It’s a lovely Sunday out there, folks — and a techy Sunday in here! Let’s start with trivia. What other names did Amazon consider for its Alexa virtual assistant: Athena, Eve, Finch or Samantha? Answer’s at the very end.

💃 If you’ve been enjoying my emails, do the three-step. Step 1: Please move this to your primary inbox. Step 2: “Star” this email. Step 3: Reply with a few words, like, “Love ya, Kim!” This ensures you always get The Current and keeps Big Tech and email providers like Gmail and Yahoo from sending my newsletters to spam. The nerve, right? Thanks a bunch! — Kim

If I could go back in time, put me hosting a radio show in NYC in the ‘40s. I’d be a lucky one; six out of every 10 jobs done today didn't exist in 1940.

I found some wild jobs tech replaced — plus new titles on the rise.

Dead in the past 100 or so years

Town crier: People used to scream the latest headlines around town to keep everyone in the know. Sometimes, they'd “post” news on the door of a tavern — yep, that’s where "post" comes from!

📰 What killed it? The printing press, designed and built by German goldsmith Johannes Gutenberg in 1436!

Knocker-upper: No, it’s not what you think. In the 1800s, if you wanted to wake up on time, you used to hire a knocker-upper to bang on your door.

⏰ What killed it? The first adjustable alarm clock, patented by French inventor Antoine Redier in 1847.

Toad doctor: Two hundred years ago, if you had a headache or skin problem, you'd probably call on the toad doctor. Well, not on the phone … maybe from your horse? Back then, people thought toads and leeches had healing properties.

💉 What killed it? Penicillin. Dr. Alexander Fleming discovered the bacteria-munching mold in 1928.

Dead in the past 50 years

Human computer: NASA used to rely on super-smart humans to do the math for successful launches. The 2016 movie “Hidden Figures” was based on an elite group of black women mathematicians, including Katherine Johnson, who did trajectory analysis by hand and paved the way for the moon landing.

💻 What killed it? Machine computers. The IBM 7090 was one of the first in NASA’s control room in 1960.

Punch card operator: Punch cards were used to manage accounting, payroll and more. Fun fact: Chads, the colored dots of punched-out cards, were a common confetti substitute in the ‘50s!

🧮 What killed it? Texas Instrument’s Cal-Tech, the first handheld calculator, in 1967.

VHS matchmaker: Video dating services exploded in the 1980s. Just send a recording of yourself answering a few standard prompts and voila! Get matched with other singles looking for love.

💔 What killed it? Online dating. Match⁠.⁠com hit the scene in 1995.

What about the next 50 years?

Don't let the big, bad AI takeover scare you. These were three of the hottest job titles in 2023, and they all pay really well:

• AI ethicist: AI companies keep pushing boundaries, and someone's gotta rein them in. This job addresses ethical considerations and system biases to keep things from going full "Terminator."
• Remote work facilitator: During the pandemic, some workforces went 100% remote and never looked back. Remote work facilitators now manage tech stacks and collaboration tools for remote teams to keep company cultures on point.
• Cybersecurity analyst: Cybercrooks get smarter by the day. That’s why we need people like cybersecurity analysts to study their moves and make recommendations to protect organizations and develop new security measures.

My first job was working in the camera department at Target. Oh, I still have flashbacks! Btw, just in case you’re hiring, you can get a free job posting on LinkedIn using my special link.* They have a great, new tool that writes job descriptions for you. Nice!

I love spending time cooking for the week on a Sunday. And you know what makes meal prep more fun? New gear to get the job done.

• This set of six rainbow-colored Cuisinart knives brightens things up.
• The Rapid Dash Egg Cooker is a sweet solution for making fast hard-boiled and soft-boiled eggs. It’s 11% off — and no more rings around the yolks!
• A marble cheese board with a built-in slicer for a fancy happy hour spread. Yes, please.
• Upgrade your fussy garlic press with a simple and elegant stainless steel rocker. It’s 17% off and super easy to use.
• A DIY indoor organic herb garden, because your food deserves fresh herbs — and so do you.
• I use these to freeze soup. One cube equals one bowl. So easy to thaw. Souper‑duper!
• A food scale makes baking so much easier. Fewer measuring cups to wash!
• Sick of cleaning out the air fryer? Grab a pack of liners. I use these every time.
• Grate gracefully with a microplane. I got one — now I have a zest(er) for life.
• Stop buying bags of popcorn covered in yellow gloop. This bowl works with kernels in the microwave!

No beating the Bezos: The FTC is going after Amazon for a price-fixing scheme that generated more than $1 billion in profits. But a lot of the evidence is gone. Shocker, Amazon’s top brass (including Jeff Bezos) used the messaging app Signal to make their texts automatically disappear — forever.

🚨 Kaiser Permanente data leak: It affects about 13.4 million patients. Third-party trackers installed on its sites and mobile apps were sending info to vendors like Google, Microsoft and X. The compromised data includes patient names, IP addresses, and their site and app interactions. Yup, medical ID theft is coming to you.

He’s been schooled: A high school coach used AI against a principal who fired him. With a voice-cloning app, he “recorded” the principal making racist and antisemitic comments and posted it all over social. The clip was exposed as phony. Sure, the bad guy’s in jail, but that won’t fix the good guy’s reputation.

YouTube’s getting more ads: The Google video ad whiz team has figured out how to show us ads when a video is paused. There will be a “dismiss” button to kill the ads. No official launch date, but when you see it, remember you heard it here first.

AI is taking over: You need to make sure your business can compete. Take a free test drive of Oracle’s* AI tech right now, before it’s too late. I like learning from the best, and I bet you do, too!

✅ Did you know you can instantly silence incoming calls on your smartphone by simply pressing the side button — typically, volume up or volume down — once? Yup, it’s a tech secret the pros know.

Hidden Windows features live in the Accessibility menu. We’re talking about the magnifier tool, text size settings, color contrast levels, voice-typing and narration features, caption settings, voice recognition and more. In Windows 10, go to Settings > Ease of Access. In Windows 11, go to Settings > Accessibility. So handy!

Record your Mac screen: Maybe you’re sharing directions or want to show something to a friend. Hit Cmd + Shift + 5. A toolbar will pop up. Here’s a quick look at what each tool does. Pick your fave, hit Record, then press Stop when you’re done.

🦈 Fin-tastic app: Want to know where the sharks are? Researchers track sharks (not all) in this free app. Or use the map on their site.

Attention, teachers: With the updated Google for Education App Hub, educators and school admins have, at a glance, 25 apps to update class rosters, grade papers and so much more. My homeroom teacher once told me I’d never amount to much because of how I procrastinated. I replied, “Just you wait.”

🎙️ Every weekend on my award-winning national radio show heard on over 420 stations, I talk with interesting folks like you. Catch these convos on a station near you or as a podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

• Matt in Tallahassee, Florida, is an Air Force veteran who served in Iraq. He’s looking for ways to sell his book filled with stories to make people smile.
• Kashmir Hill is the New York Times reporter who broke the story on how GM collects data on millions of drivers and sells it.
• Emily in San Antonio, Texas, is very aware social media can be a dangerous place, especially for children. She wants to know what her kids are doing on their phones — without feeling like a spy.

Plus, Loren wants to back up a website, David seeks tips for email marketing, Michelle needs a tracker for her son, another David asks about Apple's privacy, Arlene looks for advice on passkeys, and so much more!

📆 Make an appointment to speak with me right here.

Listen: You don’t have to spend $200 or more for high-quality earbuds. Raycons have studio-quality sound, a whopping 32 hours of battery life, and they fit comfortably in every ear with precise fittings. Grab ‘em for 20% off (and free shipping!) at BuyRaycon.com/kim.*

Go outside: Here are the best states for outdoorsy people. See if yours — or your next vacation destination — made the list.

Pickle: Pretty much anything in 20 minutes flat! This quick pickling recipe is your new secret formula.

Giddy-up: If you or someone you know is obsessed with their Stanley water bottle, get these. So funny.

Stop: Watering your houseplants with a pint glass. Try this cute watering can instead.

Learn: How to buy good olive oil. Here’s a handy primer on what all those labels in the grocery store actually mean.

I just learned this and couldn’t wait to tell you!

Before 1920, children could be mailed if they weighed under 50 pounds. Stamps were attached to their clothing, and they traveled in the mail cars on trains, looked after by USPS mail clerks. Here’s an article about it.

📛 The answer: All of the above. Before settling on Alexa, Amazon was considering Athena, Eve, Finch, Friday and Samantha. I was kinda bummed Kim wasn’t on the list.

🤣 The other day, Barry asked me why I was whispering. I told him it was because Mark Zuckerburg might be listening. Then, Barry laughed, Siri laughed and Alexa laughed.

Enjoy your Sunday, friend. It’s an honor to be in your inbox. Take a second and rate this issue so we know how we’re doing here in Komandoland. And in case no one told you today, I think you’re awesome! — Kim