Ann O’Dea

Anthropic Puts $20 Million Into a Super PAC Operation to Counter OpenAI

You may think me naive but this is one of the reasons I favour Claude! Some semblance of ethics, and pro-regulation/guardrails.

Well at least there’s that

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Gladys Mae West obituary: mathematician who pioneered GPS technology She made key contributions to US cold-war science despite facing huge barriers as a Black woman.

No joke: I got angry hate mail today for writing an obituary of a Black woman scientist—because the person felt she did didn’t deserve the recognition.

Which just makes me want to share it again: www.nature.com/articles/d41...

On 1 May 1517, xenophobic mobs, riled up by preachers who were in turn pressured by wealthy broker John Lincoln, rioted in London. They claimed that foreigners were stealing their jobs and welfare. Thomas More, then under-sheriff of London, tried to stop the mob with an empassioned speech.

About the size of it

Was there ever a time when we needed tech reporters more? Tough day for many superb journos 😔

Yes indeed

Listen, this headline is a better endorsement of the Digital Services Act than any 1000 words I could come up with.

Wow. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

A correction for the ages (from The Guardian's review of 'Melania'):

Texas A&M eliminates women’s and gender studies program University leaders also said six courses were canceled and 48 exceptions were granted under new rules on race and gender.

New: Texas A&M University announced Friday that it is eliminating its women’s and gender studies degree program.

ICE Begins Buying ‘Mega’ Warehouse Detention Centers Across US Plans for such centers and jails in nearly two dozen communities have sparked protests over suitability, proximity to homes and schools.

BIG news from @bloomberg.com, which confirms that ICE has gone ahead and *purchased* multiple commercial warehouses with the aim of converting them into mass detention camps.

This is likely to be the big detention story of 2026 — literal warehousing of people.
www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...

Jim Pattison won't sell U.S. warehouse proposed as new ICE facility | CBC News Jim Pattison Developments has announced it will not sell an industrial building in Ashland, Va., that was set to be turned into an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) processing facility.

Turns out that you can simply chose not to sell your warehouse and prevent it from becoming a detention center

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Journalist Georgia Fort has been released from custody (video @fox9mn.bsky.social)

Georgia Fort, an independent journalist and vice president of the Minnesota NABJ chapter, was also arrested by federal agents this morning

I was sent this video of agents at her door:

Defensive caution can’t compete with right-wing propaganda Is it so hard for journalists to clearly state that the Trump administration is lying?

"We desperately need clear, fearless [media] truth-telling that doesn't pull its punches and doesn't hand a megaphone to lies and propaganda in the name of supposed fairness.

"We need the fact-based truth more than ever."
-- Margaret Sullivan (@sulliview.bsky.social)

Tesla's 'unsupervised' Robotaxis vanish a week after pre-earnings announcement A week ago, Elon Musk announced that Tesla had started Robotaxi rides in Austin “with no safety monitor in the...

Same old playbook :

Philip Glass pulls world premiere from Kennedy Center The pioneering composer announced that “the values of the Kennedy Center today are in direct conflict with the message” of his Symphony No. 15: “Lincoln.”

Glass says values of its current leadership don’t align with the theme of his Lincoln symphony

So much more productive to fight the forces of evil than to expend energy arguing with like-minded people about exact terminology or how best to do so.

Dublin City Council CEO Richard Shakespeare says "I have now taken the decision to suspend all posting by the City Council on the X.com platform. This applies to all City Council X accounts and will be actioned with immediate effect."

@kieranhannon.bsky.social

I’ll catch up with the Davos Amateur Dramatic Society’s production of The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui later. Not sure I can bear it live…

America, come take your deranged grandpa home, he's embarrassing you.

“Iceland” 🤦‍♀️