David Sullivan
@davidsullivan.bsky.social
3.2K followers 1.1K following 450 posts
Tech policy, human rights, trust & safety. Raised in Brooklyn, based in Boulder. @david_msullivan elsewhere. Posts auto delete. I'm on Germ DM 🔑 https://ger.mx/A1Y8CYx9TUtTxirjHuY_ibg6kbSF7BF5inQ7c-04zOPv#did:plc:sqd3wsj7e6w6do6i26nn62r2
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davidsullivan.bsky.social
Periodic reminder that I made a #trustandsafety starter pack. Let me know about new arrivals who should be added to this list!
davidsullivan.bsky.social
Currently overwhelmed with UNGA humblebrags.

Remind me to deactivate my account 2 weeks after the next Davos!
patrickhowelloneill.com
Desperate to know who at Microsoft wants LinkedIn's algorithm to constantly deliver 2 week old posts. What's going on? Are they okay? Do we need a welfare check? Someone write the inside story
davidsullivan.bsky.social
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hailey.at
an interesting note re: scaling image moderation. in the past 24 hours:

at least 500 thousand images in posts (not considering # of images, just if an image was in the post)
86 thousand avatars
500 thousand url thumbnails
58 thousand videos.

that's a lot to moderate!
Reposted by David Sullivan
dtspartnership.bsky.social
To build a safer AI product, where should companies focus their governance efforts?

On @lawfaremedia.org's Scaling Laws podcast DTSP ED @davidsullivan.bsky.social emphasizes how AI companies must break down the silos between AI safety and Trust & Safety teams.

www.lawfaremedia.org/article/scal...
Scaling Laws: AI Safety Meet Trust & Safety with Ravi Iyer and David Sullivan
Discussing trust & safety's relevance to artificial intelligence.
www.lawfaremedia.org
Reposted by David Sullivan
annebdh.bsky.social
Want to work on open source full time? The @roost.tools engineering team is starting to hatch! Come build OSS tools making a difference in Trust & Safety.

This is a fully remote role, though some schedule overlap with North American time zones is expected.

www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/43...
ROOST.tools hiring Staff Software Engineer in United States | LinkedIn
Posted 8:52:18 PM. About ROOSTROOST is a community effort to build scalable and resilient safety infrastructure for…See this and similar jobs on LinkedIn.
www.linkedin.com
davidsullivan.bsky.social
Reminder: *everyone* uses AI for content moderation.

Much more about how this works here:
davidsullivan.bsky.social
my 2 cents is that you're shooting yourself in the foot if you don't use any AI in your workflows, including editing, but you're shooting yourself in the brain if you use it too much, and it's not clear where exactly anyone should draw the line.
davidsullivan.bsky.social
This was a fun conversation, thanks @kevintfrazier.bsky.social for having me on the pod!

There's a real chance for mutual gains when responsible AI and T&S folks work together to focus on safer products.
predator handshake meme: trust and safety + responsible AI = product safety
davidsullivan.bsky.social
seems like a great opportunity for the authors of the twitter files
rlevinsonwaldman.bsky.social
Great piece from @dell.bsky.social at @wired.com about ICE's newest foray into social media monitoring: the agency is putting out feelers for contractors who can do on-site, open source intel 24/7 for ICE's Targeting Operations Division (TOD). 1/ www.wired.com/story/ice-so...
ICE Wants to Build Out a 24/7 Social Media Surveillance Team
Documents show that ICE plans to hire dozens of contractors to scan X, Facebook, TikTok, and other platforms to target people for deportation.
www.wired.com
davidsullivan.bsky.social
enbrown.bsky.social
Whoops—Ohio Accidentally Excludes Most Major Porn Platforms From Anti-Porn Law

File this under “lawmakers trying to regulate tech and the internet without understanding tech and the internet."

reason.com/2025/10/06/w...
Whoops—Ohio accidentally excludes most major porn platforms from anti-porn law
Ohio lawmakers set out to block minors from viewing online porn. They messed up.
reason.com
Reposted by David Sullivan
enbrown.bsky.social
Whoops—Ohio Accidentally Excludes Most Major Porn Platforms From Anti-Porn Law

File this under “lawmakers trying to regulate tech and the internet without understanding tech and the internet."

reason.com/2025/10/06/w...
Whoops—Ohio accidentally excludes most major porn platforms from anti-porn law
Ohio lawmakers set out to block minors from viewing online porn. They messed up.
reason.com
davidsullivan.bsky.social
I too just read this report and can say that Mike is not exaggerating this even slightly.
mmasnick.bsky.social
It would be impressive if Ted Cruz could figure out who was President from 2018 to 2020, because he seems to think it was Biden.

He also seems to have difficulty understanding what words mean, because he thinks "monitor and correct" false statements is "censorship."
techdirt.com
Senator Cruz Figure Out Who Was President From 2018 To 2020 Challenge; Impossible

I have a simple question for Senator Ted Cruz: Who was president in 2018? How about 2020? I ask because Cruz just released a “bombshell” report claiming that the Biden administration "converted" CISA into "the…
davidsullivan.bsky.social
i am forever grateful to be a juvenile Gen Xer, having lived through the time when finding out stuff took going to very specific places and working with tactile things.
tressiemcphd.bsky.social
I have been trying to explain a microfiche machine to one of my dear, brilliant, talented, but clearly too young to be alive collaborators. And it is taking the last of my soul.

“Micro…fish?? I have never heard that word in my life.” I recorded the timestamp so it can be put on my tombstone.
Reposted by David Sullivan
thegni.bsky.social
Alex Givens & Karen Kornbluh make a compelling case that "AI Must not Ignore Human Rights." As they note, existing frameworks for responsible business conduct such as GNI's already exist & "leading AI companies that are not yet part of GNI could benefit from its framework and network."
AI Must Not Ignore Human Rights
Alexandra Reeve Givens & Karen Kornbluh worry that the industry is not being held to the same standards as others.
www.project-syndicate.org
davidsullivan.bsky.social
Jason Isbell, Cast Iron Skillet, 100% of the time
sophianyx.bsky.social
Name a Song that makes you Cry.
davidsullivan.bsky.social
ICYMI, highly recommend this human rights impact assessment of @wikimediafoundation.org AI/ML work by @royapak.bsky.social (w/ @farzdusa.bsky.social and david liu)
upload.wikimedia.org
davidsullivan.bsky.social
it physically hurts to see emails in my inbox that use the DoW acronym
davidsullivan.bsky.social
Correction: this episode was hosted by @alanrozenshtein.com not Kevin!
davidsullivan.bsky.social
Literally no one is thinking you're not cool. but this is amazing! DJ Spooky!
davidsullivan.bsky.social
I'm late to this, but wanted to commend @jmiers230.bsky.social for modeling intellectual honesty and self-reflection in her discussion about chatbots and section 230 with @noupside.bsky.social and @kevintfrazier.bsky.social on the Scaling Laws pod. Good stuff!
davidsullivan.bsky.social
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zanderarnao.bsky.social
Tune in as I live tweet @stanfordcyber.bsky.social’s Trust and Safety Research Conference!! #TSRConf
davidsullivan.bsky.social
Here we go at #TSRConf, with @dwillner.bsky.social taking on the @mmasnick.bsky.social impossibility theorem!
Dave Wilner presenting at Stanford
Reposted by David Sullivan
sarahalsherif.bsky.social
Unbelievable moments
Alaa is free!
Alaa Abd El-Fattah and Ahmed Douma. Sanaa Seif sitting beside her brother Alaa Abd Elfattah.
Reposted by David Sullivan
thegodpodcast.com
Andor would want you to cancel your Disney+ subscription.

It's the least you can do for the Rebellion.