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Their introduction follows several women speaking out about their experiences of sexual harassment and assault at the 2024 event.Read More

David Reger, founder and CEO of Munich-based Neura Robotics, is building humanoid robots — and a reputation with a touch of déjà vu. In the German press, he’s sometimes dubbed the “Young Elon Musk.”  It’s a nickname Reger embraces, despite all of the controversy surrounding the world’s richest man. “For me, it’s a positive, not a negative,” he told TNW in an interview. “I respect how Musk builds companies, how successful he is, how fearless he is to drive things further.” Musk’s politics, Reger continues, aren’t the focus of his admiration. “I’m just thinking about technological advancement and how to…

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Or just read more coverage about: TeslaRead More

Data becomes information when at least one of two related things are true:

1. We learn something for next time
2. We make different decisions or take new actions

If you’re not getting one of these things, then the data is simply noise. A distraction that wastes our time and confuses us.

Breaking news is up to the recipient.

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The reason that most memos, speeches and edicts fall flat is simple: we get stuck on the idea that we’re talking to a crowd.

When we’re speaking or writing, the crowd is just an illusion. What’s actually happening is that there is one person over there, another over there, repeated again and again until it’s easier to imagine it’s a mass audience.

The alternative method is simple: find one person, exactly one, and write to them, allowing the others to listen in.

Embrace the tone of voice, body posture, breathing style and punctuation you’d use on just one person. You and me, here and now.

If it’s not going to work for one person, why do think it will work on a crowd?

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Sophie Rucker had been living and working in London for five years when a trip to a yoga training school in Bali presented her with an alternative to the rat race. Despite enjoying life in London, witnessing digital nomads balance work with sun, sea, and relaxed vibes in the Indonesian island province prompted her to pursue more freelance work.  At the start of 2020, having set herself up as a communications strategist for NGOs and social impact organisations, Sophie quit her permanent role and moved to Bali. Despite the uncertainty of the progressing pandemic, she found the space she needed…

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AI models primarily use a text or speech interface.

Type what you want and it types back. Say what you want it talks back.

This is fancy, a breakthrough, a little showy. And if the user brings the right skills, it’s an extraordinary way to interact.

But the AI UX people (the few that are paying attention, not simply racing to keep up with the engineers) are missing an opportunity.

People prefer multiple choice to essay exams. Go to a restaurant without a menu and people get stressed. They either order something simple or are filled with regret about what could have been.

When the AI prompts us (instead of us prompting the AI), faster progress is possible. When the AI suggests four or five appropriate paths, we’re more likely to consider more options. Building that sort of UX in from the start makes it more likely we’ll expect it.

When all you have is a hammer, everything is a nail. When we design a menu, especially one that changes with context, we get a chance to challenge the user to create variety, possibility and progress.

PS if you’re not using the latest AI models, you’re falling behind. I’m seeing very senior people who are ignoring what’s happening, and the gap is widening. It’s probably worth some time to play with Claude and others.

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The collapse of Builder.ai exposes the growing threat of “FOMO investing,” according to an expert in tech growth intelligence. Builder had become one of Britain’s best-funded startups, but is now filing for bankruptcy due to financial problems. The insolvency comes after enormous sums were invested into the business. Big-name backers including Microsoft and Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund had poured a total of over $500mn into the startup, which aimed to simplify software development with AI. The funding gave Builder a coveted unicorn status, with a valuation exceeding $1.3bn. But the eye-watering sums couldn’t keep the business afloat. Builder blamed the…

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The think tank develops research and tech tools to support free expression, digital safety, and access to information for all.Read More

Fox and IndyCar put faces to Indianapolis 500 with Macy’s, Letterman, and a sprawling campaign.Read More

Not all customers are fans. And not all fans are the sort of customers you can thrive with.

Cadres of supporters often migrate into one of two camps…

The generous stans (a more positive riff from a twenty-year-old Eminem track), are there for the work and the change being made, all the time. It’s a form of support, but more than that, identity. Tribes with leaders, making a difference supporting each other and spreading the word. (These are the ‘true’ fans.)

And the cranky fans, who know that they have found a place where they will be heard, and who use that opportunity to split hairs and find something to be disappointed with. They are cranky because they care, but they’re also cranky because it gives them power.

They’ll happily pirate the software, argue about a launch strategy, demand comp tickets to the event and reserve their conversations for other insiders, instead of spreading the word. They point out that the galvanic isolation in the new breakthrough product could have been even more sophisticated, or that the unreleased album is much better than this one… One of the most common complaints is that the hypothetical perfect imagined by a fan is so much better than the actually productive and powerful good created for them. “I’m your best customer” is what they might say, when they’re not at all.

Their status comes from their insider knowledge and longevity combined with an air of aloof superiority. (These fans are sometimes called employees, voters or critics).

One reason for the split is that some creators and small businesses respond to early fan response by doing things to the audience (cashing out) as opposed to working to do things with and for them (leading). It puts some fans on the defensive, even if this particular creator has made the difficult decision to stick with the mission.

When Kevin Kelly coined the term 1,000 True Fans fifteen years ago, he was describing more than fandom. He was articulating how the long tail could become a generative, resilient force for creators to create, and for fans to benefit. Without a mass market driving production, we could move toward a world of delightful niches, where small companies could thrive serving (relatively) small audiences.

This is the unheralded force behind important non-profits, tech companies, and creators of all kinds. Not mattering a little to the masses, but mattering a lot to a focused group, one that supports the work and spreads the word.

Choose your fans, choose your future.

I’m regularly amazed and delighted at how thoughtful and connected the readers of my work are. I learn from you every day, and I’m thrilled at the leadership my readers bring to their communities. I couldn’t ask for a more engaged, thoughtful and generous audience.

At the same time, I see small businesses and creators that I care about struggling, simply because their fans are not only taking them for granted, they’re becoming entitled and insular as well. When fans commit to a movement and help it grow, they benefit. Not every group is going to become a movement, but if we don’t bring others along, we’re not going to make a change happen. Movements move.

The problem with taking something we care about for granted is that we don’t get to do it for long.

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