The hottest Technology Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Technology Topics

✅ Monday briefing: Media startups, no normal, writing about ethnicity, AI industrialising, comment control, Linkedin newsletters, robot writers, and more…

Wadds Inc. newsletter • 79 implied HN points • 15 Mar 21
🕹 Technology Media AI Social media Industry Insights
  1. There's an increase in new digital media startups that are changing how journalism is done, despite many traditional newsrooms cutting costs.
  2. Companies like Unilever are moving towards more inclusive marketing by avoiding the term 'normal' in their products and being mindful of image edits.
  3. AI technology is developing quickly, but there are important ethical concerns about its use, especially in areas like surveillance and content creation.

Meta's V-JEPA vision models, OpenAI's Sora video model, Gemini 1.5 Pro with 1 million tokens context, Reka Flash, Largest text-to-speech AI model and more

AI Brews • 32 implied HN points • 16 Feb 24
🕹 Technology AI Language Models Multimodal models Text-to-Speech
  1. OpenAI introduced Sora, a text-to-video model capable of creating detailed videos up to 60 seconds long with vibrant emotions.
  2. Meta AI unveiled V-JEPA, a method for teaching machines to understand the physical world by watching videos, using self-supervised learning for feature prediction.
  3. Google announced Gemini 1.5 Pro with a context window of up to 1 million tokens, allowing for advanced understanding and reasoning tasks across different modalities like video.
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Why Tech Giants Are Paying Millions for AI Training Data

Intuitive AI • 19 implied HN points • 22 Aug 24
🕹 Technology AI Data science Tech Business Machine Learning Software Development
  1. Tech companies are paying a lot for training data because it helps them improve their AI models. As AI use grows, high-quality data has become very valuable.
  2. Having diverse and rich training data is crucial for AI to learn well. Just like a student needs various books to understand different subjects, AI needs various data to perform better.
  3. Quality of the data matters even more than quantity. Rich, informative data leads to better AI outcomes, which is why companies are willing to spend big bucks on it.

What's happening at the intersection of ML and Engineering.

Arkid’s Newsletter • 17 HN points • 30 Sep 24
🕹 Technology Machine Learning Software Engineering Data science Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure
  1. AI and machine learning are creating a lot of hype, but it's important to separate the noise from the real value. Just like in the dot-com boom, there will be winners, but it won't be easy to find them.
  2. Many companies are wasting money on consultants who offer little help without delivering real results. To succeed in AI, businesses need to focus on building intelligent products that can learn and iterate based on user feedback.
  3. There's concern about AI taking over jobs in software and machine learning, but skilled professionals will still be needed. It’s crucial for entry-level workers to build solid expertise in their field and adapt to new developments in AI.

Cyber Fantasy Versus Reality

The Security Industry • 31 implied HN points • 23 Feb 24
🕹 Technology Cybersecurity Market Dynamics Management Product Strategy
  1. In the cybersecurity industry, a company's success often comes from acquiring and integrating other successful cybersecurity companies that offer products in different areas like network, endpoint, data, identity, or GRC.
  2. Professional management is essential for growth through acquisitions in the cybersecurity field. It's crucial to make wise choices, integrate acquired teams effectively, and stay focused on customer service.
  3. Cybersecurity companies need to deliver good products at good prices to succeed, rather than solely relying on complex platformization strategies for sales growth.

QuantumSi - Chips No More!

ASeq Newsletter • 14 implied HN points • 21 Nov 24
🕹 Technology Quantum Computing Bioengineering Investments Startups
  1. QuantumSi shared new information during their investor day, showcasing their advancements. They seem to be moving beyond traditional chips in their technology.
  2. The QuantumSi project is gaining attention, and many connections are being made in the community. It's a good time to get involved and learn more.
  3. Readers are encouraged to check out the investor day presentation for deeper insights into QuantumSi's direction. It might be useful for those interested in tech innovations.

Inconsistency as a service

Gradient Ascendant • 13 implied HN points • 10 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Artificial Intelligence Software Development Engineering Quality Assurance Data processing
  1. Testing is really important for both hardware and software, especially when things can fail sometimes. In making chips, a lot of resources go into making sure they work properly.
  2. With AI like LLMs, you have to keep checking their outputs because they can be unpredictable. It's smart to set up a test system to know if what you're getting makes sense.
  3. We're still figuring out the best ways to test AI technology. Just like with traditional software, it will take time to develop good practices for making sure LLMs work well and reliably.

Self-Adapting LMs, Deep Research Agents, and Music-Aware Benchmarks

HackerPulse Dispatch • 5 implied HN points • 20 Jun 25
🕹 Technology AI Machine Learning Software Data science Benchmarking
  1. Language models can now learn on their own by creating their own training data, which means they get better without needing human help.
  2. There are new benchmarks to measure how well models understand music, making it easier to compare their performance on different tasks.
  3. A new method allows for better code translation between different programming languages, outpacing older systems in speed and accuracy.

2024 DORA Report

Engineering Enablement • 15 implied HN points • 30 Oct 24
🕹 Technology Software Development DevOps Artificial Intelligence Data Analysis Engineering
  1. Using AI tools can actually make software delivery worse, as they lead to larger code changes that are riskier. This is surprising because many people think AI would improve coding efficiency.
  2. Software delivery performance indicators are becoming more independent from each other. This year's report shows some unexpected trends, like medium performance groups having fewer failures than high performance groups.
  3. To boost productivity, companies should focus on creating user-friendly internal platforms for developers. It's important for leaders to understand their team's needs and provide clear support to improve overall performance.

12 Scenarios of Failure: Applying Chaos Engineering to SAP | Guilherme Sesterheim

Dev Interrupted • 32 implied HN points • 06 Feb 24
🕹 Technology DevOps Engineering Leadership Personal Branding
  1. Guilherme Sesterheim discusses applying Chaos Engineering to SAP systems to test and improve resilience.
  2. It's beneficial to have a trifecta of engineering, product, and UX at senior leadership levels for better outcomes.
  3. Anton Zaides argues that hiring only senior engineers is not the best policy and suggests considering junior engineers for fresh energy and adaptiveness.

Memphis: Building Stream Processing that Doesn't Suck (aka a Delightful Dev First Experience)...Welcome to the Boldstart Family!

Software Snack Bites • 50 implied HN points • 28 Jun 23
🕹 Technology Stream Processing Developer Experience Data Engineering Real-Time Data
  1. Memphis provides a better developer experience for stream processing.
  2. Memphis is designed for quick setup, cost efficiency, and user-friendly monitoring.
  3. Memphis is a platform of choice for companies looking to replace or enhance their streaming platforms.

Text to CAD?

Mechanomy’s Substack • 4 HN points • 10 Feb 24
🕹 Technology AI 3D Printing Design
  1. Zoo's text-to-CAD application can quickly generate 3D models based on simple prompts, demonstrating a new approach to design tooling for hardware engineers.
  2. The correctness of a generated model matters based on intended use, and with advancements in AI and CAD, tools are evolving to aid in specifying design details more efficiently.
  3. The development of tools like text-to-CAD showcases the evolving capabilities in design technology, emphasizing the need for increased productivity and quality in engineering workflows.

Episode 36: Better Built By Burkhard

burkhardstubert • 19 implied HN points • 15 Feb 23
🕹 Technology Software Development Embedded Systems Continuous Delivery Automation Quality Assurance
  1. A Continuous Delivery pipeline helps keep software always ready for release by quickly identifying problems at various stages.
  2. The workflow consists of three main stages: Commit Stage, Acceptance Stage, and System Stage, with each stage increasing confidence in the software's reliability.
  3. It's best to start building your CD pipeline now, even if it's simple, and improve it step by step as you learn.

Why can't we shoot down drones?

Nathan’s Substack • 4 HN points • 09 Feb 24
🕹 Technology Military Defense Drones Acquisition Innovation
  1. In the face of drone threats, the issue is more political than technical, with acquisition processes being slow and bureaucratic.
  2. Obsolete air defense doctrines make it difficult to track and counter drones effectively, necessitating a shift in strategies.
  3. Technologically, there are solutions for detecting and neutralizing drones, including directed energy weapons, but bureaucratic hurdles are hindering their deployment.

Everyday examples of mundane low-stakes data modeling fails

Data: Made Not Found (by danah) • 51 implied HN points • 13 Jun 23
🕹 Technology Data Modeling Supply Chains Customer Service Delivery Services
  1. Focusing on low-stakes data modeling failures is important to understand how algorithms are shaping minor aspects of our lives.
  2. Supply chains and service-based businesses are facing challenges from flawed data modeling, affecting customers, workers, and businesses.
  3. Everyday interactions like car rentals and food delivery are revealing flaws in data modeling, leading to frustration and distrust in brands.

GPU peak calling for epigenetics

LatchBio • 11 implied HN points • 21 Jan 25
🕹 Technology Bioinformatics Data Analysis Algorithms Computing Genetics
  1. Peak calling is crucial for analyzing epigenetic data like ATAC-seq and ChIP-seq. It helps scientists identify important regions in the genome related to gene expression and diseases.
  2. The MACS3 algorithm is a common tool used for peak calling but struggles with handling large data volumes efficiently. Improving its implementation with GPUs can speed up analyses significantly.
  3. By using GPUs, researchers have achieved about 15 times faster processing speeds for peak calling, which is vital as more genetic data is generated in the field.

What's new in Svelte: April 2023

The (Unofficial) Svelte JS Newsletter • 19 implied HN points • 01 Apr 23
🕹 Technology Programming Updates Community Resources Tools
  1. Loads of new features in the Svelte compiler like support for 'svelte-ignore' and improvements in inputs and transitions
  2. Updates in SvelteKit include new features like 'cookies.getAll' and enhancements in managing form submission status
  3. Community showcase highlights various apps, sites built with Svelte, learning resources, and libraries/tools/components

Gradient Flow #37: Automation in DataOps, Neural RecSys, Self-Supervision

Gradient Flow • 59 implied HN points • 17 Jun 21
🕹 Technology DataOps Cloud Computing Machine Learning
  1. Automation tools are essential in managing data across the machine learning lifecycle, enabling efficient data labeling, storage, and monitoring for computer vision applications.
  2. Questioning the effectiveness of neural recommendation systems sheds light on current trends in deep learning applications for recommendation systems.
  3. Experimentation and combination of modeling techniques, like XGBoost and neural models, are crucial for achieving optimal results in machine learning tasks.

Me vs Unity and Microsoft

Kevin’s Substack • 3 HN points • 15 Mar 24
🕹 Technology Software Development Platforms Issues Support
  1. Creating software can come with unexpected challenges, even when using popular tools like Unity and Microsoft.
  2. Unity's rules against uploading executables can lead to complexities and rejection when trying to submit software to their platform.
  3. Dealing with antivirus software like Windows Defender can pose significant hurdles, impacting the distribution and acceptance of software products.

Introducing the Ecosystem

Developer GTM – by Calyx Consulting • 59 implied HN points • 17 Mar 21
🕹 Technology Platforms APIs
  1. Companies are recognizing the value of platforms to expand their business, but may lack talent or resources to build them.
  2. Building a successful platform involves challenges like fostering developer community, telling a compelling platform story, and driving adoption.
  3. Thriving platforms function as ecosystems where partners, developers, and the core platform benefit from each other.

An Open Letter to Sam Altman

Marcus on AI • 31 HN points • 11 Feb 24
🕹 Technology AI Technology Ethics Artificial Intelligence
  1. The author questions the investment in Large Language Models (LLMs) as a means to secure our future, raising concerns about potential negative impacts on content creators, women, the environment, democracy, and jobs.
  2. There is skepticism about the $7 trillion investment in LLMs and their infrastructure, wondering if it will truly benefit humanity or if it might lead to unintended consequences.
  3. The letter suggests a cautious approach, highlighting the importance of not rushing into technological advancements and making premature commitments that could have long-term negative effects.

The best of engineering enablement in 2024

Engineering Enablement • 12 implied HN points • 23 Dec 24
🕹 Technology AI Tools Developer Productivity Platform Engineering Frameworks Research
  1. Companies are using AI tools to help engineers work faster, with data showing that these tools can significantly improve productivity. For example, tasks were completed 40% faster in some studies.
  2. Understanding the differences between platform engineering and developer experience teams is important for improving how developers work. Companies are putting focus on their developer productivity teams to ensure that their developers have what they need.
  3. New frameworks are being introduced to measure developer productivity more effectively. These frameworks help identify inefficiencies and understand how developers feel about their working conditions.

You can now run single-cell experiments in a tube with 4.5 hours of hands-on time

LatchBio • 12 implied HN points • 26 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Biotechnology Genomics Research tools Data Analysis
  1. A new single-cell sequencing technology makes experiments easier and faster, only needing about 4.5 hours of hands-on work. This means more scientists can do these experiments without needing a big budget or lots of extra equipment.
  2. The new method allows for better scalability, letting researchers run from 1 to 96 samples easily. This flexibility can lead to more data and insights in various experiments, such as drug development or studying disease.
  3. The SimpleCell technology also includes user-friendly analysis tools, making it easier for scientists to understand and visualize their results. This helps them feel more in control of their research and get valuable insights quickly.

You are not a method

Counting Stuff • 54 implied HN points • 02 May 23
🕹 Technology Data science Research Organizational dynamics Career development Networking
  1. Teams are often created to fill niche use cases, leading to specialized roles and organizational politics.
  2. Being type-cast into a specific role can limit opportunities for growth and variety in work tasks.
  3. To break out of being type-cast, showcase your ability to do different kinds of work and actively seek out diverse opportunities.

The Week in Repair: July 3 -9

Fight to Repair • 19 implied HN points • 11 Jul 22
🕹 Technology Repair Environment Legislation Data Software
  1. The FTC penalizes companies like Weber for limiting consumer rights, showing a strong stance on right to repair and consumer protection.
  2. Upgrading smartphones has a significant environmental impact due to the high carbon emissions produced during manufacturing and disposal.
  3. Investments in circular economy projects, such as the Ministry of Economy's announcement of 200,000 Euro for such projects, aim to improve sustainability in industry by reusing resources effectively.

How the iPhone innovated without inventing

subtract • 5 implied HN points • 18 Jun 25
🕹 Technology Mobile Innovation User Experience Design Product Development
  1. The iPhone combined multiple devices into one, making it easy to call, text, and access the internet all in one place. This made it super convenient for users.
  2. Apple improved the user experience by using a touchscreen instead of a physical keyboard. This lets people customize the interface to fit their needs better.
  3. The original iPhone didn’t create new technology but used existing ideas in a better way. It solved problems that other devices didn't, like being user-friendly and fun to use.