James Garner

James Garner · bass player and songwriter · Silent Whispers out now.

[James Garner @JBGarner1976]

UK tech CV tip: swap “Responsible for X” for action + context + result.

e.g. “Cut checkout 5xx from 2.1% to 0.4% over a quarter by adding idempotency keys (Java, Kafka).”

ATS-focused rewrites for UK tech/product CVs on Fiverr:
https://t.co/9B8ls5yRD1

[BBC Newsnight @BBCNewsnight]

“You just said that 10% doesn’t seem an unreasonable estimate that AI could kill all humans”

“Yes”

“Wow… oh my God.”

@vicderbyshire speaks to Nobel Prize Winner and so-called ‘Godfather of AI’ Geoffrey Hinton about predictions by an Anthropic researcher that there’s a more than 10% chance AI could kill all humans within a decade.

#Newsnight

[Dario Amodei @DarioAmodei]

1/2 Thanks Gavin for an especially thoughtful exchange. I don't usually spend much time on social media but I wanted to engage here because it really brings out the heart of an important conversation.

First, on regulation, I think that “either concentrate it in the hands of a chosen few companies and politicians via regulation or distribute it widely” is a false choice.  I know that there’s a sort of Silicon Valley shorthand where regulation = regulatory capture = concentration of power, but I’ve always found this to be an overly simplified picture of the world.  Many people outside this bubble think of regulation as something that constrains corporate power and benefits ordinary people.  I don’t necessarily agree with that perspective either, rather I think it’s complicated and really depends on what the “regulation” consists of.  But in particular I think that those in the “regulation = regulatory capture = concentration of power” frame often underrate the decentralizing power of objective and fair institutional processes.  A crude analogy is that the formal court system can sometimes feel stuffy and elitist, but it does a much better job of defending the rights of vulnerable individuals than the alternative, mob justice.  At their best, institutions can vest power in ideas rather than people, and thereby decentralize that power.

This is why Anthropic has always made its policy proposals very carefully.  We try very hard to make proposals that disadvantage (slow down) frontier AI companies while *advantaging* smaller competitors.  California’s SB53 (which we supported), and even the much-maligned SB 1047 (which we were ambivalent on), completely exempt any company below a certain amount of revenue or model training costs from being covered at all (it was $500M for SB 53, lower for 1047 but we objected to that).  More recently the testing process we’ve advocated for at CAISI and the White House involves more rigorous tests for frontier models than off-frontier models — something that differentially advantages challengers.  Similarly, the “Pacing the Frontier” letter envisions (or at least Anthropic’s preferred implementation of it envisions) modulating the pace of the very best models while not constraining those who are catching up.  This hurts the business interests of the frontier labs and helps challengers, including open-weights!

Overall my view is that AI is *structurally* a technology that tends to concentrate power, for reasons that have nothing to do with regulation (more to do with the extreme implications of the scaling laws).  Open-weights do help some with this but are nowhere near a sufficient solution because they simply shift the concentration somewhat to those with the most compute and chips (which are roughly the frontier labs plus maybe hardware providers).  By contrast I think the right “rules of the road” can simultaneously (a) address AI’s cyber/bio/alignment risks, (b) institutionally constrain the power of the frontier AI companies, and (c) leave room for open-weights models while also addressing the specific risks that they bring.

BTW I do not think that the events of the last few months have “failed to result in [my] preferred regulatory path”.  The approach that the Trump administration is reported to be taking — pre-deployment testing for frontier models, and also testing of open-weights models when they get closer to the frontier — is one that I am very supportive of, though of course I have to see the details to be sure.  I am also supportive of Demis Hassabis’ ideas around a FINRA-like entity.  This contrasts with six months ago when most of the industry was still pushing for preemption of all state regulation and no apparent federal approach either.

[Laurence Fox @LozzaFox]

The last exchange is a glimpse into the soul of a leftist.

Truly frightening people.

[Dr Bola Abisogun OBE, Hon DUniv, Hon MBA @AbisogunOBE]

@londonchamber @DTSA_Global @fragomen @OCOGlobal @pqs2030 @cityoflondon @PremBGoyal @cpc_ps @OCNLondon @CITB_UK @RICSnews @MashaelSaedan @PIF_en @PrimusCSCIC @DigitalTwinHub @GT_Law @britishmuseum @Apprenticeships @theBBBAwards @CICtweet @ConstructionCLC @henryfenbytaylo @morta_tech @LocktonUK @CPCatapult @UCEM_Principal @GregClarkCities @biztradegovuk @DigiCatapult @PendleyManor @theCIOB @RICSUKPress @RICSEngland @rlb_uk @rlbamericas @CIOBEddie @UKREiiF @Rics @freeths Back for Day 2 representing #RICS in Leeds at #UKREiiF2026 - today, it’s all about the conversation _ “Building Trust in #AI - #ethics for the next era of #RealEstate” with an amazing panel incl, Emma Fletcher, James Garner, Paul Wilson & Nella Pang 👏🏾 we smashed it well done ✅

[James Garner @JBGarner1976]

I just earned the Influencer badge in the beehiiv recommendations network 🔥

via @beehiiv

[James Garner @JBGarner1976]

@ZackPolanski Cunt

[James Garner @JBGarner1976]

@vonderleyen Pathetic! Weak! You will be forgotten

[James Garner @JBGarner1976]

@EmilyThornberry What a disgrace you are. You make me sick to my stomach

[James Garner @JBGarner1976]

@Keir_Starmer @10DowningStreet You are a disgrace

[James Garner @JBGarner1976]

@NiohBerg One of the most despicable human beings - a sickening man.

[Bryan Johnson @bryan_johnson]

https://t.co/uJU0zQB8J4

[James Garner @JBGarner1976]

@monicabeharding Haha. Not sure whether to laugh or cry. How pathetic are you

[James Garner @JBGarner1976]

@Holly_Da I'm so ashamed of this British government. It really makes my toescurl about how revolting they are. This prime minister is seriously one of the worst prime ministers we've ever had, but worse than that, he actually believes his own bullshit.

[James Garner @JBGarner1976]

@HoodedClaw1974 Maronic simpleton. That's the only thing that can be said. She talks as if she's smart, but you can see that there's nothing behind the eyelids whatsoever

[Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis @chiefrabbi]

Our hearts are shattered.

Emerging from the holy fast of Yom Kippur, British Jews are now grasping the full extent of today’s terror attack at the Heaton Park Synagogue in Manchester.

This is the day we hoped we would never see, but which deep down, we knew would come.

For so long we have witnessed an unrelenting wave of Jew hatred on our streets, on campuses, on social media and elsewhere – this is the tragic result.

This not only an assault on the Jewish community, but an attack on the very foundations of humanity and the values of compassion, dignity and respect which we all share.

I have spoken this evening to Rabbi Daniel Walker, the spiritual leader of the Heaton Park Synagogue. His courageous leadership, together with the resilience of his congregation, are an inspiration to us all.

May the victims’ memories be for a blessing and may the injured be granted a swift recovery.

I pray that this tragedy strengthens our collective resolve to confront antisemitism, in all its guises, once and for all.

[Konstantin Kisin @KonstantinKisin]

I don't like to talk about my private beliefs but it's relevant today.

I come from an Orthodox Christian family. I was baptised. So is my son. I don't go to Church every week but more and more, thanks to my friend @MrWinMarshall.

My only connection to Jewishness is my grandfather, a staunch atheist, who was ethnically Jewish.

To be very clear, I am delighted about my ancestry. As delighted as I am about being Russian, Ukrainian and Greek. And especially grateful for the IQ bump.

But even as someone who is only a little bit Jewish, I have seen a dramatic turn in the last 2 years. One of the things I pride myself on is thinking things through and showing my working. That's how I see my job, really. To take ideas, interrogate them and explain what I think the correct conclusion may be. Since October 7, the number of far left and far right scumbags who try to use my grandfather's ancestry against me to suggest that I can't possibly believe anything I believe other than by virtue of my ancestry has skyrocketed.

I can't imagine how actual Jews are feeling. Blamed for the actions of a government many of them don't support in a country many have never visited. Smeared, lied about and now murdered. Watching ancient blood libels rediscovered and swallowed wholesale by a generation who are too ignorant of history to spot them.

The simple truth is, everyone in Europe owes @DouglasKMurray a massive apology. He was right about everything. The only question is, is it too late to do anything about it?

[Robert Zimmerman @Nayborhoodbully]

You rewarded the Jew haters of Hamas by recognizing “the State of Palestine” the day before Rosh Hashanah and now there’s a stabbing at a synagogue on Yom Kippur. Sit down, you cowardly fool!

[James Garner @JBGarner1976]

@Keir_Starmer You are to blame for this - you disgust me