Thought-provoking Things Worth Sharing - Issue #139
Someone is making a bunch of money from the AI hype - a tiny island nation.
Later in the newsletter, you will find a link to a post about ChatGPT being in trouble over the GDPR because if the model returns incorrect information about you when prompted, there’s no way to correct it. This is a requirement of the GDPR.
If you follow that link, you can read all about it and some other stories where AI seems to be causing more harm than good. But I also wanted to share this with you from that post because all of the big tech companies have a lot invested in AI and stand to lose if it doesn’t take off as the biggest thing since the internet itself.
Welcome to this week’s collection of thought-provoking things. Each week, I’ll share information about careers and workplace culture, mental health in the workplace, talent development, and important information about privacy, security, and legal tech.
You can find out all about me here - Mike McBride Online.
On the other hand, there is one place that is making a ton of money already from this AI hype:
The tiny island nation of Anguilla.
Revenue for dot ai domains grew from $7.4 million in 2021 to around $30 million in 2023. This year, Cate says that figure could be north of $50 million dollars — more than 40 percent of the country’s annual revenue. Most of that is from registration fees, which now cost $140 for a two-year contract. But some of it comes from auctions.
Good for you, Anguilla.
Careers and the Workplace
Linked - Tell Employees What It Takes to Get a Promotion
This headline seems obvious. If you have an employee who has set a goal of being promoted to the next level of your organization, you should be able to tell them what is required. Yet, in many companies, it's not that easy. There could be several reasons for this, but these are the ones I've seen and heard in my years
Ageism 100% exists, especially in the tech world. - How To Find A Job If You Are 55 Or Older
Training and Development
Things change fast. You need to keep up. You might as well enjoy it. - Embrace The Journey: The Joy Of Lifelong Learning.
Speaking of keeping up, we all need to know something about AI. It’s not going away anytime soon. - The best free AI courses (and whether AI 'micro-degrees' and certificates are worth it)
Of course, we don’t all have the same 24 hours. People raising kids as single parents or living with chronic health issues don’t have the same 24 hours that a billionaire with a chef and a nanny has. Do you know what a 24-hour day looks like for your employees before you demand extra time at the office? - We All Have The Same 24 Hours...Or Do We?
Mental Health in the Workplace
Linked - A Business Case for Building Empathy, Trust, and Psychological Safety
What I would like, however, is just once for someone not to feel the need to make a business case for treating your employees with kindness and empathy. This need to include the business case and the impact on the bottom line is an appeal to management in their self-interest and the financial interest of their business.
How about we make the case that being kind, thoughtful, and empathetic towards employees is the right way to treat a fellow human being, regardless of what it means for the bottom line? Is it too much to ask managers and CEOs to treat people like people? Or are we so far down the caste system at work that we have to convince managers to act as if they care about their employees to benefit themselves?
What Is the Real Impact of Flexible Work on Mental Health? - There are some caveats, but overall, we benefit from flexibility.
Since it’s May, aka Mental Health Awareness Month, I’m sharing some links from my other newsletter.
It’s Okay to Not Be Okay: Tips and Resources for Mental Health Awareness Month
Mental Health Awareness Campaigns: How to Make an Impact Now
Privacy, Security, and Legal Tech
Linked - ChatGPT in trouble with the EU (again)
The interesting thing about this is that the law was on the books. If you're building an encyclopedia or online database of information, you have to provide a way for people to get their information corrected. OpenAI built a tool that couldn't do that, completely ignoring that law. They more likely assumed it didn't apply to them because what they did was more important than silly laws about public data.
As much as I enjoy learning about AI and thinking about the possibilities, there is this nagging doubt about it. That doubt comes from the fact that the people building these things do not account for obvious downsides. Ignoring this very basic GDPR requirement is one example.
An interesting question: do breach reporting requirements violate the 5th Amendment protection against self-incrimination? - Constitutional Rights v. Cybersecurity Rules
They maybe shouldn’t have done that. Still, this seems like a slap on the wrist. - FCC hits top US carriers with nearly $200 million fine for sharing user location illegally.
Five Great Reads on Cyber, Data, and Legal Discovery for April 2024
Broad Interpretation of Attachments Determined by Court - more news about linked documents and eDiscovery.
That’s all, folks. If you found something interesting in this week’s newsletter, please share it with your friends. It’s the best way to help support the effort I put in each week to share this with you.