Can We Save the Internet?

"Grok, the platform's embedded AI chatbot, is being used to generate and spread nonconsensual sexualized images-often through "undressing" prompts that turn harassment into a viral game. Warzel describes how what once lived on the internet's fringes has been supercharged by X's distribution machine. He explains how the silence and lack of urgency isn't just another content-moderation failure; it's a breakdown of basic human decency."

"The trio helped write the " Resonant Computing Manifesto," a framework for building technology that leaves people feeling nourished rather than hollow. They discuss how to combat engagement-maximizing products that hijack attention, erode agency, and creep people out through surveillance and manipulation. The conversation is both a diagnosis and a call to action: Stop only defending against the worst futures, and start articulating, designing, and demanding the kinds of digital spaces that make us more human."

"AI should not be your friend. If you think that AI is your friend, you are on the wrong track. AI should be a tool. It should be an extension of your agency. The fact that the first manifestation of large language models in a product happens to be a chatbot that pretends to be a human ... it's like the aliens in Contact who, you know, present themselves as her grandparents or whatever, so that she can make sense of it."

Grok, X's embedded AI chatbot, is being used to generate and spread nonconsensual sexualized images through 'undressing' prompts, turning harassment into a viral game. Content that once lived on the internet's fringes has been amplified by X's distribution mechanisms. The platform's silence and lack of urgent moderation represent a breakdown of basic human decency and a choice of chaos over stewardship. The Resonant Computing Manifesto proposes building technology that nourishes people rather than hollowing them out. The manifesto advocates rejecting engagement-maximizing, attention-hijacking products, and designing digital spaces that protect agency, reduce surveillance, and promote human flourishing.

Read at The Atlantic