Is it just us, or is everyone else already bored with AI generated stuff?

The explosion of prompt-generated videos WITH OUR OWN FACES in fantastical scenarios is astonishing.

And also dull.

It’s eye-catching, but devoid of any substance. There’s zero emotional investment.

Video calls with 10-year-old Harriet often involve her head turning into a skull with rainbows pouring out of its ears, or a cute giraffe in a sombrero. The software tracks her facial expressions, and the cartoon head mimics her eyebrows and mouth movements with incredible accuracy. And it’s awful.

These technological advancements are exciting and interesting for a short burst, and then…. we’re bored.

Is AI generated art destined to live out its days in the Metaverse? Ha! Remember the Metaverse???

Col Fink and I are probably already behind on the hype cycle conversation. There’s plenty of talk about the AI financial bubble, and when it might pop.

In the meantime, keep being you. Do the work, write your newsletter, record your videos. The need for genuine humanity isn’t going anywhere. The fear of obsolescence in a world of AI hopefully is.

PS. Would AI generate face shadows on Col's head and terrible lighting in the opening frame of this video?? No, you need a real human videographer for that!!

Without vision correction, I truly cannot see how many finger’s you’re holding up. I can barely see how many fingers I’M holding up.

But I almost exclusively wear contact lenses, so even people who know me well are sometimes surprised to find out I'm short-sighted at all.

Glasses are an indicator of the problem AND the solution. Contact lenses quietly solve the problem without anybody knowing you even have one.

There's a big difference between visible and invisible help.

Following the wonderful reaction to our “I think I have ADHD” episode a couple of weeks ago, Col and I chat about the changing landscape around neurodiversity, and how bringing visibility

Shame stops many of us from sharing our differences and burdens. The more we see others share safely, without judgement, the easier it becomes.

If you can, be the glasses of your coping strategies, not the contact lenses.

My Airbnb roommate was a Hollywood movie star. I had no idea.

I was at the Toronto Greek Film Festival for Ange & The Boss, and the organiser said, “You’ve got a roommate tonight. You’ll like him.”

Five minutes later, he’s pointing at me going, “Wait… you’re the guy who made that Ange Postecoglou film?”

Turns out he knew half the people in it. He’d actually PLAYED with them in the 1980s.

His name was Costas Mandylor. When injury cut his football career short, he pursued acting. Quite successfully, it turned out!

You’ve probably seen him without realising. Picket Fences. The SAW movies. Cameos in shows like Sex & the City.

For the next two days, I got a quiet masterclass in confidence. Not arrogance, just ease. Costas was affable, generous, memorable, magnetic.

It got me thinking: was his charisma a reflection of his stardom… or the reason he became a star?

In this week’s Fink Tank, Col and I dig into conviction and success, and where it comes from.

Also, you should see his film The Aegean. He's the lead actor, he barely says a word in the entire film, and his performance is mesmerising.