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A Critique On AI Hype

Carl Setzer8 Comments
hand of a person and a bionic hand

AI is seemingly everywhere right now, and I’ve written a bit about it before. As I’ve started diving more deeply into it, I see all the hype about how AI will be disrupting work. Well, I’ve developed a somewhat contrarian viewpoint to the prevalent viewpoint of “AI taking over everything”. Here are a few random thoughts on the whole thing right now.

A lot of what AI is replacing now, and expected to in the near future, runs on the assumption that it will remain (nearly) free. However, most of the current costs are funded by investor dollars. As MIT recently reported, 95% of AI initiatives are failing to generate value. So, the only way companies are gaining value from AI is via its low cost. And the operating costs are significant. Data centers are expensive, both to build and to operate. GPUs aren’t cheap to buy. The environmental costs are steep. And, right now, those costs are being paid from investor dollars. When those dry up (investors need to make a return on that investment at some point, and that needs to be greater than the investment as well as the current operational costs. I expect the point when investors stop feeling FOMO and start worrying about making a return will be coming soon. I expect that when the costs become the responsibility of the consumer, the price will escalate abruptly and steeply. Will a junior developer really be displaced by ChatGPT or CoPilot? Or will we suddenly find junior developers much more cost-effective?

Adding to this, I’ve seen discussion about how AI infrastructure investment is potentially masking a recession. Thus, I’m concerned that we’re missing the weakening economy, things like continued tech-sector layoffs, and are not paying attention to some big economic weaknesses. If AI investment dries up, and layoffs start compounding, the dominoes start to fall, and that brings a significant recession/depression. Which will muddle this significantly.

Anyway, I think that we are in a bubble regarding AI. Like the Dot Com bubble, I think that AI will herald significant technological changes. AI is a powerful tool, and will continue to be so. However, I am confident that the techno-dystopia predicted by AI hyper-meisters will not materialize. I’m not sure we can even conceptualize what it will look like at the end of this cycle. But I am confident that those who have mastered AI will benefit greatly from the coming revolution. There are opportunities, and now is the time to make the investment in understanding them.

Today’s haiku: November 5, 2025

Carl Setzer2 Comments

mists through the cedars

the echoes of ancestors

remain vigilant

Today’s Haiku: November 4, 2025

Carl Setzer1 Comment

mighty moose minions

mitigate mouse munitions

mad malevolence

I opted for something alliterative today. And something absurdist. Just wanted to have some fun. I hope it amused you like it did me.

Happy Halloween, Everyone!

Carl Setzer4 Comments
jack skelington vinyl figure

Years ago, I got exhausted by all the Halloween tropes, especially Monster Mash. I figured, “I’m sure I could create something better”. I think I have.

This is a multi-year initiative. I’ve added to it as I’ve found good tunes, and taken off ones that no longer fit my vibe.

So, I hope you enjoy!

Phishing Calendar Invites

Carl Setzer1 Comment
phishing awareness in digital security

Well, it’s been an interesting few days in the land of spam and phishing. Yesterday I wrote about a spam email I received, along with dozens of others that’s gotten a bit silly. Today I noticed an invite in one of my company calendars, “Your order Estimate OYYE03661 has been queued”:

I’ve seen these before, but not in MY calendar.

So, my first thought was “when did my calendar get changed to “add invitations to my calendar” to “From Everyone”. Needless to say, that should NOT be the default. EVER!

So, if you need to know how to change this in Google, here you go:

Go the gear icon at the top-right of your calendar:

Then click “settings”

Scroll down to Event Settings, the “Add invitations to my calendar”

Then change to “When I respond to the invitation in email”

I’m also going to recommend unchecking the “Show events automatically created by Gmail in my calendar”

Anyway, we need to stay vigilant against fraudsters. This is one annoying game of whack-a-mole.

Fraud, Spam, Bulk Email, and Other Joys

Carl Setzer4 Comments
a man holding a letter lightbox

Less than 1/2 hour ago, I received a mess in my inbox. Someone sent an email out to an unknown quantity of email recipients with no subject and the message body stating “Who are you”. To me, this screams phishing. Well, to (currently) 11 people, it didn’t. There were silly responses (“I contain mutitudes”) to “Take me off this email”. One person did reply stating “you are all replying to a fraud email…stop replying…” Which is the most useful message on there. But, really, not that helpful. So, just mark them as spam and move along. Replying lets the scammers know that a) this email is valid and b) you are somewhat gullible and, therefore, more susceptible to phishing scams. And, of course, replying all to these sorts of things floods other people’s inboxes.

So, please, just don’t. I guess if you feel called to troll scammers, just reply to the original sender. I’ve got other things to do than manage this junk in my inbox.

Today’s Bit o’ Wisdom

Carl Setzer

I liked this quote, but thought I’d add to it. Yes, “surrounding yourself with people who fight for you in rooms you aren’t in” is a powerful way to build up your psyche. However, I see something even more powerful. Surround yourself with people you would fight for in rooms you ARE in. And, a corollary, BE the person who fights for those people.

Quote of the Day

Carl Setzer

“You may not write well every day, but you can always edit a bad page. You can’t edit a blank page”.

~ Phoebe Waller-Bridge

I have given out similar advice for decades. My main variant: “It’s easier to edit than to create”. I’ve seen how paralyzing perfectionism can be. With this, I’ve also found that the most challenging part of any project is starting.

Anyway, I hope you have a fantastic day leading into a fantastic week.

A Bit Of Wisdom

Carl Setzer2 Comments
close up photography of owl

I identify with this far more than I should admit. Anyway, this dude’s beard is pretty epic, too. Anyway….

It is interesting, as I look back, how important being “cool” was. Way back. And how that’s pretty much completely faded. Maturity, I suppose. Or just exhaustion. I have the bandwidth for that bull$!*t.

An AI Manifesto

Carl Setzer5 Comments
bionic hand and human hand finger pointing

Cassidy Williams is a tech blogger I’ve followed for years. Recently, she wrote about her views on AI Usage, which I find exceptionally relevant right now. She references the “AI Manifesto” by Damola Morenikeji. Damola suggests creating an /AI section on your page, which I think I’ll do soon. But I’m just starting the exploration now.

I believe the transparency around our respective use of AI is critical. Being able to trust what you see is becoming harder.

Me? I’ve used AI as something of an editor for this site, and have explored using it to create pages. I’ve never been 100% satisfied with what Gemini or ChatGPT has created, but I will say it’s carved my workflows significantly. I don’t envision ever wholly turning things over to AI, and see the possibility of adopting Cassidy’s attitude of “Everything on this website is written by me, personally, not an AI.” This quote she shared really gives me pause: “If you couldn’t be bothered to write something, I won’t be bothered to read it”. Yeah, I feel that. I know there’s a reason it’s called “AI slop” and the last thing I want to do is contribute to the enshittification of the internet.

So, have you created a “Slash AI” page? If so, have you shared it to this list (https://slashai.page/)? If not, but you want to, submit it here. Are you planning on it? Let me know! I’m intensely curious.