#151 - AI's getting scarier everday 🫣

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Today,

• AI just keeps getting scarier: fake TikToks and "Fixed on Pixel"

• Did any BAYC celebs actually claim their sewer passes?

• The SEC just keeps getting scarier: crypto lawsuits at ATH

• All the web3 headlines, tweet, and meme of the day

Top 24 hr collection volume

via CoinMarketCap

1. BAYC - 23 sales earning 1,737.4 ETH (0.23%)

2. MAYC - 109 sales earning 1,676.95 ETH (0.05%)

3. Azuki - 90 sales earning 1,333.05 ETH (0.37%)

4. Clone X - 210 sales earning 1,140.91 ETH (0.19%)

5. Pudgy Penguins - 154 sales earning 898.88 ETH (0.20%)

AI brings us deepfake TikTok ads & a history-rewriting Google Pixel tool

Not to keep going back to Super Bowl weekend – but did you see this ad for the Google Pixel 7?

The tagline reads "Fixed on Pixel" and it promotes an update to Pixel's AI-powered photo editing tool: Magic Eraser

What does Magic Eraser do? It turns the smart delete feature (available in many desktop photo editors) that removes elements of images, into a single-tap consumer tool.

So now, you can "fix your memories", instantly altering the contents of your photo library to "relive [your] photos the way [you] remember them" – as Google says in their press release.

What could you use Magic Eraser for? Google recommends:

• Deleting your children and pets

• Erasing ex-husbands

• Ridding your selfies of other annoying humans who don't care about you

• Creating fake news and generally bending all reality to your will

Anyone else terrified? 😐

If Fixed on Pixel doesn't give you the digital shivers, how about this deepfake TikTok ad:

Yesterday, TikTok removed this post of Joe Rogan that had been circulating on the platform all week.

It shows a clip of the JRE podcast, where Rogan's voice is overlayed with an AI replacement, and cropped responses from his interview guest, wellness influencer Andrew Huberman, are spliced in.

The result? A pretty believable plug for a hilariously dodgy "libido-boosting" supplement on Amazon.

We've heard warnings about the potential dangers of deepfakes for a while – but this could be the first time AI has been used to harness influence and generate sales.

The scariest thing? A decent standard of AI voice impersonation is easy to achieve. You can use a simple online app like the popular tool ElevenLabs.

Here's an ElevenLabs Joe Biden, made by a reporter from The Verge (scroll about 1/3 into the article).

Also, if you possess a lil' technical know-how, you can now make AI voices sound indistinguishable from IRL people.

@ostonox did this with the TikTok ad, before Rogan's lawyer had the content removed from the internet:

If AI lets scammers and sketchy companies adopt the personas of podcasters, journalists, and celebs that you trust – how long until you get got?

Just a small, scary thought to start your day. 😂😱

Tweet of the day

On the web3 wire

Binance debit card drops in Brazil 🇧🇷The card seamlessly converts crypto to fiat, so you can leave traditional banking altogether.

Napster buys a music NFT marketplace 🎧The 000's song-sharing site has bought Mint Songs, a platform for minting songs and releasing exclusive art.

Blockchain Association CEO goes off on CNBC 😤The head of the crypto lobbying group says the SEC is "carpet bombing" the sector.

SEC drives spike in crypto lawsuits in 2022

Crypto lawsuits were up by a wallet-thinning 42% in 2022.

Research shows a total of 41 claims were made against individuals and crypto companies – the highest number of crypto-related filings in a single year.

Who's behind this rise in litigation? It's no SEC-ret.

The SEC continues to intensify its campaign to class crypto as a security, thereby bringing it under its control.

Alongside claims against FTX, Kim Kardashian, and celeb BAYC holders, 19 of 2022's crypto lawsuits were filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Recently, the SEC has launched a fresh round of attacks with potentially big implications – especially for those who store their wealth in stablecoins and stake their coins on exchanges.

• Last week, the SEC fined crypto exchange Kraken $30 mill for failing to register its staking service

• Paxos, who provides Binance's BUSD stablecoin, is reportedly the next target of an SEC lawsuit.

• And the SEC's latest move? Make it harder for hedge funds to work with crypto firms.

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Which BAYC celebs actually claimed sewer passes?

It's no secret that many famous people hold BAYC assets as part of their financial portfolios.

With some of those celebs more than happy to participate in a lil' hyper-cringe shilling.

...which has dragged a whole bunch of notable holders into legal issues around web3 investment promo:

With the Dookey Dash scores now locked in place and updated on sewer pass metadata, it's interesting to see how many of those VIP apes actually understand what an NFT is, and claimed (or got their assistant to claim) their pass.

@RiceFarmerNFT did some great research on this and collected their findings in a thread:

So who left the penthouse for the sewer?

• Soccer's @neymarjr scored 172K, highest @RiceFarmer found

• NFl's @DezBryant scored 26K 🫡

• Producer @Timbaland scored 20K

And whose Yacht Club membership is gathering dust under a pile of free celeb merch and bougie goods? Among others:

• Eminem

• Jimmy Fallon

• Gwyneth Paltrow

• Marshmello

• Post Malone

Bye bye! 👋

Meme of the day

New levels of degeneration.

What we're reading this week