[A documentary from Britain’s Channel 4 about the potential for artificial intelligence to replace humans in a variety of occupations ended by revealing that the program’s host herself (itself) was an AI generated anchor. Most of the press coverage of the program draws heavily from the Channel 4 news release below. You can watch a news report about the program from NBC’s Today on YouTube. For what it’s worth, I asked ChatGPT “How did viewers react to the AI News Anchor in the recent Channel 4 documentary about AI?” and its response included this: “In sum: Positive/curious reaction: The fact…

[Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana has a new Spatial Computing Hub, where students and faculty from across campus are exploring presence-evoking technologies. See the original version of this story from The Purdue Exponent for a different image and a video; more coverage of the opening of the Hub (and a link to additional photos) is available from the University, as is the news release mentioned in the story below. –Matthew] [Image: President Mung Chiang (second from right) experiences the possibilities of virtual reality firsthand at Purdue’s new Spatial Computing Hub. Credit: Purdue University photo/Dave Mason. Source: Purdue University News]…

[In another of his thought-provoking essays from Computerworld, technology writer Mike Elgan argues that trends in the evolution of communication technologies including streaming platforms, videogames, interactive digital “pets,” generative AI and AI chatbots are all leading us toward what are essentially interactions with ourselves rather than other human beings. In presence terms, one could say our communication media are increasingly designed to evoke social presence experiences that are actually parasocial rather than truly social. See the original version of the essay for a second image. –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Graeme Worsfold] Opinion An unwelcome megatrend: AI that replaces family, friends —…

[A new video docuseries and podcast from the co-authors of the book Suspicious Minds: How Culture Shapes Madness is launching today and may be of interest to presence scholars. First below is a brief description of the new Suspicious Minds series from Comics Beat, followed by a December 2024 story from Foresight about the Truman Show Syndrome, a dramatic example of inverse presence identified by the Suspicious Minds authors/creators. –Matthew] SUSPICIOUS MINDS, a new docuseries on how AI affects us Suspicious Minds investigates the disturbing rise of artificial intelligence as a trigger for delusional thinking. By  Javier PerezOctober 11, 2025…

[New software developed at the University of Michigan not only expands the potential community of people who can use virtual and augmented reality systems but seems likely to enhance the experience of presence for all users. This story is from the University’s Michigan Engineering News, where the original includes a 1:27 minute video (also available on YouTube). Coverage in Heise includes this additional detail: “Currently, ‘HandProxy’ exists only as a demo app, but in the long term, the technology could also be incorporated into real robotic arms. A patent has already been applied for, and the team is looking for…

[I strongly endorse the views expressed in the commentary below from the Editor in Chief of MediaPost, an experienced media and technology journalist. As generative artificial intelligence approaches and passes an “inflection point blurring the lines of media reality,” when AI is “ubiquitous and can distort things in ways that defy classic cognitive reasoning” and nobody should assume that what they see and hear during media experiences is real, the need for media studies courses and other forms of training in media literacy for young people (and arguably many more of us) becomes critically important. –Matthew] Commentary Generation AI By…