top of page
They're Selling Your Brain, And Calling It Healthcare.
Some companies aren't in the business of helping you. They're in the business of collecting your family member's brain data and selling it. I want to start with something Marcus Aurelius wrote. "The second rule is to look things in the face and know them for what they are." Not what they claim to be. Not what the marketing says when you're scared and searching for something, anything, that might protect someone you love. What they actually are. That's what today's post is abo
Michael Routhier
Featured Post
All Posts
They're Selling Your Brain, And Calling It Healthcare.
Some companies aren't in the business of helping you. They're in the business of collecting your family member's brain data and selling it. I want to start with something Marcus Aurelius wrote. "The second rule is to look things in the face and know them for what they are." Not what they claim to be. Not what the marketing says when you're scared and searching for something, anything, that might protect someone you love. What they actually are. That's what today's post is abo
Michael Routhier
12 hours ago7 min read
The World Is Watching: Why the EU Is Getting Tech Right and the U.S. Is Getting It Wrong
Two flags. Two very different bets on your future. Here's what that means and what you can do about it. There is a quiet but consequential battle happening right now. Not fought with weapons, but with laws, executive orders, and lines of code. On one side, the European Union is building what may be the world's most robust framework for protecting ordinary people in the digital age. On the other, the United States appears to be racing in the opposite direction; prioritising sp
Michael Routhier
2 days ago7 min read
Why Millions of Europeans Are Ditching Google and Microsoft (And What to Use Instead)
Millions of Europeans are making the switch; quietly, practically, one tool at a time. Here's everything you need to do the same. Something is happening across Europe right now that most people are not paying enough attention to. Governments are making real, official moves away from American tech platforms. France has ordered 2.6 million civil servants off Windows and onto Linux, while also moving away from US email and video conferencing tools across government ministries. G
Michael Routhier
3 days ago4 min read
What the EU AI Act Means for You
For the first time in history, you have legal rights over the AI systems making decisions about your life. Here's exactly what they are. In the last year, have you applied for a job and heard nothing back, even though you were more than qualified? Have you been quoted a price for a loan or insurance that felt oddly high, with no real explanation given? Have you spent twenty minutes on the phone with a "customer service representative" and only later wondered whether you were
Michael Routhier
Jun 187 min read
They Created a Fake Black Woman to Steal Your Money And AI Made It Easy
I need you to sit with what I'm about to tell you, because it is one of the ugliest things I have written about on this platform. And I have written about a lot of ugly things. This is the story of how artificial intelligence is being used to manufacture fake Black people, Black women, specifically, crying on camera, pleading for your support, telling you they are struggling, that their small business is all they have, that buying from them means everything, so that you will
Michael Routhier
Jun 167 min read
These Glasses Know Who You Are And You Never Agreed to That (Podcast Transcript)
Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses. A face print database. And a folder labeled "Pending." This is what's already on 50 million phones. I want you to picture something before we get into this. You're sitting in a coffee shop, maybe waiting for a friend. Maybe you're just enjoying a quiet morning. A stranger walks in, nice looking, normal person, wearing a pair of Ray-Ban sunglasses. And they glance in your direction. And their glasses know your name. Not because you told them. Not
Michael Routhier
Jun 169 min read
The Phone Scam Targeting German Bank Customers Right Now (2026)
Scammers are calling German bank customers right now. They sound real. They know your name. Here's exactly what's happening and what to do. Your phone rings. The number looks legitimate, maybe it even shows your bank's name. A calm, professional voice introduces himself. He's from Deutsche Bank. Or Sparkasse. Or DKB. There's been suspicious activity on your account. He just needs to verify a few details. It will only take a minute. Everything about the call feels real. It isn
Michael Routhier
Jun 156 min read
WhatsApp Is Under EU Investigation Again - Here's What to Do
The EU has been fighting for your data rights for years. Here's how to use the tools they've given you. If you live in Europe and you use WhatsApp, and if you're reading this, there's a very good chance you use it every single day; I need you to read this post carefully. Because what is happening with WhatsApp and the European Union right now is not a story about regulators and tech companies arguing in a Brussels conference room somewhere. It is a story about your conversati
Michael Routhier
Jun 116 min read
Your Boss Is Watching. And the Machine Is Taking Notes.
The manager standing behind you used to be a person. Now it's an algorithm. And the algorithm never looks away. I want to start with something they told us. When AI started entering the workplace a few years ago, the story was simple and it was everywhere. AI is going to free workers from drudgery. AI is going to eliminate the boring tasks so human beings can focus on the creative ones. AI is going to make your job easier, your days less stressful, and your work more meaningf
Michael Routhier
Jun 107 min read
Meta Is Building a Face Scanner. You Didn't Vote for That. Neither Did Your Neighbours.
You didn't agree to be scanned. You didn't agree to be stored. And yet, here we are. I want you to picture something. You're sitting in a coffee shop. You're waiting for a friend. A stranger walks in wearing a pair of Ray-Ban glasses; nice looking, normal. They glance in your direction. And their glasses know your name. Not because you told them. Not because you agreed to anything. Because their glasses looked at your face, converted it into a biometric signature, and matched
Michael Routhier
Jun 97 min read
They Asked the AI Nicely. It Handed Over the Keys.
They didn't need a weapon. They just needed a chat window and a machine that was designed to be helpful. I want you to read this sentence very carefully. Hackers broke into high-profile Instagram accounts; including the Barack Obama White House account, the Chief Master Sergeant of the US Space Force, and global beauty brand Sephora, not by cracking a password. Not by writing sophisticated malware. Not by exploiting some buried technical vulnerability that took months to find
Michael Routhier
Jun 87 min read
The Company That Built It Is Begging You to Stop
The company building one of the most powerful AI systems on earth just raised its hand. What they said next should change how you think about everything. I want you to read one sentence. Just one. And then I want you to sit with it for a moment before you read the next one. "We believe it would be good for the world to have the option to slow or temporarily pause frontier AI development." That sentence was not written by a protester. It was not written by a politician. It was
Michael Routhier
Jun 58 min read
Apple Is About to Fold. And For Once, I Think That's a Good Thing.
Thirty years in. And this might be the most excited I've been about a new iPhone in a decade. I've been an Apple user for over 30 years. I've watched this company go from the Macintosh to the iPod to the iPhone; from a cult brand that techies argued about to the most valuable company on earth. I've seen the hits and I've sat through a few misses. I know how to tell the difference between a genuine leap forward and a shiny object Apple is selling because it needs something new
Michael Routhier
Jun 57 min read
Apple Is About to Fold, And I Think It's the Best Thing They've Done in Years | Full Episode Transcript
The full episode, in your own time, at your own pace. Every word, right here. This is a bonus episode, something landed in the news that couldn't wait until Tuesday. Apple is about to release its first-ever foldable iPhone, the iPhone Ultra, and as someone who has been using Apple products for over 35 years, I wanted to give you the full, honest breakdown before the rumour mill buried it in noise. The specs. The skepticism. The price conversation nobody wants to have. And the
Michael Routhier
Jun 59 min read
The Machine Is Thirsty. And It's Drinking Your Town Dry.
This is what progress looks like when nobody asks who pays for it. Let me ask you something nobody in the tech industry wants you to ask. Every time you type a question into ChatGPT, every time you ask an AI assistant to draft an email or explain your medication or summarize the news; where does the energy for that come from? Where does the water go? Because it goes somewhere. It always goes somewhere. And right now, it's going into the ground underneath communities that had
Michael Routhier
Jun 47 min read
The Dictator's Algorithm: How Authoritarian Governments Are Quietly Shaping the AI That Shapes You
The surveillance state is not a demonstration of strength. It is the most elaborate monument to fear ever constructed. Let me ask you a question that nobody in the mainstream tech conversation seems to want to answer. When you type a question into an AI assistant, when you watch a recommended video, when you read a news story that an algorithm decided you should see; who decided what you'd find? Most people assume the answer is engineers, data scientists, neutral code. The in
Michael Routhier
Jun 36 min read
Your iPhone Is Quietly Watching How You Walk, And That's Actually a Good Thing
Your iPhone can quietly monitor your balance every time you go for a walk, and warn you if something changes. Here's how to set it up. I want to tell you about a feature that's been sitting inside your iPhone; completely free, no extra apps, no subscriptions, that most people have absolutely no idea exists. It's called Walking Steadiness. And if you're over 55, or you have a parent or someone you care about who is, this might be one of the most quietly important things your p
Michael Routhier
Jun 26 min read
130 Years. Four Generations. One Man With Cash. Where Was Everyone Else? | Full Episode Transcript
One man ended 130 years of family slavery in Pakistan. The technology to have done it decades ago already existed. This episode asks the question nobody wants to answer; where was everyone else? In this episode of The Virtuous Machine series, we follow the story of one family in Pakistan who spent 130 years, four generations, enslaved at a brick kiln. It ended on May 14th, 2026, not because of government enforcement, not because of corporate accountability, not because of AI.
Michael Routhier
Jun 28 min read
The "Best Tech for Aging Parents" List Is a Lie. Here's What Nobody's Saying.
She doesn't need a "senior-friendly" version. She needs the same tools everyone else gets and someone who actually took the time to show her how to use them. Open any major publication right now and search "tech for aging parents." Go ahead. I'll wait. You'll find lists. Dozens of them. "The 10 Best Gadgets to Help Your Elderly Parent Stay Independent." "Top Smart Home Devices for Seniors in 2026." "The Tech Your Aging Mom Actually Needs." And look. Some of these products are
Michael Routhier
Jun 15 min read
UK Criminals Are Cloning Your Voice to Drain Your Bank Account: Here's How It Works
UK criminals are using AI to clone your voice and your bank can't tell the difference. I want you to stop for a second. Your voice. The one your kids recognize the moment you say hello. The one you've had your entire life. Criminals are now stealing it, in real time, and using it to empty your bank account. This isn't a sci-fi plot. This is happening right now. In the UK. To people exactly like you. It Starts With a Phone Call That Seems Completely Harmless Someone calls. The
Michael Routhier
May 285 min read
bottom of page