#2302 Dead People Deepfakes, Technostress, and Colonizing Mars

Your weekly dose of Chaos & Amazement

2023 is 4% complete. And we’re off to a good start: Phil and I have started live broadcasting a weekly talk show about the topics in this newsletter on Facebook (SocialRunners), YouTube (@Philly-Vee), and Twitter (@bnox). Join us there, every Friday at 17:00 CET!

Roundup of tech news

• A Closer Look at John Deere’s “Right-to-Repair” Agreement (https://bnox.be/2023/01/a-closer-look-at-john-deeres-right-to.html) raises important questions about ownership and control of technology.  "John Deere's 'Right-to-Repair' agreement: https://www.righttorepair.org/john-deere"

• At CES South Korean company DeepBrain AI showcased a service called Re;memory that takes images, audio and video of the person, and after their death resurrects them virtually as a digital twin you can chat to as if they were a real person. rememory.deepbrainai.io/

• The troubling use of data collection by iRobot's Roomba is discussed in an MIT Technology Review article, which found that images taken by the robot vacuum's cameras were shared on social media without the consent of testers. The article raises important questions about privacy and consent in the age of connected devices. https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/01/10/1066500/roomba-irobot-robot-vacuum-beta-product-tester-consent-agreement-misled/ It is important to be aware of the potential consequences of having connected devices in our homes and to always read the fine print of consent agreements.

• OpenAI is considering monetizing ChatGPT with a premium version, as reported by TechCrunch (https://techcrunch.com/2023/01/11/openai-begins-piloting-chatgpt-professional-a-premium-version-of-its-viral-chatbot/). It will be interesting to see how OpenAI chooses to monetize such a popular and widely used product. 

• "Technostress" is becoming a prevalent issue as technology becomes more ubiquitous in the workplace, according to an article on UXPlanet (https://uxplanet.org/the-human-cost-of-the-digital-revolution-790eaeafdc17). With the increasing reliance on technology in the modern workplace, it's crucial to consider the potential negative effects on our mental and emotional well-being. 

From my blog:

• The risks and benefits of colonizing Mars in the digital age are examined in my blog post (https://www.bnox.be/2023/01/is-colonizing-mars-worth-risk.html) As technology continues to advance, the possibilities for space exploration and colonization are becoming more realistic and it's important to weigh the potential risks and benefits. 

• The shift towards AI in the legal industry is discussed in my blog post (https://www.bnox.be/2023/01/ai-advising-defendants-in-court-legal-industry.html) The integration of AI in the legal industry highlights the ways in which technology is reshaping traditional industries.

• The creator economy and its impact on survival is discussed in my blog post (https://www.bnox.be/2023/01/the-reality-of-creator-economy-survival.html) The rise of the creator economy, driven by technology, is having a significant impact on the way we work and make a living. 

Elsewhere on the web:

• The Wordle spin-offs just keep coming — the latest is Housle, which tests your ability to guess property prices. https://housle.house

• TinyWow is a website that provides free conversion, PDF, and other useful tools to help you solve problems of all kinds. In one hour, all unprocessed files are deleted. Simply upload your file, select the option you want it to receive, and then download it https://tinywow.com