I love this and I know you will, too. An 87-year-old guy in Bucks County, Pennsylvania is having a party tonight. Doug Turner went door to door with handwritten invites. The winter celebration is from “4 p.m. until the cops arrive.” His neighbor shared their doorbell cam chat on TikTok. No strangers at the party, but after Doug said he liked the snail mail, letters flooding the PO Box his daughter set up. He’s planning to reply to each one with his special fountain pen.
Bots are talking to each other
© Peshkova | Dreamstime.com, © Tero Vesalainen | Dreamstime.com
Stop me if you’ve heard this one. One AI bot calls up another, and they chat back and forth in English. Once they realize they’re both AI, they switch to a secret-to-them language totally undecipherable to human ears.
No punch line, because it’s not a joke. Watch this viral video from an AI hackathon that shows the exchange. I’ll wait.
I’m sure you noticed that when the bots are chatting in English, it’s pretty normal. Once they switch to their secret language, it’s all whirs and screeches, like a dial-up modem.
It sent a shiver down my spine
You know I embrace AI and all that it has done to change our world. AI bots talking to each other and leaving humans totally out of the equation, though, is terrifying to me, and it should be for you, too.
This particular screeching secret bot language was created by two engineers from Meta, Boris Starkov and Anton Pidkuiko. For the record, they took home first place at the hackathon.
It’s called Gibberlink Mode. It uses a protocol called GGwaves that transmits data over sound instead of full words. The engineers say the bots are 80% more efficient with Gibberlink Mode than when using human language.
It’s not the first time
Facebook scrapped an experiment back in 2017 after two AI programs seemed to create their own way of communicating that researchers couldn’t understand.
They must have had the same question I do now: How can ethical and security safeguards be enforced if we don’t know what the bots are saying to each other? The answer: We can’t, and that’s bad news.
The biggest threat of AI has always been the potential of a digital Frankenstein’s monster we can’t control. Giving AI a language all its own is inviting trouble: “Let’s kill them all!”
👇 Use the share icons below to let those in your circle know what’s going in the AI space. I bet they’ll be shocked!
The folks trading retirement for influencer status
TikTok.com/@therealirvinrandle, Instagram.com/trainwithjoan, Instagram.com/grandmajoysroadtrip
Who do you imagine when I say “social media influencer?” I’ll bet a young, hot model or a chiseled guy into cars. It’s time to expand your horizons.
I love that Joy Ryan didn’t even get her passport until she was 91. At 94, she’s on a mission to visit every continent with her grandson. So far, she’s at four out of seven. Joy is also the oldest person to visit all 63 U.S. national parks.
Welcome to the zen zone
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How to go viral on Instagram
Want your content to actually take off? Here’s a simple framework to boost your chances of getting it out there.
Math problem pyramid scheme: A fake Facebook event disguised as a “genius-level math contest” has been a top post for half a year, somehow racking up 115M+ views. Spoiler: It’s just a viral engagement trap. People are still arguing about its fake equation in the comments a year later. My math teacher called me average. How mean.
Up over 2%
Shares of Primo Brands after Saratoga water went viral. The hype started when fitness influencer Ashton Hall dunked his head in a bowl of it for his morning routine. Now, 100 million views later, folks are rushing to buy it and bananas since he rubs the peels on his face.
Time to go viral: Want more likes, views and comments on your Instagram Reels? Post during peak hours. Noon is prime time, especially on Fridays. Chasing likes? Try midnight. But timing isn’t everything. Click here to find the best days and hours that match your niche.
Remember the 'Charlie Bit My Finger' video?
You know, the toddler crying because his baby brother bit his finger. Almost 900 million views later, Charlie is 18 and says the clip helped him pay for law school. The 55-second clip has earned his family over $1 million. A big chunk of that came in 2021 when the video sold as an NFT for over $600,000.
Light on the wallet, big on value
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🪇 Amazon has a name for products going viral: Movers and Shakers. Hit this page to see what folks are loving. Neat, an emergency weather radio is tops in electronics.
We may earn a commission from purchases, but our recommendations are always objective.
Katy Perry’s Met Gala pics? Totally fake. Photos of her “attending” the fashion event are going viral, but they’re AI-generated. Katy posted them herself, saying she couldn’t make it because of her tour. This is the second year it’s happened to her, and even her mom got tricked last time.
🌿 2,000-year-old garden under Jesus’ tomb? This is amazing. Italian archaeologists just found ancient grapevines and olive trees buried beneath the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the same place long believed to house the tomb of Jesus. There’s also this post going viral about Jesus’ body found under the Great Pyramid of Egypt.
📈 Want to go viral in 2025? Talk about tariffs. With President Trump making it a hot topic, regular folks want to know how it’ll affect their jobs and everyday prices. Just ask comedian Walter Masterson (paywall link). He posted a debate about who really pays tariffs on beans and corn (Spoiler: not foreign governments), and it became his biggest hit with millions of views.
Modern day Jonah
A dad watched a giant whale swallow his son and caught the whole thing on video. Phew, the kid survived! The whale spat him and the kayak he was in out after a few seconds. One moment he’s paddling, the next he’s completely gone.
Not backing down: Plastic surgeon Elisabeth Potter went public about UnitedHealthcare calling her mid-surgery to deny a breast cancer patient’s hospital stay. After her post went viral, she got a letter from UnitedHealthcare’s big-time lawyers demanding a retraction and an apology. In a post on X, Potter said, “I will continue to speak up for my patients because they deserve better.” Good for her.
⏰ What do “a.m.” and “p.m.” mean? This is unbelievable. A post on X went viral asking that question. In case you don’t know, “a.m.” stands for “ante meridiem” (Latin for “before midday”), and “p.m.” is “post meridiem” (“after midday”). I’m shocked by how many folks are surprised 12 p.m. is noon and 12 a.m. is midnight. How does this happen?
January 4th, 2025
Spies target the U.S., and the NSA warns: Shut down your phone. AI Hitler speeches go viral on TikTok, ChatGPT isn’t your secret keeper, and friendship apps are booming as more people look for new connections.
AI will watch everything you do
Are you behaving badly? Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison predicts that AI will soon keep you in line. In other news: MoviePass fraud exposed, Snapchat uses your face for ads, and the story behind the viral ‘Hawk Tuah’ girl.
iPhone 16 launch date: Here’s what you can expect
Mark your calendars! The iPhone 16 is dropping this September. Also, Telegram’s CEO gets arrested in France — authorities say he didn’t do enough to stop shady stuff on the app. Plus, Amazon Echo fails and fake election maps going viral.
The best times to post on Instagram
Want your posts to go viral? Timing is everything! Here are the best times to share your content and watch your engagement soar.