Happy Monday, friend. Remember when your biggest question was which friend had the better AIM away message? Simpler times. Flash forward, we’re now trying to remember which robot voice got to us first. 

Bet you don’t know this one. Which AI assistant came out before the others: A) Siri, B) Alexa, C) Cortana or D) Google Assistant? The answer is at the end, waiting to tell you “I’m not sure I understand” when you’re in a rush. 🤖

0️⃣ Zero, zilch, nada: My privacy secret weapon eliminated spam calls and texts on my phone. Silence feels so good. I negotiated a 60% discount just for you. You’re gonna love it! 

🎙️ Missed my show this past weekend? I’m not mad. I’m just disappointed. (Can you tell I’m a mom, too?) The good news is you can listen to it when and where you want. Here’s a one-click link to my show on the most popular podcast players. Now, let’s jump in to keep you and your loved ones tech-smart and safe. — Kim

That meeting that could have been an email? You’re on it, eyes glossing over rambling updates, Todd’s screen share failing for the fourth time (use a mouse, Todd) or what appears to be a seance: “If you can hear me now, make a sign.”

AI can be your saving grace. I’m talking about short, sweet and productive meetings that everyone will thank you for later.

Here’s your no-BS cheat sheet for the best prompts to use with your favorite AI chatbot:

🎯 1. “Write an agenda for a 30-minute meeting about [insert meeting purpose here] focused on outcomes, not updates.” 

Say goodbye to pointless tangents. This prompt spits out a clear, focused agenda that gets you in and out fast.

📝 2. “Summarize this meeting transcript into 5 key action points with deadlines and assigned tasks.” 

Who wants to dig through messy notes afterward? Not you. Record your Zoom, Teams or Google Meet, drop the transcript into ChatGPT, and instantly get clear action steps, deadlines and a rundown of who’s responsible for what.

🎙️ 3. “Turn this long meeting transcript into concise notes for my team, highlighting tasks and who’s responsible.”

Don’t torture your coworkers with a replay of your meeting. AI trims down that snoozefest into a neat summary, just key decisions, assignments and who’s handling them, and what comes next. Done and dusted.

🤖 4. “Identify questions raised in this meeting that weren’t answered, and suggest who should follow up.”

Never lose track of loose ends again. ChatGPT spots overlooked questions and tells you who should chase them down, so nothing falls through the cracks.

Transcripts made simple

Use Google Gemini:

1. Record your meeting: In Google Meet, click on the three-dot menu (⋮) at the bottom, then select “Record meeting.” Gemini handles the rest, including automated transcription plus suggested task assignments. Nice.
2. Grab your transcript: Once you wrap up, you’ll automatically get an email linking you straight to the recording and transcript.
3. Plug it into ChatGPT: Copy-paste your transcript with the prompts above, and watch magic happen.

Pricing and alternatives (because options are good):

• Otter.ai: Slick auto-transcriptions, handy summaries and highlighted tasks. Free basic version; premium is $8.33/month when billed annually.
• Fireflies.ai: Automatically captures action items and tasks, and integrates directly with project management apps. Free with limited goodies; Pro starts at $10/month per user.

I really hate meetings. I really wish “me” weren’t in meetings. But give these prompts a shot. You’ll shave hours off your week and look like a total productivity rock star. You’re welcome!

Your personal info is all over the internet, and criminals know exactly where to find it. With just a few clicks, they can open accounts in your name or wipe out your bank accounts. That’s why I use Incogni Unlimited.

The pros at Incogni work behind the scenes tokeep your info off the internet. With Incogni Unlimited, they automatically remove your info, and manually go after those stubborn, tricky sites.  

Most people don’t realize how exposed they are online. With Incogni Unlimited, I minimize the risk of:  

✅ Harmful scams
✅ Financial fraud
✅ Spam emails and calls

Scammers can’t steal what they can’t see. Get my exclusive offer and take back control of your personal info today.

🤖 You’ve got a friend in me: AI leaders like Musk, Zuckerberg and Microsoft are pushing bots as personalized friends (paywall link) to combat loneliness, but more importantly, for user engagement and data tracking. AI companions are constantly being tweaked with just enough bias to keep you loyal, as seen with Musk’s Grok being “retrained” after backlash for leaning too liberal. 

Oops, AI faked our bust: This is bad. Maine cops posted a drug bust photo, then realized it was “substantially” AI-edited. Packaging on the drugs looked like AI gibberish, and people called them out. An officer used an editing app to slap the department’s patch in, and it warped the photo’s details. Officers swore they’re not deepfaking meth. It’s just their app skills are trash.

🕵️ Data breach exposes stalkerware: Catwatchful was pitched as a “parental control” app. In reality, it lets people secretly spy on phones, texts, calls and GPS. Then it leaked everything: 26,000 victims’ data, stalkers’ logins and more. Google’s investigating, but it’s still up. Congrats to the stalkers, now you’re the ones being watched.

Have mandatory cybersecurity classes at work? New research from Purdue found anti-phishing training may make workers worse at spotting scams. Turns out, binge-watching security videos doesn’t build instincts, it builds false confidence. One group even clicked more after “interactive” training. That’s right: Your IT team’s monthly guilt-trap quiz might be actively hurting.

⏩ 2x speed frying memory: A new study says bingeing podcasts and videos at warp speed might make you dumber or at least worsen memory retention. Turns out 2x pushes the brain past its “working memory” limit, especially for older adults. Teens? Basically brain athletes for TikTok TED Talks. The rest of us? Toast. 

🛩️ Amelia Earhart mystery: Another team is trying to find out what ever happened to the famous pilot who disappeared 88 years ago. They’re heading to Nikumaroro, a remote island in the Pacific Ocean. Why now? A satellite image revealed something odd, called the “Taraia Object,” that could be part of her missing plane. Stay tuned.

🌃 And all through Amazon, the deals were already dropping.

• 📱 Your phone’s lifeguard: These waterproof cases (41% off, two-pack) have 4.5 stars and 21,000+ reviews.

• 🏷️ Stick with it: An ink-free label maker (52% off) is pure organizing bliss. Type, tap, done.

• 💡 Glow and behold: The sleekest LED floor lamp (10% off) you’ll ever plug in. Yep, it doubles as a bookshelf.

• 🐦 Flyby footage: Bird-watch in HD with this smart bird feeder (30% off). Bonus: color night vision.

• 🧳 Luggage mishap, aborted: A digital luggage scale (16% off) saves me from paying overweight fees.

• ⚡ Your tech will thank you: This cleaning kit (20% off) tackles gunky ports and even bad connections.

👉 More early deals? Just one click away on my Amazon storefront and this handy page.

⚡️ 3-second tech genius: Tired of Instagram suggesting people to follow? Go to your profile > Edit profile > toggle off Show account suggestions on profiles.

🌐 Share Wi-Fi from your laptop: On some networks or on an airplane, you can only connect one device. Quick fix? Turn your laptop into a hotspot. On Windows, go to Settings > Network & Internet > Mobile Hotspot. On Mac, head to System Settings > General > Sharing > Internet Sharing and switch it on.

🔥 Fire stick buffering? Your device doesn’t actually turn off, it just goes to sleep. A quick restart might help performance issues. Go to Settings > My Fire TV (or Device & Software) and hit Restart. Or hold the Select and Play/Pause buttons on your remote for a few seconds to reboot it.

📚 Turn “da-da” into data: Get your kiddo ready for the future (and AI) with these 30 free STEM resources. The list includes apps, games and classes to teach youngsters stuff like coding, aeronautics, mathematics and, yes, data science.

Get to the point: Cut to the chase if you’re adding special instructions to your online order. If there’s a gate code, for instance, start the message with “Gate code 1234” (or whatever your code is). Often, those notes get cut short for the delivery person, so put the important stuff right up front.

🍏 Stop your iPad from locking too fast: Your screen turning off too quickly can get annoying when you’re reading. Go to Settings > Display & Brightness, then scroll to Auto-Lock. Pick a time that works for you (like 5 minutes), or choose Never to keep the screen on. PSA: Leaving it unlocked means anyone can snoop.

👉 Running a business is tough. Download NetSuite’s free guide, “Navigating Global Trade: Three Insights for Leaders.” It’s packed with smart, no-nonsense tips to keep you ahead of the game, avoid costly mistakes and spot new opportunities in today’s fast-moving global market.*

There’s a new YouTube star taking over your recommended feed, and he’s not human. 

Meet Bloo: blue-haired, blue-eyed and built entirely out of algorithms. He’s the gaming VTuber equivalent of what would happen if Pixar ate ChatGPT and washed it down with Red Bull. 

Built by OG YouTuber Kwebbelkop, Bloo’s channel is now 2.5 million subs deep with over 700 million views. 

The craziest part? He’s all AI (thumbnails by Midjourney, subs via Claude, voiceovers from ElevenLabs) and already making over seven figures in revenue. Dang. I gotta get my butt in gear! 

Answer: A) Siri. Apple’s charmingly confused assistant hit the scene in 2011 on the iPhone 4S, well before Alexa was playing DJ or Cortana was asking permission to exist. 

I asked Siri, “Surely it’s not going to rain today?” She said, “It will, and don’t call me Shirley.” I forgot to take my phone off Airplane mode. (lol)

👉 Wait, one more thing: Incogni has requested my info be removed from over 1,400 different data-broker and people-search sites. I’ve tried doing this myself over the years, and I was happy if I got to a dozen. Incogni offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you have nothing to lose. Use my link for 60% off. 

P.S. This is the #1 tech newsletter in the United States. Tomorrow, Prime Day’s dangerously good tech, tools and cool toy deals. Until then, don’t forget to look up from your screen today. In fact, go to a mirror right now and say out loud, “I am tech ahead and marvelous!” 🌤️ — Kim

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