Business
How DraftKings Uses A.I. to Target the Gamblers Likeliest to Lose. Online gambling has exploded in popularity and growth since the Supreme Court verdict in 2018. And like every other business, betting platforms don’t want to leave money on the table. The ones most at risk of defaulting tend to be the more profitable. Similar to what is observed in the consumer loan space. It’s unsurprising that these platforms use predictive technology to be proactive and find “very engaged and passionate” gamblers. The question is whether these platforms have gone too far and how we, as a society, can put in guardrails to protect users from their worst instincts and being exploited. And if we, as a society, do not want this to happen, then we should have Congress or a Supreme Court that would outlaw gambling.
A new arms race is unfolding on the ocean floor. I hope that we won’t be able to overcome the challenges of operating critical infrastructure on the seabed anytime soon. The benefits are theoretical at best, but the work will surely damage the seabed and habitat of ocean lives.
Consumers trust AI to advise, but don’t consent to it purchasing for them. I don’t think we will get to a point where AI will shop on our behalf anytime soon. To a lot of people, shopping does NOT need to be efficient. They shop to relax, to learn new things and to feel alive. There is no need for a tool to intervene. Plus, as the article says, there is an issue with trust and privacy involved. How can we trust that tech companies will handle our data properly and in good faith? Apple is the only one that can be trusted to some extent and it doesn’t offer any shopping agent. For good measure, just read some of the horror stories in which shopping by AI agent went wrong.
Meta Rolls Out A.I. Agent That Can Send Your Emails and Book Your Travel. Quite a big push into hardware by Meta this week. Sales of smart glasses have not been impressive, so I don’t expect Meta’s versions to sell well. Muse will not be a success either. The big question mark I have over Muse is why consumers would need it. It seems be useful ONLY when people forget their phones and how often people do forget their phones that they have to use Muse? Second, Meta is nefarious for its misuse of user data. It doesn’t have the trust and it won’t as long as the cash cow is still selling ads personalized by, well, personal data. Who would hand over their emails and personal information to Meta just for automating emails and shopping? Lastly, Meta does not have a great track record in hardware. This is not Mark Zuckerberg’s first rodeo into hardware and there is nothing to suggest that it will be different this time.
Private-Credit Firms Are Buzzing About Getting In on JPMorgan’s Card Empire. “The co-brand cards that millions of consumers use have long been the epicenter of a love-hate relationship between large merchants and banks. Airlines, department stores and every kind of merchant lean on their card programs to attract more customers, boost loyalty and increase revenue. Banks take on much of the risk associated with whether those cardholders will default on their payments. Walmart ended a roughly 20-year partnership with Synchrony Financial in 2018 in part because of approval rates—only to return to the issuer after a tumultuous stint with Capital One. Sometimes, the bank gives in only to create other problems: Apple wanted Goldman Sachs to approve nearly every applicant for the Apple card, which contributed to higher-than-normal exposure to subprime borrowers on that card before the two decided to break up. JPMorgan agreed to a deal to take over that program. JPMorgan’s rejection rates have been a source of strain with close partner United Airlines, one of its biggest cards, some of the people said. The companies have worked to address the issue, a person familiar with United’s program said.”
Other Stuff I Find Interesting And So May You
Why These $500 Japanese Jeans Have a Cult Following. The Japanese provide the world a refreshing alternative to the industrialization and commercialization of pretty much everything we have in our society right now. Their craftmanship, culture, history and humanity are unique and just different in this day and age.
Gold Statues and Staff Cuts: How Trump Has Disrupted America’s Parks. Even if the argument that we should divert some funds towards upgrading the capital and, more specifically, some of Trump’s pet projects, surely we have enough money to do that AND to take good care of our parks. America is blessed with world-class parks that not only preserve the culture and history, but also become attractions that lure thousands of foreign visitors.
Why You Should Almost Never Use AI to Write Anything Substantive. The way I think about this topic is that as humans, we should always prioritize humanity and authenticity. Like Steve Jobs said, the world is a very noisy place and the best way to connect with people is to be authentic. There is no authenticity in AI-generated text. There is no humanity either. I am sure it is helpful to some extent. but I’d rather read a text by someone with broken English, than one generated by AI. If you don’t respect me enough to put some time and effort in a communication with me, why do I need to spend time reading it? My blog is written by me. I have plenty of errors and I am sure I write and speak funny. But it’s all me and I like it that way.
Ed Sheeran calls Israel’s treatment of Gazans ‘unjustifiable,’ apologizes for Macklemore controversy. I personally think that Israel’s killing Palestians should be condemned and criticized in the strongest terms. But I’ll understand if other people don’t think the same and as long as we don’t talk about it or we talk about in a respectful manner, it’ll be fine. Ed Sheeran’s handling of this drama does not tell me where he stands. If he didn’t want to politicize his shows and if he wanted to protect all the staff that stood those shows up, he should not have apologized. Now that he is apologizing, what exactly was the reason why he made his previous comments? It’s amazing to me that even one of the biggest music stars, who likely does not need to work another day for the rest of his life, still succumbs to the external pressure, from his fans and the owners of the venues. I’d love to see him stand his ground and spontaneously have a show in a public park.
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