#BruceSterling
@bruces.bsky.social
Author, journalist, editor and critic combining his time in Turin, Austin, Ibiza, Belgrade etc #BruceSterling
*I blame science fiction dystopias
---> about AI <---
---> about AI <---
Thinking again about how @brendancbyrne.bsky.social and I wrote a novella in 2019 about an AI-driven truth and reconciliation process in a post-civil insurrection USA and how the process merely papers over the country's massive fault lines...really thought we were going over the top there, damn
January 25, 2026 at 9:07 AM
*I blame science fiction dystopias
---> about AI <---
---> about AI <---
*This isn't "AI-ketamine," it's just hustle-bro productivity hype-boosterism. But that's like watching a car-salesman hauling a janky, open-source Moon-rocket onto the tarmac
youtu.be/Qkqe-uRhQJE?...
youtu.be/Qkqe-uRhQJE?...
ClawdBot is the most powerful AI tool I’ve ever used in my life. Here’s how to set it up
YouTube video by Alex Finn
youtu.be
January 25, 2026 at 9:00 AM
*This isn't "AI-ketamine," it's just hustle-bro productivity hype-boosterism. But that's like watching a car-salesman hauling a janky, open-source Moon-rocket onto the tarmac
youtu.be/Qkqe-uRhQJE?...
youtu.be/Qkqe-uRhQJE?...
*The Chinese have LOTS and LOTS of generative-AI
*There's even *European* generative-AI that's relatively free of the aforementioned billionaire freaks
*There's even *European* generative-AI that's relatively free of the aforementioned billionaire freaks
January 25, 2026 at 7:34 AM
*The Chinese have LOTS and LOTS of generative-AI
*There's even *European* generative-AI that's relatively free of the aforementioned billionaire freaks
*There's even *European* generative-AI that's relatively free of the aforementioned billionaire freaks
*Was it the Nixon Southern Strategy? For Abe Lincoln to empower the Confederacy, that may have been overdoing it
*A very overdo-it Republican guy, Dick Nixon. Huge mandate, landing on Moon, China in his pocket -- still somehow had to pay Cubans to spy on Kennedy liberals
*A very overdo-it Republican guy, Dick Nixon. Huge mandate, landing on Moon, China in his pocket -- still somehow had to pay Cubans to spy on Kennedy liberals
Took a long time for the overreach to backfire
January 25, 2026 at 7:29 AM
*Was it the Nixon Southern Strategy? For Abe Lincoln to empower the Confederacy, that may have been overdoing it
*A very overdo-it Republican guy, Dick Nixon. Huge mandate, landing on Moon, China in his pocket -- still somehow had to pay Cubans to spy on Kennedy liberals
*A very overdo-it Republican guy, Dick Nixon. Huge mandate, landing on Moon, China in his pocket -- still somehow had to pay Cubans to spy on Kennedy liberals
*You ever see this movie? That's a pretty good movie, if you like abandoned, formerly-charismatic dictators aimlessly motoring around in a fatalistic haze
youtu.be/jdrsNOuHDtI?...
youtu.be/jdrsNOuHDtI?...
January 25, 2026 at 7:24 AM
*You ever see this movie? That's a pretty good movie, if you like abandoned, formerly-charismatic dictators aimlessly motoring around in a fatalistic haze
youtu.be/jdrsNOuHDtI?...
youtu.be/jdrsNOuHDtI?...
*1980s Cyberpunk writers were never 1950s beatniks, but boy did they even know a lot about beatniks
*They even knew about SOVIET beatniks
youtu.be/Jz7-f761F78?...
*They even knew about SOVIET beatniks
youtu.be/Jz7-f761F78?...
Podcast #91. “Storming the Cosmos” from TRANSREAL CYBERPUNK.
YouTube video by Rudy Rucker
youtu.be
January 25, 2026 at 7:19 AM
*1980s Cyberpunk writers were never 1950s beatniks, but boy did they even know a lot about beatniks
*They even knew about SOVIET beatniks
youtu.be/Jz7-f761F78?...
*They even knew about SOVIET beatniks
youtu.be/Jz7-f761F78?...
"What should I be if not-a-cyberpunk," well, you have to confront your actual, contemporary, existent cultural problems and make up something modern
*Find some interested friends, that's helpful
*Find some interested friends, that's helpful
January 25, 2026 at 7:19 AM
"What should I be if not-a-cyberpunk," well, you have to confront your actual, contemporary, existent cultural problems and make up something modern
*Find some interested friends, that's helpful
*Find some interested friends, that's helpful
Cyberpunk's not "dead," but it's old-fashioned, even tenderly nostalgic, like being a poetic '50s beatnik rebel in 1985
Countercultures get assimilated. The very fact that ChatGPT can slop-out a cyberpunk with such chatbotty confident-wrongness... it's not "electronic frontier" here in 2026
Countercultures get assimilated. The very fact that ChatGPT can slop-out a cyberpunk with such chatbotty confident-wrongness... it's not "electronic frontier" here in 2026
January 25, 2026 at 7:14 AM
Cyberpunk's not "dead," but it's old-fashioned, even tenderly nostalgic, like being a poetic '50s beatnik rebel in 1985
Countercultures get assimilated. The very fact that ChatGPT can slop-out a cyberpunk with such chatbotty confident-wrongness... it's not "electronic frontier" here in 2026
Countercultures get assimilated. The very fact that ChatGPT can slop-out a cyberpunk with such chatbotty confident-wrongness... it's not "electronic frontier" here in 2026
medium.com/@bruces/r-u-...
*I don't like to say that "cyberpunk is dead," because check out this ChatGPT-generated "cyberpunk" antifa guy here
*Obviously ICE would shoot him out-of-hand if he showed up at the protest, so if you want trouble, you can do cyberpunk and you can still get trouble
*I don't like to say that "cyberpunk is dead," because check out this ChatGPT-generated "cyberpunk" antifa guy here
*Obviously ICE would shoot him out-of-hand if he showed up at the protest, so if you want trouble, you can do cyberpunk and you can still get trouble
January 25, 2026 at 7:02 AM
medium.com/@bruces/r-u-...
*I don't like to say that "cyberpunk is dead," because check out this ChatGPT-generated "cyberpunk" antifa guy here
*Obviously ICE would shoot him out-of-hand if he showed up at the protest, so if you want trouble, you can do cyberpunk and you can still get trouble
*I don't like to say that "cyberpunk is dead," because check out this ChatGPT-generated "cyberpunk" antifa guy here
*Obviously ICE would shoot him out-of-hand if he showed up at the protest, so if you want trouble, you can do cyberpunk and you can still get trouble
*Also the American fascisti themselves are very keen on this same approach. "Man, it's getting hot since ICE shot those white Minnesotans, time to retreat to the encrypted Discord where it's just us and we can't get moniitored"
*Getting transgressively "cyber" is the status quo now
*Getting transgressively "cyber" is the status quo now
I hope this has 3 things occur.
1: American tiktok falls off hard as folks realize it's all right wing agitprop, strife, and stuff meant to placate
2: smarter Americans start doing VPNs
3: kids start using alternative networks and figure out alternatives to corpo tech. Get cyberpunk.
1: American tiktok falls off hard as folks realize it's all right wing agitprop, strife, and stuff meant to placate
2: smarter Americans start doing VPNs
3: kids start using alternative networks and figure out alternatives to corpo tech. Get cyberpunk.
January 25, 2026 at 6:50 AM
*Also the American fascisti themselves are very keen on this same approach. "Man, it's getting hot since ICE shot those white Minnesotans, time to retreat to the encrypted Discord where it's just us and we can't get moniitored"
*Getting transgressively "cyber" is the status quo now
*Getting transgressively "cyber" is the status quo now
*Not to get all cyberpunk here, but the digital networks WERE the "alternative networks"
*Buying a shiny new Mac because you "think different," that "averts 1984" till around maybe 2026. #technosolutionism
*Buying a shiny new Mac because you "think different," that "averts 1984" till around maybe 2026. #technosolutionism
I hope this has 3 things occur.
1: American tiktok falls off hard as folks realize it's all right wing agitprop, strife, and stuff meant to placate
2: smarter Americans start doing VPNs
3: kids start using alternative networks and figure out alternatives to corpo tech. Get cyberpunk.
1: American tiktok falls off hard as folks realize it's all right wing agitprop, strife, and stuff meant to placate
2: smarter Americans start doing VPNs
3: kids start using alternative networks and figure out alternatives to corpo tech. Get cyberpunk.
January 25, 2026 at 6:45 AM
*Not to get all cyberpunk here, but the digital networks WERE the "alternative networks"
*Buying a shiny new Mac because you "think different," that "averts 1984" till around maybe 2026. #technosolutionism
*Buying a shiny new Mac because you "think different," that "averts 1984" till around maybe 2026. #technosolutionism
*What does a domestic American Nuremberg actually look like
*Lots of hangings, if it runs true-to-form
*Lots of hangings, if it runs true-to-form
January 25, 2026 at 6:37 AM
*What does a domestic American Nuremberg actually look like
*Lots of hangings, if it runs true-to-form
*Lots of hangings, if it runs true-to-form
January 25, 2026 at 6:35 AM
*There aren't many Republicsna left here in the MAGA era.
*A strange business. The Republican Party had everything going for them for such a long time. So many unforced errors.
*A strange business. The Republican Party had everything going for them for such a long time. So many unforced errors.
Also, may I say that I don’t agree with people saying ICE and CBP need “more training.” They’re doing exactly what this administration has trained them to—impose a reign of fear in blue cities. They don’t need more training. They need to be ripped up root and branch.
January 25, 2026 at 6:12 AM
*There aren't many Republicsna left here in the MAGA era.
*A strange business. The Republican Party had everything going for them for such a long time. So many unforced errors.
*A strange business. The Republican Party had everything going for them for such a long time. So many unforced errors.
*There's nothing more reassuringly natural than a robot girl who can speak a hundred different languages with a thousand mimicked voices through her emotive rubber lips
youtube.com/shorts/MyR1J...
youtube.com/shorts/MyR1J...
👄 THIS IS NOT HUMAN! Columbia’s #LipSync Robot is UNBELIEVABLE. #science #future #robot #humanoid
YouTube video by XRoboHub
youtube.com
January 24, 2026 at 12:56 PM
*There's nothing more reassuringly natural than a robot girl who can speak a hundred different languages with a thousand mimicked voices through her emotive rubber lips
youtube.com/shorts/MyR1J...
youtube.com/shorts/MyR1J...
*Mediterranean hurricanes now a commonality. #climatecrisis
Storm Harry passing over Italy.
Image taken by Sentinel-3 on Jan. 21, 2026.
Image taken by Sentinel-3 on Jan. 21, 2026.
January 24, 2026 at 11:38 AM
*Mediterranean hurricanes now a commonality. #climatecrisis
*Okay
*What do "machines understand as art," and what does their mechanical gallery and collector system look like
*Is it perhaps a blockchain, are the artworks NFTs, and is the art little chromed squiggles
*What do "machines understand as art," and what does their mechanical gallery and collector system look like
*Is it perhaps a blockchain, are the artworks NFTs, and is the art little chromed squiggles
I don't really see much point in making art for humans. Art made for humans is overrated. There's far too little being produced for machines, not to mention other non-humans. That imbalance isn't accidental, it's structural, because it lies at the very core of what we, humans, understand as art.
January 24, 2026 at 7:25 AM
*Okay
*What do "machines understand as art," and what does their mechanical gallery and collector system look like
*Is it perhaps a blockchain, are the artworks NFTs, and is the art little chromed squiggles
*What do "machines understand as art," and what does their mechanical gallery and collector system look like
*Is it perhaps a blockchain, are the artworks NFTs, and is the art little chromed squiggles
"Lafayette, We Are Here To Nuke You For The Sake of Greenland"
*Je n'aime pas présenter mes excuses aux Français, mais ils détestent tellement les touristes que c'est un plaisir de trouver des raisons sincères de m'excuser.
*Je n'aime pas présenter mes excuses aux Français, mais ils détestent tellement les touristes que c'est un plaisir de trouver des raisons sincères de m'excuser.
This is an elected member of Congress & the GOP saying that he welcomes a war against another nuclear power who is literally our oldest ally & with whom we have a formal treaty military alliance.
Congrats again on that National Conversation™️ about which party has moved further from the center 🤷♂️🤦♂️
Congrats again on that National Conversation™️ about which party has moved further from the center 🤷♂️🤦♂️
Rep. Greg Steube: "You see Macron and the French sending troops to Greenland. I would love to see the US military up against French troops in Greenland, because it would not last very long. It would be a very small skirmish ... we don't care about what Macron and the French want."
January 23, 2026 at 5:42 PM
"Lafayette, We Are Here To Nuke You For The Sake of Greenland"
*Je n'aime pas présenter mes excuses aux Français, mais ils détestent tellement les touristes que c'est un plaisir de trouver des raisons sincères de m'excuser.
*Je n'aime pas présenter mes excuses aux Français, mais ils détestent tellement les touristes que c'est un plaisir de trouver des raisons sincères de m'excuser.
*Also, speaking as a subtropical Texan guy, to the much put-upon people of Minnesota. Would I be moaning, whining and wringing my hands if some worthy person from your snowy state became President?
*Nope. Not for a minute
*Nope. Not for a minute
January 23, 2026 at 5:33 PM
*Also, speaking as a subtropical Texan guy, to the much put-upon people of Minnesota. Would I be moaning, whining and wringing my hands if some worthy person from your snowy state became President?
*Nope. Not for a minute
*Nope. Not for a minute
*Being from Texas, I'm not a huge fan of giant East Coast urban conglomerates. But some chick from New York who is very much a chick from New York, far be it from me to deny her a Presidency
*A 34Xfelon from NYC, he's in the Oval Office right now, if he hasn't bulldozed it flat yet
*A 34Xfelon from NYC, he's in the Oval Office right now, if he hasn't bulldozed it flat yet
Must be some level of nuance I am missing. That female ex-bartender is one of our elected officials who is actually worth a damn.
January 23, 2026 at 5:29 PM
*Being from Texas, I'm not a huge fan of giant East Coast urban conglomerates. But some chick from New York who is very much a chick from New York, far be it from me to deny her a Presidency
*A 34Xfelon from NYC, he's in the Oval Office right now, if he hasn't bulldozed it flat yet
*A 34Xfelon from NYC, he's in the Oval Office right now, if he hasn't bulldozed it flat yet
*Oh yeah. Of course it continues.
*I'm glad we're in such concurrence here, @faineg. I pinky-promise that I'm personally reading all your skeets and I don't use an LLM to summarize them
*I'm glad we're in such concurrence here, @faineg. I pinky-promise that I'm personally reading all your skeets and I don't use an LLM to summarize them
oh it’s going to continue
January 23, 2026 at 4:59 PM
*Oh yeah. Of course it continues.
*I'm glad we're in such concurrence here, @faineg. I pinky-promise that I'm personally reading all your skeets and I don't use an LLM to summarize them
*I'm glad we're in such concurrence here, @faineg. I pinky-promise that I'm personally reading all your skeets and I don't use an LLM to summarize them
"The most abjectly Internet-defiled person in human history"
*Hmm. Even when richly deserved, the defilement is a process, not a destination
*Hmm. Even when richly deserved, the defilement is a process, not a destination
just thinking again about how MAGA’s attempt to suppress all criticism of Charlie Kirk created a backlash so intense that he is now probably the most abjectly Internet-defiled person in human history
genuinely Charlie Kirk may have been more degraded and demeaned by the Internet at this point than anyone else in human history
the universe is not always unjust
the universe is not always unjust
January 23, 2026 at 4:44 PM
"The most abjectly Internet-defiled person in human history"
*Hmm. Even when richly deserved, the defilement is a process, not a destination
*Hmm. Even when richly deserved, the defilement is a process, not a destination
*I like this guy better every day because he never says anything that an LLM would generate
*Unless an LLM was *specifically trained* on what he posts, in which case it would "sound just like InternetHippo" after about 50 years
*Don't take this as a challenge, Claude-fans
*Unless an LLM was *specifically trained* on what he posts, in which case it would "sound just like InternetHippo" after about 50 years
*Don't take this as a challenge, Claude-fans
It's annoying that we already had so many existing problems to solve before these assholes created a bunch of new ones for no reason
January 23, 2026 at 4:41 PM
*I like this guy better every day because he never says anything that an LLM would generate
*Unless an LLM was *specifically trained* on what he posts, in which case it would "sound just like InternetHippo" after about 50 years
*Don't take this as a challenge, Claude-fans
*Unless an LLM was *specifically trained* on what he posts, in which case it would "sound just like InternetHippo" after about 50 years
*Don't take this as a challenge, Claude-fans
*A fake chocolate dollar store easter bunny rots from the head down #TheDonald
*Also, you never get just one bunny. Ask Australia
*Also, you never get just one bunny. Ask Australia
real profiles in courage everywhere you look
American courage and exceptionalism wound up being as hollow as a fake chocolate dollar store easter bunny
American courage and exceptionalism wound up being as hollow as a fake chocolate dollar store easter bunny
The National Park Service has taken down an exhibit on slavery at Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia, the Interior Department said on Thursday, following President Trump’s directive to remove materials that promote “corrosive ideology.”
January 23, 2026 at 4:37 PM
*A fake chocolate dollar store easter bunny rots from the head down #TheDonald
*Also, you never get just one bunny. Ask Australia
*Also, you never get just one bunny. Ask Australia
*President AOC invades Denmark. "Fuck NATO, I need Greenland. Denmark is weak and small. They didn't give me my billion dollars yet."
*You're humbled, right? You look at everyone else in the Party caucus, and you promptly bow the knee to Alexandria #problemswithwomen
*You're humbled, right? You look at everyone else in the Party caucus, and you promptly bow the knee to Alexandria #problemswithwomen
January 23, 2026 at 4:32 PM
*President AOC invades Denmark. "Fuck NATO, I need Greenland. Denmark is weak and small. They didn't give me my billion dollars yet."
*You're humbled, right? You look at everyone else in the Party caucus, and you promptly bow the knee to Alexandria #problemswithwomen
*You're humbled, right? You look at everyone else in the Party caucus, and you promptly bow the knee to Alexandria #problemswithwomen