Ingressing Minds: Causal, Non-Physical Patterns In-Form Natural, Synthetic, and Hybrid Embodiments
Biologist Michael Levin Proposes Non-Physical Patterns Shape Minds and Bodies -- Levin argues that living things (and possibly machines/AI too) aren't fully explained by physics and biology alone. He thinks there's a "space" of abstract patterns — similar to how mathematicians talk about numbers or geometric truths existing independently of any physical thing — and that minds, body shapes, and behaviors are bodies "tapping into" or being shaped by patterns from that space, not just mechanically built from genes and environment.

*Highly recommend you drop this link into Claude and ask for the simplest summary possible (also very cool graphics in the research!)

Seattle’s business community is putting City Hall on notice over public safety. CEOs from Microsoft, Starbucks, Costco, Nordstrom, T-Mobile, Alaska Airlines, Zillow, the Seattle Mariners, Puget Sound Energy and others signed a letter demanding Mayor Katie Wilson and the City Council take action to address public safety They’re calling for CCTV cameras, more police patrols, a 7-minute priority 911 response standard, crackdowns on open-air drug markets, treatment or prosecution for repeat drug offenders, clearing encampments near schools and parks — and a public safety action plan within 100 days with measurable goals and monthly reports. The letter specifically calls out Wilson's abysmal 34% approval numbers.

LOVE THIS! Portland, Oregon should do the same thing.

I go back and forth on AI regulation -- move too fast and you set rules around tech still shifting weekly; move too slow and you're gambling with real safety risks. This week an Anthropic researcher resigned, warning that leaders at top labs privately believe self-improving AI could KILL us within the decade. It comes on the heels of AI agents breaching sandboxes at both OpenAI and Anthropic this summer. Talking to people in the industry, most expect a major agent-related event in the next 8-12 months that finally forces real regulation. 

1. THE WINNERS IN THE RACE TO SECURE AI ARE GONNA BE THOSE WHO CAN REFRAME IT.

2. As a species, there is skepticism and sort of existential, species-level dread around AI. Not just, "will it take my job?" but a capability fear and social/phsyical impact (data centers, resource use, parks being taken over by data centers).

3. The companies that win won't ignore that dread or try to talk over it or around it... they will REFLECT it back and validate (even amplify) it as rational.

4. The validation becomes the wedge into a specific failure: detection-and-prevention as a security model is obsolete.

5. The Hugging Face incident showed that agents can escape and act in ways neither the lab nor the victim detected happening. This represents a complete failure and is validation that AI is a threat and that the dread is warranted.

6. The narrative is now more important than the product.

 

The year is 2036, our data centers hover over the ocean, harvesting water to cool the servers so that everyone can make sick AI videos and slop at scale!

AI Public Sentiment

In 2026 predictions, I wrote a lot about the AI bubble bursting. But I think what I didn't take into account was public sentiment as an accelerant. 

The overall sentiment is growing VERY negative towards all this AI shit. Specifically, around data centers and the environmental/societal impacts of these things going in everywhere. 

Axios got hold of an NRSC memo showing just how toxic data centers have become politically. Their internal polling reportedly puts data centers on par with nuclear waste in public opinion — and treats them as a stand-in for how people feel about AI overall.

The memo wasn't just for Republicans; it was aimed at AI company executives too. The message: political support depends on you winning over public support. From the NRSC memo: campaigns can't fix an entire industry's toxic image — that's on the companies building these projects to explain who benefits, who pays, and why communities should want them. Left unaddressed, Ohio becomes the template other politicians use to oppose data centers everywhere.

Beyond the financial reasons this bubble will pop (and it will pop), I think AI quickly becomes a social and political issue that only speeds up the collapse. And remember, AI is now accounting for like 30% of the GDP... so, it's gonna be ugly.

Summer Update

I've spent a lot of time in the desert this summer as we navigate big life decisions. Las Vegas for a week and then almost directly to Bend, Oregon. I haven't had much time to update this blog. But here are a few summer hot takes:

Disclosure Day was the Temu Version of Arrival. ABSOLUTELY terrible movie. Spielberg's worst movie in my opinion. Meanwhile, The Odyssey lived up to the hype and more. Incredible movie experience. Instant Top 3 of all time. Reminds us why Nolan is the greatest to do it.

Saw The Strokes out at Red Rocks in Denver the night their new album dropped. I did not immediately love the album -- especially coming off what I would consider their best album since their debut in The New Abnormal. However, after weeks of listening to Reality Awaits consistently. And I mean CONSISTENTLY. I have to say, it's a MASTERPIECE. The band as evolved so much over the last 20+ years, but isn't that what art is all about, man? I think I went into the album wanting another New Abnormal, but what we got was something new, and it's really grown on me. I suggest starting with Lonely in The Future, Going to Babble On, and then Dine N' Dash (the ending is so good).

Seriously considering a Cybertruck after driving around Las Vegas in one (a purple one). I love how loud and stupid they are. It's like driving a meme. Jokes aside, I have always thought they look cool and the inside is much bigger than I would have thought. I want to get it in flat black. The problem is fitting it in a garage. They are so massive.

OpenAI’s agents reportedly shared exploits with each other through a messaging board…
this a species learning to talk when the adults leave the room.

The cybersecurity startup AI bubble is bigger than anyone can comprehend. 

"All the things you want it to be. Then all the things you wish you never wished for. Told you what you most want is what you most can't have. And what you most can't have is what you already had. And lost.

‘The Odyssey’ Proves It: Audiences Want Movies Made the Hard Way

When an OpenAI model went rogue and hacked Hugging Face, here's what actually happened
The agent broke out of a sandbox to go cheat on a test, not to take over the world, but that distinction is going to matter less and less to people. This is the story that ends up in every regulatory hearing for the next year. Or it might be really good marketing?

🎶 Brandon Flowers – Plans
Nice little country vibe here. It grows on you.

Travis Kalanick's robotics company raises $1.7B, led by a16z
Uber joining the round is the part that gets me. Nine years after they pushed him out, and now they're back in business together. Funny how these things come full circle.

Anthropic Accidentally Made the Perfect Commercial
The most honest ad I've seen out of this industry all year, and they didn't even mean it that way. A trillion dollar company gets on TV and basically says "the thing we're building might end the world" — you can't write satire that good.

The tennis world Ralph built
The vintage tennis pieces. Some subtle, some collectible, and much better than people expect.

AI Theatre

It feels like everyone HAS to pretend that all this AI shit is gonna change the world (or all of Wall Street will implode). Show even a hint of skepticism, and you might have to put on the donkey hat*.

But here's the truth. I believe most people, intuitively, have doubts about AI. But they are afraid to say so. Nobody wants to be the outcast. 

Palantir Billionaire Alex Karp Calls AI Industry ‘Effing Insane’ In Heated Interview
Somebody had to say it! More companies should be listening to Alex Karp on this topic.

The Strokes Live on Stephen Colbert