Benjamin Tolen
@benjamintolen.bsky.social
Husband, Father, Author of "Merged By Magic".
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Merged By Magic: A Meeting of Minds
Amazon.com: Merged By Magic: A Meeting of Minds eBook : Tolen, Benjamin Marshall: Kindle Store
amzn.to
Shameless plug. Check out my book Merged by Magic: A Meeting of Minds, available in paperback, Kindle, and on Kindle Unlimited.
#booksky #writers #authors
amzn.to/3KoR6MB
#booksky #writers #authors
amzn.to/3KoR6MB
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
AI created visual ads got 20% more clicks than ads created by human experts as part of their jobs... unless people knew the ads are AI-created, which lowers click-throughs to 31% less than human-made ads.
Importantly, the AI ads were selected by human experts from many AI options.
Importantly, the AI ads were selected by human experts from many AI options.
December 6, 2025 at 5:53 PM
AI created visual ads got 20% more clicks than ads created by human experts as part of their jobs... unless people knew the ads are AI-created, which lowers click-throughs to 31% less than human-made ads.
Importantly, the AI ads were selected by human experts from many AI options.
Importantly, the AI ads were selected by human experts from many AI options.
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
While I wasn't looking, slide generation in Google's NotebookLM became impressive
Here I threw in 10 academic papers I authored & it summarized them into a coherent (& quite pretty) deck. I saw no hallucinations, but each slide is an image which results in some occasional spelling and graph issues
Here I threw in 10 academic papers I authored & it summarized them into a coherent (& quite pretty) deck. I saw no hallucinations, but each slide is an image which results in some occasional spelling and graph issues
December 4, 2025 at 3:31 AM
While I wasn't looking, slide generation in Google's NotebookLM became impressive
Here I threw in 10 academic papers I authored & it summarized them into a coherent (& quite pretty) deck. I saw no hallucinations, but each slide is an image which results in some occasional spelling and graph issues
Here I threw in 10 academic papers I authored & it summarized them into a coherent (& quite pretty) deck. I saw no hallucinations, but each slide is an image which results in some occasional spelling and graph issues
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
Ben asked. I answered. @92ndstreety.bsky.social @benstiller.redhour.com
November 29, 2025 at 3:51 PM
Ben asked. I answered. @92ndstreety.bsky.social @benstiller.redhour.com
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
No one will stop me from defending our freedoms.
November 29, 2025 at 1:02 AM
No one will stop me from defending our freedoms.
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
As someone who likes change — when it's slow enough to understand — I've been cheered up by Ilya's affirmation that scaling won't solve everything, and by recent signs that business adoption is slowing (Economist article below).
November 29, 2025 at 4:07 PM
As someone who likes change — when it's slow enough to understand — I've been cheered up by Ilya's affirmation that scaling won't solve everything, and by recent signs that business adoption is slowing (Economist article below).
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
I worry that systems ignoring the reality of AI use by pretending it is not happening are letting the worst versions of AI use win by default. We need policies that mitigate the worst harm & take advantage of the gains, like Josh Gans proposes for peer review joshuagans.substack.com/p/what-to-do...
November 27, 2025 at 5:19 PM
I worry that systems ignoring the reality of AI use by pretending it is not happening are letting the worst versions of AI use win by default. We need policies that mitigate the worst harm & take advantage of the gains, like Josh Gans proposes for peer review joshuagans.substack.com/p/what-to-do...
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
It is getting harder and harder to test AIs as they get "smarter" at a wide variety of tasks. The average task in GDPval took an hour for experts to assess, and even those tasks did not push current AIs to their limits.
November 25, 2025 at 1:59 AM
It is getting harder and harder to test AIs as they get "smarter" at a wide variety of tasks. The average task in GDPval took an hour for experts to assess, and even those tasks did not push current AIs to their limits.
What shocks me about X/Twitter accounts being foreign-controlled bots is that anyone is still shocked by it. Doesn’t anyone who uses this stuff know how it works anymore?
an old man is sitting on a couch in front of a nick nite sign ..
ALT: an old man is sitting on a couch in front of a nick nite sign ..
media.tenor.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:24 AM
What shocks me about X/Twitter accounts being foreign-controlled bots is that anyone is still shocked by it. Doesn’t anyone who uses this stuff know how it works anymore?
In a world of Kirks and Picards, be Janeway.
November 24, 2025 at 1:14 AM
In a world of Kirks and Picards, be Janeway.
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
I think my “otters on a plane using WiFi” benchmark may saturated now that nano banana pro can do this.
November 21, 2025 at 2:56 PM
I think my “otters on a plane using WiFi” benchmark may saturated now that nano banana pro can do this.
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
A rumor on X claimed NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani would require elementary students to “learn Arabic numerals.” That’s false — they already do. (They're just the digits 0-9.)
www.snopes.com/fact-check/m...
www.snopes.com/fact-check/m...
Mamdani isn't requiring NYC students to 'learn Arabic numerals.' They already do
You can't introduce something that has already been in use for centuries.
www.snopes.com
November 21, 2025 at 1:39 AM
A rumor on X claimed NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani would require elementary students to “learn Arabic numerals.” That’s false — they already do. (They're just the digits 0-9.)
www.snopes.com/fact-check/m...
www.snopes.com/fact-check/m...
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
The richest man in the world and the biggest loser in the world are the same person. Makes me wonder how many of the other billionaires who are shitting all over the planet are equally stupid and cringey.
It's lunacy that these fools have been allowed to seize so much influence.
It's lunacy that these fools have been allowed to seize so much influence.
Grok has been reprogrammed to say Musk is better than everyone at everything, including blowjobs, piss drinking, playing quarterback, conquering Europe, etc.
Elon Musk Could 'Drink Piss Better Than Any Human in History,' Grok Says
Grok has been reprogrammed to say Musk is better than everyone at everything, including blowjobs, piss drinking, playing quarterback, conquering Europe, etc.
www.404media.co
November 20, 2025 at 10:52 PM
The richest man in the world and the biggest loser in the world are the same person. Makes me wonder how many of the other billionaires who are shitting all over the planet are equally stupid and cringey.
It's lunacy that these fools have been allowed to seize so much influence.
It's lunacy that these fools have been allowed to seize so much influence.
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
Tell all the truth but tell it slant—
Success in Circuit lies
Too bright for our infirm Delight
The Truth's superb surprise
This paper finds poetry is a universal single shot jailbreak for LLMs. Systems built to stop prosaic attacks fail when the request is phrased in verse arxiv.org/abs/2511.15304
Success in Circuit lies
Too bright for our infirm Delight
The Truth's superb surprise
This paper finds poetry is a universal single shot jailbreak for LLMs. Systems built to stop prosaic attacks fail when the request is phrased in verse arxiv.org/abs/2511.15304
November 20, 2025 at 9:47 PM
Tell all the truth but tell it slant—
Success in Circuit lies
Too bright for our infirm Delight
The Truth's superb surprise
This paper finds poetry is a universal single shot jailbreak for LLMs. Systems built to stop prosaic attacks fail when the request is phrased in verse arxiv.org/abs/2511.15304
Success in Circuit lies
Too bright for our infirm Delight
The Truth's superb surprise
This paper finds poetry is a universal single shot jailbreak for LLMs. Systems built to stop prosaic attacks fail when the request is phrased in verse arxiv.org/abs/2511.15304
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
Big Tech is plotting a multi-million dollar lobbying blitz to oppose AI regulation at the state and federal level.
Now, House Republicans are reportedly looking to resurrect a ban on all state-level AI regulation.
Always follow the money. Watch: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/UdbOMihC-XQ
Now, House Republicans are reportedly looking to resurrect a ban on all state-level AI regulation.
Always follow the money. Watch: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/UdbOMihC-XQ
What Big Tech Doesn't Want You to Know About AI
Robert Reich
www.youtube.com
November 20, 2025 at 1:04 AM
Big Tech is plotting a multi-million dollar lobbying blitz to oppose AI regulation at the state and federal level.
Now, House Republicans are reportedly looking to resurrect a ban on all state-level AI regulation.
Always follow the money. Watch: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/UdbOMihC-XQ
Now, House Republicans are reportedly looking to resurrect a ban on all state-level AI regulation.
Always follow the money. Watch: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/UdbOMihC-XQ
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
As the FBI’s deputy director, Bongino receives some of the country’s most sensitive secrets, including the President’s Daily Brief.
His ascent to that position without passing a standard bureau background check is unprecedented, insiders say.
By @williamturton.bsky.social @chrisbing.bsky.social
His ascent to that position without passing a standard bureau background check is unprecedented, insiders say.
By @williamturton.bsky.social @chrisbing.bsky.social
FBI Director Kash Patel Waived Polygraph Security Screening for Dan Bongino, Two Other Senior Staff
As the FBI’s deputy director, Bongino receives some of the country’s most sensitive secrets, including the President’s Daily Brief. His ascent to that position without passing a standard bureau backgr...
www.propublica.org
November 19, 2025 at 2:40 AM
As the FBI’s deputy director, Bongino receives some of the country’s most sensitive secrets, including the President’s Daily Brief.
His ascent to that position without passing a standard bureau background check is unprecedented, insiders say.
By @williamturton.bsky.social @chrisbing.bsky.social
His ascent to that position without passing a standard bureau background check is unprecedented, insiders say.
By @williamturton.bsky.social @chrisbing.bsky.social
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
I don't know why the "Piggy" thing is bothering me so much. It's one more unforgivable thing in a list of 20,000 unforgivable things, but I've been mad about it for like 12 straight hours.
November 18, 2025 at 11:48 PM
I don't know why the "Piggy" thing is bothering me so much. It's one more unforgivable thing in a list of 20,000 unforgivable things, but I've been mad about it for like 12 straight hours.
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
I mean.
It's just.
"Quiet, piggy."
How. How does.
The president. Of the United States of America.
It's just.
"Quiet, piggy."
How. How does.
The president. Of the United States of America.
November 18, 2025 at 2:14 AM
I mean.
It's just.
"Quiet, piggy."
How. How does.
The president. Of the United States of America.
It's just.
"Quiet, piggy."
How. How does.
The president. Of the United States of America.
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
A big tech absurdity is that leaders can’t get promoted on impact alone, they need “scope,” (aka running a large org) so they over-hire to run empires.
Bloated orgs, fake work, over-engineered fixes to simple problems until the exec gets promoted and bails, leaving layoffs and cleanup behind.
Bloated orgs, fake work, over-engineered fixes to simple problems until the exec gets promoted and bails, leaving layoffs and cleanup behind.
November 18, 2025 at 12:54 AM
A big tech absurdity is that leaders can’t get promoted on impact alone, they need “scope,” (aka running a large org) so they over-hire to run empires.
Bloated orgs, fake work, over-engineered fixes to simple problems until the exec gets promoted and bails, leaving layoffs and cleanup behind.
Bloated orgs, fake work, over-engineered fixes to simple problems until the exec gets promoted and bails, leaving layoffs and cleanup behind.
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
Interesting paper on AI Compute Architecture and Evolution Trends. arxiv.org/pdf/2508.21394
November 17, 2025 at 6:29 PM
Interesting paper on AI Compute Architecture and Evolution Trends. arxiv.org/pdf/2508.21394
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
My cats is not picky, she just know likes to see all her options before she chooses.
November 17, 2025 at 1:04 AM
My cats is not picky, she just know likes to see all her options before she chooses.
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
The irony of the American economy being dictated by the whims of Donald Trump is that he'll have no one else to blame when it all crumbles.
This will be his undoing.
This will be his undoing.
November 16, 2025 at 5:02 PM
The irony of the American economy being dictated by the whims of Donald Trump is that he'll have no one else to blame when it all crumbles.
This will be his undoing.
This will be his undoing.
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
NEW: Epstein survivors release the most powerful PSA I have ever seen.
Make this go viral so every member of the House of Representatives sees it.
Make this go viral so every member of the House of Representatives sees it.
November 16, 2025 at 11:43 PM
NEW: Epstein survivors release the most powerful PSA I have ever seen.
Make this go viral so every member of the House of Representatives sees it.
Make this go viral so every member of the House of Representatives sees it.
Reposted by Benjamin Tolen
As detailed in Anthropic’s full report (linked below) regarding the semi-autonomous cyberattack, the AI demonstrated an effective workload of up to 10 hours, compared to just 30 minutes for a human operator.
assets.anthropic.com/m/ec212e6566...
assets.anthropic.com/m/ec212e6566...
November 14, 2025 at 2:48 AM
As detailed in Anthropic’s full report (linked below) regarding the semi-autonomous cyberattack, the AI demonstrated an effective workload of up to 10 hours, compared to just 30 minutes for a human operator.
assets.anthropic.com/m/ec212e6566...
assets.anthropic.com/m/ec212e6566...