The Daily Index — Wednesday, March 13, 2024 · TLDR Index

Across today’s newsletters

Today’s Index

TLDR

TIKTOK PREPARES TO CHALLENGE INSTAGRAM WITH 'TIKTOK PHOTOS'

The latest TikTok app APK contains strings that mention a standalone app called TikTok Photos. TikTok appears to be considering offering a more dedicated photo experience that will allow users to sync their existing photo posts from the main TikTok app. There is no official launch date and TikTok has not confirmed the existence of the app. A leaked icon for the app is available in the article.

androidauthority.com · 2 min

TLDR AI

PHYSICAL INTELLIGENCE IS BUILDING A BRAIN FOR ROBOTS

Physical Intelligence (Pi) has emerged from stealth with $70 million in seed funding. The company, founded by a team of renowned robotics and AI experts, aims to develop foundation models and learning algorithms that can power a wide range of robots and physically-actuated devices.

maginative.com · 3 min

TLDR Web Dev

THE DAY SOFT DELETES CAUSED CHAOS

Soft deletes in databases, while seemingly convenient, can lead to unfortunate consequences due to their hidden complexity and potential for data integrity issues. This author recounts a severe incident where a change in soft delete handling during a migration resulted in allowing the selling of the same seat an unlimited number of times for a popular concert. It’s worth considering using history/audit tables for preserving deleted data instead of soft deletes in production systems.

blog.bemi.io · 4 min

TLDR InfoSec

ROKU HACKERS BREACH 15,000 ACCOUNTS AND ARE SELLING THEM ONLINE

Roku has disclosed a breach in which hackers accessed 15,363 customer accounts and associated credit card data through credential-stuffing attacks. The hackers changed some account logins, enabling unauthorized streaming subscription purchases. Accounts are being sold online.

theverge.com · 2 min

TLDR Crypto

COINBASE SHARES DIP AFTER-HOURS AS EXCHANGE PLANS $1B CONVERTIBLE NOTES OFFER

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase intends to raise $1 billion through a private offering of senior convertible notes with repayment due by April 2030. This initiative aims to secure funds for clearing off existing debts due in 2026, 2028, and 2031 and for corporate purposes. The notes will be offered to eligible institutional investors and can be converted into cash, Coinbase shares, or a combination thereof.

cointelegraph.com · 2 min

TLDR

APPLE TO ALLOW IOS APP DOWNLOADS DIRECT FROM WEBSITES IN THE EU

Apple's new iOS web distribution feature is a new way to distribute iOS apps in EU markets without the need for a separate app store. App developers considering the option will need to adhere to Apple's strict rules. It will allow apps to be installed from website domains registered with App Store Connect. Apple appears to be limiting the option to large developers with a good standing around for at least two years.

theverge.com · 4 min

TLDR

STRATOLAUNCH LAUNCHES 1ST ROCKET-POWERED FLIGHT OF HYPERSONIC PROTOTYPE FROM WORLD'S LARGEST AIRPLANE

Stratolaunch successfully launched its first rocket-powered prototype vehicle from a carrier plane on March 9. The dart-shaped Talon-A1 is an advanced air-launched vehicle designed to launch from a huge dual-fuselage carrier plane and travel at hypersonic speeds. Stratolaunch is now ramping up its plans to manufacture a fully reusable version of the vehicle. Pictures of the Talon-A1 test vehicle taken during its powered flight test are available in the article.

space.com · 4 min

TLDR

THE U.S. NOW HAS A DRUG FOR SEVERE FROSTBITE. HOW DOES IT WORK?

Iloprost, a drug that can prevent the need to amputate frozen fingers and toes due to frostbite, has been approved as a treatment for frostbite by the FDA. The drug has already been used to treat frostbite for years in a number of European countries and elsewhere in the world. It works as a vasodilator, widening blood vessels and improving blood flow. Iloprost prevents blood clotting and is also used to treat blood pressure-related illnesses.

sciencenews.org · 7 min

TLDR

BUILDING META’S GENAI INFRASTRUCTURE

This article shares details on two versions of Meta's 24,576-GPU data center scale cluster. These clusters support the company's current and next-generation AI models as well as AI research and development across GenAI and other areas. Meta's long-term vision is to build artificial general intelligence that is open and built responsibly to be widely available so that everyone can benefit from it. Its infrastructure is designed to power this ambition.

engineering.fb.com · 11 min