Intelligent Machines (Audio) IM 850: Bagel Rats - Open Source AI Rising
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Dec 18, 2025 
CJ Trowbridge, an Ethical AI practitioner and open-source advocate, dives deep into the future of AI. He champions small, local AI models for sustainability, challenging the notion that big models are the only way forward. CJ warns about the current financial bubble in AI and emphasizes the importance of grassroots projects and mesh networks. He passionately articulates why open-source approaches will outlast corporate failures, ensuring that AI remains accessible and community-driven.
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Firsthand With Early GPT And DALL·E
- CJ described being one of the first users of ChatGPT (then 'chat with gpt3') and early image generation experiments with DALL·E.
- He recalls the UX and context-window limitations that made early chat awkward.
Early Tester Warned About Chat Interface
- CJ was an early academic tester at OpenAI and found early chat interfaces poor for document-completion models.
- He recommended design changes but recalls internal reluctance due to time and cost pressures.
AI's Energy Footprint Is Small
- AI energy use is currently trivial: models consume under 1% of global electricity and data centers under 4%.
- Political decisions and cuts to renewables drive energy price rises, not AI compute demand.