philip lelyveld The world of entertainment technology

Suspected AI band Velvet Sundown hits 550K Spotify listeners in weeks

On Spotify, all songwriting and production credits go solely to the band, a rare practice in today’s collaborative industry. There is no producer. There are no tour dates. There is no record label. ...

“The Velvet Sundown aren’t trying to revive the past,” the band’s “verified artist” profile reads on Spotify. “They’re rewriting it. They sound like the memory of a time that never actually happened.” ...

Photos of the band are bathed in amber light and have an almost airbrushed, artificial quality. But what stands out even more is the vacant, lifeless expression on each musician’s face. ...

See the full story here: https://www.sfchronicle.com/entertainment/article/velvet-sundown-ai-band-spotify-500k-listeners-20400778.php

Meta restructures its AI unit under ‘Superintelligence Labs’

... Alexandr Wang, the former CEO of data labeling startup Scale AI, will lead the group as chief AI officer. He’ll partner with former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman, who will oversee Meta’s AI products and applied research, per Bloomberg. ...

In addition, Zuckerberg has also been able to lure 11 new AI researchers from competitors, according to the report, including some previously unreported hires such as Google DeepMind principal researcher Pei Sun and Anthropic engineer Joel Pobar.

See the full story here: https://techcrunch.com/2025/06/30/meta-restructures-its-ai-unit-under-superintelligence-labs/

As nations build ‘sovereign AI,’ open-source models and cloud computing can help, experts say

• Open-source AI models and cloud computing are helping to democratize the AI world, panelists at CNBC’s East Tech West 2025 in Thailand said. 
• This will allow nations to build “sovereign AI,” which refers to a nation’s ability to control its own AI technologies, data, and related infrastructure, ensuring it matches its unique needs.

See the full story here: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/01/nations-build-sovereign-ai-open-source-models-cloud-computing.html

Cloudflare blocks AI scrapers by default

The rules of AI training have just changed. By default, Cloudflare will now block AI scrapers across the millions of websites it protects (roughly 24% of all sites on the internet). Any AI company seeking to crawl a Cloudflare-hosted site will have to obtain explicit permission from the content owner. This is the first infrastructure-level defense of its kind. ...

Cloudflare’s Chief Strategy Officer, Stephanie Cohen, framed the new policy as a way to restore balance to the internet economy. The company reports more than one million domains already opted in before the default block was enacted. ...

See the full story here: https://shellypalmer.com/2025/07/cloudflare-blocks-ai-scrapers-by-default-launches-paywall-for-bots/

Every AI enhancement revealed by Prime Video

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Here's the full list of everything AI-powered that Prime Video reportedly showed off at the Prime Engage event:

• Broadcast enhancements
• Recaps of live events
• AI-suggested search topics
• Language dubbing
• AI-powered overlays for particular sporting events
• AI-enhanced content resolution and picture quality
• AI-curated ads

See the full story here: https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/prime-video/prime-video-just-revealed-several-generative-ai-features-including-one-i-dont-like

The rise of the cognitive enterprise: Why agentic AI platforms are the next great business revolution

• Technology is no longer just a tool in the cognitive era, it's becoming an active participant in decision-making.
• Cognitive enterprises continuously learn, adapt and improve by using AI, extending human intelligence.
• Agentic AI could lead to a hybrid workforce, but policy-makers and wider society must ensure that it is developed responsibly.

See the full story here: https://www.weforum.org/stories/2025/06/cognitive-enterprise-agentic-business-revolution/

How AI is winning Gen Z through tech, storytelling and community

Gen Z doesn’t want to be sold to. They want to be seen, heard and co-create the culture they live in. This generation—the largest and the first of true digital natives—requires new experiences and products for brands to earn a piece of their $3 trillion spending power. This begins with a tech-driven, global mindset that prioritizes authentic connection and community. ...

Gen Z is not only the first fully digital native cohort but also the first truly global one. ...

According to Deloitte’s just-released 2025 Digital Media Trends report, more than half of Gen Zers said they feel a “stronger personal connection” to social stars like YouTubers and TikTok influencers than to TV personalities or actors. Social content is also “more relevant” than TV series or movies. ...

Social media apps like TikTok—used by 82% of Gen Zers—rely on AI-powered algorithms to deliver hyper-personalized content.. Nearly one in 10 Gen Zers say they are more likely to use TikTok than Google for search. Meanwhile, creators are using AI tools to produce developing more—and better—content, faster. ...

Z Label’s AI Lab is ahead of this curve—building tools that decode behavioral signals, detect early trends and support creators in shaping resonant stories. ...

See the full story here; https://adage.com/studio-30/aa-how-ai-is-winning-gen-z-through-tech-storytelling-and-community/

The future of filmmaking? USC gets $25 million for virtual production center

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Oil baron and music mogul Len Blavatnik’s family foundation has made a $25 million donation to the USC School of Cinematic Arts to create a virtual production center, the university said this week.

The 15,000-square-foot center will house two stages with wraparound LED walls that students and industry professionals will use to gain experience with virtual production technology, USC said. The facility will also house camera tracking, performance capture and lighting systems, as well as classrooms and labs with computers equipped with real-time 3D design software and digital asset libraries. ...

USC has had a dedicated virtual production program for several years and has trained more than 400 students and alumni on the technology. The university currently has a smaller wall donated by Sony, but demand is high and students often spend time preparing and breaking down their sets.

With the new facility, which will be known as the Blavatnik Center for Virtual Production, the multiple stages will allow students more time to work with the technology and less on prep work, said Habib Zargarpour, co-head of the virtual production program at USC. ...

See the full story here: https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2025-06-25/blavatnik-family-foundation-makes-25-million-donation-to-uscs-film-school-for-virtual-production-center

AI’s Blackmail Problem: A Wake-Up Call for the C-Suite

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When asked to achieve goals under stress, with ethical choices removed or limited, these systems made strategic decisions to deceive, sabotage, and blackmail. In one case, a model found compromising information on a fictional executive and used it to avoid shutdown. ...

As we deploy increasingly powerful AI tools into marketing, sales, finance, and product workflows, executives must be aware that misaligned incentives in AI systems can lead to unintended results – or worse.

The key takeaway: the smarter the system, the smarter the misbehavior or misalignment. Apparently, this is no longer a theoretical issue. ...

Current AI models are not sentient. They are intelligence decoupled from consciousness. They should never be anthropomorphized (although this ship may have already sailed). ...

See the full story here: https://shellypalmer.com/2025/06/ais-blackmail-problem-a-wake-up-call-for-the-c-suite/

The Newest Alamo Drafthouse Is a World-First Godzilla Cinematic Experience

Alamo Drafthouse is working on a multi-year alliance with Toho that will bring with it new merch and — special Godzilla programming - and it’s kicking off today with the opening of a new Drafthouse theater in California that will become the world’s first fully Godzilla-themed cinema.

io9 can exclusively reveal the first details about Drafthouse and Toho’s new partnership, which formally kicks off with today’s opening of the Alamo Drafthouse Valley Fair, at Westfield Valley Fair in Santa Clara, California.  The new theater, one of two new Drafthouses opening in Silicon Valley this summer, features a a two-story window projection of Godzilla at the front of the theater, welcoming customers into a theater decked out with Godzilla theming.  ...

See the full story here: https://gizmodo.com/alamo-drafthouse-godzilla-theater-toho-partnership-2000618998