Tech
The Man Who Makes AI Slop by Hand
Mu is not the only comedian who has tried to imitate the style of AI-generated videos, but he really nails all of the elements: The clumsy bodily movements, the spaced-out facial expressions, and the unpredictable plot development. Many viewers, me included, were shocked at how accurately he captured the essence of AI slop videos.
Mu tells me that the half-dozen AI imitation videos he has filmed represent only a small part of his acting career. He has wanted to be an actor since college and spent the summer after his freshman year at Hengdian World Studios—the world’s largest film studio—looking for background acting opportunities. He started making comedy sketches on Chinese social media in 2019, and content creation now takes up most of his time.
The success of his AI imitation videos earned him a sponsorship deal from a Chinese generative AI company, which paid him 80,000 RMB (about $11,000) to produce two more sketches promoting the company’s video model. That’s not a bad gig, but I honestly expected Mu to have received more opportunities through his global virality.
As part of the sponsorship, Mu shot two versions of the sketches, one that embedded AI-generated footage and one without it. He was secretly hoping that the advertiser would choose the latter, because it showcases human acting skills front and center. But the advertiser chose the one with the AI. “That kind of feels like it’s starting to steal jobs from human actors, doesn’t it?” Mu says.
Mu popped up on my timeline again last week when he released a sequel to his first AI imitation series, this time mimicking the videos created by Sora, OpenAI’s latest generative video tool. His new video is much more subtle but still manages to nail that unexplainably unsettling feeling that has endured even as AI videos become more advanced.
Mu says there is a perpetual battle underway as AI accelerates, but it’s not man versus machine. Rather, the clash is between humans and other humans who make AI models, and each side is constantly trying to one up the other. “We’re poking fun at some of AI’s flaws, its eeriness and absurdity, but the AI creators are probably improving those, too. You see, this year’s AI already looks much more human,” Mu says.
How to Act Like AI
Before he made his first AI imitation sketch in July 2024, Mu watched a lot of AI slop videos to study their common traits. He wanted to understand the kinds of mistakes AI often makes and then re-create them in his own scripts.
For example, when an object appears in the frame, AI often misunderstands its purpose for being there. For example, a hanger can be used to hang clothes, but it’s also often the weapon of choice when parents in China physically punish their children. That dual use inspired another one of Mu’s videos last year, where midway through pretending to hit his “son” with a hanger, the boy’s shorts mysteriously come off, and Mu looks like he suddenly forgot what he’s doing and decided to hang up the shorts instead.
US president Donald Trump has pardoned Changpeng Zhao, founder of the world’s largest crypto exchange, Binance.
Zhao, widely known as CZ, pled guilty in November 2023 to violating anti-money-laundering laws and US sanctions. The plea formed part of a sweeping deal with the US Department of Justice, under which Binance was required to pay a record-breaking $4.3 billion penalty.
Zhao ultimately spent four months in federal prison. The DOJ had originally petitioned for a three-year prison sentence.
After issuing the pardon, the White House has cast Zhao as the victim of a plot to trample the crypto industry carried out by the administration of former president Joe Biden. Regulators brought a volley of lawsuits against high-profile businesses during this era, and the DOJ prosecuted crypto industry figureheads for fraud.
“In their desire to punish the cryptocurrency industry, the Biden administration pursued Mr. Zhao despite no allegations of fraud or identifiable victims,” says White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. “The Biden administration’s war on crypto is over.”
Zhao, who founded Binance in 2017, is something of a legend in cryptoland for his bullish pronouncements and flair for social media. Until his guilty plea, he routinely used his platform on X to dismiss allegations of wrongdoing at Binance.
Zhao is the latest in a line of crypto figureheads pardoned by Trump. The president has received endorsements and millions of dollars in donations from members of the industry.
Immediately after returning to office, Trump commuted the prison sentence of Ross Ulbricht, creator of darknet marketplace Silk Road. In late March, Trump pardoned the cofounders of crypto exchange BitMEX, who in 2022 pleaded guilty to charges relating to their failure to maintain an adequate anti-money-laundering program.
Though Zhao has already served his allotted prison sentence, the pardon will strike the anti-money-laundering and sanctions violations from his criminal record.
“For him, I think this is really about clearing his name,” claims Patrick Hillmann, who previously worked under Zhao as chief strategy officer at Binance. “I think this is closure for him.”
The pardon could also clear the way for Binance to return to the US market, which it was forced to exit as a condition of the DOJ settlement. Binance has spent months pursuing a pardon for Zhao, who was released from prison in September 2024, The Wall Street Journal previously reported.
Carbon dioxide (CO2) is one of the world’s most abundant pollutants and a key driver of climate change. To mitigate its impact, researchers around the world are exploring ways to capture CO2 from the atmosphere and transform it into valuable products, such as clean fuels or plastics. While the idea holds great promise, turning it into reality—at least on a large scale—remains a scientific challenge.
A new study led by Smith Engineering researcher Cao Thang Dinh (Chemical Engineering), Canada Research Chair in Sustainable Fuels and Chemicals, paves the way to practical applications of carbon conversion technologies and may reshape how we design future carbon conversion systems. The research addresses one of the main roadblocks in the carbon conversion process: catalyst stability.
In chemical engineering, a catalyst is a substance that accelerates a reaction—ideally, without being consumed in the process. In the case of carbon conversion, catalysts play a critical role by enabling the transformation of CO₂ into useful products such as fuels and building blocks for sustainable materials.
Copper-based materials are the most efficient catalysts for converting CO2 into methane, the main component of the natural gas used in water and home heaters, and for electricity generation. However, these copper catalysts undergo significant transformation in the process, and keeping the system working for a long period of time remains critically challenging.
Dr. Dinh’s team has developed an innovative method to synthesize and recycle the copper catalyst during the electrochemical reaction within the carbon conversion system. These exciting results were recently published in Nature Energy.
In this approach, what is added to the system is not the copper catalyst per se, but a catalyst precursor (a substance that requires activation to become an active catalyst). Researchers then use electrical signals to dynamically form catalysts in situ during the CO2 conversion process.
What’s better: when electric signals are turned off, the catalyst goes back to its precursor form. “Repeating this cycle ensures selective and stable performance over extended periods. This is one of the most stable systems for carbon conversion to date,” says Dr. Dinh.
In traditional carbon conversion systems, once the CO2 reduction reaction gets started, it needs to keep running to avoid catalyst degradation. But in the new system, when the reaction stops, the catalyst turns back into its precursor form. Once the system is turned back on, in a matter of seconds, it produces a new catalyst and restarts the carbon reduction reaction.
Stability during intermittent operations is crucial for integrating carbon conversion systems and intermittent renewable energy sources, like solar or wind power. Dr. Dinh and the team are energized about the new possibilities these findings present, especially for the production of methane.
“Methane has a remarkably high energy density, which is important for energy storage applications,” says Guorui Gao, a Ph.D. student working on the project. “The seamless compatibility with existing gas infrastructure, including transportation pipelines and storage facilities, makes it suited for large-scale and long-term energy solutions.”
The research involves collaboration from multiple institutions from Canada, the United States, Brazil, Spain and Australia. As a next step, Dr. Dinh’s lab will attempt to apply this same process to produce ethylene, ethanol, and other products. The team will also work to scale up the technology to prepare it for practical applications, paving the way for a more sustainable future.
More information:
Guorui Gao et al, Recoverable operation strategy for selective and stable electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction to methane, Nature Energy (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41560-025-01883-w
Citation:
Turning pollution into clean fuel with stable methane production from carbon dioxide (2025, October 23)
retrieved 23 October 2025
from https://techxplore.com/news/2025-10-pollution-fuel-stable-methane-production.html
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Compare the Best Hearing Aids
How Much Do Hearing Aids Cost?
How much money should you expect to spend on a hearing aid? The answer depends primarily on whether you’re looking into over-the-counter or prescription hearing aids. Unsurprisingly, the latter is a wallet guzzler, with average costs between $2,000 to $8,000. But OTCs can ring up quite a tab in their own right, and our most highly rated devices will still run you about $800 to $2,000 a pair. So far, we haven’t found an OTC device under this $800 price that is truly effective at treating hearing loss. In most cases, the $100 budget devices now flooding the market are too good to be true.
Fortunately, there are several methods to manage the high cost of a hearing aid:
Financing is available for virtually all reputable hearing aid companies, so you may not need to pay everything up front. Some plans are offered directly through the company, while others may require a third-party financing company like Klarna or Care Credit.
If you are over the age of 65, you may qualify for an add-on Medicare Advantage Plan (Part C) that may include hearing-related benefits. Most private insurance providers don’t offer hearing exam and device coverage, though some may have the option to add it as a supplemental benefit.
Medicaid coverage in certain states also pays for hearing aids, provided the prescription brand accepts it. Veterans may also qualify for hearing aid coverage through their VA benefits.
Some state governments have programs to help their constituents front the costs of hearing aids. Call or write to your state department to see whether this is a service they offer.
About Medicare and Insurance
Much like how it does not cover eyeglasses, Medicare does not cover hearing aids. That said, supplemental plans may include hearing benefits: Medicare Advantage Part C plans and many private insurance plans offer some hearing support, but coverage varies widely, so check with your provider before making that appointment. (Many states mandate that private insurance plans cover hearing aids, but a number of these are restricted to coverage for children.) On the plus side, standard Medicare plans (Parts A and B) do cover the cost of a hearing exam, but only with a doctor’s referral.
Many hearing aid providers are now providing financing for their products, usually at very low interest rates that let you pay for the product over up to three years. Medicaid may also help offset the cost of hearing aids, as may employer FSA and HSA plans.
How to Buy a Hearing Aid
There are two primary ways to buy a hearing aid: through a medical professional (the prescription route) or over-the-counter. Each has its pros and cons.
Prescription hearing aids are usually acquired through an audiologist. These specialists operate businesses ranging from sophisticated medical centers to small shops in a strip mall, usually emblazoned with a sign that reads “HEARING AIDS.” Again, this was the only way to acquire a hearing aid before 2022. An audiologist provides full service for your hearing aid from start to finish. They will test your hearing in a specialized room, physically examine your ears for medical problems, and suggest a hearing aid model. They will tune your chosen hearing aids and adjust them over time if things don’t sound right. The catch? Prescription hearing aids are expensive, anywhere from two to 10 times costlier than over-the-counter models. That said, for consumers who need hand-holding and significant fine-tuning of their hearing aids, professionals like this still have a function.
Over-the-counter aids can be bought through retailers online or offline, just like you would buy, say, a laptop computer. Different vendors offer different levels of presales support, and as the price of an OTC hearing aid goes up, you can usually expect a higher level of service. This may start with an online hearing test delivered to you via your computer or phone; these are not as good as an in-person test, but some can be surprisingly accurate. You may also get access to a remote audiologist who can meet with you over a video chat and fine-tune your hearing aid settings over the air. Ultimately, higher-end OTC aids offer a user experience similar to that of prescription aids, only one that is fully remote. At the low end of the hearing aid spectrum, you may get no service and support at all.
What Are the Different Types of Hearing Loss?
Medically speaking, there are three types of hearing loss. These are:
- Conductive: Hearing loss related to the outer or middle ear.
- Sensorineural: Hearing loss related to the inner ear.
- Mixed: A combination of both.
All of these types of hearing loss can occur due to a variety of factors. Genetics and aging are two of the biggest and most universal: The older you get, the more the sensitive organs inside your ears begin to break down, and this can happen especially early and/or rapidly if you have a family history of hearing loss. The other all-too-common cause for hearing loss is exposure to loud noises, and it doesn’t take much. Many people exposed to prolonged, loud noises like concerts, industrial equipment, motorcycle engines, and sirens experience a gradual hearing loss due to the slow death of tiny hair cells in the inner ear. However, sudden exposure to very loud sounds like explosions and gunshots can cause instantaneous, irreversible damage by rupturing the eardrum (or worse).
There’s no easy way to know which type of hearing loss you have unless you’ve experienced some type of acute damage that has brought on a sudden change in your hearing. Whatever you suspect, it’s important you see a medical doctor to diagnose the issue fully.
Sensorineural is the most common type of hearing loss, and it can be caused by any of the aforementioned issues and more. Sensorineural hearing loss is permanent and can not be reversed, but it can be alleviated through the use of hearing aids. An audiologist can develop an audiogram for you that will show you how severe your hearing loss is and advise on what types of hearing aids might be best for treating it.
Conversely, conductive hearing loss is more medically treatable. This type of hearing loss is often due to a physical obstruction such as a buildup of earwax or fluid, or even physical damage to the eardrum. In these cases, a physician must examine the ear to determine the best course of treatment.
Degrees of Hearing Loss
The primary levels of hearing loss look like this, as defined by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA):
I configured and qualitatively tested each device in several settings, including my home, outdoors, and crowded environments, to see how well they helped treat my mild hearing loss while more deeply evaluating the user experience. I tried charging rechargeable models, changing batteries if disposable, connecting Bluetooth features, and cleaning the devices. I also compared them based on overall look and style—style matters.
Other Hearing Aids to Consider
We’ve reviewed dozens of hearing aids, and many of them are good but not great. Here are alternatives to consider:
GN ReSound Vivia for $5,000+: ReSound’s new Vivia line of prescription hearing aids are on par in both design (at a svelte 2.56 grams) and quality with the Starkey Edge AI models, providing a pristine audio experience that is tuned perfectly and utterly free of hiss and feedback. The “intelligence-augmented” devices work well in either noise or more intimate one-on-one settings, and GN’s Smart 3D app couldn’t be easier to master. Support for Bluetooth Auracast is also included, so wearers can now pipe media (like the audio from the TV at a bar) directly to the aids. They aren’t cheap, so getting some advance ears-on time with them is essential for prospective buyers.
Phonak Virto R Infinio for $4,000: Phonak’s Virto R Infinio (8/10, WIRED Recommends) and pricey prescription hearing aids like the GN ReSound above, but they have a custom fit process that helps make them some of the best-fitting hearing aids on the market. They’re immensely comfortable to wear for long periods, and you’ll get pretty good audio quality for in-the-ear hearing aids. It’s just a shame there’s no battery in the charging case to extend the run time.
Sony CRE-E10 for $898: The CRE-E10 (7/10, WIRED Review) aren’t so much of an upgrade to the C20 we recommend above, but a different class of product. They’re much more visible, though they look like a standard pair of Bluetooth earbuds. The E10 provide a comfortable fit but can get tiring after a long day. At least they use a rechargeable battery (via USB-C) with up to 26 hours on a single charge. You can control them only through Sony’s app, and the hearing test lets you tune the frequency response of the aids. The audio experience is excellent at low volumes, though these aids have a bit of an echo and some additional noise. Still, I found it manageable. They do a decent job streaming media and calls via Bluetooth.
Eargo 8 for $2,499: The Eargo 8 (6/10, WIRED Review) offer high-quality sound in a tiny package that’s nearly invisible. There are a few listening programs you can cycle through, but I didn’t find the need to switch modes—they provided well-amplified audio no matter what I was doing. Battery life is excellent, but the poor app control functions and lack of Bluetooth streaming make them a tough sell, especially considering the absurdly high price. That’s almost the same problem I had with their predecessor, the Eargo 7 (7/10, WIRED Review).
Audien Hearing Atom X for $389: The most interesting feature of Audien’s Atom X (6/10, WIRED Review) is the case—there’s an embedded display that lets you tweak volume and change modes, no need to use an app or fuss with buttons. Audien has also reduced the hiss from these affordable buds. Unfortunately, the hearing aids aren’t tunable and provide blunt amplification, so you can’t shape the frequencies to where you need the most help. I suggest trying a pair of AirPods Pro 3 first.
Avoid These Hearing Aids
Just as important as what hearing aids to buy are what hearing aids not to buy. While some of these devices are affordable, most are lacking in quality or style. After our testing, we don’t wholly recommend these hearing aids. (Poor hearing aids can harm your hearing.)
Audien Atom One for $98: I had high hopes for these, but they’re impossibly cheap. The Atom One (5/10, WIRED Review) come up short on smart features, as there’s no way to fine-tune these devices.
Elehear Beyond Pro for $599: There are improvements here in audio quality over the older Elehear Beyond, but the core problem with the Beyond Pro (6/10, WIRED Review) hearing aids is that they’re just too bulky and uncomfortable to wear. They also come with a price hike that’s tough to swallow.
Lexie Lumen for $299: These are comically large and dated. The case was physically falling apart during testing, which I wouldn’t expect from hearing aids at this price. Though they sound fine, they’re far from subtle and were plagued with connectivity bugs.
Olive Union Olive Max for $447: The Olive Max (6/10, WIRED Review) are big and look like a Bluetooth headset from the early 2000s (except for both of your ears). You can use an app to fine-tune the listening experience, but the overall hearing aid performance was mixed, and I experienced a steady, buzzing background noise. They were pretty unusable in loud environments, too. That said, they work well as standard wireless earbuds.
Ceretone Core One for $350: The mandatory app required to control the Ceretone Core One (5/10, WIRED Review) hearing aids is so basic that it’s useless. You can’t tune the frequencies, and the listening experience is quite blunt. They’re also not comfortable to wear for long periods.
Ceretone Core One Pro for $390: The Core One Pro (5/10, WIRED Review) change things up so much that they’re no longer compatible with Ceretone’s app. Instead, you’ll control them through the buttons on the case. Unfortunately, you still can’t tune them to an audiogram, so they amplify everything bluntly, and they’re not very effective as hearing aids.
MDHearing Neo for $297 and Neo XS for $297: Never mind the Joe Namath endorsement, these in-ear aids are incredibly uncomfortable and feature a wildly dated design sensibility. Screeching feedback at the slightest touch makes them untenable for even short-term use.
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