Pressure Systems edition
Proprietary Capture of Food, Borders, and Care
May 14, 2026
What this edition shows
Digital trade monopolies and supply chain warfare are seizing control of food sovereignty, while proprietary surveillance architectures colonize care infrastructure, border enforcement, and electoral integrity. This convergence of corporate capture and automated warfare fractures public trust and material resilience, forcing grassroots care networks and data workers to resist the automation of governance into opaque, extractive technologies.
Reporting and analysis behind this edition 11 sources
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Big Tech's digital trade agenda is a danger for farmers and food systems
As scrutiny grows over Big Tech’s role in supporting militaries that are committing war crimes, far less attention is paid to its expanding power over our food systems. To rein it in it is crucial to understand how they use digital trade deals to block regulations.
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Could Iran war trigger a hunger crisis?
The UN warns disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz could drive up food and fertiliser costs, and worsen global hunger.
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We’re NHS analysts organising together against Palantir. Here’s why
As NHS data workers, we see Federated Data Platform’s flaws up close. That’s why we’ve launched an open letter to fight it
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DHS Plans Experiment Running ‘Reconnaissance’ Drones Along the US-Canada Border
Autonomous drones and ground vehicles will stream “battlefield intelligence” over 5G along the US-Canada border in a bilateral DHS experiment this fall.
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The Old Playbook of Power and Influence Is Different Now
How journalism must adapt.
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Overworked AI Agents Turn Marxist, Researchers Find
In a recent experiment, mistreated AI agents started grumbling about inequality and calling for collective bargaining rights.
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Students in Caracas to demand release of political prisoners
Students from Venezuela’s leading universities blocked the main highway in Caracas to demand the immediate release of po
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LLMs and Text-in-Text Steganography
Turns out that LLMs are really good at hiding text messages in other text messages.
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InstaFarm Automated Indoor Microgreens Garden Review: Easy Being Green
The InstaFarm makes growing your own microgreens practical at home.
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A Conspiracy Theory About QR Codes Has Led to Chaos Ahead of Georgia’s Midterms
The state of Georgia banned the use of QR codes for elections, based in part on the assertions of a man who’s boosted false claims about Israel and 9/11. Now no one knows how ballots will be counted.
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Meet the Sad Wives of AI
Are you married to a man who’s obsessed with AI? I’m so, so sorry.