I won’t dwell on it, but it will remain in my consciousness and influence how I deal with that person in the future. Sadly, in business, some are not very honest. This specimen falls in that category. I know I have been upfront and honest and haven’t screwed anyone out of money, and If I’ve made a mistake, I’ve done everything possible to correct it.

On to other matters.

I’ve been asked to train a group about using generative AI in the workplace. I’m putting together a short training course to achieve that goal. I have a tendency to dive deep into subjects like this, so I’m trying to scale back the scope to concentrate on the essentials so the participants can learn a few basic elements and then go on to use them successfully in their office environments. I’m ensuring to include a module on risks and shortcomings, but on the whole, the short course will be useful and interesting and worth the day’s investment.

I’m both optimistic about the utility of generative AI in certain settings and with the right guard rails but quite pessimistic about our capacity to properly safeguard against dishonest and downright dangerous use. I suspect we’ll even invent a category of terrorism based on the use of this technology.

This week I was asked for an interview to talk about cybersecurity in the broader context of the Caribbean and an incident that has shut down local government services for over a month now. It’s the second time in as many weeks that I have been on television. The first time I was petrified, but this time I was much more comfortable. I’d love to do this more often if the opportunity arises.

I need to start the writing up process for my paper that will be included in Vatel’s CIRVATH, which should be published towards the end of the year, should it be accepted. I’m looking forward to providing a research paper that is thought-provoking and useful to all that are in the hotel / travel & tourism sector. It requires a little consistency on my part, but I’m sure with a little effort, I’ll get it done.

A week ago or so, I applied to join another training course targeted at the economy of innovation but was not selected. I’m not too upset, but I do think I would have been a great candidate.

My cybersecurity newsletter didn’t go out. I got distracted, but I’d hope to do something about it this week. It needs a little editing and a little massage to get it into a state that I’d be happy publishing. My kryptonite is that I spend a lot of time reading, and there is virtually no end to the amount I find interesting. At some point, I need to start producing too. Soon come.

How could I finish this post without mentioning Apple’s big day?

Apple’s developer conference, WWDC, took place this week. The keynote presentation was on Monday, and we discovered their new augmented reality headset. Although to be fair to Apple, they didn’t use the terms virtual reality or augmented reality as far as I can remember. They positioned the device as a ‘spatial computer’. Essentially the replacement of your Mac / iPad or perhaps iPhone.

The hardware is really impressive, and clearly, Apple has thought deeply about it. For the moment, aside from an immersive laptop screen extension, I fail to see the killer app or the use case that shows me ‘why’ I need this.

Reading

My paper and book reading continues. I’ve mostly concentrated on finishing the penultimate book in the Foundation series that I managed to do last night.

I’ll be starting a couple of other “serious” books soon too.

Notably, I’ve just bought and downloaded a historical account of the transatlantic slave trade and Chattel slavery called “A world transformed: Slavery in the Americas and the origins of global power” by James Calvin.

I’ve also lined up “Get rich or lie trying” by Symeon Brown.

Of note

I recorded a new podcast episode with my friend Jean-François. I really enjoy these conversations, and I’d love to continue doing them. When you’re confronted with questions, you have to think quickly about your answers, which I really enjoy.