What we’re reading (2/13)
“What Is Claude? Anthropic Doesn’t Know, Either” (The New Yorker). “Researchers at the company are trying to understand their A.I. system’s mind—examining its neurons, running it through psychology experiments, and putting it on the therapy couch.”
“Pentagon Used Anthropic’s Claude In Maduro Venezuela Raid” (Wall Street Journal). “Anthropic’s artificial-intelligence tool Claude was used in the U.S. military’s operation to capture former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, highlighting how AI models are gaining traction in the Pentagon, according to people familiar with the matter. The mission to capture Maduro and his wife included bombing several sites in Caracas last month. Anthropic’s usage guidelines prohibit Claude from being used to facilitate violence, develop weapons or conduct surveillance. ‘We cannot comment on whether Claude, or any other AI model, was used for any specific operation, classified or otherwise,’ said an Anthropic spokesman. ‘Any use of Claude—whether in the private sector or across government—is required to comply with our Usage Policies, which govern how Claude can be deployed. We work closely with our partners to ensure compliance.’”
“The Big Scary Myth Stalking The Stock Market” (Wall Street Journal). “on June 1, 1932, 12.7% of the value of the entire U.S. stock market consisted of a single company: AT&T. That’s way more than today’s biggest stock, Nvidia, which accounts for 7.8% of the market value of the S&P 500 and 6.9% of the total U.S. market. Our time-traveling expedition is imaginary, but the numbers are real. And with stocks wobbling the past two weeks, those numbers help counteract Wall Street’s latest myth: that today’s market, dominated by giant tech companies, is a monster that will stomp your index funds to bits.”
“Super Bowl Ads As A Bubble Warning” (Owen Lamont). “The Super Bowl has something for everyone. For sports fans, there’s the game itself. For music fans, there’s the halftime show. And for speculative bubble fans, there’s the TV ads. This year, we saw 15 ads featuring AI-related services, including ads from both Anthropic and OpenAI. This advertising wave is consistent with a brewing AI bubble.”
“The Next Great American Innovation Is In The Trades” (Fast Company). “For decades, America has told a singular story about success, suggesting that the only acceptable path to success is a four-year degree. Any other trajectory was treated as a detour. Fortunately, that story is changing with new, acceptable ways to achieve success. At both the federal and state levels, the U.S. is gradually reinventing its education system to value skills, not just diplomas. From new federal initiatives like Workforce Pell to state-led Education Savings Accounts (ESAs), policy is beginning to catch up to what the economy has been signaling for years. As a country, we need electricians, plumbers, welders, and builders as much as we need white-collar workers.”
