Curated Commons // Edition 107
Thank you for subscribing (if you have already, and if you haven’t, subscribe now!). Welcome to the 107th edition of Curated Commons. Happy reading, and do pass on the newsletter and share it on your social networks if you find it interesting! It’s free! Both dollar-free and ad-free.
Let’s dive right in ($ indicates potential paywall).
Humans Vs Augmented Humans
The furore in the world of Chess is worth following. The fight supposedly is between a human and an augmented human who might have received support from an algorithm - Read here ($)
A crazy space idea
The Hubble has been slowly falling. Can we raise it back to its orbit? A billionaire and SpaceX are exploring. Fascinating. - Read here ($)
The future is already here. Not at full resolution though.
Meta introduced an AI system that allows you to make videos from text. In the future, everybody is well and truly a creator. - See here
AI + Laser for exterminating cockroaches
Researchers interested in AI and engineering used machine vision and a laser to exterminate cockroaches. Need this as a wearable but for mosquitos (and probably lot more species!) - Read here
Will you be OK to be operated by a robot?
Good piece on how surgical robots are moving from being extended arms of surgeons to independent machines. Will they find acceptance though, both from regulators and patients? - Read here ($)
Winner takes all is coming, slowly, to music. Or is it?
The average song is staying on Spotify charts for much more time than earlier. It’s harder to generate hits. But when hits come, they stay relevant for longer than ever before. - Read here ($)
AI is eating the voiceover artist
The person behind the voice of Darth Vader is retiring. The voice of Darth Vader will not. Thanks to AI. - Read here
Airline food should not wobble
That was one thing I learnt from this amusing piece on the extent that big airlines are going to woo the business and first class passenger with gourmet food. - Read here ($)
Remote work will hurt buildings, older ones more
“A study this year by professors at Columbia University and New York University estimated that lower tenant demand because of remote work may cut 28%, or $456 billion, off the value of offices across the US. About 10% of that would be in New York City alone.” - Read here ($)
Should you worry about big tech or big brother?
A popular Brazilian food delivery app has ~80% market share. Lots of complaints on treatment of employees and pricing. So the Rio De Janerio Govt built an app to take it on. Critics argued that it creates unfair competition and it was shut. - Read here
More interesting reads:
Talk about epic goof-ups. How CIA failed Iranian informants - Read here
“I got rich by betting that inequality would destroy the U.S. and U.K. I’m sorry” - Read here
“Imagine founding the most quickly minted unicorn in history, spending $22 million on a former Venezuelan drug trafficker’s Miami mansion, and then realizing your stake in the company is now worth less than your house.” - Read here
Zero trust systems are coming in, whether we like them or not - Read here ($)
This week, I was asked to validate a delivery of a sub Rs.100/- product with an OTP. Companies are simply replacing risk assessment systems with an OTP. Won’t end well
Stay safe, and happy reading! And if you liked the newsletter, thank you, and maybe consider sharing it? My DMs on Twitter are always open for any feedback.