Jan Maarten
@janmaarten.com
Inclusive designer, privacy advocate, writer, and future hermit. (he/him)
Please don’t add me to your starter packs.
Opinions are my own.
🌐 https://janmaarten.com
Please don’t add me to your starter packs.
Opinions are my own.
🌐 https://janmaarten.com
Pinned
Jan Maarten
@janmaarten.com
· Nov 15
a man in a suit is crying and says `` everyone '' .
Alt: A man maniacally shouting "EVERYONE!", enunciating and drawing out every ear-piercing syllable. Clip from the film The Professional.
media.tenor.com
Me, an accessibility designer losing his chill: If you do that, no one using assistive tech will be able to use this
Dev: Okay but is it really a problem if it isn't accessible?
Me: We need to make sure that everyone can access this
Dev: What do you mean everyone??
Me:
Dev: Okay but is it really a problem if it isn't accessible?
Me: We need to make sure that everyone can access this
Dev: What do you mean everyone??
Me:
Reposted by Jan Maarten
Take it from someone who's had the pleasure of seeing it up close and personal several times, the Set team always do right by their clients!
A bit of a vulnerable post by me but we need your help to get us through what has been a more difficult period than 2020.
It would be really appreciated if you could read and share in your networks too 💛
bell.bz/its-been-a-v...
It would be really appreciated if you could read and share in your networks too 💛
bell.bz/its-been-a-v...
It’s been a very hard year - Andy Bell
Unlike a lot of places in tech, my company, Set Studio/Piccalilli has no outside funding. Bootstrapped is what the LinkedIn people say, I think. It’s been a hard year this year. A very hard year...
bell.bz
November 27, 2025 at 11:40 PM
Take it from someone who's had the pleasure of seeing it up close and personal several times, the Set team always do right by their clients!
Reposted by Jan Maarten
Slop Evader is a tool from artist and researcher Tega Brain that lets you search the web for results exclusively before November 30, 2022—the day that ChatGPT was released to the public.
'Slop Evader' Lets You Surf the Web Like It’s 2022
Artist Tega Brain is fighting the internet’s enshittification by turning back the clock to before ChatGPT existed.
www.404media.co
November 26, 2025 at 3:59 PM
Slop Evader is a tool from artist and researcher Tega Brain that lets you search the web for results exclusively before November 30, 2022—the day that ChatGPT was released to the public.
Reposted by Jan Maarten
Every year around this time, I ask folks to consider doing something in support of Native people. This year, please join me in supporting the Native Organizers Alliance as they build grassroots power, defend Native voting rights, and equip our people for collective struggle through skill-building.
Donate - Native Organizers Alliance
Supporting organizing and advocacy initiatives for Indigenous justice.
nativeorganizing.org
November 26, 2025 at 5:50 PM
Every year around this time, I ask folks to consider doing something in support of Native people. This year, please join me in supporting the Native Organizers Alliance as they build grassroots power, defend Native voting rights, and equip our people for collective struggle through skill-building.
Reposted by Jan Maarten
i put my pants on the same way as everyone else: screaming
November 25, 2025 at 1:58 AM
i put my pants on the same way as everyone else: screaming
Reposted by Jan Maarten
Engagement KPIs have been responsible for infinite scroll UI traps, RecSys radicalization spirals, public shame brigades, and basically every modern ailment novel to the past decade. At some point, you have to recognize that the problem isn't any one technology, it's the metric.
The company essentially turned a dial that made ChatGPT more appealing and made people use it more, but sent some of them into delusional spirals.
OpenAI has since made the chatbot safer, but that comes with a tradeoff: less usage.
OpenAI has since made the chatbot safer, but that comes with a tradeoff: less usage.
November 23, 2025 at 8:12 PM
Engagement KPIs have been responsible for infinite scroll UI traps, RecSys radicalization spirals, public shame brigades, and basically every modern ailment novel to the past decade. At some point, you have to recognize that the problem isn't any one technology, it's the metric.
Reposted by Jan Maarten
Good use of your training budget 👇
Our Black Friday deals are simple this year: save £60 on *all courses* and everyone who buys a course during this period will be given a coupon code that they can use to get a 50% discount off future course purchases at any time.
Deals start on November 25 and run for 2 weeks!
Deals start on November 25 and run for 2 weeks!
November 17, 2025 at 3:37 PM
Good use of your training budget 👇
Reposted by Jan Maarten
Does your advertising campaign even have KPIs if there isn’t a body count?
November 23, 2025 at 5:43 AM
Does your advertising campaign even have KPIs if there isn’t a body count?
Reposted by Jan Maarten
ICYMI Dept of Education will no longer considers these professional degrees:
Nursing
Public health
Social work
Physician assistant
Occupational therapy
Physical therapy
Audiology
Speech-language pathology
Social work
Counseling & therapy
Health Admin
A smaller health workforce makes us all sicker
Nursing
Public health
Social work
Physician assistant
Occupational therapy
Physical therapy
Audiology
Speech-language pathology
Social work
Counseling & therapy
Health Admin
A smaller health workforce makes us all sicker
November 21, 2025 at 11:14 PM
ICYMI Dept of Education will no longer considers these professional degrees:
Nursing
Public health
Social work
Physician assistant
Occupational therapy
Physical therapy
Audiology
Speech-language pathology
Social work
Counseling & therapy
Health Admin
A smaller health workforce makes us all sicker
Nursing
Public health
Social work
Physician assistant
Occupational therapy
Physical therapy
Audiology
Speech-language pathology
Social work
Counseling & therapy
Health Admin
A smaller health workforce makes us all sicker
Reposted by Jan Maarten
How #privacy can save your life | @carissaveliz.bsky.social | TEDxPorto
How privacy can save your life | Carissa Véliz | TEDxPorto
Privacy is important because it protects us from possible abuses of power. That makes it essential for both personal freedom and democracy. Without privacy, fundamental pillars of democracy like investigative journalism, attorney-client privilege, and fair elections fail. In this talk, Carissa Véliz
www.youtube.com
November 22, 2025 at 6:30 PM
How #privacy can save your life | @carissaveliz.bsky.social | TEDxPorto
Reposted by Jan Maarten
Make sure you catch my latest for @wired.com -- with comment from @defcon.bsky.social and @blackhatevents.bsky.social founder Jeff Moss, and @adafruit.com founder + engineer Limor Fried: www.wired.com/story/this-h...
This Hacker Conference Installed a Literal Anti-Virus Monitoring System
At New Zealand's Kawaiicon cybersecurity convention, organizers hacked together a way for attendees to track CO2 levels throughout the venue—even before they arrived.
www.wired.com
November 22, 2025 at 2:53 AM
Make sure you catch my latest for @wired.com -- with comment from @defcon.bsky.social and @blackhatevents.bsky.social founder Jeff Moss, and @adafruit.com founder + engineer Limor Fried: www.wired.com/story/this-h...
Combating Ableism and Driving Positive Change with Alice Wong | Axe-con 2025
YouTube video by Deque Systems
youtu.be
November 20, 2025 at 7:24 AM
Reposted by Jan Maarten
"Here’s the sticker: I actually enjoy researching and writing component accessibility guidance."
— @gerireid.com
gerireid.com/blog/can-ai-...
— @gerireid.com
gerireid.com/blog/can-ai-...
Can AI write accessibility specs?
I wrote a prompt to help me write accessibility specs for components. Then had an existential crisis.
gerireid.com
November 19, 2025 at 4:11 PM
"Here’s the sticker: I actually enjoy researching and writing component accessibility guidance."
— @gerireid.com
gerireid.com/blog/can-ai-...
— @gerireid.com
gerireid.com/blog/can-ai-...
Reposted by Jan Maarten
lord knows i try not to be a bitter person, but after spending my career writing about surveillance i truly can’t help feeling contempt for everyone gaslighting me saying stuff like this would never happen
license plate data merged with credit header data, marriage records, vehicle ownership, and voter registrations, in one app for ICE agents. oh and it sends push notifications when someone they're seeking is nearby.
🆒: www.404media.co/this-app-let...
🆒: www.404media.co/this-app-let...
This App Lets ICE Track Vehicles and Owners Across the Country
Material viewed by 404 Media shows data giant Thomson Reuters enriches license plate data with marriage, voter, and ownership records. The tool can predict where a car may be in the future.
www.404media.co
November 17, 2025 at 3:24 PM
lord knows i try not to be a bitter person, but after spending my career writing about surveillance i truly can’t help feeling contempt for everyone gaslighting me saying stuff like this would never happen
Reposted by Jan Maarten
Here is an obituary for Alice Wong from The Sick Times, a publication aligned with disability rights and disability activism, if you are looking for an alternative to reading the nyt one: thesicktimes.org/2025/11/15/a...
Alice Wong, disability activist and luminary, dies at 51 - The Sick Times
Alice Wong platformed and uplifted people with Long COVID in her final chapter as a lifelong disability advocate and storyteller.
thesicktimes.org
November 16, 2025 at 2:05 AM
Here is an obituary for Alice Wong from The Sick Times, a publication aligned with disability rights and disability activism, if you are looking for an alternative to reading the nyt one: thesicktimes.org/2025/11/15/a...
Reposted by Jan Maarten
An absolute tragic loss in the disability community. Alice was one of the strongest voices we've had, and this world will not be the same without her guidance, especially during these times.
Heartbroken to hear of @sfdirewolf.bsky.social ‘s transition to be a crip anscestor AND feeling so honored to have been alive in the time as this brilliant human, and gotten to learn from her.
May her memory continue to always be a blessing.
May her memory continue to always be a blessing.
November 15, 2025 at 6:43 AM
An absolute tragic loss in the disability community. Alice was one of the strongest voices we've had, and this world will not be the same without her guidance, especially during these times.
Reposted by Jan Maarten
‘Death remains my intimate shadow partner. It has been with me since birth, always hovering close by. I understand one day we will finally waltz together into the ether. I hope when that time comes, I die with the satisfaction of a life well-lived, unapologetic, joyful, & full of love.’
—Alice Wong
—Alice Wong
November 15, 2025 at 6:12 AM
‘Death remains my intimate shadow partner. It has been with me since birth, always hovering close by. I understand one day we will finally waltz together into the ether. I hope when that time comes, I die with the satisfaction of a life well-lived, unapologetic, joyful, & full of love.’
—Alice Wong
—Alice Wong
Reposted by Jan Maarten
Honored to be featured on the freshly-relaunched @aftermath.site with this new piece!
It's about AI and Fascism, and also the beloved Y2K-era teen comedy Mean Girls.
It's about AI and Fascism, and also the beloved Y2K-era teen comedy Mean Girls.
AI Is The Ultimate "Forced Meme"
There are few things in this world more insufferable than a rich person trying to force their shitty ideas on everyone else. And in 2025, there are very few things that feel more forced than “Generati...
aftermath.site
November 12, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Honored to be featured on the freshly-relaunched @aftermath.site with this new piece!
It's about AI and Fascism, and also the beloved Y2K-era teen comedy Mean Girls.
It's about AI and Fascism, and also the beloved Y2K-era teen comedy Mean Girls.
Reposted by Jan Maarten
Reposted by Jan Maarten
every large institution and public sector organisation needs to do this
November 13, 2025 at 9:30 PM
every large institution and public sector organisation needs to do this
Just going to drop this link for no particular reason, other than the Safety team here is staffed by utter clowns
www.indiegogo.com/en/projects/...
www.indiegogo.com/en/projects/...
November 13, 2025 at 3:48 PM
Just going to drop this link for no particular reason, other than the Safety team here is staffed by utter clowns
www.indiegogo.com/en/projects/...
www.indiegogo.com/en/projects/...
Reposted by Jan Maarten
I'm happy to share that I've written a chapter for a book called Digital Accessibility Ethics: Disability Inclusion in All Things Tech, to be published on 26 March 2026:
www.routledge.com/Digital-Acce...
#DigitalAccessibilityEthics
www.routledge.com/Digital-Acce...
#DigitalAccessibilityEthics
Digital Accessibility Ethics: Disability Inclusion in All Things Tech
Digital Accessibility Ethics is a practical guide with an urgent goal: to help end tech exclusion of 1.3 billion people across the world with disabilities.
The book introduces the first Digital Access...
www.routledge.com
November 12, 2025 at 12:43 PM
I'm happy to share that I've written a chapter for a book called Digital Accessibility Ethics: Disability Inclusion in All Things Tech, to be published on 26 March 2026:
www.routledge.com/Digital-Acce...
#DigitalAccessibilityEthics
www.routledge.com/Digital-Acce...
#DigitalAccessibilityEthics
Reposted by Jan Maarten
New: a judge has ruled that Flock surveillance images are public records that can be requested by anyone. Shows that at least in some cases, police cannot withhold the data collected by its surveillance systems.
www.404media.co/judge-rules-...
www.404media.co/judge-rules-...
Judge Rules Flock Surveillance Images Are Public Records That Can Be Requested By Anyone
A Washington judge said images taken by Flock cameras are "not exempt from disclosure" in public record requests.
www.404media.co
November 12, 2025 at 4:31 PM
New: a judge has ruled that Flock surveillance images are public records that can be requested by anyone. Shows that at least in some cases, police cannot withhold the data collected by its surveillance systems.
www.404media.co/judge-rules-...
www.404media.co/judge-rules-...
Reposted by Jan Maarten
This is exactly what we ended up doing on Direct File to protect taxpayer privacy while remaining focused on accessibility.
Like any UX solution, you also have options with accessibility, each with their own tradeoffs.
How do you learn about those trade-offs? Learn to use assistive technology.
Like any UX solution, you also have options with accessibility, each with their own tradeoffs.
How do you learn about those trade-offs? Learn to use assistive technology.
November 11, 2025 at 12:27 AM
This is exactly what we ended up doing on Direct File to protect taxpayer privacy while remaining focused on accessibility.
Like any UX solution, you also have options with accessibility, each with their own tradeoffs.
How do you learn about those trade-offs? Learn to use assistive technology.
Like any UX solution, you also have options with accessibility, each with their own tradeoffs.
How do you learn about those trade-offs? Learn to use assistive technology.
Reposted by Jan Maarten
I really do think The Sick Times is doing some of the most important journalism of our generation. And I can tell you firsthand that Miles and Betsy are the real deal. They care so, so much about getting it right. They’re incredible humans in addition to being such good journalists.
Our #LongCOVID journalism requires reader support — with your help, we can prepare our non-profit newsroom for whatever 2026 brings.
Will you donate today and help us keep this vital work going? the-sick-times.fundjournalism.org/donate/
Will you donate today and help us keep this vital work going? the-sick-times.fundjournalism.org/donate/
November 7, 2025 at 8:50 PM
I really do think The Sick Times is doing some of the most important journalism of our generation. And I can tell you firsthand that Miles and Betsy are the real deal. They care so, so much about getting it right. They’re incredible humans in addition to being such good journalists.