The hottest Technology Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Top Technology Topics

AI Roundup 147: OpenAI's Code Red

Artificial Ignorance • 58 implied HN points • 05 Dec 25
🕹 Technology AI Model development Software Data Centers Market Trends
  1. OpenAI is changing its focus back to improving ChatGPT, stepping away from other projects like ads and personal assistants due to rising competition with companies like Google.
  2. Anthropic is planning to go public and has made significant strides in revenue and product offerings despite facing substantial losses, aiming to challenge the big tech firms.
  3. Three years after the launch of ChatGPT, American opinions about AI are mixed, with some people excited and others fearful, even as AI continues to change industries like education and finance.

Import AI 340: Drone VS human (Drone wins); Adept's small but good AI model; "AI Succession"

Import AI • 499 implied HN points • 18 Sep 23
🕹 Technology AI Computing Policy
  1. Adept has released an impressive small AI model that performs exceptionally well and is optimized for accessibility on various devices.
  2. AI pioneer Richard Sutton suggests the idea of 'AI Succession', where machines could surpass humans in driving progress forward, emphasizing the need for careful navigation of AI development.
  3. A drone controlled by an autonomous AI system defeated human pilots in a challenging race, showcasing advancements in real-world reinforcement learning capabilities.

Nvidia and the Longevity of Technology Moats

The Chip Letter • 2839 implied HN points • 01 Aug 23
🕹 Technology Tech
  1. Nvidia is a major player in AI technology with a market cap over one trillion dollars.
  2. The longevity of technology moats like Intel's x86 and IBM's System/360 can provide insights into maintaining dominance in the industry.
  3. Comparing Nvidia's position with these examples can help understand the sustainability of its competitive advantage in the long term.

Why We Must Build World Models

Reasons to Be Optimistic • 6 implied HN points • 17 Feb 26
🕹 Technology Artificial Intelligence Machine Learning Computer Vision Robotics Simulation Multimodal AI Causality
  1. Text-only models are powerful but incomplete because language misses how the world actually looks, moves, and feels; video offers a far richer, high-volume source of physics, sound, and human behavior.
  2. True world models must be causal and action-conditioned, predicting the next state step-by-step under intervention; autoregressive diffusion transformer architectures trained on multimodal video and actions are a promising path.
  3. General world models will turn naive software into systems that understand and interact with the real world, enabling adaptive robots, immersive simulations, new learning tools, and large-scale scientific discovery.
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✨ Life in an AI utopia: A Quick Q&A with futurist and philosopher Nick Bostrom

Faster, Please! • 731 implied HN points • 27 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Artificial Intelligence Futurism Philosophy Ethics Innovation
  1. It's often easier for people to imagine a bad future, like in movies, than a good one. This can affect how cultures think about their future.
  2. When thinking about a perfect world, many people share similar ideas, like having peace and cleanliness. But if everything goes perfectly, we might miss out on challenges that give our lives meaning.
  3. The future of artificial intelligence could be really bright or really dark. We need to prepare for both possibilities because we are entering a new era with big changes ahead.

The internet is for 12-year-olds

Read Max • 2950 implied HN points • 09 Jul 23
🕹 Technology Social media Content creation YouTube Internet culture Online Platforms
  1. Many content creators online are pressured to create content aimed at 12-year-olds due to the large number in the audience.
  2. Internet platforms lack adult mediation between young viewers and content creators, leading to a focus on adolescent content.
  3. Successful creators may reintroduce wholesome content into the online sphere, standing out in a sea of material targeting younger audiences.

AI Roundup 145: Gemini 3

Artificial Ignorance • 71 implied HN points • 21 Nov 25
🕹 Technology AI Models Tech Companies Infrastructure Geopolitics Regulations Investment
  1. Google launched Gemini 3 Pro, a powerful new AI model that improves planning, coding, and judgment skills, marking a significant step forward in AI technology.
  2. There's growing worry among tech leaders about a potential bubble in AI investments, with CEOs openly questioning the sustainability of soaring valuations and massive spending.
  3. An upcoming Executive Order may give the federal government power to override state AI laws, which could lead to legal battles and political pushback from within the Republican Party.

Classification and Method Selection

Abstraction • 29 implied HN points • 08 Jan 26
🕹 Technology AI Machine Learning Forecasting Modeling Systems Design
  1. Match the forecasting method to the question type: classify questions into base-rate, time-series, conditional-chain, or novel-event and route each to a specialized approach.
  2. Use the right technique for each class: use historical reference classes and adjustments for base rates, simulate trajectories for time-series questions, multiply conditional probabilities for conjunctive chains, and apply a Laplace-style prior for unprecedented events.
  3. Track and improve empirically: use an LLM classifier (defaulting to base rate when unsure), choose reference classes and decompositions carefully, and measure which methods are over- or under-confident as you scale.

453: Anthropic, Microsoft Athena AI Chip, Nvidia Strikes Back, Antitrust Catch-22, China vs Wind Power, Nobel Immigrants, EV, and JS Bach

Liberty’s Highlights • 491 implied HN points • 11 Oct 23
🕹 Technology AI Antitrust Energy Immigration
  1. Be skeptical of misinformation during times of tragedy and beware of those who use geopolitical excuses to dehumanize situations.
  2. Don't get attached to beliefs and welcome constructive criticism to identify and correct blind spots over time.
  3. Electric vehicles are more energy-efficient compared to internal combustion engine vehicles, and smart planning is key to meet the increasing electricity demand for transportation needs.

2026 - the year of AGI

davidj.substack • 23 implied HN points • 13 Jan 26
🕹 Technology Artificial Intelligence Machine Learning LLMs AI agents Developer Tools Software Engineering
  1. AGI means an AI that can learn many different tasks and perform many things at least as well as a typical human — it doesn't require sentience or being a superintelligence.
  2. Progress toward AGI will rely more on post-training learning: agents that can learn after deployment, retain skills, and build or use tools, rather than just bigger pretraining runs.
  3. Narrow AGI will appear in specific domains soon via agents that learn and share useful skills while keeping private data local, but these systems will still have clear limits and won't replace all human abilities.

What’s up with…? - Part 4: Douyin Local Services

Tech Buzz China Insider • 279 implied HN points • 17 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Social media E-commerce Updates
  1. Douyin, the Chinese sibling of TikTok, has expanded its reach by offering local services to its huge user base.
  2. The competition between Douyin and Meituan highlights the aggressive nature of Chinese internet companies.
  3. This update showcases a possible future for TikTok as it follows the path charted by Douyin in monetizing and expanding its services.

Why does the Ancient Technology Matter?

kamilkazani • 412 implied HN points • 14 Nov 23
🕹 Technology Military Supply Chains Market Dynamics Monopolies
  1. Strategic thinking often overlooks the significance of ancient technology in military production chains.
  2. Ancient technology can create major bottlenecks in military production due to path dependency and market fluctuations.
  3. Major military powers like the US, Russia, and China may be stuck with small, monopolistic suppliers that are key bottlenecks in their military production chains.

AI, or, Shifty Epistemics and Shaky Ontologies

Deep Fix • 491 implied HN points • 07 Jul 23
🕹 Technology AI Epistemology Ontology Digital economy Artificial General Intelligence
  1. AI technology can lead to a breakdown in how we know and understand information, potentially causing chaos and confusion.
  2. The use of AI in an era of eroding trust and extreme ideologies may worsen division and extremism in society.
  3. Concerns exist about the worldviews and intentions of individuals, especially men, behind AI technology, with fears of their impact on society and humanity.

450: Apple's iPhone Pricing, Hyperscalers, Google, Capital-Light Businesses, Rory Sutherland, Norway, Spotify AI, and Hitchcock

Liberty’s Highlights • 491 implied HN points • 27 Sep 23
🕹 Technology Apple AI Cloud Computing 3D Printing Nuclear power
  1. Adjusted for inflation, the iPhone 15 is the most affordable since the original in 2007.
  2. The White House may require cloud companies to disclose AI customers for security
  3. Google paid Apple a massive estimated $120 billion since 2010 to be the default search on iOS.

449: Amazon + Anthropic, TSMC AZ, Costco, Xero Shoes, Microsoft + Activision, Bloomberg for Sale, AI Copyright, and The Bear

Liberty’s Highlights • 491 implied HN points • 25 Sep 23
🕹 Technology AI Cloud Computing Tech investment Tech industry
  1. The author is incorporating strength training into their routine by researching equipment like dumbbells and a bench for a home gym setup.
  2. Obsessing over equipment can distract from the main goal of strength training, but having a convenient home setup may lead to more consistent workouts.
  3. Soap is a relatively recent invention in human history, dating back around five thousand years, significantly changing personal hygiene practices.

Join me on Notes

The Fintech Blueprint • 491 implied HN points • 15 Apr 23
🕹 Technology Social media
  1. Notes on Substack is a new way to share links, posts, quotes, photos, and more.
  2. Visit substack.com/notes to join the platform and interact with content.
  3. Subscribers to Fintech Blueprint automatically see notes; can like, reply, or share.

Reflections in a Puddle

Fragmentary • 491 implied HN points • 14 Apr 23
🕹 Technology AI Ethics Society Culture Language
  1. Interacting with ChatGPT highlights its limitations and lack of true artificial intelligence.
  2. The hype around large language models as AI may be misleading; they are more like well-executed information tools.
  3. Adding new technologies has societal consequences that should be considered and policies set accordingly.

Online Safety Act: What went wrong

The Rectangle • 226 implied HN points • 01 Aug 25
🕹 Technology Online safety Regulation Privacy Censorship Consumption
  1. The Online Safety Act aimed to protect kids from harmful content online, but it's very hard to enforce. Laws are only effective if there are systems in place to ensure compliance.
  2. Age verification requirements put a lot of personal data at risk without clear privacy protections. People might not trust websites to handle this sensitive information safely.
  3. Regulators need to see online issues as cultural problems, not just technical ones. Education and changing public attitudes are key to keeping kids safe online.

⤴⤵ Up Wing/Down Wing #51

Faster, Please! • 274 implied HN points • 05 Jul 25
🕹 Technology Innovation Health tech Energy Materials science Artificial Intelligence
  1. The US is speeding up its review process for new nuclear reactors, which could help increase energy efficiency and reduce waste. This new reactor design aims to start construction in 2026.
  2. There's a new material called Superwood made from waste wood that could replace steel and plastic in many products. It’s strong, lightweight, and could even be used in things like flying cars.
  3. A new mRNA flu vaccine from Moderna shows stronger results than the regular flu shot, especially for older adults. This could lead to better protection during flu seasons.

Data Science Weekly - Issue 542

Data Science Weekly Newsletter • 139 implied HN points • 12 Apr 24
🕹 Technology Data science AI Machine Learning Programming Analytics
  1. This newsletter provides links and updates about data science, AI, and machine learning. It's a helpful resource for anyone wanting to stay informed in this field.
  2. One article teaches how to handle real questions using Python, which is great for people wanting practical coding skills. Another discusses techniques to make sure AI outputs stay on task.
  3. The newsletter also features resources and courses to help people learn and improve their skills in data science and related areas. It's a good place to find learning opportunities.

Claude 4 and Anthropic's bet on code

Democratizing Automation • 332 implied HN points • 27 May 25
🕹 Technology AI Models Software Engineering Machine Learning Data science Tech industry
  1. Claude 4 is a strong AI model from Anthropic, focused on coding and software tasks. It has a unique personality and improved performance over its predecessors.
  2. The benchmarks for Claude 4 might not look impressive compared to others like ChatGPT and Gemini, which could affect its market position. It's crucial for Anthropic to show real-world utility beyond just numbers.
  3. Anthropic aims to lead in software development, but they fall behind in general benchmarks. This may limit their ability to compete with bigger players like OpenAI and Google in the race for advanced AI.

Which Steam games 'won' revenue again in 2023?

The GameDiscoverCo newsletter • 255 implied HN points • 29 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Gaming Digital Markets Game Development App Store Virtual reality
  1. Steam ranked top games by gross revenue in 2023 based on 'Platinum', 'Gold', 'Silver', and 'Bronze' tiers
  2. Around 35% of the top revenue games in 2023 were new releases; games generally needed at least $20 million gross to make the rankings
  3. Deep Rock Galactic saw increased sales in 2023, success with cosmetic DLC, and plans for spinoff games

Week #1: Getting Started With Conformal Prediction For Classification

Mindful Modeler • 1018 implied HN points • 20 Dec 22
🕹 Technology Machine Learning Data Analysis Predictive Modeling Python AI
  1. Model predictions should consider uncertainty to make informed decisions. Decisions relying only on point predictions can be risky.
  2. Conformal prediction is a method that can provide rigorous uncertainty scores, giving probabilistic guarantees of covering the true outcome.
  3. Conformal prediction is simple to apply, often with just 3 lines of code. It is model-agnostic, distribution-free, and comes with coverage guarantees.

Grok 3 and an accelerating AI roadmap

Democratizing Automation • 554 implied HN points • 18 Feb 25
🕹 Technology AI Machine Learning Innovation Software Data science
  1. Grok 3 is a new AI model that's designed to compete with existing top models. It aims to improve quickly, with updates happening daily.
  2. There's increasing competition in the AI field, which is pushing companies to release their models faster, leading to more powerful AI becoming available to users sooner.
  3. Current evaluations of AI models might not be very practical or useful for everyday life. It's important for companies to share more about their evaluation processes to help users understand AI advancements.

⤴⤵ Up Wing/Down Wing #26

Faster, Please! • 822 implied HN points • 23 Nov 24
🕹 Technology AI Robotics Military Tech Genetics Space
  1. A robotics startup called Physical Intelligence is worth over $2 billion for creating AI-controlled robots that can do complex tasks like folding clothes. They use advanced technology that makes robots smarter and more capable.
  2. Trump is working with a startup called Anduril to improve the US military by adopting new technologies and cutting unnecessary costs. This shows a shift towards more innovative approaches in defense.
  3. Scientists have made tomatoes sweeter and bigger using a method called CRISPR. This could lead to tastier fruits in stores and lower production costs for things like tomato paste.

Who should control AI?

The Novelleist • 336 implied HN points • 20 May 25
🕹 Technology AI Ethics Corporate Governance Tech regulation Employee Rights
  1. Who controls AI is a big question. It matters because the interests of investors and the mission of nonprofits can clash, affecting how AI is developed.
  2. Some suggest that employees should have more control over companies, especially in tech. They understand how to make sure technology is used safely and ethically.
  3. Having a board made up of employees could help hold CEOs accountable. If a CEO acts unethically, employees could step in and make changes to protect the company's values.

Methinks the chip-god doth protest too much

Alex's Personal Blog • 65 implied HN points • 26 Nov 25
🕹 Technology AI Semiconductors Startups Market Trends Chip Manufacturing
  1. Nvidia is experiencing huge revenue growth, but market sentiment is turning negative despite their strong performance. People are questioning if they'll keep leading in AI technology.
  2. There is a growing need for more domestic shipbuilding in the U.S., and startup Valstad is aiming to significantly boost America's ship production capabilities.
  3. Bitcoin's value can sometimes move independently from traditional stocks, showing it can be a different type of investment, but it has recently been performing poorly compared to the Nasdaq.

DACs and ADCs, or there and back again

lcamtuf’s thing • 1836 implied HN points • 19 Feb 24
🕹 Technology Electronics Microcontrollers
  1. Digital circuits often require digital-to-analog and analog-to-digital converters to interface with the physical world.
  2. For digital-to-analog conversion, architectures like binary-weighted DACs and R-2R DACs are commonly used, but the latter addresses practical issues with resistor values.
  3. Analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) can be complex, involving methods like flash ADCs and slope-based ADCs, which use principles like comparison, integration, and sigma-delta modulation for accurate voltage readings.

A Sample-to-Answer DNA Sequencer (FLP-L50)

ASeq Newsletter • 7 implied HN points • 17 Feb 26
🕹 Technology Genomics Sequencing Diagnostics Biotechnology Medical Devices
  1. The MGI FLP-L50 is a highly integrated sample-to-answer DNA sequencer that combines many steps into one device.
  2. It takes a different approach from other sample-to-answer sequencers previously discussed, offering a unique level of integration.
  3. The instrument reportedly has strong sales in China, suggesting commercial traction in that market.

All you need is Wide Events, not “Metrics, Logs and Traces”

A Song Of Bugs And Patches • 224 HN points • 15 Feb 24
🕹 Technology Observability Systems Events Metrics
  1. The concept of 'Wide Events' is proposed as a simpler and more effective approach to observability than the traditional 'Metrics, Logs, and Traces'.
  2. Older systems like Open Telemetry may contribute to confusion by categorizing data into distinct pillars, making observability seem complex.
  3. A system like Scuba, based on 'Wide Events', enables streamlined investigation and data exploration, emphasizing the importance of simplicity in observability tools.

Issue #5 - Data’s Growth Problem: Losing the Audience

The Data Ecosystem • 99 implied HN points • 12 May 24
🕹 Technology AI Tools Data Strategy Business Intelligence Data Governance
  1. Data growth is huge but understanding it is lagging behind. Even though we generate tons of data daily, many people and businesses struggle to truly grasp what it means.
  2. Organizations often rely too much on consultants and vendors for quick fixes instead of addressing the core issues of their data practices. This can lead to overspending and not solving the deeper problems.
  3. To benefit from data, companies need to focus on building strong foundations like data governance and internal capabilities. It's important to think long-term instead of prioritizing quick solutions.

Building a technical career path at Spotify

It Depends / Nimble Autonomy • 19 implied HN points • 11 Aug 24
🕹 Technology Career development Engineering Company Culture Leadership
  1. Spotify emphasizes that career paths should fit the company's culture. Using a framework from another company often doesn't work well.
  2. Creating a career path framework should happen after seeing a real need for it, rather than forcing it too early in a company's growth.
  3. The Spotify model focuses on team success and personal growth, not just climbing a ladder. It encourages diverse development without penalizing role changes.