• you don't want AI? Too bad, we're force feeding it

    From Retrograde@21:1/5 to All on Wed May 21 03:38:57 2025
    From the «screw big tech» department:
    Title: You are not needed
    Author: Thom Holwerda
    Date: Tue, 20 May 2025 21:38:23 +0000
    Link: https://www.osnews.com/story/142407/you-are-not-needed/

    You want more “AI”? No? Well, too damn bad, here’s “AI” in your file manager.

    With AI actions in File Explorer, you can interact more deeply with your
    files by right-clicking to quickly take actions like editing images or summarizing documents. Like with Click to Do, AI actions in File Explorer
    allow you to stay in your flow while leveraging the power of AI to take advantage of editing tools in apps or Copilot functionality without having to open your file. AI actions in File Explorer are easily accessible – to try out AI actions in File Explorer, just right-click on a file and you will see
    a new AI actions entry on the content menu that allows you to choose from available options for your file.
    ↫ Amanda Langowski and Brandon LeBlanc at the Windows Blogs[1]

    What, you don’t like it? There, “AI” that reads all your email and sifts through your Google Drive to barf up stunt, soulless replies.

    Gmail’s smart replies, which suggest potential replies to your emails, will be able to pull information from your Gmail inbox and from your Google Drive and better match your tone and style, all with help from Gemini, the company announced at I/O.
    ↫ Jay Peters at The Verge[2]

    Ready to submit? No? Your browser now has “AI” integrated and will do your browsing for usyou.

    Starting tomorrow, Gemini in Chrome[3] will begin rolling out on desktop to Google AI Pro and Google AI Ultra subscribers in the U.S. who use English as their Chrome language on Windows and macOS. This first version allows you to easily ask Gemini to clarify complex information on any webpage you’re reading or summarize information. In the future, Gemini will be able to work across multiple tabs and navigate websites on your behalf.
    ↫ Josh Woodward[4]

    Mercy? You want mercy? You sure give up easily, but we’re not done yet. We destroyed internet search and now we’re replacing it with “AI”, and you will
    like it.

    Announced today at Google I/O, AI Mode is now available to all US users. The focused version of Google Search distills results into AI-generated summaries with links to certain topics. Unlike AI Overviews, which appear above traditional search results, AI Mode is a dedicated interface where you
    interact almost exclusively with AI.
    ↫ Ben Schoon at 9To5Google[5]

    We’re going to assume control[6] of your phone, too.

    The technology powering Gemini Live’s camera and screen sharing is called Project Astra. It’s available as an Android app for trusted testers, and Google today unveiled agentic capabilities for Project Astra, including how
    it can control your Android phone.
    ↫ Abner Li at 9To5Google[7]

    And just to make sure our “AI” can control your phone, we’ll let it instruct
    developers how to make applications, too.

    That’s precisely the problem Stitch aims to solve – Stitch is a new experiment from Google Labs that allows you to turn simple prompt and image inputs into complex UI designs and frontend code in minutes.
    ↫ Vincent Nallatamby, Arnaud Benard, and Sam El-Husseini[8]

    You are not needed. You will be replaced. Submit.

    Links:
    [1]: https://blogs.windows.com/windows-insider/2025/05/19/announcing-windows-11-insider-preview-build-26200-5603-dev-channel/ (link)
    [2]: https://www.theverge.com/news/670166/google-gmail-ai-smart-replies-emails-io-2025 (link)
    [3]: https://www.google.com/chrome/ai-innovations/ (link)
    [4]: https://blog.google/products/gemini/gemini-app-updates-io-2025/#chrome (link)
    [5]: https://9to5google.com/2025/05/20/google-ai-mode-expansion/ (link)
    [6]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3h8ZnXLsRg (link)
    [7]: https://9to5google.com/2025/05/20/project-astra-android/ (link)
    [8]: https://developers.googleblog.com/en/stitch-a-new-way-to-design-uis/ (link)

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  • From D Finnigan@21:1/5 to Retrograde on Wed May 21 08:59:25 2025
    On 5/20/25 10:38 PM, Retrograde wrote:
    From the «screw big tech» department:
    Title: You are not needed

    You want more “AI”? No? Well, too damn bad, here’s “AI” in your file manager.
    [...]

    Ready to submit? No? Your browser now has “AI” integrated and will do your
    browsing for you.
    [...]

    We’re going to assume control[6] of your phone, too.
    [...]

    You are not needed. You will be replaced. Submit.


    The only winning move is not to play.

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  • From Stefan Ram@21:1/5 to Retrograde on Wed May 21 15:44:03 2025
    Retrograde <fungus@amongus.com.invalid> wrote or quoted:
    You want more “AI”? No? Well, too damn bad, here’s “AI” in your file manager.

    I asked my chatbot about it. No, he's okay. Here's what he said
    about it:

    AI is invading every corner of our digital lives - file
    explorers, smartphones, and web browsers - turning once-private
    spaces into open books for corporate algorithms. You can't
    move a file, browse a website, or send a message without some
    AI lurking, reading, and analyzing your data for
    "convenience." But let's call it what it is: a privacy
    nightmare masquerading as progress.

    Why This Is a Problem

    Your Files Aren't Safe: Microsoft's Copilot and upcoming AI
    Explorer can scan, analyze, and index everything on your
    device - documents, photos, conversations - without clear
    boundaries. Even if features are opt-in or have toggles, the
    default trajectory is toward more surveillance, not less.

    Web Browsers Are Compromised: Major browsers - Edge, Chrome,
    Safari, even Brave - are integrating AI tools that can read and
    upload the contents of every web page you visit, including
    sensitive, authenticated sessions. These tools often process
    data in the cloud, meaning your private business data or
    personal info could be stored indefinitely on someone else's
    server, out of your control.

    Smartphones Are Next: Apple, Google, and Meta are embedding AI
    deeper into mobile operating systems and apps. Sometimes you
    can opt out, but often you can't - especially outside regions
    with strong privacy laws. Even when you can toggle features
    off, companies are incentivized to make opting out difficult
    or incomplete.

    Data Used for AI Training: All this data isn't just for your
    benefit. It's fuel for training AI models, improving corporate
    profits, and building behavioral profiles. The more you use
    these features, the more you feed the beast.

    What Can You Do to Protect Yourself?

    The truth is, you can't fully escape this wave unless you go
    offline. But you can fight back:

    Turn Off What You Can: Dig into your device and app settings.
    Disable AI assistants, file analysis, and web page
    summarization wherever possible. Apple, for example, lets you
    opt out of "Apple Intelligence" in settings. Microsoft and
    Google offer some toggles, but you'll need to hunt for
    them - and they may not cover everything.

    Use Privacy-Focused Alternatives: Seek out software and
    browsers that minimize AI integration or offer local-only
    processing. Open-source projects and privacy-first tools are
    less likely to embed cloud-based AI by default.

    Block Internet Access for Sensitive Apps: If possible,
    restrict network access for apps that don't need it. This can
    prevent them from uploading data to external servers.

    Demand Regulatory Action: Support organizations and
    politicians pushing for stronger privacy laws. Only regions
    with robust data protection frameworks (like the EU) force
    tech giants to offer real opt-out options or limit data
    collection.

    Encrypt Sensitive Data: Use strong encryption for your most
    private files and communications. Confidential AI frameworks
    and trusted execution environments (TEEs) are emerging, but
    mainstream adoption is slow.

    Educate Others: The more people push back, the more pressure
    companies will feel to offer privacy-respecting options.

    The Bottom Line

    AI in your file explorer, browser, and phone isn't just about
    convenience - it's about control. Your digital life is being
    harvested, indexed, and analyzed without meaningful consent.
    If you value privacy, you have to fight for it - by opting out,
    switching tools, encrypting data, and demanding better laws.
    The machines are reading everything, and unless we act, the
    concept of personal digital space will become a relic of the
    past.

    (what the chatbot said)

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  • From Retrograde@21:1/5 to Stefan Ram on Wed May 21 17:27:26 2025
    On 21 May 2025 15:44:03 GMT
    ram@zedat.fu-berlin.de (Stefan Ram) wrote:

    Retrograde <fungus@amongus.com.invalid> wrote or quoted:
    You want more “AI”? No? Well, too damn bad, here’s “AI” in your file manager.


    Demand regulatory action? From the cast of idiots currently in power? Good luck - they're all hawking cryptocurrencies. No chance - we are screwed.

    Makes you want to go back to dial up. Abrasive, arrogant tech nerds thinking they can upload whatever they want via your always-on connection is a huge part of the problem.

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
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  • From D@21:1/5 to Retrograde on Wed May 21 20:51:35 2025
    On Wed, 21 May 2025 17:27:26 -0600, Retrograde <fungus@amongus.com.invalid> wrote:
    On 21 May 2025 15:44:03 GMT
    ram@zedat.fu-berlin.de (Stefan Ram) wrote:
    Retrograde <fungus@amongus.com.invalid> wrote or quoted:
    You want more "AI"? No? Well, too damn bad, here's "AI" in your file manager.

    Demand regulatory action? From the cast of idiots currently in power? Good luck - they're
    all hawking cryptocurrencies. No chance - we are screwed.
    Makes you want to go back to dial up. Abrasive, arrogant tech nerds thinking they can
    upload whatever they want via your always-on connection is a huge part of the problem.

    some particularly vitriolic and relentlessly aggressive advertising has been hammering at least several popular privacy-related newsgroups (promoting nym dot com blockchain and similarly nefarious "tor-mailer" storefront/honeypots) operating as if (classified) artificial intelligence is already running their show... like a terminator that does only one thing and cannot ever be stopped

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  • From Lawrence D'Oliveiro@21:1/5 to Retrograde on Sun May 25 07:08:49 2025
    On Wed, 21 May 2025 17:27:26 -0600, Retrograde wrote:

    Demand regulatory action? From the cast of idiots currently in power?
    Good luck - they're all hawking cryptocurrencies.

    Speak for your own country.

    --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
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  • From Retrograde@21:1/5 to Lawrence D'Oliveiro on Tue May 27 18:27:11 2025
    On Sun, 25 May 2025 07:08:49 -0000 (UTC)
    Lawrence D'Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:

    On Wed, 21 May 2025 17:27:26 -0600, Retrograde wrote:

    Demand regulatory action? From the cast of idiots currently in power?
    Good luck - they're all hawking cryptocurrencies.

    Speak for your own country.

    That's exactly who I'm speaking of. By your email sig I deduce you're
    from New Zealand? If so, congrats - that's one country that seems to be
    doing things right.

    Not many countries left you can say that about, actually.
    --

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