matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer
@matthewus.bsky.social
570 followers 34 following 31 posts
Workers' Technology Rights advocate @ Center for Democracy & Technology. Posts reflect my own views, not CDT’s.
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matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 8
The tech industry only ever has two positions on any proposed tech regulation:

(1) Don’t regulate us. It’s too early. Our tech is still developing.

(2) Don’t regulate us. It’s too late. Our tech is everywhere.
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matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · 1d
Given that genAI clearly enhances productivity in cheating and scamming but has mixed results everywhere else, there's a real possibility that genAI will actually have a net negative effect on profitability as companies are forced to invest ever-more in cybersecurity.

www.axios.com/2025/10/07/o...
OpenAI's new Sora app and other AI video tools give scams a new edge, experts warn
Fake audio and videos are bound to make scams sound more believable as tools improve.
www.axios.com
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Reposted by Matt Scherer
merriam-webster.com
Merriam-Webster @merriam-webster.com · 7d
We are thrilled to announce that our NEW Large Language Model will be released on 11.18.25.
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cdt.org
Center for Democracy & Technology @cdt.org · 9d
Why it matters: ADSs shape access to jobs, housing, health care & more. Yet too often, they’re opaque, error-prone, and biased—leaving consumers & workers at risk. Transparency + accountability are essential.
Bringing Transparency and Accountability to Algorithmic Decision Systems
Also authored by Grace Gedye, AI Policy Analyst, Consumer Reports Algorithmic decision systems (ADSs) increasingly determine what jobs people apply to, what apartments they can rent, what health care coverage they receive, and other major determinants of their lives and livelihoods. ADSs can speed up decision-making processes and, with proper design and oversight, can help […]
cdt.org
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cdt.org
Center for Democracy & Technology @cdt.org · 9d
New brief from CDT’s @matthewus.bsky.social & @consumerreports.org's Grace Gedye examines state efforts to regulate algorithmic decision systems (ADSs)—spotlighting promising proposals, pitfalls, and what effective regulation must include.
Read more: cdt.org/insights/bri...
Building Transparency and Accountability.
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Reposted by Matt Scherer
eff.org
Electronic Frontier Foundation @eff.org · 12d
California’s “No Robo Bosses Act” is a great start. And much more is needed, because many kinds of powerful institutions are using automated decision-making against us. www.eff.org/deeplinks/2...
Yes to California’s “No Robo Bosses Act”
California’s Governor should sign S.B. 7, a common-sense bill to end some of the harshest consequences of automated abuse at work. EFF is proud to join dozens of labor, digital rights, and other
www.eff.org
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evangreer.bsky.social
Evan Greer @evangreer.bsky.social · Jun 16
The Minnesota shooter apparently used data broker websites to find the home addresses of the people he shot and murdered.

Congress has had years to do something about data brokers and they've sided with the tech lobby over and over again.

Their inaction is deadly.
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Reposted by Matt Scherer
cdt.org
Center for Democracy & Technology @cdt.org · May 29
“@matthewus.bsky.social, senior policy counsel at CDT, has a more dire warning: ‘The moratorium [on state-level AI legislation] is so sweeping that it’s hard to imagine how any law that touches on AI or automated decision-making in any way could escape it.’" www.pcmag.com/news/t...
There's a Lot of AI in Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill': Here's What It Does and Why Elon Is Not a Fan
Among the more eye-catching provisions is a 10-year moratorium on state-level AI regulations. Though xAI stands to benefit, Elon Musk says the spending bill is 'undermining' DOGE.
www.pcmag.com
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matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 27
You know you've got a serious, serious brand issue when your main competitor is 11 points underwater in favorability but you're doing 10 points *worse* than they are.

thehill.com/homenews/cam...
matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 18
Quick! Hide this from Ezra Klein!
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matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 18
...anecdotes are not evidence. None of the predicted labor market disruptions have materialized. Level 5 AVs have been 3 yrs away for 10 yrs now. Productivity growth hasn't accelerated. Practical improvement in cutting edge models has slowed to a crawl. So I, and many others, just aren't seeing it.
matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 18
I do use it, both for research and for editing/polishing my writing. It's helpful for polishing my writing, but not in an "I'm blown away" way. And in research, frequent hallucinations in all the models mean that I often have to spend more time verifying info than if I'd not used AI. Anyway...
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matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 18
I have, in fact, studied AI and its impact on the economy and labor market for a decade now. I've made something a career of it. And while I’m not a programmer, I have a better technical understanding of AI than most laypeople. Happy to engage in a reasoned debate, but not engage in name calling.
matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 18
I could be wrong. I often am. But AI hype increasingly strikes me as something driven by a desperate effort to delay the popping of a speculative bubble, and it boggles my mind that people brush off recent and repeated delays and admissions of fundamental flaws in new models by big LLM developers.
matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 18
Anecdotes are rarely meaningful evidence, and never evidence of transformative impact/potential. What you describe strikes me more akin to the impact that Google/decent Internet search had on knowledge professions as compared to early knowledge databases. And maybe not even that.
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matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 18
I think the only thing that has been big/fast about AI is the hype surrounding it. I'm not alone in thinking so. You disagree, but I haven't seen real-world evidence (arbitrary benchmarks don't count) that it's having transformative impacts in its current state, nor do I see how it'll get there.
matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 18
As @randomwalker.bsky.social said two years ago: "Every exponential is a sigmoid in disguise."
matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 18
It's obvious that all big LLMs have plateaued. Improvements are X steps forward/Y steps back, with X fast decreasing and Y increasing. None are close to AGI; tweaks/scaling won't get them there. The only reason none of the big developers are saying so is no one wants to be first to admit to the con.
Exclusive | Meta Is Delaying the Rollout of Its Flagship AI Model
The company’s struggle to improve the capabilities of latest AI model mirrors issues at some top AI companies.
link.axios.com
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matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 12
Why would you need anything other than LLMs? I mean, once we scale LLMs up enough, we’ll have AGI. Didn’t you get the memo? 🙃
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matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 10
This is seriously great. There has been a vacuum of moral leadership when it comes to the impact of AI on workers and their dignity. And there are a few (if any) people with a bigger moral megaphone than the Pontiff.

www.cnbc.com/2025/05/10/p...
Why Pope Leo chose his name: AI, workers’ rights, new Industrial Revolution
Pope Leo also suggested that he would follow the late Pope Francis' lead on his commitment to social justice.
www.cnbc.com
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matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 9
And, of course, the reason nobody understands their tech is that they abuse the trade secret doctrine to keep people from finding out how it works and how it affects them. Which shows the need for… wait for it… regulation.
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matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 9
That’s an excellent argument for starting regulation with strong transparency measures so that people understand how new tech works and how it affects them. But industry adamantly opposes such transparency (trade secrets!) because they want to maintain information monopolies on their technologies.
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matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 9
True. But IMHO, it’s not even regulation if the target of the regulation has veto power over its contents.
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matthewus.bsky.social
Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 8
Respectfully, these aren't straw man arguments. All the issues with voluntary standards I described are basic economics principles. And that doesn't even get into monitoring/enforcement of voluntary standards. Sounds like your mind's made up on this though, so take care.
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Matt Scherer @matthewus.bsky.social · May 8
That would be nice, if it weren't for little issues like information asymmetry, unequal bargaining power, collective action problems like the exponentially higher cost of consumers coordinating amongst each other, the ease of standards capture, and cumulative advantages for dominant industry actors.
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Reposted by Matt Scherer
cdt.org
Center for Democracy & Technology @cdt.org · May 8
Colorado lawmakers stood firm on AI accountability — and CDT CEO @alexreevegivens.bsky.social backed their decision to protect workers and consumers rather than gut hard-won safeguards. www.denverpost.com/2...
Live updates: Officials react to killed AI bill, hospitals-pharma fight nears end, immigrant protections finalized
With less than three days left until the Colorado legislature adjourns its regular session, lawmakers are back Monday to move several contentious bills through key votes.
www.denverpost.com
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