The Daily Index — Tuesday, February 13, 2024 · TLDR Index

Across today’s newsletters

Today’s Index

TLDR

MICROSOFT PREPARES TO TAKE XBOX EVERYWHERE

A number of Xbox exclusives are coming to the PS5 and Nintendo Switch. The first two games set to appear on rival consoles are Hi-Fi Rush and Pentiment, with Sea of Thieves set to launch later this year. The move is a seismic shift in strategy - while it will give Microsoft more reach, it comes with plenty of risks. Microsoft plans to continue its Xbox hardware efforts, but its vision for the platform is unclear.

theverge.com · 7 min

TLDR AI

REKA HAS A NEW POWERFUL MULTI-MODAL MODEL

AI startup Reka has announced a 21B parameter model that was trained completely from scratch. It is natively multimodal and surpasses Llama 70B and Mixtral on a number of key benchmarks. Importantly, given where the founders of the company used to work, it also matches Gemini Pro. The model is available for use in Reka's playground.

reka.ai · 5 min

TLDR Web Dev

A CRASH COURSE ON DATABASE QUERY OPTIMIZATION BASICS

As databases grow, query optimization becomes more important to combat slow data retrieval and loading times. There are various strategies to optimize queries, including index creation, analyzing query execution plans, and understanding specific database engine optimization techniques. This article uses a real-world example to show how to optimize a query from start to finish.

swequiz.com · 5 min

TLDR Crypto

FRANKLIN TEMPLETON JOINS ETHEREUM ETF RACE

Franklin Templeton has thrown its hat into the ring with an application to the SEC for an Ethereum ETF. It is entering the race alongside major competitors like BlackRock and Fidelity. This follows the firm's launch of a bitcoin ETF, which has seen less demand than its rivals so far. The SEC has continued to delay decisions on Ethereum ETFs, fueling speculation about what this could mean for Ethereum. Most people expect a final decision on the applications by May.

coindesk.com · 2 min

TLDR Product

THE FUTURE OF EDUCATION AND AI: BEYOND TRADITIONAL DEGREES WITH MARC ANDREESSEN & BEN HOROWITZ

This is a summary of a podcast featuring Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz that discusses the evolving landscape of education, emerging alternatives to traditional educational models, and the influence of AI on the educational sector.

hackernoon.com · 12 min

TLDR

HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE DOWNLOADING APPLE VISION PRO APPS?

More than 600 apps made for the Apple Vision Pro were available when the device launched on February 2. Developers are complaining that weak discovery and search functionalities in the App Store are dampening the potential success of their apps. The top paid news app receives over 300 installs a day, which is great for a headset that just launched. Promoting apps on social media appears to give transient success, but this might not be enough for consistent gains over the long run.

immersivewire.com · 11 min

TLDR

THE VR RACE IS BACK ON

The VR market size is growing fast but still relatively small. Retention is just OK - the technology is stickiest for use cases that most people might not understand. There is real money to be made in the space. One effective strategy seems to be using VR to create an experience that creates a lot of buzz and then add cross-platform capabilities, allowing apps to reach a much larger audience. The competition between the Apple Vision Pro and Meta Quest platforms will benefit developers and create more experimentation within the ecosystem.

twitter.com · 7 min

TLDR

THE TOP OF THE DNS HIERARCHY

Not all distributed systems are decentralized - many are not. One of the easiest and most practical ways to organize a distributed system is according to a hierarchy. The most prominent example of this is one of the drivetrain mechanics of the internet: DNS. This article looks at how DNS works. It covers how domains work, root servers, anycast, attacks, and more. While DNS may seem simple, it relies on a great deal of complexity within other parts of the system.

computer.rip · 22 min

TLDR

“ACCELERATIONISM” IS AN OVERDUE CORRECTIVE TO YEARS OF DOOM AND GLOOM IN SILICON VALLEY

E/acc, or effective accelerationism, is a movement that is growing within the tech hivemind. Its founders believe that the tech world has become captive to a monoculture that is preventing it from producing meaningful benefits. E/acc encourages more ideas, growth, competition, and action. It is acting like a counterbalancing force to widespread public concerns about the risks posed by the tech industry at large. This article looks into the origins of e/acc and its impact on the tech industry.

thenewatlantis.com · 30 min