Pundit ClaimsAI claims by Gary Marcus and Ed Zitron, with the evidence

Ed Zitron Where's Your Ed At Published

Software Has Eaten The Media

We recorded 8 claims from this post. 3 were checked against evidence. 5 can’t be checked. 5 more are held. Read the post at its source.

Claims from this post (8)

In the order they appear in the post. Each quotation is the speaker’s words in this post. A label such as “Supported” or “Can’t be checked” is the claim’s current assessment; its page has the evidence and the reasons.

  1. Assessment: Can’t be checkedSaid

    “This decision is one made to satisfy investors — a way of showing that Google is integrating artificial intelligence to "push the boundaries of where we need to go" according to Sundar Pichai, who I do not believe ever uses Google Assistant.”

    What we tested: Google's decision to replace Google Assistant with Gemini was made to satisfy investors, as a way of showing that Google is integrating artificial intelligence.

  2. Assessment: SupportedSaid

    “While Google has yet to fully make the move, the writing is on the wall, regardless of whether the actual assistant is fit for the task and not, say, hallucinating things that don't exist.”

    What we tested: Google, which has yet to fully make the move, will replace Google Assistant with Gemini regardless of whether Gemini is fit for the task or hallucinates things that don't exist.

    What happened: The reporter directly confirmed that Assistant could no longer be selected on the tested Pixel. The article places this observation within Google's mobile migration and reports the removal of the previous switching controls. (Droid Life, )

  3. Assessment: MixedSaid

    “Amazon already plans to heavily integrate generative AI into Alexa, and Apple is planning the same with Siri, all to show the world that they're "innovative" and "pushing boundaries" without being able to explain how.”

    What we tested: Amazon plans to heavily integrate generative AI into Alexa and Apple plans the same for Siri, both to show the world they are "innovative" and "pushing boundaries" without being able to explain how.

    What held: Amazon publicly described a substantial LLM-based redesign before the post. This supports the Alexa plan component, not the claimed motive. (Amazon, )

    What did not: Amazon explained a concrete intended improvement: creating routines through speech without manual app programming. This contradicts a literal inability to explain the proposed benefit, but does not prove reliable delivery or disprove promotional motives. (Amazon, )

  4. Assessment: UnresolvedSaid

    “When I tried to replicate this in the real world, Copilot made four images with completely incomprehensible text, only one of which said "Mike's."”

    What we tested: When the author tried to replicate Microsoft's Super Bowl ad prompt, Copilot produced four images with incomprehensible text, only one of which said "Mike's."

  5. Assessment: Can’t be checkedSaid

    “And I think it's because Microsoft isn't actually interested in users liking or using the product, but in showing the markets a new button that computer manufacturers can put on laptops that suggests that it is still innovative.”

    What we tested: Microsoft promotes Copilot to signal innovation to markets rather than because it cares about users liking or using it.

  6. Assessment: Can’t be checkedSaid

    “Generative AI is imperfect and costly to run, yet is held up as a solution to many problems that it can't even begin to fix.”

    What we tested: Generative AI is imperfect and costly to run, yet is held up as a solution to many problems that it can't even begin to fix.

  7. Assessment: Can’t be checkedSaid

    “In a logical tech economy, one would be terrified that so many bets have been made on such shaky ground, but we're in the Rot Economy, where an unsustainable product with few clear use cases can burn billions of dollars and fuel our climate crisis because the tech industry has run out of fucking ideas.”

    What we tested: In the Rot Economy, unlike a logical tech economy where so many bets on shaky ground would be terrifying, an unsustainable product with few clear use cases (generative AI) can burn billions of dollars and fuel the climate crisis because the tech industry has run out of ideas.

  8. Assessment: Can’t be checkedSaid

    “I think the tech industry's (and venture capital’s) obsession with artificial intelligence is a symptom of rot, where products are created based on analytics and guesswork rather than actually thinking about what a customer might want.”

    What we tested: The tech industry's and venture capital's obsession with AI is a symptom of the Rot Economy rather than of customer-driven product thinking.

Held from this post (5)

These records did not pass every check, so nothing about them is published. Held is not a finding.