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Stephen Miller, the hard-line Trump adviser who helped craft some of the administrations most aggressive immigration enforcement policies, is apparently profiting from the tools that make them possible, a new report finds. According to financial disclosures cited in a new report by the Project on Government Oversight, Miller is one of a dozen current White House staffers invested in Palantir, the data analytics firm whose contracts with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have made it the top-performing stock in the S&P 500 this year. His stakevalued between $100,001 and $250,000is the largest among staffers. Ethics experts say the investment raises serious concerns, given Palantirs deepening relationship with DHS and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), agencies central to policies Miller continues to influence. If he hasnt stepped over the line, hes just on the verge of it, Virginia Canter, counsel for ethics and anticorruption at Democracy Defenders Fund, told the Project on Government Oversight as part of its report. I just dont think anybody would be comfortable with him keeping this stock. An anonymous White House official tells Fast Company that Miller in fact owns a number of stocks that surpass the legal threshold that could constitute a conflict of interest, but he has maintained to the White House ethics office that he has, and will continue to, recuse himself from official matters that could affect those stocks. In a statement to Fast Company, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the Trump administration is committed to transparency around such disclosures, insisting, President Trump, Vice President Vance, and senior White House staff have completed required ethics briefings and financial reporting obligations. (Palantir did not respond to Fast Companys request for comment on the ethical implications of Millers investment.) Palantirs ties to DHS and ICE date back to the early 2010s. The company supplies software that helps organize criminal investigations and track the movements of immigrants. During Trumps second term, those ties have only strengthened. Palantir has become a more mature partner to ICE, according to internal company communications obtained by 404 Media. In January, the company secured a $30 million contract to build ImmigrationOS, a system that monitors immigration cases from identification to removal and provides near real-time visibility into self-deportation, government records show. That visibility fits neatly into the broader crackdown on immigration now underway, a campaign in which Miller plays a central role. Last month, he joined Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in setting an aggressive new enforcement benchmark: 3,000 immigration arrests per day. Thats triple the daily average from the start of Trumps second term, according to Axios. As of Monday, ICE was detaining 59,000 immigrantsmore than 140% of the agencys official detention capacity of 41,500 beds, CBS News reports. Given Millers direct involvement in shaping enforcement policyand Palantirs growing role in executing itits not surprising that his financial interest in the company is setting off alarms among government ethics experts. Miller could easily cross an ethical line in his work, for example, if he were in a meeting involving DHS officials talking about whether the data analytics capability of DHS needs to be improved or changed in some way, knowing full well that Palantir would be the beneficiary,” Don Fox, former general counsel of the Office of Government Ethics, told the Project on Government Oversight. Still, investors remain bullish: Palantirs stock hit an all-time high on June 24, just one day after news of Millers stake became public.
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Danish artist Andreas Refsgaard has been combining generative AI with handcrafted prototypes to create unique glimpses of whats aheada future that could one day make artists like him obsolete. What if instead of asking AI to generate a picture, you built a cardboard model of what you wanted it to depict? Thats exactly what Refsgaard has been exploring with his Future Mirror project, which invites students to use recycled materials to build prototypes of artifacts from the future. The Future Mirror web app then feeds these handmade objects into Stable Diffusion, producing unexpected visions of worlds we have yet to invent. I thought it was kind of magical to have kids build something very scrappy [with] toilet paper rolls and papier-mâché, Refsgaard says. Have them imagine wild stories, which they are good at, and then actually see that thing come to life. Since launching workshops with school classes in 2023, Refsgaard has seen kids create prototypes for sustainable buildings, autonomous food delivery vehicles, and teddy bears designed for all-ages space travel. One strength of this approach is that language has many barriers. When I have an idea, or I have something in mind, words can [often] not describe it, Refsgaard explains. Building a model with your own hands allows for more detail, which then influences the final AI-generated image. Thats really, really powerful, he says. A store for AI-generated books Refsgaard has spent about a decade experimenting with machine learning and AI as an artist, often exploring the blurry boundaries between artist and algorithm, authorship and agency. An early example was Booksby.ai, an online bookstore selling paperbacks written entirely by AI. Built in 2018, Booksby.ai came before todays powerful large language models. Instead, it used a much weaker text generator that could create realistic-sounding sentences but struggled with coherent plots. In terms of generative AI, this is medieval, Refsgaard says, noting that the books were barely legible. I don’t think anyone has read an entire book from start to finish, he says, adding, They werent very interesting books. Even so, the store sold about 300 copies, mostly through Amazon. Some books even received five-star reviewsone recommending a book because its knodung, a piece of gibberish generated by AI. Refsgaard enjoys these moments when AI stumbles, though he knows they are becoming more rare. Lets laugh about how bad it is right now, but also think about the future consequences. Because it will be good at some point, he says. That moment is coming quickly. Refsgaard says he wouldnt launch something like Booksby.ai today. Why would I put AI-generated books onto Amazon [now]? Its swamped by AI-generated books already. The fine line between art and a tech demo Another recent project brought reality a little too close to Refsgaards art. As part of a series of experiments with image-to-text models, he built an online meme generator called MemeCam. The web app lets users snap a photo of an everyday object, then uses AI to turn it into a meme. MemeCam was meant as a playful exploration but it quickly went viral. It became extremely popular, my biggest hit I guess, Refsgaard says, noting that his success came at a price. I lost quite a lot of money on it. Although hes not personally a big fan of MemeCams humor, calling it a bit middle of the road, Refsgaard still appreciates its impact. Its sort of like youre indie, and you make a record that gets airplay on big stations, he says. Youre okay with it. The project also made him reflect on what it means to create art in todays fast-evolving AI world. Sometimes even he isnt sure how to define his own work. Are they interesting art, or are they tech demos? When he started working with AI a decade ago, projects relied on basic tools and a lot of custom programming. Today, AI code generators handle much of that work, producing polished but sometimes less-interesting results. Im not going to make something new and unique in Midjourney, Refsgaard says. I dont care how beautiful an image can become. But Im interested in generating that image from cardboard. He adds that making AI art today is way easier technically, but its more tricky conceptually. When AI art replaces the AI artist Despite these shifts, Refsgaard still sees a place for artists like him, who approach AI playfully while also exploring its cracks and limitations. These experiments, he argues, help foster a more informed critique of AI. If you just reject it completely, then the criticism you have of it is typically not very nuanced. As for his own work, Refsgaard plans to keep exploring the shifting line between artist and algorithm as AI continues to evolve. I try to write myself out of my own art, he says, noting that hes also looking to experiment with agentic AI to see whether such agents can create entirely original workseven if that means replacing himself in the process. I try to write myself out of my own art, he says again. I dont mind not being the artist.
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Twelve years ago, I was interviewing with Suzanne “Suz” Gibbs Howard for a role at Ideo. Suz had been a partner at Ideo for about 20 years and had built her career as a human-centered consultant. I was a young, aspiring designer who didnt fully understand the enormity of the brands name. I just knew how to design learning experiences. I was 25 years old and had previously worked as a grassroots organizer, where I designed experiences to bring people together. After that, I found myself at an online university startup in San Francisco. As fate would have it, Suz had an idea to build a learning platform (which would later become Ideo U), and she needed a junior instructional designer. Yes! I blurted out when she asked if Id be up for a six-week experiment. But in the hours after the call, the fear started to creep in. Sure, I was at a fast-paced, fairly chaotic startup, but it was still a steady job. Id also just finished grad school with student loans. I also lived in a city where people paid $1,200 to live in a walk-in closet. I paced around my living room and called her back. Hey Mark, she said. Hi Suz, I said nervously, but still unaware that the question I was about to ask was ridiculous: If this doesnt work out . . . will you have my back? Suz said yes. But shed later tell me that her yes carried a weight for her. That night, she brought it up with her husband: Should I have said yes? I mean, I dont know if it will work out. And hes taking a risk. Great leaders have your back Suz never once went back on her word. She had my back from that day forward. She mentored meeven when I was probably being difficult. She invested in me, signed me up for sessions with a leadership coach, and connected me with mentor after mentor. Even years after I left Ideo to move to Berlin, shed go out of her way to see me and respond to all my notes within a day. She knew the gravity of saying shed have my back. She didnt take it lightly. And she surely didnt owe that promise to a 25-year-old kid. She wasand still isa giant in the field of design innovation. But thats her style of leadership: she walks alongside you. That experience taught me just how important it was for leaders to have their peoples backs. And that requires the following: 1. See the whole person Supporting your people begins with seeing the wholeness of those you lead. The Japanese term sei-katsu-shawhich describes seeing a person in the fullness of their lifestyle, dreams, and aspirationscaptures this beautifully. Everyone is uniqueget to know their specific flavor. What makes each person tick? What makes their heart sing? What motivates them? 2. Be the net When they take risks, let them know youre there to catch them. When they stumble, dont just criticize themyou also need to offer support, resources, or time to help them recover and learn. It shows them you believe in their potential, even in tough moments, especially in tough moments. What are their fears? How might you help design the conditions for them to lean into those with bravery? 3. Cocreate Yes, I know. Its such an overused word. But having someones back means inviting them into spaces where you can roll up your sleeves together, spaces that are about work and growth. Set goals together that align with the teams mission. Find out what their long-term career aspirations and North Stars are, and figure out how you might be able to help them stretch in a way that gets them closer to that goal. 4. Tell the truth with care Now, I get that this doesnt always scream Ive got your back. When youre young (and a little naive, like I was), it can feel like a critique. But the leaders who truly had my back showed me that my blind spots werent just flawsthey were part of what made me whole. For example, my ability to light up a room and unlock people could also suck a room dry if I was burned out or stressed. 5. Show up, dont just say so Dont just say the thing, do the thing. The most inspiring leaders dont wait for the perfect momentthey create it. They understand that words are hollow without the weight of action behind them. They know that action is where purpose meets the real worldand where real growth begins. Whats one small step that you can take to show up? Whats something you can do that they might remember forever? Suz changed my life. We both believed in the sanctity of those words: I have your back. Back then, I only understood them in the context of friendship. Now I know what they mean by leadership. And heres what Ive learned: its not just about giving. Theres something profoundly reciprocal about it all. The real gift is getting to witness someone else grow, thrive, and leave their mark on the world. Thats the beautythose relationships, built on mutual care, end up shaping you just as much as you shape them.
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