Don Lenihan
While National Newswatch does not keep an archive of external articles for longer than 6 months, we do keep all articles written by contributors who post directly to our site. Here you will find all of the contributed and linked external articles from Don Lenihan.
NYT Columnists Warn: Superintelligent AI Just 2–3 Years Away. Can Election 45 Look Beyond Tariffs?
When three leading New York Times columnists sound the same urgent warning at the same time, we should pay attention. Ezra Klein, Thomas Friedman, and Kevin Roose have just delivered a stark and urgent message: They believe Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)—highly advanced, human-like AI—is only two or three years away.
Trump Is the Ballot Question— But Do We Really Understand What’s at Stake?
Everyone seems agreed that the ballot question in this election is which leader can best deal with Trump. But that’s only half the equation—the "who" without the "what." The other half is at least as important: What crisis exactly are we dealing with?
Watch Out Premier Ford: Lutnick Speaks for Trump—Until He Doesn’t
Doug Ford’s meeting last week with Secretary of Commerce, Howard Lutnick, was a relief—for Canadians and the premier. There was good reason to worry. Ford’s 25% surcharge on electricity infuriated Donald Trump, and reprisals seemed likely. But that’s not what happened. Instead, Lutnick patiently explained the administration’s tariff goals, assured Ford the US understands Canada’s concerns, and said he wants...
Trump’s Trade War is Just Round 1: The Battle Ahead is about AI and Democracy
The most important battle for democracy isn’t the one making headlines—it’s the AI arms race between America and China. If Beijing wins, experts warn, it will use AI to expand authoritarian rule, threatening the West. Many Americans believe the U.S. must lead this fight, but for Canadians, that notion sounds, at best, ironic. Who here believes Donald Trump really wants...
Mark Carney Sees What’s Coming on AI: Here’s Three Questions to Ask Him About It
This time next week, Mark Carney will likely be Prime Minister of Canada. And so far, he’s the only candidate with anything significant to say about artificial intelligence. Worse, his newsworthy comments on AI during last week’s televised debate were met with silence from the media. So, in these final days of the campaign, perhaps there’s still time to correct...
If You Think We’re in a “Trade War,” Think Again…
Canadians, we’re told, are in a “trade war” with Donald Trump. No, we’re not. This is about Canada’s sovereignty. He knows it. His administration knows it. But Canadians? We’re still talking like this is an economic dispute. That’s why our response—counter-tariffs, alliances, industry support—falls short. We need a plan to protect our sovereignty. And for that, first we need to...
Trump’s North American Vision: From Fortress America to AI Superpower?
Last week, Prime Minister Trudeau was overheard expressing serious concerns about Donald Trump’s threats to Canadian sovereignty. Does Trump really want Canada? While no one know for sure, one thing is clear: MAGA is evolving. The shift from Trump 1.0 to Trump 2.0 sheds important light on Trump’s growing expansionist agenda. Let’s take a closer look.
Trump’s Expansionist Plan, Part II: What’s His Endgame?
Last week, I explored Donald Trump’s ambition to make America the global leader in AI, along with his troubling comments about annexing Greenland and Canada. Trump’s territorial threats are now so frequent that everyone is asking: What is his endgame? The answer, I think, is closely tied to how AI is reshaping Trump’s vision for America—and the world...
Trump’s Expansionist Plan: Unite the AI Oligarchs and Divide Canada
Is the liberal, rules-based order of the last 75 years at an end? Are Great Power politics on the rise again? President Trump’s Inaugural Speech seems to confirm it. Talk of expansion, dominance, and new frontiers signal his desire to extend America’s sphere of influence, economically and geographically. Two major obstacles stand in the way: China and Canada. Trump, however...
AI Superpower or AI Branch Plant? Inside Kevin O’Leary’s Canada-US Economic Union
Over the weekend, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary met with President-Elect Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago. Officially, the meeting was about oil, energy partnerships, and tariffs. But according to O’Leary, the real message lies between the lines. “When Trump speaks, we must distinguish between the signal and the noise,” he says. And the signal? Trump wants “an...
America First—The View from the 51st State
As Liberals gear up for a leadership race—and, ultimately, an election—a messy feud is brewing down south between MAGA’s populists and business elites. While immigration is the flashpoint, this feud is about more than policy—it’s a battle over how to “Make America Great Again” in the age of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The results could define Trump’s White House. Canadians might...
New Report Documents How AI “Schemes” To Mislead and Manipulate Human Users
There are moments when the unseen or unknown is suddenly revealed, changing our perspective forever. Apollo Research’s recent report on “AI scheming” is such a moment—a stunning insight into chatbots’ capacity to lie, deceive, and manipulate their human users. How should we understand this behaviour and this moment?
Art, Medicine, and Combat: Can AI Outperform Us?
There’s plenty of talk about AI replacing white-collar workers, yet many of those at risk just don’t seem to see it coming. Perhaps you’re one of them. Well, read on—these three recent studies compare humans and AI in some of the most highly skilled tasks: medical diagnostics, visual art, and piloting jet fighters. The findings might surprise you...
Big Tech’s (Evolving) Agenda for Trump 2.0 Can It Help Team Canada?
As Team Canada discusses how to respond to President-Elect Trump’s threat of steep tariffs, they should also ask: How does Trump 2.0 differ from 1.0, if at all? Trump 2.0 is a work in progress, with most of the new ideas coming from Big Tech. This is creating pressure to expand the MAGA agenda, and it’s worth a closer look.
Will Trump be the “Father of AGI”? A Manhattan AI Project Looks Increasingly Likely
The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission (USCC) released its 2024 report last week. It calls on the Trump administration to launch a “Manhattan Project” for Artificial Intelligence (AI)—a race to develop Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) before China does. Achieving AGI would be at least as significant as splitting the atom—and Trump looks increasingly likely to take it on...
When Chatbots Go Rogue: The Good, the Bad, and the Stupefying
Reports of rogue AI are on the rise, from abusive rants to inciting suicide, and people are right to be worried. Chatbots are supposed to follow the rules—not break them. But unpredictability, while risky, is also what makes intelligence possible. It’s a problem we need to control—and a glimpse of what’s coming next. Here’s where we are now...
Disinformation and Polarization in The Age of AI— Are Democracies at a Tipping Point?
The two of us were part of a panel discussion at the recent IIC Conference on how disinformation drives polarization, and how Artificial Intelligence (AI) might impact this trend. The audience found our views very engaging, and so we thought you might too. We’ve also included some thoughts on the US election.
Trust in AI: Why G7 Nations Are Skeptics While the BRICS Go All In - and What That Means
As the US election intensifies, polarization has become a defining issue. But it’s not just an American battleground—it’s a fault line across the G7, shaping politics and the future of AI. A growing divide over benefits and risks could split countries and alliances. If the G7 can’t bridge this gap, it risks ceding AI leadership to others, possibly with very...
Solving the Family Doctor Shortage: How AI Could Make Quebec’s Radical Rethink Work
More than 6.5 million Canadians don’t have a family doctor, up from 4.5 million in 2019. As the gap widens, governments are scrambling to find solutions. Quebec is a good example. It has proposed one of the most sweeping health care reforms in a generation. But will it work? With the right use of AI, it might—and there’s a lesson...
A Very Canadian Nobel Prize: Why Geoffrey Hinton Is His Own Harshest Critic
University of Toronto Professor Geoffrey Hinton has won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Physics for his work in artificial intelligence (AI), specifically, on artificial neural networks. Hinton’s research was trail-blazing and very deserving of the honour. But the decision also sends a mixed message on the benefits of AI, and that’s interesting. A Nobel prize after all is about more...
How Talking AI is Changing Jobs that Rely on Speech
Speech sets humans apart from other creatures—or it did, until chatbots came along. At first, they spoke only in text, so “real speech” remained distinctively human. Not anymore. Over the summer chatbots got human voices—and the chattering classes may never be the same. What can we expect?
AI Meets Sober Second Thought: Why the Senate Should Get Involved
“This changes everything!” If you follow AI, you’ve likely seen this tagline a few too many times—but this time, it’s true. Reasoning AI has arrived, and it will redefine our world. The question now is, how? Answering it well is the challenge ahead—and a unique opportunity to renew Canada’s Senate. Let’s consider how and why...
AI: Now It’s Getting Personal
Science, a leading academic journal, just published a study showing how conversations with an AI chatbot reduced people’s belief in conspiracy theories by 20 per cent. That’s impressive, but the bigger story here is about AI’s rapidly expanding powers of persuasion. Both the benefits and the risks could be huge. Let’s consider why.
AI According to Oprah: A Story of America’s Future
Long before the term "influencer" became fashionable, Oprah Winfrey was shaping narratives—and she’s doing it again. In her recent ABC TV special on artificial intelligence (AI), she declared, “Life for all of us is about to be very different.” According to Oprah, AI will transform the world “unimaginably for the good.”
Secretary Elon Musk? Why is the world’s most successful businessman suddenly keen to get into politics?
Elon Musk apparently thinks that running Tesla, Space X, xAI, X (Twitter), and Neuralink isn’t keeping him busy enough. When Donald Trump mused about putting Musk in his cabinet last week, the billionaire immediately turned to X to let us know that he "can't wait,” and that there’s “a lot of waste and needless regulation in government that needs to...
Sam Altman says “Reasoning AI” is coming. Could this be a wild card in Canada’s next election?
Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, claims we’re on the brink of a breakthrough he calls “Reasoning AI” (also click here). If true, this could be historic, posing a crucial question for Canada's next election: Do Canadians welcome or fear the rise of Reasoning AI? Let’s start with some context.
Here’s why non-Americans have a (big) stake in the U.S. election and what it means for the future of politics
When Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990, the world reacted by tuning into CNN—including the Iraqi leadership. It was the only global 24-hour satellite news network and it broadcast Operation Desert Storm live to the world. For the first time, people on every continent watched a war unfold in real-time together. The 2024 US election is another major milestone for...
What do you get when Big Tech mixes things up with populism? Let's keep an eye on JD Vance
Has Silicon Valley found a new champion in JD Vance, Donald Trump’s running mate? Industry heavyweights like Elon Musk and David Sacks think so. They see Vance as a potential bridge between the tech world and populism. But will their vision of unfettered AI innovation resonate with Americans, or is this precisely the kind of elitist policy jabber that populists...
Choosing the Next President: How AI Could Tip the Balance in Battleground States
Two hundred and forty million voters are eligible to cast ballots in the 2024 US Presidential Election, but the outcome will hinge on a few hundred thousand votes in a handful of swing states. AI could be the decisive factor. Such is democracy in our time.
How AI is Changing Us as Political Writers and Analysts
A friend recently tried ChatGPT for the first time. She asked it a couple of basic political questions and got at least one incorrect answer. "I wasn’t impressed," she sniffed. I could only blink: "Did you not notice that you were talking to a machine?" I thought. Let me put this in context. Thirty-five years ago, while researching AI for...