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SEPARATING CODE REASONING AND EDITING

Aider has been able to dramatically improve the performance of general-purpose code editing by using o1 as an architect and DeepSeek as the writer.

MILITARY LANGUAGE MODEL (HUGGING FACE HUB)

This model was trained on army handbooks and has integrated deep knowledge that is rare for fine-tuned models.

DEVELOPING A GO BOT EMBEDDING ICHIBAN PROLOG

Ichiban Prolog was embedded into Hellabot, a Go-based IRC bot, to avoid recompilation for new triggers. This integration allows for dynamic Prolog code execution, enabling users to modify bot logic on-the-fly. Future improvements could reduce interpreter setup impact and move more logic into Prolog.

ARCADE AI RAISES 17M TO TRANSFORM COMMERCE

Arcade AI, a generative product company that launched this week, has announced funding from notable investors as it pushes to build its “prompt to product” system, which allows for the creation of products that are immediately purchasable.

THEY STOLE MY VOICE WITH AI

Elecrow is suspected of using AI to clone a voice for promotional videos without consent.

AMAZON-BACKED ANTHROPIC IN TALKS TO RAISE MONEY AT $40B VALUATION

Anthropic, a generative AI startup backed by Amazon and other tech firms, is in talks to secure funding that could value the company at $40 billion.

BLACKROCK'S SPOT ETHEREUM ETF SURPASSES $1 BILLION IN VALUE FOR THE FIRST TIME

BlackRock's Ethereum ETF has garnered $1B in assets just two months post-launch, highlighting renewed investor interest in US-based spot ETH ETFs. This achievement comes after an uptick in weekly inflows across several Ethereum funds, illustrating a potential positive shift in market sentiment.

MANGO DAO AND MANGO MARKETS AGREE TO SETTLE SEC CHARGES INVOLVING UNREGISTERED SALE OF MNGO TOKENS

The Mango DAO has settled with the SEC after being charged with offering an unregistered security - the MNGO crypto asset. The DAO, Mango Labs, and the Blockworks Foundation will pay $700,000 in penalties and burn their MNGO tokens.

UNISWAP ON INTENTS BASED SYSTEMS

Uniswap Labs and Across Protocol have introduced ERC-7683, a proposed standard to address fragmentation in intents-based systems by creating a universal filler network. This standard aims to streamline cross-chain transactions, improve user experience, and reduce gas fees by allowing fillers to compete for executing orders more efficiently.

ROBINHOOD AND REVOLUT COULD ISSUE THEIR OWN STABLECOINS

Fintech companies Robinhood and Revolut are considering creating stablecoins. The market has proven to be incredibly lucrative, as demonstrated by Tether's $5 billion in profit for H1 2024.

BINANCE AND THE US APPROACH TO CRYPTO

Binance had a lot of issues around a lack of controls and illicit financial activities on its platform, but these problems plague any rapidly-going financial entity in a new industry. In fact, existing financial institutions, including Goldman Sachs, paid billions of dollars in the past few years for similar violations. Binance's CEO faced severe penalties while similar or worse violations by traditional banks have resulted in much smaller consequences, suggesting a bias in how the two systems are treated.

THE FAT APP THESIS

The Fat Protocol Thesis says that chains capture more value than apps built on them since apps have weak moats and drive network effects to the underlying chain. This idea has spurred L2s to raise at massive valuations, even though they don't have valuable apps. The new “Fat App Thesis” is that there's outsized value to crypto apps as they are at the end of the infrastructure boom and are beginning to have user moats. At the same time, chains have become interchangeable and the attention economy has been extended to web3 with a few major winners.

BASE MAINNET 09/21/24 INCIDENT POSTMORTEM

Last week, the Base L2 experienced a 17-minute block-building outage due to a misconfiguration in its newly implemented conductor sequencer cluster. This misconfiguration resulted in a failure of leadership transfer between sequencer instances. While the chain's integrity and user funds remained secure, the incident highlighted the need for improved configuration management processes and more robust failover mechanisms. Base has committed to fixing the issue and preventing similar problems from happening.

THE NEXT TEN YEARS OF SMART CONTRACT BLOCKCHAINS

ETHEREUM RECORDS HIGHEST WEEKLY TRANSACTION FEES SINCE JUNE 10, 2024

Ethereum's weekly transaction fees reached $45M, the highest since June 10, indicating stronger network activity and better price performance.

BINANCE FOUNDER ‘CZ' RELEASED FROM CUSTODY AFTER FOUR-MONTH SENTENCE

Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, the founder of Binance, was released from his four-month prison sentence on Friday.

FTX TO SET ASIDE UP TO $230 MILLION FOR SHAREHOLDERS, NOT CREDITORS, FROM GOV'T FORFEITURE PROCEEDS

FTX has agreed to set aside up to $230M from government forfeiture proceedings for certain shareholders, not creditors, a decision revealed unexpectedly after creditor voting closed.

TURKEY SHELVES ADDITIONAL PLANS TO TAX STOCKS AND CRYPTO: BLOOMBERG

Turkey has dropped plans to impose additional taxes on stock trading and crypto profits, with Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz stating that these measures are no longer on the government's agenda.

GOOGLE PHOTOS IS GETTING A REDESIGNED VIDEO EDITOR

A new update to Google's Photos app introduces AI-powered video editing tools for Android and iOS. Enhancements include a "Speed" tool, improved trimming, and rearranged controls for easier access. AI presets allow quick adjustments like lighting, slow-mo, and motion tracking, making video editing more efficient with a tap.

HERMAN MILLER'S NEW COLLECTION IS INSPIRED BY '80S ARCADE GAMES

Herman Miller and Faile Studio have collaborated on a collection inspired by '80s arcade games. The collection features 100 custom joystick sculptures, three exclusive prints, and 12 conceptual gaming chairs. Faile's prints and hand-carved joysticks will be available online starting October 1. The gaming chairs, influenced by arcade cabinets and skateboard decks, were on display in New York City from September 27-29.

GOOGLE REDESIGNS GEMINI HOMESCREEN TO BE EVEN SIMPLER ON ANDROID

The Gemini app has introduced a new minimalist redesign. The previously elongated text box and separate buttons for voice, camera, and upload options have now been condensed into a single line, emulating a chat-like experience. Tapping the text field now expands it with an animation, similar to the web UI. The overall design now features a simple, welcoming message and minimalistic elements akin to the Google Search homepage.

THE DON NORMAN PLAYBOOK

Emphasizing user empathy, simplicity, and functionality, Don Norman's Playbook offers vital lessons in human-centered design. Key insights include designing for users' needs, using affordances and signifiers, embracing iterative processes, solving real problems, and leveraging constraints. Norman advocates for AI as a human-centered tool to enhance, not replace, human abilities.

PRODUCT DESIGN HAPPENS OUTSIDE OF FIGMA

Mastering Figma doesn't equate to becoming a designer. Product design involves much more, including collaboration, strategy, and problem-solving. Shifting the focus from tools to understanding user needs, planning, and validating solutions creates value beyond aesthetics.

HOW TO MANAGE DANGEROUS ACTIONS IN USER INTERFACES

Dangerous actions in a user interface can involve serious consequences beyond deletion, such as accepting a loan. Modal dialogs help prevent accidental clicks by requiring immediate user action. For critical actions, use patterns like "Danger zone" and inline confirmation, which asks for a second click, to minimize risk. User behavior must be considered to avoid issues like accidental double-clicking.

PATTERN GLASS, NOISE, AND GLITCH EFFECTS

Easily create stunning displacement effects like reeded glass, noise, and glitch effects with real-time adjustments.

FUNBLOCKS AIFLOW

An AI-powered whiteboard for limitless brainstorming and mind mapping. Integrate GPT-4 and Claude, break down complex ideas, expand your thinking, and unlock your creative potential.

LOREM IPSUM

Generate "Lorem ipsum" to fill text layers or use the Unsplash archives to fill shapes with ideal images.

PATTERNS IN AI

Patterns play a significant role in AI and design. Humans instinctively recognize them. Essential resources such as The Shape of AI, Smarter Patterns Library, and Teardowns.ai delve into AI-driven UI patterns. Emphasizing critical thinking and ethics is crucial when designing AI interfaces.

CREATIVE GROWTH CELEBRATES 50 YEARS WITH BOLD NEW CAMPAIGN AND BRANDING

Celebrating its 50th anniversary, Creative Growth partnered with John McNeil Studio for a rebrand featuring a new logo, identity, and brand film. The campaign highlights the transformative power of art, advocating for inclusivity and accessibility while continuing to support and amplify the voices of artists with disabilities.

USING A PROTO-PERSONA FOR UX DESIGN

Proto-personas are assumption-based representations of users, unlike traditional user personas rooted in research. While less reliable, they provide a starting point for design decisions when research is limited. Proto-personas help prioritize assumptions, guide research, and enable faster progress, but they should be replaced with validated personas for critical projects.

DESIGNERS HAVE SCATHING OPINIONS ON THE NEW AEROMÉXICO LOGO

Aeroméxico's new logo has faced harsh criticism, with comparisons to characters like El Chavo del 8 and Birdman.

70% OF CREATORS SAY AI IS A THREAT TO THEIR CAREERS

While AI helps some creators reduce stress, others fear it threatens their jobs and content quality, adding to their anxiety.

3 ESSENTIAL DESIGN TRENDS, OCTOBER 2024

The three latest trends in design are typography-focused homepage design, the use of overlapping elements for visual interest, and ways to represent AI in design.

Download the free template →

HOW MUTINY BUILT A SCALED AND COST-EFFECTIVE ABX APPROACH

Mutiny, founded in 2018, has successfully transformed its approach to B2B marketing by evolving its ideal customer profile (ICP) and leveraging data-driven strategies to enhance outbound marketing efforts. By refining its target account list with firmographic, technographic, and intent signals, and integrating personalized outreach at scale, Mutiny increased the contribution of outbound efforts to 45% of its pipeline. This strategic shift has improved close rates and shortened sales cycles, highlighting the importance of continuously adapting ICP models to align with market changes and product evolution.

PIVOT POINTS

Understanding one's inherent traits and tendencies, or "pivot points," can be crucial in creating a fulfilling life and successful business strategy. These pivot points are neither inherently good nor bad but rather facts that can be leveraged or designed around to achieve success. By identifying and embracing these pivot points, individuals and companies can create strategies that play to their strengths and avoid their weaknesses, leading to greater efficiency, effectiveness, and overall satisfaction.

LOUDEST OR PROUDEST: BALANCING BIG PROMISES AND BIG PAYOFFS

To achieve success, it's essential to strike a balance between making big promises and delivering big payoffs. While big promises can be powerful and inspire people to believe in a vision, they must be followed by tangible results to maintain credibility and trust. The most successful entrepreneurs and business builders understand this delicate balance and consistently deliver on their promises, rewarding the faith people have placed in them and building a reputation for reliability and excellence.

RECAPITALIZATION: UNLOCKING GROWTH, LIQUIDITY, AND STRATEGIC EVOLUTION

Recapitalization is a strategic financial tool used by growing companies to restructure their capital and unlock new avenues for expansion. It involves adjusting a company's debt-to-equity ratio to enhance financial flexibility, drive growth, and provide liquidity to key stakeholders. By rebalancing ownership stakes and raising fresh capital, companies can fuel long-term growth, provide liquidity to early investors, and realign their financial structure to support future goals.

THE VC MEETING MAP: WHAT TO EXPECT AFTER A SUCCESSFUL FIRST PITCH

When pitching to VCs, entrepreneurs should understand that the goal of each meeting is to secure the next meeting, not to immediately close a deal. The VC fundraising process typically involves a series of meetings, including a pre-screen, a first "real" meeting, a second meeting, diligence meetings, and a partner meeting, each with its own objectives and expectations. By navigating this process effectively, entrepreneurs can build a relationship with a supportive VC partner and ultimately secure an investment that aligns with their vision for the company.

THE FUTURE OF SEO IS USER-GENERATED CONTENT

The landscape of SEO is evolving due to the rise of AI, which is affecting traditional content strategies by summarizing common information without crediting original sources. To adapt, companies should focus on creating authentic, user-generated content (UGC) that AI cannot replicate, as this approach not only enhances SEO but also fosters user engagement and loyalty. Successful examples from companies like Canva, Figma, and Notion demonstrate the potential of UGC to drive sustainable growth and stand out in search engine rankings.

SENSAY REPLICAS

Sensay.io empowers businesses and individuals by preserving knowledge and automating tasks through AI replicas.

TUSK

AI-created pull requests for your UI tickets.

PODSNAP.AI

Get an AI-generated summary in your inbox as soon as an episode goes live.

GOOD FOUNDERS WERE ALREADY IN FOUNDER MODE

If you are the founder of a company with less than 200 employees and the essay about the founder mode significantly changed your behavior, then you may not be a good founder - or you may have deviated from the right path. It may sound harsh, but most successful founders were already operating in founder mode. The essay simply articulated something that we all knew, even if we couldn't express it. If you needed an essay to prompt you to adopt founder mode, then founder mode probably isn't your default way of operating.

HOW PERPLEXITY'S GROWTH IS CHANGING SEARCH HABITS

Over the past six months, this author has transitioned from using Google Search to relying on Perplexity, an AI-powered search engine that provides concise answers with source citations. This shift was driven by Perplexity's ability to deliver accurate, real-time information in a user-friendly format, fostering trust and satisfaction. As Perplexity continues to grow, it aims to challenge traditional search engines like Google by focusing on user-centric features and exploring innovative advertising strategies.

SURVIVING THE TECH RESET: WHAT CAN GLOBAL VCS LEARN FROM EUROPE?

To navigate the challenges of a tightening market, VCs must focus on building resilient relationships with limited partners, demonstrating a clear value proposition, and adapting to setbacks. This includes leveraging the current market conditions to strengthen relationships, differentiating their strategies to align with long-term goals, and showcasing performance through consistent track records and strategic focus. By adopting these strategies, venture capitalists can better navigate the complexities of fundraising and position themselves for success in a rapidly evolving landscape.

HOW DO I SET THE REVENUE GOALS FOR NEXT YEAR?

An effective way to set revenue goals for the upcoming year is to create three plans with varying levels of confidence: C-90, C-60, and C-10.

MARK ZUCKERBERG: "SHIP THE APP"

Mark Zuckerberg emphasizes the urgency of launching a photos app quickly, highlighting the strategic importance of dominating the photo-sharing space to counter potential competition from Instagram and other platforms.

UNICORNS ARE NO LONGER EASY TO FIND

The number of companies reaching valuations over $1 billion has significantly decreased, returning to pre-boom levels after a record-breaking surge in 2021.