Google faces mounting evidence of its search monopoly. A federal judge recently ruled – for the second time in a year – that Google illegally maintains a monopoly in ad tech. Google's response?
The United States set out to win a trade war with China. It failed. Years of tariffs, tech restrictions, and tough rhetoric have backfired, leaving America in a weaker position while China charges ahead with innovation and global influence.
Good Morning from San Francisco, Meta just kicked Apple's AI tools to the curb. All of them. 🥾 No
Good Morning from San Francisco,
AI now rules developer desks, but trust? Not so much. Wired's survey reveals coders treating AI like that sketchy new colleague who's brilliant but might steal your lunch. 🤨
Enter LinkedIn billionaire Reid Hoffman, rolling his eyes at AI skeptics. His message? Master AI or join the dinosaurs. He even let ChatGPT co-write his book - though he probably won't split the royalties. 💸
While developers see AI as their caffeinated intern, Hoffman warns: By 2028, being AI-illiterate could be as career-killing as showing up to work in your pajamas. ⏰
Stay curious,
Marcus Schuler
Software engineers have a love-hate relationship with AI. A new Wired survey reveals the messy reality of how coders actually use artificial intelligence in their daily work.
The magazine blasted out questions to developers across the industry. Their responses paint a picture of a profession wrestling with its own creation. Some programmers embrace AI like a caffeinated assistant, while others treat it like a virus in their codebase.
ChatGPT helped analyze the survey data - with mixed results. The AI botched basic statistics, invented fake quotes, and mysteriously erased all freelancers from its calculations. Human editors had to sweep in for damage control.
Most developers view AI as a powerful but flawed tool. They dismiss fears of total automation, comparing AI to an eager intern: helpful with grunt work but hopeless with complex problems. One camp warns that corporate bosses will slash programming jobs once AI improves. The majority see it as a productivity booster that can't replace human creativity.
The survey exposed an industry divided on its future. But one thing's clear: AI isn't stealing coding jobs - it's transforming them.
Why this matters:
Read on, my dear:
Prompt:
Polaroid effect,2000s photo,Japanese young 20 yo woman,portrait, wearig a 2000s retro fashion,chiaroscuro,at the 2000s night tokyo
LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman has a blunt message for AI skeptics: adapt or perish. In a new Guardian interview, the tech billionaire predicts AI will unleash a "cognitive Industrial Revolution," transforming human capabilities.
Hoffman scoffs at AI doomsayers in his new book "Superagency." He sees AI as humanity's next great leap forward - albeit with some growing pains. The billionaire swats away job-loss fears, painting AI as a helpful sidekick rather than a job-stealing menace.
But he delivers a stark warning. Professionals who shun AI tools will soon find themselves "under-tooled and uncompetitive." Within three years, dodging AI could kneecap your career like showing up to work without a phone.
Hoffman walks his AI talk. His book "Impromptu" emerged from conversations with ChatGPT-4. Asked about crediting AI's writing help, he cracked wise: It's like thanking your laptop for typing.
The tech veteran stands apart from Silicon Valley's Trump courtiers. While others kiss the ring, Hoffman pours his energy into cancer-fighting AI at Manas AI and mentoring at the London School of Economics.
Why this matters:
Read on, my dear:
A new federal study reveals Chinese AI companies are crushing US competitors with rock-bottom prices. Government submissions show DeepSeek and Baidu now offer AI models up to 40 times cheaper than American alternatives.
Baidu's latest punch lands hard: Their new Ernie 4.5 model beats OpenAI's GPT-4.5 in benchmarks while costing 99% less. The company plans to open-source this model by summer, potentially flooding the market with cheap, powerful AI.
The March 2025 federal submissions expose US tech giants' growing anxiety. OpenAI draws parallels between DeepSeek and Huawei, warning about state control over AI systems. They fear Chinese regulations could turn DeepSeek into a trojan horse for compromising US infrastructure.
Meanwhile, US companies face their own power struggle - literally. Anthropic's submission predicts a single advanced AI model will soon gulp down enough electricity to power a small city. They're begging for 50 gigawatts of new AI-dedicated power capacity - think 50 nuclear reactors' worth of juice.
Google's submission strikes a more diplomatic tone. They warn that excessive regulation might just gift China the lead while handcuffing US cloud providers.
Why this matters:
Read on, my dear:
(Monday's Deluge of AI News Hits Hard)
DNA testing company 23andMe, once worth $6 billion, filed for bankruptcy today after hemorrhaging money since its 2021 public debut and weathering a massive data breach that exposed nearly seven million customers. CEO Anne Wojcicki resigned to become a potential buyer of her own company's remains, leaving the former genetic testing juggernaut worth just $50 million - roughly the cost of 1,000 premium ancestry test kits.
Browser Use just raised $17 million to transform how AI agents navigate websites, with backing from Felicis and Y Combinator. The startup's open-source tool converts complex web interfaces into digestible formats for AI, helping automated agents handle tasks that would typically confuse them - like dealing with LinkedIn's ever-changing layout, which has been known to break more robots than CAPTCHA.
The Bot Company, a startup making household robots, just grabbed another $150 million in funding led by Greenoaks. The company's founder Kyle Vogt, who quit Cruise after a self-driving car incident, teamed up with AI experts from Tesla and Cruise to build robots that can handle house chores.
South Korean startup FuriosaAI turned down Meta's $800 million offer to buy its AI chip business. The company, which makes specialized chips for AI applications, chose to keep developing its own products - not over money, but because it couldn't agree with Meta on how to run the business after a deal.
Apple is working to add cameras to future versions of its watches, aiming to join the AI wearables race. According to Bloomberg, the company wants to put cameras inside the display of standard watches and on the side of Ultra models, with both using AI to analyze the wearer's surroundings - but don't expect to see these features until around 2027.
Google just rolled out live video features to its Gemini AI assistant, letting it analyze both screen content and smartphone camera feeds in real-time. The update hits Google One AI Premium subscribers first, giving the tech giant a notable lead over rivals Amazon and Apple in the AI assistant race.
Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings gave Bowdoin College $50 million to study how AI will change society. The gift - the largest in the Maine college's 230-year history - will help hire 10 faculty members to examine AI's effects on work, relationships and human behavior. Hastings, a Bowdoin graduate, warns AI's impact will dwarf that of social media.
SAP grabbed Europe's corporate crown from drugmaker Novo Nordisk as its shares hit new highs. The German software firm's market value hit €312 billion on Monday, driven by strong cloud sales and AI offerings - while Novo's stock slumped 18% this year after its new weight-loss drug disappointed in trials.
Researchers at the University of Michigan found a way to cut AI power consumption by up to 30%. Their software tool, Perseus, makes AI training more efficient by carefully controlling how fast each chip runs - like a conductor keeping an orchestra in perfect time.
Researchers built an AI system that spots endometrial cancer with 99.26% accuracy from tissue scans. The model, developed by scientists in Bangladesh, Australia and Canada, beats current automated methods that hover around 80% - and it works well on other cancers too, including breast and colorectal.
A New York Times report tells how AI saved Joseph Coates, 37, from a rare blood disorder after doctors had given up. When his girlfriend reached out to Dr. David Fajgenbaum in Philadelphia, an AI algorithm found an unexpected mix of existing drugs that worked - despite his doctor's initial skepticism that the combination seemed "a little bit crazy."
A former video game developer who made millions animating digital race cars now builds killer drones for Ukraine. The Financial Times reveals how Torsten Reil pivoted from blockbuster games to battlefield tech.
Reil's defense firm Helsing cranks out 1,000 AI-enabled drones monthly from its new "Resilience Factory" in Germany. They've promised 6,000 HX-2 strike drones to Ukraine. The company motto? "Artificial intelligence to protect our democracies."
The entrepreneur's path twisted through Oxford biology labs and Hollywood special effects before he struck gold. His first company, NaturalMotion, created animations for Lord of the Rings and Grand Theft Auto. When gaming giant Zynga bought them for $527 million, Reil pocketed $50 million.
He spent his first days of freedom descaling kitchen appliances. Then Russia invaded Ukraine. Now he builds war machines to deter Moscow. "Bad things are happening faster than we expect," he warns.
Helsing's latest creation outfights human pilots in simulated dogfights. The company raised €450 million last year, hitting a €5 billion valuation. Not bad for a guy who started by teaching digital creatures to walk on an Atari ST.
Why this matters:
Read on, my dear:
Financial Times: ‘We have to be prepared’: Torsten Reil of defence tech company Helsing
AccessOwl streamlines SaaS access management. The Berlin-based startup automates employee software onboarding, approvals, and offboarding – turning messy manual processes into one-click workflows.
The Founders 👥
Philip Eller and Mathias Nestler launched AccessOwl in 2022, bringing startup experience from previous ventures in IoT and fintech. Their own frustrations with managing employee software access sparked the idea. The company employs under 10 people and operates from Berlin, with part-time presence in Silicon Valley during their Y Combinator stint.
The Product 🛠️
AccessOwl's platform handles the full employee software lifecycle. Key strengths:
The Competition 🥊
The company faces enterprise giants like Okta and BetterCloud, plus automation tools like Zapier and n8n. AccessOwl stands out by targeting growing companies that need enterprise features without enterprise complexity. Their quick setup and Slack-first approach win over teams graduating from spreadsheets.
Financing 💰
AccessOwl raised $500K across two seed rounds in 2022. Backers include Y Combinator, Rebel Fund, TA Ventures, and notable angels in German tech. The lean funding reflects their focus on sustainable growth over rapid scaling.
The Future ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 🚀
AccessOwl's prospects look bright. SaaS sprawl plagues more companies each year, driving demand for smart access controls. The founders' enterprise experience and early customer praise suggest product-market fit. Still, they'll need to outmaneuver bigger competitors and likely raise more capital to accelerate growth. Success hinges on maintaining their speed and focus while expanding capabilities.
Good Morning from San Francisco, Meta just kicked Apple's AI tools to the curb. All of them. 🥾 No
Good Morning from San Francisco, OpenAI's AI just learned to think in pictures. Their new o3 model doesn&
Good Morning from San Francisco, OpenAI wants to play social media kingmaker. Sam Altman's crew is quietly testing
Good Morning from San Francisco, OpenAI just fired another shot in the AI race 🎯. Their new GPT-4.1 devours text
Fuel your morning with AI insights. Lands in your inbox 6 a.m. PST daily. Grab it free now! 🚀
