Hello on this bright and shiny Thursday! There’s a whole lotta AI talk around here lately. Some people love it, some people hate it, and some people think we’ll all be replaced by AI robots. Today’s trivia: Which generation is most afraid of AI? Is it … A.) Gen Z, B.) Millennials, C.) Gen X, D.) Baby boomers or E.) The Silent Generation? Answer’s at the end!

Privacy, please. Want to get some of yours back? Check out Incogni right now. They wipe your details from scummy data-collection sites. More about them below. Now, on to the money-saving tech smarts you’re gonna love. — Kim

When I’m booking air travel, it seems like the price goes up with every click. By the time I pay to check a bag or two, that “great deal” isn’t looking so, well, great.

So of course airlines are fighting the Biden administration’s “junk fees’” rule, which would make them show their fees upfront for checking bags, carrying on a bag, and changing or canceling a reservation.

Virtually every major airline (American, Delta, United, JetBlue, Alaska and Hawaiian) is suing to stop this rule. Yeah, and they probably don’t want you to know their checked-bag fees are going up again (at least, for American).

Airlines aren’t the only ones

It’s called price obfuscation, and I bet it’s happening in your online shopping carts all the time. You see one price when you hit “buy,” and as they tack on more fees, you’re less likely to notice them.

Concert tickets are some of the worst offenders, with service fees, order processing fees, delivery fees and facility charges.

The price obfuscation for concert tickets got so out of control, some states finally made Ticketmaster show “all-in pricing” — your actual ticket cost — instead of the ticket price you think you’re paying.

• 🎶 How to avoid it: When you can, buy tickets at a physical box office to avoid some of the fees.

Hotels stays: Many hotels tack on a “resort fee” they claim is for amenities. Some local governments charge a tourism tax, too. It can add up!

• 🧳 Ask about the charges: If your hotel’s “resort fee” is for a closed pool or a gym you’re not using, politely ask if it can be removed from your bill.

Online shopping: That outfit was a good deal … until you saw the shipping and handling fees.

• 🛍️ Do your own legwork: Literally. If you’re purchasing online from a store with a brick-and-mortar shop in your town, get it shipped there for free and pick it up.

Restaurant service fees: Some restaurants charge an automatic gratuity percentage for parties of six or more, but others take it even further with “cost of living” or other fees added to your final dining bill. California lawmakers got fed up (I had to) with it and eighty-sixed the practice in the state.

• 🍴 Last course of action: Check your receipt before you tip more than necessary. It could be (at least partially) baked in.

One more before you swipe: If you’ve ever encountered a “convenience fee” or “service fee,” they’re two of the most confusing fee types.

Some businesses charge a percentage or flat fee to offset the processing fees credit card companies charge them. Yeah, it’s legal, but businesses are also legally required to disclose the fee before you pay. Want to avoid it? Nostalgia wins again — carry cash.

🤣 You know what’s interesting? I've heard U2 has never paid any legal fees. Their lawyers all work pro Bono.

There are hundreds of sites that collect and sell your highly personal information. We’re talking health data, GPS location, your income, your loved ones … The list goes on. You need to remove that info, but they make it a real pain to do yourself.

That’s where Incogni comes in. I signed up, and in just a few minutes, they started working on the removal process for me, saving me literally hundreds of hours and a lot of frustration. The best part is they keep sending out requests so these scummy sites can’t sneak me back into their databases.

I negotiated a deal just for you: 60% off. And heads-up: Incogni now offers a Family Plan so you can protect up to five folks for just one affordable price.

You have to be smarter than this: Over 10% of people still use 1234 as their four-digit PIN. Other most-used options include 1111, 0000, 1212 and 7777. If this is you, time for something more complex — and no, your birth year or address won’t cut it. On iPhone, upgrade to six digits. On Android, stick with your fingerprint if your phone has biometrics.

📧 AI coming to Gmail inboxes: Soon, a "smart assistant" will summarize email threads and suggest responses. A Q&A tool (powered by Gemini) will dig through your emails to answer questions like, “I got three bids for a new roof. Which one is the best?” Once it’s live for everyone, I’ll show you how to use it.

The new GPT‑4o sounds like Scarlett Johansson: Yup, the voice is eerily similar to Scarlett’s character in the 2013 movie "Her." A fan posted a side-by-side comparison on X. OpenAI’s CEO, Sam Altman, says "Her" is his favorite sci-fi film. Now you know.

😤 This is why we can't have nice things: A week ago, a super-cool livestream portal connected a street in New York City to one in Dublin. It didn’t last long, thanks to a bunch of pervs. People started flashing each other and sharing off-color images. We live in such a civilized world … not.

Is this the year AI totally changes music? Take Udio, founded by ex-Google employees and sitting on $10 million in funding. They’re cranking out tracks at insane speeds — 10 songs a second, or roughly 864,000 songs a day. If you want to try it, it’s open to the public, and you can create 1,200 free songs each month.

I told you about this a year ago: The FTC has issued a warning to automakers that sell connected cars. The message is essentially, “Respect data privacy and don’t monetize it.” Oh, like when General Motors sold drivers’ info to insurance companies, causing premiums to rise. News flash: Unless there’s a real penalty, they won’t stop.

Big moves for accessibility: Apple’s new assistive features include built-in eye tracking (navigate apps and select items just by looking at them), vocal shortcuts, music haptics and CarPlay changes, such as larger text and sound recognition for honks.

The “E” stands for entertainment: Chuck E. Cheese is saying goodbye to its iconic animatronic robot band at over 400 locations nationwide. You’ll have until the end of 2024 to catch their cute-slash-terrifying musical performances. Get ready for more screens, digital dance floors and trampoline gyms.

Slow your scroll: Reddit users say the new iOS 17.5 is restoring long-deleted photos to their recent camera rolls. So, the next time you open your photos while you’re in mixed company, be careful — your three-year-old nudes could be front and center. No word on a fix yet, but I’ll keep you updated.

Peace among us: Windows 11’s Phone Link lets iPhone users send and receive messages via iMessage, make and receive calls, and see any app notifications on a PC or laptop.

Plan for the future: AARP has you covered with its retirement calculator. Answer a few questions to find out how much money you need to live to retire comfortably.

Search it: My husband, Barry, was scrolling through his photo app looking for a pic of our boat. I leaned over and said, “Type ‘boat’ in the search bar.” He did, and bam — there was the one he wanted. Just type a word or two and find a certain pic fast.

Quick privacy tip: Task Manager on a Windows PC and Activity Monitor on a Mac can give you an overview of everything happening on your machine. On a PC, hit Ctrl + Shift + Esc. Click the Processes tab. On a Mac, hit Cmd + spacebar to open Spotlight Search. Then, type Activity Monitor and press Enter. See anything weird? Google it before you panic.

Look at that, back to its roots! We picked out some great reads on sale for great prices.

• Guy Kawasaki’s “Think Remarkable” is 39% off. He shares his insider knowledge from 40 years spent working with companies like Apple, Google and Wikipedia. Amazing book.
• “The Mitford Affair” (61% off) is un‑put‑down‑able historical fiction about the famous (and real!) Mitford sisters during World War II.
• Nab a summer’s worth of beach reads all in one go with the “A Court of Thorns and Roses” box set by bestselling author Sarah J. Maas for 50% off. Warning: They get steamy.
• Tom Selleck is getting rave reviews for his frank and funny memoir for fans of “Magnum PI,” “Blue Bloods” and “Three Men and a Baby.” Grab it at 47% off!
• Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman’s “Thinking, Fast and Slow” has sold over 2.6 million copies. If you haven’t read this book about how we think, snag it now.
• “The Algebra of Wealth: A Simple Formula for Financial Security” was an instant bestseller. Sounds like a great graduation gift to me!
• Read the book “Oppenheimer” was based on: “American Prometheus.”
• And a pick for you, me and everyone: “Dad Jokes: The Good. The Bad. The Terrible.”

This is gonna make waves at the HOA meeting.

The answer: A.) Gen Z is most afraid of AI, believe it or not. The reason? They haven’t been through a tech boom before! Us older, wiser folks know to take the “next big thing” in stride.

🤣 Speaking of … People in Iran are scared of spiders. But in Iraq, no phobia. (Get it? Arachnophobia? Oh, tough crowd today!)

Before you go: Incogni is my personal privacy service, and it can be yours, too. Make an account, fill out your profile, and they’ll get to work taking your personal data off the internet. Beyond easy. See you right back here tomorrow with, yep, an AI update. Lots of new features announced this week, and I want you to be in the know! — Kim