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Ben Green

@benzevgreen.bsky.social

1.4K followers 280 following 29 posts

Assistant professor in the University of Michigan School of Information. https://www.benzevgreen.com

www.benzevgreen.com

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Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jun 3

In @techpolicypress.bsky.social, I explain why using AI to reform government is much harder than policymakers and technologists assume. It's most directly about DOGE, but also raises warnings about the bipartisan push to adopt AI at all levels of government.
www.techpolicy.press/using-ai-to-...

Using AI to Reform Government is Much Harder Than it Looks | TechPolicy.Press

Policymakers need to rethink the values that justify government AI adoption in the first place, writes Ben Green.

www.techpolicy.press

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Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · 9d

Last week, I joined @justinhendrix.bsky.social and Maddy Dwyer @cdt.org to discuss DOGE, AI, and government "efficiency" initiatives for the @techpolicypress.bsky.social podcast. It's a rather grim topic, but I enjoyed making sense of it with Justin and Maddy.

www.techpolicy.press/following-do...

Following DOGE, US States Pursue 'Efficiency' Initiatives | TechPolicy.Press

A conversation with Center for Democracy and Technology policy analyst Maddy Dwyer and University of Michigan scholar Ben Green.

www.techpolicy.press

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Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 26

Congrats, Andrew!!

Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 26

I know!! Read your own story

Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 26

www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

DOGE builds AI tool to cut 50 percent of federal regulations

The U.S. DOGE Service is using a new AI tool to eliminate federal regulations, aiming to cut 50 percent of rules by the first anniversary of President Donald Trump’s inauguration.

www.washingtonpost.com

Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 26

This is such shoddy reporting by @washingtonpost.com that provides cover for AI hype and the Trump administration. It's incredibly clear that AI will make countless mistakes – and that the administration doesn't care.

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Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 23

There are many bad parts of Trump's new AI Action Plan, but the focus on accelerating data center development is going to be particularly damaging. Data centers aren't just bad for the environment in general -- they're also harmful to the communities they're located in.

What Happens When Data Centers Come to Town?

stpp.fordschool.umich.edu

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Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 23

Just because AI seems cool, that doesn't mean it's a reliable tool for making critical policy decisions. And with so many hallucinations, AI is probably slowing people down because they need to double check everything.
www.techpolicy.press/using-ai-to-...

Reposted by Ben Green

Brian Merchant @bcmerchant.bsky.social · Jul 23

Big tech promotes the story that since ChatGPT burst onto the scene, AI has been so popular it's rushed to meet the demand. The reality is different. A study by design scholars shows tech co's have had to push AI on its users with a variety of intrusive tactics.

How big tech is force-feeding us AI:

How big tech is force-feeding us AI

Plus, OpenAI's absurd listening tour, top AI scientists say AI is evolving beyond our control, Facebook is putting data centers in tents, and the AI bubble question — answered?

www.bloodinthemachine.com

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Reposted by Ben Green

Tamara Kneese @tamigraph.bsky.social · Jul 22

In our new policy brief for @datasociety.bsky.social, @mwoluchem.bsky.social and I break down the myths and industry talking points attached to data centers. Who benefits from unbridled data center growth and who is most at risk when such speculative ventures fail?

Data Centers Aren’t the Future of American Prosperity

Tamara Kneese and Maia Woluchem cut through lobbying points and speculative myths to focus on what the evidence reveals about the tech industry’s claims.

datasociety.net

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Reposted by Ben Green

Shobita Parthasarathy @shobitap.org · Jul 16

Excellent explainer on data centers @stpp-um.bsky.social to help communities understand them, their challenges, and policy options to manage their risks. Written by Terry Nguyen BA '25 @umfordschool.bsky.social and @benzevgreen.bsky.social, in partnership w/ Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition.

What Happens When Data Centers Come to Town?

stpp.fordschool.umich.edu

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Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 16

this is awful, I'm so sorry you had to go through that

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Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 16

Even as a longstanding critic of "tech for good" initiatives, this is the most appalling example I've ever come across. If "AI for good" can't include challenging the use of AI to facilitate genocide, then it's truly a bankrupt movement.

Dr Abeba Birhane @abeba.bsky.social · Jul 8

a couple of hours before my keynote, I went through an intense negotiation with the organisers (for over a hour) where we went through my slides and had to remove anything that mentions 'Palestine' 'Israel' and replace 'genocide' with 'war crimes'

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Dr Abeba Birhane @abeba.bsky.social · Jul 8

my keynote happening in a few mins. registration here to stream it

aiforgood.itu.int/summit25/reg...

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Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 16

🙌

Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 16

States and AI companies tout data centers as a boon for local economies, but what's the reality? This policy brief reviews the evidence: data centers are harmful for the environment and tax breaks are a bad deal for communities. @stpp-um.bsky.social
stpp.fordschool.umich.edu/research/pol...

What Happens When Data Centers Come to Town?

stpp.fordschool.umich.edu

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Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 11

This is a fascinating study and a valuable reminder not to rely on user surveys when evaluating the impacts of AI. My guesses to explain the results: users might 1) be susceptible to AI hype in framing their guesses of time saved and 2) systematically discount the time spent interacting with AI.

METR @metr.org · Jul 10

We ran a randomized controlled trial to see how much AI coding tools speed up experienced open-source developers.

The results surprised us: Developers thought they were 20% faster with AI tools, but they were actually 19% slower when they had access to AI than when they didn't.

Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 5

Great job AI! Thanks for solving climate change!

www.ft.com/content/6922...

Meta’s AI climate tool raised false hope of CO₂ removal, scientists say

Big Tech group accused of using inaccurate data in effort to identify materials that can attract carbon dioxide from the air

www.ft.com

Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 5

www.bridgemi.com/michigan-env...

Data centers create few jobs. Michigan wants to give them big tax breaks | Bridge Michigan

Michigan is in a race with other states to lure companies that host cloud storage. Foes say a 2015 deal that promised to bring 1,000 jobs but created a fraction of that should be a cautionary tale.

www.bridgemi.com

Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jul 5

In exchange for tax breaks, a Michigan data center promised to bring 500 high-paying jobs. It delivered only 26 low-paying ones.

What did the state do? It lowered the standard of job creation so that the data center was in compliance. And then passed more tax breaks.

Absolutely infuriating.

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Reposted by Ben Green

Dr Abeba Birhane @abeba.bsky.social · Jun 25

New paper hot off the press www.nature.com/articles/s41...

We analysed over 40,000 computer vision papers from CVPR (the longest standing CV conf) & associated patents tracing pathways from research to application. We found that 90% of papers & 86% of downstream patents power surveillance

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Computer-vision research powers surveillance technology - Nature

An analysis of research papers and citing patents indicates the extensive ties between computer-vision research and surveillance.

www.nature.com

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Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jun 4

"In my 12 years as a legal aid lawyer ... my clients wrongfully lost Medicaid, Unemployment Insurance, or Social Security benefits due to AI. People got terminated when AI sent out incoherent paperwork" –@kevindeliban.bsky.social in @techpolicypress.bsky.social
www.techpolicy.press/austerity-in...

Austerity Intelligence | TechPolicy.Press

Kevin De Liban says AI, pushed by Big Tech and the Trump administration, threatens democracy by deepening inequality and undermining public participation.

www.techpolicy.press

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Reposted by Ben Green

Tech Policy Press @techpolicypress.bsky.social · Jun 4

AI is reshaping power and democracy in harmful ways, writes Kevin De Liban. “It is clearing Trump’s path to authoritarian rule” through decisions “that deprive the public of the resources needed to participate meaningfully in democracy.”

Austerity Intelligence | TechPolicy.Press

Kevin De Liban says AI, pushed by Big Tech and the Trump administration, threatens democracy by deepening inequality and undermining public participation.

www.techpolicy.press

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Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jun 4

Thanks Natalia - can't wait for yours!

Reposted by Ben Green

Data & Society @datasociety.bsky.social · Jun 3

🚨 New series alert! 🚨In collaboration with @techpolicypress.bsky.social, we’re kicking off “Ideologies of Control,” two weeks of essays by researchers exploring how today’s tech systems are deepening democratic divides. www.techpolicy.press/tech-power-a...

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Reposted by Ben Green

alice e marwick @alicetiara.bsky.social · Jun 3

🚨NEW SERIES ALERT🚨 My incredible @datasociety.bsky.social team with @techpolicypress.bsky.social just launched a series on "Tech Power and Democratic Crisis" (aka technofascism). The 1st piece by Jake Metcalf & Meg Young is out now: www.techpolicy.press/tech-power-a...

www.techpolicy.press

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Ben Green @benzevgreen.bsky.social · Jun 3

The article is part of "Ideologies of Control: A Series on Tech Power and Democratic Crisis" - an amazing new essay collection from @techpolicypress.bsky.social and @datasociety.bsky.social. Read the series overview here, and stay tuned for many more articles over the next two weeks!

Tech Power and the Crisis of Democracy | TechPolicy.Press

Announcing a new series, Jacob Metcalf and Meg Young examine how a small group of tech billionaires is pushing an anti-democratic agenda.

www.techpolicy.press

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