Christopher Mims
@mims.bsky.social
WSJ tech columnist. Dog person. Author of How to AI, a no-nonsense, bullshit-free guide to how to get actual utility from AI, aimed at the skeptics who are tired of the hype surrounding it.
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How to AI by Christopher Mims: 9798217086184 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books
A frank, hands-on guide to using AI at work, unpacking for the curious and skeptical alike the “24 Laws” of AI and revealing strategies that businesses of every size can use to free up time,...
www.penguinrandomhouse.com
I wrote a skeptic's guide to how to use AI, out soon.
Readers know I don't suffer fools -- or AI hype merchants -- gladly. I regularly write about the bubble that's formed as a result of their grift.
But AI *does* have utility.
You can pre-order here:
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/782388...
Readers know I don't suffer fools -- or AI hype merchants -- gladly. I regularly write about the bubble that's formed as a result of their grift.
But AI *does* have utility.
You can pre-order here:
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/782388...
hot take: AI *should* be polarizing!
* it's built on a murky foundation of thinking about copyright & is generally terrible for artists
* it's also one of the best things to ever happen to software development
* it's powerful tech with enormous negative externalities
* it's built on a murky foundation of thinking about copyright & is generally terrible for artists
* it's also one of the best things to ever happen to software development
* it's powerful tech with enormous negative externalities
November 26, 2025 at 12:34 PM
hot take: AI *should* be polarizing!
* it's built on a murky foundation of thinking about copyright & is generally terrible for artists
* it's also one of the best things to ever happen to software development
* it's powerful tech with enormous negative externalities
* it's built on a murky foundation of thinking about copyright & is generally terrible for artists
* it's also one of the best things to ever happen to software development
* it's powerful tech with enormous negative externalities
Reposted by Christopher Mims
The average medieval peasant could not buy a gas station delta 9 gummy and watch “Scooter Fail Compilation 5” on YouTube, which makes it difficult to compare GDP across time
November 26, 2025 at 5:03 AM
The average medieval peasant could not buy a gas station delta 9 gummy and watch “Scooter Fail Compilation 5” on YouTube, which makes it difficult to compare GDP across time
imagine if at the dawn of the age of steam everyone with power and capital decided that all of productive economic growth should be directed toward making and developing steam engines
on the one hand, rail would have arrived much sooner
otoh, nightmare
on the one hand, rail would have arrived much sooner
otoh, nightmare
i think tech and ai positive people are going to be in for a big shock when anti tech and anti ai sentiment becomes a major part of leftwing politics going forward especially as datacenters continue to destroy communities and raise electricity bills
Is this platform still massively against AI or has it moved more towards acceptance?
November 26, 2025 at 11:12 AM
imagine if at the dawn of the age of steam everyone with power and capital decided that all of productive economic growth should be directed toward making and developing steam engines
on the one hand, rail would have arrived much sooner
otoh, nightmare
on the one hand, rail would have arrived much sooner
otoh, nightmare
Reposted by Christopher Mims
SUSTKEVER says age of scaling is over; it’s “back to the age of research.”
“.. We are in a world where there are more companies than ideas by quite a bit.” 👀
www.dwarkesh.com/p/ilya-sutsk...
“.. We are in a world where there are more companies than ideas by quite a bit.” 👀
www.dwarkesh.com/p/ilya-sutsk...
Ilya Sutskever – We're moving from the age of scaling to the age of research
“These models somehow just generalize dramatically worse than people. It's a very fundamental thing.”
www.dwarkesh.com
November 25, 2025 at 7:23 PM
SUSTKEVER says age of scaling is over; it’s “back to the age of research.”
“.. We are in a world where there are more companies than ideas by quite a bit.” 👀
www.dwarkesh.com/p/ilya-sutsk...
“.. We are in a world where there are more companies than ideas by quite a bit.” 👀
www.dwarkesh.com/p/ilya-sutsk...
Reposted by Christopher Mims
new: people across Wisconsin are increasingly standing up to AI data centers. at the old Foxconn site, citizens are thankful for Microsoft, but they said no to a new Microsoft data center 20 miles away. worries range from a loss of open land to meager tax payments www.cnbc.com/2025/11/25/m...
Why rural Wisconsin is blocking the AI data center boom: 'Horses are skittish'
Tech giants are increasingly facing community backlash as they select places to build mammoth AI data centers.
www.cnbc.com
November 25, 2025 at 3:01 PM
new: people across Wisconsin are increasingly standing up to AI data centers. at the old Foxconn site, citizens are thankful for Microsoft, but they said no to a new Microsoft data center 20 miles away. worries range from a loss of open land to meager tax payments www.cnbc.com/2025/11/25/m...
Reposted by Christopher Mims
Newsletter: Crypto’s latest “infinite money machine” is the digital asset treasury company — a publicly traded firm that exists primarily to accumulate crypto. For a while, these stocks traded at hefty premiums to the underlying assets. But now, the trade is unraveling.
Digital asset treasury companies are running out of steam
Convincing traders to pay $2 for $1 of bitcoin worked — for a while. As premiums evaporate, an unwind could be painful.
www.citationneeded.news
November 25, 2025 at 4:21 PM
Newsletter: Crypto’s latest “infinite money machine” is the digital asset treasury company — a publicly traded firm that exists primarily to accumulate crypto. For a while, these stocks traded at hefty premiums to the underlying assets. But now, the trade is unraveling.
I just want to point out that there is a lane for someone to start a small media company whose express mission statement is "nothing we put on the internet was made by AI" & every time a category gets overrun like this, they branch out
NEW: AI “recipe slop” is overrunning search and social. Food creators say Google’s AI Overviews and glossy fake food pics are drowning out real, tested recipes — collapsing traffic and setting home cooks up for disaster, especially this Thanksgiving.
Gift link: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Gift link: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
AI Slop Recipes Are Taking Over the Internet -- And Thanksgiving Dinner
Food bloggers see traffic dip as home cooks turn to AI, inspired by impossible pictures
www.bloomberg.com
November 25, 2025 at 5:19 PM
I just want to point out that there is a lane for someone to start a small media company whose express mission statement is "nothing we put on the internet was made by AI" & every time a category gets overrun like this, they branch out
Reposted by Christopher Mims
when we say we want more streets to be pedestrianized, this is what we mean
November 25, 2025 at 4:46 PM
when we say we want more streets to be pedestrianized, this is what we mean
Reposted by Christopher Mims
Meta halted internal research that purportedly showed (young) people who stopped using Facebook became less depressed and anxious, according to an unredacted legal filing released on Friday. www.cnbc.com/2025/11/23/m...
Meta halted internal research suggesting social media harm, court filing alleges
Meta is alleged to have halted internal research suggesting social media harm, according to court documents.
www.cnbc.com
November 24, 2025 at 12:31 AM
Meta halted internal research that purportedly showed (young) people who stopped using Facebook became less depressed and anxious, according to an unredacted legal filing released on Friday. www.cnbc.com/2025/11/23/m...
Reposted by Christopher Mims
Another good reason to avoid being on X is that Isaac Chotiner could start asking you questions there at any time
November 25, 2025 at 3:19 PM
Another good reason to avoid being on X is that Isaac Chotiner could start asking you questions there at any time
so it turns out these tiny spiders can hunt in sub-zero temperatures because their blood is full of a super-potent antifreeze
in case anyone was looking for a new superpower
febs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
in case anyone was looking for a new superpower
febs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
November 25, 2025 at 3:21 PM
so it turns out these tiny spiders can hunt in sub-zero temperatures because their blood is full of a super-potent antifreeze
in case anyone was looking for a new superpower
febs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
in case anyone was looking for a new superpower
febs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Reposted by Christopher Mims
when trying on pants, do this in the store. then tell the sales associate "the menswear guy told me to do this."
IG mr.funkys0ul
IG mr.funkys0ul
November 25, 2025 at 10:17 AM
when trying on pants, do this in the store. then tell the sales associate "the menswear guy told me to do this."
IG mr.funkys0ul
IG mr.funkys0ul
There are only a couple of media subscriptions where every time they ask for my money I'm like "hell yes" and @theverge.com is one of them
November 25, 2025 at 2:58 PM
There are only a couple of media subscriptions where every time they ask for my money I'm like "hell yes" and @theverge.com is one of them
this is good
I’ve been running around asking tech execs and academics if language was the same as intelligence for over a year now - and, well, it isn’t. @benjaminjriley.bsky.social explains how the bubble is built on ignoring cutting-edge research into the science of thought www.theverge.com/ai-artificia...
November 25, 2025 at 2:56 PM
this is good
perhaps not surprisingly, combat vets in Congress are generally on a whole other level in terms of their willingness to fight
Sen. Mark Kelly has released a statement.
"If this is meant to intimidate me and other members of Congress from doing our jobs and holding this administration accountable, it won't work. I've given too much to this country to be silenced by bullies..."
"If this is meant to intimidate me and other members of Congress from doing our jobs and holding this administration accountable, it won't work. I've given too much to this country to be silenced by bullies..."
November 24, 2025 at 7:01 PM
perhaps not surprisingly, combat vets in Congress are generally on a whole other level in terms of their willingness to fight
I'm all about smart and incisive criticism of AI and its consequences, but if your critique of AI could just as well have applied to "googling a thing" in ~2000, maybe reconsider
November 24, 2025 at 6:57 PM
I'm all about smart and incisive criticism of AI and its consequences, but if your critique of AI could just as well have applied to "googling a thing" in ~2000, maybe reconsider
A flood of debt to fund AI data centers is overwhelming appetite for bonds:
* Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, Oracle issued $90 billion in the past 2.5 months alone
* that's more debt than they issued in the previous 3.5 years
www.wsj.com/finance/inve...
* Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, Oracle issued $90 billion in the past 2.5 months alone
* that's more debt than they issued in the previous 3.5 years
www.wsj.com/finance/inve...
Flood of AI Bonds Adds to Pressure on Markets
Prices of newly issued bonds have slid, adding to investors’ anxieties about stock valuations.
www.wsj.com
November 24, 2025 at 4:58 PM
A flood of debt to fund AI data centers is overwhelming appetite for bonds:
* Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, Oracle issued $90 billion in the past 2.5 months alone
* that's more debt than they issued in the previous 3.5 years
www.wsj.com/finance/inve...
* Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, Oracle issued $90 billion in the past 2.5 months alone
* that's more debt than they issued in the previous 3.5 years
www.wsj.com/finance/inve...
Reposted by Christopher Mims
PUNCHBOWL: “.. GOP members messaged us over the weekend saying that they, too, are considering retiring in the middle of the term. Here’s one particularly exercised senior House Republican:
@punchbowlnews.bsky.social
@punchbowlnews.bsky.social
November 24, 2025 at 3:37 PM
PUNCHBOWL: “.. GOP members messaged us over the weekend saying that they, too, are considering retiring in the middle of the term. Here’s one particularly exercised senior House Republican:
@punchbowlnews.bsky.social
@punchbowlnews.bsky.social
Reposted by Christopher Mims
I wrote about the fake account blowup on X this weekend. A genuine post-truth nightmare and proof that these companies have polluted their platforms so thoroughly and traded reality for profit that they've undermined the very idea of what the internet is supposed to be.
That MAGA Account Might Be a Troll From Pakistan
How X blew up its own platform with a new location feature
www.theatlantic.com
November 24, 2025 at 4:33 PM
I wrote about the fake account blowup on X this weekend. A genuine post-truth nightmare and proof that these companies have polluted their platforms so thoroughly and traded reality for profit that they've undermined the very idea of what the internet is supposed to be.
"Loneliness Industrial Complex" is a pretty amazing phrase
new episode of kill the computer we are joined by @jeremykaplowitz.com to talk some news and how tech companies are monetizing off of everyones loneliness
The Loneliness Industrial Complex Ft. Jeremy Kaplowitz
Podcast Episode · Kill The Computer · 11/23/2025 · 1h 6m
podcasts.apple.com
November 24, 2025 at 3:57 PM
"Loneliness Industrial Complex" is a pretty amazing phrase
Reposted by Christopher Mims
Saying this but to a computer
November 24, 2025 at 3:41 PM
Saying this but to a computer
Reposted by Christopher Mims
This feels like one of those stories you're going to look at a year from now and say to yourself, "Why didn't I move more of my portfolio into cash?" **
** (This post is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial or any other advice.)
🎁
www.wsj.com/tech/meta-ai...
** (This post is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial or any other advice.)
🎁
www.wsj.com/tech/meta-ai...
AI Meets Aggressive Accounting at Meta’s Gigantic New Data Center
Favorable treatment off the balance sheet hinges on some convenient assumptions.
www.wsj.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:01 PM
This feels like one of those stories you're going to look at a year from now and say to yourself, "Why didn't I move more of my portfolio into cash?" **
** (This post is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial or any other advice.)
🎁
www.wsj.com/tech/meta-ai...
** (This post is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial or any other advice.)
🎁
www.wsj.com/tech/meta-ai...
The moment we start geoengineering, whoever does it becomes implicitly responsible for all bad weather that follows.
My suspicion is that no matter how bad climate change gets, this tech will forever remain, politically, a complete non-starter.
My suspicion is that no matter how bad climate change gets, this tech will forever remain, politically, a complete non-starter.
A 25-person startup is developing technology to block the sun and turn down the planet’s thermostat.
The stakes are huge — and the company and its critics say regulations need to catch up.
Read more: politi.co/4iaojIc
The stakes are huge — and the company and its critics say regulations need to catch up.
Read more: politi.co/4iaojIc
November 23, 2025 at 11:00 PM
The moment we start geoengineering, whoever does it becomes implicitly responsible for all bad weather that follows.
My suspicion is that no matter how bad climate change gets, this tech will forever remain, politically, a complete non-starter.
My suspicion is that no matter how bad climate change gets, this tech will forever remain, politically, a complete non-starter.
"Freelance journalism in 2025 is an incredibly difficult place to build a career. But, it turns out, it’s a decent enough arena for a scam."
"I was embarrassed. I had been naively operating with a pre-ChatGPT mindset, still assuming a pitch’s ideas and prose were actually connected to the person who sent it"
Stunning investigation of how slop merchants are getting work into established media outlets
thelocal.to/investigatin...
Stunning investigation of how slop merchants are getting work into established media outlets
thelocal.to/investigatin...
November 23, 2025 at 7:34 PM
"Freelance journalism in 2025 is an incredibly difficult place to build a career. But, it turns out, it’s a decent enough arena for a scam."
November 23, 2025 at 7:20 PM