Old Fucking Punk @lwriemen@librem.one

Insurers don’t want to cover AI

The true AI risk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CBqY1FvQikE&list=UU9rJrMVgcXTfa8xuMnbhAEA - video
https://pivottoai.libsyn.com/20260126-insurers-dont-want-to-cover-ai - podcast

time: 4 min 58 sec

LLMs do not "think"

The LLM instantiation methodology* correlates patterns in the data that the developers provide to build a database** of linkages between collections of words and phrases*** that appear in that corpus.

The way in which this database is used is to inform a probabilistic selector process by seeding it with a set of probabilities**** associated with a given word or phrase; that set of probabilities has pointers to related words or phrases.

If a given word or phrase is found in close proximity in the original data consistently, then those probabilities will be higher.

When a query***** is made to this database, a randomization process is used to drop certain parts****** of the query being sent into the lookup process. The remainder is divided into segments† and passed into the database for query.

So.

With all this in mind, it should be -screamingly obvious- why this story, of how it's entirely feasable to get an LLM to rederive copyrighted works out of the database that was seeded with those works, happens: https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/ai-industry-recall-copyright-books

* I am deliberately not using the word 'training'. You can train dogs; you can train employees; you can train chimpanzees; what you do to an LLM is not training - it is building a database to feed into another process.

** I am deliberately not using the word "model" here, so as to restate the process in plain language absent the jargon these dipshits insist on using to obfuscate their techniques.

*** "Tokens" is another jargon word here.

**** "weights" is less objectionable as jargon, given it's used for a number of things with this approximate conceptual shape, but it's fucking annoying to me in this context.

***** "prompt" is their fucking bullshit term for a natural-language database query

****** "zero weighting" is jargon for "we drop it on the floor" - this is why I keep referring to people doing "prompt engineering" as playing games instead of doing actual security; if the fucking thing drops random parts of your shit on the ground, then inherently you have no way to enforce a policy that is subject to that process.

† "tokenized", see ***

Decorate your street today.
Designed to inspire resistance in both small towns and big cities. https://pmpress.org/index.php?l=product_detail&p=2168

Copyright laws give legacy gatekeepers more control, stifling grassroots innovation and emerging creators. We need a system that enables choice and new opportunities. https://eff.org/deeplinks/2026/01/copyright-kills-competition

Keep distracting him with fake awards. It can be the same one over and over again. The guy's brain is cooked. https://www.gocomics.com/brian-mcfadden/2026/01/26

OK, it turns out I do have one big gripe about Fedora. At least the KDE version of it, I have no idea if the Gnome version is the same way.

There are updates to Fedora almost every day. That's not my gripe. My gripe is that Fedora forces me to reboot every time those damn updates are downloaded before it will apply them. And because the updates are ALMOST EVERY DAY that means I'm rebooting my fucking desktop ALMOST EVERY DAY and it is a pain in the ass, because HEY I'M TRYING TO USE MY COMPUTER

Happy Monday dear Fedi friends!

I started writing the first draft of my article about #WSocial and I'm finding so many gems.

Needless to say, if you have any interesting tidbits, I'm all ears.

Hopefully I can publish it by Thursday.

Have a great week!

Malicious #AI extensions on #VSCode Marketplace steal developer data

https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/malicious-ai-extensions-on-vscode-marketplace-steal-developer-data/

#cybersecurity #malware

Just attended a drop-in from @workers_coop and gained an incredible amount of information and support from the facilitators and other attendees too. Cooperation over competition! This is the way.

Creating fake, sexual images of women and children is a cruel and unacceptable form of abuse. We will not accept that.
 
Today, the European Commission has launched new investigation against X under the DSA. We have taken investigative steps and suspect that X has not properly assessed and mitigated risk on Grok´s functionalities. This includes the risk of spreading illegal content in the EU, like fake sexual images and child abuse material.
 

And once again, with #AltText4You

"We can't have clean energy because it will destroy the oil industry. We can't have healthcare because it will destroy the health insurance industry. We can't have peace because it will destroy the
weapon industry. Capitalism is a system which disables the option to do the right thing."

#AI is hitting UK harder than other big economies, study finds - https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/jan/26/ai-uk-jobs-us-japan-germany-australia "Britain is losing more jobs than it creates owing to artificial intelligence, Morgan Stanley research suggests" <slowhandclap/>

Latest #ChatGPT model uses Elon Musk’s #Grokipedia as source, tests reveal - https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/jan/24/latest-chatgpt-model-uses-elon-musks-grokipedia-as-source-tests-reveal "OpenAI’s platform cited Grokipedia on topics including Iran and Holocaust deniers" self-obsessed and needy #musk ruining yet more things...

ICE shoots another domestic terrorist. Cartoon for Dutch newspaper Trouw.

#ICE #USA #America #Trump

I despise how security updates are
bundled with feature updates.

Now we have to choose between getting malware from a random criminal gang or getting embedded malware from the tech company.

And honestly at this point, I'm not sure which is worse.

#Tech #Enshitification #NoAI

Somehow telework is supposedly an absolute productivity killer but the second we have inclement weather it’s required.

It used to be that when we had bad weather businesses and the government would just close down. We ended up with the worst of both.

The presumption that free software is sufficient or necessary to ensure all software you depend on is trustworthy is simultaneously naive and ignorant of what software is capable of. The only realistic way to develop trust in software is to trust the people who write it, and development processes associated with free software make that trust easier.

Say no to age verification in Washington state -- tell legislators not to follow Texas' lead!

If you're a Washington resident, here's an action to oppose HB 2112, which had a hearing last week. It's got a suggested script, talking points you can use if you want to extend the script or write your own, and an easy way to contact your legislators by email

https://www.takeaction.network/xactions/46385

#ageVerification #lgbtqia2s #privacy

After opposing climate action for decades, Federated Farmers wants the govt to foot the bill for storm-damaged roads to their farms https://piefed.social/c/politics/p/1702726/after-opposing-climate-action-for-decades-federated-farmers-wants-the-govt-to-foot-the

@sarahtaber I, too, would like my hobby and cosplay and new trucks and real estate play to be enabled by free government money.

Alas, I have been reliably informed that We Cannot Afford to be giving free money to anyone who is not already at least a millionaire.