Search the archive

APPLE REPORTEDLY CUT A DEAL TO GET CLEANER AMAZON PAGES

Apple’s has made a deal with Amazon to remove competitors’ ads off pages for its products.

WRITING CODE FOR BOTH COMPUTERS AND HUMANS

Expert-level programmers write code that leads readers through specific thought processes.

AI TIMELINES

This article looks at predictions by experts on how many years it will be before transformative AI is built - the estimates vary between 4 to 40 years.

STOP DEPLOYING WEB APPLICATION FIREWALLS

Web Application Firewalls may seem like a good idea at first, but they have horrible performance, are easily bypassed, and have a high false positive rate - this article presents some alternatives.

ASK HN: IS ANYONE ELSE BEARISH ON OPENAI? (HACKER NEWS THREAD)

This Hacker News thread discusses the bear case against OpenAI, comparing the excitement around AI tech to how people jumped on the crypto bandwagon years ago.

THERE'S A MODEL FOR DEMOCRATIZING AI

The conversation around democracy and AI is incomplete and has a very limited understanding of what democracy is for, how it works, and what kinds of decisions it should make.

GOOGLE IN TALKS TO INVEST HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS INTO CHARACTER.AI

Google is in talks to deepen its relationships with Character.AI by investing hundreds of millions of dollars.

ZAPIER AI ACTIONS

Zapier introduced AI Actions, a tool for developers to let any AI platform run Zapier's 20,000+ automation actions. AI Actions works by letting users send natural language commands to the AI platform, which then performs the desired action. The service supports several AI platforms, with simple setup and inherent API integrations.

INTRODUCING AI TO FIGJAM

Figma has incorporated AI assistance into FigJam, its digital whiteboard tool, to simplify and enhance design collaborations. Utility-oriented enhancements, like those derived from the AI-powered project Jambot, help users collaborate more effectively on a virtual canvas. Figma’s goal is to broaden the applicability across various user requirements by tapping machine learning capabilities for visual design.

DEEP DIVE: ADVERSARIAL ATTACKS ON LANGUAGE MODELS

This blog post is about different attacks that are emerging against language model systems. It contains excellent information about different types of attacks and some mitigations that teams have found to be effective.

STYLIZATION OF 3D MESHES USING 2D DIFFUSION MODELS

This research presents the 3DStyle-Diffusion model, a novel approach for detailed stylization of 3D meshes, integrating 2D Diffusion models for added control over appearance and geometry. It works by first parameterizing a 3D mesh's texture into reflectance and lighting, using implicit MLP networks, and then using a pre-trained 2D Diffusion model to align the rendered images with the text prompt and ensure geometric consistency.

ENHANCING AUDIO-VISUAL MODELS WITH A NEW ATTENTION

biases. RSVP to watch live or get the recording after the session

HUGGINGFACE ALIGNMENT HANDBOOK

With the recent release of the excellent Zephyr language model, the HuggingFace team showcases how you can train personalized models built on top of the few powerful pre-trained open source models available.

AUDIO SUPER RESOLUTION

Audio super-resolution is the process of increasing the quality and fidelity of any audio, real or synthetic. Most super-resolution systems are task-specific, with single models trained for single audio data types (e.g., speech vs music). This new work is an amazing step forward where a single model can serve to increase the quality of audio across tasks.

TOOLKIT FOR WEB AGENTS

With the advent of powerful new vision models, many groups are attempting to build agents that use vision to interact with web elements. Tarsier toolkit introduces a standard set of tools (e.g., element tagging). You can use any vision system to understand the web page and take action. It also includes utilities for non-vision language models to browse.

EXTRA FAST TEXT-TO-SPEECH GENERATION (JUPYTER NOTEBOOK)

An example of using Bark text-to-speech system to generate coherent, fast, and extra-long audio output.

LLAVA PLUS MODEL FOR LANGUAGE-VISION SKILL ACQUISITION

The LLaVa model is an open-source model that combines both language and vision. This new version allows the instruction-tuned model to use tools for image editing, generation, and more.

RUN LOCAL AI TOWN WITH RWKV

AI town is an amazing experiment where hundreds of agents live out their daily lives as a prompt state in a language model. The RWKV model is a linear language model that requires fewer resources than standard Transformers. This repo uses this cheaper model to run AI town on your local machine.

OHMYSYNT (PRODUCT)

Personalized AI content for brands.

INTRODUCING CREATOR MONETIZATION FOR POE

Poe has updated its AI platform to support creator monetization through subscription revenue shares and per-message fees, aiming to empower bot developers and small AI companies. Monetization is live in the US, with global expansion on the horizon.

Start building with Stablecoin Studio

ARK INVEST, 21SHARES SLATED TO INTRO CRYPTO ETF SUITE NEXT WEEK

Ark Invest and 21Shares are planning to roll out five funds that incorporate either bitcoin futures contracts, ether futures, or both sometime this week. These include an ETF that leverages both BTC and ETH futures, an Active On-Chain Bitcoin Strategy ETF, and an ETF featuring BTC futures paired with a portfolio of crypto-related equities. While it’s uncertain what kind of demand there would be for these specific products, this could be yet another option for retail and institutional investors to get exposure to the crypto space.

JPMORGAN ADDS PROGRAMMABLE PAYMENTS TO JPM COIN

JPMorgan's blockchain-based settlement token, JPM Coin, now allows users to automate payments according to preset conditions. The new feature enables funds to be transferred automatically to cover overdue payments or margin calls, making it unnecessary to set up standing orders. This capability is beneficial in a 24/7 payments infrastructure and in times when the market is especially volatile.

GEARBOX V3 WANTS TO BE THE NEXT GO-TO ON-CHAIN CREDIT LAYER

DeFi platform Gearbox Protocol is launching its v3 upgrade, which includes an Onchain Credit Layer, enabling the creation of individual credit accounts controlled by users. The system operates like an in-store credit card, providing increased capital access across various DeFi protocols. The upgrade comes with extra features like adjustable collateral limits for new and large assets and a governance and rate markets system.

SIGNATURE MERGING FOR LARGE-SCALE CONSENSUS

Proof of Stake systems require optimization of the way cryptographic signatures, used as ballots, get collected. In large P2P systems with potentially millions of validators, aggregating bitfields is essential for system optimization. This proposal lays out potential solutions to the bitfield aggregation problem and three possible instantiations using SNARKs (zk-SNARKs or 'Zero-Knowledge Succinct Non-interactive Argument of Knowledge'), including Recursive Stark, Recursive Halo2, and Folding. Though they are preliminary, all have advantages and downsides in terms of merge cost, verification, and communication overhead.

and you're in luck — you can still invest at only $1.25/share

before their name becomes known nationwide.

Learn more (limited time offer)

YOUR COMPLETE GUIDE TO TRADING SOLANA TOKENS

This thread provides a comprehensive guide on getting started with on-chain trading in the Solana ecosystem. It's divided into three sections: discovery, research, and trading. The discovery phase involves using analytical tools to find top-performing tokens and trends. The research phase includes examining the project's primary resources and data points to evaluate potential purchases. Lastly, the trading phase discusses the use of wallets and platforms like Phantom, Jupiter, and Fluxbot for transactions and optimal execution.

DISCOVERING THE UNTAPPED POTENTIAL OF ARBITRUM’S STYLUS

Stylus' latest upgrade has expanded its capacity to accommodate not just the EVM, but also WASM. This opens the platform up to developers who want to use Rust, C, and C++, enhancing Stylus' scalability and drastically reducing computation costs. The system retains its compatibility with EVM contracts while offering improved safety features, including additional protection against reentrancy attacks.

THE MIDDLEWARE THESIS

This article suggests that the main issue with crypto adoption isn't scalability, but the complexity and limitations associated with interacting with base protocol layers. Modular architecture, which allows builders to innovate and customize on top of the base layer, is presented as a solution. The author also emphasizes the importance of vertically integrated middleware, offering use-case-specific protocols and networks that could scale to millions of users.

ETHEREUM’S FUTURE STAKING MARKET

The possibility of Ether ETFs following a Bitcoin ETF approval will likely pose new challenges to Ethereum's decentralization. As interest in spot ETH ETFs rises, issuers may partner with third-party centralized staking providers for staking rewards. This could potentially increase market control by centralized entities, further centralizing Ether staking. Decentralized protocols like Lido could act as an effective counterbalance, successfully attracting new Ether investors and limiting the growth of individual node operators.

FTX FILES BILLION-DOLLAR LAWSUIT AGAINST BYBIT OVER ASSET WITHDRAWALS

FTX's bankruptcy estate is suing ByBit and Mirana, seeking nearly $1 billion for assets withdrawn just before FTX's collapse, alleging ByBit exploited VIP access for these withdrawals.

UBS GROUP’S WEALTHY CLIENTS CAN NOW TRADE SOME CRYPTO ETFS IN HONG KONG

UBS is offering three crypto ETFs on its Hong Kong platform, following HSBC's announcement to start a digital assets custody service for institutional clients.

JUSTIN SUN-OWNED EXCHANGE POLONIEX HACKED FOR AT LEAST $126 MILLION

Justin Sun's Poloniex exchange lost over $126 million in a hack and is now working with other exchanges in an attempt to recover the stolen funds.

CRYPTO WALLET LOSES $27 MILLION IN STABLECOINS IN APPARENT HACK

A wallet linked to Binance lost $27 million in Tether stablecoins in a hack, with funds laundered and converted to Bitcoin via THORChain.

ARE DESIGNERS HAPPY? OUR NEW “STATE OF THE DESIGNER” REPORT AIMS TO FIND OUT

The "State of the Designer" report by Figma explores the impact of changing work styles on designers' job satisfaction, productivity, and relationships. Despite the challenges of the past three years, including a shift to remote work, 69% of designers report greater job satisfaction, with individual contributors feeling the most positive.

GOOGLE CHROME MATERIAL YOU REDESIGN WIDELY ROLLING OUT

Google Chrome's 2023 redesign for its 15th birthday introduces the Material You design language with rounded corners and taller elements like the tab strip and address bar. Significant changes include the removal of the lock icon from the Omnibox, replaced by a site control icon, and a focus on legibility with outline-style icons and reorganized menu items.

INTERVIEW WITH HUMANE COFOUNDER

Imran Chaudhri, cofounder of Humane, speaks about AI Pin, an AI-powered game-changing device announced last week. The former Apple designer discusses everything from privacy and partnerships with "frenemies" to the end of the App Store.

10 DARK PATTERNS IN UX DESIGN AND HOW TO AVOID THEM

Common dark patterns include confirm shaming, fake urgency, bait and switch, privacy suckering, nagging, sneaking, disguised ads, intentional misdirection, the roach motel pattern, preselection, price comparison prevention, trick questions, sneaking into the basket, friend spam, and forced continuity. To avoid dark patterns, designers should prioritize transparency, user control, and ethical design practices, fostering positive user experiences and long-term customer loyalty.

BUSINESSES DON’T HIRE DESIGNERS FOR THEIR GOOD WORK

As a designer, it is your job to contribute to the business's success. However, you should sometimes ask yourself if you want the business to grow and who is profiting from it.

Don’t miss your chance to invest at $1.25/share.

UNDERSTANDING ACCESSIBILITY

A collection of accessibility guidance that helps designers use colors, typefaces, media, and layout in a way to create accessible experiences.

MONASPACE

A superfamily of five fonts for coding with three variable axes: Neon a neo-grotesuqe sans, Argon a humanist sans, Xenon a slab serif, Radon a handwriting font, and Krypton a mechanical sans. All of them use "texture healing", a feature that improves the spacing between letters to make reading an easier and more pleasurable experience.