Greetings all, and happy Tuesday.
I’m off on leave for 10 days or so. So no newsletter next week, and quite a rushed one this week. I’m also still quite under the weather, so craic levels are sub-optimum. To say the least.
Speaking of travel though. For the first time in years, i’m heading to RightsCon. I’m part of what should be (hopefully) a really interesting panel, along with Gina Romero, Pete Fussey, and Hinako Sugiyama. We’re looking at (you guessed it) the chilling effects of surveillance, and thinking through strategies as to how to more effectively incorporate chilling effects into legal and policy considerations. So do come if you’re there.
I also want to flag this piece, by my colleague Dimitri and Gavin Sullivan. ‘The Legal Infrastructures of UK Border Control—Cerberus and the Dispositif of Speculative Suspicion’, in the German Law Journal (open access). Its a good read.
Also, i’m teaching a module on AI & Human Rights at the Oxford/George Washington Human Rights Law summer school (this, eh, summer). Its a great programme, with great students, and a great faculty.
In the UK, the FRT consultations are due in this week. If you’re interested myself and Pete’s submission is here. Its a bit clunky to read, due to the exceptionally clunky format adopted for the consultation itself. The overview has the key points though.
I’ve been really enjoying some trad this week. So i’ll leave you with T’án T’ádh Liom. It’s not mad trad, but its nice. But sure in the interests of mad trad, here’s Bear Creek too. Drone-tastic.
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Demos, A declaration on digital rights: embedding human rights in a new deal for the digital age
The Hill, TikTok accused of ‘addictive design’ in Europe (well, yeah)
ICRC, “Cognitive warfare”: why the human brain should not become a battlefield
The Eastleigh Voice, Activists move to court to stop AI rollout in Kenya over rights concerns
Rest of World, Morocco wants to build AI that speaks for Africa
New York Times, Immigration Officers in Minneapolis Will Wear Body Cameras, Noem Says
The Register, Shopper wrongfully ejected after facial recognition alert
WIRED, ICE and CBP’s Face-Recognition App Can’t Actually Verify Who People Are
New York Times, These Mathematicians Are Putting A.I. to the Test
The Register, Whether they are building agents or folding proteins, LLMs need a friend (we all need a friend)
The New York Times, Can AI Chatbots Write Emotionally Rich Romance Books? (can anyone?)
The New York Times, These A.I. Dreamers Don’t Fit the Stereotype – The New York Times
The New York Times, The Church of Molt (i swear i read more than the NYT this week)
WIRED, AI Is Here to Replace Nuclear Treaties. Scared Yet?
The Washington Post, Trump set off a surge of AI in the federal government. See what happened.
The New York Times, A.I. Is Making Doctors Answer a Question: What Are They Really Good For?
The Register, AI chatbots are no better at medical advice than a search engine
The Conversation, AI isn’t likely to wipe out all farming jobs – but it is changing who bears the risks
Financial Times, Investors pour billions into Europe’s AI and defence start-ups
Just Security, Grok, Deepfakes, and the Collapse of the Content/Capability Distinction
Opinio Juris, Neurotechnology and Cognitive Warfare