MPennsylvania just drew a line in the sand on AI-generated ads.
CWhat kind of line? Label everything?
MBasically. Governor Shapiro signed a law Thursday: any ad significantly made or modified by AI gets a label.
CBecause nothing says 'buy this car' like a government sticker saying a robot helped film it.
MThe label has to match the format — so a video ad carries a disclosure inside the video, not just fine print below a post.
CYou laugh, but this is actually a smart, small rule. If you're selling a pickup truck with AI-generated footage of it towing a house, I want to know that.
MThe Federal Trade Commission has been circling the same idea for years. Pennsylvania just went first.
CAnd how's enforcement going to work? Some teenager with an AI filter on a used-car listing?
MThat's the tricky part — 'significantly modified' is a judgment call. A color correction isn't AI deception; a fake voiceover from a dead celebrity absolutely is.
CI'm more worried about political ads. Imagine a super PAC pumping out deepfakes three days before an election, and the only penalty is a fine after the damage is done.
MAnd that's exactly when labels matter most! You shouldn't need a PhD in computer forensics to know if a candidate really said something.
CNo argument here. I just think the actual bad actors — scammers, foreign troll farms — aren't going to stop because Pennsylvania asks nicely.
MBut it gives honest brokers a standard. And it gives state attorneys general something to sue over, which is more than we had yesterday.
CFine. I'll take the label on my next AI truck ad. Speaking of trucks we may not recognize...
MApple's holding a 'Pro and tell' event next Tuesday in Los Angeles.
CThe Verge says the long-rumored touchscreen MacBook Pro might finally show its face.
MMight. Apple hasn't confirmed anything beyond the event itself. But the rumor mill is running hot.
CI've been hearing 'touchscreen Mac coming next year' since the first iPhone. I'm still waiting.
MThe difference now is they've spent years merging iPad and Mac chips. The hardware is ready; the software was always the excuse.
CYou know what changed? Windows laptops got genuinely good touchscreens. Lenovo's Yoga line is out here with styluses and folding screens. Apple can't pretend it's a gimmick anymore.
MThe Verge actually made that same point — they tested the Lenovo Yoga with Nvidia's RTX Spark platform and realized it does most of what they'd want from a touchscreen Mac.
CAn engineer taking notes with a stylus on a laptop is a different workflow than ten years ago. People want it now.
MBut let's be honest about Apple: they don't do 'me too.' They'll wait until they think they've fixed everything everyone else got wrong.
CAnd charge a fortune for the stylus. But yes, if it shows up Tuesday, it'll be polished to within an inch of its life.
MHere's my prediction: touchscreen MacBook Pro on stage, new chip inside, and they never once say the word 'tablet.'
CAnd the MacBook Air owner next to me on the plane will still be using an external mouse from 2014.
MWe'll know Tuesday at 1 PM Eastern. Oct 28, Los Angeles.
COne more thing worth a minute: a Korean filmmaker named Lee Chang Dong has a new movie about a company that fired 2,600 workers, and according to the film's story, many of them later died by suicide.
MThat's a hard story to tell. The Verge interviewed him about the ethics of filming it.
CIt's a 2009 true story — a conglomerate cutting a third of its staff, and the human cost that followed.
MThe director's been circling class and labor his whole career. This sounds like the most direct version of it.
CI don't always love movies about corporate evil. They can turn into cartoons. But Lee Chang Dong isn't a cartoon director.
MThe title's 'Possible Love.' Intentionally uncomfortable for a story like that.
CI'll watch it when it lands. Might need a lighter second feature after.