Want billions like Musk? Don’t fall for this crypto scam. Some people are paying $217K to freeze their bodies. I’ll also share five signs your phone might be tapped. Plus, I talk to Randy from Oregon, who wants to cash in on a viral video.
Don’t embarrass yourself in your next AI conversation
ChatGPT
AI is everywhere: your inbox, your apps, your Zoom calls where Kyle keeps saying, “Let’s run it through chat-jeept.” If you’re going to drop those AI buzzwords, here’s how to not sound like a malfunctioning toaster and keep your smart-person street cred intact.
Say them out loud as you go. Bonus points if you quiz a friend nearby.
🤖 Say it smart: AI edition
Nvidia
Say “en-VID-ee-uh.” Not “NIV-ee-duh.” This company makes the chips that make AI possible.
OpenAI
Say “OH‑pen A‑I.” Emphasize the letters. Not “Open A” like it’s a discount airline.
ChatGPT
Say each letter: “Chat‑G‑P‑T.” Not “chat-jeept.” Please, never “chat-guh-put.”
GPT
Same deal: “G‑P‑T.” It stands for “Generative Pretrained Transformer,” but that’s cocktail party trivia, not pronunciation help.
Claude
Say it like a name: “Clawd.” It’s an AI chatbot from Anthropic, not your neighbor’s schnauzer. Made by a French company, it’s technically pronounced “Klohd,” but it’ll be a cold day on the sun before you hear me saying that out lohd.
Anthropic
“An-THROP-ick.” Not “ANN-thro-pick” or “an-thro-peek.” They’re a major AI player you’ll hear more about.
Meta
“MEH‑tuh.” It’s Facebook’s parent company, but don’t call it Facebook. That’s so 2019.
DALL·E
Say it like “Dolly” the sheep. It’s a mash-up of Salvador Dalí and WALL·E. Not “DALL-E” like it’s yelling at you or “daily” or “day lee.”
Stable Diffusion
Say it straight: “STAY-bul dih-FYOO-zhun.” It’s the go-to for AI art. Just don’t call it “stubble.”
3 ways to instantly look smarter on video calls
ChatGPT
Have you ever joined a Zoom call and thought, “Why do I look like a vampire who doesn’t know where the camera is?” Since it’s the start of a new week, here are easy tricks to make you look brighter, smarter and significantly less like you’re broadcasting from a cave.
YouTube ads are getting tricky: They’re testing an AI tool called Peak Points that finds the precise moments when viewers are most engaged in a video. Then it drops ads right after. The goal? Help advertisers catch you when you’re paying attention and more likely to click. Kill it with fire.
$249.99
That’s how much Google wants for the Gemini AI Ultra VIP pass, monthly. You get AI everything: video gen, doc summarizing, Chrome copilots and a personal bot concierge named Mariner that’ll shop online for you. It also includes YouTube Premium and 30TB of storage because apparently, your digital clone needs closet space.
Better iPhone videos: Head to Settings > Camera > Record Video and pick 4K at 60 fps. Then go to Settings > Camera > Formats and choose High Efficiency. For better framing, go to Camera > Composition and turn on Grid and Level. Your shots will look way better.
Digital self-destruction for fun and paranoia
ChatGPT
How to make any USB drive self-destruct
“Kim, I’m paranoid about losing my USB drive. Is there any way to make it so if someone steals it, they can’t see or open anything?” — Dave in Denver
📞 Old phone, new trick: Turn your old smartphone into a home security camera. Charge it up and download a free security cam app like Alfred Camera (iOS, Android) on both your old phone and your current one. You’ll get live video, motion alerts and even two-way talk.
▶️ My favorite price is free: Pro video-editing software usually comes with a pro-level price tag, unless you know where to look. Kdenlive is free, open-source and gets new updates all the time. This gem works with Windows, Mac and Linux.
🧟♂️ No face? No problem: AI’s tracking you anyway. A startup called Veritone made an AI that ditches facial recognition and still tracks you in video footage, just by how you walk and what you’re wearing. It’s already being used by cops and government agencies. The tech is legal, terrifying and possibly the start of your new fashion surveillance arc.
🌀 Selfies, but cinematic: Google’s Gemini AI can now turn a single image into a full five-second video. It’s launching with the Honor 400, which sounds like a hovercar but is actually a smartphone. Finally, your brunch avocado toast can have its own origin story.
130 million
U.S. viewers now watch Prime Video, with ads. Amazon’s ad-supported Prime Video tier has more than a third of the country tuning in, commercials and all. 88% of them also shop on Amazon, so those pause-screen ads? Basically product placement with a buy button. Wow.
Fake AI video generators: Hackers have a new trick: websites that promise to turn your images into videos. But once you upload a file, they send back a ZIP named something like “VideoDreamMachineAI.mp4.exe.” The twist? It’s actually malware that steals your personal info. Watch out for them in Facebook groups especially.
💼 Job seeker paranoia is real: New AI tools make it easier than ever for recruiters who are just scammers to look legit on LinkedIn and video interviews. Spot the fakes: Verify the company, check their official site for the position and watch for emails with odd time zones (paywall link).
New car buying scam
Buying a car online? Even with video tours and snazzy websites, scammers are stealing thousands.
📸 DIY stickers: Instagram’s Cutouts lets you turn your photos into custom stickers. Start a new Story or Reel, tap Stickers (square smiley face icon) > Cutouts > choose a photo or video with a clear subject. Instagram will create it for you right away or save it for later. FYI, you can only pick one object at a time.
👨🏻⚖️ When dead men speak: In Arizona, a family used AI to recreate a murder victim’s voice and face in a video to deliver his own impact statement in court. The judge gave a harsher sentence after hearing the victim’s synthesized testimony, marking a surreal, and possibly cathartic, first in American legal history. Nothing says “closure” like a ghost dropping the mic in court.
Watchful gestures: Get around the YouTube app faster with these tricks. Swipe up in the video player for full-screen mode, then swipe down when you’re ready to exit. Head over to my YouTube channel and give it a try (I know, shameless plug).
Third Neuralink implant is in: This time, it’s a dad with ALS who’s fully paralyzed, and he’s also the first nonverbal patient to get the chip. Brad posted on X, using only his brain to type a message thanking Elon Musk. And get this: He even edited a video with his mind and used AI to bring back his old voice. Amazing.
🪂 Star Wars drops in Fortnite: A new animated series, Tales of the Underworld, is premiering in Fortnite. Yes, like inside the actual video game. It airs tomorrow, May 2 at 10 a.m. ET, two days before Disney+ gets it. Of course, there’s in-game merch for kids to buy. The trailer doesn’t look too bad.