California just put AI job losses on watch

California just put AI job losses on watch

Text us your thoughts! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2593085/fan_mail/new] California just became the first state to publicly track what AI is doing to jobs and wages in near real time — and the implications stretch far beyond its borders. If this model spreads, workers everywhere may soon have data their employers have always had and they never did. On June 26th, California launched its AI and the Economy dashboard, a live, searchable tool pulling from state labor statistics and employer filings to show which roles are shrinking, which are growing, and which communities are getting hit hardest by AI adoption. California built this because workers have consistently been the last to know — finding out AI cost them their job only after the pink slip arrives. The dashboard is designed to close that gap, and the patterns it surfaces tend to preview what hits other states years later. Here is what most coverage missed about why this moment actually matters — full breakdown in today's episode. New AI news every weekday — subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's story. Referenced Links: California Labor Market Info — EDD Dashboard [https://www.labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov/] Office of the Governor of California [https://www.gov.ca.gov/] ACM FAccT 2026 Conference — Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency [https://dl.acm.org/conference/facct] IEEE Society on Social Implications of Technology [https://ssit.ieee.org/] Want to go deeper with AI? A community of professionals is learning AI together right now at aihammock.com [https://aihammock.com] — show notes, links, tools, and real conversations about how to actually use AI in your life.

AI is quietly killing the middle of your career

Text us your thoughts! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2593085/fan_mail/new] AI is not waiting for workers to catch up — and the roles most at risk are not the ones most people are watching. The "missing middle" is collapsing faster than workforce analysts predicted, and it is happening without announcements or headlines. Researchers and HR departments are tracking a clear pattern: AI tools available today are absorbing large portions of roles like junior analysts, paralegals, entry-level developers, and mid-level coordinators — jobs that require degrees and pay real salaries. The workers surviving this shift are not the most credentialed. They are the ones using AI as a force multiplier on skills they already have, doing in one day what used to take a full week. This episode breaks down exactly what is happening, who is most exposed, and one concrete thing you can do today — not someday. New AI news every weekday — subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's story. Referenced Links: ChatGPT by OpenAI [https://www.chatgpt.com] Claude by Anthropic [https://www.claude.ai] Google Gemini [https://gemini.google.com] Brookings: What Jobs Are Affected by AI [https://www.brookings.edu/articles/what-jobs-are-affected-by-ai/] McKinsey: Generative AI and the Future of Work [https://www.mckinsey.com/mgi/our-research/generative-ai-and-the-future-of-work-in-america] Want to go deeper with AI? A community of professionals is learning AI together right now at aihammock.com [https://aihammock.com] — show notes, links, tools, and real conversations about how to actually use AI in your life.

Why most people use AI completely wrong

Text us your thoughts! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2593085/fan_mail/new] The AI literacy gap is quietly separating the people who benefit from AI and the people who get left behind — and most coverage never explains what it actually is. This is not about coding skills or technical knowledge; it is about knowing how to have the right kind of conversation with these tools. The gap comes down to one mental shift: treating AI as a thinking partner instead of a search engine. The difference between a generic prompt and a fully contextualized one is not subtle — it is the difference between a bread roll and the whole buffet. With AI skills already driving wage premiums and companies restructuring entire teams around AI workflows, the cost of staying on the wrong side of this gap is rising fast. Here is what most coverage on AI tools completely misses — and a single prompt technique you can try today. New AI news every weekday — subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's story. Referenced Links: AI Hammock — Chuck Getchell's Home Base [https://aihammock.com] AI Explained Course — Beginner-Friendly AI Foundation [https://aihammock.com/ai-explained] ChatGPT by OpenAI [https://chat.openai.com] Claude by Anthropic [https://claude.ai] Gemini by Google [https://gemini.google.com] Want to go deeper with AI? A community of professionals is learning AI together right now at aihammock.com [https://aihammock.com] — show notes, links, tools, and real conversations about how to actually use AI in your life.

Samsung just replaced hundreds of designers with AI

Text us your thoughts! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2593085/fan_mail/new] Samsung's decision to hand routine marketing design work to AI is one of the clearest signs yet that companies are treating automation as a direct substitute for human labor — not just an assistant to it. The shift affects Samsung's global marketing operations across North America, Europe, and parts of Asia, with real budget consequences for real workers. On June 23rd, Samsung circulated internal memos instructing teams to stop hiring designers for banner ads, promotional graphics, and social media assets — replacing that workflow with AI tools fine-tuned on Samsung's own brand history. Fixed-term contracts are not being renewed, and agency relationships are being cut to fund AI infrastructure. If Samsung reports cost savings, other brands are almost certain to copy the playbook. Here is what most coverage missed — the question companies are now asking is not 'can AI do this' but 'should we pay a person to do this.' Full breakdown in today's episode. New AI news every weekday — subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's story. Referenced Links: Bloomberg: Samsung Cuts Designers as AI Takes Over Marketing Assets [https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-06-24/samsung-ai-designers] Reuters: Samsung Replaces In-House Designers With AI Tools [https://www.reuters.com/technology/samsung-ai-marketing-2026-06-24/] The Verge: Samsung Is Using AI to Replace Routine Marketing Design Work [https://www.theverge.com/2026/6/24/samsung-ai-graphic-designers] Wired: What Samsung's AI Design Shift Means for Creative Jobs [https://www.wired.com/story/samsung-ai-marketing-jobs/] Want to go deeper with AI? A community of professionals is learning AI together right now at aihammock.com [https://aihammock.com] — show notes, links, tools, and real conversations about how to actually use AI in your life.

Microsoft just turned Windows into an ad platform

Text us your thoughts! [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2593085/fan_mail/new] Microsoft quietly flipped a switch inside Windows 11 and your Start menu is now serving AI-targeted promotions — without asking you first. For roughly a billion Windows users, this changes what you can expect from the most basic part of your computer. Microsoft activated AI-powered recommendation cards in the Windows 11 Start menu around June 22nd, with no announcement and no opt-in. The system analyzes your usage data and Microsoft account activity to decide which subscriptions or services to pitch you — not what you actually did, but what Microsoft wants you to buy next. Because it's server-side, your computer changed overnight without an update. Here's what most coverage missed — there are real settings you can change right now to dial this back. Full breakdown in today's episode. New AI news every weekday — subscribe so you don't miss tomorrow's story. Referenced Links: Reddit r/Windows11 — User Screenshots and Discussion [https://www.reddit.com/r/Windows11/] Reddit r/technology — Community Backlash Thread [https://www.reddit.com/r/technology/] Microsoft Copilot+ PC Overview [https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/copilot-plus-pcs] Windows Feedback Hub [https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/windows-feedback-hub] Want to go deeper with AI? A community of professionals is learning AI together right now at aihammock.com [https://aihammock.com] — show notes, links, tools, and real conversations about how to actually use AI in your life.