

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