Called it
Who's Who of AI
Shannon Vallor
AI ethicist and philosopher, University of Edinburgh
Philosopher/AI Ethicist at Univ of Edinburgh, FRSE. Co-Director @technomoralfutures.bsky.social and BRAID @braiduk.bsky.social, author of Technology and the Virtues (2016) and The AI Mirror (2024). Views my own. Humble servant to Carol and Puffin. She/her.
What they're sharing
Book on Truth in the Age of A.I. Contains Quotes Made Up by A.I. nytimes.com
Even If You Hate AI, You Will Use Google AI Search | WIRED wired.com
I’m a Professional Fact-Checker. AI Is Wrong More Often Than You Think | WIRED wired.com
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[2605.07723] LLM hallucinations in the wild: Large-scale evidence from non-existent citations arxiv.org
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ArXiv to Ban Researchers for a Year if They Submit AI Slop 404media.co
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Peter Thiel: The pope is ‘working for the Chinese Communists’ by criticizing AI | CNN cnn.com
nytimes.com
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No, Artificial Intelligence Is Not Conscious theatlantic.com
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I Profile Celebrities for a Living. Nothing Prepared Me for Tilly Norwood. nytimes.com
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OpenAI’s apparent failure to visit key site raises questions over UK investment theguardian.com
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Google DeepMind Unionization Talks Are Off to a Rocky Start | WIRED wired.com
I Work in Hollywood. Everyone Who Used to Make TV Is Now Secretly Training AI | WIRED wired.com
Articles & links
Wired is unaware of the extent to which I can be motivated by moral outrage. And spite. A lot of spite.
Shannon Vallor reposted
In which I give AI chatbots a fact checking test and find them sorely wanting. My latest for WIRED.
Shannon Vallor reposted
Two new facts stand out: 1. 85% of hallucinated citations in preprints are also in the subsequent journal version (thanks, peer review!) 2. Fake cites more likely to use the names of (male) scholars who are already highly cited, creating a fake-citation Matthew effect. arxiv.o…
Shannon Vallor reposted
ArXiv is going to ban researchers for a year if they are caught submitting AI slop. ArXiv told us it's a one strike rule: do it once, you're out. www.404media.co/new-arxiv-ru...
Shannon Vallor reposted
"The Pope is the puppet of the Chinese authoritatian government" is a take you would make if you made billions by drinking paint.
AI Weekly's analysis
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- At the Aspen Ideas Festival, Peter Thiel said Pope Leo XIV is 'working for the Chinese Communists' by calling for international AI regulation.
- Leo's May encyclical 'Magnifica Humanitas' declared that artificial intelligence 'must be disarmed' and pressed for stronger international oversight.
- Thiel spoke on a nonrecorded panel with political scientist Francis Fukuyama; the audience reportedly received the characterization with laughter.
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Shannon Vallor reposted
Did not even last a week. The fact that this made it out the door means the privacy department now works in a basement with no computers and a single stapler. www.nytimes.com/2026/07/10/t...
Shannon Vallor reposted
“The term deepfake traditionally refers to photos, audio, and video, but when it comes to discussions of consciousness, we need to regard text as a deepfake medium as well.” www.theatlantic.com/philosophy/2...
Shannon Vallor reposted
NYT: [endless stream of articles dehumanizing and demeaning trans people, attacking our health care, raising "concerns" about our civil rights (believing we have too many of them), etc.] Also NYT: This computer is a LADY! www.nytimes.com/2026/05/31/m...
Shannon Vallor reposted
"The findings raise questions about one of the most-hyped UK AI developments, and suggest a centrepiece of US-UK AI cooperation was in fact little more than a press release"... When hype meets reality case number too many to count... www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
Google DeepMind continues to treat their employees' profound moral concerns, which the company once pledged to honor, as an HR problem to be swept aside rather than a crisis for its future.
AI Weekly's analysis
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- WIRED reported employees walked out of the first meeting frustrated, saying leadership seemed unwilling to seriously engage with organizing.
- A DeepMind spokesperson denied talks had stalled, calling the session a first step to define who the unions want to represent.
- Google declined voluntary recognition of the CWU and Unite for pay, hours and holiday bargaining, agreeing instead to talks via Acas.
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This is horrible reading, and also wonderful reading, because its seething rage is so undeniably human
Their own posts
Recent commentary
I'm rereading an old paper of mine from 2017 ('AI and the Automation of Wisdom') and I'm having one of these moments
Me after I’ve turned off the unwanted AI summaries
The fact that people are using AI to steal my writing, churn out a shittier version of it, falsely attribute it to someone more famous, and get more press coverage and sales for their book than I ever will is *chef’s kiss* pure 2026 energy
I am watching a well-known AI critic give a talk, and every single slide is stuffed with cheesy AI slop illustrations (as design background, not images to be discussed). It must be ironic, but honestly it’s like watching someone giving a lecture on sewer treatment while smeared in poop
Spent a plane ride reading Pope Leo's Encyclical on AI. Many thoughts to share later, but this will stick with me: "The quality of a civilization is measured not by the power of its means, but by the care it is able to offer, by its ability to recognize the other as a face not merely as a function."
Thrilled to find out today that The AI Mirror has earned out its advance, and is still going strong. Traveling to Japan next month just in time to hopefully see this on some Tokyo bookshelves. Wild cover…my first time seeing the design!
Their network
In Shannon Vallor's orbit
Center = Shannon Vallor. Left = members they follow (green edges). Right = members who follow them (blue edges). Top = mutual follows (orange edges, slightly larger). Drag any node to reposition; click to open that profile.