Chaos & Amazement #2519 Chinese AI Drones, HeyGen’s Avatar IV, and an Angry Grandma

This week in Chaos & Amazement: AI drones with scary precision, deepfake avatars that smile too well, and a sarcastic grandma who might just be the most relatable tech moment of the week.

Tech news

• Meta's new AI chat app and ex-employee testimony raise data tracking concerns, including exploiting user vulnerabilities (like teens' body image) for ads. The AI's deep personalization sparks privacy worries, making me question the convenience vs. privacy trade-off. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/meta-ai-chatbot-reawakens-concerns-personal-data-tracking/747189/

• China has introduced a new drone with one of the highest payload-to-size ratios in the world. A single soldier can control several drones at once, thanks to AI-assisted targeting. It’s part of a larger move toward AI-powered, low-cost unmanned weapons. https://x.com/javilopen/status/1914263070269898974

• Waymo says its robotaxis are safer than humans, cutting crash injuries by up to 96%. Based on 56M+ miles in cities like SF and LA, data shows fewer accidents with pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists. Still, public trust in driverless cars remains divided. https://waymo.com/blog/2025/05/waymo-making-streets-safer-for-vru

Fresh AI

• HeyGen just launched Avatar IV - their most advanced AI avatar yet. Just one photo + your voice creates a lifelike video with real expressions and emotions. The line between real and AI keeps getting blurrier… What will this mean for content creation? https://x.com/joshua_xu_/status/1919765489775231401

  

From my blog elsewhere

• Knowledge Is No Longer Power, by

  Rahim Hirji
  : "We don't need people who know things. Our systems know things. We need people who can question what our systems tell them and make meaning from uncertainty."

  Knowledge Is No Longer Power

Weird and wonderful

• Internet Roadtrip: the website visitors decide where to go next. Currently driving around in Hopkington, Massachusetts. https://neal.fun/internet-roadtrip/

• Earlier this week I stumbled upon a site where people anonymously drop raw, honest thoughts—no accounts, no likes, no comments, just fleeting human moments pinned to a map. Strange, sad, funny, beautiful. https://musing.live

• Behold this 108 Billion pixels scan from Johannes Vermeer's painting 'Girl with a Pearl Earring'. https://www.hirox-europe.com/gigapixel/girl-with-a-pearl-earring/

  

• A very impressive mash-up made from 331 movie quotes: Eminem - LOSE YOURSELF

• Compilation of strange duck and goose animations

• I love the sarcasm and snacks combo from Tara Joon’s angry grandma character. I want this too for Mother’s day:

  

  @thereal.tarajoonPART 46 👵🏼 Happy Mother’s Day! #happymothersday

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