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The Nine AI Stories That Defined 2024

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Thank you for reading Atlantic Intelligence this year: It’s been a pleasure appearing in your inbox each week, and we can’t wait to bring you new coverage in 2025. Collected below are some of the standout stories we published this year, which explore new frontiers for AI and the risks that come with advancement.

The Most Memorable Advice of 2024

In a year that brought both deeply polarizing moments and events of global camaraderie, these Atlantic writers, contributors, and experts tackled the quandaries and questions we encounter in our everyday lives.
Their advice, grounded in experience and expertise, offers new ways to think about topics such as parenting, cooking, and building relationships. Their words of wisdom provide guidance on when to give children a phone, why we should reconsider plus-ones at weddings, and more.

Big Tech Backs Trump to Cut Taxes, Boost Crypto, Replace Workers with AI: Tech Investor Roger McNamee

Silicon Valley and tech billionaires are lining up to support the incoming Trump administration. With the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, as one of Trump’s closest advisers, Trump has hosted Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg for dinners at Mar-a-Lago. Amazon, Meta and OpenAI’s Sam Altman have all announced donations of $1 million each to Trump’s inaugural committee.

Imperialist Fantasy: Historian Greg Grandin on Trump Threat to Retake Panama Canal, Invade Mexico

Donald Trump has set his sights on the Americas, threatening to retake the Panama Canal if Panama doesn’t lower fees for U.S. ships. The United States controlled the waterway until 1977, when President Jimmy Carter signed a landmark treaty to give Panama control of the canal. Trump has also recently floated the idea of annexing Canada, and even a possible “soft invasion” of Mexico.

“We’re Not for Sale”: Greenlandic Member of Danish Parliament Responds to Trump’s Vow to Buy Island

We speak with a Greenlandic member of the Danish Parliament, Aaja Chemnitz, about incoming U.S. President Donald Trump’s plans to make America larger, in part by taking ownership of Greenland, which is controlled by Denmark. Greenland’s prime minister rejected the idea this week, saying, “We are not for sale and will never be for sale.” Trump’s statement on Greenland was made as he announced he was picking PayPal co-founder Ken Howery as his pick for United States ambassador to Denmark.

Gideon Levy on Israel’s “Moral Blindness”: Gaza Babies Freeze; Strikes Kill Medical Workers, Reporters

In northern Gaza, the director of the besieged Kamal Adwan Hospital says five medical workers were among 50 people killed in Israeli strikes near the hospital. Israeli forces then stormed the hospital and forced hundreds, including patients, into the streets. This all comes as The New York Times has confirmed past reporting by +972 Magazine that on October 7, 2023, Israel loosened military rules meant to protect noncombatants in Gaza.

A Diet Writer’s Regrets

My first byline in a national magazine appeared in the August 8, 1995, issue of Woman’s Day under the headline “What’s Sabotaging Your Diet?” Woman’s Day, that bastion of the checkout line, was known for unironic covers featuring decadent desserts under headlines about healthy eating. This particular issue’s cover featured the title of my article over a photo of a chocolate cake frosted to look like a sunflower.
I was 23, newly married, living in a studio in Brooklyn, and making $18,000 a year.

How Putin Tapped a Well of Ethnic Hatred in Russia

Far-right activists from Russia’s largest nationalist movement, Russkaya Obshchina, donned black camouflage and patrolled multiple cities last month hunting for “ethnic criminals.” They raided dormitories, parks, and construction sites in search of migrants from Central Asia, nabbing six on November 24. On social media, the activists celebrated their “joint raid with law-enforcement officials,” posting a video of themselves leading migrants in chains on their way to deportation.

A Tribute to Blacklisted Lyricist Yip Harburg: The Man Who Put the Rainbow in The Wizard of Oz

His name might not be familiar to many, but his songs are sung by millions around the world. Today, we take a journey through the life and work of Yip Harburg, the Broadway lyricist who wrote such hits as “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?” and who put the music into The Wizard of Oz, the movie that inspired the hit Broadway musical and now Hollywood blockbuster, Wicked.