zeynep tufekci
@zey.bsky.social
It is said that there may be seeming disorder and yet no real disorder at all
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
FBI searching Fulton County elections office, per Reuters
www.reuters.com/world/us/fbi...
www.reuters.com/world/us/fbi...
FBI executing search warrant at Georgia election office related to 2020 vote, law enforcement official says
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is executing a search warrant at a Fulton County election office in Georgia related to the 2020 election, a law enforcement official familiar with the matter said o...
www.reuters.com
January 28, 2026 at 5:55 PM
FBI searching Fulton County elections office, per Reuters
www.reuters.com/world/us/fbi...
www.reuters.com/world/us/fbi...
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
Peer review science relies, more than we care to admit, on what @zey.bsky.social calls "load bearing frictions" that make it difficult to fake good science, and on trust that most ppl also value science itself & won't cheat just for personal gain. This creates the wrong environment for that to hold.
OpenAI just released Prism, a LaTeX editor with embedded ChatGPT for free.
Writing a paper has never been easier.
Clogging the scientific publishing pipeline has never been easier.
It took me 54 seconds to write up an experiment I did not actually conduct.
prism.openai.com
Writing a paper has never been easier.
Clogging the scientific publishing pipeline has never been easier.
It took me 54 seconds to write up an experiment I did not actually conduct.
prism.openai.com
January 28, 2026 at 6:10 AM
Peer review science relies, more than we care to admit, on what @zey.bsky.social calls "load bearing frictions" that make it difficult to fake good science, and on trust that most ppl also value science itself & won't cheat just for personal gain. This creates the wrong environment for that to hold.
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
New: Amid the escalating situation in Minneapolis, ICE posted in the Federal Register asking companies to provide info about “commercial Big Data and Ad Tech” products that would “directly support investigations activities”
www.wired.com/story/ice-as...
www.wired.com/story/ice-as...
ICE Asks Companies About ‘Ad Tech and Big Data’ Tools It Could Use in Investigations
A new federal filing from ICE demonstrates how commercial tools are increasingly being considered by the government for law enforcement and surveillance.
www.wired.com
January 24, 2026 at 10:42 PM
New: Amid the escalating situation in Minneapolis, ICE posted in the Federal Register asking companies to provide info about “commercial Big Data and Ad Tech” products that would “directly support investigations activities”
www.wired.com/story/ice-as...
www.wired.com/story/ice-as...
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
Wrote a summary of a great keynote by @zey.bsky.social at NeurIPS, arguing that we’re having the wrong nightmares about AI: not AGI or superhuman benchmarks, but good-enough genAI at scale threatens "load bearing frictions" society relies on to signal effort, authenticity, sincerity, credibility.
Zeynep Tufecki on having the wrong nightmares about generative AI
I was writing a blog post where I was going to reference Zeynep Tufecki’s 2025 NeurIPS keynote, and realized there isn’t a solid synopsis online.
open.substack.com
January 9, 2026 at 4:42 PM
Wrote a summary of a great keynote by @zey.bsky.social at NeurIPS, arguing that we’re having the wrong nightmares about AI: not AGI or superhuman benchmarks, but good-enough genAI at scale threatens "load bearing frictions" society relies on to signal effort, authenticity, sincerity, credibility.
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
I think this is likely to require a wholesale change in the peer review system. The signals of authenticity and effort are no longer useful. Zeynep Tufekci gave a great talk related to this at #NeurIPS2025
December 5, 2025 at 11:29 PM
I think this is likely to require a wholesale change in the peer review system. The signals of authenticity and effort are no longer useful. Zeynep Tufekci gave a great talk related to this at #NeurIPS2025
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
BREAKING: Hong Kong court convicts Jimmy Lai, founder of former pro-democracy newspaper, in landmark national security trial.
Former Hong Kong pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai convicted in landmark national security trial
Jimmy Lai, the former Hong Kong media mogul and outspoken critic of Beijing, has been convicted in a landmark national security trial in the city’s court, which could send him to prison for the rest of his life.
bit.ly
December 15, 2025 at 2:47 AM
BREAKING: Hong Kong court convicts Jimmy Lai, founder of former pro-democracy newspaper, in landmark national security trial.
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
Invited talk by Zeynep @zey.bsky.social Tufekci at @neuripsconf.bsky.social was really very good!
Title: Are We Having the Wrong Nightmares About AI?
Spoiler: yep! 😉
Very thoughtful! Thanks!🙏
Title: Are We Having the Wrong Nightmares About AI?
Spoiler: yep! 😉
Very thoughtful! Thanks!🙏
December 4, 2025 at 1:34 AM
Invited talk by Zeynep @zey.bsky.social Tufekci at @neuripsconf.bsky.social was really very good!
Title: Are We Having the Wrong Nightmares About AI?
Spoiler: yep! 😉
Very thoughtful! Thanks!🙏
Title: Are We Having the Wrong Nightmares About AI?
Spoiler: yep! 😉
Very thoughtful! Thanks!🙏
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
„Making things easy breaks systems that use difficulty as signaling“ @zey.bsky.social @neuripsconf.bsky.social
December 3, 2025 at 11:10 PM
„Making things easy breaks systems that use difficulty as signaling“ @zey.bsky.social @neuripsconf.bsky.social
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
Tomorrow's frontpage
November 5, 2025 at 3:51 AM
Tomorrow's frontpage
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
AI and the Future of Work (10/7/25). It's a wrap!
Thanks to our expert panelists: @dacemoglumit.bsky.social, @pkrugman.bsky.social, Danielle Li, @zey.bsky.social & @sgreenhouse.bsky.social.
#AI. Who will win and who will lose? How worried should we be? Stay tuned for the video, coming soon.
Thanks to our expert panelists: @dacemoglumit.bsky.social, @pkrugman.bsky.social, Danielle Li, @zey.bsky.social & @sgreenhouse.bsky.social.
#AI. Who will win and who will lose? How worried should we be? Stay tuned for the video, coming soon.
October 8, 2025 at 12:58 PM
AI and the Future of Work (10/7/25). It's a wrap!
Thanks to our expert panelists: @dacemoglumit.bsky.social, @pkrugman.bsky.social, Danielle Li, @zey.bsky.social & @sgreenhouse.bsky.social.
#AI. Who will win and who will lose? How worried should we be? Stay tuned for the video, coming soon.
Thanks to our expert panelists: @dacemoglumit.bsky.social, @pkrugman.bsky.social, Danielle Li, @zey.bsky.social & @sgreenhouse.bsky.social.
#AI. Who will win and who will lose? How worried should we be? Stay tuned for the video, coming soon.
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
September 22, 2025 at 11:23 PM
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
Egyptian authorities announced the presidential pardon of prominent activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah after six years in prison, according to his lawyer Khaled Ali and an announcement by state TV.
Egypt announces pardon for top activist who's spent 6 years behind bars
Egyptian authorities on Monday announced the presidential pardon of prominent activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah, according to his lawyer Khaled Ali and an announcement by Egypt’s state TV.
bit.ly
September 22, 2025 at 12:37 PM
Egyptian authorities announced the presidential pardon of prominent activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah after six years in prison, according to his lawyer Khaled Ali and an announcement by state TV.
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
Social Media Reduced Two Horrific Killings to Cheap Snuff Films
By Zeynep Tufekci
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/13/o...
By Zeynep Tufekci
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/13/o...
Opinion | Social Media Reduced Two Horrific Killings to Cheap Snuff Films
www.nytimes.com
September 13, 2025 at 2:27 PM
Social Media Reduced Two Horrific Killings to Cheap Snuff Films
By Zeynep Tufekci
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/13/o...
By Zeynep Tufekci
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/13/o...
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
Egypt's president Sisi has ordered authorities to study the possible pardon of Egyptian-British activist and blogger, Alaa Abd el-Fattah, who has already served an unjust 5 year sentence www.reuters.com/world/uk/egy...
Egypt's Sisi orders authorities to study pardon for activist Alaa Abd el-Fattah
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi ordered authorities on Tuesday to study the possible pardon of high-profile Egyptian-British activist and blogger, Alaa Abd el-Fattah, a statement by the Egyptian National Council for Human Rights said.
www.reuters.com
September 10, 2025 at 12:12 PM
Egypt's president Sisi has ordered authorities to study the possible pardon of Egyptian-British activist and blogger, Alaa Abd el-Fattah, who has already served an unjust 5 year sentence www.reuters.com/world/uk/egy...
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
Pssst ... @zey.bsky.social let me know when that other moment approaches!
Highlighted part in your last graf is what we do at Starling Lab, an academic research program based jointly at Stanford + USC. So happy you're casting a light on this emerging field of authenticity. We share your concerns!
Highlighted part in your last graf is what we do at Starling Lab, an academic research program based jointly at Stanford + USC. So happy you're casting a light on this emerging field of authenticity. We share your concerns!
August 12, 2025 at 12:06 AM
Pssst ... @zey.bsky.social let me know when that other moment approaches!
Highlighted part in your last graf is what we do at Starling Lab, an academic research program based jointly at Stanford + USC. So happy you're casting a light on this emerging field of authenticity. We share your concerns!
Highlighted part in your last graf is what we do at Starling Lab, an academic research program based jointly at Stanford + USC. So happy you're casting a light on this emerging field of authenticity. We share your concerns!
AI video is almost there: no amount of post-hoc squinting can tell fake from real.
Losing our last bastion of verification is no joke. Trusted news can help with high-profile events, but what about everyday life? Recipe for chaos.
Gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/11/o...
Losing our last bastion of verification is no joke. Trusted news can help with high-profile events, but what about everyday life? Recipe for chaos.
Gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/11/o...
August 11, 2025 at 1:37 PM
AI video is almost there: no amount of post-hoc squinting can tell fake from real.
Losing our last bastion of verification is no joke. Trusted news can help with high-profile events, but what about everyday life? Recipe for chaos.
Gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/11/o...
Losing our last bastion of verification is no joke. Trusted news can help with high-profile events, but what about everyday life? Recipe for chaos.
Gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/11/o...
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
This is very important. From the start ChatGPT- the name, the interface- was designed to make us view it as 'like us' & capable of thought, not just a collection of numbers for text prediction. Creating a social role for an LLM is more imp. than the LLM itself, and it's where any profit comes from.
I wrote about Grok going "MechaHitler" over at X, and the need to view LLMs correctly: as remarkably powerful plausibility engines.
Their AGI marketing and the strong inclination to project human qualities to anything that can speak is misleading us.
NYT gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
Their AGI marketing and the strong inclination to project human qualities to anything that can speak is misleading us.
NYT gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
July 11, 2025 at 7:08 PM
This is very important. From the start ChatGPT- the name, the interface- was designed to make us view it as 'like us' & capable of thought, not just a collection of numbers for text prediction. Creating a social role for an LLM is more imp. than the LLM itself, and it's where any profit comes from.
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
Plausibility engine is such a great way to think of LLM's
I wrote about Grok going "MechaHitler" over at X, and the need to view LLMs correctly: as remarkably powerful plausibility engines.
Their AGI marketing and the strong inclination to project human qualities to anything that can speak is misleading us.
NYT gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
Their AGI marketing and the strong inclination to project human qualities to anything that can speak is misleading us.
NYT gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
July 11, 2025 at 6:12 PM
Plausibility engine is such a great way to think of LLM's
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
This is a great essay:
L.L.M.s are what they eat
L.L.M.s are what they eat
I wrote about Grok going "MechaHitler" over at X, and the need to view LLMs correctly: as remarkably powerful plausibility engines.
Their AGI marketing and the strong inclination to project human qualities to anything that can speak is misleading us.
NYT gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
Their AGI marketing and the strong inclination to project human qualities to anything that can speak is misleading us.
NYT gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
July 11, 2025 at 4:58 PM
This is a great essay:
L.L.M.s are what they eat
L.L.M.s are what they eat
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
Nice piece on the dangers of LLMs. I liked the description as “plausibility engines” and not “truth seekers” or “reasoning machines”
I wrote about Grok going "MechaHitler" over at X, and the need to view LLMs correctly: as remarkably powerful plausibility engines.
Their AGI marketing and the strong inclination to project human qualities to anything that can speak is misleading us.
NYT gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
Their AGI marketing and the strong inclination to project human qualities to anything that can speak is misleading us.
NYT gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
July 11, 2025 at 3:34 PM
Nice piece on the dangers of LLMs. I liked the description as “plausibility engines” and not “truth seekers” or “reasoning machines”
I wrote about Grok going "MechaHitler" over at X, and the need to view LLMs correctly: as remarkably powerful plausibility engines.
Their AGI marketing and the strong inclination to project human qualities to anything that can speak is misleading us.
NYT gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
Their AGI marketing and the strong inclination to project human qualities to anything that can speak is misleading us.
NYT gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
July 11, 2025 at 3:29 PM
I wrote about Grok going "MechaHitler" over at X, and the need to view LLMs correctly: as remarkably powerful plausibility engines.
Their AGI marketing and the strong inclination to project human qualities to anything that can speak is misleading us.
NYT gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
Their AGI marketing and the strong inclination to project human qualities to anything that can speak is misleading us.
NYT gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
After trying to sift thru the AI-generated crap in #WNBA, I found this
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
"AI-generated content — true and otherwise — is taking over the internet, providing training material for the next generation of LLMs, a sludge-generating machine feeding on its own sludge."
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
"AI-generated content — true and otherwise — is taking over the internet, providing training material for the next generation of LLMs, a sludge-generating machine feeding on its own sludge."
Opinion | Another Day, Another Chatbot’s Nazi Meltdown
www.nytimes.com
July 11, 2025 at 11:59 AM
After trying to sift thru the AI-generated crap in #WNBA, I found this
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
"AI-generated content — true and otherwise — is taking over the internet, providing training material for the next generation of LLMs, a sludge-generating machine feeding on its own sludge."
www.nytimes.com/2025/07/11/o...
"AI-generated content — true and otherwise — is taking over the internet, providing training material for the next generation of LLMs, a sludge-generating machine feeding on its own sludge."
Reposted by zeynep tufekci
“the Weather Service employee whose job it was to make sure those warnings got traction — Paul Yura, the long-serving meteorologist in charge of “warning coordination” — had recently taken an unplanned early retirement amid cuts pushed by DOGE. He was not replaced.”
Opinion | As the Texas Floodwaters Rose, One Indispensable Voice Was Silent
www.nytimes.com
July 9, 2025 at 2:31 PM
“the Weather Service employee whose job it was to make sure those warnings got traction — Paul Yura, the long-serving meteorologist in charge of “warning coordination” — had recently taken an unplanned early retirement amid cuts pushed by DOGE. He was not replaced.”