Gemini 2 🤖, Mac Mini's moment 🖥️, engineering org design 👨💻
TLDR 2024-10-28
📱Big Tech & Startups
Google plans to announce its next Gemini model soon (10 minute read)
Google is aiming to release its next major Gemini model in December. Gemini 2.0 will be widely released at the outset as opposed to being rolled out in phases. While the model isn't showing the performance gains experts had hoped for, it will likely still have some interesting new capabilities. It appears that the top AI developers will continue to race to release ever-bigger and more expensive models even as performance improvements start leveling off.
This is the Mac Mini's big moment (2 minute read)
Apple's Mac Mini's dimensions have remained the same since 2010, when it still had an optical drive. The incredible efficiency of Apple's new chips allows for all sorts of hardware designs that were technically unfeasible a handful of years ago. The new M4-powered Mac Mini is rumored to have a footprint similar to that of the Apple TV. The M4 Pro variant will include a total of five USB-C ports and an HDMI port, but will not have a USB-A port.
🚀Science & Futuristic Technology
Award-Winning Image Reveals a Hidden Culprit Behind Alzheimer's (2 minute read)
A neuroscientist at Augusta University has captured the precise moment brain tumor cells from mice interact in images by staining cellular components to reveal disruptions in support and transport structures. The research revealed how disruptions in a protein linking two cytoskeleton components together result in damage to the transport system, similar to what is seen in neurodegenerative diseases. Restoring normal cytoskeleton actin and myosin levels allowed the cells to transport their components normally again. The study shows how scientific imaging can help expose biological mysteries.
Humans Are Evolving Right Before Our Eyes on The Tibetan Plateau (4 minute read)
Humans living in the high altitudes of the Tibetan Plateau, where oxygen levels in the air are notably lower than where humans usually live, have changed in ways that allow them to make the most of their atmosphere. Their adaptations maximize oxygen delivery to cells and tissues without thickening the blood. These traits developed due to ongoing natural selection. Learning about populations like these helps scientists better grasp the processes of human evolution.
💻Programming, Design & Data Science
Should JavaScript be split into two languages? New Google-driven proposal divides opinion (3 minute read)
A proposal to split JavaScript into two languages has been presented to Emca TC39, the official standardization committee. The proposal argues that the foundational technology of JavaScript should be simple because security flaws and the complexity cost of the runtimes affect billions of users. New language features only benefit developers and applications that actually use those features to their advantage - adding them almost always worsens security, performance, and stability. The proposal suggests changing JavaScript's approach to one where most new features are implemented in tooling rather than in the JavaScript engines.
Typeset (Website)
Typeset is an HTML pre-processor for web typography that provides typographic features used traditionally in fine printing. It features real hanging punctuation, optical margin alignment, small caps detection, soft hyphen insertion, and punctuation substitution. Typeset doesn't require any client-side JavaScript and uses less than a kilobyte of CSS. Examples are available on the website.
🎁Miscellaneous
Eng org seniority-mix model (9 minute read)
One of the trademarks of private equity ownership is the expectation that either the company maintains its current margin and grows revenue at 25-30% or instead grow slower and increase its free cash flow year over year. Engineering costs have a major impact on free cash flow in many organizations. One of the largest contributors to engineering headcount costs is an organization's seniority mix. This article looks at how various policies impact an organization's seniority mix. To create a healthy seniority mix, stop hiring at senior-most levels, implement a 'backfill at N-1' policy, and cap the maximum number of individuals at the senior-most level.
Why OpenAI's $157B valuation misreads AI's future (14 minute read)
OpenAI's $6.6 billion fundraise earlier this month was a statement about where AI will create value and who stands to capture it. Its investors are betting that AI is so transformative that the usual rules of focus and specialization don't apply - the first company to achieve AGI will win everything. However, there are many barriers to overcome before its goal can be achieved. This article looks at the challenges that OpenAI faces and where the most promising opportunities in AI for investors and startups lie. New technologies, no matter how revolutionary, don't automatically translate into sustainable businesses.
⚡Quick Links
Android 16 could get iPhone-like ‘ongoing' notifications (1 minute read)
The Rich Ongoing Notifications API gives Android developers the ability to keep persistent notifications in the Android status bar.
Our optimizers need a rethink (8 minute read)
A look at optimizers, where they fail, and how to make them better.
The company behind Arc is now building a second, much simpler browser (3 minute read)
The Browser Company is working on a more proactive, powerful, and AI-centric browser.
Federal Investigators Probe Cryptocurrency Firm Tether (4 minute read)
Tether is being investigated for possible violations of sanctions and anti-money-laundering rules.
Alphabet's self-driving unit Waymo closes $5.6 billion funding round as robotaxi race heats up in the U.S. (3 minute read)
Waymo is the only company testing autonomous vehicles that operates a commercial robotaxi service in several major metro areas.
Security bugs engulf ShipFast, a popular indie hacker's product, in drama (5 minute read)
An indie hacker has been publicly posting about ShipFast's vulnerabilities, sparking debates about the unwritten rules around bug reporting.