Friday links for September 18th 2026

The ‘rational’ issue

1. The Best Reason to Doubt the A.I. Doomsayers

A solid summary of the crackpot “rationalist” sect most of Silicon Valley’s AI bros are members of, leaders-included. Also, inevitably, a sex cult. It’s not AI going off the rails we should be worried about, it’s those guys.

2. How Three Brothers Built an AI Slop Empire by Buying Legitimate News Sites and Turning Them Into Zombie Content Farms That They Say Get 50 Million Page Views per Month

This is the what AI-driven “productivity” actually looks like. Slop farms with more page views than Forbes or CBS. Heatwaves well spent.

3. NVIDIA’S AI Climate hoax – report

Being compared to Russia’s state-owned coal company isn’t the best look. Their PR agency must be having fun right now.

4. Vinted Brain

Shopping addiction through a platform with mechanics similar to those of a fruit machine. The jackpot being an old H&M top.

5. The Rise of the Idiots (Video)

Little throwback to Nathan Barley seeing it coming in 2005: “they babble into hand-held twit machines”.

On rotation

This week’s soundtrack is Please by DJ Plead.

Off I pop,
Colin