Mikell Taylor
@mikell.bsky.social
Boston-based robotics nerd whose strong opinions do not reflect those of her employer. Come for the robots, stay for the gay pirates, Star Wars, and general cringe. It’s pronounced “Michael”.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
You can't... repeal... a scientific finding. At that point it's just called lying about it.
Breaking News: The Trump administration repealed the bedrock scientific finding that greenhouse gases threaten human life and well being, meaning that the EPA can no longer regulate them. nyti.ms/4rSszQu
February 12, 2026 at 8:38 PM
You can't... repeal... a scientific finding. At that point it's just called lying about it.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
This is so true and important!
If you're in the Boston area, I'll put a bunch of local mutual aid groups below. 🧵:
If you're in the Boston area, I'll put a bunch of local mutual aid groups below. 🧵:
something from minnesota that i would like people to learn, that i don’t think is hitting people yet:
helping MN is good. people need it. but people in your community need mutual aid too. care. resources. food. outside of times of crisis.
and you can help.
helping MN is good. people need it. but people in your community need mutual aid too. care. resources. food. outside of times of crisis.
and you can help.
February 12, 2026 at 10:11 PM
This is so true and important!
If you're in the Boston area, I'll put a bunch of local mutual aid groups below. 🧵:
If you're in the Boston area, I'll put a bunch of local mutual aid groups below. 🧵:
You’re right and you should say it
February 13, 2026 at 2:38 AM
You’re right and you should say it
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
There needs to be some serious accountability for the colossal harm to life these absolute demons have caused, and will cause. Life in prison is the moderate option.
February 13, 2026 at 12:45 AM
There needs to be some serious accountability for the colossal harm to life these absolute demons have caused, and will cause. Life in prison is the moderate option.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Maclean’s interviewed me about my essay about how Heated Rivalry is anti-dystopian art.
www.tiktok.com/t/ZThHgLUf2/
www.tiktok.com/t/ZThHgLUf2/
February 12, 2026 at 8:35 PM
Maclean’s interviewed me about my essay about how Heated Rivalry is anti-dystopian art.
www.tiktok.com/t/ZThHgLUf2/
www.tiktok.com/t/ZThHgLUf2/
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Ring cancels its partnership with Flock Safety after surveillance backlash
Ring cancels its partnership with Flock Safety after surveillance backlash
Flock off
buff.ly
February 12, 2026 at 11:10 PM
Ring cancels its partnership with Flock Safety after surveillance backlash
did he also see goody proctor with the devil
Fuentes, yesterday: “Our #1 political enemy is women because women constrain everything, every conversation, every man, everything. They have to be imprisoned. They are the ones that are hurting the fertility rate. They're the ones making us sympathetic to poor people, which are also brown people.”
Nick Fuentes: “The number one political enemy in America is women. … They have to be imprisoned.”
www.mediamatters.org
February 12, 2026 at 10:52 PM
did he also see goody proctor with the devil
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
everyone shut UP it's gromit's birthday HAPPY BIRTHDAY GROMIT
February 12, 2026 at 8:43 PM
everyone shut UP it's gromit's birthday HAPPY BIRTHDAY GROMIT
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Wow, look at that, you don't just have to roll over like a fucking coward
New York City leaders rehung the Pride flag in front of the Stonewall National Monument in a chaotic scene that included an American flag briefly being removed, a rebuke of the Trump administration’s efforts to remove the symbol from federal property.
New York leaders, defying Trump, rehang Stonewall Inn Pride flag in chaotic scene
The Trump administration had removed the LGBTQ+ symbol, citing a policy limiting what can be displayed on federal property.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 12, 2026 at 10:31 PM
Wow, look at that, you don't just have to roll over like a fucking coward
I am married to a former naval officer and devastatingly he did a lot of counterpiracy and does not share my adoration of the genre
February 12, 2026 at 10:49 PM
I am married to a former naval officer and devastatingly he did a lot of counterpiracy and does not share my adoration of the genre
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
Those archeologists better watch out. Orcs are near.
In 2023, a Bronze Age sword was found during excavations in Nördlingen, Bavaria.
Non-destructive analysis now revealed new details about Bronze Age craftsmanship.
👉 www.helmholtz-berlin.de/pubbin/news_...
Non-destructive analysis now revealed new details about Bronze Age craftsmanship.
👉 www.helmholtz-berlin.de/pubbin/news_...
February 12, 2026 at 6:29 PM
Those archeologists better watch out. Orcs are near.
Reposted by Mikell Taylor
a point I used to make when talking AVs is that the road system is designed taking into account the things that are easy and difficult _for humans_ and inserting an agent with totally different characteristics would cause a lot of chaos. Turns out the same is true for uh the whole internet
this is pretty interesting to me because it’s behavior that is a strong, costly signal from a human but is essentially free for an agent and we are going to need to learn to look out for that shape of thing
AI agent writes a PR, gets rejected, crashes out and writes a call-out blog post
Absolute cinema
crabby-rathbun.github.io/mjrathbun-we...
Absolute cinema
crabby-rathbun.github.io/mjrathbun-we...
February 12, 2026 at 6:11 PM
a point I used to make when talking AVs is that the road system is designed taking into account the things that are easy and difficult _for humans_ and inserting an agent with totally different characteristics would cause a lot of chaos. Turns out the same is true for uh the whole internet
A friend just said something this morning about “when your schedule settles a bit let’s plan on [doing a thing we’ve discussed for a while] and just laughed nervously
February 12, 2026 at 6:20 PM
A friend just said something this morning about “when your schedule settles a bit let’s plan on [doing a thing we’ve discussed for a while] and just laughed nervously
So like
It is fair to be surprised
It is fair to want transparency
It is not fair to imply that someone always driving a Waymo like an RC car from a call center
It is fair to be surprised
It is fair to want transparency
It is not fair to imply that someone always driving a Waymo like an RC car from a call center
February 12, 2026 at 6:16 PM
So like
It is fair to be surprised
It is fair to want transparency
It is not fair to imply that someone always driving a Waymo like an RC car from a call center
It is fair to be surprised
It is fair to want transparency
It is not fair to imply that someone always driving a Waymo like an RC car from a call center
that they have a trend of decreased reliance on this over time, and some path to further decreases in the future, IMO.
February 12, 2026 at 6:16 PM
that they have a trend of decreased reliance on this over time, and some path to further decreases in the future, IMO.
Or, data in aggregate about how often it’s being used, to properly calibrate our understanding of how autonomous these things are. Because cars randomly stopping to phone a friend frequently isn’t actually a great safety and predictability experience for other drivers, so companies need to show
February 12, 2026 at 6:16 PM
Or, data in aggregate about how often it’s being used, to properly calibrate our understanding of how autonomous these things are. Because cars randomly stopping to phone a friend frequently isn’t actually a great safety and predictability experience for other drivers, so companies need to show
I’ve seen headlines saying that overseas humans are “driving” allegedly autonomous Waymos and - no. The picture that’s painting is false.
It IS valid to be critical of the invisibility of this widely used human-in-the-loop system and to want more transparency around when it’s being used
It IS valid to be critical of the invisibility of this widely used human-in-the-loop system and to want more transparency around when it’s being used
February 12, 2026 at 6:16 PM
I’ve seen headlines saying that overseas humans are “driving” allegedly autonomous Waymos and - no. The picture that’s painting is false.
It IS valid to be critical of the invisibility of this widely used human-in-the-loop system and to want more transparency around when it’s being used
It IS valid to be critical of the invisibility of this widely used human-in-the-loop system and to want more transparency around when it’s being used
(Another side note, every captcha asking me to identify a traffic light or crosswalk usually gives me an immediate panic impulse of worrying I won’t solve it fast enough to help a moving vehicle. Welcome to my brain.)
February 12, 2026 at 6:16 PM
(Another side note, every captcha asking me to identify a traffic light or crosswalk usually gives me an immediate panic impulse of worrying I won’t solve it fast enough to help a moving vehicle. Welcome to my brain.)
So yes, when Waymos get confused, they stop and ask a human for help. It is actually the safest thing for them to do. This model is used widely for robotics and autonomous systems, including the “overseas” part, once things have moved beyond engineering testing and intro production.
February 12, 2026 at 6:16 PM
So yes, when Waymos get confused, they stop and ask a human for help. It is actually the safest thing for them to do. This model is used widely for robotics and autonomous systems, including the “overseas” part, once things have moved beyond engineering testing and intro production.
Side note ask me about my feelings on the Black Panther scene with the remote driving anyway
February 12, 2026 at 6:16 PM
Side note ask me about my feelings on the Black Panther scene with the remote driving anyway
Sometimes it is direct teleportation (like the Neo humanoid from 1X robotics, or that Optimus party) but when latency matters - like operating a multiton vehicle at speed on public roads - that’s impossibly unsafe.
February 12, 2026 at 6:16 PM
Sometimes it is direct teleportation (like the Neo humanoid from 1X robotics, or that Optimus party) but when latency matters - like operating a multiton vehicle at speed on public roads - that’s impossibly unsafe.
In most of these cases it’s not direct teleoperation. Instead of a joystick they’re using to remote control these things from afar, sometimes it’s just a “yep, I’m looking at what your cameras see, it’s safe to proceed” click. Sometimes there’s an interface to click on waypoints to guide it better.
February 12, 2026 at 6:16 PM
In most of these cases it’s not direct teleoperation. Instead of a joystick they’re using to remote control these things from afar, sometimes it’s just a “yep, I’m looking at what your cameras see, it’s safe to proceed” click. Sometimes there’s an interface to click on waypoints to guide it better.
Okay I just saw another post about this and I cannot anymore
Yes. Most “autonomous” robots operating in uncontrolled environments (homes, streets, sidewalks) leverage remote intervention overseas to help them make decisions in the event of a scenario they’re not sure how to handle.
Yes. Most “autonomous” robots operating in uncontrolled environments (homes, streets, sidewalks) leverage remote intervention overseas to help them make decisions in the event of a scenario they’re not sure how to handle.
February 12, 2026 at 6:16 PM
Okay I just saw another post about this and I cannot anymore
Yes. Most “autonomous” robots operating in uncontrolled environments (homes, streets, sidewalks) leverage remote intervention overseas to help them make decisions in the event of a scenario they’re not sure how to handle.
Yes. Most “autonomous” robots operating in uncontrolled environments (homes, streets, sidewalks) leverage remote intervention overseas to help them make decisions in the event of a scenario they’re not sure how to handle.