Issue #21, Week of September 28, 2026
It's a big week for Wise & Wired Studio! Course 4 "Outsmarting Modern Scams with AI" is launching this week. Using AI to help identify scams was your most requested topic when we surveyed the community. We listened. Stay tuned.
As subscribers to this Briefing you have free access to Course 1 "Welcome to the Future" and Course 2 "Staying Safe and Prompting Smart" in our AI for Your Best Years learning track. These short courses are a great way to learn AI fundamentals. Start the courses here!
If you were forwarded this email you can get your own copy by signing up here.
Quick Tip: Scammers reuse the same playbook, just a different costume
Whether it's a fake grandkid call, a fake IRS text, or a "confirm your payment now" email, most scams lean on the same handful of moves: urgency, secrecy, and pressure to act immediately. Learn to spot those three things and you can catch almost any scam, no matter what costume it's wearing.
Prompt of the Week: Check a suspicious message
"Here's a message I got: [paste it]. Does it use urgency, secrecy, or pressure to act right now? Walk me through which classic scam moves it's using, if any."
Win of the Week: Using AI for regular things:
"I send custom thank you notes using AI." Great idea!
Send your Win of the Week to [email protected] and I'll feature it in a future briefing!
đź“° AI News of the Week
Good morning, Wise & Wired Studio Community! A lot of news in the world of AI this week that I thought you might find interesting:
📱 AI GADGETS YOU CAN ACTUALLY USE
Meta's Muse Agent Goes Wearable — Finally, AI in Your Pocket
Meta just launched Muse Charm, a keychain-sized AI device that works like having a helpful assistant with you all day. Think of it as bringing back the old Tamagotchi concept, but instead of feeding a digital pet, you're getting help with real tasks. You can look at something through Meta's Ray-Ban glasses, ask Muse a question, and it handles errands for you—finding unused subscriptions, managing your calendar, or handling voice tasks. The glasses also feature "Private Processing" to keep sensitive information away from Meta's servers. Ray-Ban Meta Gen 3 is available now, with hearing aid features added to help folks with hearing loss.
Why it matters to you: If you're trying to stay connected with family or manage your daily tasks more easily, having an AI that understands what you're pointing at through glasses could make things simpler. No more fumbling with your phone for every small request.
Google's AI is Going to Space (Sort Of)
Google announced "Project Suncatcher," which launches AI chips into orbit to harness constant solar energy from space. The first test on October 1st will put four AI processing units on a satellite to see if they can survive and perform in space. This matters because as AI gets bigger and hungrier for power, space-based data centers could help solve energy problems that make today's AI so expensive to run.
Why it matters to you: Lower energy costs for AI means the tools you use—from health apps to smart home devices—could become more affordable and sustainable long-term.
🤖 ROBOTS DOING CHORES (SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO)
Robots Want Your Video—And They're Offering Stock Tokens for It
A startup called HANDO Labs is paying people in stock tokens (Nvidia, Apple exposure) to record videos of themselves doing everyday chores like buttoning buttons, sorting objects, or moving things. These videos train robots to handle physical tasks in real homes. Meanwhile, a human actually stepped into an MMA cage with a 6-foot humanoid robot—and didn't end well for the human. Amazon is also building a massive robot factory in Indiana, planning to double its robot-making capacity by 2028.
Why it matters to you: The robots are getting better at handling the kind of physical tasks many retirees struggle with—reaching, organizing, tidying. Your grandkids might be training the robots that help you move around in 10 years.
Amazon Invests Big in Robot Manufacturing
Amazon is building a 585,000-square-foot robotics plant opening by 2028, set to create 300 engineering and manufacturing jobs. The company says it's already built over one million robots supporting 75% of customer orders across 300+ facilities. This shows how serious companies are about automation.
Why it matters to you: More reliable robots working in warehouses means faster, more reliable delivery of everything you order—which matters when you're managing healthcare supplies, medications, or groceries.
🧬 AI MAKES A REAL SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY
AI Discovers a New Enzyme System—And It Could Lead to New Medicines
Anthropic's Claude AI discovered a previously unknown enzyme system that scientists had completely missed. Here's what happened: 950 Claude AI agents worked for 21 hours, analyzed 200,000+ enzymes, and flagged about 3,500 candidates. They narrowed it down to 20 systems worth investigating, and human scientists found something genuinely new: a system in bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria) that nobody had formally described before. Anthropic's CEO believes AI could compress 50-100 years of biological progress into 5-10 years—and this is the first real proof.
Why it matters to you: This kind of AI-assisted discovery could eventually lead to new treatments for diseases affecting aging populations, from infections to age-related conditions. Your medications tomorrow could come from discoveries AI made today.
đź”’ SAFETY & SECURITY
How to Spot Fake AI Videos Now
AI-generated videos have gotten so good that the old tells—weird hands, bad hair, odd reflections—don't work anymore. Experts say it's now very hard to spot AI video by looking at it. This matters as you encounter family photos, news clips, and testimonials online.
Why it matters to you: Be cautious when sharing or trusting videos from unknown sources online, especially financial pitches or health claims. Ask yourself: Did I get this from an official source?
🎬 NEW FEATURES IN PRODUCTS YOU ALREADY USE
Apple Wearable Gets Upgraded
Apple is testing a "screenless Whoop ring" that could help you monitor health without needing to look at a screen. Just a ring on your finger tracking your fitness, sleep, and recovery.
Why it matters to you: Health monitoring without the watch-checking habit. Great for travel, workouts, or just keeping an eye on your wellness without a device strapped to your wrist.
🗣️ YOUR AI SHOULD LISTEN BETTER NOW
Business Calls Handled by Your AI Assistant (Gemini)
Google's Gemini AI can now make local business calls on your behalf—calling restaurants for reservations, checking store hours, booking appointments. It can understand accents, technical jargon, and even wait on hold.
Why it matters to you: If making calls is becoming harder (hearing issues, phone anxiety, time), having an AI that can handle "call the doctor's office and book an appointment" could be genuinely useful.
đź“Š THE BIG PICTURE: AI'S REACH IS EXPANDING FAST
Meta's strategy shows where this is heading: AI agents appearing across glasses, hearing devices, audio, and VR—not just on your phone. Google is putting AI chips in orbit. Amazon is mass-manufacturing robots. OpenAI and Anthropic are making discoveries in biology. Meanwhile, the infrastructure underneath (chips in space, faster models, cheaper processing) keeps improving.
Why it matters to you: The AI that simplify communication (voice calling, video calling with realistic avatars), health monitoring (wearables, AI medical assistants), and handling daily tasks (ordering, booking, paying bills) are already here and improving monthly. The ones that are still experimental (robot care assistants, full biological breakthroughs) are a few years away.
That’s it for this week! Please send an email to [email protected] if you have comments about this Briefing or suggestions for future Briefings. Feel free to forward the Briefing to your friends.
Have a great day!
Don Walker
Wise & Wired Studio
Founder/Chief Instructor
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