🧠💻 Is Doomscrolling Turning Our Brains to Mush?

Hey Explorers!

This week’s Dispatch is bursting with tech, festive vibes, and a healthy dose of AI-powered controversy.

Is doomscrolling frying our brains? Are TikTok creators about to face their endgame? And why is OpenAI making us feel like kids on Christmas morning with their 12 Days of AI surprises?

We’re diving deep into how AI is rewriting coding, curbing loneliness with animatronic pets, and even helping the DoD combat the growing menace of deepfakes.

Plus, get ready to feast on the tastiest scam in town—“snackfishing”—and a special Techie Gift Guide to surprise your favorite geek this holiday season.

Let’s unwrap the details! 🎄✨

🗞️ TECH & TRENDS | News & More

🧠💩 Is ‘Doom Scrolling’ Giving Us Brain Rot? | Word of the Year alert: “Brain-rot.” A sharp jab at how the internet and social media are reshaping (or wrecking—depending on who you ask) our cognitive functions. Are we scrolling our way to a mental decline? (🔗 Link)

🎁🤖 OpenAI's 12 Days of Surprises! | From jaw-dropping demos to holiday-themed AI experiments, OpenAI is counting down to the season in the most futuristic way possible. What’s next on their list? Let’s unwrap it together! (🔗 Link)

🖥️🤖 Thanks to AI, the Hottest Programming Language Is… English? | Forget Python and JavaScript. AI tools are making plain ol’ English the next big thing in coding. It’s time to chat with your computer like it’s a colleague. (🔗 Link)

🎙️📣 Voice AI Is Ready to Take Over… Everything | From kiosks to customer service, Voice AI is gearing up to dominate industries in 2025. SoundHound’s exec says it’s time to start listening. (🔗 Link)

🐾🤖 Can Animatronic Pets Cure Loneliness? | Lifeless or lifelike? AI-powered animatronic pets are helping seniors and Alzheimer’s patients combat loneliness. Cute tech or just creepy? (🔗 Link)

🎥🕵️‍♂️ The DoD vs. Deepfakes | The U.S. Department of Defense is pouring cash into deepfake detection tech. With AI-generated lies getting scarily realistic, can this help us separate fact from fiction? (🔗 Link)

📱🇺🇸 TikTok Creators Brace for Impact | With a potential U.S. ban looming, TikTok creators are scrambling to secure their livelihoods. Can they pivot fast enough—or is this the end of an era? (🔗 Link)

🍟📸 Snackfishing: The Viral Food Scam | Viral trends or outright scams? Snackfishing is the art of creating fake food trends (hello, clear ketchup) just to sell clicks. Looks tasty—tastes like lies. (🔗 Link)

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🚀 CROSSROADS SUMMIT: Navigating Chaos & Innovation

Last month, we joined forces with Tradestation to host the Crossroads Summit—a two-day deep dive into the next decade's challenges and opportunities. With powerhouse speakers like Neil Howe, Peter Zeihan, Cathie Wood, Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, and others, attendees gained actionable insights to thrive in an era of rapid change. Gianluca Venturi from Amazon captured it best:

👉 You can read his insightful reflections about the event here.

🎁🎄 TECHIE HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE

🎅🤖 AI Santa: Naughty or Nice? | Create a fun and personalized message from Santa for your kids, nieces & nephews, or friends!

🤓🕶️ For the Visual Techie | Looking to wow an AI enthusiast? You can start by upgrading their vision… literally! Check out the Meta Smart Glasses, the Even Realities G1, or the XREAL One AR-equipped glasses.

🤖❤️ For the Robotics Fan | Spark their creativity with the Elegoo Smart Robot Car Kit—ideal for programmable, hands-on robotics fun. Or geek out with Boston Dynamics-inspired merch, like Spot the Robot Dog posters or collectible models.

💻🔓 For the Aspiring Tinkerer or Hacker | An Arduino Starter Kit or a Raspberry Pi 400 kit is the ultimate coding playground, whether they're building a personal server or hacking their first project. There’s also the NVIDIA Jetson Nano for the AI tinkerer. And for the more hands-on hacker, check out the Flipper Zero multi-tool device.

🔬🔗 For the Quantum Curious | Simplify the mind-bending world of quantum computing with “Quantum Computing for Everyone” by Chris Bernhardt. There’s also this fun way to show what a Quantum Mechanic actually does. 🤣 

Let’s make this holiday season all about inspiring curiosity and creativity—what will you gift your favorite techie? 🎄

📅 LET’S HANG OUT | Upcoming Events

📍 12/10 Cafecito & Pastelitos

📍 1/7 South Miami Tech Tuesdays @ Bougie’s

🔮 TAKE THE PURPLE PILL | Work with Us

We help businesses navigate the future of tech, combining strategic advice with hands-on innovation and a connected community.

Think of us as the Q Branch from James Bond, but for tech strategy:

1. We advise on what's possible - We guide you through tech transformation

2. We prototype to prove it - We test emerging tech through rapid experiments and MVPs

3. We connect you with others doing it - We connect leaders through transformative events and commmunity

Let’s brainstorm on how Purple Horizons can help YOUR business!