Werd I/O
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Ben Werdmuller

Ben Werdmuller

AI

The Future of Forums is Lies, I Guess

"I do not have the time or emotional energy to screen out regular attacks by Large Language Models, with the knowledge that making the wrong decision costs a real human being their connection to a niche community."

08 Jul 2025

Technology

Threads is nearing X's daily app users, new data shows

It's wild to me how many people are still engaging with X.

08 Jul 2025

AI

‘Improved’ Grok criticizes Democrats and Hollywood’s ‘Jewish executives’

As more people look to AI to learn about the world, the people who control how it's trained and how it responds will control our prevailing narratives. That's wildly dangerous.

07 Jul 2025

Society

Family zoning actually means something cool

Forget San Francisco - I wish every single US city would do this. We're too car-dependent, too isolated, too unhealthy. (Honestly, European mixed-use development should be the model.)

06 Jul 2025
America is a myth

Democracy

America is a myth

We have to decide which story we believe in.

04 Jul 2025
Zohran Mamdani

Democracy

What are we actually for? The Mamdani case for positive resistance

Why effective opposition requires more than just saying no

02 Jul 2025

Notable Links

Republican Budget Bill Signals New Era in Federal Surveillance

"The looming rapid expansion of federal surveillance may signal a step change on a trajectory set in motion after September 11, 2001, with broad implications for the rights and privacy of all Americans."

02 Jul 2025

Technology

Grammarly to acquire email startup Superhuman in AI platform push

"Grammarly has signed a deal to acquire email efficiency tool Superhuman as part of the company's push to build an artificial intelligence-powered productivity suite." I did not see this coming.

01 Jul 2025

Democracy

Schools serving undocumented kids go underground

"Some schools have asked staff to use secure messaging systems like Signal instead of text and email to keep sensitive conversations from public reach." They, like many others, need more private, self-hosted software.

01 Jul 2025

Democracy

Self-censorship and the ‘spiral of silence’: Why Americans are less likely to publicly voice their opinions on political issues

"I’m a political scientist, and I found that Americans were far less likely to publicly voice their opinions than even during the height of the McCarthy-era Red Scare."

29 Jun 2025
AI won't live on publisher sites

AI

AI won't live on publisher sites

The case for moving AI down the stack

24 Jun 2025

Democracy

Stephen Miller’s Financial Stake in ICE Contractor Palantir

Stephen Miller and at least a dozen other Trump appointees own stock in Palantir, the company that provides "mission critical" services to ICE.

24 Jun 2025
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Werd I/O explores the intersection of technology, democracy, and society. It's independently published by Ben Werdmuller, reader-supported, and always free to read.