Gideon Lichfield
@glichfield.bsky.social
Climber, biker, cocktailer, polyglot, vagabond. Ex EIC WIRED & MIT Technology Review, now writing about the future of democracy at https://futurepolis.substack.com. NYC/SF. He/him/Sir.
Reposted by Gideon Lichfield
📣 Gideon Lichfield (@glichfield.bsky.social), Former Global Editorial Director of @wired.com, will deliver the media keynote address at the UC Berkeley Law AI Institute!
He joins more than 30 AI & legal experts who share how AI is affecting law & business.
👉Register: bit.ly/463CniC
He joins more than 30 AI & legal experts who share how AI is affecting law & business.
👉Register: bit.ly/463CniC
July 17, 2025 at 5:24 PM
📣 Gideon Lichfield (@glichfield.bsky.social), Former Global Editorial Director of @wired.com, will deliver the media keynote address at the UC Berkeley Law AI Institute!
He joins more than 30 AI & legal experts who share how AI is affecting law & business.
👉Register: bit.ly/463CniC
He joins more than 30 AI & legal experts who share how AI is affecting law & business.
👉Register: bit.ly/463CniC
“Out of touch” — this from the party whose only contender for mayor has been wearing the same red beret for 45 years
June 25, 2025 at 3:34 AM
“Out of touch” — this from the party whose only contender for mayor has been wearing the same red beret for 45 years
Perhaps I’ve missed it, but in all the talk about whether the attack on Iran has stopped its nuke program, I haven’t seen anyone point out that Trump played a huge role in creating the threat in the first place when he pulled out of the JCPOA
June 23, 2025 at 12:52 PM
Perhaps I’ve missed it, but in all the talk about whether the attack on Iran has stopped its nuke program, I haven’t seen anyone point out that Trump played a huge role in creating the threat in the first place when he pulled out of the JCPOA
Reposted by Gideon Lichfield
Can lawmaking keep up with the pace of our digital world?
Journalist @glichfield.bsky.social joins host David Zvi Kalman to discuss the challenges governments face in responding to rapid technological change, and how this is mirrored in organized religion on the Belief in the Future podcast.
Journalist @glichfield.bsky.social joins host David Zvi Kalman to discuss the challenges governments face in responding to rapid technological change, and how this is mirrored in organized religion on the Belief in the Future podcast.
Is Tech Too Fast to be Governed? with Gideon Lichfield (podcast)
Journalist Gideon Lichfield joins host David Zvi Kalman in this episode of Belief in the Future podcast to explore how lawmaking can keep up with the fast…
www.templetonworldcharity.org
June 20, 2025 at 3:04 PM
Can lawmaking keep up with the pace of our digital world?
Journalist @glichfield.bsky.social joins host David Zvi Kalman to discuss the challenges governments face in responding to rapid technological change, and how this is mirrored in organized religion on the Belief in the Future podcast.
Journalist @glichfield.bsky.social joins host David Zvi Kalman to discuss the challenges governments face in responding to rapid technological change, and how this is mirrored in organized religion on the Belief in the Future podcast.
Reposted by Gideon Lichfield
Alternatively, “Thousands of Americans expected to take to the streets in defense of their neighbors and their democracy” www.nytimes.com/live/2025/06...
June 14, 2025 at 1:19 PM
Alternatively, “Thousands of Americans expected to take to the streets in defense of their neighbors and their democracy” www.nytimes.com/live/2025/06...
It's time. #NoKings futurepolis.substack.com/p/its-now-or...
We need a massive show of peaceful force
Large and absolutely non-violent protests are the best way to prevent the militarization of the streets.
futurepolis.substack.com
June 14, 2025 at 1:04 PM
It's time. #NoKings futurepolis.substack.com/p/its-now-or...
There's a difference between laws saying how cars should be built and laws saying how fast people can drive them. The proposed moratorium on state-level AI laws would be the equivalent of banning states from having speed limits. My latest: www.techpolicy.press/why-both-sid...
Why Both Sides Are Right—and Wrong—About A Moratorium on State AI Laws | TechPolicy.Press
Gideon Lichfield says there’s an argument for a moratorium—but a much narrower one than what Republicans propose.
www.techpolicy.press
May 23, 2025 at 5:51 PM
There's a difference between laws saying how cars should be built and laws saying how fast people can drive them. The proposed moratorium on state-level AI laws would be the equivalent of banning states from having speed limits. My latest: www.techpolicy.press/why-both-sid...
My latest for Bloomberg: Trump’s AI deals with the UAE and Saudi Arabia may be good business in the short term but bad geopolitics in the long term (gift link)
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
Offshoring AI to the Middle East Could Hand China a Win
The Gulf has the resources Trump needs to expand America’s AI prowess, but there’s no guarantee the Middle East will stay loyal to his cause.
www.bloomberg.com
May 18, 2025 at 2:10 PM
My latest for Bloomberg: Trump’s AI deals with the UAE and Saudi Arabia may be good business in the short term but bad geopolitics in the long term (gift link)
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
The story of what DOGE is doing will henceforth be all about this: not about firing people or cutting supposed waste, but making US data privacy an even greater nightmare than it already was.
NEW: Russell Vought, acting head of CFPB and director of OMB, just killed a rule to protect US residents' personal information from predatory data brokers. @dell.bsky.social and @dmehro.bsky.social have the scoop: www.wired.com/story/cfbp-q...
CFBP Quietly Kills Rule to Shield Americans From Data Brokers
Russell Vought, acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, has canceled plans to more tightly regulate the sale of Americans’ sensitive personal data.
www.wired.com
May 14, 2025 at 4:57 PM
The story of what DOGE is doing will henceforth be all about this: not about firing people or cutting supposed waste, but making US data privacy an even greater nightmare than it already was.
There have been a lot of good analyses recently about what the "real" purpose of DOGE is. But what did Elon Musk *think* it was? My latest, for Foreign Policy (gift link)
foreignpolicy.com/2025/05/14/e...
foreignpolicy.com/2025/05/14/e...
Elon Musk Was Donald Trump’s Useful Idiot
It’s looking increasingly likely that the world’s richest man got played.
foreignpolicy.com
May 14, 2025 at 4:55 PM
There have been a lot of good analyses recently about what the "real" purpose of DOGE is. But what did Elon Musk *think* it was? My latest, for Foreign Policy (gift link)
foreignpolicy.com/2025/05/14/e...
foreignpolicy.com/2025/05/14/e...
People who claim AGI is imminent mean a wide range of different things by it. For Bloomberg, I write that this AGI hype is obscuring our ability to talk intelligently about the big changes that are actually coming.
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/feat...
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/feat...
When Will AI Be Smarter Than Humans? Don’t Ask
The term “artificial general intelligence” is being bandied about by some of tech’s smartest people, but nobody knows what it really means.
www.bloomberg.com
April 13, 2025 at 3:40 PM
People who claim AGI is imminent mean a wide range of different things by it. For Bloomberg, I write that this AGI hype is obscuring our ability to talk intelligently about the big changes that are actually coming.
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/feat...
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/feat...
Reposted by Gideon Lichfield
The term “artificial general intelligence” is being bandied about by some of tech’s smartest people, but nobody knows what it really means. @glichfield.bsky.social has some thoughts: www.bloomberg.com/opinion/feat...
When Will AI Be Smarter Than Humans? Don’t Ask
The term “artificial general intelligence” is being bandied about by some of tech’s smartest people, but nobody knows what it really means.
www.bloomberg.com
April 13, 2025 at 12:31 PM
The term “artificial general intelligence” is being bandied about by some of tech’s smartest people, but nobody knows what it really means. @glichfield.bsky.social has some thoughts: www.bloomberg.com/opinion/feat...
Reposted by Gideon Lichfield
Worth a read. I worked at The Economist (one of the lumbering Goliaths Seward mentions here) when it launched. Still remember the FOMO at the new thing, and how much I loved @glichfield.bsky.social's newsletters. What a terrible business, the news. But as Zach says, so many great people. RIP Quarts.
Quartz, the business news startup I worked on for a dozen years, through the height of digital media and the sector's crash, has fired all its writers and been sold to its fifth owner. So it felt like time to reflect. www.zachseward.com/what-was-qua...
What was Quartz?
2012–2025
www.zachseward.com
April 7, 2025 at 10:44 PM
Worth a read. I worked at The Economist (one of the lumbering Goliaths Seward mentions here) when it launched. Still remember the FOMO at the new thing, and how much I loved @glichfield.bsky.social's newsletters. What a terrible business, the news. But as Zach says, so many great people. RIP Quarts.
If you're in the SF Bay Area, come to City Lights tomorrow to hear me interview Ray Nayler about his latest book, Where the Axe is Buried, a near-future science fiction novel that's also a critique of both authoritarianism and Western technocratic government.
citylights.com/events/ray-n...
citylights.com/events/ray-n...
citylights.com
April 9, 2025 at 5:31 PM
If you're in the SF Bay Area, come to City Lights tomorrow to hear me interview Ray Nayler about his latest book, Where the Axe is Buried, a near-future science fiction novel that's also a critique of both authoritarianism and Western technocratic government.
citylights.com/events/ray-n...
citylights.com/events/ray-n...
You had me for a second @garymarcus.bsky.social
April 1, 2025 at 3:34 PM
You had me for a second @garymarcus.bsky.social
Today I learned that (a) “greenhushing” is now a thing (b) we’re all getting measurably stupider and (c) the whole universe might be inside a black hole. Not sure how much weirder things can get
March 15, 2025 at 3:55 AM
Today I learned that (a) “greenhushing” is now a thing (b) we’re all getting measurably stupider and (c) the whole universe might be inside a black hole. Not sure how much weirder things can get
Right now most attention is on the damage. But I don't think it's too early to start thinking about what could rise from the ashes. One day—maybe a long way off—people will realize they want a functioning government and better ways of having a say in it.
futurepolis.substack.com/p/a-scenario...
futurepolis.substack.com/p/a-scenario...
A scenario for American democracy 20 years from now
Let's do a little dreaming, shall we?
futurepolis.substack.com
February 28, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Right now most attention is on the damage. But I don't think it's too early to start thinking about what could rise from the ashes. One day—maybe a long way off—people will realize they want a functioning government and better ways of having a say in it.
futurepolis.substack.com/p/a-scenario...
futurepolis.substack.com/p/a-scenario...
Found on the sidewalk. I can’t help thinking that putting this issue on the top was deliberate
February 17, 2025 at 8:28 PM
Found on the sidewalk. I can’t help thinking that putting this issue on the top was deliberate
"When hackers penetrate a computer system, security experts patch the vulnerability within hours. Trump has been using the same exploit for more than eight years. What’s our excuse?"
In which I analyze the meaning of the Gaza plan and the media's response.
futurepolis.substack.com/p/trump-is-a...
In which I analyze the meaning of the Gaza plan and the media's response.
futurepolis.substack.com/p/trump-is-a...
Trump is a hacker, and there is a patch
A better way of making sense of him would also rob him of much of his power.
futurepolis.substack.com
February 14, 2025 at 11:58 AM
"When hackers penetrate a computer system, security experts patch the vulnerability within hours. Trump has been using the same exploit for more than eight years. What’s our excuse?"
In which I analyze the meaning of the Gaza plan and the media's response.
futurepolis.substack.com/p/trump-is-a...
In which I analyze the meaning of the Gaza plan and the media's response.
futurepolis.substack.com/p/trump-is-a...
Reposted by Gideon Lichfield
I really appreciate this piece from @glichfield.bsky.social on metaphors to communicate #PublicAI (or whatever you call it) to the public. Having spent much of my career focused on translating esoteric tech/policy stuff to folks, I know the value of a good metaphor!
BUT I also have Some Thoughts 🧵
BUT I also have Some Thoughts 🧵
In which I wrestle with the problem of how to explain "public AI" to the public and decide that the best metaphor might be... supermarkets? futurepolis.substack.com/p/like-bridg...
"So what, kinda like a bridge, but for AI"?
The conundrums of creating—and understanding—public digital infrastructure.
futurepolis.substack.com
February 8, 2025 at 5:13 AM
I really appreciate this piece from @glichfield.bsky.social on metaphors to communicate #PublicAI (or whatever you call it) to the public. Having spent much of my career focused on translating esoteric tech/policy stuff to folks, I know the value of a good metaphor!
BUT I also have Some Thoughts 🧵
BUT I also have Some Thoughts 🧵
In which I wrestle with the problem of how to explain "public AI" to the public and decide that the best metaphor might be... supermarkets? futurepolis.substack.com/p/like-bridg...
"So what, kinda like a bridge, but for AI"?
The conundrums of creating—and understanding—public digital infrastructure.
futurepolis.substack.com
February 7, 2025 at 1:49 PM
In which I wrestle with the problem of how to explain "public AI" to the public and decide that the best metaphor might be... supermarkets? futurepolis.substack.com/p/like-bridg...
That thing about how Trump's supporters take him "seriously but not literally"? That's clearer than ever when it comes to his nutso plan for taking over Gaza:
February 5, 2025 at 10:23 PM
That thing about how Trump's supporters take him "seriously but not literally"? That's clearer than ever when it comes to his nutso plan for taking over Gaza:
Anyone know if incoming presidential administrations normally delete the archives on whitehouse.gov from the previous one?
I ask because this EOP budget request from 2022 is no longer available. It was last saved by archive.org on January 16.
web.archive.org/web/20250116...
I ask because this EOP budget request from 2022 is no longer available. It was last saved by archive.org on January 16.
web.archive.org/web/20250116...
January 22, 2025 at 11:24 PM
Anyone know if incoming presidential administrations normally delete the archives on whitehouse.gov from the previous one?
I ask because this EOP budget request from 2022 is no longer available. It was last saved by archive.org on January 16.
web.archive.org/web/20250116...
I ask because this EOP budget request from 2022 is no longer available. It was last saved by archive.org on January 16.
web.archive.org/web/20250116...
January 22, 2025 at 10:45 PM