more taxidermied animals live in Zack Snyder’s office than seems normal. A lioness. A beaver. A duck. Also a wide collection of axes, swords, and guns—the weapons used to fell the wild beasts, maybe? The effect should be unsettling, but it isn’t, because Snyder himself is warm, chatty, accommodating. And …
Read More »Prominent Women in Tech Say They Don't Want to Join OpenAI's All-Male Board
Earlier this month, OpenAI’s board abruptly fired its popular CEO, Sam Altman. The ouster shocked the tech world and rankled Altman’s loyal employees, the vast majority of whom threatened to quit unless their boss was reinstated. After a chaotic five-day exile, Altman got his old job back—with a reconfigured, all-male …
Read More »The Problems Lurking in Hollywood’s Historic AI Deal
Not everyone in Hollywood is happy with the film industry's historic AI deal. A provision allowing for the creation of digital replicas and synthetic performers could, critics argue, decrease the number of jobs available to both performers and crew. This, in turn, could allow big-name stars—and their AI-generated clones—to feature …
Read More »How 'Baldur's Gate 3' Became the Horniest Game of the Year
In a subreddit dedicated to Baldur’s Gate 3, Larian Studios’ critically acclaimed Dungeons & Dragons–based role-playing game, a player posed an important question: “I know you probably heard this here more times than I can count but seriously, why is everyone so horny?” There was a practical element to this …
Read More »4 Tips to Spot Misinformation on the Web
We've already discussed how the Israel-Hamas war is the latest conflict where people are poring over social media and news channels looking for updates on what, exactly, is happening. After all, whether it’s news about our neighborhoods or communities on the other side of the world, the web is where …
Read More »Nicolas Cage on Memes, Myths, and Why He Thinks AI Is a ‘Nightmare’
Nicolas Cage knows he’s a meme. He’s not happy about it. After making the mistake of googling himself a few years back, the charismatic actor discovered that his big on-screen performances had been translated into single-frame quips and supercuts, taken—like all memes, really—out of context, played for lolz, and in …
Read More »Hallmark Channel Won the Streaming Wars
I watch a lot of Hallmark Channel programming around the holidays. With all of the options available on Netflix, Max, Hulu, and others, this feels like a very throwback move. Still, every year, the channel’s Countdown to Christmas is unmissable. This is why, despite not really having a huge presence …
Read More »The Rise of AI in Alternative Browsers—and What’s Next
Josh Miller laughs a few minutes into our conversation and admits that he almost declined today’s interview about The Browser Company. The young CEO is jetlagged from a flight to Paris but appears comfortable over Zoom and eager to talk about Arc, his company's new AI-fortified web browser. So, what’s …
Read More »Meet the Lawyer Leading the Human Resistance Against AI
On a Friday morning in October, in the lobby of a sleek San Francisco skyscraper, Matthew Butterick was headed toward the elevators when a security guard stopped him. Politely, the guard asked if he was lost. It was an honest mistake. In checkerboard Vans, a black baseball cap, and a …
Read More »How to Have the Best Record Store Day
Vinyl records are everywhere now. What was once considered a niche hobby just a few years ago, when records started to make a comeback, are now widely available again, even at major retail stores like Target and Walmart. Record sales are up thanks in part to artists like Lana Del …
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