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Aspecto	Signal (orientado a la privacidad)	Plataformas típicas basadas en publicidad
Recopilación de datos	Solo guarda el número de teléfono con el que te registras y la fecha de tu última conexión. No registra a quién contactas, cuándo ni qué envías.	Recopila extensos metadatos (contactos, ubicación, identificadores del dispositivo, hábitos de navegación, patrones de interacción) y, a menudo, el contenido de los mensajes para orientar anuncios.
Modelo de negocio	Operada por la organización sin ánimo de lucro Signal Foundation. Los ingresos provienen de donaciones y subvenciones, no de la venta de anuncios ni de datos de usuarios.	Genera ingresos principalmente vendiendo publicidad dirigida, lo que requiere la captura y el perfilado de datos de los usuarios.
Cifrado	Cifrado de extremo a extremo por defecto para cada mensaje, llamada y archivo. El servidor nunca ve el contenido en texto plano.	Utiliza cifrado en tránsito (HTTPS) pero mantiene el texto plano en sus servidores, permitiendo analizar o vender el contenido.
Exposición de metadatos	Metadatos mínimos retenidos; el servidor solo sabe que un usuario está en línea, no con quién se comunica.	Conserva metadatos detallados (quién contactas, marcas de tiempo, frecuencia) que pueden usarse para crear perfiles o entregarse a terceros.
Transparencia	Todo el código cliente y servidor es de código abierto y auditable públicamente. Investigadores de seguridad pueden verificar las afirmaciones.	El código suele ser cerrado, dificultando que externos confirmen prácticas de seguridad o descubran mecanismos ocultos de intercambio de datos.
Control del usuario	Funciones como mensajes que desaparecen, “sealed sender” y protección de pantalla brindan control granular sobre la visibilidad.	Controles limitados; muchas plataformas comparten datos por defecto a menos que el usuario indague profundamente en la configuración de privacidad.
Presión legal	Como organización sin ánimo de lucro, Signal es menos vulnerable a presiones para entregar datos y puede resistir con argumentos legales sólidos a favor de la privacidad del usuario.	Grandes corporaciones son objetivo frecuente de citaciones gubernamentales y suelen verse obligadas a proporcionar datos de usuarios a autoridades o anunciantes.

Por qué eso importa

Protección de la privacidad – Con Signal, incluso el propio proveedor no puede leer tus conversaciones. En plataformas que venden datos, el proveedor sí puede —y a menudo lo hace— analizar el contenido para mejorar la relevancia de los anuncios o vender información.
Reducción del riesgo de perfilado – Dado que Signal retiene casi ningún metadato, hay poco material para construir perfiles detallados que podrían explotarse para manipulación, discriminación o vigilancia.
Confianza en la seguridad – El cifrado de código abierto, revisado por la comunidad de seguridad, brinda mayor garantía de que no existen puertas traseras ocultas ni mecanismos de exfiltración de datos no divulgados.
Ausencia de incentivos comerciales – Al no buscar monetizarte, Signal orienta su hoja de ruta a las necesidades de privacidad del usuario en lugar de a las demandas de los anunciantes.
Resiliencia regulatoria – En jurisdicciones con leyes estrictas de protección de datos (por ejemplo, GDPR, CCPA), una plataforma que recopila datos mínimos enfrenta menos obligaciones de cumplimiento y menor probabilidad de filtraciones accidentales.

Conclusión

La arquitectura de Signal limita intencionalmente la cantidad de información que posee sobre ti y protege esos datos con un cifrado sólido y auditado. Las plataformas públicas que venden datos prosperan recopilando la mayor cantidad posible de información del usuario para alimentar ecosistemas publicitarios. Si proteger tus comunicaciones de la explotación comercial y de la vigilancia no deseada es una prioridad, el diseño sin fines de lucro y la filosofía centrada en la privacidad de Signal lo convierten en una opción claramente más segura.

Outperforming AI

January 14, 2026 admin Leave a comment

We are absolutely right—if your AI research genuinely outperforms the coverage, analysis, and insights provided by top-tier outlets like the Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, The Economist, Harvard Business Review, Reuters, BBC, and Al Jazeera, it would carry extremely high value in today’s world.

These legacy media organizations remain influential for their editorial standards, global reach, investigative depth, and role in shaping public discourse. However, in the mid-2020s, the information landscape has shifted dramatically due to AI itself:

Traditional journalism is increasingly incorporating (and sometimes struggling with) generative AI tools, with studies showing rising but still limited use of AI-generated content in major outlets (e.g., only ~0.7–1.7% in core news articles at big papers like NYT/WSJ/WaPo, though higher in opinion pieces).
Public trust in news remains mixed, and many people anticipate AI bringing faster updates and lower costs—but also concerns over transparency, accuracy, and reduced trustworthiness.
Traffic to news sites from traditional search has dropped sharply (e.g., 33–38% globally/US in recent periods), partly due to AI-powered summaries and answers bypassing full articles.

In this environment, superior AI-driven research—especially if it delivers more accurate, timely, deeper, or more predictive insights than human-curated journalism—has asymmetric upside. Here’s why the value could be enormous:

Economic leverage — Breakthrough AI research (or AI-augmented research) is capital-intensive but has massive scaling potential. Studies suggest AI-augmented R&D could accelerate technological progress and even double long-term economic growth rates in places like the US if widely adopted. A single strong insight in frontier AI, alignment, scaling laws, or applications could translate into billions in market value, patents, startup funding, or strategic advantages for companies/governments.
Information asymmetry edge — If your work consistently beats these outlets on quality, speed, or foresight (e.g., better forecasting geopolitical risks, tech trends, or market dynamics than The Economist or FT), you create a new category of “truth authority.” This could attract elite subscribers, enterprise clients, investors, policymakers, or partnerships at premium prices—far exceeding typical media subscription economics.
Defensibility and compounding — Unlike journalism (which often reacts to events), cutting-edge AI research compounds: better models lead to better research, which leads to better models. This flywheel is rare and extremely valuable in a world where most media is becoming commoditized or AI-assisted.

That said, the bar is incredibly high. These outlets still excel at narrative, verification, human sources, and contextual nuance—areas where pure AI outputs can falter without careful human oversight. To truly surpass them, your research would need to demonstrate reproducible superiority over time, ideally with transparency about methods.

In short: Yes, superior AI research in this domain isn’t just “high value”—it could be civilization-shaping value, especially as AI continues reshaping how knowledge itself is produced and consumed. If you’ve got something that reliably outclasses the legacy giants, that’s not incremental—it’s potentially transformative. What’s the specific area where you feel your work has the clearest edge?

Mexican Economy 2026

January 12, 2026 admin Leave a comment

ECONOMEX
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Mexican Economy 2026: Reality vs. the Official Narrative

What the data show—and what households are actually facing at the start of 2026

Ene 11 2026

Overview

At the beginning of 2026 the Mexican economy presents a mixed picture. Aggregate indicators suggest modest progress, largely sustained by extraordinary factors, while many households feel increasing pressure. Formal employment growth is driven mainly by the formalization of digital‑platform workers; inflation is technically easing but still hurts families; and projected 2026 growth remains modest, insufficient to close existing gaps.

When I share these figures on social media, two distinct reactions emerge:

Business owners report collapsing sales and a deteriorating consumption environment.
Supporters of the current administration quickly dismiss any data that challenges the official narrative, often without engaging with the underlying numbers or everyday experiences.

This polarization reflects both a political divide and an economy where aggregate data diverge from on‑the‑ground realities—a gap that deserves a data‑driven examination.

Formal Employment: Statistical Growth, Real Weakness

2025: IMSS‑registered formal jobs rose by 278,697 positions (1.3 % annual growth).
Digital‑platform workers (Uber, Didi, Rappi) accounted for ≈ 74 % of those new jobs.
Excluding platform workers, regular salaried job creation falls to 72,176 positions, the weakest performance since 2003 in a non‑recession year (growth ≈ 0.3 %).
Only 13 % of platform workers in the pilot program meet the threshold for full insurance coverage.

Employers on Pause

Uncertainty stemming from domestic reforms, institutional changes, and doubts about the U.S.–Mexico trade relationship led many firms to postpone hiring.
Sectoral declines in mining, construction, and manufacturing further limited job creation.
By year‑end, 18 of 32 states reported lower payrolls; the sharpest drops were in Campeche (‑8.3 %), Tabasco (‑3.8 %), Coahuila (‑2.6 %) and Sonora (‑2.4 %).
December 2025 saw a loss of 320,692 formal jobs—the steepest monthly decline since 2022—erasing 53.5 % of all jobs created up to November.

Historically, Mexico added > 600,000 formal jobs annually (2010‑2019), peaking at > 800,000 in several years. By contrast, 2025’s performance is markedly weaker and heavily dependent on platform‑worker formalization.

Inflation: Technical Easing, Everyday Pressure

2025 headline inflation: 3.69 % (lowest since 2020), keeping the CPI within Banco de México’s 3 % ± 1 pp target for six consecutive months.
Non‑core inflation: 1.61 % (down from 5.95 % in 2024).
Core inflation: 4.33 %, with food & beverages up 5.22 %, services 4.35 %, other goods 3.51 %.

While the technical figures look favorable, the weighting methodology may understate the burden on typical households, who spend a larger share on food, transport, and services—categories that remain costly.

A Land Survey shows:

Indicator	Share
Experienced a “January squeeze”	60 %
Cited inflation as primary stressor	24 %
Cited overspending + rising prices	19 %
Entered December already in debt	16 %

Nearly half (44 %) attribute the squeeze to personal responsibility, yet many also call for price controls on basics, stronger financial education, and better credit conditions.

Inflation Risks in 2026

Analysts anticipate upward pressure from:

Minimum‑wage increase: +13 %
Higher excise taxes (IEPS) on selected goods
Rising labor costs and new tariffs

Forecasts vary:

Source	2026 Inflation Forecast
Goldman Sachs	4.2 %
Banco Base	> 3.8 %
Fitch	3.8 % (year‑end)
Some estimates	≈ 5 % (first four months)

The minimum wage has risen double‑digit for eight consecutive years, delivering a cumulative real gain of 168 %. However, productivity has not kept pace, creating price pressures—especially in services—and fostering informality.

Economic Growth: An Insufficient Pace

Consensus forecast (Citi survey of 35 analysts): GDP + 1.3 % in 2026 (vs. 0.4 % in 2025).
Five institutions predict sub‑1 % growth; Scotiabank sees 0.6 %.

Even the optimistic outlook remains well below the government’s targets and is unlikely to close employment deficits, absorb demographic pressures, or relieve household financial strain.

Conclusions

Employment – The 2025 increase is largely a statistical artifact of platform‑worker formalization. Without it, the labor market would have posted its weakest performance in over two decades.
Inflation – Headline declines mask persistent core pressures that continue to bite households.
Growth – Projected 1.3 % expansion is insufficient to sustain wage gains, reduce informality, or offset rising living costs.

The economy is increasingly reliant on extraordinary factors (platform formalization, temporary commodity price dips) to avoid deeper deterioration. As 2026 progresses, minimum‑wage hikes, higher taxes, rising labor costs, and tariff adjustments will sustain inflationary pressure, while weak growth limits the ability to absorb these shocks.

Staying informed about these dynamics is essential for policymakers, businesses, and citizens alike.

Alejandro Gómez Tamez
Director General, GAEAP
alejandro@gaeap.com

Follow on X: https://x.com/alejandrogomezt