Burning Platforms

The Host of the  ‘Computer Says Maybe’ podcast joins us to give a global take on the power and influence of Big Tech.   Regular panellists Digital Rights Watch Chair Lizzie O’Shea, Health Engine CEO Dan Stinton and Per Capita’s Peter Lewis also delve into:    the federal government’s green data centre edict industry’s latest pitch to mine creative data and Open AI’s pivot away from consumer products   For background notes on these discussions go to Burning Platforms on Substack: https://burningplatforms.substack.com/

The Director of QUT’S Digital Media Research Centre outlines how different chatbots take users down different wormholes when they research conspiracy theories.   Regular panellists Digital Rights Watch Chair Lizzie O’Shea and The Sizzle’s Cam Wilson also dig into: How AI is creating new modes of death and destruction in Iran Why Pornhub is pulling out of Australia and Atlassian’s ironic jobs purge   For background notes on these discussions go to Burning Platforms on Substack: https://burningplatforms.substack.com/

The former Chief Scientist outlines his new venture, ‘Proudly Human to allow creators to verify their work in the ocean of slop.   Regular panellists Digital Rights Watch chair Lizzie O’Shea, Health Engine CEO Dan Stinton and Per Capita’s Peter Lewis also discuss: The Australian Government’s defence deals with Palantir Canadian PM Mark Carney’s call for a Middle Powers LLM and whether agentic AI will eat the internet   Visit www.percapita.org.au for more on our research and events. Per Capita's podcasts are recorded and produced on Wurundjeri land.

The Burning Platforms panel kick around the carcass of this week when the White House went to war with AI, bosses found new ways to snoop on workers, and the market was moved by a bit of fan fiction. Per Capita’s Peter Lewis joins Digital Rights Watch chair Lizzie O’Shea, Health Engine CEO Dan Stinton and The Sizzle’s Cam Wilson try to make sense of the madness. And some reading to get you warmed up: Casey Newton - What is OpenAI going to do when the truth comes out? HTI - ‘Surveillance Creep’  Citrini - The 2028 Global Intelligence Crisis  Dan Kagan-Kans - The Left is missing Out on AI  Brian Merchant - ‘Actually the Left is Winning the AI Debate'

Nicholas Davis, UTS professor on AI governance. Dan Stinton, HealthEngine CEO with SaaS and business insight. Lizzie O'Shea, digital rights lawyer and advocate. They discuss AI summit takeaways, product liability and platform accountability, NSW workplace laws for digital systems, the SaaSpocalypse and how SaaS must evolve, plus orchestration and national AI strategy.

Governments may campaign in poetry and govern in prose, but what about the engineering that keeps our democracy flowing? The pioneer of public innovation and Professor of Collective Intelligence at University College London, Sir Geoff Mulgan, believes it’s time to get the boring bits right.   Regular panellists Digital Rights Watch Chair Lizzie O’Shea, Health Engine CEO Dan Stinton and Per Capita’s Peter Lewis also discuss: Anthropic CEO Dario Ameida’s summer essay - https://darioamodei.com/essay/the-adolescence-of-technology Should universities accept Big Tech dollars - https://www.science.org/content/article/nearly-third-social-media-research-has-undisclosed-ties-industry-preprint-claims and South Korea’s new AI Basic Act - https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jan/29/south-korea-world-first-ai-regulation-laws.   If you want to hear more from Sir Geoff he will be speaking in Sydney on Feburary 25 https://anzsog.edu.au/events-connection/events/what-next-for-public-innovation-with-geoff-mulgan   Visit www.percapita.org.au for more on our research and events. Per Capita's podcasts are recorded and produced on Wurundjeri land.    

Greg Sadler, CEO of Good Ancestors, who works on long-term policy for emerging technology risks. He discusses AI safety beyond AGI and the need for institutions to manage existential threats. Conversation covers Grok’s harmful image generation, non-consensual deepfakes, ChatGPT Health risks, Bandcamp’s AI music ban, biosecurity concerns and open-weight model misuse.

As 2025 crashes out we survey the highs and lows of the year in tech with long-time platform burner Human Technology Institute co-director Ed Santow. Regular panellists Digital Rights Watch Chair Lizzie O’Shea, Health Engine CEO Dan Stinton and Per Capita’s Peter Lewis discuss: the Government’s AI Plan the Social Media Ban and what to read over summer Join us in discussing the issues raised in this episode join us in the Democracy Sandpit: https://civility.bettermode.io/welcome  Help the Centre of the Public Square fund its research into AI and responsible technology - donate to Per Capita today: https://percapita.org.au/donate/ 

While the vested interests wrestle with the intricacies of AI regulation, are community library conversations the best bet for shaping our tech future? On this week's episode of Burning Platforms, we meet the academic who is fighting the algorithm with words.   Regular panellists Digital Rights Watch Chair Lizzie O’Shea, Health Engine CEO Dan Stinton and Per Capita’s Peter Lewis will also discuss: Meta’s latest Anti-Trust win The News Media Bargaining Incentive The case for an "AI Slop" Tax   Book a ticket for Cory’s late night show: https://events.humanitix.com/system-error-late-night-show   Read Lizzie’s Baffler piece: https://thebaffler.com/latest/antitrust-issues-oshea   Join us in discussing the issues raised in this episode join us in the Democracy Sandpit: https://civility.bettermode.io/welcome

Ketan Joshi, a climate writer and activist, discusses the environmental impact of AI, tackling fascinating questions about its energy footprint. He highlights the uncertainties surrounding data center energy demands and compares generative AI's pervasive use to single-use plastics. Ketan critiques Meta's tactics in ad generation and examines the implications of Apple's partnership with Google on AI deployment. He also explores the potential role of Australia in hosting data centers and the challenges ahead in addressing AI emissions at global climate talks.