In 2003, commenting on the proceedings of the “Open-Source Commission” established by the then government, I wrote in the glorious (and alas, now defunct) Linux&C magazine: “We are creating generations of functional illiterates subservient to the uncritical use of a single platform. People are already using systems with no awareness of their actions. Thus, when the spell-checker suggests that ‘democracy’ is not in the dictionary, they will, without question, simply cease to use the word -and forget about its existence. Twenty years on, these words retain extraordinary relevance when applied to the current developments in generative AI, which unfold under the collective gaze of a substantially indifferent populace – by Andrea Monti – Initially published in Italian by Italian Tech – La Repubblica and in English by Inforrm Continue reading “The self-censorship of generative AI now surpasses Orwellian Newspeak”
The geopolitical implications of the US AI executive order
Technological superiority, brain poaching and the protection of American values are the three pillars on which the US AI strategy is built by Andrea Monti – Initially published in Italian by Formiche.net
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Breton’s letter to Elon Musk exposes a serious problem (but it is the EU, not X)
In a letter dated 10 October, Commissioner Breton informed Elon Musk that X is used for disseminating illegal content and disinformation within the EU. He reminded Musk of the regulations imposed by the Digital Service Act in terms of content moderation, and warned that he had received information from “qualified sources” about the circulation of—quoting verbatim—”potentially illegal content” that remains available despite notification from relevant authorities. Lastly, Breton states that it is obligatory (“you need to have in place” reads the letter) to have implemented effective measures to reduce risks to public order and safety arising from the spread of disinformation. He expects — expects, not hopes— immediate compliance with requests from police authorities and Europol. by Andrea Monti – Initially published in Italian by Strategikon – an Italian Tech blog Continue reading “Breton’s letter to Elon Musk exposes a serious problem (but it is the EU, not X)”
From mass surveillance to individual control, the path goes through videgames and exposes the GDPR
A peculiar feature of the third iteration of Call of Duty Modern Warfare has gone almost unnoticed by the media: it will increase the use of AI to block – ‘filter’, as marketing experts would euphemistically say – ‘toxic’ conversations. In other words, an AI will analyse what players are saying in real time, and ‘toxic’ language – whatever that means – will be reported to the moderation team by Andrea Monti – initially published in Italian by Strategikon – an Italian Tech Blog Continue reading “From mass surveillance to individual control, the path goes through videgames and exposes the GDPR”
Two bad rulings for Investigative Journalism
In an unforeseen and unrelated coincidence, the Italian Court of Cassation and the Criminal Court of Lisbon have recently delivered two verdicts that could potentially impact investigative journalism based on “leaks” and the platforms that facilitate their circulation By Andrea Monti – Initially published by Wired.it Continue reading “Two bad rulings for Investigative Journalism”