19 new quotes on the wall today, from Lauren K. Williams, Don Overton, Jack Clark and more ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
AI Zeitgeist Oct 20, 2026

Today on the wall

19 new quotes

Everything that went up at noon, in the order of the wall.

Open the wall Archive

 
Reading an AI-generated solution can be extremely painful and time-consuming

Lauren K. Williams
Harvard mathematician and co-organizer of the First Proof testing consortium, describing AI-generated math proofs in 2026.

current.fas.harvard.edu On the wall

I Got My Independence Back

Don Overton
A blind veteran, describing the effect of Meta's AI glasses after losing his eyesight in a bunker explosion.

Reason Magazine On the wall

We see everything, from living rooms to naked bodies

A Meta contractor in Kenya reportedly describing access to video footage captured by users of Meta's AI glasses, as reported by Swedish publications.

Reason Magazine On the wall

When the teacher becomes the student

Jack Clark
In his IMF lecture, describing an AI system finding errors in expert-supplied physics answers on the TheoPhysEval benchmark.

Import AI On the wall

Whatever it found was treated as a finding about a man

Jeremy Moss
From a 3 Quarks Daily essay on AI-detection tools, reflecting on novelist Jerry Falade's manuscript being flagged by AI-detection software.

3 Quarks Daily On the wall

Without my knowledge or consent

Jerry Falade
Novelist Jerry Falade, quoted in Publishing Confidential (September 2026), on a journalist submitting his unpublished manuscript to AI-detection software.

3 Quarks Daily On the wall

We are the cows of the future

Yuval Noah Harari
Harari, in an interview with Czech Television shared widely by industrialist Harsh Goenka, warned that humans could lose understanding of AI-driven financial and legal systems much as cows cannot understand human economic systems.

The Economic Times On the wall

Hot Cocoa Buffalo Chicken Gingerbread Dip with Marshmallow Topping, anyone?

Example cited in an AdExchanger report on AI-generated recipe sites flooding programmatic ad tech with low-effort, keyword-stuffed content.

AdExchanger On the wall

They're the smartest people in the world

Donald Trump
President Trump, defending AI CEOs against calls for stricter guardrails after a White House meeting on a voluntary AI 'constitution,' October 2026.

ABC News On the wall

Really, really scary

Emily Blunt
Actor Emily Blunt reacting to the unveiling of AI 'starlet' Tilly Norwood, quoted in The Guardian, October 2026.

the Guardian On the wall

They REALLY don't want to live near datacenters

Dario Perkins
Managing director of global macro at TS Lombard, wrote in an October 2026 note warning that political backlash could trigger an AI bust.

Business Insider On the wall

One high-profile accident turns AI toxic

Dario Perkins
Managing director of global macro at TS Lombard, warned in an October 2026 note that a single incident could rapidly shift public opinion against AI.

Business Insider On the wall

This is what I will be doing

Elon Musk
Following his criticism of Anthropic's share donation plan, stated on X that he would distribute shares directly to the public.

The Times of India On the wall

Making autonomous AI systems with a mandate to neutralize threats is incredibly dangerous

David Krueger
University of Montreal machine learning professor David Krueger, quoted by The Intercept, on the Pentagon's ECHOTRIBBLE agentic AI hacking program, October 2026.

Gizmodo On the wall

We will become an AI-first warfighting force across all domains

Pete Hegseth
US Secretary of Defense/War Pete Hegseth, in a Pentagon press release, January 2026, on military AI ambitions.

Gizmodo On the wall

I don't like that, it must be AI

Al Tompkins
Describing how AI gives people an excuse to discount real things they disagree with, in a KSAT report on AI political ads, October 2026.

KSAT On the wall

You got paid to work on tricky little logic puzzles

Jeremy Scheff
From Jeremy Scheff's essay on the loss coding agents bring to programmers who loved solving puzzles, quoted by Simon Willison, October 2026.

Simon Willison’s Weblog On the wall

If directly solving those problems was a big part of your enjoyment, the loss is very real

Jeremy Scheff
From Jeremy Scheff's essay on how coding agents changed programming as a craft, quoted by Simon Willison, October 2026.

Simon Willison’s Weblog On the wall

They are bureaucratic natives

Yuval Noah Harari
In a Czech public television interview, October 2026, on AI's advantage in administrative and financial systems.

ynetglobal On the wall

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