Always impresses me that this is free: DaVinci Resolve is pro-grade video editing software you can download and use for free. There are tons of training videos here if you want to learn new tricks.
AI can now watch your videos and give smart feedback
I used ChatGPT to see if my new puppy was playing too rough. The AI gave me helpful tips in seconds. Here’s how you can use it too
Remember Ruby Franke? She’s an evil mommy vlogger who went to prison last year for abusing and starving her kids. New laws are in the works to stop parents from using their kids for clicks. If a parent makes over $150K a year from family content, they must put some money into a trust (paywall link). Once kids hit 18, they can ask for old videos to be taken down. About time.
Hate YouTube ads? There’s a cheaper fix. YouTube is rolling out Premium Lite for $7.99/month, cutting down on “most” ads. News, fashion and gaming videos will be ad-free, but if you want music without ads, you’ll still need the $13.99/month standard Premium plan. That one also includes offline downloads.
Compassion for the win: Video Stop, the last video rental store in Pocatello, Idaho, is closing. But owner David Kraning created a small replica called “Christina’s Corner” in his convenience store. It’s named after Christina Cavanaugh, a woman with Down syndrome who has been a loyal customer renting videos every day for 15 years. Love this.
🏠 $20K for a two-bedroom home? This isn’t the 1960s. It’s a tiny home that comes folded in a box, complete with a porch, kitchen and bathroom. One model sold out on Amazon thanks to viral videos with over 20 million views. Read the reviews if you’re tempted to buy one. Some models have low ceilings, no electrical outlets and no instructions to build them.
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“Rage-baiting”: It’s what Winta Zesu does when she posts videos of her life as a NY model whose biggest problem is being “too pretty.” Is she a narcissist? Nope. People get angry and post hateful comments. Joke’s on them. More engagement translates to money and sponsorships for her.
🚨 Deepfakes going to a new level: TikTok owner ByteDance built an AI tool that makes realistic videos of people talking and singing from a single photo. OmniHuman can take an image (half-body or full-body) and bring it to life. Check out this example of Albert Einstein. Snazzy but scary in the wrong hands. And let’s not forget this is Chinese-owned. I wouldn’t hand over any personal pics.
📀 Free tool: HandBrake is open-source software that converts videos from one format into nearly any other. It’s an easy way to turn DVDs and Blu-Ray discs into digital video files, like an MP4. Then, you can create a free, private YouTube channel and upload your videos to share your home movies. Sweet.
🎓 Fake it till you make it: On TikTok, people of all ages are pretending they got into Harvard. The viral videos are funny, but it’s no joke that lawsuits have exposed donors and alumni kids getting special treatment. Speaking of … A Texan went to an Ivy League party on the East Coast. He walks up to a group of young women and asks, “Howdy, which school did y’all go to?” One of the women replied, “Yale.” The Texan asked again loudly, “WHICH SCHOOL DID Y’ALL GO TO?” (I saw you smile!)
Stop, thief! If you make YouTube videos, check out Meta’s Video Seal tool. It puts an invisible watermark on your videos. Even if someone edits your video, it’ll still show up so you can prove it’s yours. It’s in demo mode, and you can add a message containing up to six characters.
TikTok is addictive for a reason: It’s the algorithm, but the format helps, too. If you want something a little smarter than mindrot videos, try WikiTok. It’s a visual way to browse random articles. Hey, that’s how I just learned there’s an Amsterdam, New Jersey.
🚨 DeepSeek gets all your deep secrets: I said this when DeepSeek first came out, but maybe you weren’t paying close attention. If you use DeepSeek AI, your login information to various sites, documents, pics, searches, videos and more goes straight to China. They’re not even trying to hide it. PSA: Only use DeepSeek the secure way if you have to at all. Steps here on my site.
36%
More videos posted to LinkedIn than this time last year. Vertical-view videos (think TikTok or Instagram Reels) are so popular, you can now view them on desktop and not just mobile. My advice: Go short and sweet, nothing too scripted. Hiring? Post a job free with my link!
👎 IG snitch: Instagram now shows your friends all the videos you’ve liked. When scrolling through the Reels tab, you’ll notice small bubbles with your friends’ profile pictures and a little heart overlay in the bottom left corner. I’ll keep you posted if they add an option to turn it off.
Show me your digits: Engineer Zara Dar fired up an OnlyFans account while she was pursuing a Ph.D. and made $1 million. Now, she’s teaching folks about complex topics like neural networks, probability and integrals full-time online. One of her AI explainer videos has a million views on YouTube. No joke, she posts the same PG videos to Pornhub and makes almost three times the money.