Sometimes you watch a policy unfold and think, “Well, this is going to be a spectacular failure.” The UK’s age verification requirements for adult content sites have delivered exactly that outcome, with users simply abandoning compliant sites for ones that ignore the rules entirely.

The whole thing reads like a case study in how not to regulate the internet. Officials seemed genuinely surprised that people would seek alternatives when faced with handing over personal identification to access legal content. It’s the digital equivalent of being shocked that people found speakeasies during Prohibition.

Geoffrey Hinton’s recent criticism of JD Vance’s stance on AI regulation has sparked quite a storm in tech circles. From my desk in South Melbourne, watching this drama unfold feels surreal - like watching a high-stakes game of chicken being played with humanity’s future.

The debate around AI safety isn’t just academic anymore. When someone like Hinton, often called the “godfather of AI,” expresses serious concerns about government-corporate AI alliances and their apparent disregard for safety measures, we need to pay attention. This isn’t some doomsday prophet - this is one of the key architects of modern AI telling us we’re heading down a dangerous path.