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BIOTECH'S LOST ARCHIVE

FDA submissions contain unparalleled details about the design of clinical trials, manufacturing processes, safety assessments, and reviewer correspondences, but this information is not publicly available. This article details a proposal for a legally grounded mechanism for democratizing FDA filings. Freeing FDA submissions from obscurity would level the playing field for small biotech firms, academic teams, and nonprofits and enable AI-driven regulatory intelligence tools that dramatically lower compliance costs and accelerate approval timelines. AI stands to revolutionize drug development, but only if it can be trained on high-quality unredacted datasets.

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EVERYTHING I KNOW ABOUT GOOD SYSTEM DESIGN

Good system design is about knowing how to use boring, well-tested components in the right place. Using exciting tools will usually end up in a mess. There are very few instances where you want to do the kind of system design that you could talk about at a conference. Boring system design is much more common.

BUILDING A WEB SEARCH ENGINE FROM SCRATCH IN TWO MONTHS WITH 3 BILLION NEURAL EMBEDDINGS

Search engines seem to be getting worse. Better quality results should rank higher than the prolific inorganic content and engagement bait everywhere today. Transformer-based text embedding models show amazing natural comprehension of language - this technology can be used to find great content, insights, and references. This article details a project where a developer tries to build a web search engine from scratch using neural embeddings. Embeddings appear far more powerful than traditional search.

35 THOUGHTS ABOUT AGI AND 1 ABOUT GPT-5

GPT-5's release felt uneventful. It is still not Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), and it still gets things wrong - the model is supposed to be able to decide for itself whether it needs to use its thinking mode for harder problems, but many reports show that it often gets this wrong. Large language models perform well with crystallized knowledge, which masks their shortcomings with fluid intelligence. AGI has the potential to change how we do everything very soon after it is achieved, but we still have to figure out how to get there.

CHINA'S VISION FOR A DRIVERLESS FUTURE IS MILES AHEAD OF EVERYONE ELSE'S

China's autonomous vehicle industry is nearing a tipping point. The country is already the world's largest auto market and a global leader in electric and autonomous vehicles. By 2030, a fifth of new cars sold in China will be fully driverless, and 70% will feature advanced assisted-driving technology. The country's push to build infrastructure gives it a significant advantage in deploying autonomous vehicles. Its AV market shows no sign of slowing - many regions will want to partner with China to upgrade their infrastructure.

PAYMENT PROCESSOR FUN 2025 -- MAKING YOUR OWN MSP

Merchant Service Providers (MSPs) are fintech companies that take payment info and submit it to Payment Card Networks like Visa and Mastercard.

TRAPS TO DEVELOPERS

This post lists common traps for developers across different languages, frameworks, operating systems, and concepts.

THE FUTURE OF LARGE FILES IN GIT IS GIT

GitHub could enable users to push files bigger than 100mb once Git's new large object promisors feature sees broad adoption.

CHATGPT'S NEW SUBSCRIPTION COSTS LESS THAN $5, BUT IT'S NOT FOR EVERYONE

ChatGPT Go, which is only available in certain regions, costs 399 Indian Rupees (around $4.55).

BEYOND BOOLEANS

The common logical operations we take for granted (Or, And, Not, etc) can be described as types containing values of other types and functions between them.

BIG TECH IS EATING ITSELF IN TALENT WAR

If the reverse acquihire trend continues, many of the people who would have been bold enough to join a risky startup will start giving more weight to other options.

🔗 Learn more at theguild.io

_The Guild is a fictional property of Activision. Trademark & Copyright 2025._

GPT-5′S ROLLOUT FELL FLAT FOR CONSUMERS, BUT THE AI MODEL IS GAINING WHERE IT MATTERS MOST

GPT-5's rollout wasn't about the consumer - it was OpenAI's effort to crack the enterprise market. Startups like Cursor, Vercel, and Factory have already made GPT-5 the default model in certain key products and tools due to its faster setup, better results on complex tasks, and lower price. OpenAI has built out an enterprise sales team with more than 500 people. Enterprise demand is rising sharply, especially for planning and multi-step reasoning tasks.

EVERY APPLE SECRET THAT LEAKED YESTERDAY

Apple accidentally included hardware identifiers in software code linking to numerous unannounced products in a major slip on Wednesday. The information provided concrete evidence that Apple is currently developing a new HomePod mini with an S-series processor, a new Apple TV with an A17 chip, the Apple Studio Display 2, a new iPad mini with an A19 Pro chip, a new low-cost iPad with an A18 chip, an Apple Vision Pro with an M5 chip, and a new Apple Watch chip. Apple is also currently developing a Ring-like security camera, an iPad-style smart home hub, and a tabletop robot companion with a movable display.

NASA HAS SPARKED A RACE TO DEVELOP THE DATA PIPELINE TO MARS

NASA's relay spacecraft are still healthy, but they were never meant to be permanent. The agency's Space Communications and Navigation program is looking for solutions to augment these aging assets. It aims to create an interoperable marketplace where NASA can be one of many customers instead of the owner-operator. The program has requested capability studies for a 'lunar trunkline' between the Moon and Earth and end-to-end Mars communications that move data from assets on the surface, through Mars orbit, and to operations centers on Earth.

AI DESIGNS ANTIBIOTICS FOR GONORRHOEA AND MRSA SUPERBUGS

A team at MIT has used generative AI to design antibiotics that could kill drug-resistant gonorrhea and MRSA. The leading designs were tested on bacteria in the lab and on infected mice. They still need to go through a process of refinement before human studies can begin. The work demonstrates a novel approach with enormous potential for identifying new antibiotics. While AI promises to dramatically improve drug discovery and development, safety and efficacy testing processes are still required.

Read the ThreatSpike case study.

BACK TO BEING FOSS, REDIS DELIVERS A NEW, FASTER VERSION

Redis 8.2 is now generally available - the previous FOSS release, version 7.2, will reach its scheduled end-of-life date at the end of February. It introduces over 14 new performance and efficiency improvements. Organizations still using Redis 7.2 will need to either move to Valkey or upgrade to a new major version of Redis. Redis 7.8 will endure until May 2027, but it isn't strictly FOSS.

5 USEFUL CSS FUNCTIONS USING THE NEW @FUNCTION RULE

CSS functions just landed in Chrome 139. The capability helps developers write more organized and dynamic CSS. CSS functions can run logic - they accept arguments and return new values. Using custom functions makes code much neater. This article looks at some real-world examples of where CSS functions can come in handy. While Chrome is currently the only browser to have shipped the feature, CSS functions has gone through the CSSWG draft process, so other browsers should be implementing it soon.

NEW TREND: EXTREME HOURS AT AI STARTUPS

Extreme working hours have long been rejected in the US because excessive hours tend to lead to burnout and other health issues in the long term. Despite that, more AI startups are increasing their hours, with some firms expecting staff to work more than 80 hours per week. These extreme hours are justified by a sprint to achieve Artificial General Intelligence in just a matter of months. These working hours will likely stay - the fear of missing out is very strong across the industry.

FACEBOOK IS DEAD; LONG LIVE META

The days when Meta's self-identification as a social network caused them to miss fundamental shifts in the Internet are over. Meta used to talk about connection, but it has now switched to talking about empowering the individual. Facebook has transformed from a platform that connects people into a diverse global provider of entertaining and informative content. Being a social network was ultimately unsustainable, and Meta is now stronger than ever.

$120K-$200K)

TLDR is hiring a Head of Talent Acquisition [14] to own our recruiting process from end to end.

Antigravity A1 redefines what's possible in the sky.

SPACEX SHOWS OFF NEW GRID FIN DESIGN FOR NEXT-GEN STARSHIP BOOSTER

SpaceX's new grid fin design, which reduces the number of fins from four to three while still maintaining control authority, is 50% larger and stronger than the previous iteration.

MOBILE GAMING COULD LOOK WAY BETTER THANKS TO ARM'S NEURAL SUPER SAMPLING

Arm's new Neural Super Sampling technology can upscale from 540p resolution to 1080p at just 4ms per frame.

CURSOR'S PROBLEM

If Cursor keeps subsidizing the heaviest usage, it can keep growing, but it cannot claim an unambiguous product-market fit.

THE U.S. IS DISCUSSING TAKING A STAKE IN INTEL

The Trump administration is seeking ways to increase American market share in semiconductor manufacturing.

WHAT'S THE STRONGEST AI MODEL YOU CAN TRAIN ON A LAPTOP IN FIVE MINUTES?

It's surprisingly easy to train a broadly-coherent storytelling model.

TBM 272: THREE PERSPECTIVES

It's important to recognize that your experience is just one of many.

APPLE PLOTS EXPANSION INTO AI ROBOTS, HOME SECURITY, AND SMART DISPLAYS

Apple is banking on an ambitious product road map to help get its AI effort on track. It is working on a slate of new devices, including robots, a lifelike version of Siri, a smart speaker with a display, and home-security cameras. The centerpiece of the company's AI strategy is a tabletop robot that serves as a virtual companion. Home security is also seen as another big opportunity.

AMAZON LAUNCHES SAME-DAY DELIVERY OF MEAT, EGGS, PRODUCE IN MORE THAN 1,000 CITIES

Amazon is rolling out same-day delivery of fresh foods to more than 1,000 cities and towns in the US. There are plans to reach at least 2,300 locations by the end of the year. The service is free for Prime members for orders over $25 in most cities, or $2.99 for orders under $25. Shoppers without a Prime membership pay $12.99 regardless of order size.

THIS GOOGLE SPIN-OFF WANTS TO BEAM 100GBPS INTERNET FROM THE OCEAN, MOUNTAINTOPS

Aalyria, a startup born from Alphabet's Loon internet balloon project, successfully beamed a 100Gbps internet connection across 40 miles by harnessing optical lasers. The link has been operational for several weeks. Aalyria's Tightbeam system can deliver high-speed internet connections from the air. It is engineered for resilience in dynamic weather conditions and has adaptive optics and tracking algorithms to minimize the impact of transient environmental changes to end users. Aalyria aims to deliver Tightbeam technology for land, sea, air, and even satellite communications.

WHY CHINA IS BECOMING THE WORLD'S FIRST ELECTROSTATE

China installed more solar power in April than Australia has in all of its history - and Australia is a global leader in the space. China is embracing renewable technologies across every aspect of its society at an astonishing rate. Its aim is to stop relying on imported fossil fuels and fix the pollution caused by them. By putting its economic might and willpower behind renewable technologies, China is accelerating the end of the fossil fuel era and bringing about the age of the electrostate.

PYX

pyx is an optimized backend for uv that makes uv even faster, more secure, and hardware-aware. It can be used to host private packages or as a frontend to public sources like PyPI. pyx solves many of the problems in uv that can't be solved with a client alone, but could be solved with a server. It is not yet generally available, but the development team is currently looking for more early users.

SSHRC

sshrc works just like ssh, but it also sources the ~/.sshrc on your local computer after logging in remotely. It can be used to set environment variables, define functions, and run post-login commands. sshrc can be very useful for developers who share servers with multiple users and can't edit the server's ~/.bashrc without affecting them, or if they have several servers that they don't want to configure independently.

I'M WORRIED IT MIGHT GET REALLY BAD

There are indicators that the US, and perhaps the rest of the world, may experience a spontaneous recession type of thing in the next few months or years. Really talented people are losing their jobs, business leaders are explicitly saying they're looking to replace human workers with AI, most workers aren't putting much effort in, and the effects of tariffs haven't even fully hit yet. There are many things happening right now, or that could happen soon, that could combine to create a narrative of panic in a population that's just barely holding on.

HUAWEI AI CHIP-POWERED DEEPSEEK R2 TIPPED TO LAUNCH THIS MONTH

DeepSeek R2 is expected to go official later this month. It is expected to be an advanced Mixture-of-Experts model. The model will be powered by the Huawei Ascend AI chip at launch. Analysts expect the pricing of DeepSeek R2 to be significantly lower than that of OpenAI's GPT-5, indicating it may subvert the pricing model of existing AI services.

$120K-$200K)

TLDR is hiring a Head of Talent Acquisition [16] to own our recruiting process from end to end.

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SNOOPING ON SLOW BUILDS (USING SYSCALLS)

What The Fork is a cross-platform tool that helps speed up builds by uncovering build-specific problems.

TESLA EYES NEW YORK CITY FOR ROBOTAXIS WITH TEST-DRIVER JOB POSTING

Tesla is hiring data collectors to drive vehicles around New York City.

TODAY WAS MY LAST DAY AT XAI, THE COMPANY THAT I HELPED START WITH ELON MUSK IN 2023

Igor Babuschkin has left xAI to launch Babuschkin Ventures, which will support AI safety research and back startups in AI and agentic systems.

GIT-WHO

git-who is a command-line tool that reveals who is responsible for entire components or subsystems in a code base - it's like git blame but for file trees rather than individual files.