An AI startup offered to build me a digital avatar of my late mom using photos, videos, and recordings. Thousands of you wrote to me about it. In this show, I reveal my emotional decision.
Musk made me do it: Look, if “Elon Musk” messages you about a hot crypto deal, it’s fraud not fate. Scammers are out there pretending to be him, using fake videos, livestreams and even his mom to vouch for the hustle. Folks have lost anywhere from 10 grand to a quarter million dollars. Some even think they’re dating him. Spoiler: You’re not.
Share YouTube videos from a time stamp: On desktop, pause the video where you want it to start. Right-click and select Copy video URL at current time. Or copy the top link from your browser and add &t=2m30s to the end (swap in your own time) to go straight to that moment.
Boost your YouTube channel: If you want the algorithm to help people discover your videos, add channel tags. On desktop, click your profile picture and open YouTube Studio. In the left panel, go to Settings > Channel > Basic info. Under Keywords, fill in things like “lifestyle vlog” or “easy recipes,” and hit Save.
🤖 Meta dropped Vibes: It’s not a separate app but part of your Meta AI now. It’s like Instagram Reels, but you can’t post real videos, only AI-generated ones. You just remix whatever the bots spit out and call it content. Who even asked for this algorithmic soup?
✅ Back it up, or risk losing it. Total Drive automatically backs up your precious memories, family photos, graduation videos and all your important documents. Get 10TB for just $18 with this limited time offer.
😎 Be a pal: Click here to subscribe to my YouTube channel. Costs nothing and makes my videos easier to find than your glasses on a Monday morning.
🚨 Scrape me up before you go-go: The Atlantic just dropped a seriously creepy tool. Type in your name, and it’ll show whether your YouTube videos were quietly scraped to train AI. No permission, no payment, just … surprise! You helped build someone else’s billion-dollar model. I popped up 75 times. Unreal. Search for your name here.
🔔 Turn on Instagram post notifications: Following too many accounts? Don’t miss updates from your favorites. Take me as an example. Go to my profile, tap the bell icon and toggle All for Posts, Stories, Reels and Live videos.
📖 Bible goes cinematic: Pray.com is cranking out AI-generated Bible videos (think seven-headed dragons, collapsing cities and angels that look like superheroes). Millions are watching, mostly guys under 30. Theologians say it cheapens Scripture into a “Don’t forget to like and pray!” social media plea, but Pray’s team calls it “the Marvel Universe of faith.”
✈️ Board to be wild: “Airport theory” videos on TikTok dare you to show up 15 minutes before boarding. Maybe you’ll get lucky with TSA PreCheck or a delay, but odds are you’re dropping $400 on a rebook and crying at a Holiday Inn. Most clips are staged. Real advice? Two hours domestic, three for international.
🤳🏻 Instagram finally has an iPad app: It’s different from the phone version. The app opens straight into a feed of Reels, with a new Following tab to see posts in chronological order. Comments show beside videos, and the DM page displays your inbox next to chats. Download it here, and drop me a follow for more tips.
⚡️ 3-second tech genius: In Chrome, quickly mute a noisy tab by right-clicking it and selecting Mute site. Saves your ears from those annoying autoplay videos that pop up out of nowhere. You’re welcome.
YouTube turns up the hype: Its new “Hype” feature lets you boost up to three small-creator videos a week. Those picks land on a special leaderboard, giving underdog channels a real shot at the spotlight. Look for the shiny “hyped” badge in your feed, and hit it for me now and then.
Add subtitles to YouTube videos: They’ll help you reach a bigger audience. On desktop, go to YouTube Studio and select Subtitles on the left. Choose your video, Set the language and Confirm. Then click Add under Subtitles. Upload a file or type them out manually. When you’re ready, hit Publish.
Social stalker tech: TikTok Shop has GPS trackers with viral videos literally teaching people how to spy on their partners. One got 5 million views. The cheapo trackers with a SIM card (over 100,000 sold) are still on sale all over for as little as $12. If your relationship needs a GPS tracker, maybe it needs therapy instead. Just saying.
Got videos eating up space on your PC? HandBrake is a free tool that shrinks them down. Drag and drop your video into the app, choose a Save location, pick a Preset like Very Fast 1080p30, and click Start Encode. FYI: Quality may drop depending on the Preset, so keep testing until you find your sweet spot. This tip alone is worth the price of this newsletter.
Woz-not-Woz: Apple cofounder Steve Wozniak went on CBS to warn about fake videos of him promoting Bitcoin. The scam clips promise to double whatever BTC you send. The funny part? While telling the story, CBS showed a fake 1970s “Woz in his garage” photo, which turned out to be of a Disney animatronic. Awkward.
Data today, gone tomorrow: Back it up before it backs out on you. Total Drive automatically saves your photos, videos and important documents in the cloud, safe and sound. Simple, secure, and yes, I trust it with my own files. Get 10TB for just $18.
▶️ Find your liked videos on YouTube: Tap the three-line menu in the top left and select Playlists. Your liked videos will be right there. To keep something for later, tap the Save button below the video player and select Watch Later. Head back to Playlists to find it in the list.