The hottest Digital Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Business Topics

Brief: Pentagon's new AI chief is former Google Trust & Safety exec who previously helped guide U.S. special operations

All-Source Intelligence Fusion • 561 implied HN points • 14 Mar 24
🕹 Technology AI Digital Artificial Intelligence Machine Learning Social media
  1. Radha Iyengar Plumb, a former Google Trust & Safety exec, will become the Pentagon's new Chief Digital and AI Officer in April, replacing Craig Martell.
  2. Iyengar Plumb has had a diverse career, transitioning from a professor to roles at RAND, the National Security Council, Google, Facebook, and now the Pentagon.
  3. Executives like Iyengar Plumb moving between tech companies like Google and roles in the defense and intelligence community highlights the intersecting realms of technology and national security.
Get a weekly roundup of the best Substack posts, by hacker news affinity:

The Innovation Bargain

The Absent-Minded Professor • 314 implied HN points • 23 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Innovation Digital Artificial Intelligence Social media Ethics
  1. Innovation always comes with tradeoffs - think about whether they are worth it.
  2. The Innovation Bargain is about freedom and limitation - new technologies enable us but also limit choices.
  3. Understanding the Innovation Bargain is crucial in our technology-driven society - be mindful of the impact of technology on human flourishing.

Fintech: How Brex and other fintechs are streamlining their organizations

The Fintech Blueprint • 235 implied HN points • 29 Jan 24
💼 Business Fintech Employment Investing Operations Digital
  1. Brex announced a 20% reduction in its workforce, aligning with a broader fintech trend of operational streamlining.
  2. Fintech industry is becoming leaner due to funding cuts and emphasis on profitability.
  3. Despite significant job cuts in tech, the general unemployment rate remains below 4%, indicating a luxury funding problem.

Forthcoming Book, Latest Interviews, and AI Armageddon

SINGULARITY WEEKLY • 1356 implied HN points • 02 Apr 23
🕹 Technology AI Digital Interviews Book Ethics
  1. There are concerns about the risks and impact of advanced AI technology on society.
  2. Multiple experts are calling for a halt to the development of powerful AI systems due to potential negative consequences.
  3. The rapid advancement of AI technology is causing panic and hysteria as global leaders struggle to address the potential threats posed by AI.

Uploading Instagram Videos with 94% LESS CPU

Byte-Sized Design • 58 implied HN points • 11 Feb 24
🕹 Technology Social media Video Compression Engineering Digital
  1. Instagram improved video uploading efficiency by compressing videos first to progressive encodings and then converting them to adaptive-bit-rate videos, saving 94% of resources.
  2. The challenge for Instagram was to support various video formats for different devices while minimizing resource consumption and CPU usage.
  3. Insightful optimization was achieved by realizing that progressive and adaptive bit rate encodings could use the same codec, streamlining the encoding process to focus on scalability.

Amazon's $43B ad business, explained

SatPost by Trung Phan • 329 implied HN points • 01 Sep 23
💼 Business Advertising E-commerce Digital Tech Investing
  1. Amazon's ad business has grown significantly, reaching a revenue run rate of $43 billion annually, surpassing other social media platforms.
  2. Amazon's shift towards embracing ads was influenced by the need to reduce dependence on Google search slots and utilize its valuable first-party transaction data.
  3. Amazon ads have become highly profitable and could rival its AWS business in terms of generating absolute profits, signaling a significant shift in the digital advertising landscape.

Structured Missingness

Cybernetic Forests • 179 implied HN points • 08 Oct 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Archives Digital
  1. Archives can only preserve what exists, leading to the structured missingness of information when elements are erased or decayed.
  2. In Machine Learning, the concept of 'structured missingness' refers to the impact of absent data on the neural network's connective contours.
  3. Diffusion models accelerate decay and obliterate information in images, creating patterns of missingness that merge the analog with the digital.

Two months til Filterworld / a new project

Kyle Chayka Industries • 115 implied HN points • 19 Nov 23
🎭️ Culture Books Media Digital Community Newsletter
  1. The book 'Filterworld' by Kyle Chayka aims to explore rejecting digital algorithms and reclaiming humanity.
  2. Engaging with the book 'Filterworld' before its release can help boost its visibility and success.
  3. Kyle Chayka is starting a new project called 'One Thing' to focus on cultivating reader loyalty and curating authentic digital experiences.

Disney Loves (and Hates) Public Domain

SatPost by Trung Phan • 53 implied HN points • 05 Jan 24
💼 Business Copyright Entertainment Laws Digital Creativity
  1. Disney lost copyright on the 1928 'Steamboat Willie' version of Mickey Mouse, showing their contradictory relationship with public domain.
  2. Disney is a major user of public domain content but also supports copyright extension laws to protect their own works.
  3. The tension between copyright and creativity lies in finding the right balance for how long protections for works should last.

Cultural Memory in the Digital

GOOD INTERNET • 17 implied HN points • 22 Feb 24
🎭️ Culture History Digital Memory Identity
  1. Cultural memory in the digital realm is different than traditional cultures, as the digital lacks mechanisms for long-term cultural memory.
  2. The digital environment is ever-changing and lacks the ability to canonize cultural artifacts, leading to a constant flux that challenges societal identity formation.
  3. Without reliable mechanisms for cultural memory in the digital age, there is a risk of losing collective identity and facing ongoing culture wars over historical meanings.

The long, slow death of the TV schedule

How To Measure Ghosts • 117 implied HN points • 19 Sep 23
🕹 Technology Media Streaming TV Broadcasting Digital
  1. Linear scheduled TV viewing is declining, with younger audiences preferring streaming over traditional TV channels.
  2. Traditional TV business models are facing challenges and potential changes, like rebundling and collaborations among broadcasters.
  3. PSBs are adapting to the shift towards streaming by implementing new services, like Freely, to maintain relevance and audience attention.

The Postfictional Eerie

GOOD INTERNET • 13 implied HN points • 20 Feb 24
🎭️ Culture AI Digital Narratives Internet Art
  1. The digital realm constantly challenges our perception of reality and intent in what we see, read, and hear.
  2. Artificial intelligence's ability to correlate vast amounts of data blurs the lines between fiction and reality, creating eerie and weird experiences.
  3. Our interactions with AI and the digital world lead to a post-fictional era where the boundaries between what's real and fictional become increasingly blurred, creating an unsettling and eerie atmosphere.

Supply AND Demand

Knowledge Problem • 235 implied HN points • 05 May 23
🔬 Science Energy Technology Economics Environment Digital
  1. Market value is determined by the interaction of supply and demand, allowing for price discovery.
  2. The traditional assumption in the electricity industry of fixed supply catering to demand is becoming obsolete due to digital technologies enabling flexible demand.
  3. Digital technologies and dynamic pricing are empowering consumers to have more control over their electricity bills and contribute to a greener future.

Jobs and Opps at openDemocracy, BBC Science Focus, FITV, PinkNews, and Many, Many More 🎄

Journo Resources - The Opportunities • 39 implied HN points • 12 Dec 23
💼 Business Jobs Media Writing Journalism Digital
  1. The post shares job opportunities at various organizations including openDemocracy, BBC Science Focus, and more.
  2. There was a festive Christmas party held for the Journo Resources team to celebrate and connect in person.
  3. The newsletter is a thank you to the team for their hard work and vision for a better media landscape.

Pro photography isn’t dead; it isn’t even sick

Perfecting Equilibrium • 58 implied HN points • 02 Apr 23
🎨 Art & Illustration Photography Film Digital Authenticity Blockchain
  1. Professional photography is evolving with technology, focusing more on fast impact visuals for online consumption.
  2. The essence of photography lies in capturing memories and moments, not just producing technically perfect images.
  3. Movies and videos won't replace still photography as the power of photography is in freezing the decisive moment for study and reflection.

AI vs. Humans

aidaily • 19 implied HN points • 12 Oct 23
🕹 Technology AI Chatbots Digital Tools Software
  1. AI cannot replace human creativity, innovation, and mentorship in the workplace.
  2. Some organizations are taking steps to protect their content from being misused by AI.
  3. While some AI applications are generating high revenues, others are facing challenges in sustaining growth.

The Great Climate Tech Debate – “Digital” or “Frontier”?

Equal Ventures • 39 implied HN points • 04 Mar 23
🕹 Technology Climate Investing Digital Startups
  1. The capital flow and returns in the cleantech market show that digital investments have outperformed frontier investments, with digital returning close to 3x the capital invested.
  2. Frontier tech companies in cleantech have faced challenges with manufacturing, production delays, and advancing technologies, leading to significant failures and losses.
  3. Successful companies in the cleantech bubble focused on digital and consumer products, leveraged existing technology for better user experience, and built strong brand relationships.

War in an Era of Intelligent Machines: Stirrups, Conoidal Bullets, 3D Printers, Lunar Nukes and Special Ops Forces

Dr. Pippa's Pen & Podcast • 19 implied HN points • 19 Mar 23
🕹 Technology Digital 3D Printing AI Military technology Automation
  1. Technological advancements in the digital era are changing warfare dynamics rapidly.
  2. Historical innovations like metal stirrups and conoidal bullets have had significant impacts on military strategy.
  3. The shift towards automation and AI in warfare highlights a philosophical split between the East and the West.

AI, again

So Here’s a Thing • 1 HN point • 13 Feb 24
🕹 Technology AI Creativity Ethics Innovation Digital
  1. AI is used in various ways: from information aggregation to generating large pieces of text or images. It's essential to differentiate between the different levels of AI applications.
  2. Credit and compensation in the creative industry pose challenges in the era of AI. Determining the boundaries between inspiration and replication can be complex.
  3. Practicing pragmatism in dealing with AI as a creator is crucial. Adapting to the presence of AI while striving to maintain human creativity and growth is a balancing act.

6. Dancing between the physical and digital; big tech and macroeconomics

Insight Axis • 19 implied HN points • 03 Nov 22
🕹 Technology Digital Macroeconomics Tech Companies Information processing Big Tech
  1. Digital innovation is faster and more flexible than physical innovation, making digital iteration more efficient.
  2. Translating between the physical and digital worlds is essential, requiring 'on-ramps' for data input and 'off-ramps' for implementation.
  3. Information processing is crucial, with 'ramps' serving as gatekeepers between physical and digital realms in big tech and macroeconomics.

VOL 57: From Gutenberg to Google: How the Printing Press Shaped the Digital Age

MAP's Tech Newsletter. • 4 implied HN points • 18 Feb 23
🕹 Technology Innovation Internet Communication Digital Information
  1. The printing press revolutionized access to knowledge by making books more affordable and paved the way for the development of the Internet.
  2. Both the printing press and the Internet facilitated rapid spread of information and decentralized gatekeeping, impacting society in unforeseen ways.
  3. The impact of innovations like the printing press and the Internet on society is closely related to the speed and scale of communication they enable, influencing human technology and knowledge sharing.

The book is online

Digital Epidemiology • 0 implied HN points • 28 Mar 23
📚 Literature Digital Epidemiology
  1. The book 'Digital Epidemiology' is now available online at www.digitalepibook.com.
  2. Seven out of ten chapters have been released, with more to come.
  3. There may be an additional chapter focusing on AI in digital epidemiology, depending on reader interest and publisher negotiations.