The hottest Substack posts right now

according to Hacker News
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A 2x2 matrix theory of personal survival over time (revisited)

Philosophy bear • 78 implied HN points • 27 Jun 25
📖 Philosophy Identity Existence
  1. There are different ways to think about what makes you 'you' over time, like whether it's your body or your mind that defines you.
  2. In some thought experiments, like brain transplants or teleportation, we can see that people have different views on who survives these changes.
  3. Ultimately, whether we feel we survive or not may depend on personal choices, and what truly matters could be our experiences and relationships rather than strict definitions of identity.

Gsnowflake

benn.substack • 792 implied HN points • 07 Jul 23
🕹 Technology Data AI Cloud Computing Natural Language Processing
  1. Google is technically a database but differs from traditional databases in its structure and content.
  2. Snowflake is introducing features like Document AI that hint at a shift towards focusing on information retrieval rather than just data analysis.
  3. The market for an information database could potentially be larger and more accessible than traditional data warehouses, offering simpler access to basic facts and connections.

In Quality, the secret sauce is feedback!

Wisdom over Waves • 79 implied HN points • 11 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Customer Needs Software Delivery Development Software Quality Feedback
  1. Quality in software is about fast and fabulous delivery without compromising on quality.
  2. Defining quality can be subjective, meeting customer needs they may not even know they have.
  3. Feedback is the secret sauce to understanding customer needs, with practical tips like frequent releases, attentive listening, and exploring multiple feedback layers.

AI and the Law: A Turbulent Relationship

Rod’s Blog • 59 implied HN points • 21 Feb 24
🕹 Technology AI Legal Regulation Innovation Privacy
  1. AI is reshaping the legal landscape with challenges like intellectual property disputes, data privacy concerns, and ethical dilemmas.
  2. Legal battles over AI ownership rights and copyright infringement are intensifying as AI becomes more prevalent in society.
  3. Regulating AI development and deployment is a major challenge globally, with different regions having varying approaches to ensure ethical and human-centric AI.
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Moving Beyond System 1 and 2

Living Fossils • 19 implied HN points • 12 Nov 25
📖 Philosophy Cognitive Science Human Psychology Decision-making Moral Philosophy Behavioral Economics
  1. System 1 thinking is quick and automatic, but it can lead to mistakes, especially if we don't take a moment to reflect before making judgments.
  2. People often react based on social cues rather than pure logic, which means they might prioritize fitting in over careful thinking.
  3. Our minds operate with different modules that are activated by specific situations, so we might not always be 'lazy'—we’re just responding to the context we find ourselves in.

MCP servers are the bridge between AI agents and APIs

Dev Interrupted • 56 implied HN points • 07 Aug 25
🕹 Technology Data Engineering Software APIs AI
  1. MCP servers act as a bridge that helps AI agents communicate with APIs more effectively. This makes the interaction smoother and allows for complex tasks to be automated without exhaustive programming.
  2. The introduction of MCP changes how APIs are designed. API providers need to focus on better search capabilities and richer metadata because AI agents require more context to function well.
  3. Soon, MCP will be the standard for how AI interacts with APIs. Companies must adapt their API strategies to consider how AI agents work, ensuring they're built to support this new way of connecting.

Agents, Agents, Agents

Teaching computers how to talk • 178 implied HN points • 20 Jan 25
🕹 Technology AI Software Innovation Business User Experience
  1. In 2025, AI agents are expected to become very popular, but there's skepticism about their real capabilities. Many companies are making bold claims, but it's important to see if the technology can truly deliver.
  2. The term 'AI agent' is being used a lot nowadays, but many so-called agents are just chatbots with limited functions. True AI agents should work independently and be able to interact meaningfully with their environment.
  3. Understanding user needs is crucial when integrating AI solutions. Companies should focus on solving real problems instead of simply adopting trendy technologies without considering their usefulness.

Links for 2024-01-13

Axis of Ordinary • 78 implied HN points • 13 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Science AI Psychology Politics Ukraine
  1. AI chatbots exhibit distinct behaviors from humans, often leaning towards altruism and cooperation.
  2. Advancements in AI technology like Amazon's self-talk dialogue agents and generative AI-powered experiences are being developed.
  3. In the science and technology realm, studies on the early universe, geothermal power in Iceland, and lab-grown hybrid life forms raise intriguing questions.

Attenspiration

12challenges • 171 implied HN points • 28 Jan 25
🕹 Technology Tech Analysis Digital Culture Product Design Satire
  1. Attention will focus on making tech fun and poking fun at it through playful analysis and satire.
  2. The publication will feature interactive mini-sites that combine both tech analysis and humor.
  3. The author is inspired by diverse examples of creativity in tech and media, and welcomes suggestions for additional content.

The Thrill of Deprecating Dashboards

Sarah's Newsletter • 239 implied HN points • 29 Nov 22
🕹 Technology Data Visualization Data Management Automation Analytics BI Tools
  1. Having an excessive number of dashboards can lead to inefficiency and confusion within an organization. It's important to prioritize strategic organization over creating new dashboards indiscriminately.
  2. Developing an automated dashboard deprecation strategy can help save time and maintain a clean BI instance. By automating the process, organizations can efficiently manage and delete unused visuals.
  3. Implementing a proactive maintenance plan, such as using a data catalog or automated tools, can help keep BI instances organized and optimal for data insights. Regular cleaning and organization are key to ensuring the effectiveness of analytics strategies.

Weekly Top Picks #100

The Algorithmic Bridge • 148 implied HN points • 03 Mar 25
🕹 Technology Content creation Online Communities Publishing Newsletter AI
  1. The weekly newsletter just reached its 100th edition, so instead of the usual picks, there's an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session this time.
  2. You can ask about anything related to AI, newsletter writing, or even personal opinions that might spark discussion.
  3. The author encourages open questions and suggests that using tools like ChatGPT can help in forming inquiries.

Come on in, the party's just getting started

Alex's Personal Blog • 65 implied HN points • 23 Jul 25
💼 Business Investing Startups Technology Finance Market Trends
  1. AI companies are racing to build better technology using vast amounts of data and computing power. However, just having advanced models doesn't guarantee a strong market position.
  2. There's a growing trend of startups staying private longer, which means regular investors might miss out on potential growth. Recent legislation aims to open private investments to more people.
  3. A company called Vanta has seen significant growth in customers and funding, indicating a strong demand for its compliance automation services in the tech industry.

An Ocean of Data

Justin E. H. Smith's Hinternet • 466 implied HN points • 12 Mar 24
🕹 Technology Data Artificial Intelligence Digital Transformation Writing Publishing
  1. Data produced in just one minute in 2023 was 169,371 times more than produced in the entire 18th century.
  2. The analogy of
  3. pissing into the ocean
  4. implies the massive amount of data being generated daily being like a drop in the vast ocean.
  5. The role of a writer has evolved significantly from the 18th century, with the digital era signaling the end of traditional writing as we knew it.

A guide to gift subscriptions and special offers

Substack Blog • 219 implied HN points • 25 Nov 24
💼 Business E-commerce Customer Engagement Sales Subscriptions Marketing
  1. Gift subscriptions are a great way for your current subscribers to share your work with friends and family during the holidays. It's not just a gift for them, but also helps promote your content.
  2. Special offers and discounts can make subscriptions more appealing for new subscribers. Timing these offers around holidays or relevant events can boost conversions and attract new readers.
  3. Using the holiday season to engage with your audience creatively fosters a sense of community. Celebrating together can help grow your subscriber base and strengthen relationships with existing ones.

LCM: Large Concept Model

Gonzo ML • 189 implied HN points • 04 Jan 25
🕹 Technology Artificial Intelligence Computational Models Data science Natural Language Processing Machine Learning
  1. The Large Concept Model (LCM) aims to improve how we understand and process language by focusing on concepts instead of just individual words. This means thinking at a higher level about what ideas and meanings are being conveyed.
  2. LCM uses a system called SONAR to convert sentences into a stable representation that can be processed and then translated back into different languages or forms without losing the original meaning. This creates flexibility in how we communicate.
  3. This approach can handle long documents more efficiently because it represents ideas as concepts, making processing easier. This could improve applications like summarization and translation, making them more effective.

R1 is reasoning for the masses

Artificial Ignorance • 176 implied HN points • 22 Jan 25
🕹 Technology AI Models Research Geopolitics Open Source Deep Learning
  1. DeepSeek's new AI model, R1, is making waves in the tech community. It can solve tough problems and is much cheaper to use than existing models.
  2. The research behind R1 is very transparent, showing how it was developed using common methods. This could help other researchers create similar models in the future.
  3. R1's success signals a shift in the AI race, especially with a Chinese company achieving this level of performance. It raises questions about the future of global AI competition.

The Bear Cave #212

The Bear Cave • 466 implied HN points • 10 Mar 24
💰 Finance Tweets Activist Reports Resignations
  1. New activist reports were published on companies like Zillow, Adtalem Global Education, Blackstone Mortgage Trust, and Grifols, raising concerns about their operations and financial health.
  2. Significant recent resignations include CEOs and CFOs from companies like New York Community Bancorp, Funko, and NMI Holdings, indicating potential issues within the leadership of these organizations.
  3. Interesting articles related to investigations by the SEC on companies like Chemours, Skechers, and details emerging about the SEC's interest in Hospital Landlord MPT provide insights into corporate governance and compliance issues.

Google Correlate alternative: Similiarity search of Wikipedia Pageview Statistics in Python

Franz likes to code • 1 HN point • 16 Sep 24
🕹 Technology Data science Open Data Web Development Machine Learning Programming
  1. Google Correlate was a tool for finding related search patterns, similar to Google Trends, but it was shut down in 2019.
  2. You can create a personal alternative using publicly available data, like Wikipedia page views, by scraping and analyzing it with Python.
  3. Using methods like similarity searches and cosine distance, you can identify articles that have similar view patterns to a given topic.

The Equation That Outsmarts AI: y=mx+b

Shrek's Substack • 4 HN points • 19 Aug 24
🕹 Technology Machine Learning Data Analysis Mathematics Education AI
  1. The way you ask questions and set the model's temperature can really affect how well AI solves math problems. Clear prompts and specific instructions can help improve its accuracy.
  2. AI like GPT-4o struggles with big numbers and can make mistakes about half the time when calculating linear equations. It works better with smaller numbers.
  3. It's important to be careful when using AI for math, especially in education. Using other tools to double-check results can help avoid mistakes.

Weekly NFT & GameFi Update (Week 2, 06/01/2024 - 12/01/2024)

Crypto.com Research • 78 implied HN points • 12 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Blockchain Cryptocurrency Web3 GameFi NFTs
  1. Azuki is producing an anime anthology series with notable NFT sales growth.
  2. New NFT projects like Boomer Squad and Legends of Tanks are introducing exciting collectibles and in-game utility items.
  3. Major developments include OpenSea simplifying wallet creation, Visa's Web3 Loyalty Engagement Solution, and Axie Infinity capping its reward token supply.

Techbros party on

imperfect offerings • 119 implied HN points • 01 Nov 23
🕹 Technology Regulation Innovation Ethics Tech Giants AI
  1. The 'Safer AI Summit' had predictable guest choices, with figures like Elon Musk and senior representatives of tech giants invited, focusing more on future AI developments than present issues.
  2. The summit had strict restrictions on discussion topics, limiting conversations solely to the risks and opportunities of frontier AI, ignoring broader societal impacts.
  3. Criticism was raised against the summit for being exclusive, favoring big tech corporations, and shutting out voices from trade unions, civil society groups, and organizations concerned about AI ethics.

Kishida May Raise Corporate Taxes, Part I

Japan Economy Watch • 319 implied HN points • 30 Oct 22
💰 Finance Economic Policy Investment Corporate Governance Taxation
  1. The Japanese government is considering raising corporate taxes after years of lowering them, due to disappointing outcomes such as insufficient investment and wage hikes.
  2. The need to finance a significant increase in defense spending is a major factor in the potential corporate tax hike, as relying on deficits is seen as irresponsible.
  3. Japan has a significant amount of retained earnings due to low shareholder power, leading to companies not reinvesting the cash in the economy.

Bioeconomy Startups: A Dive into De-risking Strategies

The New Bioeconomy • 78 implied HN points • 12 Jan 24
💼 Business Partnerships Finance Startups Scaling
  1. Scaling up bioeconomy startups involves understanding the process and collaborating for de-risking.
  2. Finding a consistent feedstock supply is crucial for bioeconomy startups, often requiring partnerships with established companies.
  3. De-risking product-to-market strategy involves market assessment, alliances, and communicating sustainability.

The KQL Mysteries: Chapter 2

Rod’s Blog • 99 implied HN points • 04 Dec 23
🕹 Technology Cybersecurity Data Analysis Network Security
  1. Jon and Sofia used KQL queries to identify and isolate an infected computer in the finance department.
  2. The malware was discovered disguised as a legitimate application, hidden in the Recycle Bin to avoid detection.
  3. Jon and Sofia's discovery of the global financial breach hints at a larger, more sinister threat by a group known as Night Princess.

AI Agent Experiments, Lisbon Recap, Algarve, Agency Savings, Everything Breaks, Future of Outbound

Play Permissionless • 99 implied HN points • 04 Dec 23
💼 Business Management Entrepreneurship Technology Finance Marketing
  1. Met great people in Lisbon during a belly-to-belly week and enjoyed the friendly atmosphere and beautiful nature of Algarve.
  2. Cutting costs at the agency through canceling subscriptions and negotiating discounts resulted in significant savings that could be used elsewhere.
  3. Facing technical challenges with various tools pushed for positive changes, like switching to better providers and focusing on improving the quality of outbound campaigns instead of just sending more emails.

The posters decide

benn.substack • 460 implied HN points • 15 Mar 24
💼 Business Entrepreneurship Influence Startups Technology Investing
  1. In political elections like the presidential primaries, insiders within the party can heavily influence candidate selection, impacting how votes translate into nominations.
  2. Silicon Valley, despite its reputation for meritocracy and free-market capitalism, also shows signs of elite insiders shaping success by directing funds, influencing hiring decisions, and controlling media narratives.
  3. Public perception and hype generated by influencers play a significant role in Silicon Valley, from selecting blogging platforms to predicting success of new technologies, often superseding personal experiences and independent analysis.

Ranking Content On Signals Other Than User Engagement

techandsocialcohesion • 59 implied HN points • 20 Feb 24
🕹 Technology Research Social media
  1. Ranking content by user engagement is good for user retention, but there can be a negative correlation between engagement and content quality.
  2. Optimizing for quality content can lead to better long-term retention for platforms and improve user experience.
  3. Platforms are exploring using non-engagement signals, like surveys and negative feedback controls, to improve content quality and user satisfaction.

RON is now available on GCash!

The Lunacian • 506 implied HN points • 15 Feb 24
🔮 Crypto Philippines Blockchain Digital Currency
  1. RON cryptocurrency is now available on GCash, offering Filipinos more options to buy, sell, and hold RON in the Philippines.
  2. Regulatory challenges facing Binance in the Philippines may result in fewer onboarding options onto Ronin, so the partnership with GCash is important to offer a stable and compliant platform for users.
  3. To buy RON on GCash, users can log into the app, navigate to GInvest, click on GCrypto, top-up their crypto wallet using GCash, and look for RON, AXS, or SLP to start trading.

User Products under LGPL-3.0

burkhardstubert • 99 implied HN points • 04 Dec 23
🕹 Technology Security Consumer Products Embedded Systems Licensing Software
  1. If your product uses LGPL-3.0 libraries like Qt and it’s for consumers, you need to let users modify and install new versions. This applies to things like smart ovens or phones.
  2. Manufacturers worry about safety when users can modify software. But if owners make changes, they might void warranties and be responsible for any problems.
  3. For business products, the rules are easier. Companies don't have to allow modifications, which helps them keep tighter control over how their products operate.

Does the GPT Store launch compare with the Apple App Store launch?

The Discourse • 78 implied HN points • 11 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Innovation Marketplaces Apps AI
  1. The GPT Store has been launched with customized GPTs for ChatGPT Plus users.
  2. The GPT Store is aiming to convert free users to paid users, unlike the Apple App Store launch which had a larger user base.
  3. The future of GPTs could include standalone apps, open to all 180M ChatGPT users, revenue sharing with OpenAI, and fun, innovative creations.

Math for Software Engineering[Math Mondays]

Technology Made Simple • 139 implied HN points • 21 Mar 23
🕹 Technology Machine Learning Mathematics Software Engineering Data Analysis Algorithms
  1. Linear Algebra is crucial for software engineers, especially for operations involving vector and matrix operations. Understanding the basics is key for most developers.
  2. Probability and Statistics play a significant role in analyzing data, and even non-AI professionals can benefit from grasping concepts like causal inference. Focus on foundational principles before diving deeper.
  3. Calculus, though important, may not be essential for all software engineers. Studying up to Calc-2 is generally adequate, as it appears in various other topics.

Country Risk: The Mid-year Update for 2022

Musings on Markets • 519 implied HN points • 14 Jul 22
💰 Finance Sovereign debt Economic Indicators Capital Markets Investment Analysis
  1. Country risk varies significantly between different nations. Countries with stable economies and strong political systems are generally safer for investments than those with instability or violence.
  2. Corruption and legal protections are vital factors influencing country risk. High corruption levels can increase costs for businesses, while strong legal systems provide better support for contracts and property rights.
  3. Recent global events, like the conflict in Ukraine, have raised risk levels across many countries. This has resulted in higher costs of capital for investors and increased equity risk premiums globally.

System Design - Scale 0 to Millions of Users

Better Engineers • 7 HN points • 31 Jul 24
🕹 Technology Systems Scaling Databases Design
  1. Scaling systems to handle millions of users involves understanding how to make systems work better under pressure. This can be done by adding more resources or managing them effectively.
  2. Vertical scaling means adding more power (like RAM or CPU) to existing servers, while horizontal scaling means adding more servers to share the load. Horizontal scaling is often better for high traffic situations.
  3. Using a master-slave database setup helps balance loads and keeps data safe. If one database fails, another can take over, ensuring the system runs smoothly and reliably.