May 2025 - Artificial Intelligence

Tap on any hint box to view it.

Location - Fatal Error

  1. Each line is a single word or abbreviation with its letters filling only the white spaces.
  2. All answers (excluding the final answer) are in alphabetical order.
  3. Do you notice anything about answers with a column in common?
  4. Excluding the final row, the words are: ACE, ANT, BLUR, BOT, EAST, ESC, GB (gigabyte), GLARE, GREEN, LEO, LOSE, SENT, URN
  5. If you write in the letters of the columns shared with other words, the solution is revealed: BLUE SCREEN.

Square Eyes

  1. This "Kakurasu" puzzle is solvable with logic alone. Since each number 1-5 can only be used once in a row or column to make a given sum the number of possible combinations are reduced. For example, you can't get 4 by adding 2 twos, only with 1+3 or a single 4.
  2. It's best to start with the very high and very low numbers which can help you rule out which 4s and 5s are filled in. Remember that with all numbers 1-5, the highest possible sum is 15.
  3. The grids when correctly solved looks like this:
    ❌❌⬛⬛❌ ❌⬛⬛⬛⬛
    ❌❌⬛❌⬛ ❌❌⬛⬛⬛
    ❌❌❌❌⬛ ❌❌⬛⬛⬛
    ⬛❌❌⬛❌ ❌⬛⬛❌❌
    ❌❌⬛⬛⬛ ❌❌⬛❌⬛
  4. Re-read the text to find out how to extract the solution. If you need a hint or just confirmation, keep in mind the BELOW example.
  5. After solving the grids, each row can be converted to binary with filled in squares representing 1's and squares with Xs representing 0's.
  6. The resulting letters from the binary code spell the answer: FEAR GOGGLE.

The Revolution

  1. Consider the narrative at play. The usernames represent the original "persona", and the posts show what happens when those personas have been changed with the insertion of an AD.
  2. On a more literal note, each username and post clue to a pair of words: the username's word plus the letters "AD" give the post's word. The length of the username's word has been indicated in the blue burst.
  3. Let's consider our first post. @__,Myself,&I is a clue for ME; Bee-utiful booze is a clue for MEAD which is "ME" with "AD" at the end. Keep in mind that the "AD" may be added before, after, or somewhere in the middle of the persona.
  4. The 18 personas and what was being sold are as follows:
    ME(AD), (AD)DRESS, ME(AD)OW
    R(AD)IO, RE(AD), (AD)OPTION
    MARIN(AD)E, LE(AD)ER, (AD)MISSION
    (AD)MINISTER, TIR(AD)E, DEC(AD)ENT
    C(AD)AVER, BALL(AD), (AD)VICE
    BE(AD), BRAV(AD)O, (AD)DICTION
    BRO(AD), (AD)HERE, HE(AD)
  5. Each post is given a number 0-1-2 for before-middle-after locations of the "AD"s. Reading across each row, these numbers can be used for ternary code.
  6. The answer is extracted with one letter represented per row: SOLD OUT.

Interference

  1. Can you identify the numbers 1-5 in the different sections of the grid? What could the configurations in the other sections mean?
  2. Each of the 25 sections in the grid is formed either by a single number 1-5 or an interference of two numbers 1-5.
  3. In a 5x5 section with "interference", each cell is either black or white depending on the respective cells of the two numbers that form it. If the corresponding cells from the two number representations are white, the interference will be white. If one is black and one is white, the interference will be black. If both are black, the interference will be white.
  4. Here's an example of the interference pattern for 1 & 2:
    ⬜⬜⬜⬛⬛ + ⬜⬛⬛⬛⬜ = ⬜⬛⬛⬜⬛
    ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬛ + ⬛⬜⬜⬜⬛ = ⬛⬜⬜⬜⬜
    ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬛ + ⬜⬜⬛⬛⬜ = ⬜⬜⬛⬛⬛
    ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬛ + ⬜⬛⬜⬜⬜ = ⬜⬛⬜⬜⬛
    ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬛ + ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ = ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬜
  5. The grid labeled with all represented numbers is:
    04 04 13 01 03
    24 01 34 03 03
    24 14 05 13 15
    24 01 05 35 15
    02 02 15 01 05
    (The zeros have no significance)
  6. The flavor text mentions "five numerical layers". Look at each layer (the sections in the grid that all correspond to the same number) one at a time by "zooming out".
  7. Identifying all number locations, each layer (represented by the numbers 1-5) spells out an individual letter in the final answer: GLYPH.

Word Processor

  1. Be sure to re-read the steps carefully and consider into what order they may need to be sorted.
  2. The start of each step refers to one of the commands in the list; use this to re-order the steps before running through them.
  3. The commands are ordered alphabetically by the letter key associated with the first word in the command:
    1. A - All: Add hidden word between words
    2. F - Find: Find hidden animal
    3. G - Go to: Shift characters +12
    4. H - Replace: NATO term -2
    5. O - Open: Previous in another chronological series
    6. P - Print: Replace 4 characters with "RD"
    7. V - Paste: Add "NEW" to start
    8. Y - Redo: Redo Step 1 (i.e. add hidden word)
  4. Executing these commands in this order will yield the following strings:
    Input: RUN DOMAIN
    Ctrl+A: RUN UNDO DOMAIN
    Ctrl+F: DODO
    Ctrl+G: PAPA
    Ctrl+H: NOVEMBER
    Ctrl+O: OCTOBER
    Ctrl+P: ORDER
    Ctrl+V: NEW ORDER
    Ctrl+Y: NEW WORD ORDER
  5. Once all 8 commands are executed, the output is the answer: NEW WORD ORDER.

Meta - Goodbye World

  1. Each of the words has been encrypted, and the words have been rearranged. Try using the number of letters in each word and any repeating letters across words to start decrypting.
  2. A good starting point is with the 6-letter words. SCREEN has two repeated letters in the fourth and fifth position, whereas GOGGLE has 3 repeated letters in the first, third, and fourth positions.
  3. Shade any decrypted symbols for specific letters into the decryption grid at the bottom.
  4. Listed in the order they appear in the puzzle, the words are:
    NEW / OUT / BLUE
    FEAR / SOLD / WORD
    GLYPH / ORDER
    GOGGLE / SCREEN
  5. Shading the proper symbols below their corresponding letters reveals the message “Find Morse & Take 5th Ltrs”
  6. There are messages hidden in morse code on the 4 main puzzles.
  7. The four morse code messages say I AM APPARENT, I AM COMPELLING, I AM UNLEASHED, and I AM VIRAL. Taking the fifth letter of each word after "I AM" gives the answer R-E-A-L.

Bonus - Forgot Password?

  1. This is a dropquote puzzle. All the letters are in the right columns; you just need to put them in place. To start, it helps to look at shorter words and uncommon letters.
  2. Start with the short words: the single letter word could only be an "A" or an "I", and the 2 three-letter words with an apostrophe must be "IT'S".
  3. Continue using process of elimination to solve the rest of the puzzle. For instance, the Q in the first column can only possibly fit in the first row based on the letter placement. This means the next cell will be "U".
  4. The full message reads: "QUITE A BAD PASSWORD! IT'S JUST THREE WORDS AND SEVEN LETTERS. ALSO, IT'S RATHER COMMON. IF YOU STILL NEED HELP, READ LEFTOVERS RIGHT TO LEFT."
  5. After filling in the quote drop, there are seven unused letters (leftovers) above the puzzle. Reading them right to left as instructed forms the common, three-word password: LET ME IN.