TLDR 2023-09-07

APPLE SPENDING “MILLIONS OF DOLLARS A DAY” ON DEVELOPING CONVERSATIONAL AI AS IT SEEKS TO MASSIVELY IMPROVE SIRI

Apple is reportedly spending millions of dollars a day on AI product research with the goal of creating a Siri that can automate tasks involving multiple steps. Most of the budget is dedicated to model training, which requires a lot of expensive hardware. The company has been working on large language models for four years, but it is unclear what it has achieved with its multi-year lead. Apple's internal chatbot apparently boasts greater capabilities than OpenAI's GPT-3.5 model, but is less intelligent than GPT-4.

SUCCESSION MESS

This article tells the inside story of the transition between CEOs for Disney over the last few years. Bob Iger announced that he would step down as Disney's CEO in February 2020, picking Bob Chapek as his successor. Iger's plan would have him stay at the company as an executive chairman for 22 months. Chapek was fired in November 2022 and Iger became CEO again, with an extended contract through to 2026. Chapek says that his tenure at Disney was 'three years of hell'.

THE ROOM-TEMPERATURE SUPERCONDUCTOR THAT WASN’T

LK-99 is a complicated chemical. While it isn't a room-temperature superconductor, it has many interesting properties. This article takes a look at some of these properties to explain why LK-99 behaves the way it does. The nature of LK-99 made it difficult for scientists to determine the source of its behaviors.

WEIGHT-LOSS DRUGS OZEMPIC AND WEGOVY ALSO PROTECT YOUR HEART

Semiglutide was originally developed to treat type 2 diabetes. It may also reduce heart failure and provide more general cardiovascular benefits. Weekly injections of the drug can reduce the risk of stroke and heart attack by 20%. While scientists don't entirely know how the drug works, studies show that it may have many other uses, such as in reducing alcohol consumption. The manufacturer that produces the drug plans to seek regulatory approval in the US and Europe for more uses.

COPILOT

This article discusses how to build and scale applications that use large language models. It took GitHub three years to develop GitHub Copilot from idea to production. The team used a three-stage plan for development: they identified an impactful problem space for their LLM application, created a smooth AI product experience, and then got the application ready and usable for general availability. Further resources on developing LLM applications are provided at the end of the article.

COMMIT MONO

Commit Mono is a neutral programming typeface designed to create a better reading experience. It is designed to be quietly useful without an eye-catching design or any confusing ligatures. Commit Mono is inspired by common fonts. It uses an innovative technique that creates better spacing positions while preserving monospacing to improve kerning, creating a superior reading experience compared to other monospaced fonts.

WHY TUNNELS COULD BUILD TOMORROW’S CITIES

This article looks at the evolution of the tunneling industry and current opportunities for disruption. Instead of complaining when stuck in LA traffic, Elon Musk thought downwards and wondered why the hundreds of meters of real estate underground were unused. A lot of infrastructure for public transport globally is already built underground. Building underground could help humans deal with weather issues and provide much-needed room for human population growth.

CORY DOCTOROW: INTEROPERABILITY CAN SAVE THE OPEN WEB

Cory Doctorow's latest book, The Internet Con: How to Seize the Means of Computation, presents a case for disrupting Big Tech, arguing that Big Tech's walled gardens are fenced in by legal structures, not feats of engineering. Forcing interoperability could break down these walls and make the Internet freer and more democratic. This article features an interview with Doctorow, where he discusses how interoperability could break up monopolies in Big Tech and beyond.

REVIEWED FOR PRIVACY

Modern cars, which are outfitted with all sorts of data collection devices, are terrible at privacy and security.

AN INTERNET OF PHP

This article looks at statistics, anecdotes, and other evidence to make the case that the internet runs on PHP.

INTEL'S OPEN SOURCE STRATEGY

A transcript of a podcast where Arun Gupta, Intel's general manager of Open Ecosystem Initiatives, talks about making software greener and safer.

HOW TO FIND TIME TO LEARN AFTER WORK

The trick is to refine some of the time spent doing other tasks into learning time - for example, listen to podcasts while commuting to work.

STARSHIP IS STACKED AND READY TO MAKE ITS SECOND LAUNCH ATTEMPT

SpaceX is still waiting for FAA license approval for the second test launch.

Google is under investigation for monopolistic practices, with accusers alleging the company gained dominance in the search engine market through business partnerships.