Mystery AI Hype Theater 3000
Mystery AI Hype Theater 3000
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Artificial Intelligence has too much hype. In this stream, linguist Prof. Emily M. Bender and sociologist Dr. Alex Hanna break down the AI hype, separate fact from fiction, and science from bloviation. They're joined by special guests and talk about everything, from machine consciousness to science fiction, to political economy to art made by machines.
If you prefer this in podcast form or want to read the transcript, find Mystery AI Hype Theater 3000 on Buzzsprout or wherever you get your podcasts.
And if you can't wait for the next stream, Alex and Emily have plenty to say in their regular newsletter dispatches. Subscribe via Buttondown here.
Episodes
Episode 85 - Manifesting the End of Tech Bro Manifestos
Last month, Sam Altman proclaimed that we're already in "the Singularity." Not to be outdone, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg have both recently come out with lengthy blog posts about "superhuman AI." Emily and Alex brave some truly terrible writing to unearth the core motivations at the heart of these screeds.
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Episode 84 - Working 9 to Hype
In the past year, tech companies have laid off thousands of employees. But when CEOs blame "AI innovation," they're redirecting attention from something much more predictable: job discrimination and gig-ification. Emily and Alex examine some narratives of AI-streamlined workplaces — and why they don't match up with reality.
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#### Episode 83 - Rumors of a Singularity Have Been Grossly Exaggerated
In the wake of OpenAI's announcement that its products caused a "cyber incident," Sam Altman is now claiming that we're already in the Singularity. And some media outlets are only too happy to help him advance that narrative! Alex and Emily tear up the AI boosters' latest claims of mathy maths combusting into consciousness.
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##### Episode 82 - Who's Responsible for "Responsible AI"?
Lately, a new framework has been creeping into AI boosterism: "harm reduction," or "responsible use." Education technology scholar dr. sava saheli singh joins Alex and Emily to unpack narratives around automation inevitability in the classroom. Spoiler alert: they're not actually "reducing harm" to students at all!
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###### Episode 81 - State of Emergency
AI boosters want to hand off emergency services to the bullshit generators. And horrifyingly, some medical professionals want to help them! Join Emily and Alex for a deep dive on the latest automated horrors threatening our collective health and safety.
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###### Episode 80 - When the Bubble Bursts
What should we do when the "AI" bubble pops? Emily and Alex are joined by researcher Matt Scherer, who recently published a report called "No Bailout for Big Tech Billionaires: Policies for when the AI bubble bursts."
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