Dear Citizens,
Some modest progress on the fight against data centers, as New York has now implemented a yearlong state ban. It’s likely a good move, as states like Michigan are being swamped with political rancor over data centers, while Big Tech searches for workarounds to feed their need for power.
Here’s what else to read, listen to and know this week.
🤢 ONE READ: “A lot of men and their behaviours have ruined this product” 🤢
Meta has sold a decent number of “AI Glasses”. But the behaviour and vibe of some wearers has users questioning how or even if they want to use the product in public. From Engadget:
“A lot of men and their behaviors have ruined this product,” Danielle, a Florida-based creator and travel host who asked to be identified by first name only, told Engadget. Initially she enjoyed using her smart glasses for capturing travel content from the international trips she hosts. Then she read a story about how contractors working for Meta said they had been tasked with reviewing intimate images and other sensitive details captured by glasses owners.
Further reporting of men using Meta-branded glasses to film videos of themselves harassing women in public sealed the deal. She says she hasn’t used them since. “I wouldn’t feel comfortable around somebody wearing them, so I wouldn’t expect anybody to be comfortable around me wearing them, no matter where I am.”
Depressing, but given Meta’s record it’s not surprising.
👉 Read Engadget’s dive into Meta AI Glasses toxic culture problem here.
Also a bonus read: guess what favorite company used AI to target and fire people with medical conditions!? Shocker, we know.
🎤 ONE LISTEN: The Summer of Ludd 🎤
Sometimes the most radical thing you can do is... leave your phone at home.
WIRED has a terrific interview with the organizers behind New York’s “Summer of Ludd” festival, a growing movement of artists, technologists and organizers trying to build life beyond surveillance capitalism. Less “smash the machines,” more “build better communities”.
It’s funny, thoughtful, and refreshingly hopeful, a reminder that resisting Big Tech isn’t just about regulation. It’s also about changing our habits and rebuilding real-world connections.
👉 Listen here.
🤖 ONE WATCH: The hostile takeover 🤖
Our conversation with Carole Cadwalladr, Roger McNamee, Sophie in ‘t Veld and Reinier van Lanschot is now on YouTube.
If you’re concerned about how much of our critical public infrastructure (the NHS, local councils, welfare system etc) now depends on a handful of US tech companies, this one’s for you.
🍎 ONE ACTION: Scan Down 🍎
The Electronic Frontier Foundation has launched a campaign urging Apple to abandon plans that would expand on-device scanning of users’ photos and messages, warning that once those systems exist, governments everywhere will demand broader surveillance. Whether you’re an Apple user or not, it’s an important reminder that privacy protections disappear one compromise at a time.
👉 Sign the petition here.
Also worth noting - fighting back works! Meta axed a controversial feature that allowed users to modify photos from public Instagram accounts using AI, after massive backlash. Keep at it!
That’s all for this week.
See you next time,
Team Citizens
*PS - Join our Signal Chat if you haven’t already! 350+ people share practical advice on protecting your data, organising against Big Tech and staying ahead of what you need to know.
Love the synopsis here and all the valuable links. Thank you Citizens!
I think we will need to come up with something that prevent us from being recorded.
Perhaps we will use masks if this becomes mainstream.