Trump on Trial
History has its eyes on New York, as the trial of former President Trump began this week. This case has all the ingredients of a true media circus a la the late, not-so-great OJ Simpson.
Hush money. Adult film star. Catch and ill orders. And a former President who can’t seem to stay awake during the proceedings. This week has been all about jury selection, and opening arguments are scheduled to start Monday.
Meanwhile, Sleepy Joe (or Dark Brandon, if you prefer) is slowly gaining in the polls. The vaunted New York Times / Siena poll released on Saturday had the national race in a virtual tie with Trump at 47 and Biden at 46. Too soon to say what this means for the battlegrounds, but expect the race to continue to tighten as we head into summer.
One silver lining and one dark cloud for Biden – jobs numbers continue to outperform expectations, while inflation numbers are still coming in hot. Not sure how much this matters, especially when states like Arizona turn back the clock to the 1860s for archaic laws on reproductive freedoms.
The various ballot measures on choice in as many as 13 states may very well be the biggest thing to impact the Presidential election, which not enough people are talking about.
AI Nation
We’ve said before that every organization will become an AI organization. But new analysis from the University of Maryland and published by Axios, shows which cities are winning the race to become AI hubs. Top of the list are the usual suspects – San Jose, San Francisco, Seattle, Austin, and Washington, DC.
But there are some other interesting names on the list – Salt Lake City and Provo, Richmond, Virginia Beach, Dallas, and northwest Arkansas, which we’re guessing is centered around Walmart HQ.
We’ve been through a fairly stable period when it comes to tech. But AI is disrupting the industry all over again. Those who have the people and infrastructure to perform will be winners, and those who don’t will once again be left behind.
Cyber Corner
The cybersecurity community will convene at the RSA Conference in San Francisco in just over two weeks. You will find cyber companies of all shapes and sizes, from the stealth startup to the publicly-traded industry stalwart. However, one thing will likely ring true: nearly everyone will hitch a wagon to the AI train.
AI is creating cyber threats at a scale and virulence never before seen. Ironically, the antidote to AI-born attacks could be AI-driven defenses. As we have seen with nearly every technological advance, technologies are amoral; the users determine whether a technology is leveraged for good or bad.
But, we digress.
Head to RSA with a discerning eye to identify the companies that look at AI as an industry buzzword to slap in their tagline and those who genuinely are embedding AI in their products to solve the mega-cyber challenges faced by every company in every vertical market.
Separate the spin from the substance. Look for the companies backing their AI assertions with data, content, details, and unique points of view. Challenge those who appear to only have a thin “AI-sheen” at the surface.
Oh, and how could we forget? Our loyal Views from the Vrge readers are all invited to our Late Night at the Nightingale event on May 7th. Vrge and our partners at Punch hope to see you there!
The Musts
Reading
There Are Plenty of Power Publicists. But Only One Works for Taylor Swift.
The Drudge Report – The OG for a political/sexual scandal
Watching
The Regime on Max (though we didn’t like the 1st episode)
Lempicka on Broadway (H/T to childhood friend & Composer Matt Gould)
Listening
An Honorable Profession Podcast
