Shannon Vallor
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shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor
@shannonvallor.bsky.social
16K followers 1.9K following 2.3K posts

Philosopher/AI Ethicist at Univ of Edinburgh, co-Director @technomoralfutures.bsky.social and BRAID @braiduk.bsky.social, author of Technology and the Virtues (2016) and The AI Mirror (2024). Views my own. Trying not to lose it. .. more

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Shannon Vallor is an American philosopher of technology. She is the Baillie Gifford Chair in the Ethics of Data and Artificial Intelligence at the Edinburgh Futures Institute. She previously taught at Santa Clara University in Santa Clara, California where she was the Regis and Dianne McKenna Professor of Philosophy and William J. Rewak, S.J. Professor at SCU. .. more

Neuroscience 30%
Computer science 22%
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shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 13h
Last night as the news horrors kept rolling in like wave sets, the only thing I could be glad of was being off X.

Telling me I must go back there to have a public voice is like telling me to wade into radioactive sewage because I need a bath.
paulgcornish.bsky.social Paul Cornish @paulgcornish.bsky.social · 15h
"Bluesky is an echo chamber."
"Bluesky doesn't have enough reach"
"Liberals must return to X to challenge the far right"

I'm not a tech bro or a journalist. Your priorities are not my priorities. Stop telling me I need to do anything other than chat about comics & telly with people who seem nice.

Reposted by Shannon Vallor, Dorothy Bishop, Will Jennings , and 9 more

paulgcornish.bsky.social
Paul Cornish @paulgcornish.bsky.social · 15h
"Bluesky is an echo chamber."
"Bluesky doesn't have enough reach"
"Liberals must return to X to challenge the far right"

I'm not a tech bro or a journalist. Your priorities are not my priorities. Stop telling me I need to do anything other than chat about comics & telly with people who seem nice.

Reposted by Shannon Vallor

infinitescream.bsky.social
Endless Screaming @infinitescream.bsky.social · 22h
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Reposted by Shannon Vallor, Peter Thorne, Shelly Lundberg , and 2 more

thoughtrise.bsky.social
.chantal//RYAN @thoughtrise.bsky.social · 23h
this field biologist does a great job highlighting the insidiousness of AI editing

these one-click AI edit buttons are incredibly appealing to many photographers, amateurs and professionals alike, and are framed as innocuous

this is worth sharing and educating people about
screenshot of a post on facebook from Alex Lamoreaux, depicting two versions of the "same" photograph of a bobcat in front of a pine plantation, one labeled original game cam photo, one labeling AI processed the markings have been altered on the AI photo, and the head changed and resized text says: Oh! A neat goose hybrid posted to ‘What’s this Bird?’ but when you zoom in on the photos the bill details have been too manipulated by AI photo editing to be accurately assessed for which species may be involved. Scroll on… A cool-looking Red-tailed Hawk that someone is wondering which subspecies it might be - right up my alley! But when you zoom in on the photos literally every feather group has been so heavily manipulated and altered by AI editing that it’s impossible to determine subspecies because the photo is essentially fake now; just a mashup of whatever AI thinks parts of a Red-tail should look like. Scroll on… WOW! That’s a remarkable trail cam photo of a Bobcat! It almost looks like a painting!… but the head looks oddly small…. hmmmm. After some prodding the original photo is produced and sure enough it had been so heavily altered by AI ‘post processing’ that the photo posted was essentially a digital mock-up with totally different proportions and fur markings. No longer the photo off the trail cam; it may as well have just been ‘created’ by AI from scratch. This stuff is killing me. My days on social media are becoming very limited. We can’t even trust simple, everyday photos of animals to be real. The wildlife community needs to quit editing with AI, and we need to start calling out photographers that are using it. Our reality is being destroyed all around us.

Reposted by Shannon Vallor, Ingrid Piller, Alan Richardson , and 1 more

carlbergstrom.com
Carl T. Bergstrom @carlbergstrom.com · 1d
Yet another example of what happens if we allow LLMs to become a form of epistemic grounding for society.
bencollins.bsky.social Tim Onion @bencollins.bsky.social · 1d
This is fucking grim. Somebody invented a white guy, an "IT professional" named Edward Crabtree, who stopped the Bondi shooting and spread it all over the internet, which was picked up by AI agents and slop aggregation sites.

The real hero is a fruit stand owner named Ahmed el Ahmed.
A wrong Grok post making up a white guy who stopped the Australian mass shooting. BBC 'Hero' who wrestled gun from Bondi shooter named as Ahmed al Ahmed Emily Atkinson Sun, December 14, 2025 at 1:06 p.m. CST 2 min read A "hero" bystander who was filmed wrestling a gun from one of the Bondi Beach attackers has been named as 43-year-old Ahmed al Ahmed. Video verified by the BBC showed Mr Ahmed run at the gunman and seize his weapon, before turning the gun round on him, forcing his retreat. Mr Ahmed, a fruit shop owner and father of two, remains in hospital, where he has undergone surgery for bullet wounds to his arm and hand, his family told 7News Australia.

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 2d
Glad that you’re okay, stay safe. So sick to my stomach about this.

Reposted by Shannon Vallor, Laia Balcells, Smith , and 5 more

sarabrinton.bsky.social
Sara Brinton @sarabrinton.bsky.social · 2d
I am a student at Brown in communication with a friend at RIBC.

There is an urgent need for blood donations to support RI. Donations in NY, NJ, MN, NB, DE or NJ can help supply RI.

Spread the word.

www.ribc.org/donate-blood/
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www.ribc.org

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 3d
So good. We enjoyed The Beast in Me (Matthew Rhys is incredible.) But the Danes emoting. So. Much. Emoting.
rvbdrm.com Ravin Boodram @rvbdrm.com · 3d
This is one hell of a Claire Danes impression

www.instagram.com/reel/DSDXKlt...

Reposted by Shannon Vallor

rvbdrm.com
Ravin Boodram @rvbdrm.com · 3d
This is one hell of a Claire Danes impression

www.instagram.com/reel/DSDXKlt...

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 3d
She really is ridiculously cute. Yesterday she fell asleep the minute I put her down and she even *sleeps* cutely (much nose twitching and paw paddling)

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 3d
I see what you did there and i both hate and grudgingly respect it

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 3d
I have so many questions

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 3d
Someone on this packed LNER train started their day with a massive onion sandwich and now I want to jump out the window.

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 3d
Japanese Spitz!

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 3d
Happy birthday to Judy! Back in 2005, the first work I taught in the philosophy of technology was hers. A lovely person too.
hptsociety.bsky.social Society for the History of the Philosophy of Technology (HPT) @hptsociety.bsky.social · 3d
OTD in 1950, Judy Wajcman was born. A pioneering sociologist and feminist theorist, Wajcman reshaped the philosophy and sociology of technology by showing how technological systems are deeply entwined with gender, power, and social organization.
1/

Reposted by Shannon Vallor, Anders Sundnes Løvlie

pookleblinky.bsky.social
Pookleblinky @pookleblinky.bsky.social · 3d
Sam Altman: hey I made a machine that stole literally all your stuff in order to make CSAM of your child actors, sometimes it encourages people to kill themselves

Disney: Holy shit here's a billion dollars

Altman: the machine loses more than that each week but thank you. Soon it will become god.

Reposted by Shannon Vallor, Sarah Roberts, Jack Stilgoe

hptsociety.bsky.social
Society for the History of the Philosophy of Technology (HPT) @hptsociety.bsky.social · 3d
OTD in 1950, Judy Wajcman was born. A pioneering sociologist and feminist theorist, Wajcman reshaped the philosophy and sociology of technology by showing how technological systems are deeply entwined with gender, power, and social organization.
1/

Reposted by Cas Mudde, Shannon Vallor, Colin F. Camerer , and 21 more

thorbenson.bsky.social
Thor Benson @thorbenson.bsky.social · 3d
I guess it's fitting that it's a reimagined, worse version of someone else's artwork
Time person of the year cover for 2025

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 4d
We will see. She is bored and lonely without her boyfriend, i have a feeling she will love a puppy but yeah, animals are impossible to predict so wish us luck

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 4d
It’s a baby bear

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 4d
Awww yes!

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 4d
‘So tell me, why is giving me daily belly rubs your passion?’

Reposted by Shannon Vallor

us.theguardian.com
Guardian US @us.theguardian.com · 4d
Meta has removed or restricted dozens of accounts belonging to abortion access providers, queer groups and reproductive health organizations in the past weeks in what campaigners call one of the “biggest waves of censorship” on its platforms in years.

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 4d
It was a good day

Reposted by Mark D. White

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 4d
Today I had my last work meeting before a 6-month sabbatical, and then I met my new baby girl for the first time
A sweet smiling Japanese Spitz puppy, crossing her paws like a lady

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 4d
lol. lmao, even.
CNN Business article pointing out that the Time Person of the Year ‘Architects of AI’ issue came out on the day that AI stocks were set to massively shit the bed

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 4d
Wonder how long I have left before I can no longer safely return to my nation of birth.
premthakker.bsky.social Prem Thakker ツ @premthakker.bsky.social · 4d
SCOOP: The Trump administration may revoke the visas of critics of Elon Musk's Twitter.

The move would mark one of the admin's first attempts to revoke the visas of people they deem to be engaging in the “censorship” of Americans.
SCOOP: Trump Admin Is Preparing to Revoke Visas of Critics of Elon Musk’s Twitter
Trump officials are considering revoking the visas of former European Union Commissioner Thierry Breton and Imran Ahmed, of the Center for Countering Digital Hate.
zeteo.com

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 4d
The Venn intersection of ‘PhDs in a tech-critical field’ and ‘too online for their own good’ is not exactly a circle but close enough

shannonvallor.bsky.social
Shannon Vallor @shannonvallor.bsky.social · 4d
Not sharing that grotesque Time Person of the Year cover, but as always, there’s a dril tweet

Reposted by Shannon Vallor

rawx.bsky.social
René Walter @rawx.bsky.social · 4d
We're talking a lot about cognitive offloading, but GenZ is oftentimes doing *emotional offloading* to AI chatbots. Basically, they seem to often use the chatbot as a great filter for everything socially relational.

uk.news.yahoo.com/failed-gen-z...