Sims, sEMG and soft robotics

It’s no coincidence that the launch of endless feeds of AI-generated video from Meta’s Vibes and OpenAI’s Sora have coincided with a marked increase in video slop online, but what kind of social media are these platforms creating? One that’s littered with dead celebrities, deepfakes and juvenile humour, normalising the manipulation of a real person’s image just for fun. In this episode, Elaine and Kelly wonder if Denmark’s proposed new copyright law could be a death knell for “synthetic resurrection” and rampant deepfakes. They also explain why it’s good for electric vehicles to have a digital passport for their battery, bring you an update on the Chat Control debate, and have a great recommendation for book lovers.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tech and democracy expert Liz Carolan joins Kelly and Elaine to explain some new regulations on political advertising hitting the EU this week, right in the midst of an Irish presidential election. These rules have been introduced to minimise political interference and ensure transparency, but the response from platforms is likely to make this situation even murkier.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Zuckerberg’s live demo of gesture controls for his Meta glasses may have failed, but the underlying technology in the wrist-worn Neural Band, known as surface electromyography (sEMG), made us curious about potential applications in medtech. To find out more we spoke to EMG expert Prof Madeleine Lowery, who explained the differences between using these sensors in the lab or clinic versus commercial products. Sticking with medtech marvels, we also spoke to Prof Garry Duffy about soft robotics that can squeeze things inside your body – and why that’s a good thing. Also in this jam-packed episode, Kelly shares her thoughts on what the EA buyout could mean for The Sims and why her current gaming pursuits are taking her offline.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Platforms are really stretching the bounds of privacy rights with their terms of use these days. With recent changes to terms at Spotify, LinkedIn and Academia.edu in the spotlight, we called on data protection expert Daragh O Brien to give us a steer on how we should navigate impenetrable, and sneaky, user agreements.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of For Tech’s Sake, Elaine and Kelly discuss TikTok’s potential takeover by a consortium of Donald Trump allies, and the uptick of fake online content inflaming the discourse about real events.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Joining Elaine this week are two special guests on two very different topics. Cybersecurity expert Brian Honan fills us in on what’s going on with the EU’s Chat Control proposal and explains how it could do more harm than good. Then, author Sylvia Leatham discusses her book Chaos Theory, which takes the familiarity of the workplace and mixes it up with a socially awkward robot.If you want to reach out to your MEP about concerns regarding Chat Control, go to FightChatControl.eu. And head to linktr.ee/SylviaLeatham to find out where you can pick up a copy of Chaos Theory.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We have things to say about another survey, this time all about AI in the workplace. We look at what some other research is telling us about AI adoption and consider the ethics of pushing gen-AI technologies on workers in light of some recent revelations.We also learn all about peer-to-peer energy sharing from Sweta Malik, a senior power systems researcher at the UCD Energy Institute. And, as usual, we end with our picks of what’s good in the tech world right now, shining the spotlight on some great work from Irish artists. Content warning: This episode touches on the topics of self-harm and suicide. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Find out about the deep-tech side of femtech from our special guest Dr Tanya Mulcahy, director of Health Innovation Hub Ireland and founder of FemTech Ireland. In this episode we also try to get to the bottom of some bizarre search suggestions on TikTok. And remember to listen to the end for our suggestion of something good you can find online today. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today is gonna be the day that Kelly and Elaine are gonna throw a look back on a bleak week of tech news, from some shocking revelations over at Meta AI to some concerning behaviour from Stripe’s customer service team. We also look into why VPN advertising has ramped up in Ireland and leave you with something you can use to spend your days in the sunshine. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We are delighted to be joined in this episode by Benji Foley, a PhD researcher at DCU's Institute for Research on Genders and Sexualities, who explains the concept of digital sexual literacy and why it’s important we build this up in young people. In particular, Benji’s research looks at digital sexual literacy among young people from the LGBTQ+ community in Ireland, and what he’s learned in the early stages of his research might surprise you. Kelly and Elaine also look at the release of OpenAI’s new GPT-5 model, a Google Maps blunder that led a women to RTÉ looking for Lidl, some bad maths in the media and billionaire Dermot Desmond’s unrealistic expectations of autonomous vehicles.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.