"Canada cannot bet on AI for economic reform. The impact of novel technologies are shaped by social and economic conditions, and AI designed around profit-driven commercialization will prioritize corporations over workers."
🔗 perspectivesjournal.ca/canada-ai-economic-growth/
Today I had the honour of meeting my idol, @parismarx.com 😭 Tech Won’t Save Us has been such a significant inspiration for my PhD research. Thank you for taking the time to chat. I can’t wait to read your upcoming book this fall!
So grateful that I had the opportunity to contribute a chapter to this very timely book!
In this chapter I critically examine discourse that suggests AI can be used as a tool for achieving the SDGs.
link.springer.com/chapter/10.1...
Today, February 24th, is publication day for my latest book, The Story of Capital: What Everyone Should Know About How Capital Works, published by @versobooks.bsky.social
youtu.be/_Y7YLX-ASGY?...
“Why does the left hate technology” is not the right question. Instead we should be asking “why do most people hate the capitalist technologies sold as ‘innovations’ and forced onto society by a handful of mega billionaires and their toady sycophants?”
Happy to share that an opinion piece I wrote for the Broadbent Institute has been published today!
I call into question the Carney government’s heavy investment in AI, and argue that its corporate-centred approach is reminiscent of neoliberal trickle-down economics.
The Canada Revenue Agency's chatbot mostly generates wrong answers and is expensive.
"The agency says the bulk of cost is salaries ($13.67 million), though that doesn’t include costs related to employee benefits and travel. Another $3.21 million was spent on IT consultants for the project."
Canadian "sovereign AI" project: Look at this sovereign computing facility we're building in Canada! There will be so much sovereign Canadian compute here!
Facility hardware specifications: Dell, Intel, Nvidia
Canada Post wants to create a new class of flexible, part-time worker that will better compete with Amazon and implement “dynamic routing” so delivery routes can be changed on the fly.
It’s a good example of how Amazon degrades workers’ rights even beyond its walls. Workers are right to push back.
"Governments have a role in regulating AI to ensure that accountability is not subordinate to market incentives, which could include worker exploitation. AI legislation also requires a bottom-up approach, in which data can be leveraged through unions."
Having a Charge Spring in the Slay-Offs before a second brat summer #ottawacharge #pwhl #charge #brat #boofrost @pwhlcharge.bsky.social
... anyways, go Charge!
OTTAWA ADVANCES!
@pwhlcharge.bsky.social will make their first PWHL Finals presented by Scotiabank appearance!
The only thing harder than getting my PhD is being a Leafs fan. I hope they don't completely embarrass us again in Game 6 🫠
-.-
Hunger and starvation stalk in Gaza as food is more scarce and prices have increased by up to 1400 percent compared to during the ceasefire
"Essential ingredients are up to 60 times more expensive than before the war"
www.ft.com/content/89cc...
I am delighted to share my final working paper, "Big Tech, Venture Capital and Shaping Innovation in Canada’s Tech Start-Ups," written for the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) 's Digital Policy Hub.
www.cigionline.org/publications...
Happy to help. Nothing happened. Everyone pretended like it didn't happen. It's almost entirely gone. Horizon World somehow exists. $45bn basically disappeared into a black hole owed to "lack of a clear vision and mismanagement." Who knows what happened!
finance.yahoo.com/news/metas-r...
SCOOP: DOGE is hosting a “hackathon” in DC next week with the goal of building one “mega API” for accessing all IRS data.
Palantir has been brought up as a potential partner.
www.wired.com/story/doge-h...
In the latest Balsillie Paper, BSIA PhD student Fatmanur Delioglu discusses the increasing use of surveillance technologies at the EU borders and their impact on migrants and migration governance.
balsilliepapers.ca/bsia-paper/t...
Tech billionaires demanded Donald Trump use the power of the US government to pressure other countries not to crack down on them.
Now Trump is pulling out of a global tax agreement and threatening tariffs against countries that pass digital services taxes targeting multinational tech companies.
Over the past few weeks, Elon Musk’s DOGE has infiltrated the US government and begun dismantling pieces of it.
This week @makenakelly.bsky.social joins @parismarx.com to discuss the threat DOGE poses to government services and everyone who depends on them.
Full ep: techwontsave.us/episode/264_...
I fear it is.The heavy emphasis on IF is nerve wracking for students. Using the rising cost of living as a justification for tuition hikes shifts focus away from the root issue: the need for sustainable and publicly funded education models.We need to focus on challenging insufficient govt investment
I don’t agree with many of Ford’s policies that have resulted in the degradation of universities. However, I think we need to protect students and their access to education during these increasingly challenging times, rather than creating financial barriers.
Sure, university education is not a universal service, but it is increasingly becoming more necessary for students to obtain a university degree in order to enter the job market and find full-time permanent employment.
Half of Canadian students may not have debt but the other half that do have an average of $28,000 to pay off. Majority of them being women. This is the tip of the iceberg when examining socio-economic components of student debt. Why create more barriers?
The responsibility of ensuring sustainable funding for universities should not be placed on students. We should avoid falling into the elitist barriers present in academia and find new pathways for securing the future of post-secondary education.
The last thing we need in Canada is for our students to be burdened with lifelong student debt, like Americans. Young people in Canada are already struggling to afford homes, and adding substantial student loans further reduces their chances of achieving financial independence after graduation.
Additionally, eligibility criteria may not accurately reflect economic realities – income thresholds may be set too low, and grant amounts are often based on outdated cost of living estimates, failing to meet students’ actual needs in today's economy.
Relying on grants to safeguard students who can’t afford to pay tuition is unsustainable. Grants are precarious and volatile, making them an unstable financial safety net.
