Uncanny Valley: Minneapolis Misinformation, TikTok’s New Owners, and Moltbot Hype

In today’s episode, hosts Brian Barrett and Zoë Schiffer are joined by Tim Marchman, WIRED’s director of science, politics, and security, to discuss the news of the week—including how far-right influencers spread misinformation in Minneapolis, and why TikTok’s US version is off to a rocky start. Plus, we dive into why some people are currently obsessed with the AI assistant Moltbot.

Articles mentioned in this episode:

• ICE Is Using Palantir’s AI Tools to Sort Through Tips
• Google DeepMind Staffers Ask Leaders to Keep Them ‘Physically Safe’ From ICE
• TikTok Is Now Collecting Even More Data About Its Users. Here Are the 3 Biggest Changes
• Moltbot Is Taking Over Silicon Valley

You can follow Brian Barrett on Bluesky at @brbarrett, Zoë Schiffer on Bluesky at @zoeschiffer, and Tim Marchman on Bluesky at @timmarchman. Write to us at uncannyvalley@wired.com.

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