One silver lining in the COVID-19 crisis: we’re going to make huge advances in virtual medicine—and it’s about time.
I’ve done virtual therapy. My son is doing doctor’s appointments right now via video chat. The technology has been there for a while—with privacy concerns noted and being worked through—but in our experience, it’s the insurance companies that have to catch up.
Read MoreConsider three recent examples of the unintended consequences of scale:
Airbnb is accelerating over-tourism, as rental properties are bought up by investors.
Food delivery apps are creating “ghost kitchens”: restaurants that exist only online.
All of these situations are predictable and preventable.
Read MoreBen Thompson has a great counterpoint today about an experiment on data tracking ran by the New York Times. (If you haven’t already read the Times piece, it’s fascinating: a dystopian dive into all the ways our activity is tracked online. It’s also a lot of fear mongering.)
Read MoreGood overview in TechCrunch yesterday of the many, many ways in which algorithms and other forms of artificial intelligence are already affecting our ability to existing in public. An A.I.-driven future isn’t coming—it’s already here.
Read MoreTwo stories stood out to me recently:
Apparently parents are completely OK with summer camps surveilling their children because they get to look in on them. (I thought sending kids away to camp was so they could unplug?)
The rise of “black boxes” that monitor driving patterns in order to provide discounts on car insurance.
If you think surveillance capitalism is something happening behind the scenes—the sinister work of corporate executives creepily monitoring our lives—think again. We’re gladly opening the blinds.
Read MoreThis Wired expose about a few tumultuous years at Google is really something. Mostly known for their ability to handle disagreements internally (with a few well-known exceptions), Google’s culture seems to really have taken a turn, with employees actively speaking out about what the company values—including how the company is enabling an out of control U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Read MoreSomething to keep your eye on: this week, tech community leaders with a stake in digital equity launched Build Tech We Trust, a collective effort to hold themselves accountable to fighting hate.
Here’s hoping this will gain some traction within the industry. Many of the signers have already been outspoken critics of its direction over the last few years, including Anil Dash and Ellen Pao.
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