Rachel Coldicutt
@rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social
Internet person. Community tech, careful innovation, socially progressive tech policy.
https://www.careful.industries
https://buttondown.email/justenoughinternet
DMs don't work but hello [at] careful.industries will find me eventually
https://www.careful.industries
https://buttondown.email/justenoughinternet
DMs don't work but hello [at] careful.industries will find me eventually
Pinned
FOMO is not a strategy
End of year reflections on how people are using genAI at work
buttondown.com
Anyway, yes, #FOMOisnotastrategy and here I am making it a hash tag like it's 2010 buttondown.com/justenoughin...
Reposted by Rachel Coldicutt
But the cost is not the only question govt needs to answer to make this scheme work. Following our panel with @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social @matthewfeeney.bsky.social @morganwild.bsky.social & Sir David Normington, I highlight some qs for govt: (4/4)
www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/article/comm...
www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/article/comm...
The government still has questions to answer on digital IDs | Institute for Government
What does the government need to do to move its digital ID plans forward?
www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk
December 3, 2025 at 2:41 PM
But the cost is not the only question govt needs to answer to make this scheme work. Following our panel with @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social @matthewfeeney.bsky.social @morganwild.bsky.social & Sir David Normington, I highlight some qs for govt: (4/4)
www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/article/comm...
www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/article/comm...
Cannot get past the first paragraph of this without my blood pressure going up www.theguardian.com/technology/n...
December 2, 2025 at 9:24 PM
Cannot get past the first paragraph of this without my blood pressure going up www.theguardian.com/technology/n...
For my next complaint about modern life, I was just looking at a photo of my slightly wonky face and wondering why it looked so weird, when I realised that, unbidden, the photographer has airbrushed the wrinkles out on one side of my face but not the other.
December 2, 2025 at 3:03 PM
For my next complaint about modern life, I was just looking at a photo of my slightly wonky face and wondering why it looked so weird, when I realised that, unbidden, the photographer has airbrushed the wrinkles out on one side of my face but not the other.
I really like filing in forms. I like filling in forms so much that, when I was very small, my dream job was working in the Post Office because you got to fill out forms *and* stamp things with a big stamp which seemed like heaven, but ugh honestly so much of modern life is now *logging into stuff*
December 2, 2025 at 2:14 PM
I really like filing in forms. I like filling in forms so much that, when I was very small, my dream job was working in the Post Office because you got to fill out forms *and* stamp things with a big stamp which seemed like heaven, but ugh honestly so much of modern life is now *logging into stuff*
"Can I tell you about my 'humane AI' start-up?"
What’s the worst question someone can ask after you tell them your profession? For linguists, it’s definitely “how many languages do you speak?”, but I’m curious what else is happening to the rest of y’all out there?!
December 1, 2025 at 10:37 PM
"Can I tell you about my 'humane AI' start-up?"
I've seen this starting to appear on LinkedIn too, and via some usually interesting critical thinkers. In qual research I've done this year, environmental impacts of AI have repeatedly bubbled up as a key public concern. Can't help but wonder if there are moves to close that down.
There is a movement to "prove that the datacenter water issues is fake". If you venture into Muskrat's hell site, you can see the community note these people put on this great piece of investigative journalism, accusing them of unfairly implicating datacenters.
www.rollingstone.com/culture/cult...
www.rollingstone.com/culture/cult...
'The Precedent Is Flint': How Oregon's Data Center Boom Is Supercharging a Water Crisis
Amazon data centers constructed in eastern Oregon's farmland have worsened a water pollution problem that’s been linked to cancer and miscarriages.
www.rollingstone.com
December 1, 2025 at 10:36 PM
I've seen this starting to appear on LinkedIn too, and via some usually interesting critical thinkers. In qual research I've done this year, environmental impacts of AI have repeatedly bubbled up as a key public concern. Can't help but wonder if there are moves to close that down.
2025:
A WordPress plug-in accidentally pushes something to live - the chair of a national institution resigns
OpenAI intentionally release products to a mass market that includes errors, manipulations and stolen material - cool, cool
Is this how it works?
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
A WordPress plug-in accidentally pushes something to live - the chair of a national institution resigns
OpenAI intentionally release products to a mass market that includes errors, manipulations and stolen material - cool, cool
Is this how it works?
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
December 1, 2025 at 6:46 PM
2025:
A WordPress plug-in accidentally pushes something to live - the chair of a national institution resigns
OpenAI intentionally release products to a mass market that includes errors, manipulations and stolen material - cool, cool
Is this how it works?
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
A WordPress plug-in accidentally pushes something to live - the chair of a national institution resigns
OpenAI intentionally release products to a mass market that includes errors, manipulations and stolen material - cool, cool
Is this how it works?
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Reposted by Rachel Coldicutt
Could 2026 be the year of public interest technology? We've been doing some thinking at Kinship Works with @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social and co at Careful Industries - what it would take for 2026 to see public interest/civic tech to reach its full potential? Some ideas:
medium.com/@jamestplunk...
medium.com/@jamestplunk...
Could 2026 be the year of public interest technology?
Yes — if funders step up
medium.com
December 1, 2025 at 8:30 AM
Could 2026 be the year of public interest technology? We've been doing some thinking at Kinship Works with @rachelcoldicutt.bsky.social and co at Careful Industries - what it would take for 2026 to see public interest/civic tech to reach its full potential? Some ideas:
medium.com/@jamestplunk...
medium.com/@jamestplunk...
Because I work with lots of diff people and orgs, I'm currently trying to run Proton, Google Suite, MS Teams and Slack and I'm going to have to either start handcranking my laptop or perhaps running a second device, just for Teams, if I want to do any work.
December 1, 2025 at 10:47 AM
Because I work with lots of diff people and orgs, I'm currently trying to run Proton, Google Suite, MS Teams and Slack and I'm going to have to either start handcranking my laptop or perhaps running a second device, just for Teams, if I want to do any work.
Public interest tech - that does good for people, communities and the planet - is a no-brainer, so why does no one want to fund it? @jamestplunkett.bsky.social and I have 4 recs for how the UK civic and community tech landscape could be better supported www.careful.industries/blog/2025-12...
Could 2026 be the year of public interest technology? — Careful Industries
Four ideas for sparking investment in UK public interest tech. Written in collaboration with James Plunkett from Kinship Works.
www.careful.industries
December 1, 2025 at 9:24 AM
Public interest tech - that does good for people, communities and the planet - is a no-brainer, so why does no one want to fund it? @jamestplunkett.bsky.social and I have 4 recs for how the UK civic and community tech landscape could be better supported www.careful.industries/blog/2025-12...
If you're interested in Dominic Cummings' era No 10, this is a very rich text open.substack.com/pub/jameswph... from which many conclusions might be drawn
All I want for Christmas is a functional COVID inquiry #1
Or rather, a functional effort to get us ready for next time & other crises
open.substack.com
December 1, 2025 at 6:53 AM
If you're interested in Dominic Cummings' era No 10, this is a very rich text open.substack.com/pub/jameswph... from which many conclusions might be drawn
Not a new story, but this morning's rabbit hole is the fact that Larry Ellison has bought the Eagle and Child, a pub on St Giles in Oxford, and Norman Foster is redesigning it oxfordclarion.uk/the-bird-and...
December 1, 2025 at 6:19 AM
Not a new story, but this morning's rabbit hole is the fact that Larry Ellison has bought the Eagle and Child, a pub on St Giles in Oxford, and Norman Foster is redesigning it oxfordclarion.uk/the-bird-and...
I mean, this is where the mystical technofascist stuff hits the earth with a bang and if the final showdown of this was in a Marvel movie, I'd want to Pope to have Special Powers™️ sfstandard.com/2025/11/10/m...
November 30, 2025 at 9:59 PM
I mean, this is where the mystical technofascist stuff hits the earth with a bang and if the final showdown of this was in a Marvel movie, I'd want to Pope to have Special Powers™️ sfstandard.com/2025/11/10/m...
Reposted by Rachel Coldicutt
Gorgeous piece of writing from Nia.
November 30, 2025 at 8:12 PM
Gorgeous piece of writing from Nia.
Two very different things worth reading in parallel on the tortured future of AI and democracy. Daron Acemoğlu on Mamdani and worker-powered AI on.ft.com/3XmuL5s and Matthew D'Ancona on Nick Land's right-wing technospiritualism www.thenewworld.co.uk/matthew-danc...
November 30, 2025 at 9:16 AM
Two very different things worth reading in parallel on the tortured future of AI and democracy. Daron Acemoğlu on Mamdani and worker-powered AI on.ft.com/3XmuL5s and Matthew D'Ancona on Nick Land's right-wing technospiritualism www.thenewworld.co.uk/matthew-danc...
I just noticed my typo here but I think it's all the more evidence (!) for why a "two cultures" approach to AI is not very useful - sociotechnical impacts need to be understood hand-in-hand with technological possibility and vice versa - there needs to be a more complete approach to development
The part that's most interesting to me is where she uses an eg from fluid mechanics to bring to light the concept that the future is not certain and progress isn't linear - that contradictory events can take place at the same time. Any sociotechnical researcher will say "Well duh" about this but...
November 30, 2025 at 8:32 AM
I just noticed my typo here but I think it's all the more evidence (!) for why a "two cultures" approach to AI is not very useful - sociotechnical impacts need to be understood hand-in-hand with technological possibility and vice versa - there needs to be a more complete approach to development
While I dislike binaries, extensive fieldwork in this area (parenting) leads me to believe there are two kinds of teenage boys: ones who never wear a coat, and ones who never take their coat off.
November 29, 2025 at 5:04 PM
While I dislike binaries, extensive fieldwork in this area (parenting) leads me to believe there are two kinds of teenage boys: ones who never wear a coat, and ones who never take their coat off.
I have Done Something on LinkedIn that has unlocked the Effective Altruism Easter egg and I don't like it
November 29, 2025 at 3:55 PM
I have Done Something on LinkedIn that has unlocked the Effective Altruism Easter egg and I don't like it
This blog post by Helen Toner (well-known by some for a stint on the OpenAI board) is *really really* interesting because it is the first thing I've read by someone in Frontier AI that starts to get to grips with sociotechnical concerns open.substack.com/pub/helenton...
Taking Jaggedness Seriously
Why we should expect AI capabilities to keep being extremely uneven, and why that matters
open.substack.com
November 29, 2025 at 6:32 AM
This blog post by Helen Toner (well-known by some for a stint on the OpenAI board) is *really really* interesting because it is the first thing I've read by someone in Frontier AI that starts to get to grips with sociotechnical concerns open.substack.com/pub/helenton...
Absolutely magisterial piece on t-shirts, what makes them good, their environmental impact, how they are made, and where to get the one they wear on The Bear by the wonderful @sophiesampson.bsky.social www.patreon.com/posts/how-to...
How to buy a good white tshirt for you | Wardrobe Strategy
Get more from Wardrobe Strategy on Patreon
www.patreon.com
November 28, 2025 at 10:44 PM
Absolutely magisterial piece on t-shirts, what makes them good, their environmental impact, how they are made, and where to get the one they wear on The Bear by the wonderful @sophiesampson.bsky.social www.patreon.com/posts/how-to...
The only really surprising thing about this story is that anyone was prepared to go on the record about it on.ft.com/3XT9HUh
How Scottish campaigners are using AI to battle rural planning applications
Tool allows individuals to send unique, complex objections of about 4,000 words within a couple of minutes
on.ft.com
November 27, 2025 at 9:59 PM
The only really surprising thing about this story is that anyone was prepared to go on the record about it on.ft.com/3XT9HUh
Masquerade is probably *the* book of my childhood. Many many many hours spent poring over it on rainy 80s Sundays, discovering new details in the illustrations, desperately trying to intuit some kind of logic to the clues.
One of the most beautiful bits of english eccentricity and glorious design is coming back to Sotheby’s and should be bought by a musuem (or me) for THE NATION. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...
Jewelled golden hare that sparked national treasure hunt set for auction
Artist and author Kit Williams hid a golden hare with clues to its precise location given in his 1979 book
www.independent.co.uk
November 27, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Masquerade is probably *the* book of my childhood. Many many many hours spent poring over it on rainy 80s Sundays, discovering new details in the illustrations, desperately trying to intuit some kind of logic to the clues.
Reposted by Rachel Coldicutt
And whilst I'm here! If you're thinking of buying SYSTEMS ULTRA as a festive gift (neon cover also doubles as SAD lamp), I'd be happy to mail you a set of bookmarks and holographic stickers to go along with it - please get in touch [1/4]
Systems Ultra! 'A delight to read' says MIT Tech Review. Despite aiming for a work that wasn't bound to the present moment (no AI / algorithms), the parts on payment platforms, automotive technology, adult entertainment, supply chains, have proved horribly timely www.versobooks.com/en-gb/produc...
November 27, 2025 at 2:25 PM
And whilst I'm here! If you're thinking of buying SYSTEMS ULTRA as a festive gift (neon cover also doubles as SAD lamp), I'd be happy to mail you a set of bookmarks and holographic stickers to go along with it - please get in touch [1/4]
Worth saying they tech policy (which is currently economically driven) is not at all left-wing though - strongly influenced by Silicon Valley tech and US foreign policy, with a sprinkle of Centrist Dad tech authoritarianism
Starmer and Reeves run probably the most economically left-wing government of past five decades and yet bleeding support to its left thanks to dumb strategy www.economist.com/britain/2025...
November 27, 2025 at 10:14 AM
Worth saying they tech policy (which is currently economically driven) is not at all left-wing though - strongly influenced by Silicon Valley tech and US foreign policy, with a sprinkle of Centrist Dad tech authoritarianism
Because I am quite passionately trying to avoid replying to some emails, I just completed this month's Which? Omnibus survey, which is quite the exercise in what the what now handbrake turns. DWP! Fabric softener! The British Consulate! Carpets! Premium bonds! End-of-life planning!
November 27, 2025 at 10:05 AM
Because I am quite passionately trying to avoid replying to some emails, I just completed this month's Which? Omnibus survey, which is quite the exercise in what the what now handbrake turns. DWP! Fabric softener! The British Consulate! Carpets! Premium bonds! End-of-life planning!