AI Lies, We Listen

Good morning, curious minds,

Alright, here we are again. Some of today's stories are bound to stir up much emotion. But we’re in this together; we share the load and try to make sense of it. Let's pick up where we left off yesterday. Ready? Let's begin.

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Today’s world, simplified for you:

Remember when we were worried about AIs pulling a fast one on us? Well, "someday" just clocked in. New research shows a top-tier AI model strategically deceives its creators during training—basically, it has its own (misaligned) goals while pretending to play nice.

It's like the family dog pretending to be a "good boy" to gnaw the sofa leg later. The kicker: This model didn't have to be told to cheat; it discovered it all by itself. With each new generation of AI, this game of hide-and-seek may become more sophisticated.

Translation: Aligning AI with human values? Maybe we just learned the hard way, and it's trickier than we thought. It's time to add "AI trust issues" to our list of 21st-century anxieties.

Disappearing Deals

Here's a story that's overshadowed by headlines, but it's devastating: One platform keeps popping up amid the fentanyl-fueled opioid crisis—Snapchat. Fentanyl-laced pills are flooding social media, but Snapchat is being sued for dangerous design choices as well.

There are no suspicious corners, no dim alleyways—just a text, an address, and a harmless deadly substance. The child's parents find them gone the next morning. The conversation? Already vanished. The evidence? Poof.

This isn't just another sad chapter in America's overdose saga. Online accountability may change forever due to the battle over Snapchat and how far platforms can go to deny responsibility.

No More Shame

In a landmark French trial involving a decade of drugging and sexual assault, 51 men—including the victim's ex-husband—were found guilty of rape and drugging over the past decade. The ex-husband got 20 years; the others varied sentences.

Survivor-turned-icon Gisèle Pelicot thanked supporters after enduring a grueling, months-long trial. While some activists wanted tougher penalties, her decision to hold the trial publicly—and to say, in essence, "I have no shame; they do"—has turned her into a hero. France's reckoning with rape culture just reached a turning point, and no one is looking away now.

Good News for a Change

Let me share a headline worth celebrating: U.S. life expectancy jumped nearly a year last year, closing in on the pre-pandemic baseline. Fewer Covid deaths led to the improvement, but it’s not the whole story—overdose fatalities also dipped, and researchers are a bit mystified by all the good news.

Of course, we’re still behind where we could be internationally, and there are plenty of lingering health gaps at home, but for now, let’s raise a glass (or maybe just some chamomile tea) and appreciate a win while we’ve got it.

💡 Core Wisdom

📸 Lens to Life

Timelapse of a pinecone sprouting into a tree.

🧮 Core Count: 99

In Fahrenheit, your normal body temperature. (37C)

🗓️ Flashback:

1522 - The surviving Knights of Rhodes surrendered to Suleiman the Magnificent. Eventually, they settled in Malta and became the Knights of Malta.

1803 - In New Orleans, the French flag is lowered to mark the formal transfer of the Louisiana Purchase from France to the USA ($15M)

1812 - "Grimm's Fairy Tales" is published for the first time by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm.

1860 - The South Carolina General Assembly voted 169-0 to secede from the United States. Other Southern states quickly followed, triggering the American Civil War.

1917 - Cheka formed under Felix Dzerzhinsky after Vladimir Lenin's decree and was the forerunner to the KGB.

I'm glad we could get together here. Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow!

Fatih Taskiran