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While I focus on Technology, Innovation, and Publishing, because I have a platform, I also flag items that I think are important. I also try to include some resources & opportunities. Please let me know what you think.

Important Items

The Visionary of Trump 2.0

Russell Vought is advancing a radical ideological project decades in the making. (He’s the architect of Project 2025.)

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2025/05/russell-vought-trump-doge/682821/

In a Major Win for Libraries, Federal Judge Orders IMLS to Be Restored

In a thorough rebuke, federal judge John G. McConnell has ordered the Trump administration to immediately reverse the mass terminations of grants and staff at IMLS.

https://www.wordsandmoney.com/in-a-major-win-for-libraries-federal-judge-orders-imls-to-be-restored/

The Library of Congress Has Always Been a Battleground for American Culture Wars

Thomas Jefferson wanted to donate his personal collection of books to the Library of Congress. But critics thought those books were un-American. A fascinating history!

https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2025/05/18/carla-hayden-firing-library-of-congress-history-00352719

Technology

Audible set to offer “end-to-end” AI production technology – including translation and narration – for audiobooks

https://www.thebookseller.com/news/audible-to-use-ai-technology-to-produce-audiobooks

Audible is giving publishers AI tools to quickly make more audiobooks

Audible’s AI narration technology will be available through two options: a fully managed end-to-end service or a self-service model, allowing publishers to oversee the production process themselves. They will have a choice of over 100 AI voices in multiple languages and accents. Last September, Audible trained a group of narrators to create AI voice clones, enabling them to review and adjust final audiobooks for accuracy. The AI translation tools will initially support English to Spanish, French, Italian, and German, offering text-to-text and speech-to-speech translation options while allowing publishers to review or request professional linguist checks.

https://www.theverge.com/news/666136/amazon-audible-ai-narration-audiobooks-translation

Audible to Partner with Book Publishers to Create AI-Voiced Audiobooks

Audible is working with US book publishers to convert print and e-books into AI-voiced audiobooks

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-05-13/audible-to-partner-with-publishers-to-create-ai-voiced-audiobooks

How Google forced publishers to accept AI scraping as price of appearing in search

Google considered letting publishers opt out of their content being used for AI grounding while still appearing in search results, but rejected the idea.

https://pressgazette.co.uk/platforms/how-google-forced-publishers-to-accept-ai-scraping-as-price-of-appearing-in-search/

The Hidden Costs of AI Copyediting Tools: An Editor’s Review

HT ⁦@JaneFriedman⁩ If you’re already a professional author or editor, AI tools will likely add a lot of extra time to your process with limited or no benefit.

https://janefriedman.com/the-hidden-costs-of-ai-copyediting-tools-an-editors-review/

Hybrid AI model crafts smooth, high-quality videos in seconds

MIT and Adobe Research have developed a hybrid method called “CausVid,” which allows for rapid video generation. It combines a diffusion-based model with an autoregressive system that predicts the next frame quickly. It can create dynamic content from simple text prompts, such as transforming a still photo into motion or extending existing videos. It also supports interactive content creation, enabling users to modify scenes mid-generation. Potential applications include enhancing video editing tasks, generating synced translations for livestreams, rendering new video game content, and producing training simulations for robots.

https://news.mit.edu/2025/causevid-hybrid-ai-model-crafts-smooth-high-quality-videos-in-seconds-0506

TikTok launches TikTok AI Alive, a new image-to-video tool

TikTok has launched “TikTok AI Alive,” its first image-to-video AI feature that allows users to transform static photos into animated videos with creative effects within TikTok Stories.

https://techcrunch.com/2025/05/13/tiktok-launches-tiktok-ai-alive-a-new-image-to-video-tool/

Beyond Code Autocomplete

For coding copilots’ bread-and-butter task of writing code, we found that the assistants offered diminishing returns: They were very helpful for junior developers working on basic tasks, but not that helpful for more senior developers who worked on specialized tasks. To use AI in a truly transformative way, we concluded, we couldn’t limit ourselves to just copilots. We needed to think more holistically about the whole software-development life cycle and adapt whatever tools are most helpful at each stage. We’re working on fine-tuning the available coding copilots for our particular code base, so that even senior developers will find them more useful. But we’re also adapting LLMs to perform other parts of software development, like reviewing and optimizing code and generating bug reports. And we’re broadening our scope beyond LLMs and generative AI. We’ve found that using discriminative AI—AI that categorizes content instead of generating it—can be a boon in testing, particularly in checking how well video games run on our software and hardware.

https://spectrum.ieee.org/beyond-code-autocomplete

Spotify’s AI DJ now lets you use voice commands to personalize your tunes

Spotify is enhancing its AI DJ feature by enabling users to make music requests and adjust playlist moods using voice commands, currently available in English for Premium subscribers in over 60 markets.

https://techcrunch.com/2025/05/13/spotifys-ai-dj-now-lets-you-use-voice-commands-to-personalize-your-tunes/

5 mindshifts to supercharge business growth

HT @benedictevans IBM CEO survey on AI adoption

https://www.ibm.com/thought-leadership/institute-business-value/en-us/c-suite-study/ceo

Here’s What I Learned After Six Months of Wearing Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses

https://lifehacker.com/tech/what-i-learned-after-six-months-of-wearing-ray-ban-meta-smart-glasses

The Dream of the Metaverse Is Dying. Manufacturing Is Keeping It Alive

The industrial metaverse is expected to be worth $100 billion globally by 2030. In this context, the concept of the metaverse refers to a convergence of technologies including simulations, sensors, augmented reality, and 3D standards. It’s about bridging the physical world with the digital world, also known as spatial computing. This can include training in virtual reality, digital product design, and virtual simulations of physical spaces such as factories.

https://www.wired.com/story/the-metaverse-is-here-and-its-industrial/

How TikTok Shop is beating Amazon and Temu in the social shopping space

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/03/30/how-tiktok-shop-is-beating-amazon-and-temu-at-social-shopping.html

Billion-dollar products follow users everywhere they go

Turn your product’s best feature into a Chrome extension that works everywhere – not just on your website/portal. Then give it away for free (even to non-customers). Think of it as a “mini version“ of your product that follows users across the internet. When they’re ready to get more value → they’ll naturally upgrade to your full platform.

https://www.marketingideas.com/p/the-8-hour-window-most-startups-are

Publishing & Media

Bestselling YA Author Dhonielle Clayton Launched Love In Translation Series to Support Debut Writers of Color

The We Need Diverse Books CEO chose three debut writers to pen each installment to help address disparities in publishing

https://people.com/author-dhonielle-clayton-creates-ya-series-to-uplift-women-of-color-exclusive-11724236

How Taylor Jenkins Reid Became a Publishing Powerhouse

https://time.com/7284944/taylor-jenkins-reid-atmosphere-interview/

Somesuch Joins Film Studios’ March to Publishing

Somesuch, the Academy Award–winning production company based in the U.K., has announced plans to branch out into the world of books this summer, joining such film studios as A24 and Mubi in making a foray into publishing.

https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/97770-somesuch-joins-filmmaker-march-to-publishing.html

Russian authorities arrest employees of largest publishing house over alleged ‘LGBT propaganda’ in books

HT @publishingtrend

https://meduza.io/en/feature/2025/05/15/russian-authorities-arrest-employees-of-largest-publishing-house-over-alleged-lgbt-propaganda-in-books

Tribal communities risk losing local libraries and the history they hold amid DOGE cuts

More than a hundred libraries on federally recognized tribal lands across the country were notified that their congressionally appropriated grant had been terminated midcycle. Those communities are at risk of losing their local libraries and the history they hold.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/tribal-communities-risk-losing-local-libraries-history-hold-doge-cuts-rcna203508

Resources & Opportunities

Celebrating AANHPI Storytellers!

Hear Authors:

Katie Kitamura (Audition)
Megha Majumdar (A Burning)
Hyeseung Song (Docile)
Qian Julie Wang (Beautiful Country)

5/21 5:30-7:30pm, NYC, $15 @WMG_NYC members, $20 nonmembers.

-> READERS OF MY NEWSLETTER: Come at the member price of $15: Pick Partner Organization and use code CELEBRATE <-

https://womensmediagroup.org/event-6154518

Exclusive Book Talk and NYBG Library Tour

WMG Members only, FREE 6/13 10-12pm, space limited – almost sold out. Join Penguin Random House’s Library Marketing team for an exclusive morning at the New York Botanical Garden’s LuEsther T. Mertz Library, featuring a conversation with the award-winning chef and author Amy Chaplin, free book, free admission and parking, and a book signing.

https://womensmediagroup.org/event-6183358

From federal to local, how to measure the impact of federal cuts on your community

MT @womenjournos FREE #JAWS webinar w Health journalist Liz Seegert, NBC Data Editor Lucia Walinchus and Big Local News co-director Cheryl Phillips.

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_HX3v2MzJS56wHpotXFJZWQ#/registration

Inkluded Academy

MT @marcelalandres Inkluded Academy is a tuition-free publishing course that helps place publishing aspirants from typically underrepresented groups into the industry, application deadline 6/9, but the deadline could move up if they receive 200 applications before then. Make sure to get your application in as soon as you can!

https://inkludedacademy.wufoo.com/forms/r1otk9o01ykkqtz/

The Schomburg Center’s Junior Scholars Program

Deadline 6/30. This free, in-person Saturday program invites creative and curious students in grades 6–12 to explore Black history, culture, & the arts alongside a community of young thinkers and scholars

https://www.nypl.org/about/fellowships-institutes/schomburg-junior-scholars-program

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