IM 875: Florida Dad

TWiT Shows Intelligent Machines
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Intelligent Machines #875 - “Florida Dad” Now Available

Episode 875 of Intelligent Machines examines the US government shutdown of Anthropic’s Fable model and the political motivations driving AI regulation decisions.

  • US government shutdown of Anthropic’s Fable model and competing political interests in AI regulation
  • National security concerns versus arguments that export controls undermine American AI competitiveness
  • Tensions between AI safety, geopolitical competition, and domestic political rivalries
  • How regulatory actions impact global AI competition and international tech leadership
  • Balancing responsible AI development with innovation acceleration amid policy uncertainty

#IntelligentMachines #AI #AIRegulation #ArtificialIntelligence #TechPolicy

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I was watching IM 875 today, only to see what appeared to be a relative of Paris Martieau’s, dragging a alligator around their yard. Then Leo said “he’s so proud of what he;s done” IDK if that is all true or not, but if so, its just animal cruelty in my book, and Im wondering what on earth that has to do with tech or intelligent machies. Animal cruetly, not to metion man’s inhumaity toward man, is a huge problem. Surprised to see this on TWIT. Very unwated. I turned the episode off. Im just sayin’

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I think you’re over-exaggerating the situation. They were trying to relocate the alligator back to the water, which they succeeded in doing, and it was not some sort of a prank nor more cruel than necessary. It might have been ideal if they could have waited for an “official” to come and do it differently, but then who knows if said official might not have just shot and killed the alligator to solve the problem.

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The officials in question punted their responsibility. I agree it was a foolish, and possibly cruel thing to do, and indeed I think Paris had some questions about it, too! But I’m not sure what I would have done in that situation. The alligator at the cellar door was definitely a threat to the kids and pets nearby.

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Incidentally I got some heat in the club for how I treated Paris during our discussion about Fable. I was rough and I know it. I truly apologize. Here’s what I posted in the club…

My POV, for what it’s worth… We had a difference of opinion on what mattered in the Fable freeze. I didn’t want to get sidelined by why Andy Jassy narced on Anthropic for a variety of reasons. Mostly because it distracted from the fundamental issue: the US government blocking a US company from offering a technology for purely political reasons. That is unprecedented overreach and should set off alarms for us all regardless of political party.

We don’t really know what Jassy did or didn’t do because the sources were all (as far as I can tell) the White House, which has its own reasons for blaming Jassy. The fact that Amazon doesn’t deny it speaks more to their fear of what a malicious administration can do to them than anything else. They’re wisely staying out of it. It’s fun to speculate, but it’s not really important.

Yes I very much overreacted - I should have much more gently guided the discussion back to the main point, I apologize for that. It’s a given that I respect my hosts. I choose them. I wouldn’t have them on if I didn’t think they were smart and well spoken. But someone has to run the thing. My shows may seem like a democracy (I definitely feel like we’re all equal, in fact I often feel like the other panelists are smarter than me) but as host it’s my responsibility to keep the show focused and moving. Usually I try to do it with a more subtle touch. I didn’t here and I apologize.

I understand your chivalrous desire to defend the fair maiden, but Paris is a grown adult and this has nothing to do with her age or gender. I’ve had similar contretemps with ALL our other hosts when I feel like they’re misguided. I hope they understand it’s not personal. For me it’s about the content, first, last, and always. Maybe I take this particular story too seriously. It really bugs me that mainstream media does not and I don’t want to fall into the trap of gossiping about the whys and wherefores when the house is burning down.

Imagine how you’d feel if Trump decided to block sales of the iPhone because it’s made in China? Now imagine how you’d feel if Andy, let’s say, was mostly concerned about what Amazon told the President. I’d probably try to redirect him just as forcefully. Maybe more so.

Techcrunch got it right: The US government's Anthropic models ban was never about an AI jailbreak | TechCrunch

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To be honest, I think both parts of the argument are very important. If you had discussed the Andy Jassy part and gotten back to the political side of the story, without constantly badgering Paris, I think the segment would have much more listenable and over more quickly.

At one point, you were talking over Paris and not letting her finish her sentences, I was actually going, “oh, for God’s sake, let her finish what she is trying to say!”

I agree that this is governmental overreach, and it is another clear indication of why the EU and other countries are looking to break their ties with Big Tech, at least on a administration level, if you can’t rely on the services you use to run your country, you aren’t running your country.

The Trump Administration has shown on several ocassions that it can be petty and vindictive and it forces Big Tech to do its bidding, cutting off internation entities and countries from accessing services they have paid for and have SLAs for. If this continues, there is simply no point in using any products or sevices from a US company.

As a European, I really don’t understand why Trump has spent the last couple of years to do as much as he can to sabotage the USA’s international reputation and its economy.

“If you come to the USA and we are in a bad mood on that day, you will be shipped off to El Salvador with no communication to family, embassy or legal representation.” Then, “why has tourism fallen so drastically?”

And the “we will tax our citizens 50%+ on imported goods,” and wonder why other countries retaliate in kind. The number of YouTube videos of US citizens believing that the companies shipping the goods are somehow paying those tarrifs and absorbing the costs, and the bewilderment, when they finally see that the tarrifs are applied upon entry to the USA and the purchaser is the only one liable for paying that extra tax, is astounding. Is basic educaton in the USA really that bad, that not even the fundamentals of trade are taught? That was something I learnt when I was about 12 or 13 in school, in the UK.

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You nailed that Paul…honestly, I would likely have shot the darn thing myself rather than trying to physically take it back to the water and risk a hand or arm etc

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The host’s fixation on what is most important to them is not the only viewpoint of interest to the audience. The host’s concept of “focused and moving” could seem like “corralled and driven” to other viewpoints. It did not feel like a good way of being informed about these very important subjects.