Hello,

This is Simon with the latest edition of The Weekly. In these updates, I share key AI related stories from this week's news, list upcoming events, and share any longer form articles posted on the website.

As someone who's reading this newsletter, I'll assume that you use at least one AI tool for work and/or personally. How many of you have taken the time to explore some of the settings of the tools you use?

I had a conversation with a family member last week or said they couldn't paste in all the details of a community meeting because they didn't want their information to "go into AI and have others use it". This is a valid concern; as a group, they are right to be cautious about what they put into AI chatbots. However, most platforms allow you to stop your data from being used.

For example, with ChatGPT, if you go into your Profile>Settings>Data Controls, you will see at the very top there is an option to toggle "Improve the model for everyone". Which is OpenAI's way of saying, "use my data to train the model" .I suggest turning this off.

Then we have Google's NotebookLM, which doesn't send or use the data sources you add at all.

And this also makes me wonder how many other options most people change. For instance, using ChatGPT as an example again, you can update it so that it gives you a more personalised response. Go to Profile>Customise ChatGPT and you'll be presented with a number of fields where you can add a level of personalisation:

As we start to use these tools more and more, I recommend that you explore all the many features and personalisation options they present to you, not only to improve your security, but also to get the best out of them.

San Jose’s mayor has rolled out AI tools across municipal departments—7,000 city workers are being introduced to ChatGPT to help draft speeches, write budgets, and apply for grants. Early adopters report big time savings, like more streamlined grant applications for EV infrastructure.

Why it matters: Shows how even local governments are leaning on AI to make serious impact.

OpenAI just unveiled a new ChatGPT Agent that can not only chat but also act—booking restaurants, browsing the web, managing files, shopping, and more—all with user permission. Included in Pro/Plus/Team tiers.

Why it matters: Moves AI from advice-giver to an active assistant, blurring lines between tools and digital helpers.

Google’s AI “Search Mode” can now make phone calls on your behalf (e.g., calling for pricing info), send summaries, and use the new Gemini 2.5 Pro for deep searches—all via conversational interactions in Search Labs

Why it matters: Turns an everyday tool (Search) into an active agent, showing how AI is embedded in regular use.

Thanks for reading, and see you next Friday.

Simon,

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