It’s 2033 and your AI assistant hates your outfit

Plus: Angola quits OPEC, dupe culture and more [Bloomberg]( This is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a profound invasion of Bloomberg Opinion’s opinions. [Sign up here](. Today’s Agenda - The future of AI is full of [snoops](. - This Christmas is all about [dupes](. - [Angola]( is leaving the OPEC group. - [Coal]( consumption needs to droop. Snooping Season The days of Louis Litt’s dictaphone are in the past. Source: Suits Have you ever thought about what your morning routine will look like in 10 years? After reading this Parmy Olson [column]( about wearable AI, I couldn’t help but envision how things might look different in December 2033: It’s 6:45 a.m. You open your eyes to the fluttering light projecting from your AI necklace, which is also emitting soft vibrations synced to your pulse. Your AI has determined that this is the optimal method to wake you up because it allows your body to slowly exit your hypnopompic state. As you sit up, your AI greets you: “Good morning. You appear to be mildly dehydrated according to my sensors. Please drink the 290 milliliters that I just added to the cup on your nightstand. Today’s batch is teeming with electrolytes.” After you down the elixir, you walk over to your closet. It’s still dark outside, so you’re not sure what to wear. As you sift through some sweaters, your AI says, “It’s much too warm out for wool. Might I suggest a polyester blend?” You pick out your favorite rose-colored V-neck and hold it up to your body in the mirror. “Might I interject?” your AI says. You nod. “That hue washes you out. According to your seasonal color analysis, a brighter tone would suit you.” Giving up, you grab the hot-pink hoodie by the hamper and throw it on with some leggings. “Remember, you have that sales presentation today. Some slacks might be more suitable? Gap and Banana Republic are offering 50% off to shoppers that purchase khakis through their AI with the code ‘khakAI.’ They drone-deliver them to your doorstep in under an hour!” Ignoring your AI’s shameless plug, you wander over to the bathroom and pick up your electric toothbrush. You press the button but nothing happens. “Is this not charging properly?” you ask aloud. “No, it’s perfectly charged, but you haven’t flossed for four days. I won’t turn it on until you do so.” This type of retaliation is nothing new. In the past, your AI disabled your phone’s camera app after it determined you weren’t ‘living in the moment’ enough to enjoy live concerts. Last winter, it tracked how many times you used the bathroom and altered your diet to include less dairy. It even reached out to your therapist when it detected lower-than-normal serotonin levels. With wearable assistants, everyone’s lives will have the potential to be planned, plotted and meticulously rehearsed, not unlike a Nathan Fielder [show]( or a Black Mirror [episode](. The [AI glasses]( and [necklaces]( of the future will make [Apple Watches]( look like Little Tike toys. And although my vision of 2033 may feel rather doomer-y to you, Parmy says skeptics are right to keep their guard up. In the future, the “level of access by tech companies would be a much more profound invasion of personal privacy than what we have today,” she writes. “A pair of glasses or pendant could end up recording [highly personal moments](, as well as third parties who might not want to be on camera.” And that ad for khakis? It’s not a far-off possibility: “Mark Zuckerberg recently showed Meta’s glasses [giving him]( wardrobe advice. While that might sound useful to the sartorially challenged, we should prepare ourselves for a world where AI is monitoring and even judging our interactions,” she writes. And the companies at the forefront of this technology have a financial incentive to use the new technology to snoop on us. Consider the fact that advertising contributes an astonishing 98% of Meta’s revenue. What marketing exec is going to care [about internet cookies]( when they’re able to “see” the clothes in our closets and hear the brands we name-drop in our conversations? That level of detail is the true golden ticket for those wanting to serve us hyper-personalized ads. Read [the whole thing](. Bonus Tech Reading: For the first time last week, Meta allowed content posted on one of its apps to be interoperable with a social network it didn’t own or control. [Here’s why]( that’s a game-changer. — Dave Lee “We’re Gen Zers, We’re Gonna Buy Dupes” Last night, the dress I ordered to wear over the holidays arrived. I tried it on and showed my sister. She proceeded to tell me it was a dupe. I had no idea. All I knew is that I liked the garment. But after a quick Google, I realized it’s 1,000% a cheap imitation of Khaite’s $1,920 Sueanne Babydoll Dress: I’m far from the only one buying a knock-off this holiday season. But most young people don’t do it by accident. Erin Lowry [says]( Gen Z’s love of dupes offers a look into their psyche. Dupes “can be viewed as subversive, seemingly undercutting expensive brands, and even capitalism itself.” Erin writes that dupe culture — and the lack of stigma around it — is a form of information sharing, and TikTok offers Gen Z a vehicle for spreading the word. At this point, it almost feels like a game to see who can find the best dupe: Can you really smell the difference between this [$18 candle]( and [a Diptyque one](? Will anyone notice the [embellished pumps]( you bought on Amazon aren’t Manolo Blahniks? Which [Skims dupe]( makes you look perfectly snatched? Of course, “the proliferation of dupes can be a problem for luxury brands that use exclusivity as part of their business model,” Erin writes. But Gen Z is merely following the same “stick-it-to-the-man” formula of generations before them. Bonus Gen Z Reading: Adults younger than 30 have used the flexibility offered by remote work to [socialize with friends](. But those of us older than 30? We’re more solitary than ever. — Sarah Green Carmichael Telltale Charts OPEC is now one country lighter, with Angola [announcing]( it’s quitting the oil cartel today. But is Angola’s absence going to change things? “At first glance, it’s irrelevant,” Javier Blas [writes](. Angola is far from the first country to leave the cartel. It joins a long list of former member countries, including [Indonesia]( in 2016, [Qatar]( in 2019, [Ecuador]( in 2020. But Javier says Angola’s departure “sheds some light on an open secret: Lots of OPEC member countries are less than happy about the direction the group has taken over the last few years under the leadership of Saudi Arabia.” Mark Gongloff [says coal]( is “the one fossil fuel that makes oil look like a slacker when it comes to ruining the atmosphere for human habitation.” And yet we still can’t seem to get enough of it! “After dipping during the pandemic, coal emissions surged to a record high of 15.5 gigatons in 2022. That was more than the entire energy emissions of China and three times as much as the US,” he writes. The developed world needs to bolster global renewable capacity so that fast-growing economies can kick the bad habit. Further Reading Companies are bypassing banks to [borrow from fund managers](. That’s OK — for now. — Bloomberg’s editorial board The Fed has written itself [an encore act]( that’s full of confusion for markets. — Mohamed A. El-Erian 2023 was a rough year for Biden’s [foreign policy agenda](, and 2024 looks even rougher. — Hal Brands The Suez Canal has long been a risk for shippers. [Houthi rockets]( in the Red Sea are just the latest. — Tim Culpan This [crisis in Fumio Kishida’s Cabinet]( could completely rewrite Japanese governance. — Gearoid Reidy Social-impact investing has [a rather obvious problem](: Investors don't like losing money. — Chris Hughes By buying luxury online retailer Matches, Mike Ashley’s aiming to be [Britain’s own bling king](. — Andrea Felsted The curious case of [the Big Things]( that were supposed to happen this year but didn’t. — John Authers ICYMI The Fed’s inflation mission looks [done and dusted](. Rudy Giuliani [filed for bankruptcy]( protection. Substackers are [battling]( over banning Nazis. Kickers Why your packages don’t get [delivered](. (h/t Sarah Green Carmichael) A database left info on [celebrity homes]( unprotected. This [chronic back pain]( treatment begins in your brain. Archaeologists discovered [an ancient banquet room]( in Rome. Potatoes may no longer be classified as [a vegetable](. Notes: Please send lost packages and feedback to Jessica Karl at jkarl9@bloomberg.net. [Sign up here]( and follow us on [Threads](, [TikTok](, [Twitter](, [Instagram]( and [Facebook](. Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com]( for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and subscriber-only insights. Before it’s here, it’s on the Bloomberg Terminal. Find out more about how the Terminal delivers information and analysis that financial professionals can’t find anywhere else. [Learn more](. Want to sponsor this newsletter? [Get in touch here](. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Opinion Today newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, [sign up here]( to get it in your inbox. [Unsubscribe]( [Bloomberg.com]( [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022 [Ads Powered By Liveintent]( [Ad Choices](