Reuben Binns
@rdbinns.bsky.social
Computery guy. HCI, ML, AI, privacy, security, fairness, political economy of tech. He/him. London/Oxford. Football alt at nofoolingreu.bsky.social
Reposted by Reuben Binns
This mural has gone up in Kingston, ostensibly for Christmas but AI has ensured it's actually to celebrate the return of our dark lord Cthulhu
November 18, 2025 at 9:44 AM
This mural has gone up in Kingston, ostensibly for Christmas but AI has ensured it's actually to celebrate the return of our dark lord Cthulhu
Reposted by Reuben Binns
New from @jpquintais.bsky.social & me: a critical and wide analysis of the Obligations of all General-Purpose AI Model providers under the EU AI Act. We give a deep ~50 page, 300 footnote treatment and find so many tensions, loopholes, inconsistencies and more.
Link: files.michae.lv/papers/Veale...
Link: files.michae.lv/papers/Veale...
November 18, 2025 at 1:56 PM
New from @jpquintais.bsky.social & me: a critical and wide analysis of the Obligations of all General-Purpose AI Model providers under the EU AI Act. We give a deep ~50 page, 300 footnote treatment and find so many tensions, loopholes, inconsistencies and more.
Link: files.michae.lv/papers/Veale...
Link: files.michae.lv/papers/Veale...
Reposted by Reuben Binns
Another Dieselgate - hopeful but not optimistic that the eventual settlement money will get spent better!
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
About 1m Ford diesel cars sold in UK with defective emissions controls, court told
Ford denies having created ‘defeat devices’ in legal action on behalf of 1.6 million owners against five carmakers
www.theguardian.com
November 15, 2025 at 6:30 PM
Another Dieselgate - hopeful but not optimistic that the eventual settlement money will get spent better!
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
www.theguardian.com/business/202...
Reposted by Reuben Binns
That is, there is no broad "AI jobs apocalypse," as AI is too unreliable and limited to do jobs that demand accuracy or empathy. But plenty of managers will use it to try to replace human art with cheaper "good enough" AI art. So it does appear that bosses embracing AI are hitting creatives hard.
November 13, 2025 at 5:40 PM
That is, there is no broad "AI jobs apocalypse," as AI is too unreliable and limited to do jobs that demand accuracy or empathy. But plenty of managers will use it to try to replace human art with cheaper "good enough" AI art. So it does appear that bosses embracing AI are hitting creatives hard.
I have some news - I'm very happy to be joining as a co-director at the Responsible Technology Institute (rti.ox.ac.uk). Please get in touch if interested in collaborating!
October 24, 2025 at 3:28 PM
I have some news - I'm very happy to be joining as a co-director at the Responsible Technology Institute (rti.ox.ac.uk). Please get in touch if interested in collaborating!
The Information Commissioner's Office fined 23andMe ... £2.3m for GDPR infringements in ... '23
a woman is looking at a chalkboard with a lot of math equations on it .
ALT: a woman is looking at a chalkboard with a lot of math equations on it .
media.tenor.com
October 13, 2025 at 6:47 AM
The Information Commissioner's Office fined 23andMe ... £2.3m for GDPR infringements in ... '23
Reposted by Reuben Binns
I've noticed the opposing team's fans only cheer when the opponents score on us. To win those fans over, I recommend we score on ourselves repeatedly; that will surely make them so happy they'll start supporting us. And I'm sure all our fans will keep cheering for us—who else is there to cheer for?
October 10, 2025 at 12:19 PM
I've noticed the opposing team's fans only cheer when the opponents score on us. To win those fans over, I recommend we score on ourselves repeatedly; that will surely make them so happy they'll start supporting us. And I'm sure all our fans will keep cheering for us—who else is there to cheer for?
Trying to grow the UK AI sector by building data centers is like trying to grow the university sector by building paper factories.
October 2, 2025 at 7:56 AM
Trying to grow the UK AI sector by building data centers is like trying to grow the university sector by building paper factories.
Reposted by Reuben Binns
I remember being told that it would take 193 years to reach legal limits for nitrogen dioxide.
I decided this was unacceptable.
Thanks to the bold policies we put in place, we've managed to do it in nine years - 184 years earlier than expected.
I decided this was unacceptable.
Thanks to the bold policies we put in place, we've managed to do it in nine years - 184 years earlier than expected.
October 1, 2025 at 10:18 AM
I remember being told that it would take 193 years to reach legal limits for nitrogen dioxide.
I decided this was unacceptable.
Thanks to the bold policies we put in place, we've managed to do it in nine years - 184 years earlier than expected.
I decided this was unacceptable.
Thanks to the bold policies we put in place, we've managed to do it in nine years - 184 years earlier than expected.
Reposted by Reuben Binns
We are thrilled to announce that our NEW Large Language Model will be released on 11.18.25.
October 1, 2025 at 2:38 PM
We are thrilled to announce that our NEW Large Language Model will be released on 11.18.25.
Reposted by Reuben Binns
Google just wiped EU data from its political ad library. Meta’s ban on political ads in the EU starts soon and we're worried they might do the same.
We need a backup of the EU Meta Ad Library now. If you have data (2018–present) or skills to help, let us know:
ir96l7a6vsf.typeform.com/to/fIk9XMZT
We need a backup of the EU Meta Ad Library now. If you have data (2018–present) or skills to help, let us know:
ir96l7a6vsf.typeform.com/to/fIk9XMZT
Save the EU Ad Libraries
Meta may soon switch off ad libraries in the EU and remove data going back to 2018. Help ensure this data is archived for research.
ir96l7a6vsf.typeform.com
September 30, 2025 at 1:59 PM
Google just wiped EU data from its political ad library. Meta’s ban on political ads in the EU starts soon and we're worried they might do the same.
We need a backup of the EU Meta Ad Library now. If you have data (2018–present) or skills to help, let us know:
ir96l7a6vsf.typeform.com/to/fIk9XMZT
We need a backup of the EU Meta Ad Library now. If you have data (2018–present) or skills to help, let us know:
ir96l7a6vsf.typeform.com/to/fIk9XMZT
"Lend me ten pounds, and I'll buy you a drink" The Pogues, Boys from the County Hell
"NVIDIA invests $100B in NVIDIA to help NVIDIA grow its lucrative business selling chips to NVIDIA"
September 27, 2025 at 4:29 PM
"Lend me ten pounds, and I'll buy you a drink" The Pogues, Boys from the County Hell
For any colleagues who are, like me, concerned about the threats Gen AI poses to the integrity of academic research, learning, and stewardship of knowledge, a counterpoint:
"AGAINST THE UNCRITICAL ADOPTION OF ‘AI’
TECHNOLOGIES IN ACADEMIA" - @olivia.science et al philarchive.org/archive/GUEATU
"AGAINST THE UNCRITICAL ADOPTION OF ‘AI’
TECHNOLOGIES IN ACADEMIA" - @olivia.science et al philarchive.org/archive/GUEATU
September 24, 2025 at 12:20 PM
For any colleagues who are, like me, concerned about the threats Gen AI poses to the integrity of academic research, learning, and stewardship of knowledge, a counterpoint:
"AGAINST THE UNCRITICAL ADOPTION OF ‘AI’
TECHNOLOGIES IN ACADEMIA" - @olivia.science et al philarchive.org/archive/GUEATU
"AGAINST THE UNCRITICAL ADOPTION OF ‘AI’
TECHNOLOGIES IN ACADEMIA" - @olivia.science et al philarchive.org/archive/GUEATU
We're hiring!
2x Associate Prof / Prof with Tutorial Fellowship
5x AssProf/Prof with non-Tutorial Fellowship at @kelloggoxford.bsky.social
For the latter 5 posts, we're looking for 3 doing research in AI, 1x software engineering, 1x cybersecurity.
www.cs.ox.ac.uk/aboutus/vaca...
2x Associate Prof / Prof with Tutorial Fellowship
5x AssProf/Prof with non-Tutorial Fellowship at @kelloggoxford.bsky.social
For the latter 5 posts, we're looking for 3 doing research in AI, 1x software engineering, 1x cybersecurity.
www.cs.ox.ac.uk/aboutus/vaca...
Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford
Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford. Computer Science Department Vacancies.
www.cs.ox.ac.uk
September 22, 2025 at 9:00 AM
We're hiring!
2x Associate Prof / Prof with Tutorial Fellowship
5x AssProf/Prof with non-Tutorial Fellowship at @kelloggoxford.bsky.social
For the latter 5 posts, we're looking for 3 doing research in AI, 1x software engineering, 1x cybersecurity.
www.cs.ox.ac.uk/aboutus/vaca...
2x Associate Prof / Prof with Tutorial Fellowship
5x AssProf/Prof with non-Tutorial Fellowship at @kelloggoxford.bsky.social
For the latter 5 posts, we're looking for 3 doing research in AI, 1x software engineering, 1x cybersecurity.
www.cs.ox.ac.uk/aboutus/vaca...
Reposted by Reuben Binns
🙋♀️Our Society for Hopeful Technologists newsletter #2 is out! 📩Make sure you have subscribed to it to get all the news📨 It's such a pleasure to be part of this group and strategise towards a more Hopeful tech future 🌅
We will be organising events and come together to decide how it will work ✨️
We will be organising events and come together to decide how it will work ✨️
Morning! Society for Hopeful Technologists newsletter #2 is arriving in inboxes now. A little bit on Musk and X, much more about future plans + organising buttondown.com/society-of-h... and great to have a group of fellow organisers coming together 💪
#2: Hopeful Actions
What's next for the Society for Hopeful Technologists: events, principles, and opportunities to get involved.
buttondown.com
September 15, 2025 at 7:38 AM
🙋♀️Our Society for Hopeful Technologists newsletter #2 is out! 📩Make sure you have subscribed to it to get all the news📨 It's such a pleasure to be part of this group and strategise towards a more Hopeful tech future 🌅
We will be organising events and come together to decide how it will work ✨️
We will be organising events and come together to decide how it will work ✨️
As someone with 'human centered' in my job title, I'd like to point out that it originally described a movement of workers who wanted to take over technology production and switch it from capitalist and military ends, towards socially useful technologies (cf Mike Cooley and the Lucas Plan)
Something I didn't get to say yesterday:
We heard over and over during the event about "human-centered" approaches to "AI". But if refusal is not on the table (at every level: individual students and teachers right up through UNESCO) then we have in fact centered the technology, not the people.
We heard over and over during the event about "human-centered" approaches to "AI". But if refusal is not on the table (at every level: individual students and teachers right up through UNESCO) then we have in fact centered the technology, not the people.
It has been really interesting to attend UNESCO's Digital Learning Week (though unfortunately I'm not able to stick around). My public lecture from yesterday can be found here:
www.youtube.com/live/l-OWi6V...
>>
www.youtube.com/live/l-OWi6V...
>>
September 3, 2025 at 3:54 PM
As someone with 'human centered' in my job title, I'd like to point out that it originally described a movement of workers who wanted to take over technology production and switch it from capitalist and military ends, towards socially useful technologies (cf Mike Cooley and the Lucas Plan)
I've seen a lot of papers evaluate LLM performance with another LLM, which has always felt dodgy. Here's an example of why that might go wrong:
1/8 🧵 GPT-5's storytelling problems reveal a deeper AI safety issue. I've been testing its creative writing capabilities, and the results are concerning - not just for literature, but for AI development more broadly. 🚨
August 28, 2025 at 12:44 PM
I've seen a lot of papers evaluate LLM performance with another LLM, which has always felt dodgy. Here's an example of why that might go wrong:
Reposted by Reuben Binns
With news of a reported settlement with Anthropic I went back to check the class action form and it now allows authors outside the US to input their address, so it may be worth adding your known pirated titles (from the LibGen pirate database) www.lieffcabraser.com/anthropic-au...
Anthropic Authors’ Rights Class Action – Author Contact Page – Lieff Cabraser
www.lieffcabraser.com
August 27, 2025 at 10:36 PM
With news of a reported settlement with Anthropic I went back to check the class action form and it now allows authors outside the US to input their address, so it may be worth adding your known pirated titles (from the LibGen pirate database) www.lieffcabraser.com/anthropic-au...
Reposted by Reuben Binns
Hey, I have had some questions about who is allowed to file.
Here is the class certification:
Here is the class certification:
August 27, 2025 at 8:01 PM
Hey, I have had some questions about who is allowed to file.
Here is the class certification:
Here is the class certification:
Reposted by Reuben Binns
Steve Shirley escaped the Holocaust as a child & went on to found one of the earliest software startups. The really impressive part? She employed women programmers who had been pushed out of the workforce after having kids, & allowed them flexible, family friendly, work from home jobs—in the 1960s!
@histoftech.bsky.social Am obit of interest that you might have seen already. Gift link:
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/20/b...
www.nytimes.com/2025/08/20/b...
Stephanie Shirley, Who Created a Tech World for Women, Dies at 91
www.nytimes.com
August 22, 2025 at 10:18 AM
Steve Shirley escaped the Holocaust as a child & went on to found one of the earliest software startups. The really impressive part? She employed women programmers who had been pushed out of the workforce after having kids, & allowed them flexible, family friendly, work from home jobs—in the 1960s!
Reposted by Reuben Binns
Universities make a loss on home teaching. They make a loss on state-sponsored research. Now they will make a loss on international students. So there will be no activities at all that even break even. In those circs you cannot continue: the end.
www.timeshighereducation.com/news/deficit...
www.timeshighereducation.com/news/deficit...
Deficits likely as overseas students ‘loss-making’ under levy
Middle-tier universities on ‘wafer-thin margins’ face starkest financial challenges from government proposal, policy analysts suggest
www.timeshighereducation.com
August 22, 2025 at 7:49 AM
Universities make a loss on home teaching. They make a loss on state-sponsored research. Now they will make a loss on international students. So there will be no activities at all that even break even. In those circs you cannot continue: the end.
www.timeshighereducation.com/news/deficit...
www.timeshighereducation.com/news/deficit...
Reposted by Reuben Binns
A lot of AI defenders will point to internet skeptics of the 1990s who said the web was overhyped, when the better analogy is much more recent.
Remember when the metaverse was so inevitable that Mark Zuckerberg renamed his entire company Meta?
Remember when the metaverse was so inevitable that Mark Zuckerberg renamed his entire company Meta?
The Nasdaq fell 1.4%, with Nvidia down 3.5%, Palantir down 9.4% and Arm down 5%, with AI enthusiasm cooling after a critical MIT report and warning from Altman (Financial Times)
Main Link | Techmeme Permalink
Main Link | Techmeme Permalink
August 20, 2025 at 3:31 AM
A lot of AI defenders will point to internet skeptics of the 1990s who said the web was overhyped, when the better analogy is much more recent.
Remember when the metaverse was so inevitable that Mark Zuckerberg renamed his entire company Meta?
Remember when the metaverse was so inevitable that Mark Zuckerberg renamed his entire company Meta?
Reposted by Reuben Binns
Dr Reuben Binns, Kellogg Fellow and Associate Professor in
@compscioxford.bsky.social, warns that new “dynamic pay” models in the gig economy could undermine workers’ financial stability.
➡️ www.thetimes.com/business-mon...
@compscioxford.bsky.social, warns that new “dynamic pay” models in the gig economy could undermine workers’ financial stability.
➡️ www.thetimes.com/business-mon...
August 15, 2025 at 10:43 AM
Dr Reuben Binns, Kellogg Fellow and Associate Professor in
@compscioxford.bsky.social, warns that new “dynamic pay” models in the gig economy could undermine workers’ financial stability.
➡️ www.thetimes.com/business-mon...
@compscioxford.bsky.social, warns that new “dynamic pay” models in the gig economy could undermine workers’ financial stability.
➡️ www.thetimes.com/business-mon...
Reposted by Reuben Binns
Are you afraid of LLMs teaching people how to build bioweapons? Have you tried just... not teaching LLMs about bioweapons?
@eleutherai.bsky.social and the UK AISI joined forces to see what would happen, pretraining three 6.9B models for 500B tokens and producing 15 total models to study
@eleutherai.bsky.social and the UK AISI joined forces to see what would happen, pretraining three 6.9B models for 500B tokens and producing 15 total models to study
August 12, 2025 at 12:40 PM
Are you afraid of LLMs teaching people how to build bioweapons? Have you tried just... not teaching LLMs about bioweapons?
@eleutherai.bsky.social and the UK AISI joined forces to see what would happen, pretraining three 6.9B models for 500B tokens and producing 15 total models to study
@eleutherai.bsky.social and the UK AISI joined forces to see what would happen, pretraining three 6.9B models for 500B tokens and producing 15 total models to study