AI news covering...the week of August 31, 2026.
The AI Round-up: Year 4, Issue 28
I think we’re at a bit of a crossroads.
This newsletter has gone through a lot of changes since it launched in July of 2023.
The goal has been to keep you informed. Share insights. Raise flags. Try to be ‘real world’ based so I wasn’t sugarcoating or downplaying anything.
I’ve taken my cue from people I really trust in this space: Paul Roetzer, Ethan Mollick, Shelly Palmer, Christopher Penn, Conor Grennan, Casey Newton and Kevin Roose, to name a few.
The latest consensus (IMO) from that group is we are indeed at a crossroads. The shift is a move from reporting rooted in LLM-based Gen AI to now…agents.
It seems we are running out of time to catch-up. And that has nothing to do with us and everything to do with the pace at which the technology is evolving. We always knew we couldn’t keep up. And now, we’re here, at a time when there is no regulation or standards. So unless some are put in place, we have no way of pausing – or even slowing – and are at the mercy of the pace AI is dictating.
I’d highly recommend you listen to this week’s Artificial Intelligence Show (Episode #235) to hear how Paul is talking about this, specifically against the backdrop of the Hugging Face incident, which gets deeper and more concerning the more we learn.
So what does this mean for us? I’m going to do my best to keep the learning curve as short and as simple as possible as we transition into more agent learning. Why? Because no one is coming to explain it to you. And if they do…I’d probably run the other way (save a few folks) because they are telling you their version of this to benefit whatever I can guarantee they will likely be trying to sell you.
Now’s the time for us to show why we have been following this news…learning these tools…for the last few years. Our organizations need us. And we need them to hear us.
Let’s get to it.
Based on my opening…I would hope you consider attending MAICON if you’re able.
How can I save on MAICON registration?
Click the link, enter promo code BENTHINKING200 for a $200 savings.
Ethan Mollick wants you to understand the difference between agents and agency.
‘Agency’ is a word that is coming up a lot lately. Almost like we need to remind ourselves that we are in charge of ourselves.
And AI is not in charge of itself. Yet.
Want your mind blown? Read Ethan Mollick’s take on the two ways AI agents can work (below) and why in the second version (Twilight Factory) we need to prepare for agents to ask US questions.
He lays out four reasons AI would ask us for input:
An excerpt from his blog (image pulled from it)
We have spent the last few years figuring out when people should ask AI for help. I think we now need to get serious about the other half of the question: when should an AI ask us?
Shelly Palmer has thoughts on this too. His take on the new enterprise AI org chart.
Axios interviewed Sam Altman about this too.
From the upcoming Astra release (and why this is being viewed as such a powerful model) to references to “userless agents” this interview (and article) covers a lot of ground.
Still not getting AI chatbot v. agent? This is hilarious. (Conor Grennan)
A viral video breaks it down for you:
Husband=chatbot
Wife=agent
ChatGPT is now designated as a search engine in the EU.
More than 159M search recipients will do that to ya. Is it fair? Should it be a search engine? Add this to our list of questions we hope regulations will someday answer.
OpenAI Wires ChatGPT into Epic’s EHR. (Shelly Palmer)
Translation – most patient data apps will now be integrated with ChatGPT so physicians can talk with AI to access your records, updates, etc.
Melissa Rosenthal breaks this down way better than I could.
NYC to halt AI for students, for a year, until high school.
Assuming they’ll be doing the same for calculators, laptops, tablets…
Just kidding. Not even the same thing.
What is the exact purpose of this ban? Will it hurt more than help? Will we see more like it?
Read more here. (Paul Roetzer)
Your AI search playbook is a lot less complex than you think. (Andy Crestodina)
This is really going to disappoint ambulance chasers who are trying to scare the shit out of you with their ‘data.’ Have things changed? Yep. Do we need to adjust. Definitely. Are their new ways to measure? Uh, yea.
But the foundational work still applies.
NVIDIA to buy Hugging Face for $13B. (Fox News)
Special note:
It’s back to school season. Did you know 1.8% of Ohio students reported some experience of homelessness? That’s roughly 32,000 kids.
Did you know you can help, pretty easily, by donating to Access, which provides supplies, clothes, meals and more?
Our agency is a big supporter and hopes you will be too. It’s cliché to say but literally any amount helps. Thanks for considering it. (You can learn more about Access here.)
Some Nopes.
Thanks for reading and supporting!
-Ben
As a reminder, this is a round-up of the biggest stories, often hitting multiple newsletters I receive/review. The sources are many … which I’m happy to read on your behalf. Let me know if there’s one you’d like me to track or have questions about a topic you’re not seeing here.