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Law Technology Daily Digest
Monday, August 10, 2026 - Volume 21 No. 1433
No Shortage of Challenges with AI
For all the good that AI can do - or at least has the potential of doing - it brings numerous challenges. Data centers built for AI outrun power grids and raise electricity rates for consumers. AI chatbots are too agreeable with us. Lawsuits against AI companies are claiming that AI chatbots are leading people in crisis to do bad things. This edition focuses on three stories about challenges of AI: people revolting against AI data centers, will less sycophantic AI reduce its effectiveness and how to keep AI from pushing people in crisis into disastrous decisions.
The People Are Revolting
The Neuron in Stephen's Lighthouse The “AI Data Center Revolt” Is Actually a REALLY big deal for the AI industry…
Knowing AI Agrees With Us Doesn't Change its Influence
Stephen's Lighthouse Individual-level interventions against sycophantic AI reduce its appeal but not its persuasiveness
AI is No Substitute for Mental Health Professionals
ArsTechnica AI chatbots have failed people in crisis. Can that be fixed?
Images created by Bing. Get well ASAP, Jeff!
-Doug Austin
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Jeffrey Brandt , EditorJeffrey Brandt @PinHawkHappens PinHawk.com | Blog: PinHawkBlog.com
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Security News
Critical Progress LoadMaster flaw now actively exploited in attacks Bleeping Computer, August 10, 2026 OpenAI locks down Astra over potential critical cyber capabilities Help Net Security, August 10, 2026 GitHub Dependabot malware alerts now cover eight ecosystems Help Net Security, August 10, 2026 Chainloop: Open-source evidence store and policy engine for the software supply chain Help Net Security, August 10, 2026 Product showcase: Enpass Password Manager breaks away from the proprietary cloud model Help Net Security, August 10, 2026 71% of CISOs spend 10+ hours on board reports Help Net Security, August 10, 2026 How to report an AI Act violation in the EU Help Net Security, August 10, 2026 Week in review: Cisco fixes IMC bug, Patch Tuesday forecast, Black Hat USA 2026 Help Net Security, August 9, 2026 Hackers breach TrueConf to trojanize client installers with backdoors Bleeping Computer, August 8, 2026 Metabase SQLi zero-day exploited in customer data-theft attacks Bleeping Computer, August 7, 2026 Unlimited Technology Systems breach impacts 3.8 million people Bleeping Computer, August 7, 2026 Friday Squid Blogging: Arctic Bobtail Squid Video Schneier on Security, August 7, 2026 A decade of enterprise identity in the cloud with AWS Managed Microsoft AD AWS Security Blog, August 7, 2026 Levi Strauss & Co. says hackers stole corporate data in cyberattack Bleeping Computer, August 7, 2026 Real emails, hijacked payments: Two H1 2026 attack chains Bleeping Computer, August 7, 2026 North Carolina Ports confirms cyberattack disrupting operations Bleeping Computer, August 7, 2026 200 accounts compromised in Swiss government’s Microsoft SharePoint breach Help Net Security, August 7, 2026 OpenAI drops ChatGPT text chat limits for free users, adds new safeguards for teens Help Net Security, August 7, 2026 CMMC Level 2 Compliance—What Should We Do Now as a DIB Org with CUI? Pivot Point Security, August 7, 2026 CMMC Phase 2 Suspended: What Defense Contractors Need to Do Pivot Point Security, August 7, 2026 ICE Is Buying Access to Credit Card Records Schneier on Security, August 7, 2026 Securing your Amazon S3 buckets: Identifying and remediating over-permissioned access AWS Security Blog, August 7, 2026
PRACTICE SUPPORT / E-DISCOVERY
News and Blogs
The “AI Data Center Revolt” Is Actually a REALLY big deal for the AI industry… Stephen's Lighthouse, August 9, 2026 Seth Godin: The modern library Stephen's Lighthouse, August 9, 2026 Restructuring local TV business around digital-first news production and streaming Stephen's Lighthouse, August 9, 2026 ABC, CBS, and NBC aired nearly 200 segments about three U.S. heat events without mentioning climate change Stephen's Lighthouse, August 9, 2026 Copyright and Scope of Employment Stephen's Lighthouse, August 9, 2026 Malfeasance, misfeasance and nonfeasance Stephen's Lighthouse, August 9, 2026 Measure What Matters: The Five Dimensions of Research Visibility & Impact Stephen's Lighthouse, August 9, 2026 10 Simple Ways to Make More Time for Reading (Even on the Busiest Days) Stephen's Lighthouse, August 9, 2026 MAGA’s attack on science is even worse than it looks Stephen's Lighthouse, August 8, 2026 How Libraries Can Explain Ebook Pricing to Patrons Stephen's Lighthouse, August 8, 2026 The Power of Saying “Hello” Stephen's Lighthouse, August 8, 2026 Democracy, Access to Information, and Young People’s Right to Information Stephen's Lighthouse, August 8, 2026 De-weaponizing E-discovery for Strategic Advantage in Dispute Resolution - Law.com (eDiscovery), August 7, 2026 [Webinar] Why Paralegals Are the Secret Weapon for Legal Teams in an AI Era - August 21st, 11:00 am PDT - JD Supra (eDiscovery), August 7, 2026 Zapproved on Cloud Computing and the Future of E-Discovery - Law.com (eDiscovery), August 7, 2026 The Kitchen Sink for August 7, 2026: Legal Tech Trends EDiscovery Today, August 7, 2026 Individual-level interventions against sycophantic AI reduce its appeal but not its persuasiveness Stephen's Lighthouse, August 7, 2026 A Document Workflow That Keeps Pace with Complex Cases for Expert Witness Firms: eDiscovery Case Studies EDiscovery Today, August 7, 2026 It’s Worse Than That by R. David Lankes Stephen's Lighthouse, August 7, 2026 AI Slop Risks Future Discovery: A DISCUSSION OF Charting a Course for AI in Science Stephen's Lighthouse, August 7, 2026 The Leadership Dilemma of Knowing the Details Stephen's Lighthouse, August 7, 2026 Atlantic: The People Who Will Thrive in the AI Age Stephen's Lighthouse, August 7, 2026 Why are Libraries Trying to Lobby and Litigate Themselves out of Existence? Stephen's Lighthouse, August 7, 2026 Mental Fitness for Attorneys: Strengthening Your Internal Operating System Attorney at Work, August 7, 2026
Vendor Announcements
Smarsh GRC Case Study Preparis Mitratech: Press Releases, August 7, 2026
KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT / LEAN / ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE / MACHINE LEARNING
Vendor Announcements
Meta Hit With $567M Abatement Order in New Mexico Child Safety Case Blog of Legal Times, August 7, 2026 Trump Renews Effort to Fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook Blog of Legal Times, August 7, 2026 'Not Just Another Startup': The Archer Partner Who Helped Bring Back Philadelphia's Cycling Classic Blog of Legal Times, August 7, 2026 'The People's House': Split DC Circuit Blocks White House Ballroom Plans Blog of Legal Times, August 7, 2026 Uncertainty Looms After Supreme Court Carves Out Fed Independence Blog of Legal Times, August 7, 2026 DOJ Accuses Duke Law School of Racial Discrimination in Admissions Blog of Legal Times, August 7, 2026 Rise of the ‘Grantal'? How Some Judges Are Airing En Banc Objections Blog of Legal Times, August 7, 2026
LEADERSHIP / PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
News and Blogs
DeepSeek Restarts Second Funding Round Silicon UK, August 10, 2026 Nscale May Hold IPO In September – Report Silicon UK, August 10, 2026 Make-Up Robot Prototype Wins Top Hackathon Prize Silicon UK, August 10, 2026 Rural Yorkshire, Lincolnshire Premises Get Fibre Links Silicon UK, August 10, 2026 Apple Earnings, More on Amazon’s Earnings Stratechery, August 10, 2026 Alex Norris passes first big test UK Law Society Gazette: Comment and Opinion, August 10, 2026 Meta Unveils ‘Open Source’ Version of Its Most Powerful A.I. Model New York Times: Technology, August 10, 2026 A.I.-Driven Chip Crunch Leads to New Rush of Lobbying in Washington New York Times: Technology, August 10, 2026 Can A.I. Get You Where You Want to Go for Less? New York Times: Technology, August 10, 2026 Why Are So Many People Upset About Flock Cameras? New York Times: Technology, August 10, 2026 Flock Cameras Can Track Every Car in America. Police Love Them. Citizens Don’t. New York Times: Technology, August 10, 2026 The Surprising Truth About Instagram’s VHS Dates Videos New York Times: Technology, August 10, 2026 ETLegalWorld successfully concludes the AI-Powered Legal Transformation Summit 2026 - ETLegalWorld.com (Legal Technology), August 9, 2026 Made by Google 2026: How to watch and what to expect from at the Pixel 11 event ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 9, 2026 Mount Toba eruption doesn't seem like it could nearly kill our species Ars Technica, August 9, 2026 Pete Recommends – Weekly highlights on cyber security issues, August 8, 2026 LLRX.com, August 9, 2026 CosmoLex Adds Casemaker to its Legal Technology Ecosystem - Law.com (Legal Technology), August 8, 2026 Legal tech must move beyond efficiency to drive revenue, risk and business decisions: Legal Experts - ETLegalWorld.com (Legal Technology), August 8, 2026 New Amazon Data Center Is Set to Have the Most Polluting Power Plant in the U.S. New York Times: Technology, August 8, 2026 The first self-driving vehicle on Mars has proven to be a smashing success Ars Technica, August 8, 2026 DeepMind’s hurricane breakthrough has surprised weather scientists Ars Technica, August 8, 2026 Podcast episode 255: Apple BoatPlay ⛵️ Border Patrol Passwords and Lasso’ing the Moon🌛 iPhone, J.D., August 8, 2026 Anthropic hires Robert Mahari as head of Claude for Legal - Legal IT Insider (Legal Technology), August 7, 2026 Startup Corner: Lawdie, the AI back office for law firms - Legal IT Insider (Legal Technology), August 7, 2026 AI-first legal departments need governance, skills and measurable ROI: Legal Experts - ETLegalWorld.com (Legal Technology), August 7, 2026 Legaltech governance latest: New Akerman head, EU AI Act warning, & BARBRI AI adoption findings - Legal IT Insider (Legal Technology), August 7, 2026 Notessa Appoints Amy DeVincentis as Head of Growth - 01net (Legal Technology), August 7, 2026 This 6-port USB-C charger replaced my ugly power brick - and powers my entire desk ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 I was loyal to T-Mobile for 10 years, but switching to Mint slashed my bill - by a lot ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 Samsung Galaxy Watch 9 review: Health data overload, but built for the future ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 2026.32: Earnings and Learnings Stratechery, August 7, 2026 Europe's free satellite service just made it easier to track wildfires Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 Flesh-eating screwworms feast on humans in Mexico; human cases top 500 Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 Judge rules Meta caused "public nuisance" and must fund mental health treatment Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 The ultimate eclipse chase: A Concorde raced against the Moon's shadow Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 New official 30th anniversary Quake mission pack adds new maps and mechanics Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 DOGE's wild, unverifiable savings claims discredited in US government report Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 OpenAI’s expensive smart speaker will use moving parts to seem “more alive” Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 How snails engineer their slime Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 Volkswagen plans to win America back with a pickup, report says Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 Troutman Pepper Locke’s Shelli Willis Selected to “50 Women to Watch for Boards” Corporate Counsel Business Journal: News, August 7, 2026 Jennifer Breen Joins Jones Day Corporate Counsel Business Journal: News, August 7, 2026 Hilgers Strengthens National Leadership with Partner Trio Corporate Counsel Business Journal: News, August 7, 2026 Naomi Burgoyne Becomes CMA Senior Merger Director at Cleary Gottlieb Corporate Counsel Business Journal: News, August 7, 2026 Holland & Knight Advises Steampunk on Veritas Acquisition Corporate Counsel Business Journal: News, August 7, 2026 Simpson Thacher Gains Partner Quintet Corporate Counsel Business Journal: News, August 7, 2026 HL & Cadwalader Advise SPREAD on Lockheed Investment Corporate Counsel Business Journal: News, August 7, 2026 Tyler Williams Joins Expands Digital Assets Capabilities at Hogan Lovells Cadwalader Corporate Counsel Business Journal: News, August 7, 2026 Corinne Musa Expands Expands Fund Finance Practice at Fried Frank Corporate Counsel Business Journal: News, August 7, 2026 Cleary Gottlieb Represents Alphabet $25 Billion USD-Denominated Bonds Offering Corporate Counsel Business Journal: News, August 7, 2026 Simpson Thacher takes five-partner Kirkland team for Chicago debut Global Legal Post: Big Stories, August 7, 2026 Merricks prepares to distribute £100m to consumers after settling dispute with Mastercard class action funder Global Legal Post: Big Stories, August 7, 2026 AI dispute intelligence start-up Aavalynx raises £1.5m in pre-seed funding round Global Legal Post: Big Stories, August 7, 2026 Stephenson Harwood points to disputes volatility as profits fall by 12% Global Legal Post: Big Stories, August 7, 2026 Call for 2027 Applications: The Stigler Center Journalists in Residence Program Disrupt Legal, August 7, 2026 This Bluetooth-only Marshall home speaker sounds so good, I can forgive the missing Wi-Fi ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 Your phone doesn't block SIM swapping attacks by default: Turn on these carrier settings now ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 review: The compact foldable I've wanted all along ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 I read Microsoft's Windows 11 'quality' progress report - and the subtext says it all ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 I compared Google's pricier Pixel 11 series to Samsung's Galaxy lineup - here's the better value now ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 Apple rushes out emergency fix for screen sharing flaw on Macs - update ASAP ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 I'm a diehard OnePlus user: Here's my plan now that the company is leaving North America ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 What do cybersecurity leaders want in staff? These 3 skills beat certifications and experience ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 How I survive summer without AC: My top hot weather coping tips, tricks, and gadgets ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 Wi-Fi 7 adoption in the US quadrupled in a year - is it time to upgrade? ZDNet: Beyond IT Failure, August 7, 2026 CMMC Level 2 Compliance—What Should We Do Now as a DIB Org with CUI? Pivot Point Security, August 7, 2026 CMMC Phase 2 Suspended: What Defense Contractors Need to Do Pivot Point Security, August 7, 2026 Data overload UK Law Society Gazette: Comment and Opinion, August 7, 2026 Report: White House drafting executive order linking vaccines and autism Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 AI chatbots have failed people in crisis. Can that be fixed? Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 ByteDance trains massive AI model in bid to rival Anthropic Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 The world's biggest solar telescope caught vortexes on the Sun's surface Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 Trump is losing his war on wind power Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 Remembering the pre-Google web, when search was an experiment Ars Technica, August 7, 2026 The White House’s Secret A.I. Rules + The State of Model Alignment With METR’s Chris Painter + The Final Hot Mess Express New York Times: Technology, August 7, 2026
Vendor Announcements
Cornerstone.IT Cornerstone IT: Events, August 9, 2026 Cornerstone.IT Cornerstone IT: Events, August 9, 2026 Cornerstone.IT Cornerstone IT: Events, August 8, 2026 Cornerstone.IT Cornerstone IT: Events, August 8, 2026 Cornerstone.IT Now Available in the Microsoft Azure Marketplace Cornerstone IT, August 7, 2026 Product Briefing — From Roadmap to Reality: Executing Cybersecurity for Law Firms Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 ILTA Master Class: Your 2026 Legal Cybersecurity Roadmap Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 AI Leadership Roundtable for Vermont IT Executives Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 Mimecast Partner Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 NetDocuments Partner Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 Cornerstone.IT Maintains Its ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Certification Following a Successful Surveillance Audit Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 NetScaler Security Bulletin June 2026: What Law Firms Should Know Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 From Reactive to Proactive: A New Standard for Managed Services in Law Firms Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 iManage is Launching a Next-Gen Platform – And Early Access is Open Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 Arctic Wolf Just Launched Aurora Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 Inc. Names Cornerstone Information Technologies, LLC to Its 2026 List of the Fastest-Growing Private Companies in the Northeast Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 Cornerstone.IT Supports iManage ConnectLive Chicago 2026 Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 Cornerstone.IT Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 The Spreadsheet in Someone’s Head: Why manual work allocation is costing mid-sized firms more than they think BigHand, August 7, 2026 Cornerstone.IT Cornerstone IT: Events, August 7, 2026 Studio A: What Happens When Law Firms Stop Flying Blind on AI? BigHand, August 7, 2026
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That's not a knock against their looks (some of you will get that joke), but a statement of how people are feeling about data centers. Residents face noise, construction, power lines, possible rate hikes, few permanent jobs, tax breaks, and private decisions. These are real local conversations. Daily ChatGPT users can still reject the idea that enjoying an app means their town owes the AI industry (“a handful of billionaires”) land, cheap resources, and political deference. With all that, it's no wonder that opposition is bipartisan: roughly 70% oppose a nearby data center. With that in mind, candidates must answer: "Who pays for AI, who gets to decide where it's built, and who gets the benefits?" Stephen Abram covers a story from The Neuron in Stephen's Lighthouse here: 
Some of us know that AI chatbots can be “sycophantic,” (i.e., overly agreeable and flattering toward users), but many do not. These authors tested whether increasing users’ awareness of sycophancy protects them from its harmful effects in two preregistered experiments. The answer? While the interventions made the sycophantic AI appear less objective and trustworthy, none reduced its persuasiveness. That means that individual-level interventions, such as warning labels or AI literacy, may not be enough to protect users from AI harms. Ruh-roh! Stephen Abram covers (and links to) this study in Stephen's Lighthouse here: 
A byproduct of the tendency of AI chatbots to be sycophantic is that they can give bad advice to people in crisis, which leads to potentially disastrous results - at least according to several lawsuits filed against AI companies. At least the companies are trying to do something about it. OpenAI announced that it had partnered with the American Psychological Association to “bring psychological science into how we think about responsible AI development and use among young people.” Anthropic says it has worked to reduce sycophancy in its models. But do we need more transparency into the models to address this issue? I doubt that will happen anytime soon - if ever. Cyrus Farivar discusses it in ArsTechnica here: 
